I’m impressed:
This is the story of Olivier Ameisen, a brilliant physician and cardiologist who developed a profound addiction to alcohol. He broke bones with no memory of falling. He nearly lost his kidneys; he fractured ribs and suffered a hemopneumothorax that left blood and air in the sac around his lungs. He gave up his flourishing practice and, fearing for his life, invested himself in Alcoholics Anonymous and, later, rehab. Nothing worked.So he did the only thing he could: he took his treatment into his own hands. Searching for a cure for his deadly disease, he discovered baclofen, a muscle relaxant that had proven effective in curing rats addicted to every substance from nicotine and alcohol to cocaine and heroin. Ameisen prescribed himself the drug and, over a two-year period, experimented with the dosage until he reached a level high enough to leave him free of any craving for alcohol. That was four years ago.
More.
This is so interesting; great article and inspiring.
I’ve been reading a lot about GABA recently in relation to anti-anxiety treatments; it has a decent reputation in Japan where it is primarily known as being a byproduct of sprouted brown rice, is infused into a chocolate candy called Gaba, and readily available in supplement form. I’m taking about 840 mg a day to see what happens.
Interesting there would be a drug made that might do the same thing. I suppose that’s because it’s easy to regulate i.e. reap profits from.
Seth, I found your site through scientific america’s article. I didn’t know that there are others like me who are conducting experiments on ourselves. Thanks for making this known to the world and thanks for letting me know that there are other like minded people.