T.O.,

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It sounds like you have things under control with your intake, and be very proud that you can talk yourself out of drinking more, for I had to suffer through nal overs before I did that.

About going AF for two weeks, please be careful. You maybe just fine, but others find going AF and forcing it caused their intake to go up. So, if the desire is there when you do go on that diet, do not fight it and do not think any less of yourself for not doing it. I am not say you will not be able to, it is just a precaution.

Keep up the good work and nal on,

Jaba

It sounds like you're making good, steady progress there, T.O., keep at it!

TO - after adding whatever you want to your signature, be sure to hit 'submit' at the bottom ....

I think you'll know after a week AF if two is doable. good luck and nal on!

Since my last post, I have dropped my dosage back to 25 mg/night due to being waaay tired of feeling low energy and mildly nauseous for most of the next day. I've been 10 days on this dosage now am not feeling the old, profound desire to have more than the amount I've allotted myself, 2, 1.5 oz drinks followed by 1, 1 oz drink spaced out over an hour or more. So that's 18.6 US drinks per week for a female. Close enough for government work as the old saying goes. At least in my book and compared to where I was before.

So I'm going to try and stick with that indefinitely and see if this pattern continues for me at the half dose.

I am not seeing too much in the way of side effects at this level but I am feeling just a tad bit nauseous and tired in the afternoons which seems to stop when I have my first drink after the pill half and wait. I'm finding this very annoying. Do not like it at all. And it's beginning to make me wonder whether I wouldn't rather just try once and see if I can stop drinking completely and then I wouldn't have to endure the SE's.

But I have a feeling that's prolly not going to work at this stage of the game. Do the SE's go away completely after awhile? I mean it's been 6 plus weeks even at the half dosage and I am wondering how much longer I want to do this.

The good news is I was able to get a scrip from my general practioner so I can buy generic nal at Costco for about 1/3 the price of ordering it from River Pharmacy. I told the nurse practioner that I'd been taking it for several years in Mexico, prescribed by a Mexican doctor and that it was very successful for me at holding back the cravings. Took in a print out from the National Library of Medicine with the part highlighted about it being used to prevent cravings. In short, I lied. Now ask me if I care. Ha Ha.

I am rethinking whether I'm ready for south beach phase 1 with 2 weeks of no alcohol. I am definitely not in the mood to stop drinking completely and still look forward to my cocktail hour every night.

I'm making a solo work trip back to close up our home in Mexico that we just sold and I'm thinking I might be so busy with that, plus in a different environment than of late that it might just work to do some AF time then.

Will post if anything changes. And I would like to know whether there is any true hope these SE's will finally just go bye bye permanently. How are you doing now, for example, Joe?

Funny you should mention, T.O., still getting lesser and greater SE's. Just fired off a note to my doc to see if he had any input on it. I've also dropped back to 25mg to see if there's a difference. They frequently happen when I eat (like today), but also happen about 24 hours after my last dose. Sometimes taking a dose makes a difference, sometimes having a drink or two seems to settle it down some. Why? I gots no idea. Are you still getting SE's on 25mg?

BTW, there's no Nal anywhere in Mexico (that I know of). Cheeto ran out while down there and I tried to locate some for her, so you might want to take some with you just in case your resolve fades.

T.O.,

An older member here Carlic had a heck of a time with the side effects/after effects of nal. The last time she posted she was up to the 50 mg and without side effects. I believe she started around the end of July and by the end of Sept she was side effect free. I know it sounds like a long time to have side effects, but it will be worth it in the end. Side effects do differ from person to person.

Have you tried taking just the nal and not drinking? The only reason why I ask is because that way you would know it is just the nal causing the side effects and not the combo of the nal and alcohol. Have you tried switching the type of alcohol you drink? (just a suggestion)

I do know that plenty of people do just fine on 1/4 to 1/2 of a dose, so do not worry about the dose for now and hopefully with time you body will adapt. Just keep in mind that the length of time you drink or your body takes to process alcohol (depending on your weight) vs the length of time nal is active in your body (if 50 mg is 12/13 hours, 25 mg is about 6 hours and 12.5 mg is about 3 hours in theory). So if you are drinking longer than 6 hours a booster may be needed (just a suggestion).

My heart goes out to you for I am a wimp when it comes to side effects and I was very grateful I didn't have any with the nal.

I am glad you were able to get a script from your doctor, for add cost is something that I would have a hard time dealing with.

Good luck in all,

Jaba

Thanks a LOT for the input and support, friends!

To answer your question, Joe, I am down to 25 mg and would not even consider going higher until I am not seeing SE's. And, as Jaba suggested, I might even go back to 12.5 again for awhile. Because , although the SE's aren't anything like what they were when I was taking 50 mg -- or even the 2nd day after I took 25 mg -- I am feeling a low grade nausea and exhaustion coming on, let's see... approximately 16 hours after I take the nightly dose. So I take the nal at 5 and by around noon the next day, the SE's start. I am also most definitely seeing some depression in my normally pretty high, optimistic spirits. As in when I lose my temper, as I did last night with my husband, I stay mad for a long time when normally I'm not one to hold a grudge.

This is giving me a tiny taste of what it must be like for my husband when he's in one of his depressive periods. So from that point of view, perhaps it's a good life lesson in understanding better what he's going through. But enough already! The dampening of spirits is wearing and not sure how much longer I can put up with it.

Was debating last night between stopping the nal and seeing if the CBT work I did earlier re triggers, rationalizations, etc. might just be enough on its own to keep me at my target drinking rate. Other choice, stopping the nal AND the drinking and see how that went. And a third choice thanks to you guys -- might try bumping down to 12.5 again first and see if THAT allows me to hold to my 'drink quota' w/o SE's

But before I get that drastic, I think today I will try drinking a heck of a lot of water throughout the day and especially if/when I notice the SE's coming on. That possibly might do the trick.

I will report.

By the way, if I take my Mexican med, difenadol, for the nausea, that works really well. But I can't get that in the states and I'm running low. Plus it only works for about 3 hours. I think I'll try the low dose dramamine I suggested to Joe and see if that helps. And I'm sure I could get a nausea med scrip from the doc if I wanted to. The depression/hair trigger temper is more problematic and worrying.

Re naltrexone in Mexico, I read somewhere it was available with a scrip. But never tried to get it. So maybe I'm wrong.

If your friend speaks Spanish, she could have inquired about this at the farmacias. FYI, in Mexico many pharmacies have little walk in clinics right next door where you can go for a $200 peso consult and get a scrip for whatever you need. In the case of naltima, your friend would have needed to go to a pharmacy with a good supply chain. Because they would be unlikely to have it in stock and would have to look it up in the Mexican version of the Physcian's Desk Reference and then order it in.

In any case my GP didn't bother to check my story especially since I was able to show her a packet of the naltima which doesn't indicate it was made in India and, indeed, has all the text on the foil pack in English.

By the way, the price for 120 50 mg tablets via River Pharmacy was, I believe, $223.00 US. Shipping was free. Arrived from India and had a NY/US customs stamp on it and then was sent on to me in Hawaii. Just called the Costco and generic naltrexone HCL is available at $67 US for 100 50 mg tablets. So a VERY considerable savings!

I'm with you on that, T.O., I just don't have time for the SE's anymore. Feeling much better today on 25mg, let's see how it goes after lunch fools with my blood sugar.

The downstream effects of blocking your opioid receptors is that it quashes dopamine too, so might explain the impatience. On the first dose, I had a very misanthropic attitude (that was 50mg) and as I recall it continued into the next day to a lesser degree.

I was feeling pretty misanthropic last night alright, Joe. a Raving Biatch, in fact. Went to bed mad and was still a little mad this morning when I got up. Gotta lose that effect quick or my temper may send my husband into another dive and he's only just started to feel well again after 5 months of the Deep Blues!

Good luck on the 25 mg and keep us posted on how that goes. I will also post if I find anything that works for me.

Today I'm trying lots of water throughout the day and staying at 25 mg

If that doesn't do the trick, I'll try 12.5 for awhile as long as I can stay at a somewhat healthy quota. And if THAT doesn't work? Well, will cross that bridge when I come to it.