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Hello all, and happy holidays to you and yours! I was wondering if any of you have any experience with the drug antabuse....if so, how well does it work, etc. Thanks for your input, its always appreciated! seeking peace, jeannie
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if you bring forth what is within you, what is within you will save you
Antabuse- my understand of the drug is that it is not used to help the alcoholic stop drinking ,it's used to show others that he is not drinking , if they drink while on this drug they become very red in the face and really really ill . vomiting etc . It can be dangerous as it affects the blood pressure.
I had heard that it does make the person very ill when used,my abf started it about a week ago and so far, he hasnt been ill, which I guess means he isnt drinking.... I was wondering if anyone had any experience with it and if so, if it was a viable tool for the alcoholic. Thanks, jeannie
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if you bring forth what is within you, what is within you will save you
Like the nicotine patch and gum anabuse is a stop-gap temporary measure and as been mentioned here can be dangerous if the taker drinks while using it. It causes the "allergy of the body" process going if the drinker decides to use alcohol while also being on it. The body will reject the the alcohol sometimes violently.
Antabuse is one of the many drugs my AH used to try to stop drinking. But if he did want to drink, he simply didn't take the pills. He also drank while taking it. He was looking for a magic pill to make the addiction disappear; and unfortunately, it doesn't exist. He's tried a number of others since then, and continues to look for a pharmaceutical solution to his addiction, along with whatever program he's working at the moment. He's had more success with drugs that are designed to reduce the cravings he experiences, rather than those that simply make you sick if you do drink. Just my two cents....
We had a family friend who was court ordered to go on anatbuse. She took when she needed to. They had set dates for drug testing her, and that's when she took it! But in between she kept on drinking. The problem with this drug, is that it may make you sick if you drink, but it does nothing to treat the cravings, and nothing to treat the disease. To me it sounds like a waste of time. Eventually our friend went back out and sadly never returned. We have no idea where she is, of if she is even alive.
Happy Holidays to you and your family.
Live strong, Karilynn & Piper Claus
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It's your life. Take no prisoners. You will have it your way.
Hello all, and happy holidays to you and yours! I was wondering if any of you have any experience with the drug antabuse....if so, how well does it work, etc. Thanks for your input, its always appreciated! seeking peace, jeannie
As others have said, antabuse causes some serious consequences if you drink while taking it.
Think about that for a minute. Haven't alcoholics already suffered "serious consequences" from drinking? Did it stop them?
I've heard a few stories, but the most common way around antabuse is to just not take it.... but some alcoholics treat it as a challenge.
There are alcoholics who can stop drinking because of the law, or because of family, or because of health, or because of a job... so I suppose there are some for which antabuse can be a viable stepping stone. But it's no cure for alcoholism, any more than speed bumps are a cure for speeding. Just another tool that may or may not contribute to recovery.
