thewaywewere

Hello. Looking for some information. My husband started naltrexone about 12 days ago and has been taking it each night and has not drank a sip of alcohol. He is man that would drink bottleS of vodka a day and could not keep a job or just even life any kind of quality of life. The naltrexone seemed to be helping him and he seemed very commited. Well last night we got home late and "he forgot" to take his pill. Today he drank.... and he is drunk and he just now took his naltrexone as he said he does not kow why he didn't want to take it last night.

My question for anyone with naltrexone experience is: since he took it while he has alcohol in his system will it still work? This is a question we both have. It seems to do the trick since like I said he has never had more then 3 days of sobriety and this time with the help of naltrexone he has had 12 days. I am hopping he does not let today get him down as he suffers from depression as well and I hope he starts back on his road..

any help would be greatly appreciated.

thank you all so much I am happy to be a part of a community that is also looking to help a loved one or help them selves through such a horrible disease

ForeverDecember

Hi. The best thing to do would be to give your doctor a call, or even a medical help line. There should be an information packet included with the meds, they might have an advice line number.

I took Naltraxone and it didn't have as dramatic an effect on me, so I wonder if maybe part of this is a placebo effect? Eg "I didn't take my medicine so I should have cravings" and then the cravings appear. I don't know though, I don't know how quickly the drug takes to get out of your system.

desertsong

I have been taking Naltrexone on and off since I got sober and don't have the urge to drink when I'm taking it. I think it takes awhile to build up in your system because the first few days I took it, I still had cravings. Took about 3-4 days before the urge subsided, but I don't know if that was because of the Naltrexone or if I had just gotten over the "hump." My doctor said you shouldn't drink while taking it, so I don't know if that has anything to do with your husband's reaction or not. But I was told that you have to take it consistently for it to work.

Interestingly, my doctor also said that Naltrexone seems to work better for people who are addicted to drugs, rather than alcohol. I don't know ... it seems to work for me when I take it but then again, maybe I just *expect* it to work so it does. Hard to really know.

Maybe he can ask his doctor about this?

thewaywewere

Thank you. I am so happy to be one here. I hate feeling so alone in this and I feel I have found a home. I will advise him to call the dr in the morning. I was pretty hard on him tonight I guess I was jus really disappointed that he drank and that he did not take the pill yesterday. I should have been a lil more understanding since he did put such effort into the 12 days he abstained. I know I need help for myself as I seem to only be happy when he does not drink, and things are "normal" ... I know I have to find strength and happiness within my self. I just wonder if I should give up on him and let him go or stick this out and see if he recommits to taking the naltrexone and trying to stay sober. He recently got a new job, and he has never really been able to hold a job for long, since his alcoholic father passed away 5 years ago, as that is when it really spiraled out of control for him.... I wish I had the answers....

desertsong

WayWeWere, you might also ask about Antabuse. It's kind of extreme, but worth looking into. I've considered it a few times in early sobriety. You can get away with drinking while on Naltrexone, but you can't get away with drinking while on Antabuse. If your hubby is serious about quitting but is having a hard time abstaining, that might be the answer. The consequences of drinking while on Antabuse are pretty nasty. Another thing worth asking the doc about.

Dee74

I've never taken naltrexone so I have no answers for you, thewaywewere.

I think him calling his Dr would be the best way to get any questions or concerns answered

I'm glad you've joined us. I think it's important to take care of yourself in all this too.
I have to wonder why his response to missing his pill was to drink?

I hope you'll check out our Family and Friends forums here as well - there's a lot fo people there who know what you're going through

Friends and Family of Alcoholics - SoberRecovery : Alcoholism Drug Addiction Help and Information

D

fuzzzygreenball

i've been taking naltrexone as part of the Sinclair method for about a year and it has helped but it is not a cure-all. like a lot of people, I am somehow thinking that i can drink in moderation and just use the naltrexone to help me slowly stop, but it does not seem to be working, or maybe i'm just not using it properly (i.e., i should just take the naltrexone and NOT drink at all).

just my 2 cents....... it can help but it seems like the best solution is to stop altogether (easier said than done).

SimplySo

I can second the use of antabuse as an option. The remarkable part about it is that the mind battles about whether or not to drink have gone away completely. Skipping taking it for a day changes nothing since you'd have to be off of it for a week before it would be safe to drink again. A week is a long time to think about whether or not you REALLY want that drink.

Good luck.