Alcohol Freedom Blog

When it comes to alcohol addiction some people can save themselves and seek the treatment necessary to live a great life of recovery. Other people are able to control their drinking on their own and continue to function normally in their daily lives like problem drinking was never a question. These are the lucky ones. Continue Reading »

Why do some people have such a hard time asking for help? When they are in trouble whether it be emotional, physical or even financial they seem to fight to try and hang on as long as possible. These folks that are willing to go down with the ship rather than ask for help are the personality types that make for suffering alcoholics. Continue Reading »

You’ve had an epiphany of sorts. You have crossed the line in your own mind that separates the social drinker from the drunk.

You needed a drink last night and one more turned into 3 more strong and deep. You rationalized that it would take the edge off, help you get through the night and you would deal with it in the morning.

You tossed and turned in bed, grinding your teeth and trying to calm your restless legs. Unable to lay still you awoke to have that drink so maybe you could numb your active mind enough to pass out and call it sleep. Now in the morning light you realize that because of your excessive drinking you have just crossed the line to alcoholic. You can’t believe what you are thinking!

Continue Reading »

Most excessive drinkers at one time or another try and stop or curtail their drinking on their own. Good luck with that! Once a drinking problem is suspected or recognized by an alcoholic they may be able to stop drinking for a period of days, weeks or even months. Eventually though, the trigger for your abusive drinking will rear its ugly head and once again you will be drinking as much or more than before you quit. Continue Reading »

Asking for help is difficult for anyone in the best of times but when you are suffering the effects of alcohol withdrawal and you’ve made promises to concerned family it can be heart wrenching. You already suffer from an active mind and this only makes it worse. This is one of those times when a drink would help you get rid of that edge. You need to think clearly and it just isn’t happening for you. Continue Reading »

Greetings,

I read an article from The Mayo Clinic about a relatively new form of delivery for the medication naltrexone. As you might know, one of the medications used most often in The FreedomFromAlcohol treatment program is naltrexone, so I found this of interest. Continue Reading »

The drug baclofen has been around for many years – it is most commonly used to treat spasticity, muscle spasm and Parkinsonian tremors. Lately it has been reported that it is also being used effectively to control alcohol craving and alcohol withdrawal. Continue Reading »

The focus of our work is on coaching people to understand their energy and to choose the life they desire!

When someone has an alcohol problem, that has obviously created a state of resistance, so that they do not have access to their higher self, we have to first find a way to remove that resistance, in this case removing the addiction to alcohol, before they can find their way to their own self. Continue Reading »

Diagnosis and Treatment

Alcoholism: Clinical & Experimental Research. 24(1):67-71, January 2000.
Addolorato, Giovanni; Caputo, Fabio; Capristo, Esmeralda; Colombo, Giancarlo; Gessa, Gian Luigi; Gasbarrini, Giovanni

Abstract:
Background: Accumulating evidence shows the efficacy of the [gamma]-aminobutyric acid (GABAB) receptor against baclofen in reducing alcohol intake in rats, but no studies have been performed in alcoholics. In the present preliminary study we investigated the effect of short-term baclofen administration on craving for alcohol, ethanol intake, and abstinence from alcohol in alcoholic individuals.

Methods: Ten male current alcoholic individuals were admitted to the study. Baclofen was orally administered for 4 weeks, at a dose of 15 mg/day refracted in three times per day for the first 3 days, with the dose increased to 30 mg/day for the remaining 27 days. Each subject was checked as an outpatient every week for the 4 weeks; at each visit (T0-T4) craving level was evaluated by the Alcohol Craving Scale (ACS), and abstinence from alcohol was assessed based on the individual’s self-evaluation, family member interview, and the main biological markers of alcohol abuse. A self-reported alcohol intake was recorded as the mean number of standard drinks consumed per day.

Results: Nine subjects completed the study; of these, two subjects continued to drink alcohol although they substantially reduced their daily drinks in the first week of treatment, whereas seven maintained abstinence throughout the experimental period. Craving was significantly reduced from the first week of the drug administration (p < 0.01) and remained so throughout the entire treatment period. Participants also reported that obsessional thinking about alcohol disappeared. Values of [gamma]-glutamyltranspeptidase, alanine aminotransferase, and mean cellular volume significantly decreased by the end of the study. Tolerability was fair in all participants; headache, vertigo, nausea, constipation, diarrhea, abdominal pain, hypotension, increased sleepiness, and tiredness were present as side effects in the first stage of the treatment. No participants showed craving for the drug.

Conclusions: With the limitations of the low number of individuals evaluated and the open design, this preliminary clinical study supports the preclinical evidence on the effect of baclofen in reducing alcohol intake. The anticraving properties of the drug suggest a possible role of baclofen in the treatment of individuals with alcohol problems.

To set up an appointment with Michael Pearlman, M.D.,
Call 1 (866) 285-3400 toll-free or (617) 620-2230,

Or complete and submit our
Appointment Form

For further information about Michael Pearlman, M.D.’s proven treatment program
follow this link now.
Learn more about the FreedomFromAlcohol Method.