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Possible Symptom Reduction Through Tryptophan Supplementation


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I posted this study in the news section but am posting it here as well. 

 

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC1667179/

 

Alterations in brain 5-hydroxy-tryptamine metabolism during the `withdrawal' phase after chronic treatment with diazepam and bromazepam

 

"4 Discontinuation of treatment for 48 h significantly decreased the activity of mid-brain tryptophan hydroxylase to levels that were significantly lower than those seen for benzodiazepine-treated and normal rats. The concentrations of mid-brain tryptophan and 5-hydroxytryptamine were also reduced in various brain regions examined."

 

The study suggests that tryptophan levels decrease significantly during withdrawal.  For those who are tapering or those who have recently jumped, it may be beneficial to supplement with L tryptophan and/or 5 HTP for possible symptom reduction.

 

In the winter, I began taking L Tryptophan because my symptoms get significantly worse due to Seasonal Affective Disorder.  The result was a return to my normal non-winter baseline which blew me away.  I stopped taking it in the spring when the sun returned  but I'm wondering now if this supplement wouldn't be beneficial to a lot more people here, especially those suffering from depression.

 

L Tryptophan is an amino acid.  It is commonly referenced with turkey and the sleepy feeling one experiences after a Thanksgiving meal.  L Tryptophan is found in meat and seafood and naturally increases melatonin and serotonin levels in the body.  It is also available as a supplement. 

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Hello tooktoolong,

 

I've been experimenting with tryptophan supplementation recently. I explored amino-acid therapy several years ago and I remember tryptophan having a positive effect for me, calming me down throughout the day. I also respond very well to low-dose melatonin supplementation, which is a by-product of serotonin. I take 0.5mg of a liquid form every night at 8pm for the last year and I notice myself become almost immediately sleeping (I hold it sublingual before swallowing); I believe this is suggestive of having low seratonin levels.

 

I have been taking 500mg of tryptophan first thing in the morning on an empty stomach, and waiting 30min to an hour before eating. Unfortunately I'm too cautious about supplements to push my dose up any higher at this time, so I'm only expecting a very gentle effect and haven't been able to say it was the tryptophan, but I've been doing well recently.

 

I also take a very small amount of pure inositol with the tryptophan, because I trialed the tryptophan first and noticed nothing, and Ben Lynch suggested individuals with low neurotransmitter levels could benefit from inositol, which is a secondary messenger. It's mentioned around the forums with people taking something like 18g/day; I've tried 200mg or so of pure powder (it's like 1/12th of a teaspoon) twice now and had pretty decent days and minimal withdrawal. I will likely try higher doses of both tryptophan and inositol in the future.

 

I'm also using three other supplements, which I introduced over the last couple weeks and which I've used extensively in the past for mental health. These are three cannabinoids, THC, CBD, and CBG, in oil tincture form. I take sub-acute doses of each, totaling 1mg, 2mg, and 1mg per day respectively. I believe these are helping me as well, even at sub-acute dosages, because I've found in the past that regular dosing builds up a long-term cumulative effect for me that's very stable and effective (and also dangerous if the doses are more potent).

 

I wrote more about my cannabinoid use in the Medical Cannabis support group.

 

Mostly I just wanted to chime in and say thanks for the mention of tryptophan supplementation; it's been very safe in my experience. I cannot say the same for 5-HTP; I've read reports around BB that there are a number of dangers associated with 5-HTP use, primarily because it's harder to get past the blood brain barrier, and because it bypasses the body's natural serotonin regulation system which operates with the tryptophan -> 5-HTP conversion step. Also I read that 5-HTP often doesn't work past the first few doses, even if it is needed. And if it's not needed, and there are individuals with high serotonin which causes mental health problems, the effects can be very unpleasant (such as with individuals who don't tolerate SSRIs).

 

My 5-HTP bottle sits lonely and unopened.  :thumbsup:

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Hi SlownSteady.  Thanks for the reply and information.  I agree about 5HTP supplementation.  I've heard about some negative experiences as well.  Personally, I don't see the point in taking it as Tryptophan converts to 5HTP (like you mentioned), as well as increasing serotonin and melatonin levels.  The latter is why I recommend that people take it at night time as it can help them fall asleep faster. 

 

As for dosing, for a while I was taking up to 2500mgs at night and I did not have any negative experiences.  After a while, however, I felt like I didn't need it anymore, that whatever levels had been low had been restored.  So I stopped it.  There was no withdrawal or retracement of baseline.

 

I will definitely look into inositol.  I've seen the threads here with people raving about it.

 

As for the cannabis thc and cbd, I experimented with them years ago and they did not benefit me.  THC actually gave me severe anxiety and panic/paranoia so I only tried it one time.  CBD didn't do anything for me so I stopped taking it.

 

 

I'm currently experimenting with some cerebral peptides and am hoping to have something positive to report once I'm done. 

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Yes, THC does have the effects you describe, especially at doses that are too high for the individual. CBD has, in many respects, the opposite effects of THC, which can be good or bad depending on the dosage and individual. I also noticed nothing when I first tried CBD. However, CBD and THC used at appropriate doses and proportions to eachother have had very positive effects for me; the CBD apparently down-regulates the excess amygdala activity that the THC causes at any dose.

 

Here's the resources I shared on the MC support group:

http://www.benzobuddies.org/forum/index.php?topic=165140.msg3248359#msg3248359

 

I appreciate hearing your trypto dosage amounts and your experience stopping. I don't know anything about cerebral peptides, but I look forward to your results.

 

Another supplement of interest to me is lithium orotate; apparently it down-regulates excess glutamate, but it also has a down-regulating effect on serotonin and perhaps other neurotransmitters. Since I started taking benzos I noticed lithium orotate might be causing me depression.

 

Maybe combined with tryptophan and/or inositol, the benefits of lithium would be maintained as well as the neurotransmitter levels. This combination of inositol and lithium orotate is used by UK doctor Peter Smith to treat bipolar disorder.

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