34 replies to this topic

[Arata]

For depression/anxiety:
I just came off Zoloft for depression/anxiety, had revolting side effects. I am using E-EPA as anti-depressant and anti-anxiety, also for ADHD. It works amazingly well, with no nasty side effects.
Here is my regimen:

Before breakfast:

Lions Mane mushroom supplement -- Increases brain NGF (nerve growth factor) for faster regeneration of neurons - helpful to overcome post depression/anxiety brain damage faster; also good
for digestive system. http://www.mushrooms...-mane-mushroom/
L-Theanine -- Green tea extract for concentration, relaxation
DLPA -- Pain relief, anti-depressant, boosting emotional enthusiasm for life
ALCAR -- Concentration, memory, antioxidant, improves insulin response, anti-aging http://nootropics-au...tag/antioxident
Oxiracetam -- Improves concentration thus assisting in the regenerative phase post depression/anxiety brain damage.
Half a dose (400mg) lasts me all day, dosage is individual.
Citicoline -- Choline for oxiracetam, prevents headache

With Breakfast:

E-EPA -- Depression, anxiety, ADHD, digestion, circulatory system and heart health, fibromyalgia/fatigue, and more. Corrects EPA & DHA imbalance in brain with mood disorders.
http://www.vegepa.co...?n=EPA90&indi=2
Vitamin D -- Supports depression, essential to take if not spending time in the sun.
Ecchinacea (every 2nd day) -- Supports immune system. No winter colds or flu.
Liverwort -- Supports liver function.

Before night time meal:

Lions Mane mushroom extract -- Extremely safe supplement; the great side effect for me is if I have a higher dose it makes me sleepy, a side effect only for some people.

With night time meal:

Vitamin D
Liverwort

The E-EPA is amazing. Although I still feel a little anxious or sad if a life stressor presents itself, I no longer have the ability to be overly anxious or sink into depression. I am still ruminating a little bit, but not endlessly and destructively as I used to. Some retraining of thought patterns required here, I think.

I am looking into a multivitamin which is best for the body, and is compatible with the supplements I am taking.
An interesting site I have found so far: http://www.acu-cell.com/index.html

Hope this helps, E-EPA works amazingly well, like nothing else I have taken for anxiety/depression.

And now for anti-aging:
The best natural sunscreens are to stay inside during peak uv times, and cover up when outside. A little time uncovered outside each day is necessary for natural vitamin D production, the time varies according to many factors: time of year/day ie angle of sun, skin pigmentation,
I have sensitive skin and have only just found a sunscreen which does not irritate my skin: Hamilton sensitive sunscreen, expensive at pharmacy, but worth it.
Another tip for anti aging of the skin is to use a good cleanser and moisturizer. Personally I use handmade olive oil soap, which does not strip the skin of its natural oils, and also moisturizes the skin. After 6 months of continued use, your skin will become beautifully soft. If you don't wish to buy it, you can make it easily with simple saponification from grade 12 chemistry (don't do this if you are pregnant or breast-feeding, or thinking about becoming pregnant. Saponification is also incompatible with children and small animals.)
There are some lovely oils which make beautiful, simple moisturizers: coconut oil, almond oil, olive oil, etc. I need to use these only for the soles of my feet, the rest of me is moisturized enough by my soap.

Edited by Quedin, 13 July 2012 - 06:54 PM.

[tham]

The well known South African herb, Sceletium tortuosum, or Kanna, has
antidepressant and anxiolytic properties. Should not mix with SSRIs.


http://en.wikipedia....etium_tortuosum

http://www.drweil.co...Depression.html

http://therootofthem...rootofthematter


http://www.neurosoup.com/kanna.htm


http://www.iherb.com...Caps/23330?at=0



http://www.ncbi.nlm....etium tortuosum


http://www.ncbi.nlm....etium tortuosum

Edited by tham, 15 July 2012 - 10:05 AM.

[Cycnut]

ViolettVol: Are you sensitive to caffiene, have allergies, feel bad after taking (perhaps next day) folic acid/cyano-B12 supplements or other signs of under methylation? I am a rather poor methylator, even to the point of having some nerve damage issues, had issues with anxiety caffiene for DAYS after drinking coffee, and would get hives if I took folic acid or had caffiene. I had the whole suite of allergen tests and came up negative. I personally have found L-methionine and or TMG to completely turn my metabolism around... they are methyl donors and help metabolize caffeine (trimethylxanthine) and histamine. Be sure to keep the B6 if taking L-methionine.

If you are a slower methylator, there are supplements in your daily regime that might be aggrevating rather than helping your anxiety. Those I personally have had issues with include CoQ10, Rhodiola, and Alpha lipoic acid (not to mention folic acid and B12). From the methylation cycle, you should also not take cysteine if you are an undermethylator (instead take the methyl version...L-methionine).

[ViolettVol]

ViolettVol: Are you sensitive to caffiene, have allergies, feel bad after taking (perhaps next day) folic acid/cyano-B12 supplements or other signs of under methylation? I am a rather poor methylator, even to the point of having some nerve damage issues, had issues with anxiety caffiene for DAYS after drinking coffee, and would get hives if I took folic acid or had caffiene. I had the whole suite of allergen tests and came up negative. I personally have found L-methionine and or TMG to completely turn my metabolism around... they are methyl donors and help metabolize caffeine (trimethylxanthine) and histamine. Be sure to keep the B6 if taking L-methionine.

If you are a slower methylator, there are supplements in your daily regime that might be aggrevating rather than helping your anxiety. Those I personally have had issues with include CoQ10, Rhodiola, and Alpha lipoic acid (not to mention folic acid and B12). From the methylation cycle, you should also not take cysteine if you are an undermethylator (instead take the methyl version...L-methionine).

Hey, thanks for replying, you touched on an interesting issue here - I have been sensitive to caffeine ever since I can remember, that is - I usually got rapid heart rate, shaking hands and racing thoughts after just one mid-size cup - ever since I was 18. That calmed down during uni when I drannk quite a lot of coffee - maybe i got desensitized or something... BUT it rturned just as my anxiety problems appeared at around 25. So now I hardly ever drink coffe - like every few months pr so, for fear that it will exacerbate my anxiety. I havent really taken folic acid regularly so I can't say I feell bad after it. Never had any allergies, but recently my skin reacts to almost everything - mostly topical agents, cosmetics that never used to do any harm..
What are the other signs of under-methylation so I can be sure and maybe tweak my regimen a bit?

[Cycnut]

ViolettVol: You symptoms are very similiar to what I have gone through in the past and while I'm not perfect yet, I'm a whole lot better with respect to allergies (mostly hives and skin issues), anxiety issues and mild depression.

My skin issues were pretty bad. I had excema on my fingers with peeling skin on the sides on my fingertips. I had hives from time to time, and thought for a while that I was allergic to coffee (I broke out with hives and was itchy after drinking coffee sometimes). I went to an allergist and they performed some skin tests to see my level of inflammation..scratched my forearm with a popcile stick and set a glass of really hot water on my other arm for 10 minutes. Both produced raised welts (dermography..skin writing). As such, they could not do allergy testing by pin prick as I would show a response no matter what they tested, so they did it by blood draw. This is more expensive and less sensitive than the RAST test. Everything came back negative. I'm not allergic to anything, but had super high levels of histamine. I started on an antihistamine (fexofinidine aka Allegra, 180 mg daily) and improved markedly.

As for coffee, I would be buzzed out for days with a single cup of coffee. It made sleeping difficult and anxiety a problem. Lastly, I had bad, almost flu-like symptoms about two days after taking folic acid supplements. I had previously found that some supplements did not agree with me and increased these symptoms.

I learned about undermethylation by reading on the internet. I'm a chemist and put the symptoms together. Caffiene, technically trimethylxanthine is detoxified one methyl group at a time (methyl transfer reactions). Histamine is broken down by histamin n-methyl-transferase... an enzyme that shuttles methyl groups around. Lack of methlation ability hinders the effectiveness of these reactions. Folic acid and B12 are used to help transfer methyl groups about the body. Taking synthetic folic acid requires the body to methylate the folic acid, using up my limited ability for methyl transfers...hence worsening of the symptoms.

I now take 500mg of L-methionine (along with vitamin b6 and vitamin c) to prevent bad effects of l-methionine. I can also take trimethylglycine (betaine) which doesn't have the possible negative effects but seems to work less effectively for me. I stay away from lecithin, acetylcholine, and DMAE which all require methylation to be effective. I limit my folic acid and stay away from folic acid supplements (think multivitamins and some fortified foods). I still take antihistamines, but my symptoms are not as severe as they once were and can skip days without getting hives, though I still get itchy.

After taking L-methionine for several days, my symptoms were greatly reduced. My thoughts were much clearer and my depression/anxiety got better. I had more energy...maybe just felt so much better. (As a side note, there is a disease called methylene tetrahydrofolate reductase deficiency that some people have...normally diagnosed in women after they have more than one miscarriage. There is a genetic test that is definative. So check it out if this hits close to home.) Vitamin C also helps reduce histamine levels naturally.

Edited by Cycnut, 27 September 2012 - 12:37 AM.