Gambling Addiction & Recovery Support Group
Compulsive gambling is an urge or addiction to gamble despite harmful negative consequences or a desire to stop. A preferred term among many professionals is problem gambling, as few people described by the term experience true compulsions in the clinical sense of the word. Problem gambling often is defined by whether harm is experienced by the gambler or others rather...
I've been reading about positive results obtained during recent clinical studies regarding the drug Naltrexone as a treatment for pathological compulsive gambling. Coupled with cognitive-behavioral counseling, there seem to be indications that this drug diminishes intense urges.
A study at the University of Michigan compared the results of naltrexone treatment against a placebo, originally using 77 test subjects. The study was double-blind, meaning that neither the researchers nor the participants knew who was receiving the actual medication. Both men and women were included in the study, ranging in age from 18 to 75. All participants reported having problems controlling their gambling, and gambled anywhere from six to 32 hours per week.
Of the 58 participants, 49 completed the study. Forty percent of those that completed quit gambling for at least a month, and reported that the urge to gamble was less intense. The remaining 19 participants were given a placebo. Of the placebo group, only 10.5 perscent abstained from gambling. The dosage, 50, 100, or 150mg did not affect the result, and few patients reported adverse side effects.
The average amount of time needed for treatment to be effective was 104.9 days. Ninety-one percent of patients had a positive response to naltrexone treatment alone, compared to only 45.5 percent of patients treated only with an SSRI. The studfy indicates that gambling symptoms can effectively be relieved with naltrexone or in combination with an SSRI.
Has anyone had any experience with this drug?
A study at the University of Michigan compared the results of naltrexone treatment against a placebo, originally using 77 test subjects. The study was double-blind, meaning that neither the researchers nor the participants knew who was receiving the actual medication. Both men and women were included in the study, ranging in age from 18 to 75. All participants reported having problems controlling their gambling, and gambled anywhere from six to 32 hours per week.
Of the 58 participants, 49 completed the study. Forty percent of those that completed quit gambling for at least a month, and reported that the urge to gamble was less intense. The remaining 19 participants were given a placebo. Of the placebo group, only 10.5 perscent abstained from gambling. The dosage, 50, 100, or 150mg did not affect the result, and few patients reported adverse side effects.
The average amount of time needed for treatment to be effective was 104.9 days. Ninety-one percent of patients had a positive response to naltrexone treatment alone, compared to only 45.5 percent of patients treated only with an SSRI. The studfy indicates that gambling symptoms can effectively be relieved with naltrexone or in combination with an SSRI.
Has anyone had any experience with this drug?
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My 6mo twin DD's are EBF and just started rice cereal on the first. Everything has been going fine except this morning one of them had a diaper rash (lots of redness around her anus). I read this as one of the signs of an allergy. BUT I did just buy a different brand diaper yesterday (which they have used randomly before w/no issues). Do you think its the cereal or the diaper? Im ready to start...
I know compulsive gambling probably is low on the list of brain research, but I truly believe there is a physiological basis to it that can be explored. Like the drugs that take away the urge to smoke, while there is still the behavioral aspect that needs to be managed, it seems promising that there could be a medicine that could do the same for gambling.
If so, then bring it on!
Essel, check back through my posts and see if I posted any links. I can't remember. I'm glad to see you have been doing some research and that you posted about it. I was thinking about starting it again tonight.