u/CalmRage2026

Hello.

I'm a 37-year-old male and I've had OCD for as long as I can remember but only recently got diagnosed with it along with depression, anxiety and possible ADHD.

I was always against meds in therapy until about 4 years ago when I finally got into therapy to deal with my alcohol issues and then about a year and a half ago I decided to try meds for the first time. The first med I went on was for OCD but I had a horrible reaction so they took me off it after a week. Then they gave me a med for anxiety and that worked for a long time but I actually got off that and I got on testosterone and then they paired it with an antidepressant that has been working great (desvenlaflaxine). Also just started Naltrexone.

Through more therapy and really working on myself I've really realized how bad my OCD is. I don't even know if it ties into my alcohol use disorder or not but I find myself very all or nothing all the time. Not only when it comes to drinking but when it comes to the gym or counting calories or cleaning or not cleaning or buying a bunch of food in bulk because I think I have a good meal prep plan in my head only to then change my mind a day or two later but I can't leave the food there I have to throw it all out and almost erase that I ever did it.

Sometimes I feel like I'm crazy.

My brain is always going. Always thinking. It's like I'm trying to come up with solutions for problems that don't really exist but I make the problems in my head.

Does anyone else feel like this? I found this form and I just wanted to ask because I didn't want to feel alone or feel like I'm insane.

Thank you if you read all this and thank you if you respond either way.

Just took my Nal an hour+ ago. Walked over to the bar and having a dirty martini with blue cheese olives. Gonna sip slow and see how I feel and what I feel. Will document and report back later. Thank you all for all the advice given to me the past 2 weeks. It's been really helpful.

I was wondering if there's any zoom meetings for people trying the Sinclair Method just to talk and socialize and give advice and tell their stories.

I know back when I was trying AA there was 24 hr zoom meetings but idk if something like that exists for this?

I messed up yesterday so I'm mainly typing this out as a reminder to myself.

I'm a 37/m and been drinking since I was 20. Pretty heavy for most of it aside from the last 3 years. Tried to quit a bunch and even tried AA a couple times but it never stuck fully.

Anyways, about a year ago I finally got diagnosed with OCD, anxiety, depression and possible ADHD (which explains alot). I got prescribed naltrexone last week because I wanna finally take control as much as I can of this thing.

I was always against meds but after being in therapy for the past 4 years and getting on TRT and antidepressants for the first time, I figured night as well go for it.

My meds provider told me to take the 50mg nal every day so I have been.

I now know the proper way to take it after doing my own research and from alot of help from people here.

Anyways, yesterday I went grocery shopping and was planning to try drinking on my Saturday, which is Thursday and so I bought my coke zero for a mixer and some 100 proof Captain Morgan. My thought was, I was already out and it's one less trip to the store if I got everything now. That's what my OCD told me.

So I ended up drinking all 10 nips last night and called out of work today.

Trying to learn from this instead of self loathing.

1. Don't buy alcohol for the house. If I want to drink I should leave the house and drink at a bar or brewery and then go home

2. Take the Naltrexone 90 min before drinking. Not early in the morning every day

3. Drink slow and try to really tell how I feel and if I want more, is it the buzz or emotions or etc.

Anyways, that's my rant

So I got naltrexone about a week and a half ago and my meds provider told me just to take it every day in the morning with my regular meds and because of my job it's usually early in the morning. That's what I've been doing but yesterday I went to go drink for only the second time on that track zone around 3:30 4:00 p.m. and I definitely had way too much and had to call out of work today. Try not to feel guilt and shame because after talking to a lot of people on here I realized that the medicine probably wasn't doing its job in my system at that point and if I'm going to attempt this I need to follow the Sinclair method and not my meds provider and take the med an hour to 90 minutes before I start drinking.

Just mainly wanted to vent on here because I do feel the usual guilt and shame that comes from drinking but I'm trying not to because I was just misinformed and I want to get back on the horse and keep at this.

Thank you in advance for all the support

So thanks to the advice of a lot of people here I ordered the book on the Sinclair Method because my meds doctor has just been telling me to take naltrexone everyday for the past week and a half and left it at that but now I want to try this method so I ordered the book and I'm going to learn the proper way to do this but my question is how many of you "failed" in the beginning when it came to trying to control your alcohol or quit altogether? I'm trying to learn every scenario and also not maybe have my expectations too high. Thank you

So I just started naltrexone a week and a half ago and originally my plan was to be completely abstinent but I did drink once because I was having a rough day last Friday. I saw how the med could work and I was amazed. I posted about my experience earlier. Now I'm thinking that the Sinclair Method might be great overall to help me sever the connection in my brain between alcohol and pleasure and craving.

This community has been great so far and so kind in helping me out. I was wondering what's the best or most common method to use this program?

Drinking once a week? Twice? And how many and how long and eetc.

I'm completely new to this.

Thank you in advance

Been on TRT (testopel) since last year but really wanted to finally feel better after all these years. Been in therapy for 4-5 years and finally decided to try meds after being so against it forever. 37/m. So my meds provider first prescribed me fluvoxamine for my OCD and hoping it would help with stuff but after a week I had a horrible reaction and then he had me take a gene test and it turns out that my genes are really bad. One of the worst he's ever seen and I can't take a lot of meds. There were only three that were in the green column and pristiq (desvenlaflaxin) was one of them. I understand that it metabolizes quick and that's probably why I was in the green but even my testosterone doctor said that Pristiq is the one antidepressant he highly recommends to work with TRT so I got on it at 50 mg and was on that for a month and then my meds provider bumped me up to 100mg one time a day And I got to say so far it does seem to be helping. Only side effects I seem to notice is that I need to eat a little something with it in the morning and that sometimes I'll run hot for a little bit but overall it does seem to be working even though I have some head pressure here and there occasionally. I was wondering what other people here have had for experiences at my dose for long-term? I also just started Naltrexone to combat my alcohol issues and that just started to kick in and help a lot too.

So I'm a 37/m. Been drinking since I was 20. Was heavy from 21-34 and the past 3 years I've been either trying to quit or keep it just to weekends but even on weekends it would be 10-12 drinks a day.

I tried AA a couple times and while I respect the program and learned a lot and made connections, it didn't stick with me as a whole.

I'm on TRT and Antidepressants (Pristiq) and last week I decided to finally try Naltrexone. 50mg a day.

I'm sick of the hangovers and everything that comes with it. The anxiety, guilt, shame, depression, random online purchases, calling out of work, damage I'm doing to my body, etc.

I even read Annie Grace's book This Naked Mind and I know the damage alcohol causes.

I used alcohol as medicine for years but now since I've been on antidepressants and been in therapy for 4 years I'm just using it out of habit and addiction.

So....

Yesterday I had already been on Naltrexone for a week and things have been rough in my personal life so I decided to go out in the early afternoon for drinks to leave the apartment.

Here's what happened.

I love the whole ritual of drinking. Whether it's walking to the bar or liquor store. Picking out my poison. Pouring the first drink (if at home), and then that first sip and the euphoria that comes with it.

I threw on a polo and walked to the bar. I sat down at the bar and ordered a dirty martini with blue cheese olives. I took the first sip and it felt/tasted.... Hollow? That's the only way I could describe it. Wasn't good or bad. I tasted it for what it is. There's wasn't a euphoria or happiness or self-medicating feeling. It took me awhile to finish the one and I was doom-scrolling on my phone and when it was 3/4 finished the bartender asked if I wanted another and I automatically answered yes purely out of habit but after I said yes, I realized I could have walked away and it wouldn't have mattered. So I did drink the other one and I did notice a buzz but had no desire for a 3rd. It was actually a weird feeling for me.

I went home and played video games, but for reasons I don't wanna get into, I went back out because I didn't wanna be home for a specific 2 hrs.

I walked to the local brewery and sat down and ordering a large beer of this funky beer I wanted to try. It took me about an hour to drink it while I was on my phone. Same thing, I ordered another one purely out of habit and to see if I would get a buzz but I feel like it was more muscle memory than actual craving.

After the 2nd beer I left and went home and went about my night and didn't think of getting any more but I did notice hours later that the "Hangover" symptoms were exactly the same. It makes sense. It's a chemical and gonna do what chemicals do. Slight headache, anxiety, hot, slight sweat, dehydration and etc.

Just this one experience has taught me now that my life doesn't have to be black or white, all or nothing. I have bad OCD so this is great for me.

I take my naltrexone every morning so I'm covered for the day no matter what, even though the past 2 years I only drank on my weekends.

It was nice to be able to drink without the craving but I also need to be aware that the Hangover will always be there.

Thanks for letting me vent this all out. Mainly typed it out as a record for myself.

So I'm a 37/m. Been drinking since I was 20. Was heavy from 21-34 and the past 3 years I've been either trying to quit or keep it just to weekends but even on weekends it would be 10-12 drinks a day.

I tried AA a couple times and while I respect the program and learned a lot and made connections, it didn't stick with me as a whole.

I'm on TRT and Antidepressants (Pristiq) and last week I decided to finally try Naltrexone. 50mg a day.

I'm sick of the hangovers and everything that comes with it. The anxiety, guilt, shame, depression, random online purchases, calling out of work, damage I'm doing to my body, etc.

I even read Annie Grace's book This Naked Mind and I know the damage alcohol causes.

I used alcohol as medicine for years but now since I've been on antidepressants and been in therapy for 4 years I'm just using it out of habit and addiction.

So....

Yesterday I had already been on Naltrexone for a week and things have been rough in my personal life so I decided to go out in the early afternoon for drinks to leave the apartment.

Here's what happened.

I love the whole ritual of drinking. Whether it's walking to the bar or liquor store. Picking out my poison. Pouring the first drink (if at home), and then that first sip and the euphoria that comes with it.

I threw on a polo and walked to the bar. I sat down at the bar and ordered a dirty martini with blue cheese olives. I took the first sip and it felt/tasted.... Hollow? That's the only way I could describe it. Wasn't good or bad. I tasted it for what it is. There's wasn't a euphoria or happiness or self-medicating feeling. It took me awhile to finish the one and I was doom-scrolling on my phone and when it was 3/4 finished the bartender asked if I wanted another and I automatically answered yes purely out of habit but after I said yes, I realized I could have walked away and it wouldn't have mattered. So I did drink the other one and I did notice a buzz but had no desire for a 3rd. It was actually a weird feeling for me.

I went home and played video games, but for reasons I don't wanna get into, I went back out because I didn't wanna be home for a specific 2 hrs.

I walked to the local brewery and sat down and ordering a large beer of this funky beer I wanted to try. It took me about an hour to drink it while I was on my phone. Same thing, I ordered another one purely out of habit and to see if I would get a buzz but I feel like it was more muscle memory than actual craving.

After the 2nd beer I left and went home and went about my night and didn't think of getting any more but I did notice hours later that the "Hangover" symptoms were exactly the same. It makes sense. It's a chemical and gonna do what chemicals do. Slight headache, anxiety, hot, slight sweat, dehydration and etc.

Just this one experience has taught me now that my life doesn't have to be black or white, all or nothing. I have bad OCD so this is great for me.

I take my naltrexone every morning so I'm covered for the day no matter what, even though the past 2 years I only drank on my weekends.

It was nice to be able to drink without the craving but I also need to be aware that the Hangover will always be there.

Thanks for letting me vent this all out. Mainly typed it out as a record for myself.

1st week on Naltrexone

So I just started taking naltrexone last week. 50mg a day. I haven't drank since I started it until today. I was at the bar and had two dirty martinis with blue cheese olives. I enjoyed the taste but it was a weird experience for me because I didn't have that gasoline effect that I've been used to for the past 17 years. 37-year-old now. Is this what I'm supposed to feel? I enjoyed it but I also didn't need to have three four or five more. Now it's 1:42 p.m. and I'm going to go home after only 2 martinis. Not because I'm cutting myself off but because I don't want a 3rd and it's kinda freaking me out.

I don't know if it means I'll go back out later but I just wanted to give a real time update and reach out and see what other people had to say from their experiences.

Thanks

So I just started taking naltrexone last week. 50mg a day. I haven't drank since I started it until today. I was at the bar and had two dirty martinis with blue cheese olives. I enjoyed the taste but it was a weird experience for me because I didn't have that gasoline effect that I've been used to for the past 17 years. 37-year-old now. Is this what I'm supposed to feel? I enjoyed it but I also didn't need to have three four or five more. Now it's 1:42 p.m. and I'm going to go home after only 2 martinis. Not because I'm cutting myself off but because I don't want a 3rd and it's kinda freaking me out.

I don't know if it means I'll go back out later but I just wanted to give a real time update and reach out and see what other people had to say from their experiences.

Thanks

Ordered both. Can't wait!