it also seems that not every St John's wort extract is equivalent. Most of the stuff sold OTC is of shady quality.
there are only 2 types of SJW that anyone should ever take...
the first, best and most well studied if the WS 5572 extract from willmar schwabe... sold in america as PERIKA by natures way.
the 2nd best, and 2nd most well studied is STJOHNSELECT, made by Indena sold as KIRA or vitamin shoppes house brand.
ive tried both, perika is far more effective to me. its std for hypercin and hyperforin. hyperforin is unstable, and both use stabilizers. (tiny doses of ascorbic acid for the schwabe product, grapeseed opc for the indena product). there are other actives that add to the effects, and like i said perika (for me) is by far more effective.
i know for sure that WS-5572 is scheduled as a drug and not available OTC in a lot of countries...and where it is available outside america its sold as different brands. im not sure about the indena extracts. if anyone is having trouble finding it in their country give me a PM and ill help you.
Do you recommend a particular brand of SJW? Dosage?
standard dose for the average male is 3, 300mg tablets per day with meals. 1 with breakfast, lunch & dinner or 1 with breakfast & 2 with dinner. i dosed both of these ways for a year, and then began to experience some fatigue and irritability so i cute my dose down. its almost universally common that after a while you will have to cut back your dose in order to maintain efficacy. it seems to me that st johns wort actually 'fixes' some of the problems in the brain, and then a lower dose or complete stop is needed and positive effects are maintained.
if you experience initial fatigue (which is very rare) and it doesnt go away after a few days... only take 2 pills with dinner, or before bed with a small amount of fat (a few nuts or some fishoil pills). hyperforin is lipid soluble so its important that if you dont take it with a meal you take it with a small amount of fat.
most people see results in 2-6 weeks, i saw results the 3rd day (which is faily common). so give it time and be patient.
ajnast4r, so, just to make it totally clear, SJW did NOT have the typical SSRI sides of:
- emotional blunting
- apathy
- impotence
- poor focus
ive never heard anyone complain of that... mostly its exactly the opposite... for me: sharper more vivid positive emotions, more caring/compassion, it improved my focus, and my erections and libido did not change at all. read a few posts up where i posted the speculations on its method of action.
be mindful though that sjw does induce certain cytochromes so it increase the clearance of certain medications, specifically birth control can be an issue for a lot of people.
heres a list of the interactions:
http://www.rpsgb.org...heetstjwort.pdf
taht all being said, i think its important when dealing with depression (and in general) to also adhere to good eating, sleeping & exercise habits, and maintain active means of reducing stress (meditation, etc). i dont think any anti-depressent should be used in and of itself, i think they are best used to facilitate healing and as a springboard to make more sustainable positive changes in your life. so obviously sjw is no miracle cure, but it REALLY, REALLY helped me and i think its safe enough for most people that its worth a shot, even if used temporarily to get through some rough times.
Edited by ajnast4r, 25 June 2008 - 08:25 PM.