Question

[kcfrnf]

Hi, Was watching Larry King last night and he had Jim Carrey on... and briefly the spoke about his depression and meds.
He said now, instead of taking meds, such as Anti depressants, prozac, paxil and the like he takes a coupld of herbal all natural products that are soppose to help create new seritonin and dopamine n the brain, rather than just utilizing what your brain has better. Sounded very interesting and I was wondering if anyone had the names of any such natural products. I wasn't quick enough to grab a pen and write them down last night.

I stopped taking my Paxil a week ago, two reasons, wasn't sure it was actually doing what it should, and also wondered how I would be without it. I did have a couple of really bad days, but think I am over the worst with respect to withdraw but... only guessing. I know a lot of my depresion is what leads me to my vises that I am trying to no depend on so much, so really want to find another around it.

My addictions are not drugs or alcohol, though I know it could very easily be. I am addicted to inappropriate behaviors I would rather not get into right now.. perhaps another way of decribing would be obsessve compulsive, but I tend to lean more to calling it addctions, as I like how it makes me feel, wanting more...

anyways, sorry for the rambling, you will get to realize i can't help that part, but if anyone does know of herbal or natural depression fighters.. please let me know
thanks
kim

[kcfrnf]

Hi, was able to do some searhing and the product I think am wondering about is known as 5-HTP hyrdroxytriptphan... or somethng like that.
it supposedly works on building or creating new Soratonin.. i can't spell worth beans, so not to worry...
Anyways, has anyone tried this and do they know how it might work..
thanks
kim

[Buttons2]

Kim, you might try posting this on the depression forum. I urge you to discuss this with your doctor. It can be dangerous to go cold turkey off some of the anti-depressants.I did with Zoloft but I made that decision because the increase in dosage was making me suicidal.

And I'm not saying you are a cutter,but if you are we do have a forum here & also some people with experience. (When a person doesn't want to divulge what the issue is we can only assume.....) No offense intended & hope someone here on BT can help you.

I'd be very,very cautious about taking herbs for any type of mental problems. Herbs can be very powerful!

[tic chick]

hey kim! *bunch

here is an article i think you will find very helpful. it lists all the possible natural remedies for depression and how they did in studies.

the url is:
http://healthlibrary.epnet.com/GetContent.aspx?token=e0498803-7f62-4563-8d47-5fe33da65dd4&chunkiid=21566 (just click on this link)

st. john's wort has been used extensively in europe for mild to moderate depression. the problem is that it interacts with so many other meds. if you are on other meds, you would have to find out if st. john's wort is compatible with them.

the article above also reports the efficacy of 5-HTP.

there are several products on the market now that combine several of these ingredients. you have to do a lot of reading (the article above contains links to several other articles about the herbal rememdies) to see what strength and what is the correct name to buy the natural remedy, otherwise, you either risk wasting your money or damaging your health.

i see you are from nova scotia. is there a naturopath or homeopathic doctor you might try to find in your area? these doctors would be able to answer your questions. i would not recommend going to a doctor who tries to sell you his/her own products before he even talks to you thoroughly.

another option is finding a regular doctor who is open to you trying natural or herbal remedies and following their advice.

i find exercising a half-hour per day to be very helpful for depression. it releases endorphines, which are the "feel-good" chemicals in your brain.

i understand about ocd behavior, as i have had it most of my life. i find keeping busy, doing volunteer work and just plain housework will almost always help me stop thinking obsessively. obsessive behaviors are harder to manage unless you avoid the situation or things that tend to bring on the behavior.

i tend to believe in prescription drugs more, because they have helped me immensely. i suffered from panic attacks on an almost daily basis from age 19 to age 31. then i was put on klonopin and it completely controls them with a minimal dosage. i am currently taking paxil for the winter blues and i'll be weaning off of that in early march.

good luck in finding something to help you and please talk to someone who knows about natural rememdies before you try them. *smallrose.

merry christmas, kim,
jeannie

[zep4141]

Addictive behavior's are learned activities that become compulsive as a result of avoiding personnal issues/feelings that we don't what to address/deal with in our lives. If you don't believe this definition, then commit yourself to stopping the behavior for a short time period in order for you to see and feel the resulting emotion. It can be very helpful if you are journaling (daily) during this time.