NALTREXONE/vivitrol

[pete7131]

It does eventually go away. It does not need to be removed. When he gets this next one, massage it in and it'll break up a little. The lump is normal as it really is just a "pouch" of medicine.

I am lucky that my insurance covers the shot but to anyone considering it, whether you may have to pay for it or not, it has completely changed my life.

Combined with counseling and picking up some old hobbies, this has been scarily easy to quit. I'm at 37 days and have only thought of a beer one time. The urge passed in under 5 seconds.

[kendrita]

Hi there,
I've been getting the Vivitrol injection for the last two months and have had remarkable results. I've been struggling with my drinking for 15 years and have tried pretty much everything. The Vivitrol shot has literally taken away the obsessive craving voice in my head and has made me downright blase about drinking. The effects of the shot have truly made me realize the biochemical/physiological nature of this disease - something I've always struggled with in the sense that blaming myself has often led to denial, and hence, relapse. As for the lump from the injection, it can be given a bit higher up on the butt (I found that this is a less irritable place) and yes, it does go away after a few weeks and is nothing serious. I tried naltrexone orally before getting the shot but it upset my stomach a lot. The shot, I'm happy to report, has produced no nasty side effects and I am typically drug sensitive and loathe to trust drug companies and their products. I hope this helps and best of luck to everyone. Hang in there.

[spindy]

i have been taking naltrexone for 3 weeks. its a miracle for me. my relapses used to land me in rehab or a detox facility or dui jail. now i can moderate , dont black out, and quit the next day or so again but i have the desire to abstain and 2 years of aa everyday under my belt. what are others experience? im new to the site also.

[srp]

I've been taking the pill form of naltrexone for about a week. I've had good results -- I certainly obsess less. When I think about drinking I find I don't even really want to. We'll see how it works over the long term. I haven't tried drinking on it so I don't know what happens.

I did read that new research shows Naltrexone only works for a certain subset of alcoholics. It has something to do with your genetics -- like an "allele" or something. So some people will have a major effect from it and others will have no effect at all.

[srp]

Oh and I should add that I have also been going to AA for 2 years. Not sure if that makes a difference with the naltrexone, but it has definitely made a positive difference in my life.