Post by Bunjimoon! on Jun 20, 2005 16:08:31 GMT -5
My dad had bipolar disorder and bipolar disorder runs through genetics. So there is a high probability that I have it. I have known this for a long time but I had never had any symptoms of it. Most of the time the symptoms start when you are young like 13yrs.
Now, me being shy and all, I started taking St. John's wort to keep my anxiety levels down. It worked pretty well for me. The main thing that it does is promote a positive mood. I did my research on it and found that it also increases your risk of a sunburn and if you are bipolar, it can trigger a manic episode. If you don't know what that is, it is a period in which a person has high energy levels of mania and is an actual maniac.
Normally I am pretty low key and layed back. I don't like fast paced activity so much.
So here's what happened:
I had been taking St. John's Wort regularly for about a month. I was using the regular dosage the whole time. Then I got to the bottom of the bottle one day and stopped taking it for about a week. I still had 15 left out of a 180 capsule bottle and I picked it up after that week (I am wierd and when I start to run out of something I like to save the last bit until I need it) and thought about what kind of effects it would give me if I took eight capsules at once before bed. So I thought about it. I figured that since I had been taking three in the morning and three at night that it should be ok to take eight just before bed. After all, it was only two more than the amount I usually took in a day. I went online to check and see if there was an overdosage possibility and found that there was none. So I thought about it some more and finally took eight.
It was about 9:00pm when I took them and by 10:00pm I was going crazy. There was like no way that I could sleep. I was so full of energy that I had a hard time staying in bed. I finally did fall asleep, but it was at a late hour. The next morning, I was still full of energy and I hadn't even taking any capsules that morning. It was all from the night before. So, since I was sort of experimenting with myself I took seven more capsules. That whole day it was like I had been on like five or six cups of coffee's worth of caffiene. My shyness was GONE! It was completely gone! I was talking SOOOO fast that a few time people were like "what?" I had to repeat myself for them. It was hard for me to stand still. I was running aroud doing all sorts of things and I kept talking and talking and talking. My mind was racing and I didn't even have time to think of what to say. It was like my mouth was speaking exactly what I was thinking.
That night I had a really hard time trying to sleep. I had even taken some sleeping pills (thank God I did!). The next morning I was still all full of energy with my mind racing and racing and with me talking and talking. I had somehow gotten hold of a new bottle of St. John's Wort the day before and so since I liked the way I was headed I took seven again. The energy was still there and I was CRAZED! Heh heh, it was a pretty fun time!
I wasn't out of control of myself, however. I was very much in control. I was thinking clearly and even making note if anyone noticed my behavior. Everyone was normal.
Since I have never experienced a manic episode before, I am wondering whether or not that was one. Did the St. John's Wort trigger it or did the St. John's Wort just drive me up the wall all on it's own?
Just to let you know, I don't really want to hear negative replies about me and taking St. John's Wort or how I took eight. I did my research and St. John's Wort is a perfecly safe herb.
Now, me being shy and all, I started taking St. John's wort to keep my anxiety levels down. It worked pretty well for me. The main thing that it does is promote a positive mood. I did my research on it and found that it also increases your risk of a sunburn and if you are bipolar, it can trigger a manic episode. If you don't know what that is, it is a period in which a person has high energy levels of mania and is an actual maniac.
Normally I am pretty low key and layed back. I don't like fast paced activity so much.
So here's what happened:
I had been taking St. John's Wort regularly for about a month. I was using the regular dosage the whole time. Then I got to the bottom of the bottle one day and stopped taking it for about a week. I still had 15 left out of a 180 capsule bottle and I picked it up after that week (I am wierd and when I start to run out of something I like to save the last bit until I need it) and thought about what kind of effects it would give me if I took eight capsules at once before bed. So I thought about it. I figured that since I had been taking three in the morning and three at night that it should be ok to take eight just before bed. After all, it was only two more than the amount I usually took in a day. I went online to check and see if there was an overdosage possibility and found that there was none. So I thought about it some more and finally took eight.
It was about 9:00pm when I took them and by 10:00pm I was going crazy. There was like no way that I could sleep. I was so full of energy that I had a hard time staying in bed. I finally did fall asleep, but it was at a late hour. The next morning, I was still full of energy and I hadn't even taking any capsules that morning. It was all from the night before. So, since I was sort of experimenting with myself I took seven more capsules. That whole day it was like I had been on like five or six cups of coffee's worth of caffiene. My shyness was GONE! It was completely gone! I was talking SOOOO fast that a few time people were like "what?" I had to repeat myself for them. It was hard for me to stand still. I was running aroud doing all sorts of things and I kept talking and talking and talking. My mind was racing and I didn't even have time to think of what to say. It was like my mouth was speaking exactly what I was thinking.
That night I had a really hard time trying to sleep. I had even taken some sleeping pills (thank God I did!). The next morning I was still all full of energy with my mind racing and racing and with me talking and talking. I had somehow gotten hold of a new bottle of St. John's Wort the day before and so since I liked the way I was headed I took seven again. The energy was still there and I was CRAZED! Heh heh, it was a pretty fun time!
I wasn't out of control of myself, however. I was very much in control. I was thinking clearly and even making note if anyone noticed my behavior. Everyone was normal.
Since I have never experienced a manic episode before, I am wondering whether or not that was one. Did the St. John's Wort trigger it or did the St. John's Wort just drive me up the wall all on it's own?
Just to let you know, I don't really want to hear negative replies about me and taking St. John's Wort or how I took eight. I did my research and St. John's Wort is a perfecly safe herb.