Alcohol Use Disorder, Naltrexone and TSM

I'm still not officially at pharmacological extinction because I'm drinking socially but I'm not experiencing any cravings on a day to day basis.  My past trigger point (late afternoon/early evening starting to prepare dinner) comes and goes without a thought now.  I don't miss it.  I don't want it.  I'm not missing out on anything and am enjoying the clear head and productivity. My graph at 15 weeks shows that I consumed 8 glasses of wine this week.  This was over 2 nights at friends houses. I find that if I am out at a bar or restaurant, I'm less likely to drink that amount and of late it would be 2 drinks maximum.  Also, I've noticed that my friends don't offer water to their guests but keep topping up the wine.  I was guilty of that too before starting TSM.  Now when people come over to our house, I am topping up water glasses for everyone.   Of course, I can get my own water at someone's house and need to remind myself to do tha...

Fourteen weeks ago I started on a journey to cure myself of alcohol dependency via a little known at home treatment using Naltrexone in conjunction with the Sinclair Method. When I say little known, that is to say it's little known in Australia but not in Finland where upwards of 77,000 Fins have been cured of alcoholism using the same method.   It's a safe and inexpensive treatment done in the privacy of your own home with many added bonusses...  Dignity is restored, shame is removed, the symptoms of depression and anxiety lift within a relatively short period. The short explanation of how the Sinclair Method works is NALTREXONE + DRINK = CURE but before you dive blindly into that there is more you need to be aware of.   Online support is invaluable.  You'll be warmly welcomed and greatly helped at Options Save Lives forum which is moderated by C Three Foundation. Online education is imperative.  Dispel the myths about Naltrexone ...

The cravings have become less and less, so much so rhat it's hard to even pinpoint one and week 10 has ended without any desire to drink for the past 8 days. I can attribute much of my recent success with keeping my thirst quenched throughout the day.  Keeping a bottle of soda water (and a tasty sugar-free cordial) by my side while I work coupled with the insight I have gained over the last 10 weeks regarding the "habit" hidden underneath the addiction.  ...that robotic ritual of automatically pouring a drink to signal the end of the day and the start of the evening - the time of day when my thoughts turn to preparing the family meal. I refer to the timing of the underlying habit of mine as my "trigger point".  With the aid of Naltexone and TSM (the Sinclair Method), my brain is being retrained to learn that there is no reward gained and as a result of this water is just as "rewarding" as a glass of wine (and with some of the wines I've dru...

It's all very well and good to bring attention to the growing issue of alcoholism amongst middle-aged, middle class Australian women but it needs to be followed up with realistic solutions to the issue of Alcohol Use Disorder. I made the following plea to Jenny Brockie via email to SBS. "Hi Jenny Great program last night and based on how much impact it has had, now’s your opportunity to talk about how to solve the problem. I’m not here to share my story but to plea to you to broadcast to the many desperate women in the same situation as me that there are options other than the downward spiral into the bottom of a bottle. AA has a 7%-9% success rate that drops to 1% by year 5 but a little known (in Australia) cure has a 78% success rate.  77,000 Fins have so far been cured of alcoholism using the Sinclair Method.  It’s an in home treatment, low cost (only $38.50 per month on the Pharmaceutical Benefits Scheme) and because you regain control over your drinking within a...

The normalisation of alcohol in Australia has been happening since the First Fleet when rum was the only drink of choice. The Australian Government (who take their cut via bond) normalises it by allowing it to be advertised during sporting events when children are watching. (Of course there is gambling too - another government "sponsored" addiction!) I missed the SBS Insight program called "Wine O'Clock" and will watch it later on iView but I suspect it's going to make me very angry. Angry for all the pain and shame that people are living in when the cure is close at hand. If no one talks, no one knows...about both the problem and the cure. The promo on the SBS website reads, "Recent statistics from the Foundation for Alcohol Research and Education show drinking is on the rise among mid-life women. “This is not a teenage story. These are women who are usually highly functioning, career-and motherhood oriented, who then begin or return to drink...

Almost at the end of my 9th week of the Sinclair Method and I've got 10 Naltrexone tablets left so I have booked an appointment with my online GP for a followup.   I'm more than a little proud of my achievement and my drink log is proof that this science works! Each day gets better and better for me.  My anxiety and depression are almost non-existent, I'm sleeping better than I have for a long time and I am productive and happy. The last two weeks were the school holidays for us and it's generally a time of more social activity so there were a few instances where I was distracted and therefore did not drink mindfully however the amounts of alcohol consumed are significantly less than my pre-TSM levels. Over last two weeks, I have been less interactive with the Options Save Lives forum and realize that a vital part of the journey is to share with fellow AUD sufferers.   Of course, the science is the most important element of the process than...

In thinking about my own pre-TSM self, I didn't want to give up alcohol but instead I wanted to control it. My "primative" lizard brain does NOT want to give up alcohol so therefore seeking help is risky because it goes hand in hand with abstaining. In the depths of AUD when the lizard is having a lovely time sucking on those scrumptious endorphins that it doesn't have to work hard to get, abstaining would be untenable. Scenario: Brain considers, "I can get endorphins by running for 30 minutes or I can get them even faster and with less effort by drinking alcohol..." Not only is my brain supremely "lazy", but it's also an efficient energy conserver! In hindsight, we know now that TSM puts the Alcohol Use Disorder sufferer back in control but before that, it's a daunting topic with a bleak prospect. I can understand why people are in denial because the only solution known to them will bring them no joy but a great deal of suffering. Who ...