18 replies to this topic

[beez]

I need some input. I don't really know what to do about it.
I notice many things about me which highly worry me and I can't tell if this is something pathological or not.
Fact is I'm under a lot of stress and have been for many years which isn't healthy for the brain. I also suffer
from strong depression which is also not healthy.
Over the last 2 years I have been noticing things which I didn't have before. I tried to describe my various symptoms
to my psych and also a neurologist but they couldn't really draw much from them. Basically I can only tell that things
aren't right with me but I can't nail it down. I also don't know what kind of medical tests I should go for.
I thought about going to a neuropsychologist or something like that. But to be honest I'm scared of having to do mental
gymnastics like memory testing and things like that. I'm afraid of the results cause I notice that my short term memory
isn't good. I have also been tested for adhd in the past and back then my short term memory also wasn't normal. But I don't think that I have adhd. A trial with ritalin didn't work for me.

-During the day I often feel as if I'm intoxicated, I feel distanced and unconcentrated, I simply can tell that something isn't right, whenever this feeling is present I know it, when it's not present I can also certainly tell that it's not present, I also notice that this feeling often occurse when I'm under pressure or in a hassle, in situations where I'm under pressure I feel like my brain shuts down, recently I was checking my bank account online and numbers didn't match up instantly I became upset and got into this mode where I felt like I can't think straight anymore I sat there and it took me awfully long to be able to comprehend the numbers and to figure out what was going on.
And this same stuff happens all the time in situations like this. Or even when I go on a forum and read about health issues then I also feel totally overwhelmed and also start to feel aggitated.

-I also get a similar feeling of aggitation when I for example go to a store where they have all kinds of things which attract me. I remember as a teenager during vacation we once visited a gigantic mall and I went to the nutrition store and I was totally overwhelmed with all the stuff they had there and then I also got this feeling of inner restlessness. In this case it was caused by something positive and not negative but the feeling is pretty much the same.

-Basically I hardly ever feel at peace. during the day I most of them time feel hassled and spaced out. even when I'm in the supermarket I feel distracted and sensually overstimulated. i am also very sensitive to light. i feel much better in dark environments. darkness helps me to relax and gather my thoughts. i have been this way for many years.

-I also notice that my memory is impaired. sometimes i wake up in the morning and have to think really hard to figure out what day it is. or recently i was in the mall and when i was at the checkout i had to think hard where i had parked the car. i can't tell if this is something to be concerned about. what if this is something like neurodegeneration? how could it be tested?

-i also feel like when i have to calculate something in my head without pencil to write it down i lose track of the numbers. for example 248 x 4. for example when i try to solve it like this: 8x4 = 32 + 40x4= 160 + 200X4 = 800 then without being able to write it down I usually forget the different numbers which I needed to put together now.
i also can't tell if this is normal. i usually also don't calculate stuff. i try to avoid things like that cause I dont like any exercises where you really have to focus and concentrate cause I worry that in case I should suck at such an exercise it might mean that something's wrong with me. that's why I'm also scared of these psychological tests where you have to calculate stuff or memorize things. for me even to do calculations in my mind is always something which stresses me out cause I'm scared of not being able to solve the task in time or coming up with a wrong number and then feeling dumb.

-i also notice my thinking is very slow in certain areas. for example when i was trying to figure out wether my bank account numbers were okay then it took me totally long to be able to comprehend wether the different transactions where legitimate or not. i remember that i finally figured out that the different charges from telephone companies and stuff like that were legitimate. i took notes on a paper as a help for the future to help me comprehend the different numbers for example telephone company A charges 13 $ per month and company B charges 7,99$ per months and so on.
but a few days ago i was checking the same thing again and then the whole thing started all over again! again i sat there and was totally confused at first and again it took me a long time to finally figure it out.
this is something i have been noticing since i was a teenager. there are things which i have a hard time to even comprehend but even when i was able to finally comprehend them then this comprehension is also quickly lost again!
it's like my brain has holes in it and i simply cannot maintain certain data.

Even right now as I'm typing this I again feel aggitated and physically weak. Someone just came into the room and wanted something from me and I reacted very impatient. In such situations I also tend to talk very fast and I wish nobody would talk to me or approach me with a request.

What do you guys think about this? I know these symptoms are all weird and unspecific.
I'm simply worried. I wish I at least knew what kind of medical exams, tests, whatever I should go for in order to find
out if I'm normal. I have gotten brain MRIs in the past which were normal. Last one was 2 years ago but a normal brain MRI also doesn't mean that everything is allright.

[Ritchie]

Welcome to Longecity!

 

I can't tell you exactly what is causing your symptoms. Even If I was a doctor I cannot diagnose you over the internet. But what I can do is make an educated guess. "Not Feeling Right" is generally a symptom of hypo or hyperthyrodism. You could go get your thyroid tested. But, "Not Feeling Right" could be a symptom of almost any diseases on earth, so this may not be correct.

 

If your under a lot of stress and you find that this causes anxiety and depression, then you could look into a GABA agonist. Kava works great and even cause GABA upregulation in the long term. 

 

Feeling like you have mild sensory overload could be a symptom of many, many, many neurological disorders. I can not even begin to guess what may be causing this. I hope that someone else may be able to answer this question for you though.

 

For your memory, look into choline. Especially if you don't eat too many eggs. Choline is the precursor to AcetylCholine which is a important neurotransmitter responsible for cognition and memory. Most people find great success with it to enhance memory(e.g. they stopped forgetting where they placed their keys etc). You could also look into Sulbutiamine. Though I reccomend first trying a choline supplement.

 

Feeling distant and unconcentrated are very tricky symptoms for you. Most of the time, these relate to dopamine. However you say that Ritalin did nothing for you, so Dopamine is not your problem. You could try looking into a serotonin precursor like L-Tryptophan. It could help with your depression and most people find it makes them more social/more empathetic. Agitation and Anger also are a symptom of low serotonin so it may be your issue.

 

Anyways, welcome to this forum :D. I hope that you can find a cure to your symptoms.

 

[beez]

Hello, thanks for your reply. I have been taking T4 (100mcg/day) for over 6 months now. I don't really know if the thyroid is the explanation I rather think not. Before I went on T4 my TSH was a bit elevated which is why I thought maybe I try thyroid hormones and see if it makes me feel any better but to be honest I don't feel any better at all. The only difference now is that my TSH is very low now. ft3 and ft4 are both normal, but my ft4 is relatively higher than my ft3. I asked my GP if I might not try taking some additional T3 to raise the ft3 levels a bit higher but he said no. I was really hoping that thyroid hormones would make a difference but they don't seem to. Unfortunately I also don't have a good doctor for the thyroid. My GP simply goes by the norm ranges and thinks that everything is good as long as you're in the normal range. Is choline similar to lecithine? Would choline be safe to take when you're on prescription antidepressants? I know Kava but I also know that Kava has side effects. I don't even know if it's freely available anymore. My concern is that if I decided to add any herbs or other supplements then I won't know if this is safe when I'm at the same time on prescription drugs. For example tryptophan would be dangerous when taken together with a ssri. If I knew that something is safe and can be taken together with a ssri then I could try it but I'd have to know it for sure.

[beez]

double post

Edited by beez, 04 May 2014 - 03:23 AM.

[Ritchie]

Hello, thanks for your reply. I have been taking T4 (100mcg/day) for over 6 months now. I don't really know if the thyroid is the explanation I rather think not. Before I went on T4 my TSH was a bit elevated which is why I thought maybe I try thyroid hormones and see if it makes me feel any better but to be honest I don't feel any better at all. The only difference now is that my TSH is very low now. ft3 and ft4 are both normal, but my ft4 is relatively higher than my ft3. I asked my GP if I might not try taking some additional T3 to raise the ft3 levels a bit higher but he said no. I was really hoping that thyroid hormones would make a difference but they don't seem to. Unfortunately I also don't have a good doctor for the thyroid. My GP simply goes by the norm ranges and thinks that everything is good as long as you're in the normal range. Is choline similar to lecithine? Would choline be safe to take when you're on prescription antidepressants? I know Kava but I also know that Kava has side effects. I don't even know if it's freely available anymore. My concern is that if I decided to add any herbs or other supplements then I won't know if this is safe when I'm at the same time on prescription drugs. For example tryptophan would be dangerous when taken together with a ssri. If I knew that something is safe and can be taken together with a ssri then I could try it but I'd have to know it for sure.

You did not mention in your original post, what medication/supplements are you taking right now? 

Kava does have side effects, but almost everything does. The point is the limit side effects/harm, it is impossible to eliminate it. Kava is probably the safest/least harmful GABA agonist in the short and long term, though don't quote me on this.

 

Choline and Lecithin are very similar, they both supply the brain with choline that generally results in improved memory/cognition.

Tryptophan would be dangerous to mix with an SSRI, but again can you tell me what you are taking?

[Flex]

Kava is still, and even in europe, aviable.

There is an Irish company selling this stuff, or Ebay.co.uk is full of Kavalaktones.

In addition to that, You could easily check the side effects or interactions via google.

 

Melissa Officialis extract may be ( although a weaker) alternative because of its Gaba-transaminase inhibiting properties.

 

 

[beez]

@ ritchie

 

At the moment I'm only taking a SSRI. But I might add other stuff. I'm considering Lyrica.

I really don't want to add herbs and then not know if they are combinable or not. That would suck.

 

@ flex

I also read that Kava has been linked to liver damage in rare cases which is why it was pulled off the market in a few countries.

I think that's too risky for me.

[magniloquentc0unt]

Hi beez, we share many symptoms, i find extremely interesting your non reaction to Methylphenidate: same for me! up to 60mg and no effect whatsoever. 

I also had testosterone replacement for 3+months which wasnt really helping much with cognition. 

Years ago i had used fluoxetine for melanchonic depression and it really helped with emotions and cognition, and was stimulating, but had sexual and emotional numbness side effects so i dropped it.

I am now on moclobemide, a reversible MAOI-A which means more serotonin,norepinephrine and even (less so) dopamine. It is really helping with the cognition and dysthimia! Remember that depression itself can mimic attention deficit symptoms when it gets bad, and i think that was my case...so as i said, the moclobemide is really helping, but i still feel a bit "detached" and "spaced out"... so i think theres something else.

I sometime have bowel problems so, at least for me, it might be a food intolerance. I dont know, maybe its something you should look into aswell...

 

I also suggest the herb "Bacopa monnieri", its serotonergic and a cognitive enhancer. Takes a month or so to work, but then it does work. I have tried at least a dozen herbs and that is the one that stood out most.

[platypus]

The calculation-thing is totally normal I think. However, 248 * 4 is much easier to calculate in your head as 250 * 4 - 2 * 4..

 

[Ritchie]

@ ritchie

 

At the moment I'm only taking a SSRI. But I might add other stuff. I'm considering Lyrica.

I really don't want to add herbs and then not know if they are combinable or not. That would suck.

 

@ flex

I also read that Kava has been linked to liver damage in rare cases which is why it was pulled off the market in a few countries.

I think that's too risky for me.

I would personally suggest you get off the SSRI. Most SSRI's have been shown to be as effective as a placebo for anxiety and depression in most cases. If you truly believe that it is helping you, then you can look at L-tryptophan. Its a natural amino acid that can be as effective as a SSRI in most cases. Heck even moderate exercise is as effecive as a potent SSRI.

If you decide to keep taking an SSRI, then your supplement selection will be limited. Try to stay away from serotonergic supps, though some herbs like bacopa, are so weak at promoting serotonin that it would not make much of a difference.

Remember: Always use the lowest effective dose

 

When prepared correctly, Kava poses very little risk to the liver. Most of the studies you read probably refer to tests done on the leafs and stem of the plant, whereas traditionally, only the root of the plant is consumed. This makes a big difference. Worst case scenario, Kava is much less harmful than alcohol. Especially in low therapeutic doses.

[beez]

@magniloquentc0unt

 

I know moclobemide. I thought about trying it last year but now I don't know if I should try it. It sucks cause there are so many drugs out there. I cannot try them all.

I needed to find something which helps me with my symptoms asap. I feel totally disabled especially due to the brain fog or whatever I want to call it. I spend most of the day

in a state of inner unrest so that I do not have peace at all. I have work to do but during the day I usually can't find any peace to focus on something. It totally sucks.

Often I can't even come up with the patience to cook myself something to eat. I am absolutely unable to manage my time and come up with a daily routine. I thought for a while

that I have adhd but since ritalin didn't work I'm not sure if it's adhd or something else. I have some symptoms of adhd but maybe it's still something different which is similar to adhd.

I tried wellbutrin which also raises NE and it did nothing for me.

 

I worry about glutamate. Too much glutamate is toxic and since I have a lot of stress and feel aggitated most of the time I wonder what if I have excessive glutamate which damages

by brain cells? This is damn scary.

 

@platypus

 

There are tests where you have to do stuff like couting back from a certain number in certain steps as fast as possible like for example 176-14 = 162 -14= 148

I totally suck at this. If I had to do such a test I'd probably totally embarass myself. This scares me. I mean these tests are used to find out wether you suffer from dementia.

This brings me to the question what if you basically know that you suck at such tasks or that you're totally slow at such calculations? Does this mean that something must be wrong

with your brain?

I notice exactly that when I try to calculate something in my mind that I'm totally slow and also trying to calculate something is exhausting to me.

 

@ritchie

 

So far no ssri and also no other antidepressant worked for me.

I am also not very optimistic. But I know that stuff like exercise doesn't cut it for me.

I mean I have ocd for example. Exercise doesn't make your ocd go away.

If it did I'd have noticed it back when I was still working out regularly.

 

 

[Flex]

These reports about Kava Kava are a bit controversial.

You shouldn´t be too worried if Your consumption is occasional and moderate.

Since it has been used for centuries in the pacific.

 

The symptoms of distraction and inner unrest "could" be caused by a dysfunctional Prefrontal Cortex.

Type in Your symptoms with the term: PFC. Maybe You will find some results.

On the other hand, from my recherche experience. Even finding a match, those results may not be for certain Your case.

 

If You want to try moclobemide but are unsure because of its irreversible inhibition, You could try Rhodiola rosea extract or Passionflower extract instead.

Both are reversible mao inhibitors. But As far as I know, Rhodiola is a unselective one and Passionflower is selective to Mao-A.

 

If Your cause is indeed a PFC dysfunction, then Lithium would be useful, because it increases the gray matter in the left PFC.

Btw, Lithium is delicated in some regards. Even in therapeutic dosages it have been shown that it could be neurotoxic.

Maybe dosage ranges of 5-20mg would reduce or even eliminate this problem.

I don´t want to be responsible if something went wrong, but You can inform Yourself about it.

 

Also really useful would be Meditation according to some study´s it needs to be done for 30min and the results should show up after a few weeks.

But it´s not a ASAP thing and based on Your severity symptoms, I doubt somewhat that You can start this right now.

So I just wanted to mention it so that You can keep it in mind for the future.

 

As You can see, Lithium could be somewhat problematic and some things didnt help.

So, You should visit a Doc. There is seemingly no way arround.

Ok mao inhibition is worth a try, but it if this wouldn´t help You are in the same situation again.

 

In the mean time You could use DHA and EPA which could help to improve some iussues.

 

Edited by Flex, 13 May 2014 - 05:47 PM.

[beez]

Hello,

lithium is too intimidating. I read bad stuff about it. I think it can also cause skin diseases.

 

I have been taking fish oil daily for years! It doesn't help with my issues.

 

MAOI are also very intimidating. My doc never suggested them. I think I'd not dare taking a MAOI. I mean what can you even eat when you're on a MAOI?

I'd be worried all day of eating something wrong. :/

 

I wish there was a way to simply find out where the issues lie in the brain. And then you could try to treat it. I heard about spect scans but they don't seem to be very popular.

[magniloquentc0unt]

Investigate moclobemide, a reversible mao-a inhibitor. No dietary restrictions

[beez]

I know moclobemide.

But the question is why should it work when other stuff didn't work either? Wellbutrin also affects DA and NE and also didn't help me.

I'm very discouraged.

[magniloquentc0unt]

I think serotonin plays a major role in attention,

if the ssri you are on doesent work, just change it. 

You might also want to investigate drugs that work on serotonin but not by inhibiting its reuptake, a different signaling mechanism

thats why i suggest moclobemide. maybe investigate mirtazepine aswell, it could help. I dont understand whyit hasnt been mentioned it yet

[beez]

Hi, I tried mirtazapine already didn't work either. I took 30mg for 6 weeks or so. Only made me tired and fat.

I also tried tianeptine which also didn't work at all.

I'm really discouraged.

[magniloquentc0unt]

Sorry to hear that. personally, for cognition, i find that what has helped me the most was fluoxetine (which i dont reccomend because of side effects) and aurorix (no side effects). If you are interested in supplements, i think i can suggest you to use Bacopa Monniera. I had no success with methylphenidate too, but tianeptine worked (but mildly)

[beez]

Tianeptine didn't help me I felt worse under it.

I'd like to try supps but the problem is that when I take crazy herbs I cannot take prescription drugs at the same time. I mean how shall one know if one can take bacopa and antidepressants or benzos? I bet that there have been no interaction studies.