Medication Treatments for Alcohol Use Disorder

[@pauljordan3911]

I went Cold Turkey at 57 years old. It was 5 months of waves of headaches but was no problem after that. The 5 or 6 hours spent getting drunk WAS NOT worth the next 72 hours of feeling like crap. I simply was sick and tired of being sick and tired. 5 years later and I am as sober as can be. I wish you all good luck in your journey.

[@justinjennetto]

I just went cold turkey after 25 years of everyday drinking. I’ve had a constant headache for over a month now. Is this normal? I got my bloodwork done. Everything looked good thank god. Please let me know.

[@sometingozkobar8141]

@@justinjennetto make sure you get check ultra sound and mri check -- maybe you have cirrhosis and you dont know -- blood tests not tell you this!!

[@kazneasham9110]

So ashamed of myr addiction. Am desperate to stop drinking. Withdrawal is disgusting as well as physical symptoms depression and anxiety make me feel 😖 miserable. Thanks for these videos

[@Underpar26]

Acamprosate is a good one. It does work. The problem I had with it was a nasty metallic taste in my mouth... Made me not want to eat anything lol. Then I slowly came off of Acamprosate and replaced it with Alcohol again.

[@KittyKLovely]

New sub, I have an extreme fear of doctors since 2020. The anxiety I have is truly debilitating. It is something that I am working on. Thanks for using your platform to help people like me 🙏🫡!

[@charleswomack2166]

It was Antabuse that got me off alcohol. My psychiatrist was like it can be hard on the liver and we here in the west are trying to get away from the more Eastern European type of medications. I responded with "I need a Soviet-style medication to get me to stop drinking!" Since I was a 3-4 day a week binge drinker and NEEDED a negative reinforcement to not drink! I took it continously 3 months and take it during high-risk situations(vacation, designated driver) and have not had a drop of alcohol since! For those unfamiliar with how Antabuse works, it basically gives you a hangover × 10 at the first drop of alcohol in your system. In other countries, such as India, it can be given as a 6 month deterrent to drinking. The other issue is that it does not work in a certain % of people. Awesome video Dr. Kim!

[@toddbaker7672]

Thank you so much for all your information. I've been struggling for years. I can't stop drinking. I shake like crazy and feel horrible. My high blood pressure stops me from drinking stopping, my body can't handle it. Alcohol keeps me calm constantly. Without it I'm a shaking nervous wreck. I don't have insurance and can't get help. Thank you and may God bless you 🙏

[@maryann7619]

Todd, Go to your closest ER and tell them you are going cold turkey to get off alcohol. Do not stop at go and do not collect $200. Dp it today. They WILL help you. Insurance or not. Alcohol and heroin are the only drugs that withdrawing from all at once can kill you. Why else do you think liquor stores stayed open during COVID? They didn't want ERs overrun with addicts going through the DTs.

[@toddbaker7672]

@@maryann7619 , I spent 7 days in the hospital. Clean and sober for almost 2 months. Never drinking again. I went through that week. Thank you 👍

[@davidkruse4030]

@@maryann7619herion withdrawal can’t kill you. It’s alcohol and sedatives withdrawal that can kill you

[@patrickboyle6727]

Look into dr.ameisen from France todd,he wrote a book called the end of my addiction.he got off drink and cured many people using a drug called baclofen.

[@jjchaos2024]

Helpful & thoroughly explained as always for your curious viewers. Thank you, Doctor Kim! 👌🏻

[@tomburke1687]

Great Video Dr Kim--------I work in a drug and alcohol residential center------Naltrexone in used like you say,

[@tomv4876]

Amazing explanation, thank you

[@10toMidnight]

Thank you Dr. Kim. Very helpful and reinforced my personal physician’s advice as well. Very best, sir.

[@rosyloveslearning3013]

Thank you. ❤

[@svetlanasafronova864]

Nothing worked for myself. Do not forget the Topamax, antiseizure medication. Some people react to Gabapentin as well.

[@Greenriver842]

Great info, as an alcoholic it's super helpful.

[@kimgannon5980]

Hi there! I have a question: at the very beginning, you mentioned that “most clinical guidelines” for alcohol use disorder don’t recommend medication for mild AUD. Could you send me a link to what some of those clinical guidelines are? I’m working on a research project related to AUD, but as someone who’s not a physician, it’s been hard for me to know which guidelines people actually use or not 😂

[@josephgiandonato1768]

I miss having you as my doctor. Hope you're doing well.

[@iashakezula]

So the IM naltrexone injection would be a good option for mother in law who has dementia and non compliant

[@maltezz]

what about disulfiram. that is never used in the us or ?

[@FoodieBeautyStan]

I’m on it.

[@pandaberserk3390]

most of the aaa meeting are christian or god structured where do i go when i dont believe in that?( i remember i took suboxone at my lowest when i was on codine. i took just enough to get the god-awful withdrawals from suboxone due to not being able to get pills. after 3 days of hell i no longer craved opiods like i use too.i could take it or leave it it seemed like suboxone loosened the mental grip it had on me. so maybe this stuff might work.)

[@24kachina]

Smart Recovery is one good option. I am an atheist and AA - where several meetings I attended started and ended each session with discussion of a biblical verse - was a nonstarter for me.

[@MickeyGee73]

I am very anti AA..The Xtian part turns me off straight up..but the idea of passing over control to a 'higher power' to me is ridiculous and counter productive..Smart Recovery is great..Its a CBT based program with the aim of getting you to a point where you dont need to keep going back..Teaches you how to take responsibility for and create strategies to cope with triggers and cravings..The facilitators go through a training process and there is no personal story sharing in the group..You just identify issues that you are currently dealing with, the group shares strategy ideas and the facilitator takes you all through relevant exercises..

[@austinpoolmedic6410]

The problem with this is the way he’s saying to use it. Naltrexone you have to take before you drink about an hour. And then don’t take it on days you don’t drink and it’s a retraining of the brain. It’s the Sinclair method. That’s the effective way to use this medication. Most people don’t get any success at all taking the once a day and really think about it. If you had to take a shot and blocked all these receptors for a whole month. You’re going to be in a really crappy mood on everything. Just don’t know if that’s the right approach. Personally on the Sinclair method doing better!

[@virginiamoss7045]

It seems that if you want to drink, you'd be inclined to not take the pill beforehand. It might be helpful if you are really trying to not drink, but if you don't even want to stop drinking, it would be completely pointless.

[@kazneasham9110]

Can my GP prescribe acomprosate?

[@great-garden-watch]

What about ozempic? People report it makes them disinterested in alcohol. Because naltrexone seems more like a conditioning effect whereby you have to drink with it to learn that the effects are gone from alcohol vs something that straight out of the gate reduces your interest in consuming things

[@mariegracesaunders203]

Dr Kim, do you only give librium on pts with alcohol withdrawal symptoms? or do you give it to prevent the symptoms?

[@TheMisspeachyqueen]

2 Emergency rooms a rehab and the public defender in a court room all told me to go home and drink that beer or you will die...I am doing it myself now and I seen your other video I am a level 4 . I have dts and palpitations ect.. I tried to tell them I don't want to drink or pills wth..Btw ive been going through this while I was still drinking and i drank 5 40 oz of beer( Old English) , a day for a long time. Ive been experiencing the wet feet fever ect.. it started sept 20th and i decided to cut down over the weekend and now im at a 24 but my chest hurts now and i have no appetite. Thx

[@silviaperez5058]

thank you for the video. Is it ok to start naltreoxone if the person is suicidal? or has had past suicides? thank you

[@andysaunders3708]

What are your thoughts on Baclofen?

[@biffmalibu9488]

Dr. Kim, what are your thoughts about psychological addiction to drinking? I drink a lot but when I moved in with my fiance (she doesn't drink), I completely quit drinking and no issues.??

[@AndrewKimMD]

There definitely is a psychological component, not just physical in my opinion. There are many people who aren’t at the point where they may have physical withdrawal but still find reducing or stopping drinking very challenging: self medication, conditioning, reward mechanisms, peer pressure, etc numerous non-physical reasons that can continue to pull people back to drinking for sure.

[@maggiemonroe7299]

Please make more

[@austinpoolmedic6410]

Another thing he got wrong was a that naltrexone is no more harmful to the liver it then a Tylenol and that’s at six times its normal dose. I wouldn’t say that detrimental to the liver.

[@tukek88]

Adderal helps with my alcoholism. Do you have any experience with that?

[@kristannchigro2074]

How does it help if you don't mind me asking

[@tukek88]

@@kristannchigro2074 Multiple reasons one being, I simply do not want to drink on aderral. I have no way to get it anymore, It would help.

[@motionsick]

Are you trolling?

[@tukek88]

@@motionsick I am not. It helps in a variety of ways. It has helped me ween myself off alcohol. It helps if I go to a party where there is drinking to refrain from drinking because it allows me to socialize and when I take it I have no desire to drink. It also helps focus my mind and thoughts. Another reason I start drinking again is to get freedom from my mind, from overthinking. However, I have not used it for prolonged periods so it may not be a sustainable option. I have no access to it right now. I just recently quit drinking again. I had started up again and had it kind of under control but I do not want to risk it. So I use cannabis and kratom as an outlet right now. It is working fairly good. the kratom has a stimulating affect which is nice when working.

[@24kachina]

Query Dr. - do you have an opinion about, or experience with, using Naltrexone under the so called Sinclair Method? Has anyone here tried it?

[@virginiamoss7045]

How do you intervene when the alcoholic has no desire whatsoever to make any change?

[@AndrewKimMD]

Motivational Interviewing is a therapy/counseling technique designed to try to engage in thought provoking conversation with someone to help them find and strengthen their own motivation to start making healthy decisions. Look up “motivational interviewing” for substance use, to read on some of the basic principles. Having a counselor/therapist utilize that technique is a good starting point sometimes.

[@virginiamoss7045]

@@AndrewKimMD Thanks for the information. However, that doesn't address how you "interview" a person locked in to their comfy little cesspool of escape in their room. Do counselors make house calls? It's illegal to force anyone to accept medical care. My only hope is that law enforcement will find a reason, hopefully not tragic to others, where they will stay in jail for as long as they will keep them. What does it take to shake an alcoholic out of their cesspool just to begin a journey to sobriety? That is the question.

[@markmillward9733]

@@virginiamoss7045 I've found guilt shaming doesn't work it only causes resentment toward the person that is making them feel bad about themselves. The older i get the more I have the opinion that only the person themself after hitting rock bottom can decide because its usually a personal choice unless they've been incarcerated, whether or not to drink alcohol.

[@virginiamoss7045]

@@markmillward9733 Shaming and guilt is never to be used! It's the antithesis of helping! Only positive support is useful; the trick there is to know when it's helping and when it's enabling and no one anywhere knows where that line is.

[@aaronyork3995]

Kam Sam nida dr Wish you were my dr Thank you

[@RupertKordor-ce4wq]

Doctor please make a video about heroin drug withdraw how to get well from this 💩

[@MichaelOR-oe8xp]

Maybe I was lucky or happened to do it right, it’s been over 9 months and I don’t crave a drop of alcohol, the key difference was that I didn’t suffer withdrawal after go’ogling and reading Steffon Barkload, not even within the first 30 days after I quit and told no one, did not need AA meetings or meds either.

[@elijah9125]

Promo'SM 💃

[@jason8077]

doc take some days off man i am not a doctor but you looks tired thats for sure

[@colinbutler5676]

Doctor do you suffer from You don't look that healthy