I am so sorry that you are going through this situation. It is a real drag taking care of an animal that you really don't seem to feel any affinity toward.

SatanicIntention (Becky) is a very respected member on this forum and is also a CVT and really knows her stuff when it comes to medications and getting stubborn feeders to eat. To discard her advice summarily might be a little short-sighted on your part.

Your snake seems very stressed out. If you absolutely refuse to put him into a different enclosure, perhaps you might entertain the notion of altering his current one. I suggest covering the sides and back of his tank with dark paper or dark material of some sort; this will help the snake to feel more secure. I also suggest adding another hide so that the snake has a cool side hide and a warm side hide.

As for feeding, I would suggest that you only try once every 7 days and that you try to feed him in his own enclosure. At this point, it is my feeling that you are only compounding the stress he is feeling by moving him to another enclosure. Also, are you heating the mouse up really well? This is a very important step. I thaw rodents all day long and then use a blow dryer to heat them immediately prior to offering it to the snake. Lastly, while I can commiserate regarding your feelings of feeding live, this is a snake after all! However, once your guy settles in to his new digs and eats consistently on live, you could then attempt to switch him over to f/t. Most snakes make the switch and some never do; you'll just never know until he de-stresses, eats consistently on live, and then you do the switch.

As for your eating and handling stance- assume nothing and learn!! Because he is eating does not mean he is ready to be the family dog!! Handling too early in the de-stress mode could cause him to go off-feed again.

I strongly urge you to you let go of all pre-conceived notions you might have, all stances that you might feel compelled to take, all examples of what your friends' snakes are doing, and get your own snake settled in and then get to know your own snake. This takes time.

Good luck. Take care.