A couple weeks back, I took 300 mg of Bocapa (1 pill) in the late afternoon (after work) for five consecutive days in a row. I had never taken this herb before. I had high hopes for it given the relatively few reported side effects combined with the potential benefits.
The most common side effects mentioned are high urinary frequency, thirst, and mild headache. Of the mentioned side effects, only an increase in urinary frequency seemed to apply to me. However, there were other side effects I experienced that I find to be a bit more disturbing, so I thought I would mention them in the event someone else has also experienced them.
All of these extra side effects have occurred only during the span of the 5 evenings I have taken Bacopa. I have never experienced anything close to these side effects before, or after I discontinued use. It’s possible that in my particular situation, I was experiencing some sort of an allergic reaction.
The worst experience occurred during sleep, and it happened on two occasions. I will awaken from an unpleasant dream of being bitten all over my body by biting insects. I awake ostensibly as a consequence of having to relieve my bladder. Once “awake” the dream of course fades, but the prickly/biting skin sensation does not go away!
This feeling is difficult to describe, but it is not unlike the sensation of being bitten by a particularly nasty mosquito, or perhaps by a very small deer fly. The sensation is strong enough to cause me to want to rub the area where the sensation occurred. Usually this biting sensation will be occurring simultaneously all over my body. Nevertheless, I am able to fall back asleep, and in the morning the sensation does not return (until the next night following another dose).
During the five day period I took the herb, I would only take it around 4 pm in the afternoon. During the afternoon hours, the only effects I noticed were a tired sensation, and/or a dulling of my senses, and sometimes, irritability was also present. I do not take anything else with it, or for that matter anything else within several hours of ingestion beforehand, and nothing afterwards.
Upon awaking, I feel exhausted, as if I had worked my muscles out hard all night long. My mind feels dulled, and unfocused. I also notice a slight muscle twitch of my fingers from time to time.
Twenty-four hours after stopping the herb, all side effects disappeared.
Has anyone else ever experienced anything like this while using Bacopa?
LD
