It's hard to say how it's affected my sense of taste. Everything seems to taste about the same as I remember, although something is definitely off. As for my "taste" (meaning my personal preference) I have been going for lighter stuff lately. The last few beers I've brought home from the store have been Sam Adams, Stella Artois, SNPA, and Red Hook Wit. I think there are many factors at work in the brain when it comes to the craving for alcohol versus the craving for a particular drink. I have established positive reinforcement over the years between the taste of [good] beer and the feeling that comes with it. I know this to be true because when I'm sober and the craving for alcohol hits me, it's always "I want a beer," rarely "I want a shot of rum," and never "I want some wine." I think catmattress is onto something with the idea that the draw toward IPA is in large part due to the typically higher alcohol content. I hated IPA at first, but after my brain learned that two pints of IPA get me to the same feeling of bliss that takes three pints of 5% beer to achieve, my taste preferences shifted until it eventually became my favorite. I still do enjoy IPAs, but as I have been drinking them much less frequently, and the naltrexone is in the mix screwing with my brain's ability to reinforce this behavior, my enthusiasm toward IPA has really plummeted.

Updated first post with progress.
Week 4: 59
Week 5: 65.5

Not much to report in terms of whether TSM is having any effect. Still drinking a lot. Still hung over every morning. My appetite is still pretty poor almost 24/7 and that particular side effect does not seem to be relenting.

I went to the doctor (not my regular one, walk-in clinic) yesterday for something unrelated and, as expected, the doctor wasn't too pleased when she found out I had started myself on naltrexone without a prescription. I had the misfortune of being assigned to a doctor who used to work in substance abuse. She had never heard of TSM, so I tried to explain it to her briefly. She was able to look up naltrexone on the computer and confirmed that it is indeed approved for this sort of treatment. She then proceeded to tell me that this approach only works for a small fraction of patients (in direct contradiction to every bit of evidence I've seen), and subsequently tried to convince me that I will never be able to drink in moderation and must start to think of myself as a "non-drinker" while consciously attempting to wean myself off alcohol altogether. This was about the fourth time I've had a doctor give me the "you have to quit drinking" lecture and she had nothing new to say, I've heard it all before. As I expected, this meant that we only spent about 1/4 of the appointment discussing the problem that I was actually seeking attention for. Frustrating.

It's still so early in the game, Ives (as you no doubt understand.) Just give it time. Nothing would be sweeter than to succeed where this so called 'specialist' is ignorant. Golden rule: Nal on! I wish you well in your valiant perseverance.

Week 6: 50

Over the last 7 days, I've averaged less than 7 per day. Week 6 was my lowest consumption since the first week.

Nice work, Ives! Hopefully you'll be able to prove to your doctor that she was wrong!

Things I am having trouble with:

1. Appetite. I had appetite issues before I started TSM, and adding the naltrexone on top of that tends to completely wreck my appetite after I take my dose. On Saturday, I ate less than 500 calories worth of food because I slept in late and took my dose within a couple hours of waking because I was going to a party.

2. Sex drive and sexual dysfunction. My lady friend comes over in the evening, looking to get physical with me, and if the naltrexone is in effect, I typically have little or no interest at all. It usually takes a lot of effort to even get feelings of arousal to happen at all in my brain after I've taken my dose. This has not been diminishing with time.

3. Tiredness and irritability. I'll often feel fine when I get home from work, but an hour or two after taking the naltrexone, I'm tired and in a disagreeable mood. This usually leads to me just sitting on the couch by myself watching TV and drinking. I also notice that my staying power is greatly reduced when I go to events where drinking is involved. I used to be able to just keep drinking and sort of "refuel" myself to keep going on into the night. Now I get tired and want to go to bed about 4-6 hours after taking my dose. I suppose that's actually a beneficial effect in terms of stopping me from drinking so much, but it's certainly unpleasant to deal with.

Still taking the pills, no plans to stop. Just reporting in on what I'm experiencing. Eyes on the prize.

Dear Ives,
I've got the same issue with tiredness on nal, a lot of the time. I suspect that perhaps that tiredness 4-6 hours in is what "normal" people would feel at a party, and thus leave? I'm guessing here, but I know that my ability to party all night long and somehow use alcohol as a stimulant was not exactly normal
I sometimes have the appetite thing as well, though not consistently. Have you tried getting most of your daily intake of food BEFORE taking nal? That's what I generally try and do ifI can.

Hello Ives. If you're anything like me, then 6-7 in a night feels one hell of a lot better in the morning than before. It's not great, but it makes a world of difference for me in being functional. I had a week of most 6 or so a night for almost a week, and I still felt relatively healthy during the days, so hope you enjoy that difference too.

I'm afraid I have to agree with you on number 2. Sex drive is definitely down on nal, and just sort of different in general. It does worry me a bit. Fortunately (?!?!) my wife is not the most libido laden lady in the world, so this puts me about par with her. Don't know what else to say about this for now. I guess I've sort of let this recede into the background because the most important thing for me was to feel back in control, but as that seems to be happening, this will start bothering me more. Kind of surprised this hasn't come up much for men on nal.

Number 3, yes, my ability to energize with alc is much diminished on nal, and I just accept that as the way it should be. I think being able to do that is the superpower to which the nal is kryptonite, and while it can be nice sometimes, I'll give it up if it means I can enjoy in moderation and have the bulk of my life back!

Hope you appetite kicks in. No problems for me with that really, but I've always been a good eater. (That's how would mom put it anway...)

The good news is that the more you progress with TSM, the less you drink and the less naltrexone side effects are an issue. And I'm no doctor and can't recommend dosage reductions, but for me, if I'm going to have just a few, then 25 mg works just fine...

I bought some 5-HTP and theanine supplements today after doing some research to indicate that these might help reduce the urge to drink. Took 50 mg 5-HTP and 100 mg theanine today. I'll report back with whether they're seeming to have any effect.