St. John's Wort and my story

[asdfdoc]

Update!

I was put on SSRI and all is better now.

3 PDocs said st. john's wort experience was probably from overdosing.

However, I just found out something really weird.

I've taken adderall thinking that it's working for about a month few months ago, but ended up just being manic. Adderall gave me tachycardia and high BP. It drove me nuts, triggered mania (we ruled out bipolar at the end). Even with 1.25mg of adderall, it activated me. It made me super energized and happy. It gave me no help with focus and motivation. However, one time I was coming off adderall xr (9 hours after ingestion) feeling crappy, I decided to take 100mg 5-htp, and all the sudden I had all the focus and concentration I could ask for. This has never happened again. And that one time I took adderall with st. john's wort, it again made manic, super talkative, restless and unable to concentrate.

However, I was put on SSRI (lexapro) for my social anxiety, POIS, PE. And I tried adderall once again. Now, it just works. Everytime, I take an adderall, it calms me and I can focus better. My vitals are also normal and I don't have any crazy PNS stimulation that I've experienced before.

My serotonin system must have been screwed up or something for some reason.

Now all is better. My mood is better, my concentration is better and my POIS is much less severe with 2 weeks on lexapro . I just hope it gets even better in 2 months.

[demografx]

hey I take Nature's bounty brand at walgreens. 300mg tid.

As far as dopamin agonist property, I don't believe it. I looked it up on pubmed as well. I can differentiate the dopamine high and serotonin high. I've experienced too much with drugs. St. John's wort feels to me like a serotonin high only. There is no increase in BP or pulse like adderall gives me. But I may not be right.

I had a hypertensive crisis with 10mg adderall tid one time. But like I mentioned in the first post, 5-HTP co-administration with adderall somehow cured my ADHD. I am trying that combo again today. I took 2 SJW doses today at 7am and 12am, and 100mg 5-HTP timed release at 7AM. I just administered myself 2.5mg adderall about 45 minutes ago (right now 2:30PM). It's kicking in now. It's definitely killing the serotonin effect. I am gonna wait until 2:45 and if I don't feel much I am gonna administer 2.5mg adderall more to see if I can get "focused". I do know that MAOI and Adderall are a very dangerous combo. But I am continuously monitoring my BP and have benzos ready next to me just as a backup plan.

One thing I noticed is that I am hypersalivating. With SJW, my salivary flow has doubled (3ml/min to 7ml/min). It's a common symptom of increased serotonin in system. My girlfriend told me that she doesn't wanna kiss me anymore . hahahaha!

Will report back later tonight!

Hello Asdfdoc and Everyone!

Asdfdoc -- I'm going to be very direct here.

Your self-prescribing/taking St. John's wort -- when your psychiatrist specifically advised you NOT do so, as it could possibly precipitate a manic phase based on her evaluation of you, is alarming.

Then adding and determining your own dosage and schedule of Adderall, while having benzopdiazipines ready just in case your blood pressure shoots up ("benzos' -- i.e. Xanax, Valium, or other sedatives) is so dangerous that I'm having trouble finding the words to really describe the risks you're taking. 

NO ONE - regardless of his/her condtion -- should do what you are doing -- it's very dangerous! You may be headed for full-blown mania and/or a hypertensive stroke. You'll think that your judgement is sound -- but it won't be.

Asdfdoc, I truly don't mean to be sound hurtful, so please know that.   You and your forum members need to understand the potential severe (if not fatal) side-effects of all of these very strong medications that you're taking in combination, and at your own discretion.

There is one other issue that bears mention here.  I know that you all may know this already. 5-HTP and other over-the-counter supplements can be purchased in any drug store. Please remember -- SUPPLEMENTS PURCHASED FROM A DRUG STORE OR HEALTH FOOD STORE CAN -- AND HAVE BEEN -- JUST AS DANGEROUS, AND HAVE AS MANY ALARMING SIDE EFFECTS -- AS ANY PRESCRIBED MEDICATION!

There is just no way -- whatsoever -- that one can self-diagnose "too much dopamine" or "to little serotonin," etc. I don't think that physicians can even diagnose this with precision.  In addition, one cannot determine if there is some sort of immune/auto-immune underpinning to one's POIS symptoms.  There's no solid, proven evidence that self-administering diluted semen shots as a test proves anything.  

Everyone here -- please be careful!!  This is playing with fire.

Stef

Perfectly stated, nordnurse!

I have been screaming and shouting medical caution here since 2007.

Finally someone says it most eloquently - AND with great medical experience to boot!

We are so fortunate to have Stef with us. (Although she belongs to the world, not just us).

[LAPOISSE]

Update!

I was put on SSRI and all is better now.

3 PDocs said st. john's wort experience was probably from overdosing.

However, I just found out something really weird.

I've taken adderall thinking that it's working for about a month few months ago, but ended up just being manic. Adderall gave me tachycardia and high BP. It drove me nuts, triggered mania (we ruled out bipolar at the end). Even with 1.25mg of adderall, it activated me. It made me super energized and happy. It gave me no help with focus and motivation. However, one time I was coming off adderall xr (9 hours after ingestion) feeling crappy, I decided to take 100mg 5-htp, and all the sudden I had all the focus and concentration I could ask for. This has never happened again. And that one time I took adderall with st. john's wort, it again made manic, super talkative, restless and unable to concentrate.

However, I was put on SSRI (lexapro) for my social anxiety, POIS, PE. And I tried adderall once again. Now, it just works. Everytime, I take an adderall, it calms me and I can focus better. My vitals are also normal and I don't have any crazy PNS stimulation that I've experienced before.

My serotonin system must have been screwed up or something for some reason.

Now all is better. My mood is better, my concentration is better and my POIS is much less severe with 2 weeks on lexapro . I just hope it gets even better in 2 months.

You should be really carefull with SSRI ; This is my story :

For years, I didn't know what was wrong with me ; confident, good cognitive functions, feeling good some days..and some others feeling like crap(headhaches,trouble thinking, confusion,etc) ...One day after a dinner with friends that was a disastrous experience for me I decided it was something wrong with me and I badly wanted to solve it...After a lot of blood test that came OK..i was agree with the fact the problem was psychologic ; I saw several shrink with absolutly no results...after a year I agreed with one of them to take Deroxat(Paxil)...he told me i just needed it for some month to re-launch the system...after 2 month with 30mg, I was feeling really well, the depression/anxiety just lift and all the POIS like problem was reduced by 90%....I was pretty OK for 12 month...it allows me focus in my job and obtain a great position(but I maybe could have done it without Paxil if I had descovered about POIS earlier)..Then POIS symtoms came back slowly but I was able to control them by  abstaining myself from O....As SSRI was planned for 6 month only I tried to quit 2 times with devastous effect(bad anxiety, depression and really bad cognitive issues)...I was really difficult to even think about quitting...i had for a year really good excuses to go to my doc for having a new prescription.
I finally succeed to quit in August that year during vacation...I was OK for a month..and one day suddently, living nightmare(really bad depression and anxiety I never felt before SSRI's...like 3 times stronger)...I felt that psychic pain for 2 weeks...Worst 2 weeks of my life.
Now with high dose of 5HTP, magnesium, tyrosine...it's barely bearable but my cognition is really bad...I'v been in constant POIS for 2 month with some days better than others..but never recovered..I need more time to do everything and everytime I need to think and to speak about something complex,I get confused.I don't know how long it will last and how long I'll keep my job that way.

The thing is SSRI's just threat the symptoms and it's necessarily temporary...and from my experience(and many others c.f paxil progress.com ), it can worsen the symtoms you had before SSRI's when you are off...I fell like all the relief I got, i now pay it twice the price and i'm really concerned about permanent damages; Now I have POIS + SSRI withdrawal problem ; Do not believe anybody that tell you SSRI's is a cure and there is no addiction even if we are all different

The only good thing from that experience is I'm pretty sure now my POIS has something linked with serotonine and dopamine..don't now if its pure hormonal/neurotransmitters or allergic/histamine cause leading to hormonal/neurotransmitters issues...I know also that a drug with inhibition action cannot be a long term cure and that there is risk that it screwed up the natural process.

I really wish I found this forum before and found a explanation about "what was wrong with me before"..and I was not just depressed without reason....and then never took SSRI's

[asdfdoc]

Thanks for sharing your experience. I will definitely be careful.

I was thinking more of dysthymia type of chronic depression due to genetics. I was planning on depending on ssri for a long term. I just hope I just continue to get better in 2 months and stays like that until someone figures out what really causes POIS.

Update!

I was put on SSRI and all is better now.

3 PDocs said st. john's wort experience was probably from overdosing.

However, I just found out something really weird.

I've taken adderall thinking that it's working for about a month few months ago, but ended up just being manic. Adderall gave me tachycardia and high BP. It drove me nuts, triggered mania (we ruled out bipolar at the end). Even with 1.25mg of adderall, it activated me. It made me super energized and happy. It gave me no help with focus and motivation. However, one time I was coming off adderall xr (9 hours after ingestion) feeling crappy, I decided to take 100mg 5-htp, and all the sudden I had all the focus and concentration I could ask for. This has never happened again. And that one time I took adderall with st. john's wort, it again made manic, super talkative, restless and unable to concentrate.

However, I was put on SSRI (lexapro) for my social anxiety, POIS, PE. And I tried adderall once again. Now, it just works. Everytime, I take an adderall, it calms me and I can focus better. My vitals are also normal and I don't have any crazy PNS stimulation that I've experienced before.

My serotonin system must have been screwed up or something for some reason.

Now all is better. My mood is better, my concentration is better and my POIS is much less severe with 2 weeks on lexapro . I just hope it gets even better in 2 months.

You should be really carefull with SSRI ; This is my story :

For years, I didn't know what was wrong with me ; confident, good cognitive functions, feeling good some days..and some others feeling like crap(headhaches,trouble thinking, confusion,etc) ...One day after a dinner with friends that was a disastrous experience for me I decided it was something wrong with me and I badly wanted to solve it...After a lot of blood test that came OK..i was agree with the fact the problem was psychologic ; I saw several shrink with absolutly no results...after a year I agreed with one of them to take Deroxat(Paxil)...he told me i just needed it for some month to re-launch the system...after 2 month with 30mg, I was feeling really well, the depression/anxiety just lift and all the POIS like problem was reduced by 90%....I was pretty OK for 12 month...it allows me focus in my job and obtain a great position(but I maybe could have done it without Paxil if I had descovered about POIS earlier)..Then POIS symtoms came back slowly but I was able to control them by  abstaining myself from O....As SSRI was planned for 6 month only I tried to quit 2 times with devastous effect(bad anxiety, depression and really bad cognitive issues)...I was really difficult to even think about quitting...i had for a year really good excuses to go to my doc for having a new prescription.
I finally succeed to quit in August that year during vacation...I was OK for a month..and one day suddently, living nightmare(really bad depression and anxiety I never felt before SSRI's...like 3 times stronger)...I felt that psychic pain for 2 weeks...Worst 2 weeks of my life.
Now with high dose of 5HTP, magnesium, tyrosine...it's barely bearable but my cognition is really bad...I'v been in constant POIS for 2 month with some days better than others..but never recovered..I need more time to do everything and everytime I need to think and to speak about something complex,I get confused.I don't know how long it will last and how long I'll keep my job that way.

The thing is SSRI's just threat the symptoms and it's necessarily temporary...and from my experience(and many others c.f paxil progress.com ), it can worsen the symtoms you had before SSRI's when you are off...I fell like all the relief I got, i now pay it twice the price and i'm really concerned about permanent damages; Now I have POIS + SSRI withdrawal problem ; Do not believe anybody that tell you SSRI's is a cure and there is no addiction even if we are all different

The only good thing from that experience is I'm pretty sure now my POIS has something linked with serotonine and dopamine..don't now if its pure hormonal/neurotransmitters or allergic/histamine cause leading to hormonal/neurotransmitters issues...I know also that a drug with inhibition action cannot be a long term cure and that there is risk that it screwed up the natural process.

I really wish I found this forum before and found a explanation about "what was wrong with me before"..and I was not just depressed without reason....and then never took SSRI's