5-HTP

[Amanda_George]

I'm not a medical bod so please have a chat to yours before you try it, but I'm loving the 5-HTP and can't recommend it highly enough!  If you want to get off your ADs for whatever reason, but still feel like you need something to keep you stable, have a word with a doc about taking 5-HTP.  My prescribing CPN suggested it a few months back and instead of waiting weeks for it to kick in, like you have to with ADs, the 5-HTP started working within 15 minutes and did more to improve my mental health within a couple of hours than the Citalopram did the whole time I was on it (17 years).

The ones I'm taking let you totally control the dose depending on your mood too... I can take up to 3 a day but I've only needed a single one first thing every morning and it's kept me going all day.  Yes, I do still have down moments but they are in no way as severe and intense as they were on the Citalopram and I just use coconut milk to ease those feelings too.

I initially took it to get me through the SAD months and I'm gonna try weaning off them when SAD season finishes but I'm gonna keep a supply of 5-HTP constantly available even after that 'cos I haven't been actively suicidal since taking it, which is even better!

Have a word with your MH bods about it and see if it's OK for you to take too?  They might say no if you still want to take your AD but I swear by that as much as I swear by ginger for nausea now!

What's the worst that can happen?  Your medical bod saying no?  But you've got nothing to lose and everything to gain by at least asking!

[Pip]

I wasn't on Citalopram as long as you - about 3 years - and came of it by my own choice although I did tell my GP who told me to wean myself off it.  That lasted three or four days then I chucked the rest and didn't have any problems. Now I'm on Sertraline 150 mg and I'm at that stage of wanting to just stop taking them although Rick doesn't want me to.  I need to speak to one of the GPs about Gabapentin and iron tablets (one of the GPs requested this) so it will be a good opportunity to talk about Sertraline and other meds.

[Amanda_George]

I came off the Citalopram when they changed the recipe and put an allergen in it but I'm wondering why nobody suggested the 5-HTP 15 years ago... it's been amazing for me and I love natural things instead of prescription things so it's 5-HTP (for the stability), coconut milk (for quick boosts) and ginger (for nausea) the whole way for me from now on!

I'm guessing you won't be able to take the 5-HTP at the same time as the Sertraline, but I reckon it's definitely worth having a word with your doc about if you wanna come off the prescription!  If your doc doesn't want to prescribe you Iron or whatever, the place I get my 5-HTP from also does Iron that I take every morning too, along with Calcium and a vitamin B complex.  I swear by them!  I can send you the URL if you want me to?  Either here or by PM?  If you use my name and email address you can get 10% off your order too!