[NoIdeaWhatToDo]

Weird - I'm seeing my post twice; not sure what happened. Hopefully that's only showing for me, since I practically wrote a book...

[liveforsummer]

We can see it twice but doesnt matter lol!
I for one am grateful to hear all possible treatment options out there

[bioChE]

No big deal that it posted twice.

What amino acids have you been taking?

[bizi]

I tried them and they did not work for me.
gaba, taurine, tryptophan for sleep.
did nopt help.
then I tried Lithium orotate, that did not help.
sigh
bizi

[Naynay99]

@NoIdea-
Thanks for sharing. I appreciate hearing about ppl who have found non med ways of dealing with a mood disorder. As someone who is less than impressed with psychiatric medications ability to treAt my D, who can't take most meds anyway bc of physical health stuff, and who sometimes fears that perhaps the cure may sometimes be as bad as disease, I always am interested in hearing other treatments that ppl have done that worked for them. I'm not all that familiar w/ amino acids and neurofeedback.

I do know what you mean re people who take meds reacting defensively when somebody comes along who has found another way for them. I have not seen it on this board on PC, but on a differnt depr/bp forum I used to frequent years ago, I did observe that sometimes ppl who depend on rx drugs sometimes reacted like the idea of someone else not being on meds was somehow threatening to them. But we are all different and there is no one best or only way to treat this. Even my old pdoc, he acted like rx drugs was the only solution, and like the idea that I might want to explore other avenues was somehow irresponsible and not valid.

Anyway, thanks for sharing and glad u are doing well.

[still_crazy]

i do my own version of orthomolecular. high dose c, e, b-100 complex, niacinamide, plus tons of additional antioxidants (green tea extract, astaxanthin, natural form beta carotene, grape seed extract, etc.), plus now massive amounts of "suntheanine" brand l-theanine.

i feel...much, much better. i belive my "recovery," as the mental health people put it, is part of God's work in my life. I'm a Christian...I belive in a loving, merciful God, which (sadly) puts me at odds with a lot of Christians around me. ugh.

anyway...ive been dropping my psych drug intake. i needed some serious tranquilizer, and now...i dont. not only do i --not-- need that level of medication, it was creating some serious problems.

im doing much better now, at all levels. its...strange...i have quirks and such now, but im not really 'sick' like i was at times while on the drugs.

Here are my experiences with meds and attempting to be med-free. Also my brother's experience with med free, and a woman at work who tried -- and succeeded for years and years -- till she was hospitalized!

I tried three times to be med free. The first time was before I ever had meds. My pdoc supported my desire to be med free, but the herb or whatever it was never got rid of the crippling depressions I had for most of the month. Many years later, I tried, with the supervision and support of another pdoc. I eased off more slowly, even, than she suggested. I felt great -- for a few weeks. Then crashed. The third time, I cut my pills into EIGHTHS. I cut back by 1/8 every 2-3 WEEKS. Again, the terrible depressions came back.

One benefit I really, really get from the meds is that I no longer have severe back pain. I had it since high school. It disappeared when I started meds almost 20 years ago. It never came back. But as an ultra-ultra rapid cycler, it's difficult -- impossible -- to find meds that work for long periods of time. They either quit helping, or else the side effects sneak up very slowly and then I figure out something is very wrong with that/these meds.

My brother has had clinical depression since he was at least 10, so he tells me. A couple of years ago, he gradually quit his antidepressant. He took L. triptophan instead. He told me he felt great. And he did -- for a while. Then, he got terribly, terribly depressed. He went back on the anti-depressant which had worked pretty well. Not only did it NO LONGER WORK, he can't find one that does. He's still very depressed.

The woman I mentioned in the first paragraph was a well-paid consumer executive in a mental health clinic, where I also worked. She was very proud and haughty about being med-free. She URGED other mental health consumers/patients to get off their meds. That was not part of her job, and she was not supposed to do that, but she did. She was fine for years! Then she got hospitalized. Talk about "eating crow." (That's an expression from the US American South -- means some combination of emotional pain, regret and shame.)

Another thing to remember is that with some types of depression and also with mania, the episode can last for weeks or months, then be gone for months or years. So people who boast of being med-free, like that woman did, may have that type of disorder! So, here they are, feeling good, normal feelings, then their depression or mania comes back full bore. No big surprise to anyone but themselves. That's why the doctors say to stay on the meds even if you feel okay.

[bioChE]

I'm on meds, obviously, as they're blatantly posted in my signature. But I do take a couple supplements.

Like still_crazy, I take a high-dose super Vitamin B complex. It seems to even out my energy during the day and I don't get tired the way I used to in the late afternoons and evenings.

I also take the amino acid Taurine. For me, Taurine has a very noticeable calming effect, almost like a mild benzo. It counteracts any jittery feeling I may have after caffeine in the AM (learned this from Monster energy drinks, which I no longer use). I also feel it stabilizes my mood somewhat, to be more "even" during a given day, if that makes sense. I still have ups and downs within a given week (I cycle about every ten days), but on any given day my mood isn't swinging back and forth.

For me, these supplements have been a helpful addition to my normal psych med routine. I still cycle, I still feel like $hit sometimes, but since I'm grasping at straws for help anyway I might as well find it anywhere and any way I can. I've not tried Tyrosine or Tryptophan yet, but almost ordered some this evening based on this thread. Along with Taurine, those two are supposed to play a role in neurotransmitter production and/or stability. I take gabapentin for a physical ailment, so I'm not personally interested in taking GABA. I am aware, however, of gabapentin's ability to ease anxiety and think there could be something to the argument for GABA. I also take Inositol for the same physical issue, but I've not noticed any effect of that one way or the other on my MH.

If anyone else has experiences to share, please let us know. The board is better for all information shared.

And to the person who mentioned it, I know the hostility you speak of when you say some on RX are opposed to potential natural remedies. There's a possibility I've been guilty of said hostility at times. However, that only comes out when I get the sense that someone is pushing others to get off RX meds without knowing anything about their circumstances or experience. We are dealing with a literal life and death situation here, and the consequences of such an attitude can kill. I will defend the symptomatic and less fortunate to my death, as we are all there at one time or another. Lord knows I've been there. I appreciate you and others sharing your experiences with everyone.

ETA: OK, I just re-read a couple posts. It's 3:30 AM and I'm feeling impulsive. I'm heading over to Amazon for some Tyrosine and Tryptophan. This is as crazy as my impulsive spending gets these days, since I now use a very effective budget. My current supplements cost around $0.35/day, which is cheaper than several of my co-pays.

[NoIdeaWhatToDo]

Originally Posted by bioChE

No big deal that it posted twice.

What amino acids have you been taking?

I take the following:

Morning - GABA, L-Glutamine, DLPA
Evening - GABA, L-Tryptophan

In addition to these, I take Vit. D3 and Magnesium Citrate in the evening.

[BlueInanna]

I would be interested in a med-free board to check out.

[NoIdeaWhatToDo]

I hear what you're saying, flowerbells, but I must admit this is one of the reasons I tend to stay quiet about what I take that is working for me. I read constantly about the issues people have with their RX meds - ranging from not improving symptoms to causing unmanageable side effects to creating necessity for more RX meds. If someone is having luck on a particular med I don't feel like it's helpful at all to tell them all the stories I've heard about people for whom that approach did not work.

In my mind, these supplements are working for me now, and there's literally no difference for me in how the supplements affect me than how RX meds affect someone else. If we're both doing better on our regimen, it could be said for either of us that it's simply a natural lull in our symptoms. There are people both on the RX side and the alternative side for whom what they're using no longer works and for whom it is difficult to then find something else that works. If RX meds work for someone else, I see no need to discourage them from it just because something else works for me and/or others I know.

I completely hear you about people who boast about their method - "I do it this way and it works for me, so it should work for everyone!" or "This method is better/safer/more [whatever] than what you're doing." That drives me nuts. But it drives me nuts whether someone is trying to say that for alternative methods (I can't TELL you how many times I've internally rolled my eyes or just stopped listening to someone who's trying to tell my if I just cut gluten out of my life, my depression/insomnia/aches/whatever will improve!) - or whether I'm trying to respond to someone asking about alternative methods and someone else feels the need to interject that it's not as valid as RX options because that's what's worked/working for them.

[liveforsummer]

Thank you thank you thank you, I'm writing all these options down as I want to be as knowledgeable as I can for my first pdoc appt. I appreciate all this information as there surely isn't a one cure fixes all solution.

[bioChE]

Originally Posted by NoIdeaWhatToDo

I take the following:


Morning - GABA, L-Glutamine, DLPA

Evening - GABA, L-Tryptophan


In addition to these, I take Vit. D3 and Magnesium Citrate in the evening.

Thanks for letting us know.

Just placed a second order with Amazon. What would the world be without them?

[Naynay99]

Hey. I appreciate this info . I am currently on medication, which at one time was working well for me but now not so much. I agree wholeheartedly that no one other than a professional has any place telling others to go off their meds bc it worked for them. Just as it is ALSO no one else's place to tell those doing well not on meds that they need to be on them...

Yes It is possible that someone not on meds is fine only bc they hve not had an episode in that time frame but the same can be said for those on meds. But how come the person not on meds who has an episode or needs hospital gets an "I told you so", while the person ON meds who gets those same symptoms or an episode or needs hospitalization gets sympathy and a "the meds must have stopped working...".

Rx meds can have scary side effects and idk if I agree with myself taking them as a prophylactic to prevent some potential future episode if I had been stable for a long period of time. But everyone is different and I don't think someone is any better or sicker for needing or not needing rx meds. It is helpful to encourage someone who is impulsively wanting to go off meds bc they are manic not to. But to tell someone who is doing well w/o rx to take them is not supportive in my opinion.

But I suppose maybe it is human nature for us to push our beliefs on others, as if what works for us must work for everyone. Sorry if I am rambling here. I have had ppl in my support group react like this and it irks me. I am not meaning to sound argumentative here so I apologize if it cam across that way.

Keep the alternative treatments ppl have tried that have helped coming. I for one am interested in learning about all possible avenues to treat this beast.
TAke care all.

[bizi]

welcome!
and let us support each other!
on which ever path we take.

((((((HUGS)))))
bizi

[jacky8807]

naynay you said: " Yes It is possible that someone not on meds is fine only bc they hve not had an episode in that time frame but the same can be said for those on meds. But how come the person not on meds who has an episode or needs hospital gets an "I told you so", while the person ON meds who gets those same symptoms or an episode or needs hospitalization gets sympathy and a "the meds must have stopped working"

CAN I GET AN AMEN!! you hit the nail on the head. Take a person who has episodes and is not on meds. Blamed because no meds

Take a person who is still Continuously having episodes ON meds : what then?

I believe in meds and I believe in no meds. But no one should be constantly pushing meds on people.

[bioChE]

Well, my experimental amino acids should be arriving this week. I'm especially interested to see if the DLPA and L-Tryptophan have any effect. I'll definitely report any experiences.

[bizi]

I have tried amino acids about a year ago to see if they improved my sleep. I have taken just klonipin .5mg for years and felt I needed better sleep.
So I took:
GABA, amytritophane, taurine. for 3 months and I did not have any better sleep so I stopped taking them.
I also felt like my mood could have been better so I started taking
lithium orotate for 2 months. It did not help my mood any.
I need to quit drinking, this would help my sleep more than anything.
Have tried glutamine to help with alcohol cravings...they did not help.
I am in the process of increasing my seroquel and decreasing my klonipin.
75mg seroquel
.25mg of klonipin
bizi

[bioChE]

My supplements arrived today. They're at home waiting for me to start tonight. Here's to the trial!

[NoIdeaWhatToDo]

Bizi, I had issues with sleep and alcohol cravings, too. Somewhere between the amino acids, the magnesium, and (I think a big part) the neurofeedback, I'm much improved over the past year. The neurofeedback particularly has given me what feels like insulation between the stimuli of the world and my internalization of those stimuli. Things that used to trigger symptoms of depression or anxiety no longer do, or at least my reactions seem in scale with the stimuli more. I don't know if this is available around where you live, but I am so eternally grateful to have found it here. It really made an enormous difference for me. I think not living in a constant fight/flight/freeze state with my nervous system has made an enormous improvement for my sleep and decreased my alcohol cravings significantly. You might check with your care provider to see if you have access to neurofeedback where you live?

[NoIdeaWhatToDo]

Originally Posted by bioChE

My supplements arrived today. They're at home waiting for me to start tonight. Here's to the trial!

Good luck! I hope they help you - I noticed a difference within a week when I started, but I had been unmedicated altogether for a long time. The hardest part for me was the timing, but I got used to it. You're supposed to take them on an empty stomach, so 2 hours or more after eating or 30 minutes or more before eating.

Crossing my fingers for you...