If you haven't already, some herbs you might try are Ashwagandha, Gotu Kola, St John's Wort.
Do keep in mind that the majority of your symptoms are in line with depression, including difficulties and semantic (verbal) and episodic memory. As your depression could have theoretically been caused by the your light drug experimentation, it's important not to rule out anything else. Also, 4 months of exercise at 30 minutes a day, while certainly beneficial, is not substantial. Try exercising for at least a year, complimented with a sensible (probably doctor/nutritionist-approved) diet. Neurogenesis isn't easy, but it also isn't impossible. Also, try natural method of enhanced serotonin production, e.g., meditation, yoga, optimism. And read--intellectual stimulation increases endorphin release, increases neuronal proliferation, guides axonal projection. Do keep in mind that the positive long-term benefits of exercise and intellectual stimulation do not occur in unhappy/anxious individuals: the exercise is combatting the effects of poor moods rather than supplementing the effects of positive moods.
Something particularly valuable to note: BDNF, along with other neurotrophic factors, are particularly concentrated in the hippocampal region of the brain--the same region predominately responsible for episodic memory, semantic memory storage, among other things. The dentate gyrus, a particular region of the hippocampus controlling the formation of learning and long-term memory potentiation, is essentially the poster-child for neurogenesis research. Judging from the problems you've described I'd say, even factoring in the time you've already taken before addressing this problem in full, you have the potential to recover (regenerate, reprogram, regain). Just carefully devise a strategy and push forward.
And if I'm not mistaken it was in fact you who noted that there were certain periods--though of limited frequency and duration--that you felt fine. This is important. You have the capacity, now develop on it.
Do keep in mind that the majority of your symptoms are in line with depression, including difficulties and semantic (verbal) and episodic memory. As your depression could have theoretically been caused by the your light drug experimentation, it's important not to rule out anything else. Also, 4 months of exercise at 30 minutes a day, while certainly beneficial, is not substantial. Try exercising for at least a year, complimented with a sensible (probably doctor/nutritionist-approved) diet. Neurogenesis isn't easy, but it also isn't impossible. Also, try natural method of enhanced serotonin production, e.g., meditation, yoga, optimism. And read--intellectual stimulation increases endorphin release, increases neuronal proliferation, guides axonal projection. Do keep in mind that the positive long-term benefits of exercise and intellectual stimulation do not occur in unhappy/anxious individuals: the exercise is combatting the effects of poor moods rather than supplementing the effects of positive moods.
Something particularly valuable to note: BDNF, along with other neurotrophic factors, are particularly concentrated in the hippocampal region of the brain--the same region predominately responsible for episodic memory, semantic memory storage, among other things. The dentate gyrus, a particular region of the hippocampus controlling the formation of learning and long-term memory potentiation, is essentially the poster-child for neurogenesis research. Judging from the problems you've described I'd say, even factoring in the time you've already taken before addressing this problem in full, you have the potential to recover (regenerate, reprogram, regain). Just carefully devise a strategy and push forward.
And if I'm not mistaken it was in fact you who noted that there were certain periods--though of limited frequency and duration--that you felt fine. This is important. You have the capacity, now develop on it.
