Can any1 help, I have tried everything?

Thank u so much for your swift response Joanne, may I ask what your drink patterns were before u tried the Sinclair method. I have started to keep a diary of the amount of units I consume and so far this year I am ashamed to say it is already up to 500 units 😞

I was a 65-75 unit a week lass myself, minumum.  This method is suitable for all kinds of drinkers though.

If you google c3 foundaton europe joannas tsm journey, my entire story of recovery is documented there.  I documented it as it was happening so parts of it are raw and emotional, but it might be interesting for you nonetheless.

I agree with what RHGB wrote.  This is a medical condition that can be resolved by treating it as a medical condition.  My problem was in existence for 20+ years, and I was in traditional style treatment for 10 of those, but it wasn't until I started looking into a medical solution for my problem that things actually started to improve.  It took me 8 months on this method to completely extinguish all my cravings, so it's important to realise it is not a quick fix, but I wish I had known about it many years before I did.  If I had, I could've saved myself (and my loved ones) many years of hell.

Hi Joanna

Medication was the only route for me and thanks to your sound guidance on here it has been successful.I am exactly 4 months into TSM now .I don't really get cravings now and sort of plan a drink once a week to keep the process going.Once I have taken the nalmefene I slightly look forward to the thought of a drink although I don't usually enjoy it when i do have it ! Would you think this is a sign that my cravings are being extinguished ? Just seems a bit early though hence my trying to keep the process going 😊

Yes, I think so Nat

A good way to test that would be to try stretch that once a week, to once every week and a half.  If, in the meantime, you get the urge to drink, then take the tablet and have the drink and you will be one step nearer again.

Then try stretch it to two weeks.  But be aware that if you leave it too long, some side effects may reappear with the nalmefene.  If they do, then we can look to get you onto naltrexone which doesn't seem to have the same issue. 

See how things go :-)

And well done, you should be very proud of yourself.  The tablet is a tool, but it also takes work from you and you are doing that brilliantly.

x

Thanks Joanna for that.Yep I will try and stretch that to a week and a half and see how it goes.I already get a few side effects back after a week so it might be part of the reason not enjoying the alcohol .Will see how it goes and I am certainly already thinking of Naltrexone for the future. Thanks for your reply and your always useful advice 😊x

Thank you for your reply RHGB, I have tried Campral in the past, but because I am already on anti depressants they actually made me more depressed. I understand what u are saying tho about how our minds work, I just wish I could break this addiction. At the moment except for the rows with my husband and a few bruises I have been very lucky, I still have a job, home, family etc, but when I see a homeless person I say to myself that could easily be me if I carry on the way I am going 😞

Yes, different medications are for different people and different situations.

You can break the addiction, but not by willpower alone. I have witnessed people who have, but they become obsessed with not drinking, so they really have just switched one addiction to another.

What you need, is to be able to go back to the situation, where your brain does not constantly have alcohol on your mind and if you have some in the house, you can take it or leave it.

For your situation, I suggested Selincro would be the better option. Your next step is how to get it prescribed, which sometimes involves a bit of work, but is worth it. Joanna is the best person to advise the situation in your area.

I know right at this moment, it is probably hard for you to believe, but it really does work for a large percentage of people.

Thanks Joanne and RHGB, I will definitely check out your story later Joanne. RHGB do u mind me asking what your drinking patterns were before u quit with the medication? Also has anyone read Alan Carrs book and did it work for them. I am so scared to carry on drinking so why do I bloody do it???? If and when I manage to stop do u think I would need to detox, I am currently on between 30 to 45 units a week. I have heard some bad stories about suddenly stopping and that really scares me too, would I also need to go for a liver scan? I hate the person I am when I drink and I have become so devious, for instance one of my methods to try and stop was to give my bank and credit card to my husband so I couldn't get any money to buy drink, but I have found ways round that by swapping my old credit card with my current one. I always drink gin when my husband is at work so he can't smell it on my breath when he gets home, although he can still tell sometimes if I slur. I just want to be normal 😞

Well I have bought myself a 35cl bottle of gin to have tonight with lemonade, just like last night and Monday night, but this time I want to make it my last drink. It would be great if I could keep coming on here for support during my journey 😀

Christine -

I'll jump in here on the side of Medication Assisted Treatment in general and The Sinclair Method in particular. The traditional approach of strict abstinence has about a 10% success rate (across all forms) over a 4 year period, yet it's what's offered 90% of the time. One should give it a go first, but if you look about a bit you can perhaps see that continuing to attempt it often leads to relapse. But unlike with cancer and other medical conditions, when the traditional "treatment" fails it's the patient that's blamed. 

As RHGB suggests, for the best outcome in terms of time and efficacy, Medically Assisted Treatment offers the most reliable results. One medication (alcohol) put the problem there, another can help remove it. 

As Joanna mentioned, for some of us (about 7% of the population), using alcohol causes a change in the Reward System in the brain. It begins to associate alcohol with pleasure. That part of the brain is part of our survival mechanism and compels us to run from pain and towards pleasure. Once alcohol "programs" that part of the brain, one feels compelled to pursue the drink even against one's better judgement.

We're literally of two minds about drinking, the conscious part wants us to quit, while the unconscious part (this has been calle the "Lizard Brain" has fallen in love with alcohol and knows how to compel us to obtain and use it, overriding the conscious objections. You may have noticed that the conscious and unconscious part don't communicate very well. 

The Sinclair Method uses a medication to block the pleasure that alcohol brings and that causes the unwanted programming to fade, as the Lizard Brain finds that alcohol no longer brings the pleasure that it seeks. The extra synapses that drinking put there begin to shrink and become fewer in number as we prove to the brain again and again (by drinking while on Selincro or Naltrexone) that alcohol does not give the pleasure it seeks.

The method does this by blocking the endorphins that alcohol releases. No endorphins, no pleasure. The addicted part of the brain begins to forget that alcohol is good for anything in particular and the unwarranted bias towards drinking is eventually erased, bit by bit. Don't worry, it won't take nearly as long to remove it as it took to put it there. 

After drinking every evening for over 30 years (the last two saw me drinking at least 12 beers per evening), it came to the point where I was mainly nursing my hangover till it was time to start drinking again. I read about The Sinclair Method (TSM), decided it was well past time to rid myself of booze and I understood how TSM would help me do that.

I started TSM in January of 2016 and by July that year, I had reduced my drinking to less than a 6-pack per month. Since then, I've had 12 in a month a couple of times, but mostly a 6 pack or less. Except for one instance, less than 6 per sitting. I generally don't think about alcohol anymore. It has simply lost sway over me and even when I do drink, I lose interest in it fairly quickly. The other night I decided to have a pint, but lost interest and poured over 3/4's of it down the drain. 

Alcohol used to be my master. Now it's my servant (and one that mostly sits idle). 

Very good reply ADEfree and you are an inspiration to us all!! Christine can read your reply and those from RHGB and JOanneC3 since they always give fab replies as well.. Best of luck Christine and perhaps tomorrow is your day with no drinking??? Robin

Lets hope so Robin. Just need to know if it is safe for me to quit cold turkey and if I can expect any withdrawal symptoms x

Most people need medication in order to stop and it all depends on your personal circumstances. I would suggest medical advice initiallly. However, I stopped 4 1/2 years ago cold turkey and had no side effects at all. Drink very heavily every day for many years but careful I say and do not necesarily follow my example...best of luck! Robin

Hi Robin, well at the moment I am drinking around 15 units 3 or 4 times a week with a big binge about once a month so I think cold turkey should be fine physically, just got the mental side of things to deal with. Hoping to update on here every day and see how I get on, thanks for your advice x

Yes, a typical day would be, get up, take the dog for a walk. Shower and go to a fairly good manangment job. Come home, park the car (company car, so DD was completely out of the question), walk the 30 seconds to the pub, drink four pints, go back home. Take the dog out for a walk. Put something in the oven to eat, drink four cans of strong cider. Go to bed, next day, get up take the dog four a walk, you get the gist.

Alan Carr's book is on my list, but not read it yet. Whilst everyone is different, the fact that you have days without drinking, means that you are not alcohol dependent and unlikely to need a detox. I don't think you have previously drunk enough to warrant an ultrasound.

I would be very surprised it tonight's drink is your last drink. As soon as you get an evening to yourself, you will drink again.

That was a brilliant reply and does show that there is hope for us all. Its not easy and to be honest i am seriously considering going back to my doctor about medication. I am finding that wiil power alone just isnt enough. I have to get better for me and my family.

Thank you, Sharon! Please keep letting us know how you're getting along and how the talk with your doctor goes. Physicians don't get much schooling on addictions in general, though some are better than others.