As i understand a person with ADHD and an addictive personality, needs to take stimulants to make his brain reduce the wish of making stimulants actions like gambling or taking stimulants by himself like drinking.
The time of action in the brain of the stimulants(medication) doesnt last all the time so, when the action ends, lets say 6 hours later, his brain will start wanting stimulation again, so he might want to drink or play.
My husband has been treating his ADHD and his alcohoism as well.
Two months ago the doctor put inside his skin a pill for cutting the desire of drinking.He told us it will stay there in periods of 3 months and 3 months of resting.He might be doing that all his life.
The explanation of that is what i wrote above???Am i right??
Has anybody received this treatment???
Thanks.

How a person is able to recover from (or break away from) a drug addiction (including alcohol) will depend much more on the person than anything else.

Yes, there are skin patches that can be used for three months and then not used for three months, and so on. But as to needing to do that for the rest of his life...there is no set answer to that question.

Many people would not require that type of continued treatment. But its very individual. It is also a matter of choice (the person may want to continue indefinitely or they may not want to).

So the question of "need" really can't be determined in advance. The person will determine or recognize the "need" themselves.

But your husband should have daily medication that addresses his general ADD/ADHD as well. That medication shouldn't be taken for three months and then stopped for three months.

If you husband is treated for his ADD/ADHD his inclination toward becoming an addict again (or even just using alcohol) can change. It generally would not be the case that his daily medications only "hold him back" and then there is no holding back at all, once the medication wears off.

It is not that black and white.

The best thing to do - the only thing to do - is to go ahead and follow the advice and instructions from the Dr.

Then see what the results are.

If your husband has troubles or doesn't respond well - both in general and in terms of avoiding alcohol (or other behaviors) - then let your Dr. know at that time.

****

* There are ADD people who become addicts, or have an addictive personality.
* There are non-ADD people who become addicts as well.

* There are ADD people who don't become addicts and don't have much of an addictive personality - or don't have one at all.

* So all our brains work differently - ADD people have lots of similarities, but there are very few things that they are all alike in. And certainly none of them are completely alike another person.

If we told you how our brains worked you would get a different answer from each person. :)

No one can tell you just how your husband's brain works. There are certainly lots of ADD people who are like him in different ways, but we can't tell you what those ways are. It is more something for your husband to recognize - how he and other people are alike in certain ways.

***

I hope that helps. Ask more questions if you want to, people here like to share their ideas and experiences.

Good luck!

My husband has been treating his ADHD and his alcohoism as well.
Two months ago the doctor put inside his skin a pill for cutting the desire of drinking.He told us it will stay there in periods of 3 months and 3 months of resting.He might be doing that all his life.
The explanation of that is what i wrote above???Am i right??
Has anybody received this treatment???
Thanks.

I doubt that medication given sub dermal has anything to do with his ADD. Odds are it's to prevent alcohol abuse relapses.
It sounds familiar to an intramuscular depot injection of naltrexone extended release suspension. However, I am only aware of it lasting one month, not 3.

Naltrexone is basically an opioid (narcotic), but it does not relieve pain. It is what is called an opioid receptor antagonist, which in short binds to the same opioid receptors that other opioid pain killers do, but has no activity/action when binding.

Thus it also also blocks the effects narcotics and dopamine/gaba modulating drugs have on your body, as if you are taking a low dose or no dose. (like alcohol, morphine, fentanyl, oxycodone, hydrocodone, dihydromorphinone, dihydromorphine, and even ADD stimulant medication, but... alas I digress).

This is where addiction comes in. Addiction is caused by reinforced behavior via our brain's "pleasure center," or dopamine pathways. It kills any "positive reinfocement" you'd have of taking the drugs, because it kills most if not ALL of the effects the drugs would have on making you feel good by increasing dopamine and GABA.

Naltrexone is used for 2 things:
1) Alcohol addiction recovery (for someone who wants to have extra help with alcohol detox). It isn't understood how it works, but since it has activity at the opioid receptor, it prevents both narcotics and alcohol from triggering the dopamine pathway in the mesolimbic pathway. The mesolimbic pathway is thought to affect responses to stimulus that give people a feeling of reward, motivation, and reinforcement in said behavior that activates the pathway (narcotic and alcohol use/abuse). Narcotics

2) Prevent overdose on opioid CNS depressants. However, it has been replaced by another drug, so in a pinch it could be used, but it isn't preferred.




Also, please please please check to make sure he is NOT taking DISULFIRAM (trade name Antabus) with his ADD stimulant medication!!!!!!!!!!

Disulfiram prevents dopamine from being broken down, which increases dopamine levels in the body. Well what a coincidence, ADHD stimulant medication has a similar effect by increasing dopamine and norepinephrine. If taken together, it WILL cause higher blood pressure, increased heart rate, short breath, nausea, vomiting, headache, hallucinations, delusions, mental stupor/confusion, fainting, restlessness, anxiety, insomnia, stimulant psychosis (not permanent), and in the worst case scenario: cardiovascular failure (AKA circulatory collapse, AKA DEATH).




Sorry this post was so long, this area of pharmacology is right up my street, interest-wise so to speak :).

ALSO, I would heavily encourage you to look into these two drugs, to read up on.


Naltrexone
Disulfiram (hopefully he's not on this though...)



I also HEAVILY encourage both you and your husband to become familiar with any and all drugs, both prescription or non-prescription, you ingest (effects, benefits, purpose, effectiveness of the drugs, etc).

Just because a doctor gives it to you doesn't mean it's safe when combined with something else that seems relatively harmless (food or drug wise).