Drinking Alcohol on Vivitrol: What will Happen?
Short Answer: If you drink alcohol while on Vivitrol, it will not make you feel more sick, but it may reduce the effectiveness of the medication and interfere with your recovery goals. Vivitrol is a long-acting injectable form of naltrexone, which is a medication used to treat two substance use disorders – opioid use disorder and alcohol use disorder (alcoholism). Vivitrol is used as part of a treatment program. It helps prevent people with alcohol or opioid dependence from feeling like they need to use these substances. Vivitrol is an opioid antagonist, which works by blocking mu opioid receptors. It also suppresses the amount of alcohol you feel like drinking by changing how your hypothalamus, pituitary gland and adrenal gland work together. Vivitrol blocks the intoxication and euphoria or ‘high’ that alcohol and opioids cause. It also blocks the pain relief that opioids provide. Vivitrol is an extended-release suspension that is injected into your gluteal muscle. Once injected, it slowly releases naltrexone (the active ingredient) for about a month. Vivitrol was first approved by the US Food and Drug Administration in 2006. If you drink alcohol while on Vivitrol, it will not make you feel more sick. You should feel the same amount of sickness that you would normally have, drinking the same amount of alcohol. However, drinking alcohol while on Vivitrol may reduce the effectiveness of the medication and interfere with your recovery goals. This is because Vivitrol works by blocking the rewarding effects of alcohol, which can help