Author Topic: 5-HTP? (Read 1112 times)

anxiousshawn · « **on:** May 31, 2011, 04:18:40 PM »

I've been taking 5-HTP for about a week or so now at the recommendation of my Doctor. He was prepared to put me in medication, but I declined since I found in the past that it didn't really do anything for me besides cause side-effects, so he recommended this instead.
I can't say it's helped, I feel just as anxious, and maybe even a little more anxious now than I was before I started taking it.

Has anyone else had experience using 5-HTP? Does it maybe take a few weeks to get into your system and start to work, or is it a bust? I'd love to hear other people's experiences with this. :)

Irishmanwrites · « **Reply #1 on:** June 01, 2011, 06:38:11 PM »

There's a lot of uncertainty on what your taking. The Internet is traditionally full of pros and cons on medicine, but the very reliable medical sites present a grey picture here.

I have never taken 5-HTP however I have knowledge of it and it's infrequently used nowadays with SSRIs and SNRIs deemed much safer.

You say previous experiences with the likes of SSRIs and SNRIs gave you nothing, but side effects. Did you try the med for sufficient time for a benefit? Did you try alternatives in the same or different class? Did you consider the novel modern meds new and on the Market?

Plenty of options for you if thus doesn't work. Touch wood it will, but if it doesn't talk to your doctor about the safe and effective SSRIs and or SNRIs.

Perfectly_Imperfect · « **Reply #2 on:** June 03, 2011, 03:38:37 PM »

5-HTP can also interact with other meds including OTC meds so be careful while taking it, make regular appts with your dr too so they can monitor you.

Most ADs can cause increase in anxiety too - just like the 5-HTP is causing. 5-HTP boosts your serotonin so it's mainly geared towards those with depression, it also is geared to help those with Insomnia but no "official" studies have been done (as far as I know)

Irishmanwrites · « **Reply #3 on:** June 03, 2011, 05:22:08 PM »

Potentially no official studies and potential interactions lean me to a big "NO" here.

Carryon · « **Reply #4 on:** June 03, 2011, 05:32:20 PM »

Tried it "years" ago just for everyday stress after reading a book on it: "5-HTP The Natural Way to Overcome Depression, Obesity and Insomnia, Michael Murray, ND. (1998) Didn't do anything even for something that mild. Rumour has it that turkey contains it and people get sleepy at Thanksgiving from it. As said, just rumor. It's used in the production of L-Triptophane which is an intermediary in producing Serotonin the agent targeted by most ADs.

heatherqb · « **Reply #5 on:** June 03, 2011, 05:34:57 PM »

Hello there!
I took 5htp for a while when I was having ssri withdrawal syndrome. It definitely helped to take the edge off. I used a very tiny amount and it was on my own, not under a doctor's supervision. I wouldn't condone this for anyone else but I tend to distrust doctors and march to the beat of my own drum. Regardless of what anyone else thinks, you really should work with your doctor on this. I cannot stress enough...find a good doctor that you have a good connection with and trust. That's the most important thing. And also, think for yourself. Find a doctor that will work with you and listens. Let me know if I can help at all! I wish you the best in health:)

Irishmanwrites · « **Reply #6 on:** June 03, 2011, 05:45:57 PM »

Too much rumour on this medicine.

Heather, I would march to your own drum to an extent, but med advice is med advice and you should follow it and doctors by and large do know what they're talkingp about.

X

anxiousshawn · « **Reply #7 on:** June 03, 2011, 05:56:04 PM »

Thanks for the responses everyone.
My Doctor says that it helps "lots" of people, but I'm just not convinced. I stopped taking it a few days ago and haven't really noticed a difference at all. If anything, I might actually be slightly better without it.

I saw a Naturopath yesterday and discussed it with her, and she didn't seem very shocked that it didn't work for me because likely I'm deficient in something else that prevents the 5HTP from being utilized by the body anyway. She's done wonders for my wife in balancing her mood and solving a few other medical mysteries that traditional medicine just hasn't been able to help us with, so I do think she knows what she's talking about.

I also mentioned Magnesium supplements to her as I've read and been told often that magnesium helps balance the fight-or-flight mechanism (or something, can't remember specifics), but she even seemed to think that it might help, but I'm probably not taking enough of it to compensate for what I'm lacking in my body, and Magnesium also acts as a diarretic (sp?) so taking too much would almost ensure a life filled with MANY trips to the bathroom, which obviously isn't ideal (though, is it better than living life with these anxiety symptoms?).

So 5-HTP might work for some, but from the responses and my own experiences, it sounds like it's a dud, at least for anxiety.

Carryon · « **Reply #8 on:** June 03, 2011, 06:59:36 PM »

Quote from: anxiousshawn on June 03, 2011, 05:56:04 PM

Thanks for the responses everyone.
My Doctor says that it helps "lots" of people, but I'm just not convinced. I stopped taking it a few days ago and haven't really noticed a difference at all. If anything, I might actually be slightly better without it.

I saw a Naturopath yesterday and discussed it with her, and she didn't seem very shocked that it didn't work for me because likely I'm deficient in something else that prevents the 5HTP from being utilized by the body anyway. She's done wonders for my wife in balancing her mood and solving a few other medical mysteries that traditional medicine just hasn't been able to help us with, so I do think she knows what she's talking about.

I also mentioned Magnesium supplements to her as I've read and been told often that magnesium helps balance the fight-or-flight mechanism (or something, can't remember specifics), but she even seemed to think that it might help, but I'm probably not taking enough of it to compensate for what I'm lacking in my body, and Magnesium also acts as a diarretic (sp?) so taking too much would almost ensure a life filled with MANY trips to the bathroom, which obviously isn't ideal (though, is it better than living life with these anxiety symptoms?).

So 5-HTP might work for some, but from the responses and my own experiences, it sounds like it's a dud, at least for anxiety.

Have to take magnesium with calcium or the Mg alone will really through your system off by pulling out calcium. Magnesium supplements come with the right amount of calcium.

anxiousshawn · « **Reply #9 on:** June 03, 2011, 11:22:55 PM »

Quote from: Carryon on June 03, 2011, 06:59:36 PM

Have to take magnesium with calcium or the Mg alone will really through your system off by pulling out calcium. Magnesium supplements come with the right amount of calcium.

o_O
So confusing. I should maybe hold off until my naturopath tells me what I should be doing before I really screw something up. :/

Irishmanwrites · « **Reply #10 on:** June 04, 2011, 10:49:23 AM »

anxiousshawn · « **Reply #11 on:** June 04, 2011, 09:48:19 PM »

Louls · « **Reply #12 on:** June 05, 2011, 03:56:09 AM »

I took 5-HTP when I went off Lexapro as an alternative medication, it did not really help so much. However GABA does help decrease the anxiety. The only thing 5-HTP did was take away my hunger, which isn't great because I am pre-diabetic and need to eat regularly to keep my blood sugar stable. Not being hungry leads to sugar crashes, which are no picnic.

Irishmanwrites · « **Reply #13 on:** June 05, 2011, 10:26:16 AM »

5Htp doesn't seem to be at all comparable to an effective SSRI or SNRI. Advice to the OP would be to speak further about what he was initially leaning towards.

You'll be following in the successful steps of millions of people if you try a more trusted route.

Best

gcalex · « **Reply #14 on:** June 05, 2011, 11:05:54 AM »

The evidence that 5htp works is largely anecdotal and theoretical from what I have read. I question the theory that any mood disorder is as simple as low serotonin, and that even if it is, you can help it simply by pumping a serotonin precursor into the brain. I suspect that where it works it is by the placebo effect. Just one person's opinion.

Irishmanwrites · « **Reply #15 on:** June 05, 2011, 01:16:15 PM »

Carryon · « **Reply #16 on:** June 05, 2011, 02:59:19 PM »

When they run double blind trials to gain approval of a drug some patients are given a placebo (sugar pill) to account for it. If a drug is approved for a particular use, it is overwhelmingly likely that the relief comes from the drug, not the head.

Irishmanwrites · « **Reply #17 on:** June 05, 2011, 03:49:00 PM »

anxiousshawn · « **Reply #18 on:** June 05, 2011, 05:08:18 PM »

Like I mentioned earlier in the thread, 5-HTP was recommended by my GP as a natural alternative to help reduce my anxiety. I had heard of it before but hadn't done much in the way of research about it. But I trust my GP so I was open to trying it to see if it helped at least take the edge off of the anxiety I was experiencing. Sadly, it hasn't, despite his claims that it does help "most people". But clearly it hasn't helped me.
In my earliest days of mental illness (~15yrs ago) I attempted to use St. Johns Wort as an alternative to Paxil, but I actually found it made my condition worse. So, so far my experiences with natural supplements to treat mental disorders hasn't been very successful, which is discouraging. But I haven't had much luck with my experiences with Paxil or Wellbutrin in the past either (again, they either didn't help or actually made things worse).

It's not that I'm not open to traditional medications, I just want to explore all my options. So I've sought the advice of my wifes naturopath because she has] successfully helped balance my wifes mental health over the past year, and I'm hoping she may be able to do the same for me. But even she isn't surprised that 5-HTP hasn't done anything for me. :/

Carryon · « **Reply #19 on:** June 05, 2011, 05:28:03 PM »

Quote from: anxiousshawn on June 05, 2011, 05:08:18 PM

Like I mentioned earlier in the thread, 5-HTP was recommended by my GP as a natural alternative to help reduce my anxiety. I had heard of it before but hadn't done much in the way of research about it. But I trust my GP so I was open to trying it to see if it helped at least take the edge off of the anxiety I was experiencing. Sadly, it hasn't, despite his claims that it does help "most people". But clearly it hasn't helped me.
In my earliest days of mental illness (~15yrs ago) I attempted to use St. Johns Wort as an alternative to Paxil, but I actually found it made my condition worse. So, so far my experiences with natural supplements to treat mental disorders hasn't been very successful, which is discouraging. But I haven't had much luck with my experiences with Paxil or Wellbutrin in the past either (again, they either didn't help or actually made things worse).

It's not that I'm not open to traditional medications, I just want to explore all my options. So I've sought the advice of my wifes naturopath because she has] successfully helped balance my wifes mental health over the past year, and I'm hoping she may be able to do the same for me. But even she isn't surprised that 5-HTP hasn't done anything for me. :/

I assume you are aware that Wellbutrin, to the best of my knowledge is very dissimilar, from other ADs in which Paxil is just one. Wellbutrin according to medical conventional wisdom increases anxiety far more often than not and its precise mechanism remains somewhat a mystery. It is commonly used to stop smoking under the name Zyban. As for Paxil, did you stay on it long enough to ride out the side effects: a month or more?

gcalex · « **Reply #20 on:** June 05, 2011, 05:31:16 PM »

"When they run double blind trials to gain approval of a drug some patients are given a placebo (sugar pill) to account for it. If a drug is approved for a particular use, it is overwhelmingly likely that the relief comes from the drug, not the head."

Prof. Irving Kirsch ("The Emperor's New Drugs") and Dr. Joanna Moncrief ("The Myth of a Chemical Cure") based on meta analyses of anti-depressant trials obtained through a FOIA request question whether the drugs really demonstrated superiority to placebo. I am not qualified to say that they are right, but it makes for extremely interesting reading, and was persuasive to me. Prof. Kirsch also has an extensive, well-documented study of the history of the placebo effect, including a fascinating discussion of a study out of Texas demonstrating that placebo knee surgery was just as effective as real knee surgery. I am new here and don't know if I am supposed to post links but articles discussing these findings can easily be found through Google, and Newsweek had an article not too long ago entitled Antidepressants Don't Work or to that effect.

Carryon · « **Reply #21 on:** June 05, 2011, 05:45:44 PM »

Quote from: gcalex on June 05, 2011, 05:31:16 PM

Prof. Irving Kirsch ("The Emperor's New Drugs") and Dr. Joanna Moncrief ("The Myth of a Chemical Cure") based on meta analyses of anti-depressant trials obtained through a FOIA request question whether the drugs really demonstrated superiority to placebo. I am not qualified to say that they are right, but it makes for extremely interesting reading, and was persuasive to me. Prof. Kirsch also has an extensive, well-documented study of the history of the placebo effect, including a fascinating discussion of a study out of Texas demonstrating that placebo knee surgery was just as effective as real knee surgery. I am new here and don't know if I am supposed to post links but articles discussing these findings can easily be found through Google, and Newsweek had an article not too long ago entitled Antidepressants Don't Work or to that effect.

Have you read the book?

gcalex · « **Reply #22 on:** June 05, 2011, 05:52:20 PM »

Yes as to the first book, and I corresponded some with Prof. Kirsch. I am still reading Dr. Moncrief's book.

Carryon · « **Reply #23 on:** June 05, 2011, 06:09:20 PM »

What did do they specifically say about the well known medications, e.g. benzos and ADs?

Irishmanwrites · « **Reply #24 on:** June 06, 2011, 06:44:10 AM »

I have to smile sometimes here. I am not sure which part of double blind controlled trial the poster above fails to understand.

I also smile , as I am aware of Irving Kirsh. He's infamous and a quick google search sees his articles completely torn apart.

In many ways it's all too easy for someone to quote this mans name and put the seed of doubt in people's heads here when they have visited here with anxiety. To anyone considering goggling Kirsh, don't. It's simply an indulgence in health anxiety. Note also that the poster who mentioned this man hasn't many posts to his name.