Just picked up some 5-htp

[KoreyS]

So, let's talk 5-htp brothers. Has it worked for anyone? How much did you take?

I'm probably going to take three seperate doses of 100mg daily.

I wouldn't even say that I'm depressed or anxious anymore really. I just weaned myself off of my Paxil (without the knowledge or supervision of my doctor) because I felt it wasn't very effective in the first place and really didn't need it anymore.

I've been meditating for years now and within just the last month it has become more mentally beneficial than ever. While I'm meditating, and sometimes in a milder way even when I'm not meditating, I can feel that familiar sort of.... "morphing" feeling in the centre of my forehead that comes with an increase in seretonin levels. Its that same feeling you get when your mood starts to lift on the come-up of MDMA, or DXM.

Anyways, since I'm deep into my meditation practice, becoming fairly experienced with it and gaining very noticeable benefits from it, I can honestly say I'm no longer suffering from any depression or anxiety right now. However, the other day i said fuck it and snagged a couple bottles of 5-htp and lecithin from the drug store for personal experiment. I mean fuck, whynot? lol

I'm wondering if my current state of mind combined with 5-htp use would put me in an incredibly euphoric state.

What do you guys all think of lecithin too?

 

[djsim]

So, let's talk 5-htp brothers. Has it worked for anyone? How much did you take?

I'm probably going to take three seperate doses of 100mg daily.

I wouldn't even say that I'm depressed or anxious anymore really. I just weaned myself off of my Paxil (without the knowledge or supervision of my doctor) because I felt it wasn't very effective in the first place and really didn't need it anymore.

This is what everyone thinks, then they stop taking their meds and depression returns

No, it will not cause euphoria. If it did it wouldn't be OTC

 

[phatass]

I never found it to help with MDMA come-downs or as an AD.. just my personal experience tho

 

[majinbijiita]

I may have to agree with djsim here.

I've been on countless meds over the years trying to solve my SAD, GAD, Depression, Bi-polar, or whatever it is the doctor thinks I have. Mostly different anti-depressants though.

Many times I've gone through the "oh I feel fine - but this medicine isn't very effective," thing. Many people do. And then you get off and realize it was all a mind trick. It's very common I think, and I'm sure you could find plenty of pages on the internet describing the phenomenon. So please look into that before you ween yourself off your AD for 5-HTP. Especially because they both take time to work at optimal therapeutic levels in your blood stream. Now you've gotten off an AD just to get on 5-HTP, which is now going to take a week or two to start working, when your AD was probably just beginning to work itself.

I could be wrong, and maybe the AD wasn't working that well, but in general I think all AD do SOMETHING. I wouldn't say they cure depression though. I think they suck, which is why I use drugs in the first place. Too many quack doctors putting me on Seroquel for freaking insomnia when I wasn't even 18. And high doses of mood-stabilizers that made me want to committ suicide they made me feel so bad.

If you want to really get help with your depression - TALK TO YOU DOCTOR HONESTLY. If you beat around the bush he's just going to keep going down the list of bullshit trying to find something that works. And if you are honest and he doesn't listen, I'm sorry but you should find another doctor. I know that sucks, but hopefully you'll eventually find a doctor you can be honest with and who is willing to take your freaking input. Even if you are a drug user.

I'm planning to lay it all out for my new psychiatrist appt because trying to con the system for the scheduled drugs (which I'm pretty sure I need, but I want anyway.) never really worked that well. Only once and that's because I had HORRIBLE insomnia, and I was under 18 and my mom backed up my story. I still had to go through ambien, trazadone, and other BS before I got xanax...which still didn't even work well for my sleep.

If you've only used SSRI's, try SNRI's, or MAOI's, or tricyclics, or a-typical AD. The two AD I think worked best (albeit, still not as well as I'd have hoped and with plenty of side effects) are Wellbutrin, and Lexapro.

I'd recommend the Wellbutrin over Lexapro, but do keep in mind it is more stimulating, but at least their is a much lower incidence of sexual side-effects as compared to SSRI's which can be horrible for that.

And I did have some sort of mania I think with Lexapro, but hey that only means it worked, right? lol (I was using a lot of DXM at the time so I'm sure my brain chemistry was a bit messed up.)

Good luck man! Don't quit, I know it sucks, but you don't want to do this cycle of on off on off for years, it will just screw you up and make you resentful!

 

[KoreyS]

This is what everyone thinks, then they stop taking their meds and depression returns

No, it will not cause euphoria. If it did it wouldn't be OTC

Do you meditate? I'm assuming you don't.

Find some time to research the benefits of practciing Zen and mindfulness meditation. 8)

 

[KoreyS]

I may have to agree with djsim here.

I've been on countless meds over the years trying to solve my SAD, GAD, Depression, Bi-polar, or whatever it is the doctor thinks I have. Mostly different anti-depressants though.

Many times I've gone through the "oh I feel fine - but this medicine isn't very effective," thing. Many people do. And then you get off and realize it was all a mind trick. It's very common I think, and I'm sure you could find plenty of pages on the internet describing the phenomenon. So please look into that before you ween yourself off your AD for 5-HTP. Especially because they both take time to work at optimal therapeutic levels in your blood stream. Now you've gotten off an AD just to get on 5-HTP, which is now going to take a week or two to start working, when your AD was probably just beginning to work itself.

I could be wrong, and maybe the AD wasn't working that well, but in general I think all AD do SOMETHING. I wouldn't say they cure depression though. I think they suck, which is why I use drugs in the first place. Too many quack doctors putting me on Seroquel for freaking insomnia when I wasn't even 18. And high doses of mood-stabilizers that made me want to committ suicide they made me feel so bad.

If you want to really get help with your depression - TALK TO YOU DOCTOR HONESTLY. If you beat around the bush he's just going to keep going down the list of bullshit trying to find something that works. And if you are honest and he doesn't listen, I'm sorry but you should find another doctor. I know that sucks, but hopefully you'll eventually find a doctor you can be honest with and who is willing to take your freaking input. Even if you are a drug user.

I'm planning to lay it all out for my new psychiatrist appt because trying to con the system for the scheduled drugs (which I'm pretty sure I need, but I want anyway.) never really worked that well. Only once and that's because I had HORRIBLE insomnia, and I was under 18 and my mom backed up my story. I still had to go through ambien, trazadone, and other BS before I got xanax...which still didn't even work well for my sleep.

If you've only used SSRI's, try SNRI's, or MAOI's, or tricyclics, or a-typical AD. The two AD I think worked best (albeit, still not as well as I'd have hoped and with plenty of side effects) are Wellbutrin, and Lexapro.

I'd recommend the Wellbutrin over Lexapro, but do keep in mind it is more stimulating, but at least their is a much lower incidence of sexual side-effects as compared to SSRI's which can be horrible for that.

And I did have some sort of mania I think with Lexapro, but hey that only means it worked, right? lol (I was using a lot of DXM at the time so I'm sure my brain chemistry was a bit messed up.)

Good luck man! Don't quit, I know it sucks, but you don't want to do this cycle of on off on off for years, it will just screw you up and make you resentful!

I'm going to try and be polite as possible here, despite being quite frustrated that you either misread, or didn't grasp what I said in the thread at all.

As we all know ADs like SSRI, SNRIs, etc (I've also tried shit like wellbutrin, tricyclics) take weeks or months before they become beneficial. I have been on well over a dozen in the past and am very familiar with their effects. Now, there are also mental meditation practices that, like prescription ADs take time before they become effective (a hell of a lot longer - in my experience, about four years), yet with enough practice and experience can literally be about a dozen times more effective than simply popping a pill. In some of the deeper levels of mindfulness meditation (and again, it takes years to reach this), you can achieve a tremendous boost in seretonin from a single 30-min sitting session. I personally refer to it as "boosting", or charging". For this reason, prescription anti-depressants are no longer necessary for me.

With all that said, I didn't just come off the AD recently. I've been off the shit for almost a month because with my increasing experience in zazen, I chose to take an alternative route that doesn't involve taking paxil everyday. The only benefit I was getting out of it by the end anyways was the loss of libido which prevented me from jerking off so bad that my dick got all torn.

And finally, I never claimed I was substituting paxil for 5-htp or that my goal was even to cure depression with 5-htp. I stole two bottles of 5-htp and a bottle of lecithin from Shopper's Drug Mart because I could, and felt like experimenting with them, alright?


Just an edit: After reading your post again, I just want to calrify again for further discussion that the thread is not about me being depressed and looking for prescription anti-depressants to cure it. It's about me having a bunch of 5-htp laying around wanting to experiment with it's effects - those effects being not only anti-depressant or mood-lifting effects either.

 

[KoreyS]

I'm hoping I didn't come off like a fucking prick in the previous post...lol

Anyways, has anyone here gotten anything out of lecithin?

 

[StaffWriter]

I'm hoping I didn't come off like a fucking prick in the previous post...lol

Yes, you did. I'd try the 5htp and report back as soon as results warrant.

 

[coelophysis]

I'd say indulge in some, bub

You'll feel the results in 2 weeks or so. At least I did. It's a very subtle effect, which I'm positive is not placebo. But it's not a high either. You'll see if you keep it up.

 

[KoreyS]

I'd say indulge in some, bub

You'll feel the results in 2 weeks or so. At least I did. It's a very subtle effect, which I'm positive is not placebo. But it's not a high either. You'll see if you keep it up.

Thanks so much friend. That helped a lot.

 

[lukw10]

Yeah I definitely feel a positive mood shift after taking 5htp.. I mean ive done my fair share of MDMA and used it for that but definitely I feel some change in mood with 5HTP unfortunately it often seems short lived. I really would suggest, that if at all possible, you speak with a medical professional.



Make sure you are taking actual 5HTP not just Tryptophan because I've read long term use of that causes cardiac issues not that you are likely to have confused the two. Please correct me if I am misinformed which is quite possible because of the lack of research following a lot of supplements =|.


Tryptophan --> 5HTP --> Serotonin [obviously simplified]


Also watch out for serotonin syndrome, I am not sure of the exact risk factor because I have never taken it multiple times daily. Again, this is just from some personal experience and personal experience is well (if you couldn't guess) personal! This considered, best of luck :]

 

[Moredopamine]

5-HTP sucks, the effects are short lived (gotta redose like a crack head, albeit not as bad), it's expensive, and it has trouble crossing the blood brain barrier.

 

[lukw10]

5-HTP sucks, the effects are short lived, it's expensive, and it has trouble crossing the blood brain barrier.

In my opinion, you are correct about:

-short lived
-expensive


but I do not believe it has that difficultly crossing the barrier.. I thought the reason they dont just have "serotonin pills" is because serotonin (and dopamine) do not cross the barrier while things like 5HTP actually can. I could be very wrong though about how efficiently 5htp crosses but it definitely does cross to some degree.

 

[Moredopamine]

In my opinion, you are correct about:

-short lived
-expensive


but I do not believe it has that difficultly crossing the barrier.. I thought the reason they dont just have "serotonin pills" is because serotonin (and dopamine) do not cross the barrier while things like 5HTP actually can. I could be very wrong though about how efficiently 5htp crosses but it definitely does cross to some degree.

yeah you're right, it is 5-ht and not 5-htp that cannot cross the BBB.

 

[vonchampz]

Yes serotonin or 5-HT does not cross the BBB. However pumping yourself full of 5-HTP doesn't necessarily mean it will be converted to 5-HT once it has crossed. Decarboxylation is the final reaction in converting to 5-HT and the enzyme involved (L-amino acid decarboxylase) is mainly located in the liver. Therefore, most of the 5-HTP will be converted to 5-HT in the liver and never make it to the brain. Vitamin B6 is used by the decarboxylase enzyme and most people have large amounts of this vitamin in their systems insuring more of the 5-HT will be converted in the liver and yet again never get to the brain. Ideally you would want a decarboxylase inhibitor like parkinsons patients take (Carbidopa) to insure your 5-HT is not converted to Serotonin in the liver and instead in the brain.

Maybe not the answer you were looking for, but its noteworthy because taking shitloads of a precursor to something like serotonin doesn't necessarily mean it will be converted.

 

[KoreyS]

Cool input guys. Thanks.

I really would suggest, that if at all possible, you speak with a medical professional.

Why?

 

[KoreyS]

I've been taking 100mg three times a day.

 

[muie]

I do not understand why you guys are saying its short lived, when you all (same people) are claiming it doesn't do much in terms of effects? For example I've had St. John's Wort and Sertaline (sp?), in which case for Sertaline I felt the 'effects' within the first dose or two, while definatley feeling it by dose 3-4. With St. John's Wort (pills) I generally feel effects by 2nd-3rd day, although I don't feel the 'anti-depressant' effects I feel the effects the drugs have on me.

A few questions I have:

1) Does anyone get zombified from 5-htp treatment?

2) How long does one recommand you use 5-htp, in cases where abuse of seratoninergic drugs has occured?

3) When you stop taking 5-htp, do your seratonin levels drop again? Stay the same? Or would it be possible to overflood the nervous system with seratonin?


Personally, i've never had it but I am considering it due to heavy abuse of seratoninergic drugs in the past and want to my be mentally ready and healed as possible before starting school in September. I also don't feel depressed to take it otherwise I'd have taken it by now, however if you are familiar with poppy pod withdrawl, out of all narcotics its the longest withdrawl, though not as acute as other drugs and the withdrawl from it also fucks with your emotions (ex: feel like crying when watching movies, news or even comedies), however when I am high on it its the exact opposite; I can block out all emotions behind a warm euphoric veal of narcotics. Like an euphoric robot sort of, so an adverse reaction when stopping should be expected!

The only thing I have used for depression was St. John's Wort, which I took in the form of tablets. The tablets only have the main ingredient while the tea has all the chemicals from the plant. After a while I started to drink the tea as well as take the tablets (3 times a day for tablets}. With and without the tea, I start to feel the first noticable effects at the 5-7 day mark, which made me feel more 'stable' should I say? Whatever happend though I had more energy during the day and even when I would smoke weed I wouldn't really burn out. Rarely but I think I've had it a few times was insomnia due to too high concentrations in my blood in which case I would reduce it by a tablet or even skip the dose that day. I eventually stopped the treatment because when it had reached peak plasma levels it was just too much, I felt high all the time on some wired drug that fucked with my feelings and emotions. It started giving me that dirty SSRI feeling of not quite zombified yet but most certinally a slight zombification was starting to take place as things weren't phasing me anymore and I didn't really feel much in terms of emotions they felt synthethic as fuck.

 

[Colmes]

damn i think im gonna make tonight a crazzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzy night and pick up some 5-htp from the 24 HOUR WALGREENS. and ill ask the pharmacy for some needles. teeee heeee

 

[KoreyS]

HEY! Stop that silly, blasphemous talk, Duke!