Cheeto

You must post this on general discussion, it's so very important.

Well done in posting something so helpful.

Thanks for the reassurance everyone - and particularly Cheeto for finding that info. I was AF last night and didn't have any cravings at all (for the first time in years!) It's now Sunday lunchtime and I know I need to take another tablet and drink tonight - I really don't want to but know I have to (would rather be AF again! - that's a FIRST - me forcing myself to drink!! ) I still feel a little sick and that's almost 36 hours after the first tablet.

Anyway, thought I would get the dinner cooked before I take it tonight otherwise no-one will get anything to eat - on the bright side if I keep losing my appetite think how much weight I will lose!

I'm just posting this here - as I posted it yesterday in the wrong thread and don't want to lose part of my journey:

Well - Day 4 for me and feeling a bit more positive.

I took my second Nalmefene last night (1st Fri, AF Sat) and took advice to eat something first. I had a mince pie and a cup of tea - yum! I felt a lot better this time - not quite so spaced out, although it does fuzz your mind. My daughter rang to talk to me about half an hour after taking it and I kept forgetting what I was about to say. I also forgot that I had put a pan in the oven with oil for roast potatoes - my husband had to remind me

I have to say, I wasn't craving alcohol at all at this point (I haven't craved since I took the first tablet on Friday and being AF on Sat was a doddle). I went on to drink the whole bottle of wine - felt drunk really quickly (usually I am quite functional after a bottle). I apologized to my husband because I was aware that I was making no sense - told him how weird I was feeling and went to bed early.

I think I drank this much purely out of interest - this is a lot less than I would normally drink and I suppose I thought 'it's allowed - why not?' However, I didn't enjoy it. I slept a lot better than I did after the first tablet, although I had the weirdest dreams. One was that my body was an airplane, but I wasn't the pilot - someone else was inside my body steering the way. I woke up in a panic thinking 'no - this is my body, get out!' As the day has gone on I can't help thinking that this is actually what has been happening in my life. I have my body, but alcohol is the pilot and I'm trying to drive it out.

Anyway - enough of my ramblings. It is now 3.30pm in the UK - I have absolutely no cravings whatsoever, but was planning to take a pill and try just a couple of drinks tonight. I would go AF tonight, but I am out to dinner with friends tomorrow night and don't want to take a pill in case I feel unwell. I'm not sure if I could manage two AF nights on the trot - I might be craving frantically.

Well Day 5 for me - and doing good. Don't worry everyone, I promise I'm not going to post every day about my progress forever, I just think it is useful to report on the first week of taking Nalmefene, because I know I would have really appreciated reading someone else's journey - it's all very scary!

Well, yesterday I took a tablet at 6pm just as I was starting tea. Whilst food was bubbling I went off and did a few jobs clearing out cupboards I've been meaning to do for ages. (this is first for me - normally at 6pm the bottle opens and the rest of my productive day is well and truly over!) I didn't really have any cravings to drink and dished up dinner for everyone before opening a bottle of wine and pouring a glass (at about 7.30pm) I quite enjoyed this and sipped it quite slowly - amazing, I didn't feel the need to gulp it down! I forget to mention that the Nalmefene didn't have anywhere near as much of an effect on me as before. A slight wooziness but no nausea or any of the other horrible experiences.

I then poured a second one, but even as I was drinking it I was aware that I didn't 'need' it. When everyone had finished eating I still had a little bit in the bottom of my glass and truly didn't want to drink it. So guess what, I poured it down the drain and made a cup of tea and treated myself to a couple of cookies to dip in it (probably no more calories than the rest of the bottle would have been!)

I'm not sure what to do tonight. I am going out for a meal with a group of girl friends and I have already offered to drive so i wouldn't be able to drink more than one glass of wine anyway (one positive thing in my favour - I have never been a drunk driver!) I am feeling some cravings for a drink today (first time since I started the programme), so can't decide whether to have an AF night and probably sit feeling jealous of everyone with their wine, or whether to take a tablet and just have one? Is it OK to drive when you've taken Nalmefene?

It's great that your posting Snapdragon, keep it up. It's exactly what new participants need. Information on what it feels like when first starting TSM protocol. The most difficult part for all....You're doing great. Applause!

SD,

I think it's great that your posting each day, when we start on any attempt to give up or reduce our drinking the more info we can get our hands on the better. It also appears you are doing just great with your own journey.

I also love reading how people are doing on TSM at any stage cause I am also new to this and find it is a great support to read how others are doing. Good for you on tapering on your drinking. As you can see mine has gone up since the first week but that is the norm I am told. I also think about AF days but figure maybe the more I take Nal and drink even 1 or 2 glasses of wine the sooner I will experience Extinction, who knows?

This thread makes me a little nervous. I start tomorrow, so I haven't tried NAL yet, but I had a really bad time adjusting to my anti-depressants. I'll ride it out, but I'm not looking forward to side effects.

Paulpaul I always have side effects on any meds I have ever taken. The good news is it goes away. Listen I would rather go through side effects than stay on this drinking road thst consumes my life and keeps me from living. If I keep drinking I will not be around much longer. Its a no brainer to me

Hi PaulPaul and welcome. Please don't let my thread put you off. I am posting so that others can follow my journey (and fingers crossed it will hopefully be a positive one!)

Are you taking Naltrexone or Nalmefene? Apparently you are able to cut your dose of Naltrexone down to 25mg in the first few days until you adjust and ease yourself up to 50mg.

I am taking the new version of this drug called Nalmefene (Selincro) which comes in 18mg tablets and you are unable to half the dose.

Anyway - good news!! I am on Day 6 and feel so much better. Last night I was in a quandary as I was meeting friends for a meal and had offered to drive. When we all get together, no-one drinks much - we share a bottle of wine between 4 and the drivers in the group only have one small glass each. I was really worried about whether it was safe to drive after taking Nal (the information booklet which came with the medication states: "The effects of this medicine on the ability to drive and use machines have not been studied.") I was worried that if I didn't take the Nal, I would cave in and say 'Oh go on then, a small one won't hurt'. In the end I decided to eat something (yes - before going out to dinner!! ) I had a small bowl of pasta at about 5pm and took the Nal then. I felt absolutely fine when I drove out at 7pm. I had a very small glass of wine and I must admit I did worry that it was making me feel more woosey than normal, so I asked for a pint of water and drank that with my meal too. By the time we left the restaurant at 10.30pm I felt fine and perfectly happy to drive home.

I still have an almost full bottle of wine in my fridge - on any other 'normal' day as soon as I got home, I would have quickly finished that off before going to bed. Last night, I didn't feel like it - I had a glass of water and went to bed.

I know that I may be experiencing a 'honeymoon' period that everyone talks about and therefore I'm not going to harp on too much about results a this stage, but if you need encouragement - in the months before I started TSM I was drinking on average 58 glasses of wine a week (that is 80 UK units - I'm a women who should be sticking to 14!) Today is Day 6, so far I have had 10 glasses of wine (14 units) and 1 day AF. This has been without trying very much and with hardly any cravings. I simply haven't wanted to drink.

The first day that I took NAL was pretty horrific - if I'm honest I almost decided then and there to give up. I'm so glad that I didn't.

I think it was Melissa (on this site, who also has a blog) who said that she committed to 6 months sticking to the rules religiously whether it worked or not. She was cured in 5 weeks. Having read that, I decided to make that same commitment - 6 months and then I will reevaluate (that will cost me £720 in medication!) I could probably get this free on the NHS if I grovel to my GP but in a way, paying for it makes me feel more accountable. We'll see.

PaulPaul - it would be great if you start a thread logging your journey too - we can all follow and support you. Good luck!