started with baclofen..

[lewis123]

started with baclofen..

emc;1625613 wrote: Hi Lewis,
little surprised that you are still on 20mg...
It's good in general to titrate up slowly to have less SE but like that maybe is really too slow. ;-)
You can easily make +10mg every 3/5 days, if you feel it and SE permitting.

Anyway really good that you have already some benefit even on this low doses.
I had the same even just on first week of treatment - probably little placebo but even less anxiety...

Keep us updated.

Oke!!

Question, i read on another forum that people who take baclofen have a really "clear" feeling, if u know what i mean? They say it helps them with their adhd also and that they feel very normal and calm since they take it. Anyone who has that experience here?

[Samandkatharine]

started with baclofen..

Uh, I wish my thinking was clearer. Baclofen can befuddle the brain. That's why sticky notes are my friend

I do find that I can concentrate on tasks better. I think it may be more having to do with being sober though.

Sam

[lewis123]

started with baclofen..

Today i'm gonna move up to 30mg.

[lewis123]

started with baclofen..

I have some strange thoughts in my mind today. It's like i'm scared to move up in dose because i'm afraid that i'm not going to drink anymore. But that's the reason i take it!! I'm just thinking "how will i be able to sleep without drinking?", and "if i'l feell those SE like sleepiness etc, will i be able to do sports everyday?" "will i be able to do my work well?"

Just saying It is oke that i post my thoughts here?

Also a big reason that i always drink in the evening is because of my adhd, when i drink it makes my calm, and than i can go to sleep. Drinking / marijuana was always like a sleeping pill for me ..

[emc]

started with baclofen..

Hey Lewis,
if you start a theraphy you should be really convinced that you want to STOP with this addiction.
This is the base otherwise there is no mediacament that can help.

On the other side this thought they can be even normal on this stage, but you don't have to be worried.
One of the good things of Baclofen is that you can even continue to drink while taking the treatment so the passage from the state of alcoholic to the new one of "sober-alcoholic-for-choice" or "normal-occasional-drinker" is not so net.
In a lot of cases, even before the "switch" Baclofen helps to reduce the daily drinks.
Maybe you could stop there when you're satisfied?
Right now it does not seems to me to have a lot of sense for me, but maybe i was making something similar at some point of my treatment...

Anyway you have to remember that alcohol and Baclofen together they don't make a good combination.
It is possible but better if you arrive to control yourself a bit. It will help the medicament to work.

So, first of all clear your mind if you want or not to get out of this situation.
If the answer is "yes", simply go ahead, slowly if you prefer but go... and if you are not sure, just wait and come back when ready.
Sorry if i'm maybe little bit rude ;-) i dont want to be, but this is a really important/crucial point.

Sure it's ok to post your thought here ;-) all of us make simply this!

[lewis123]

started with baclofen..

I don't know.. And it's hard to clear my mind, my mind is a train with 1000 impulses every day. I just wanna quit the craving for alcohol and marijuana and wanne be able to live me life without the urge of drinking every evening. But i don't know if it's worth to take baclofen but i wanna give it a try. Hmmz

[skullbabyland]

started with baclofen..

Lewis- It's definitely ok to post your thoughts here, that's what these forums are for!

I understand your thoughts but I think it's important to really commit to recovery if you know you need it. Baclofen treatment is not slow and shouldn't be back-and-forth, it should be constant for a longer period of time because of titration/SE's. And, just so it works.

As for sleep, yes you may experience trouble sleeping for a little while, but there are good options for helping with this, such as melatonin supplements. Your sleep should even out soon and it'll be worth the uncomfortable period for a little while.

Good luck.

[Xadrian]

started with baclofen..

skullbabyland;1626148 wrote: As for sleep, yes you may experience trouble sleeping for a little while, but there are good options for helping with this, such as melatonin supplements. Your sleep should even out soon and it'll be worth the uncomfortable period for a little while.

For me it had the opposite effect: My sleep improved on baclofen. When I lay down, I'm asleep within 5 minutes and most of the time I don't wake up until the following morning.

[kronkcarr]

started with baclofen..

lewis,

Please do post your thoughts here.

Before bac I mainly drank at home alone to make the world go away and probably to make my mind stop so I could sleep. For a few months when I started bac my sleep was a mess. I was up late and up early but I dealt with it. My mind did calm and it was such a relief. I was better able to concentrate and to be present.

My goal was to stop drinking at home alone and to have 1-2 drinks with friends on occasion. Only once did I have to vigorously talk myself out of drinking at home. I didn't bring alcohol into my home. I received wine as gifts and left it in my office. For me, my nightly drinking was an ingrained habit that I had to/strongly wanted to quit.

[Samandkatharine]

started with baclofen..

kronkcarr;1626292 wrote: lewis,

Please do post your thoughts here.

Before bac I mainly drank at home alone to make the world go away and probably to make my mind stop so I could sleep. For a few months when I started bac my sleep was a mess. I was up late and up early but I dealt with it. My mind did calm and it was such a relief. I was better able to concentrate and to be present.

My goal was to stop drinking at home alone and to have 1-2 drinks with friends on occasion. Only once did I have to vigorously talk myself out of drinking at home. I didn't bring alcohol into my home. I received wine as gifts and left it in my office. For me, my nightly drinking was an ingrained habit that I had to/strongly wanted to quit.

Lewis,
Kronk makes some very valid points. Nightly drinking at home alone was my vice. I wanted to stop the madness of this! I wanted to go out or go to a friends house and have 1-2 glasses and be done with it. Bac made that possible! Sure, sleep is a big issue for mr now, but I hear it gets better. I was so used to using wine as a sleep aid that my body needs time to adjust. Use other things to calm your mind. Magnesium chloride baths, meditation, exercise, acupuncture...all these things I can afford now!! They work to some extent.

Sam

[lewis123]

started with baclofen..

Hey guys !!!

I didn't post anything the last couple of days because I was on a citytrip to London, and it was GREAT !!!

So here is an update -->

I'm on 40mg of baclofen now and I AM FEELING GREAT !!! So what do I experience? I was there with a friend for 3 days, who knows i'm taking baclofen etc. And yesterday evening he said to me, "do you realise that u are so different in a positive way?" And i didn't know what he meant but he said that i am so patient, that normally i go crazy the whole time if for example i would have to wait for the underground to come, or if i have to wait for food in the restaurent etc.. He also said that normally i hate taking a walk in the park and now i was just smiling en taking walks and just having fun by things i normally dislike !!

AND about my alcohol --> it's like I almost don't have cravings anymore, i did drink every evening, but i drank 1 glass of wine during dinner, and a beer afterwards, and than i said that i think it would be better if we go to sleep so we can wake up early in the morning because the weather would be nice. And that's insane, because normally i really would keep on drinking, but now i'm totally not interested in alcohol anymore.

I didn't smoke pot for 4 days now !!!

I just can't describe here what i feel, but it's truly insane, i feel zo "fresh", maybe it's because i didn't smoke pot the last days that i feel so good and because i don't have a hangover, or maybe due to the baclofen, but i don't care, maybe it's placebo i don't know, the only thing i know is that i haven't felt so good the last 7 years and i'm really serious about this.

I don't feel any side effect, i just have a looooot of energy the whole day long.

Maybe i'm a bit to enthusiastic but ok?.

I have a question to you guys: i like it actually the way it is now, not feeling any craving, but when a friend drinks a glass and offers me one i just take it but i don't think about it like i did before! So what should i do now, keep on 40mg? And "wait" until i maybe have a binge again and realize that 40 is way to low and than move up again? Or should i just keep moving up slow until i don't drink anymore?

Are there some people who also have the feeling that baclofen does something at 40 mg??

I also can listen to other people when they tell a story, it's insane but normally i just don't care what other people are telling me etc..

Have a very nice and sunny day,

Lewis

edit: i also take 0,5 mg of melatonin 1,5h before going to bed and i sleep well, it takes one hour to fall in sleep but for me that's very normal. I almost forgot to tell that i have a bag of marihuana in my room, and yesterday i just said to myself "why should i smoke, why should i want to have another feeling that makes me another person because i feel great the way it is now and even if i lay awake for a couple of hours that's not to bad"

edit 2: i may be to enthusiastic, but it's just such a feeling of freedom and happiness that i didn't felt for the last years.

[Ne/Neva Eva]

started with baclofen..

I'm very happy for you, Lewis.

lewis123;1628014 wrote:
Are there some people who also have the feeling that baclofen does something at 40 mg??

Yes, definitely.

lewis123;1628014 wrote:
edit 2: i may be to enthusiastic, but it's just such a feeling of freedom and happiness that i didn't felt for the last years.

It's a wonderful feeling. Long may it last!

[kronkcarr]

started with baclofen..

Lewis,

You rock! Dr Ameisen wrote about the same feelings in his book. He walked in the park with a friend who said he was like a child when he took such pleasure in the flowers. He called it joy in life. His brother told him he was so glad to have Olivier back and Ameisen said he'd never felt this way before.

I had these feelings too at 30-50 mgs. I could listen and was actually interested in what others had to say. My friends remarked on my patience. I didn't post a thread here but my first 3 months are posted on Baclofenforalcoholism. com. Check it out. I also had that feeling about alcohol.

I'd go up 10 mgs. Why wait for a binge?

Enjoy your feeling!

[Samandkatharine]

started with baclofen..

Hi Lewis,


30mg was my hallelujah dose..:angelgirl:

It got iffy until I switched at 80mg. Now it's mentally hard because all the "stuff" is still there, just without the alcohol.

You are doing great.

Sam

[lewis123]

started with baclofen..

Do you think it can be bad for my body to take baclofenn, since i'm still so young? Had some thoughts that maybe taking muscle relaxers for years and years cant be that good? It also relaxes your heart? Can anyone give me some information or thoughts about my "fear"?

I'm feeling good btw, tomorrow i go up to 50mg

Greetz