5 replies to this topic

[existence]

Howdy.

 

I recently discovered that .5mg of xanax does wonders for me. I'm a fairly anxious person, especially under pressure, and xanax totally mellows me out in a very good way. It improves my performance, confidence, and mood (at least with caffeine - haven't tried it without).

 

I'm about to go into an extremely intense 3-month training program, and I know that if .5mg xanax continued to have the same effects on me, it would help immensely in my success in the program. However I have reservations about using it regularly, from stories I've heard about tolerance, addiction, and withdrawal. So I have some questions:

• Might picamilon or phenibut give me the same effects?
• If so, which is better and why?
• Are they any better than xanax in terms of tolerance, addiction, and withdrawal?
• What dosage(s) and administration method would you recommend?

Thank you.

 

[bandario]

What I would recommend is that you erase any idea of using anything you mentioned daily for any prolonged period of time. 

Depending on your timeframe I would say, see if you get the same effect from something like ashwagandha taken 2-3 times per day. Most people have no trouble getting on and off ashwagandha without issue and I have found it to have a very similar effect.

Phenibut is not so easy, and the longer you take it, the more it becomes a monster.

Personally I found picamilon to have almost zero effect, but I was already in the depths of gaba downregulation by that point so your mileage may vary.

[HappyShoe]

For me, after 2 days of Phenibut, I get extreme migraines(and I never get headaches normally), and I passed out at the drop of a hat. It gave me bad nausea sometimes as well. I tried it a few times, I honestly think it's awful stuff, and should be avoided.
Not only all that, but it has the same addiction profile and side effects as benzodiazepines(xanax included) so there is no logical reason to take phenibut instead of xanax.

Picamilon did absolutely nothing noticeable for me, although, I have very high norepinephrine so maybe it's too mild to notice for me, or my body just doesn't respond to it. I tried that for almost a month and took relatively large doses.

I very much enjoy 500-600mg of Theanine (a naturally occurring amino acid)on an empty stomach, although it only lasts 3 hours, and isn't that powerful. It definitely takes the edge off though, and it improves focus and mood slightly, so it's pretty nifty. It's also incredibly safe, doesn't cause sedation, but also has the benefit of improving your sleep. Not addictive in the least either.

[Heisenburger]

If you can keep it down to half a milligram/day, then three months of daily use probably wouldn’t be a huge deal. That’s a lot longer than clinicians recommend, and you’re going to experience some withdrawal, but the worst of it should be over in a week or so.

 

Personally, I’m a big fan of etizolam—all the benefits of benzos but only about one-third as addictive. It takes a long time to get addicted to the stuff—you gotta really almost try. I’ve taken it almost every day for about a year, and then quit cold turkey and only experienced two weeks of mild (albeit unpleasant) withdrawal. As one reddit poster so aptly put it, “it’s like Valium and Xanax got together and had a baby.”

[existence]

Personally, I’m a big fan of etizolam—all the benefits of benzos but only about one-third as addictive.

 

Extremely interesting. I was shocked to see it's not scheduled in the US. I'll be reading more about it.

[adamh]

Avoid xanax like the plague for long term. Benzo addiction is nothing to laugh about, it can be hell. Plus the fact that long before 3 months have passed, .5mg is not going to do the job and you will have raised the dose. Etizolam is a better alternative, picamillon helped me, it was very relaxing but not sedating. I felt like I could lie down and sleep but when I tried, I could not sleep so don't take it just before bed. Its like a physical benzo but keeps the minds working. I think the addiction profile on it is better but do some research first. It seems to have little to no abuse potential.

 

Other possibilities are valerian root, lemon balm and a few other herbs. None are all that strong unless you get a valerian extract and take a lot.