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NewMe -selincro

Posted , 8 users are following.

belinda23254
belinda23254

Hi Everyone, help I'm new to selincro - just got it. Just need some advice - is it better to take it two hours before a drink? do you take it first to help reduce the alcohol intake if one is used to having a drink everyday? and then go to AF days ?  I ideally want to not drink during the week and then not drink like a bast--d at the weekend. I'm in Ireland and my Dr said i'm the first he's prescribed Nalmaphene to !!  I have a really good feeling about this like it will be a life changer. have been drinking more over the last few years, next teh weight going on and feeling depressed then the need to drink to drown my sorrows, viscious and dangerous cycle which I am hoping with your help and selincro I can change. I know it will take work but here I am ready to change. I do love a glass of wine or a drink and I'm hoping that this can help and that I do not have to cut it out altogether, I'd rather learn to respect drink and myself !

0 likes, 37 replies

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  • jamie_44327
    jamie_44327 belinda23254

    Posted

    Hi

    i think Paul maybe able to help with a similar query    i thought Selincro was for people who regularly drink 3/4's of a bottle of wine or a full bottle each day     unfortunetaly to me that is not very much and my tolerance is now at a level of 50 unit binges in a 24 hr period or 70 over 2.5 days which i m not at all proud of.   But then i can go for a few days without although i get physical jerks in the top half of my body and in the last few years what i can describe as a pounding heartbeat in my arm.     i m worried that my doctor may say i m not eligfible for selincro as i drink too much however i can and have gone without for periods of 16 days in the last 6 months and longer since starting 20 years ago; i feel not fully dependent but a user - anything can trigger a binge and then its not a question of shaking and craving but needing to feel normal the next day with more.   the pattern is now big binge twice a week and smaller amounts in between.    i see my doctor on monday.     [ she is an addition expert]   but i feel as though i ll be fobbed off

    • PaulJTurner1964
      PaulJTurner1964 jamie_44327

      Posted

      Jamie. This is interesting and I was discussing it with my colleague earlier.

      NICE guidelines recommend that Nalmefene (Selincro) is given to women who are drinking 5 units a day and men who are drinking 7 units. The first thing that springs to mind is 'why do they need it?' because, although that is above the recommended healthy limits, it is hardly a serious alcohol problem if a person drinks that amount.

      We have discussed it a lot so that we can ensure that our own treatment package complies with these guidelines. We have begun to consider the following:

      Imagine a person was drinking a bottle of vodka per day. They take Nalmefene and they only feel like drinking one glass of vodka and then stop. They are at risk of serious withdrawal symptoms. They could drink more to overcome those, and reduce their intake over time, but if you really don't feel like drinking something, you are likely not to do so.

      We, therefore, consider doing a detox with very heavy drinkers and then start them on The Sinclair Method after the detox, when they won't be above that recommended level of 5 or 7 units per day.

      Those physical jerks in the top half of your body ARE withdrawal symptoms and they are serious ones. We consider shakiness of the main torso far more serious a withdrawal symptom than a tremor in the hands.

      I think your doctor would be far more comfortable prescribing Nalmefene for you if you can get your intake down nearer to the recommended 7 units per day. Even double that may be ok for her to consider it.

      The other recommendation is that Nalmefene is not prescribed until two weeks after the first consultation, so you may find she asks you to reduce your intake over two weeks and agree to prescribe Nalmefene if you can get it closer to the 7 units per day than it is now.

      I think it is possible for a person to gradually reduce their intake while on Nalmefene but the fear of a person finding themselves getting withdrawal symptoms is the only reason I can see for the NICE guideline saying what they say.

  • arun93
    arun93 belinda23254

    Posted

    i love alcohol, i drink it and drink it til my sorrows go away, it works a treat. i use it as a weapon. life thinks it can attack me, hit me, throw stuff at me, i lift up my bottle of whisky and shield myself from its blows. i wave it around like a sword and slice life up until it goes. the liquid drops on my tongue and i swallow and feel anew, a new world A NEW ME a new life... no sorry, you cant hurt me here, you horrid beast, stay away and never come back, this is my time, my time. leave. you think day after day after day, hitting me bruising me with time, repetitive time... i will shield myself with my alcohol, drench myself in the liquid until i conk out and fall under the rule of another entitiy another fantastical reality you cannot touch me never so adorn thy liquid in plentiful amounts keep it sacred holy and make it count.
  • jamie_44327
    jamie_44327 belinda23254

    Posted

    Thank you Paul, you give very balanced and rational insights - when i see Doc on MOnday my goal is 5 days free as i m on day 3 now so thats a start - its just the discomfort of the jerks which makes me drink     I drink red  / white wine mostly, usually 14%   did manage 3.5 bottles of 12 % this week in one go as a way of reducing % but that's still way off a 7 unit target, think it ll be down to stronger will power from me as well   keep you posted
    • belinda23254
      belinda23254 jamie_44327

      Posted

      well done you Jamie, you can do this. I had a bottle of white over the course of the evening with loads of ice and a whiskey and coke and I had nothing else. Normally I would have drank a bit more. and when I think about it I didn't really want that last drink, it's a habit now that I need to work on. these tablets are great because already the cravings dissappear, it's now about doing other things to relax, excercise etc. Having no cravings is huge for me. I don't really get withdrawel symptoms apart from not being able to sleep, I will have a few glasses of white tonight as it's a birthday but will have no more and tomorrow night I'll go alcohol free and I hope to do the whole week free. You are doing great, keep up the good work and then you can go on this tablet and it's great...............it will really help you
  • jamie_44327
    jamie_44327 belinda23254

    Posted

    i forgot to say - the jerking is not just when not drinking but when i have had a mixture, sounds bad, but on the one hand i m very active and for example did a 3 hour fast walk last week and just felt like a few pints of cider, albeit £1.99  2 litre 5%   and felt drunk but then mixed with 14.5% wine, tricky when my wife prefers red, then had very bad shakes and whole left arm was numb

    Paul i hope you don't mind me asking, what about numb arm /  left side and same for face - at the moment although i m ok this morning, is a massive issue with what i term a pounding heart beat ready to explode in my arm, i know its the heart having to work harder to get rid of all toxins from a 70 Unit binge Monday evening to wednesday evening and has taken til now to feel better, but that's also dehydration i suppose

    I hope sharing my experiences helps others; i never drink straight spirits but am very speedy, 30 minutes for a bottle red

    • PaulJTurner1964
      PaulJTurner1964 jamie_44327

      Posted

      The numbness is peripheral neuropathy which is caused by excessive alcohol consumption. The best thing you can do to deal with this problem is stop or considerably reduce your drinking. Certain vitamins (Folate, thiamine, niacin, and vitamins B6, B12, and E) can help but you should ask your doctor about these and not just buy them all at the pharmacy and take a cocktail of them.

      Feeling your heart beat in your arm could be a number of things, including high blood pressure. Your blood pressure rises when you are withdrawing from alcohol. Again, though, it is best to consult your doctor about this.

    • belinda23254
      belinda23254 jamie_44327

      Posted

      sounds like nalmaphene is for you as it will completely slow you down - i find that you tend to enjoy it more because you have slowed down. which is how i used to enjoy a drink before.  who wants to give it up - we are all in the same boat - just need to gain control over it and not the other way around. smile  
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