Hey guys, just wondering if any of you have any experience with this herb (like in pill form, sold in vitamin shops). It's supposed to be a natural mood enhancer and I've heard "it's effective!" and "no, it doesn't work!" I'd just want it as a pick me up for when I feel a little down (I don't have severe depression) so it doesn't need to be super strong or anything. Anyone ever tried it?
It has a lot of side effects and can even make your symptoms worse. Herbal medication is a hit or miss, but some of it can be beneficial. My advice: 1) If the directions say to take two capsules/tablets/pills a day, start with one a day to give yourself ~week to find out how your body reacts. Weening myself on would have saved me from many sick mornings. 2) Look up additional directions on the internet (i.e. "should be taken with food"). Just do a lot of research in general and find the best brands (Nature Made, Planetary Herbals, etc) 3) Don't expect overnight results. It'll take a few weeks until you notice any changes, so be patient. 4) If you take prescription medications, talk to your doctor before adding anything to your regimen. Good luck!
I tried it for a period when I was pretty depressed. I guess I'm the type of person that doesn't really like to ask for help, so I read about it on the net and tried it out. For me, they never made me feel happy - but sort of made me feel less sad - if that makes sense? I guess for me it had the effect of numbing me for a period - but that was what I needed at the time. I guess my advice would be that if you're going to use it - only do it for a short period of time. E.g. set yourself the limit, that once you're finished with the bottle that you will have at least a break for a while.
I have a family member who is a RN who said it is known for causing some not great drug interactions. If you take any other medication for anything then talk to you dr first.
Ok thank you guys for your help!! I think I'll try it for a bit and see how well it works. If I end up not liking it it won't hurt to just have a bottle of it on hand anyway. By drug interactions do you mean it messes things up if I take other medicines?
It's unlikely to be very dangerous, but it's better to be safe than sorry. I'm not a chemist or a nutritionist, so I always do a little research before making any changes to my diet. ;P
There's some fairly extensive research on St. John's Wort (none of it done in this country, unsurprisingly, since Big Pharma pretty much rules the roost here.) While it's true there are a handful of drug interactions with St. John's, I'm unaware of any serious side effects that it causes, and the studies I've read indicate that it may be as effective, or more effective, than most SSRI antidepressants in improving mood. Some people have had much better success combining St. Johns with gingko biloba (also well studied and safe), and there's also some research indicating that 5-HTP (an amino acid) is positively correlated to reducing symptoms of depression. None of them are miracle drugs, but may be helpful. That said, if you are depressed enough that you feel you need medication, I would encourage you to reach out for professional help. A counselor or therapist may be able to help you. Some ups and downs are normal, particularly as a teen, but anything more than that you really should be seeing someone to help you with it.
I've noticed very little effects when trying St. John's Wort, but it doesn't hurt to try it. Do not take it if you're taking prescription anti-depressants though, and be careful about taking too much of it or mixing it with things like 5-HTP or tryptophan or anything else related to serotonin...serotonin syndrome is deadly.
Something that might matter to good folks here, it speeds up your metabolism and decreases your estrogens like estradiol. They say not to take it if you're on birth control. I just read the wikipedia write-up on it before trying it myself since it was all I could get for anti-depressants for now. I guess it's big in Germany. The thing that sucks about supplements if you live in the U.S. is you never really know how much medicine you're getting in a pill so yeah take it easy. They say 900 mg a day, I take 600. EDIT: And yeah what everyone else is saying about no other medicines.
I had GREAT success with St Johns wort! ii used to be very depressed, suicidally so. I had tried all the other anti depressants but with little or no success. i tried st jhns wort, without a word of a lie, i felt happy not just with my thoughts, but also in my spirit, it had that tingly feeling you get with something exciting happening. However, before taking it, you MUST talk to your doctor if you are taking meds as it 'can' interact and inhibit other medications. like i take cilcosporin, it is an anti rejection med, but since my transplant i cannot take the st johns wort, because it 'blocks' the ciclosporin. but it is only a very few medicines that it does that with - goth
Oooh okay thank you all for that insight! I don't take any meds right now so it should all be good (obviously no birth control haha)
