Natural Treatment for Anxiety & Depression

Has anyone tried St John's Wort, 5HTP, or SAMe for depression and/or anxiety. Did it help? I used SAMe a few times and was helpful. Not recently.I tried and it really didn't help me much. I know you have to be careful w/ St John's wort as some of the side effects can be hard on the body. I found this;
http://www.personalhealthzone.com/stjohnswort.htm

I hope this helps.

I can't sleep at night. My mind races horribly. Insomnia has set in and now I'm experiencing mild depression and I'm afraid it's going to get worse. I just can't go back on anti-depressants because I'm prone to seizures (which they all reduce the threshold), and I absolutely HATE anti-seizure meds. I'm tired of my back hurting, I'm tired of not sleeping, I'm tired of feeling blue.

I just saw this article in Prevention:
http://www.prevention.com/cda/article/the-family-sleep-cure/93440a12bc6bd110VgnVCM10000013281eac____/news.voices/in.the.magazine/january.2009.issue

It has a lot of suggestions for different ages and problems, but here is one I haven't seen before (for women/moms):
"

Write away worries. During the day, scribble down your concerns and how you plan to handle them, advises Walsleben. For example, if you're panicked about bills, you might write that you'll go through them and come up with a payment schedule for those you can't tackle right away. Then, if you start to ruminate before lights-out, tell yourself firmly, I've already dealt with this. It's time to go to sleep."

Lyn

ETA: You need to scroll down a little and click on Flower Remedies

LyndeeNZ2009-02-09 12:18:14I use SAM-e and have for years, and it definitely helps me. I take 400 mg twice a day. Be careful though because some brands of supplements are not exactly as they claim to be, in dosage or whatever. There's a company called Consumer Lab (http://www.consumerlab.com/) that evaluates the different brands with independent testing to make sure they have what and how much they say, without harmful additives. When I first researched the SAM-e, I found one of the brands they liked was Nature Made, and I have since used this brand for all my supplements. Plus they have a customer loyalty program that gives you coupons for entering codes on their website.

I also used St. John's Wort a very long time ago, but not only was it not effective for me, but it can also interfere with birth control pills.

Good luck with whatever path you choose.

Hi kweenb,

Have you tried Melatonin? You can get sublingual (works best) at any health food store or pharmacy to help with your not being able to fall asleep. I take one (when needed at bed time) and it works great. As far as the others you mentioned; I cannot take them because of thyroid issues. Good luck in your search...Hiking_gal

Everyone,

Thanks for the replies. I think I'm going to try SAM-e.

Hiking_gal,

I thought about Melatonin too, but I also have a thyroid disorder and it scared me.

I havent read any of the links on this thread, but I do know my sister cant have St Johns wort because of some of her meds. Dont know what SAM-e is, but I always talk with my Chemist/Pharmacist before I take anything nowadays. They are more onto it than doctors I believe.

Just a thought. Kween -

I saw this a while ago but was too slammed to answer at the time and wanted to come back and help if I could.

I started Melatonin on my AP docs advice and slowly worked my way up on it. I now take 3 mgs. sublingually. I can now sleep 8 hours straight and sometimes 9! It's been a Godsend and has undone years of lying in bed with my mind racing. I use some other non-mainstream visualization techniques and it's helped soooo much you wouldn't believe it. My AP doc says it's coming time for me to wean off - so I keep avoiding it as I certainly don't care if I'm on Melatonin for the rest of my life. I mean it really works! So, if you're interested, send me an email, and I'll give you all the stuff I saved when I was researching sleep disorders a while back. All that research paid off.

Finally, as to the anxiety - I've recently come across a lot of research on the Big 3 (as I call them) of potassium, magnesium and calcium and our diseases. Magnesium is the one tied greatly to depression etc. You can't just add in only that (my Mom did and really messed up her body as she has heart disease and while her doc told her she had high potassium, she really didn't - so - adding in triple mag caused edema for her. She is NOT a trained professional - lol) Seriously, I keep asking people to pull their records - I'd bet the farm you're low in mag - then couple that with not sleeping - and - TADA - you're dealing with what you're dealing with.

Hugs,

Pip

Kween, Pip offered some good advice. I've been on the Big 3 for about 5 years. Started as a pulmonary/cardiac problem and my pulmonologist prescribed them. I also read about their tie in with depression. Only add them with your doctor's ok and use the script ones to start with if they're still available. I'm on regular OTC type now after adjusting them over the years. LindyLindy - I just adore you!

Hey, I found that connection to heart disease researching for my mom. It's amazing what can help, isn't it.

Bump for Kween!

Pip

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