I have recently been prescribed naltrexone for alcohol cravings.

Where i live, like acamprosate the concensus is take it every day and it is supposed to curb the cravings and help you remain totally absintent....

However, with the sinclair method do i still take the naltrexone every single day, or only 1 hour before i am going to drink?

I will still continue to take acamprosate(campral) every day to curb cravings.

I was never an all day every day drinker, more like a "binge" drinker where when i start i can loose control and be drinking for 3, 4, 5 maybe more days, and then stop with withdrawals...

No matter how bad these "benders" seem to be, after days or weeks, when im fully recovered i always desire to drink alcohol again, and relapse over and over and over and over countless times, which is why i figured the sinclair method may be a great option for me alongside a support network

However, last night i took naltrexone and drank, i only had 6 beers, i would have drank more if it was there but it definitely wasnt as big a deal as normal that there was no more - went to bed and today im awake and sober...

I do have a slight craving for alcohol today but do not wish to drink, and will not drink today - so should i still take the naltrexone today?

For the record my goal is complete abstinence but since i keep slipping this is why i have chosen to use naltrexone in the hope that it will (through gaining no real buzz or loss of control from the alcohol), help me re-learn that there is no point what so ever in drinking, and kill the obsession or use of it as a coping mechanism

You really only NEED to take NAL on the days that you drink, 1 hour before you drink. However, when you first start TSM it is recommended that you take NAL everyday so that you have a good dose of NAL in your system all of the time. Do you have Dr. Eskapa's book? It is explained pretty well in the book.

FYI: Nal does not prevent you from getting drunk. You'll get just as drunk while taking Nal vs not taking it. What the Nal is doing is severing the reward system in our brains so that our brains dont get a shot of endorphins when we drink (which is the basis of the cravings). Some people report actually getting drunk quicker on NAL.

Q

Ok, so even though i was never an every day drinker, i should take naltrexone every day even on "off" days from alcohol...

This method is a method i wish to use to gain complete abstinence... IE, i am not going to take naltrexone and drink just because i feel like drinking, i try to get maximum days alcohol free, but there are days where the compulsion to drink is so strong that i cant control it, this is where i hope the nal can be of help...

My doctor had put me on 25mg nal every day but that was to curb cravings, he didnt mention taking naltrexone and drinking he said taking it with campral should help me remain abstinent, however after reading about TSM i wasnt sure whether to just take my campral every day to curb cravings and get as many alcohol free days as possible, but then if one of those days crops up where i just cant stay away then take 50mg an hour before hand?

The way that your Dr. prescribed you Naltrexone is not The Sinclair Method. Naltrexone is classified as a anti-craving medication. However, the research and trials that have been conducted with Naltrexone and drinking show that Naltrexone is pretty horrible as an anti-craving medication. As I think you are finding, NAL doesn't prevent you from drinking. If you search the forums, you will find specific references to this research. N101CS linked some of them here: viewforum.php?f=3

With that said; if your goal is to be abstinent now, then the last thing any of us here would do is recommend that you drink. What we will recommend is that if you do end up drinking, then take 50mg of NAL an hour before you drink.

The Sinclair Method (TSM) is something entirely different from what your Dr. has talked to you about. There is a video here by Dr. Sinclair describing TSM: hhttp://www.thesinclairmethod.net/commu ... 56e152d911

For even more information, get Dr. Eskapa's book off of Amazon titled "The Cure for Alcoholism". Some of the chapters of the book are provided free in PDF format here: viewtopic.php?f=3&t=6 I'd recommend you read Julia's Story, which is a first hand account of someone going through TSM.

Hope this helps.

Q

I understand what you are saying. my problem though is that even though my goal is abstinence, there are days where my cravings are so strong that i literally can not just "not drink" like people suggest.

for example today... the craving is getting stronger and stronger and i will probably drink later...

I have not had a drink for the past 2 days - but i did not take any naltrexone on those days... if i drink tonight i will make sure to take the naltrexone first, however my main question is since i am not a daily drinker and the days i do get cravings to drink are not every day, am i best just avoiding the naltrexone on days im not drinking, and making sure to take 50mg nal before i do on the days im going to?

I take campral every day and i think that helps with the abstinent days but then there are days where not drinking is just almost an impossible feat... so if its not useful as an anti-craving medication, im best just not taking it unless im going to drink alcohol?

Here is what the book says:

"If you are a weekend drinker, only take your medication on weekends. Do not take it during the week, unless of course you find yourself drinking during the week. If you drink every day, take your medication every day. If you drink six days a week, take it six times during the week, one hour before you have a drink. If you find you have the urge to drink and have accidentally had a drink without taking your medication, take your tablet immediately. Always keep the medication with you. Some people keep their medication on their person for years, even after choosing to abstain completely—just in case. "

As previously stated, many of us found it beneficial to take NAL everyday when we first started. However, as can be seen from Dr. Eskapa's book, you only need to take it before you drink.

Q

Thanks for your help man. I ended up taking a naltrexone about an hour ago because i knew the craving was going to be too much to handle, bought 6 beers and like the last time (2 nights ago) after taking nal, its very strange... the taste is there, everything is there except the "wow" factor... i can see how eventually this will lead me to abstinence because it makes drinking alcohol like drinking coca cola except i know i will get drunk, although being an alcoholic it makes the "drunk" feel extraordinarily useless and pointless...

its a very strange sensation but for a habitual relapser like myself this is exactly what ive been looking for because sooner or later my brain will reprogram itself to say "why go and waste your money on that when you know its going to do nothing for you anyway" and by "do nothing", i dont feel like i get my "fix" its ultra strange and very interesting

OK so a report...

3 nights ago i took naltrexone and bought 6 cans of beer... after the first-third cans i noticed it to be quite boring and no "buzz", but i proceeded to finish the 6... i would have drank more if it was there, a craving still existed but nowhere near as extreme as normal... after the third-6th cans there was a buzz and euphoria off the alcohol....

last night, i took naltrexone and bought 6 cans, again noticing that the first few wernt that great, no fix... but i finished them... i then proceeded to go and buy another 3, so i drank 9 in total... and i can remember thinking "il get up early and buy more tomorrow"... now... the hangover today is atrocious and there is no real craving, and im not going to buy more.. but im annoyed that i didnt just stick to the 6... and that that obsession came in to play - it definitely was there

my plan had been to work down from 6, down and down and down over time until im not interested any more but there is still a buzz after the first few... im wondering is this the cunning baffling way that it always gets me "lets me away with it" a few times so im feeling confident then BANG..

Zany

TSM takes time, many months to work. Do not worry so much, just take the Nal whenever you are going to drink. At first I took it every day because I couldn't be sure when the craving would hit, but like you I was more of a binge-drinker. The main thing are the cravings the next morning being taken away, that was one of the biggest things I noticed and still do notice even when I do go over the top a bit (which can happen but it never goes into the next day which is proof to me it works). It takes time to remove your addiction just as it took time to install it.