Olivier Ameisen: Could Baclofen Be A Cure For Alcoholism?

"The End of My Addiction" by Olivier Ameisen.

Olivier Ameisen was a well-known cardiologist at work in New York.  He was also an alcoholic. After more than a decade of broken friendships, joblessness, and near-death experiences, he managed to end his dependence on alcohol using a drug known as baclofen.

Addiction experts will never say that someone is cured. Anyone is, at best, "recovering." People are alcoholics or crack heads even if it's been years or decades since they had their last dose because they are merely abstinent. A drink of booze or a hit of drug, or even a visit to an old haunt can spark off a huge craving that can trigger the entire cycle again, something a recovering addict must always be on the watch for.

Ameisen was a well-respected doctor so the spiral downward into addiction is striking. He talks openly about his worst experiences; being committed to a psychiatric ward against his will, verbally abusing friends and family who tried to help, and walking right out of rehab and into a liquor store. He went to  AA meetings daily and was in rehab three times.  The wonderful feeling of hope and assurance he felt in rehab, how he believed that he would be fine, never lasted.  Soon he returned to abusing alcohol.

He found a study done by Dr. Childress, a well-known addiction researcher, who had performed a clinical study on drug addicts using baclofen with some success and decided to try baclofen for himself.  At high doses, he felt no urge to drink, no craving. He also got relief from the anxiety which has plagued him for years, and which he believed to be the root cause of his drinking. After several months of this, he published his own results as a case study in a journal.

Since Ameisen published his cure, several other case studies have been done, and a couple of preliminary clinical trials. Most have seen at least some success.  The drug appears relatively safe in high doses (as is known through its use in treating muscle spasms), and appears to provide relief from both the craving and the anxiety that drug users experience.  Ameisen's success provides reason to hope that many  people could benefit from further research on the use of baclofen to heal addiction.