By David Joel Miller, MS, Licensed Therapist & Licensed Counselor.

Are there medications to treat alcoholism?

Two ways to chemically treat alcoholism.

We have been looking for a medication to treat alcoholism for a long time. There are two principle ways in which this is supposed to work.  One goal has been to find ways to turn the alcoholic back into a normal drinker. If only we could find a medication that relieves the cravings then the problem alcoholic could be taught to drink normally again. The other option is a medication that will keep the alcoholic from drinking.

The search for an alcoholism cure.

As far back as the A.A. Big Book in the 1930’s Bill was saying that maybe someday there would be a pill or medication that could turn an alcoholic into a normal drinker. It hadn’t happened back then and despite all our medical advances we still don’t have that sort of medication.

While a few medications have been tested to try to reduce the cravings, to date I know of no medication that will restore an alcoholic to a normal drinker. The only option for someone once they have progressed from a drinker to a problem drinker seems to be to stop drinking altogether.

While there are treatment programs to help the alcoholic or the problem drinker give up drinking and stay sober, a cure for alcoholism remains elusive.

Drugs that might reduce the pleasure of drinking, Naltrexone, and others, have been suggested for reducing cravings. One characteristic of addiction, to all substances, is an increase in tolerance after using your drug of choice. Over time the alcoholic needs to drink more to get the same result. Drugs that reduce cravings seem to accelerate the process of drinking more to offset the reduced pleasure from fewer drinks.

Keeping the alcoholic from drinking.

One drug, Disulfiram which is marketed under the trade names Antabuse or Antabuse produces so severe a reaction for people who take the drug and then drink it has been widely tested as a preventative.  There are other drugs that produce this same effect.

Disulfiram has uses other than keeping an alcoholic from drinking. Originally tested to treat parasite infections, those who took the drug and then drank became violently ill.

Alcohol, when consumed, is broken down through several steps until it is transformed into water and can be eliminated from the body. One of these breakdown products is acetaldehyde, which is even more toxic than the original alcohol. Having acetaldehyde in your system is a major reason for the severity of hangovers.

Disulfiram prevents the elimination of Acetaldehyde and results in prolonging and intensifying many of the symptoms of a hangover.

With Disulfiram in the bloodstream the drinker experiences severe flushing of the skin, nausea, vomiting, headache, shortness of breath, and many other serious even life-threatening symptoms. Further the longer the Disulfiram is taken the stronger the effects become. People who take Disulfiram develop little or no tolerance to the medication.

You would think that taking a medication that made you violently sick every time you drank would be enough to cure a drinker. It doesn’t work that way.

Medication Compliance is a major problem with most medications. While a psychiatric medication may work exceptionally well, people frequently do not take their medication every day as prescribed.

Antabuse is one medication that is not likely to be taken as prescribed. The symptoms it produces are severe and if the alcoholic continues to drink with Antabuse in their system they are likely to end up in the hospital. The alcoholic will often stop taking the medication so they can drink again.

Antabuse clears from the system very slowly. There is a high potential for alcoholics to stop taking their meds and drink. Physicians are warned to discuss the possible medical risks of drinking while taking Antabuse.

The relapse rate with Alcoholics is very high. Many studies have found no improvement in abstinence between those given the medication and those who use other methods to quit drinking. As a result, Antabuse is not widely prescribed to treat alcoholism.

Other drugs that make you sick when taken with Alcohol.

Disulfiram is not the only medication that can produce this effect. Drinking Alcohol while you have several other items in your bloodstream can result in extreme sickness. Several antibiotics carry label warnings to not drink alcohol while taking these meds because of a possible “Disulfiram-like reaction.” Some anti-fungal drugs and at least one type of common mushroom can also interact with alcohol to produce extremely violent hangover-like symptoms after as little as one drink.

The conclusions on meds to reduce or cure drinking?

To date, no medication has gained widespread acceptance in the treatment of alcoholism. A few people, a few times, have reported that meds helped.  If you think meds will help, talk with your doctor. Be forewarned, the meds will not cure you. You will still need to do a lot of work on yourself.

There are some medications that are helpful for treating withdrawals and as alcohol withdrawals can be fatal I recommend that chronic alcoholics need to see a medical doctor for withdrawal. See my post on why Pink Elephants can kill.

The diseases of alcoholism and addiction are mostly in the mind or thinking not in the body. Treatment that changes the person’s thinking is far more effective than medications.

There is no medication that will allow you to drink and not be an alcoholic. Like other life problems, you need to do the work of changing yourself. Others can help you but you do the work.

Hope that information about Medication to treat alcoholism – Disulfiram, Antabuse, and Naltrexone was helpful for some of you on your path to self-improvement.

Staying connected with David Joel Miller

Seven David Joel Miller Books are available now!

My newest book is now available. It was my opportunity to try on a new genre. I’ve been working on this book for several years, but now seem like the right time to publish it.

Story Bureau.

Story Bureau is a thrilling Dystopian Post-Apocalyptic adventure in the Surviving the Apocalypse series.

Baldwin struggles to survive life in a post-apocalyptic world where the government controls everything.

As society collapses and his family gets plunged into poverty, Baldwin takes a job in the capital city, working for a government agency called the Story Bureau. He discovers the Story Bureau is not a benign news outlet but a sinister government plot to manipulate society.

Bumps on the Road of Life. Whether you struggle with anxiety, depression, low motivation, or addiction, you can recover. Bumps on the Road of Life is the story of how people get off track and how to get your life out of the ditch.

Dark Family Secrets: Doris wants to get her life back, but small-town prejudice could shatter her dreams.

Casino Robbery Arthur Mitchell escapes the trauma of watching his girlfriend die. But the killers know he’s a witness and want him dead.

Planned Accidents  The second Arthur Mitchell and Plutus mystery.

Letters from the Dead: The third in the Arthur Mitchell mystery series.

What would you do if you found a letter to a detective describing a crime and you knew the writer and detective were dead, and you could be next?

Sasquatch. Three things about us, you should know. One, we have seen the past. Two, we’re trapped there. Three, I don’t know if we’ll ever get back to our own time.

For these and my upcoming books; please visit my Author Page – David Joel Miller

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