adion
Junior Member
Posts: 80
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Post by adion on Jun 24, 2008 4:01:24 GMT -5
I know some people on the board are taking Kava Kava. I personally have taken St. John's Wort and Good Days supplements for anxiety and depression.
What herbal or natural supplements have you tried (for shyness, social anxiety depression, stress etc.)?
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gaia
New Member
Posts: 9
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Post by gaia on Jun 24, 2008 9:15:05 GMT -5
Bach Flower Remedies.
I tried them and find they do work well - but unfortunately not for very long. The effect seems to wear off in minutes, so I use it less these days.
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Post by audioalone on Jun 24, 2008 14:53:39 GMT -5
Valerian is purported to work well. Plus it helps a person sleep also. I've tried Kava before, but it was awhile back. I had trouble swallowing the big capsules I had, so I didn't bother taking it after a bit. (The Valerian I had was tablets ;D). I have another one around my place, I think it's called Herbal Nerve or something like that or Herval Insomnia. One or the other, I forget which. It has Valerian in it. But it doesn't really help me sleep, sad to say. Oh well.
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Post by Astroruss on Jun 24, 2008 23:33:52 GMT -5
I've found BComplex vitamins seem to perk me up through the day.  |
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Post by shynesssucks on Jul 19, 2008 20:28:57 GMT -5
hi, so ive started taking st. johns wort.
what's the deal with the side effect of photosensitivity? does it make you tan faster?
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Post by strawberrysweetie on Jul 19, 2008 22:51:17 GMT -5
I was very close to buying some type of herbal supplements last year, but one of the friends I had at the time talked me out of it. Saying that she believed in prescribed medication since it's tailored...and that it's hard to take the right amount or something...and that there could be side effects or whatever and blah, blah, blah. So now I'm just afraid to try any.  |
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Post by shynesssucks on Jul 19, 2008 23:40:30 GMT -5
ive only taken st. john's wort for a couple of days now and i think it's already helping me in some ways.
it's suppose to be well tolerated with some side effects that are rare or minor. the one i was wondering about is photosensitivity bc i live in the caribbean for most of the year...and it is ALWAYS sunny there....
also i maybe gettig a little skin irritation on my forehead...but that could be the new soap i used....
overall, i'm finding my shyness has a worse effect on me than what any side effects i may encounter..it's all good so far
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Post by Sweet Pea on Jul 20, 2008 0:23:02 GMT -5
ive only taken st. john's wort for a couple of days now and i think it's already helping me in some ways. it's suppose to be well tolerated with some side effects that are rare or minor. the one i was wondering about is photosensitivity bc i live in the caribbean for most of the year...and it is ALWAYS sunny there.... also i maybe gettig a little skin irritation on my forehead...but that could be the new soap i used.... overall, i'm finding my shyness has a worse effect on me than what any side effects i may encounter..it's all good so far i've read that st john's wort is a very effective anti-depressant that builds up the nervous system rather than depleting the body the way anti-depressant drugs do. i'm glad it's working for you. if you get a rash when you expose your skin to the sun while taking it, it may be that you're one of the few who develops photosensitivity. if that's the case you'll have to protect your skin from the sun while taking it. it might be an inconvenience, but it's pretty mild compared to the side-effects of people i've known who've taken anti-depressant drugs. |
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Post by Sweet Pea on Jul 20, 2008 0:30:09 GMT -5
I was very close to buying some type of herbal supplements last year, but one of the friends I had at the time talked me out of it. Saying that she believed in prescribed medication since it's tailored...and that it's hard to take the right amount or something...and that there could be side effects or whatever and blah, blah, blah. So now I'm just afraid to try any. i don't know where your friend got her information from, but when i was in therapy i took anti-depressants for awhile. it was no fun. i felt fatigued and out of it, and had the worst case of dry mouth...ick. it took a lot of monkeying with the dosage before i could get through a normal day while on the stuff too, so i don't know how 'tailored' it is. i got off of them as soon as i possibly could, and what a relief when i finally did. i've taken alot of herbs in my life, and i never had the serious side effects i've had with pharmaceutical drugs. i depend on kava kava to mellow me out when anxiety gets the better of me, and i've had no problems. i take valerian when i'm having trouble sleeping with good results too. personally, having experienced both, i'm much much much less afraid of coming to harm with herbal supplements than with pharmaceuticals. |
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Post by skyhint on Jul 20, 2008 1:09:53 GMT -5
A couple of herbs that are known to be calming are
Camomile
Lavender
and Lemon Balm
You can easily find them in teas and they are not so potent that they are dangerous. I drank camomile tea and I used to use a lavender moisturizing lotion. No Xtreme effect but it wasn't like there was any price to pay either monetarily or emotionally.
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Post by shynesssucks on Jul 22, 2008 14:32:00 GMT -5
i'm liking the st. johns wort pills. i can still feel anxiety/pain but i don't constantly think of negative things that make me anxious. i feel normal. ..i mean if something sad happens/if someone is rude to me i feel bad .. if something good happens then i'm happy.. but i'm not constantly thinking about negative things and i'm not constantly anxious now. i feel more social i also like the fact that it doesn't make me drowsy like some other products out there. \ |
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Post by Sweet Pea on Jul 22, 2008 19:49:34 GMT -5
i'm liking the st. johns wort pills. i can still feel anxiety/pain but i don't constantly think of negative things that make me anxious. i feel normal. ..i mean if something sad happens/if someone is rude to me i feel bad .. if something good happens then i'm happy.. but i'm not constantly thinking about negative things and i'm not constantly anxious now. i feel more social i also like the fact that it doesn't make me drowsy like some other products out there. \ cool...glad it's helping. |
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Post by strawberrysweetie on Jul 22, 2008 23:46:20 GMT -5
I was very close to buying some type of herbal supplements last year, but one of the friends I had at the time talked me out of it. Saying that she believed in prescribed medication since it's tailored...and that it's hard to take the right amount or something...and that there could be side effects or whatever and blah, blah, blah. So now I'm just afraid to try any. , but when i was in therapy i took anti-depressants for awhile. it was no fun. i felt fatigued and out of it, and had the worst case of dry mouth...ick. it took a lot of monkeying with the dosage before i could get through a normal day while on the stuff too, so i don't know how 'tailored' it is. i got off of them as soon as i possibly could, and what a relief when i finally did. i've taken alot of herbs in my life, and i never had the serious side effects i've had with pharmaceutical drugs. i depend on kava kava to mellow me out when anxiety gets the better of me, and i've had no problems. i take valerian when i'm having trouble sleeping with good results too. personally, having experienced both, i'm much much much less afraid of coming to harm with herbal supplements than with pharmaceuticals. haha...that really made me laugh a little.... She always talked as if she knew everything, but the longer I got to know her, the more I realized that probably at least half of what came out of her mouth was bullsh*t. Actually, though, she is on anti-depressants...along with other meds and she sees a psychiatrist regularly (one of the main reasons why I felt okay with telling this person everything about myself (big mistake)). Anyway, she got really moody sometimes and even on meds she seemed to get depressed sometimes (but she apparently has fibromyalgia, which appeared to affect her a lot.) Anyway, I don't know...for some reason she was really against herbal meds and at the time I trusted her.  Anyway.....is there anything good that helps with concentration/focusing?? |
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Post by Sweet Pea on Jul 23, 2008 11:16:08 GMT -5
i don't know where your friend got her information from, but when i was in therapy i took anti-depressants for awhile. it was no fun. i felt fatigued and out of it, and had the worst case of dry mouth...ick. it took a lot of monkeying with the dosage before i could get through a normal day while on the stuff too, so i don't know how 'tailored' it is. i got off of them as soon as i possibly could, and what a relief when i finally did. i've taken alot of herbs in my life, and i never had the serious side effects i've had with pharmaceutical drugs. i depend on kava kava to mellow me out when anxiety gets the better of me, and i've had no problems. i take valerian when i'm having trouble sleeping with good results too. personally, having experienced both, i'm much much much less afraid of coming to harm with herbal supplements than with pharmaceuticals. haha...that really made me laugh a little.... She always talked as if she knew everything, but the longer I got to know her, the more I realized that probably at least half of what came out of her mouth was bullsh*t. Actually, though, she is on anti-depressants...along with other meds and she sees a psychiatrist regularly (one of the main reasons why I felt okay with telling this person everything about myself (big mistake)). Anyway, she got really moody sometimes and even on meds she seemed to get depressed sometimes (but she apparently has fibromyalgia, which appeared to affect her a lot.) Anyway, I don't know...for some reason she was really against herbal meds and at the time I trusted her. Anyway.....is there anything good that helps with concentration/focusing?? alot of things can help improve concentration and focus if you're deficient in them. i'd recommend a good quality multi-vitamin/mineral supplement and fish oil just for basic brain maintenance before even considering herbal supplements. but for an herbal supplement i like gingko biloba. it increases blood circulation to the brain. |
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Post by shynesssucks on Jul 23, 2008 14:17:27 GMT -5
i don't know where your friend got her information from, but when i was in therapy i took anti-depressants for awhile. it was no fun. i felt fatigued and out of it, and had the worst case of dry mouth...ick. it took a lot of monkeying with the dosage before i could get through a normal day while on the stuff too, so i don't know how 'tailored' it is. i got off of them as soon as i possibly could, and what a relief when i finally did. i've taken alot of herbs in my life, and i never had the serious side effects i've had with pharmaceutical drugs. i depend on kava kava to mellow me out when anxiety gets the better of me, and i've had no problems. i take valerian when i'm having trouble sleeping with good results too. personally, having experienced both, i'm much much much less afraid of coming to harm with herbal supplements than with pharmaceuticals. haha...that really made me laugh a little.... She always talked as if she knew everything, but the longer I got to know her, the more I realized that probably at least half of what came out of her mouth was bullsh*t. Actually, though, she is on anti-depressants...along with other meds and she sees a psychiatrist regularly (one of the main reasons why I felt okay with telling this person everything about myself (big mistake)). Anyway, she got really moody sometimes and even on meds she seemed to get depressed sometimes (but she apparently has fibromyalgia, which appeared to affect her a lot.) Anyway, I don't know...for some reason she was really against herbal meds and at the time I trusted her. Anyway.....is there anything good that helps with concentration/focusing?? i guess i understand what your friend is getting at about the herbals not being quite tailored. it's like if you're wanting vitamin C from an orange and you want exactly 5mg of it ..how many oranges do you need to eat to get that exact amount. it depends on the orange itself..how much nutrition from the soil/sunlight etc did the orange have in it to begin with to know that per orange how many mg of vitamin C you're getting.. whereas, with "drugs" the active ingredients are extracted to maximize desired effects and minimize untoward effects...you know exactly the amount of active compound there is in each tablet. correct me if my understanding is mistaken. |
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