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Dr. Bob is Robert Hsiung, MD,
bob@dr-bob.orgShown: posts 1 to 22 of 22. This is the beginning of the thread.
Posted by tallclaire1982 on November 12, 2006, at 16:28:57
i am thinking of trying this to calm my nerves, i have a bit of OCD (the horrid thought part) but my anxiety is what hurts most i think the ocd bit just makes it worse!
any experiences?
claire x
Posted by kiwiredbeach on November 13, 2006, at 2:01:00
In reply to L-tryptophan, anxiety and all! any experience?, posted by tallclaire1982 on November 12, 2006, at 16:28:57
I think L-tryptophan would be a good product to try, it can be hard to get hold of but if you can get it then do try. Just remember to take it on a empty stomach and dont eat any protein at the same time. If you start taking it and you get lots of vivid dreams thats a sign its getting nto the brain
Kiwi
Posted by tallclaire1982 on November 13, 2006, at 8:39:48
In reply to Re: L-tryptophan, anxiety and all! any experience?, posted by kiwiredbeach on November 13, 2006, at 2:01:00
thanks, have u known anyone to try it?
Posted by kiwiredbeach on November 13, 2006, at 9:35:48
In reply to Re: L-tryptophan, anxiety and all! any experience? » kiwiredbeach, posted by tallclaire1982 on November 13, 2006, at 8:39:48
No not myself, but there has been studies done and there seems to be evidence that it works
Posted by dessbee on November 13, 2006, at 11:45:13
In reply to L-tryptophan, anxiety and all! any experience?, posted by tallclaire1982 on November 12, 2006, at 16:28:57
Have you tried low carb diet?
High carb diet worsens OCD and anxiety
Posted by tallclaire1982 on November 13, 2006, at 14:37:00
In reply to Re: L-tryptophan, anxiety and all! any experience?, posted by dessbee on November 13, 2006, at 11:45:13
no i havent, i have to go on a low fat diet soon for MS so i need some carbs but overall the diet is a great one so mabie that will help me too. Trying inositol first, then tryptophan if they dont work then to the doc i go :( shame all i want is to be normal and have another baby
Posted by tealady on November 13, 2006, at 15:33:20
In reply to Re: L-tryptophan, anxiety and all! any experience?, posted by tallclaire1982 on November 13, 2006, at 14:37:00
I tried l-typrtophan myself. I didn't need huge anounts, just started at about 500mg per day and cut ir back as it built up to about 100mg a day..powder on empty stomach divided into morning and bedtime dose I think.
It did build up in me though.
It did help with depressionand sleep length and appetite suppression initially, but that wears off.
I'd have to look up what I wrote when I took it as i've forgotten now, i just know after a few weeks i had to stop it as it felt it builtup. it helped with sleep too, as it goes on the melatonin.I'll try to find a link :0
http://tealady-health.blog.co.uk/?tag=tryptophan
sorry.. just my ramblings.. you might find something in there I hope.
BTW before you go to the doc after trying tryptophan etc, consider B1. It's improved all my MS symptoms at least so far, and relieved anxiety a lot too.. not completely but that's probably just me, but its livable with now.. well mostly :0)
here's a link to a post which has many links with efernce to MS and anxiety, depression.. scroll down in bold is a MS heading with ref to B1
http://tealady-health.blog.co.uk/?tag=b1%20headings
Hope this helps,
Jan
Posted by tallclaire1982 on November 13, 2006, at 16:13:16
In reply to Re: L-tryptophan, anxiety and all! any experience? » tallclaire1982, posted by tealady on November 13, 2006, at 15:33:20
Thanks for ur reply!
i am going to getting my brain neurotransmitters tested!!u can do it by urine and saliva! so i know exactly what i am lacking so my treatment plan can be as accurate as possible! brilliant idea i think if u can afford it! as i know with this MS that i have changed alot mentally due to the stress my body is under
Posted by circusboy on November 13, 2006, at 20:48:53
In reply to L-tryptophan, anxiety and all! any experience?, posted by tallclaire1982 on November 12, 2006, at 16:28:57
I recently relegated my bottle of l-tryptophan to my "emergency sleep aid" drawer. Which is good because replaced the melatonin (which would do the job but leave me depressed and irritable the next day), but it's not something I'll be adding to my daily pill pile.
On the up side, at just 500mg on an empty stomach before bed it helped me sleep, complete with a pleasant warmth in my limbs. I did have a bit of a hangover the next day, but nothing like with melatonin.
It also made me a little less inhibited the next day, etc... but this is where it's starting to be not-so-good for me. It felt a lot like an SSRI. Unsurprising, I guess, but anyway... While I was a little freer, my concentration was poor and I felt a little draggy (a lot like how I feel after a few months on an SSRI).
My conclusion: it's a powerfully serotonergic supplement. If you benefit from the serotonin sledgehammer approach -- which might be perfect for OCD symptoms -- go for it. I seem to have very different symptoms than you (low energy, poor concentration), so don't let me scare you off!
Not that monoamines are everything, but I'm continuing my search for a more gentle/indirect serotonergic mood brightener. I've already been helped immensely by SAM-e, tyrosine and fish oil, but there's something missing...
-cb
Posted by qbsbrown on November 14, 2006, at 1:16:45
In reply to Re: L-tryptophan - actual experience :), posted by circusboy on November 13, 2006, at 20:48:53
My experience w/ Tryptophan was not that it reduced any anxiety/depression/OCD, but was an amazing sleep aid. 8 pure hours of refreshing sleep, w/ no hangover what so ever.
Brian
Posted by tallclaire1982 on November 14, 2006, at 5:26:37
In reply to Re: L-tryptophan - actual experience :), posted by circusboy on November 13, 2006, at 20:48:53
thanks for ur replies, im gonna try inositol first and if that seems ok i will add some fish oil as i need that on my diet anyway then the tryptophan as a last resort! man this is annoying! if i understood more what the brain neurotransmitters do then i could mabie see what i should try.
I have the anxiety tension thing, horrid thoughts and i feel tired alot with a headache sometimes but that could be my physical health prob that does that who knows! concentration is fine when i get into something!
Posted by Jlx on November 14, 2006, at 19:27:31
In reply to Re: L-tryptophan - actual experience :), posted by circusboy on November 13, 2006, at 20:48:53
My experience was quite similar -- it felt like an SSRI, only with the effects rather immediate. It made me anxious, possibly due to lower dopamine is my understanding as when one is boosted, the other may go down.
I also got a terrible stomach ache, but then I was taking the horse variety at the time so perhaps it was that.
JL
> I recently relegated my bottle of l-tryptophan to my "emergency sleep aid" drawer. Which is good because replaced the melatonin (which would do the job but leave me depressed and irritable the next day), but it's not something I'll be adding to my daily pill pile.
>
> On the up side, at just 500mg on an empty stomach before bed it helped me sleep, complete with a pleasant warmth in my limbs. I did have a bit of a hangover the next day, but nothing like with melatonin.
>
> It also made me a little less inhibited the next day, etc... but this is where it's starting to be not-so-good for me. It felt a lot like an SSRI. Unsurprising, I guess, but anyway... While I was a little freer, my concentration was poor and I felt a little draggy (a lot like how I feel after a few months on an SSRI).
>
> My conclusion: it's a powerfully serotonergic supplement. If you benefit from the serotonin sledgehammer approach -- which might be perfect for OCD symptoms -- go for it. I seem to have very different symptoms than you (low energy, poor concentration), so don't let me scare you off!
>
> Not that monoamines are everything, but I'm continuing my search for a more gentle/indirect serotonergic mood brightener. I've already been helped immensely by SAM-e, tyrosine and fish oil, but there's something missing...
>
> -cb
Posted by blueberry on November 15, 2006, at 21:05:25
In reply to L-tryptophan, anxiety and all! any experience?, posted by tallclaire1982 on November 12, 2006, at 16:28:57
I have used tryptophan several times for immediate calming. Sometimes 5htp gave me uncomfortable nervousness or anxiety but tryptophan never did. It's just that when it wears off the anxiety is back so you have to keep taking it. And when I did that I got side effects of sleepyness and sexual dysfunction much worse than ssri meds.
Posted by tealady on November 16, 2006, at 6:18:23
In reply to Re: L-tryptophan - actual experience :), posted by circusboy on November 13, 2006, at 20:48:53
warmth in limbs..
that's what I noticed today!
I was trying to figure out how I'd got my limbs warm as yesterday morning my limbs and especially bottom of legs and feet were like ice again.
I can get them a bit warmer with B1 (which I think also elevates whatever tryptophan also raises to get this effect) slightly.. not as much as tryptophan and with other side effects too if you take too much.
I thought maybe its the tryptophan as I noticed it got my body temp(underarm) up a bit last trial.. and its the only thing I can think of I took different yesterday, or was it the day b4? , sighanyway reading that it also raised your limbs temp , means its probably tryptophan with me.
I only took sonme I had leftover in a capsule.. about 250mg I'd guess.
I use FTH pharmaceuticals(human tryptophan) , mail order from US ..
http://www.PhysicianFormulas.com
Long saga with that too.. I think customs may have nabbed it, but I'm unsure as I heard nothing from them
http://tealady-health.blog.co.uk/2006/01/09/physicians_formula_order~475154Anyway, its "human" trypophan and one of the best and cheapest sources I could find for me. It's in 500mg capsules.. so I just open the cap and take whatever I require. It's pure.. good stuff:)
No gut reaction except the usual SSRI (serotonin ) reaction I get in gut , although less than an SSRI(which makes me have diarhorea and feel queasy etc ).. like reduced apetite for first few weeks, bit queasy first time around but not this time , ..and gut rumblings etc
guts have lotsa serotnonin receptors, and even though its not supposed to convert in my gut, obviously it does , .. before absorbed while still in digestive tract..
either that or it gets into blood stream and then comes back out as serotnin in gut.Anyway I'm enjoying the warm limbs today and the long sleep.
Posted by tallclaire1982 on November 16, 2006, at 8:50:47
In reply to Re: L-tryptophan, anxiety and all! any experience? » tallclaire1982, posted by blueberry on November 15, 2006, at 21:05:25
how much were u taking and when did u take it?
thanks alot
Posted by sregan on November 19, 2006, at 20:35:11
In reply to Re: L-tryptophan - actual experience :), posted by tallclaire1982 on November 14, 2006, at 5:26:37
> I have the anxiety tension thing, horrid thoughts and i feel tired alot with a headache sometimes but that could be my physical health prob that does that who knows! concentration is fine when i get into something!
Are you pretty sure that increasing serotonin will help your anxiety? In some of us it makes it worse. I can take 5HTP or Fish oil and they cause the same increase in anxiety as does Whey protein which also increases serotonin.
Shawn
Posted by johnnyj on November 19, 2006, at 21:58:39
In reply to Re: L-tryptophan - actual experience :) » tallclaire1982, posted by sregan on November 19, 2006, at 20:35:11
I tried Trypto about a week ago. First day not bad effects, second day felt a lot of anixety at times during the day. I didn't think it was the T at the time but I went off and tried about 4 days later and had the same feelings. It last about a day or so after stopping that time. I had a weird anxiety and became irritable.
Posted by tallclaire1982 on November 20, 2006, at 7:28:53
In reply to Re: L-tryptophan - actual experience :) » tallclaire1982, posted by sregan on November 19, 2006, at 20:35:11
Its diff for everyone some people do well n others not, 5htp can be a godsend for many anxiety probs! like i have a little OCD and that usually responds well to ssri's
Posted by sregan on November 20, 2006, at 8:49:06
In reply to Re: L-tryptophan - actual experience :) » sregan, posted by tallclaire1982 on November 20, 2006, at 7:28:53
> Its diff for everyone some people do well n others not, 5htp can be a godsend for many anxiety probs! like i have a little OCD and that usually responds well to ssri's
Sure, just wanted you to be aware that throwing Serotonin at the problem is not always the right thing to do.
Posted by tallclaire1982 on November 20, 2006, at 10:46:05
In reply to Re: L-tryptophan - actual experience :), posted by sregan on November 20, 2006, at 8:49:06
no it isnt but it works for alot of people n i will try it all thanks
Posted by verne on November 26, 2006, at 20:13:12
In reply to Re: L-tryptophan - actual experience :), posted by tallclaire1982 on November 20, 2006, at 10:46:05
I just discovered that L-tryptophan and St John's Wort are on Cymbalta's drug interaction list.
Does anyone know why these two would pose a problem while taking cymbalta?
Sadly, I just ordered a truckload of both St John's Wort and L-tryptophan from iherb.com - right after I filled the cymbalta prescription.
verne
Posted by Tomatheus on December 1, 2006, at 0:39:06
In reply to L-tryptophan and Cymbalta?, posted by verne on November 26, 2006, at 20:13:12
> I just discovered that L-tryptophan and St John's Wort are on Cymbalta's drug interaction list.
>
> Does anyone know why these two would pose a problem while taking cymbalta?Verne,
My guess is that it's because of the potential risk of serotonin syndrome that could emerge as a result of combining Cymbalta with l-tryptophan or St. John's Wort.
L-tryptophan supplements carry warnings cautioning consumers not to combine the product with SSRIs or MAOIs for this reason. Cymbalta is not technically classified as an SSRI (it's an SNRI, formerly known as an SSNRI), but its potential to induce serotonin syndrome when combining it with l-tryptophan is probably comparable to that of the SSRIs due to the fact that it inhibits the reuptake of serotonin.
St. John's Wort is believed to inhibit the reuptake of serotonin, which could also conceivably cause serotonin syndrome if taken with an SSRI or SNRI (or any serotogenic medication, for that matter). As the case is with l-tryptophan, combining St. John's Worth with Cymbalta would provide a double boost of serotonin, which might theoretically cause serotonin to reach dangerously high levels in some individuals.
This risk of serotonin syndrome would obviously increase with higher doses of either Cymbalta or l-tryptophan/St. John's Wort, so it may be possible to safely combine Cymbalta with either of these supplements if the doses are low enough. But because of the risk, it would be advisable to proceed with such a combination only with great caution and under a doctor's supervision if at all.
I hope this helps.
Tomatheus
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