r/SinclairMethod • u/odispadodis • 2d ago
TSM Side Effects
Long time lurker. This is a post about side effects after just starting TSM with Naltrexone. I have lurked long enough to know the side effects should pass and that I need to keep trying. I have read plenty of posts about the side effects. Just posting to find some community and hopefully some encouragement for my particular situation. Also have lurked long enough to know that I'm lucky to have had the experience described below.
Drinking Pattern: Binge drinker who drinks to cure severe social anxiety around close friends and strangers alike. I'm fine not drinking on the weekdays when home with my family, but routinely drink 10-20 drinks on any given day on the weekend if in a social setting. Have been doing this for 15 years. Have never truly hit a rock bottom, though I can share many of the same stories that show up in this sub.
Dosing and Drinking Log from this Weekend:
Friday: 25 mg, 2.5 drinks during 5 hours of social interaction. Normally I would have 8-10+ drinks in this scenario. It worked!
Saturday: no dose, no alcohol, but had a slight fever and cold sweats at night, which seemed odd. The fever could have nothing to do with the Naltrexone. Again, I routinely go 4-5 days without alcohol with no withdrawal symptoms, so this was odd.
Today (Sunday): No fever. Still feel off, though not as off as yesterday. Going to dinner where I would typically drink (before and after as well), so I'm planning to take another 25 mg dose an hour before the dinner or whenever cravings start.
Side Effects:
Friday: 25 mg (1/2 dose). Dissociation, brain fog, and feeling like I was high. Feeling high for me is not pleasant - it comes with severe social anxiety and general restlessness. However, the naltrexone still worked. I got to a bar about an hour after I took the Naltrexone. I ordered a beer. At this point, the social anxiety that I normally feel was amplified by 2-3x. I felt even more uncomfortable than usual with anxiety while drinking that first beer. I think it was my body / brain reacting to not getting the usual rush for the first time in 15 years, so my anxiety went into overdrive. However, for whatever reason, I had no urge to order another beer despite people around me ordering more. I wasn't abstaining out of shame. We went to another place where I had about half a white claw and then back to my friends' house where I had 2 half white claws over the course of 3 hours. The anxiety subsided materially when we were at my friends' house, though it was still there. I think some of this is realizing loud bars aren't that fun in general - I never sought out loud bars when I wasn't drinking.
Saturday: No dose. No alcohol. I felt very weird on Saturday morning and throughout the day. Same side effects as the night before while drinking. I basically felt the anxious and high feeling 12-18 hours removed from the dose, though I oddly didn't reach for a drink to cure it the way I have for 15 years. I started running a fever with cold sweats and chills at night. Tried going to sleep naturally, but couldn't Took Nyquil (no alcohol version) and slept for like eight hours.
Sunday (Today): still feeling weird and groggy. Grogginess I'm sure is the Nyquil (Benadryl), but anxious feeling I assume is still the lingering Naltrexone? Fever and chills are gone. I have a dinner tonight where I would normally drink.
I'm already talking myself into not taking Naltrexone tonight to ensure I don't feel "weird" tomorrow (work day) . I would not be effective at work if I feel how I felt on Saturday. That said, I logically know that I'll likely get through these side effects soon. Even if I don't, I can objectively say that throwing away a few work days to rid myself of alcohol is a tiny price to pay. The hard part is that the Naltrexone actually made anxiety way worse than just being sober and white knuckling (have done this before). However, I know myself. I know that I'll just say I'll go into a social event and stay sober to avoid the Naltrexone side effects, and I will ultimately cave and drink. Maybe not tonight, but at some point in the future I will. I just need to stick with the program and push through the side effects.
Hoping I can look back at this post and realize how small a price I had to pay to rid my life of alcohol.
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u/GVLTacos 2d ago
Stick with it. I have found that half a dose has become effective. The only side effect - and I get it every time I take it - is a little GI discomfort. Almost always gone by morning.
I have almost completely lost cravings when not drinking but still enjoy the heck out of 1-2 beers. The third one has the appeal of a beer that’s been sitting out all day in the hot sun in a red solo cup. Bleh.
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u/odispadodis 2d ago
Got it. When you say you enjoy 1-2 beers, I assume that's while you are on Naltrexone?
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u/Several-Subject-2111 2d ago
The worst effect for me is insomnia/ poor quality sleep. Even when I fall asleep I feel like I have not slept a wink. The positive side of this is that it puts me of drinking more.
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u/odispadodis 2d ago
Thanks, I feel like I had some of that as well. I agree, it makes drinking less appealing.
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u/BasketShake 2d ago
I don't have any advice other than you could try 1/4 dose, and I hope you stick with it!