AprilMay1895

Ok, I've priorly hated even the idea of going on Antabuse because I believe drinking is a choice, just a hard one and the pill is probably just for wuss's (please don't kill me for saying that. lol) But lately, I'm not having a good quitting record for kicking this crap out of my life...it could very well be increased depression. I'm not saying I drink because I feel depressed (though it may seem that way) but because my depression is peaking, addiction seems harder to fight. So far I've been about 5 days sober and then 2 days drinking. I feel like maybe if I take Antabuse for a while and wait for a higher dose of anti-depressants to kick-in, I could stand a better chance at staying sober for good.

So to those who are familiar with it....

What experiences have you had with it? How long do most people take it? Is it even safe?? Does it go on your medical history/affect insurance rates?

Dee74

I've never taken antabuse - some people have good results but I know it's not suitable for everyone.

Have you asked your Dr, AprilMay?

D

AprilMay1895

No, not yet. I don't have much trust for doctors and the pharmaceutical field so I like to do some of my own research first. lol If I decide it's viable option for me, then I'll go see a doctor.

Boleo

I have only met 3 people who admitted to using antabuse. The first claimed he conditioned his body to drink on it by gradual doses to where he can now drink one beer per hour. The second said he was on it for 2 years and drank after getting off of it within one week, The third has been on it for 5 years and still gets in trouble with the police even sober.

As far as I am concerned, that is a 0 for 3 success rate.

CarolD

Ok...

too used Antabuse in early sobriety.
I did drink whith it.... became so violently ill I quit the Antabuse.

And continued to drink for 4 months...
I finally quit when I red
"Under The infuence" and re newed my committment to God and AA...:

The catalyst for my reaction was a single split of champagne ..18 hours after my Antabuse.

Be sure and check out the afterlife of Antabuse
I kinda remember it stays in your system 4 or 5 days
after the last pill. Also...you do need to have your
doctor monitor liver enzymes if you take the med.

I do think it can be a good start for sobriety. It does nothing for cravings.
The paper that comes with the med...recommends it be used with a program.
If you have liver problems...you can not safely take it.
Some people are very sensitive and can get a reaction from products that have alcohol in them
think of perfume...mouthwash and hair spray. for examples.
.
It did nothing for my goal of Recovery....

SaraMichelle

I met one person who took antabuse.....(my dad drives a taxi and sometimes i go for the ride with him) at the time i met this person we had picked him up from a bar, and dropped him off at another one...

MrDavid

A agree with Dee...consult your Dr.

least

Your antiD's will never "kick in" as long as you're drinking. Alcohol negates the positive effect of antiD's as alcohol is a depressant. What's the point of taking an antidepressant if you're drinking a depressant? Quitting drinking didn't 'solve' my depression but it did make it a whole lot better.

slimjim30

I'm taking Antabuse and Campral at the moment. I have to say its a really good combination for me. It's hard to explain it, but I feel like a massive weight has been lifted off my shoulders. I'm a few days shy of 6 weeks sober and I know inside me I have quit for good.

It was hard at first. I started taking it 48 hours after my last drink. For the first few weeks I felt insane because as much as I wanted to I couldn't drink. That's died down now and I just feel, well, great. It's forcing me to deal with my s**t without alcohol and I love it.

I found this a while ago and it really summed up my experiences better than I could myself:
My Experience with Antabuse - doctordeluca.com

Some of his other advice is a bit questionable but his experiences with Antabuse mirror mine.

Speak to your doctor though. It can affect your liver, and if you're highly likely to drink while on it then it's not for you.


Funny side note - my iPad autocorrects campral to Campari (an alcoholic drink). Not ideal on this forum, I'm certainly not "taking" Campari.

AprilMay1895

I think I'll see a doc. about it based on the following points I've come up with:

A.) The depression makes it hard for me to battle urges. B.) If I don't battle the urge successfully and I drink, I sink into deeper depression. Both failure to succeed and chemicals from the depressant itself cause further depression. C.) I can't fight this battle constantly through the winter due to seasonal depression and exponentially increased work load. If I let my addiction slide, I don't know how I'll keep up at work or get out of bed in the morning. It was hard last year even with months of sobriety. D.) I'd like the opportunity to build new habits toward the old things that used to increase my desire to drink. E.) I have no friends. When I drink, I lose my "social inclinations". I isolate because I can drink away the loneliness. I need a "shove" of sobriety to meet new people. Increased social life will help with the depression. F.) I'd be the type to test the drug with alcohol once, but after getting sick, I wouldn't continue doing so.

I think I want to look into it. Do you go to a psychiatrist or just a general practitioner for discussion and possibly a prescription?

Terminally Unique

You will, like everyone else, test it at least once. I'd have the telephone handy when you do and get horribly sick.

suki44883

Oh if only there were a simple pill to take to keep us from drinking. Newsflash: There is no pill to keep you from drinking. Only YOU can keep you from drinking and you can do it without a pill, IF you set your mind to it. Why would anyone rely on a pill that will make them sick if they drink, when they can just not take the pill and drink whenever they want? That has never made any sense to me. If a person truly wants to drink, they are going to drink, and no pill will stop them. They just won't take the pill.

Terminally Unique

There is that, and there is also the fact that certain things will actually counteract antabuse. I won't say what those things are, but more than one has taken antabuse, anti-antabuse, and then drank with impunity.

sugarbear1

Have you been to aa?

AprilMay1895

FINE, I'll be a big girl and keep trying to develop skill sets that only work if I'm having a good day.

Yes, I've been to AA. After 8 months of solidly trying to accept spirituality and failing, I've realized I have no soul and AA will not work for me.

suki44883

That makes even less sense to me. Take a pill so I won't drink. But, I can take something to counteract the antabuse so I can drink. It boggles the mind!

laurie6781

As you feel that AA is not for you, what else have you looked into?

Be it CBT, SMART, Rational Recovery, Life Ring, etc?

Antabuse is a 'crutch' IMHO and eventually you will have to get off of
it. Also, it does not work for everybody. Alabam C out of North Hollywood
drank taking antabuse and didn't get sick. I drank on it and I didn't get
sick.

Others, cannot even use lotions that have alcohol in them as they will
get sick.

Please look into other programs and how about getting with a counselor
that specializes in addiction?

There are so many 'avenues' open today to those of us with addiction
problems.

Please keep searching for YOU.

Love and hugs,

Terminally Unique

Or you can decide that no matter how bad your day is, you still won't drink. Circumstances don't matter, since addiction exists for its own sake, and your AV will exploit any and all circumstances in order to get tanked. The sooner you realize this, the easier abstaining will be.

Life sucks? Drink to cope!

Won the lottery? Drink to celebrate!

AprilMay1895

I found this in the SMART handbook...it's 14th century and religious but it describes my problem:

"However, we must be watchful, especially in the beginning of temptation: because then the enemy is easier overcome, when he is not suffered to come in at the door of the soul, but is kept out and resisted at his first knock. Whence a certain man said:


"Withstand the beginning, all too late the cure, When ills have gathered strength by long delay."


For first a bare thought comes to the mind: then a strong imagination: afterwards delight, and evil motion and consent. And thus, by little and little, the wicked enemy gets full entrance, when he is not resisted in the beginning, And how much the longer a man is negligent in resisting; so much the weaker does he daily become in himself, and the enemy becomes stronger against him."

On bad days, when I hear my AV, it's slides past my recognition and gets in and the above happens. Once it gets a grip, it sells me its story and I drink. I'm more in tune to the voice when I'm emotionally stable and not agitated. When something happens at work and it sets me off, not long after I'm thinking of where and how I'll get the booze.

AprilMay1895

And when it does get past that "first knock" I can tell it "l'll never drink again and I'll never change my mind". And it pats me on the head and says, "I'm sure sweetie, right after tonight you'll never drink again."