What are your thoughts and experience with the prescription drugs available for helping to quit or reduce alcohol?

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Hi everyone, compassion and blessings as always.

I like to ask if any of you have experience or advice re the few prescription drugs that are available to help with reducing cravings for and enjoyment from consumimg alcohol, as well as mitigating withdrawal symptoms when you’re trying to reduce or quit drinking alcohol?

In this case, I am only asking for input from people who have actually tried and/or is currently using one or more of these bona fide, FDA approved prescription medications (not OTC alternative, natural, and herbal options ). If You have merely heard or read about these meds, with all due respect, I have a little interest to hear from you, because I have heard and read about them myself. For those whom I’d like to hear from, what was or is your experience taking them? Were they helpful? Were they not? Any pros and cons to share? What about side effects? And any recommendations re tools to use in tandem with taking any of these meds? If you have or currently are taking more than one of these prescription drugs, can you also share your thoughts/experience their combined effect and effectiveness, or lack thereof?

Thank you in advance and a penny for your thoughts!

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You can look it up, there are many shares on this topic around.

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I used Disulfiram (Antabuse) for a few years! It was certainly a great tool that helped keep me sober for a few years! The only two side effects I experienced were a slight heartburn feeling and a bad taste in the mouth after taking the medication. It made drinking absolutely awful, causing facial flushing, nausea, sweating, and even some breathing difficulties in my experience when drinking (only a couple sips caused most of these symptoms) while on the med.

Unfortunately, in my experience I relied too heavily on the medication and not other things like sober communities or mental health experts, so when I decided to come off the med I didn’t have any other “barrier” between me and alcohol.

Hopefully this helps! I would certainly contact a medical professional about the interactions it has with other medications and pre-existing conditions in your case! :smiling_face_with_sunglasses::call_me_hand:

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