Do others notice that Nal makes you tired and maybe a bit removed feeling? It does this to me before I start to drink and that seems to stay with me. I am not as responsive to people I'm with -- a bit duller than usual. Especially if I'm already tired.

Tiller,
I've notice the same feelings, especially when already tired. For me at least it sure beats being the "life of the party" and being blind drunk. I've also noticed that this side effect has decreased over time.

Yes Tiller, I find that. Not sure if I'm really the soul of the party though or just a drunken arsehole... For me, the detachment's a good thing, I think.

I echo BWD and diver. I used to get manic energy from drinking, and now I feel the alcohol's depressant effect much, much more. I tend to get irritable a bit more quickly, as well. It's not ideal but it is better than getting so manic I end up black out drunk.

I first noticed the same thing as others here -- no real joy from it. I've noticed people in other threads say that they still feel buzzed from alcohol, though.

Perhaps we need to clarify what we mean by "buzzed." I'm pretty sure I was totally nonbuzzed. I don't think this is what it's like for normal drinkers, though, because if it is then I can't imagine why anyone would bother.

I didn't have any real emotional effects. I was a bit frustrated and agitated by not being able to get the hit my brain craved, but that's a normal/sensible response, so I wouldn't say the alcohol even affected my mood.

My husband wants to try drinking on nal once, to see what it's like. I dunno if it's wise to dork with one's brain chemistry for no reason, but nal is an extremely safe drug, so maybe it's okay. He is a normal drinker, so he might be able to provide us with good comparisons for the alcoholism/normal drinking/nal drinking enigma.

My husband, one of those famous "normal drinkers," went ahead with his experiment. His experience sounded much like mine -- no pleasure, tastes bad, why would anyone ever do this? Either he's an incipient alcoholic (very unlikely), or normal drinkers do get the euphoria.

Combined with this, I must factor in my second try on nal. I did enjoy the drinking, although in a very low-key and quiet way and without consuming truly ludicrous amounts.

Tonight will be the first time I use 50mg. I predict that it will be like my first "what the heck is this?" night. I'm going to venture a further guess that, after I've done 50mg once or twice, it will be like the second night -- quietly pleasant, no big deal.

I like exploring stuff.

HI there, Fellow Nalers! I have been on Nal about 1 month, having some decent success, I';d say. I definitely notice a lack of "chasing the drink", or compulsiveness to drink that I used to experience. I can totally relate to ??'s post about getting manic without Nal. Now I just get sleepy. I am still drinking more than I really want to sometimes...not typically more than my limit of 8, but more than I'm really interested in, just because there is still some left in the bottle, but since I started Nal I have never gone out to get more because there was nothing left in the bottle. Fairly unheard of for me.

There is some evidence to suggest the alcoholic brain is moreso processing opioid-like substance rather than edorphins, hence the bigger craving for it in the alcoholic brain. I have to get to work now, but if anyone is interested, I can share more about this later.

Happy Naling!
Lisa

HI there, Fellow Nalers! I have been on Nal about 1 month, having some decent success, I';d say. I definitely notice a lack of "chasing the drink", or compulsiveness to drink that I used to experience. I can totally relate to ??'s post about getting manic without Nal. Now I just get sleepy. I am still drinking more than I really want to sometimes...not typically more than my limit of 8, but more than I'm really interested in, just because there is still some left in the bottle, but since I started Nal I have never gone out to get more because there was nothing left in the bottle. Fairly unheard of for me.

There is some evidence to suggest the alcoholic brain is moreso processing opioid-like substance rather than edorphins, hence the bigger craving for it in the alcoholic brain. I have to get to work now, but if anyone is interested, I can share more about this later.

Happy Naling!
Lisa

Howdy, lisalisalisa. I have also seen such evidence. Interesting, isn't it? It's pretty well established that heavy (normal-heavy) drinkers get a stronger opioid hit than light drinkers, which presumably explains why they enjoy it more and drink more.

When it comes to full-blown alcohol addicts, though, there's some dispute. Some people think we get a stronger hit and thus are more attracted. Others think we get a weaker hit and so need to drink more to get enough of a hit. Either seems intuitively plausible.

It would make sense that superheavy drinkers are like heavy drinkers, only more so. It would also make sense for actual addiction to be a separate phenomenon.

Maybe someday the whole thing will be well-understood. In the meantime, we at least understand more than we did a few decades ago.

Tiller,

I have not noticed any effect from the Nal only (other than maybe the first couple of doses), but drinking definitely makes me more tired now. I find I enjoy drinking much more in social situations (keeps me more alert, the situation is fun) whereas drinking at home by myself seems stupid (though I'm still doing it, at much more reasonable levels). Having high hopes I can b cured!!!