Need help l-dopa and amphetamines

[bcumm11]

About 1 year ago I was taking prescribed amphetamine extended release (25mg-60mg a day). I thought taking it NOW Foods Dopa Mucuna which is pretty much l-dopa would have had some positive cognitive effects. I believe it was May 10th 2014 when I lost it. I've never had a panic attack before that in my life. I was shaking, vomiting, losing control of my thoughts, watching random images, short flashbacks, weird creations my mind had made up, all while hallucinating noises that I knew weren't real but sounded just as clear and louder than real sounds. The sounds could be voices, screams, amazing guitar solos, (I wish I could remember how they sounded and recorded them), my own thoughts, or sirens. The problem is that the panic attacks did not go away. Thankfully I had some of onnits new mood which contains 5htp (150 mg) and Lemmon balm extract for GABA. I went through some a lot of bottles of that stuff in about 2 months. The bottles are suppose to last two weeks yet I was going through 1 about every 4 days. I have been taking 5-htp 200mg to mange the effects. I've had very bad anxiety for the past year. I've seen 2 doctors tried lexapro (didn't work as well as 5-htp) and Wellbutrin (this one I believe is focused more on dopamine) I took It once and it made me vomit and shake. How do I get back to normal? Quality advice is eternally appreciated.

 

[sekio]

It's entirely possible that the stress of amphetamine use caused you to unearth some underlying mental illness, espeically if you are having a panic attack with hallucinations... it may not be as simple as getting on antidepressants. You probably want to try something along the lines of a mild antipsychotic, Seroquel or something.

5HTP and lemon balm extract are not going to be much better than placebo at treating panic attacks, you want to figure out what triggers them and how to prevent them from happening rather than try to cover the symptoms up with sedatives.

 

[danglesmcgee]

hmm 5htp & tyrosine could infact make your anxiety worse. Anxiety can often be traced back to serotonin, specifically particular receptor sites, note that 5htp taken by itself can cause hallucinations. especially in doses exceeding 250-350mg. 5htp supplies your brain with serotonin, as does L-dopa, or L-tyrosine. But its up to your brain what to do with it. just because you make it plentiful doesnt mean it will help you. Your brain decides what to do with it, not you. Your brain is too complicated to make a generalization like that.

Ask your doctor for a drug called buspirone. Its a drug designed for managing anxiety as a whole, it also is a dopamine re-uptake inhibator, specifically D2 i believe. But it limits a very specific serotonin receptor that is associated with anxiety/flight or fight response. Buspirone has been shown to be as effective as benzo's. But buspirone, unlike benzo's is designed for long term use. it takes a while (2-3 weeks) for the effects to become fully noticeable. Very very few side effects, no dependence or addiction.

its worth a try.

I also agree with Seroquel, its being used more and more "off-label" for both sleep and anxiety. Small doses of seroquel (50mg or less) induce a strong sedative effect and a very deep sleep. Dosages larger then, (say 100mg-400mg) begin to turn down dopamine, serotonin, and eventually norepinephrine. Thats my understanding at least.

Both these drugs should be relatively easy to get from a doctor, perhaps speak to your doctor about those options.

good luck!

 

[Dresden]

I personally wouldn't combine L-DOPA with an amphetamine, but what do I know.

 

[PriestTheyCalledHim]

I personally wouldn't combine L-DOPA with an amphetamine, but what do I know.

Yeah I wouldn't either. Have you talked to your doctor about this, and how you take the amphetamine with the supplement L-DOPA? If so what did he or she say?

 

[Dresden]

My paternal grandfather developed Parkinson's at an old age, and the doctors prescribed him L-DOPA, which made him super paranoid. Since amphetamines also can cause paranoia, I figure it's not a good idea to combine the two.