Posted by Lao Tzu on May 20, 2008, at 13:08:39
Hi. I just wanted to tell you of my experience with alternative treatments for depression. I have been on medication for eight years, but not until 2004 did I start having auditory hallucinations, delusions, extreme social anxiety and paranoia. I was diagnosed bipolar depressive/schizophrenic. In the very beginning, I did not see a psychologist or psychiatrist, but only my GP to get anti-anxiety medication, Ativan. I became addicted to this med. So I was opposed to taking anti-depressants back then, so I started trying natural substances. First, I tried St. John's Wort, which worked wonderfully for a few months, then I was depressed again. I treated my social anxiety by taking Ativan as needed (This by the way is very difficult to do when you have extreme social anxiety) and by using Kava kava the rest of the time. At that time, Kava seemed quite good for generalized anxiety, but not really for social anxiety. Anyway, I did the best I could at the time, but I had no doubt that this depression (which I have had since college back in the early 90's) would progress into a bigger monster later on. Anyway, I finally broke down and starting taking an anti-depressant and I am still on one today. Again, worked great for a few months, then I began having depressive symptoms again like anxiety, low mood, and low energy. I was put on a low dose of Risperdal for anxiety, but this did nothing for my social anxiety. I was also put on Provigil for energy, which by the way worked wonderfully for years for that problem. I always had the suspicion that if you could balance your energy levels, then your depression would be improved. I still believe this today. Well, I did the best I could until 2004 when I began to hear voices in my head, three of them in fact. By 2005, I had lost my great job that I had worked so hard to maintain for 5 years. I had been an excellent employee with prospects for advancing and having a better life. Well, so much for that. So, after 2005 I was hearing voices all day long except while I slept, having delusions of all kinds, a lot of times high energy, but very irritable and anxious. In 2006, I saw a different psychiatrist because the one I had was not successfully treating me. This new psychiatrist knew how to handle the problem thoroughly, and I thank him to this day for successfully managing my psychosis. He put me on high dose risperdal injections, a mood stabilizer, Provigil, and an anti-depressant, which I am currently taking everyday of my life. I would say it took a good year for the psychotic symptoms to calm down to the point that I was feeling a lot better. The mood stabilizer made up where the anti-depressant failed, and for quite some time, I felt fair, but not good. So, knowing that my doctor does not believe in natural treatments, I kind of took it upon myself to experiment with supplements. I don't say this is the right way to go about it. A better way is to find a psychiatrist who DOES believe in alternative medicine who has patient experience and can help you with that. I also want to say that before I tried taking any natural supplements, I was already on my meds for a good year, and perhaps that makes sense. That is a pivotal point to make to all of you. I didn't care about natural treatments up to that point, and perhaps they would not have served me well until after the meds had stabilized my condition. Anyway, I tried anything and everything from the vitamin store. I still was having trouble with mood and a lot of trouble with energy. The Provigil just wasn't cutting it anymore, but I'll say it is a great med for a lot of people who have low energy in their depression. At this point, I have found out a lot of things about how to treat my depression with alternative natural supplements. First, I learned that individual amino acids don't help me in the long run. Natural herbs don't help me in the long run either. What does help me are some specific B vitamins (NOT a B-Complex Vitamin), vitamins C and E, Magnesium, zinc, calcium, and a little fish oil omega-3s. The B's that help the most are B1, B3, B5, B6, and B12. Folic acid is also a B vitamin and is implicated in depression, however I can not take any supplements with folic acid because even a little bit causes me to have mood swings and it complicates my depression. Strangely, this happens to some depressives who take folic acid supplements so be conscious of this possibility. However, folic acid has been shown to help a lot of depressives. It seems to be good for anxiety as well, at least that's my experience. I must tell you that being bipolar, I don't really have any manic episodes like other bipolars, mainly depression most of the time. I also have a tendency to have variations in my depression as the seasons change. In winter, I have much more anxiety than summer, and in summer I have much less energy than in winter. This may be entirely the opposite for a lot of depressives. Anyhow, in winter I depend on B12, B6, zinc, Magnesium and some calcium along with my meds to get me through the day. I must note that the right dosage and combination of supplements is essential to feel better. And perhaps this regimen might not work well for you. It's all trial and error tailored to the individual. I'm just explaining what works well for me. Remember, taking your meds everyday is important. Without them, you would be unstable and might as well toss the supplements down the toilet. So, in winter I take supplements that help lower anxiety, namely zinc, B12, B6, Magnesium, calcium, and B3. Also, the key is to err on the side of less rather than more when it comes to vitamins. With zinc, I only take the RDA which is 15mg. Some may need more than this, however. B12 I take anywhere from 500-750 mcg. Again, you may need more or less. It does give me some energy, which is a big problem with bipolars and other depressives. B6 could be anywhere from 50mg a day up to a couple hundred. Depends on the individual's needs. Magnesium, I stay low say 200-400 mg a day taken in doses of 200-250mg at any one time. Calcium, some people need more or less. I have taken anywhere from 300-900 mg a day. B3, or niacin, I have taken anywhere from 250-1,000 mg a day. I must note that 500mg of B3 is usually okay to take at any one time. Anymore than this, you might experience side effects like flushing or feeling "zoned out" as I call it. I must tell you that this regimen works for me and probably for anyone who is experiencing a lot of anxiety.
Now, because I have seasonal variations in my depression, and not all people do. A lot of people are mainly depressed in the winter, but fine in the summer. With me, I'm depressed all year long. It's just that I have more anxiety in the winter than the summer and less energy in the summer than in the winter. Now I know many of you probably don't fit in this category of depression. Now, in spring/summer I take a different regimen of supplements of course WITH my medication. I must note that I take the SAME medication at the SAME dosages ALL year round. I don't play around with the meds. This is a no no. If your current meds aren't helping you, then work with your doctor to find the right ones that do improve your depression and stabilize your mood. So, in summer I rely on B1, B5 or pantothenic acid, Vitamin C, Omega-3 fish oil, and sometimes Magnesium during the day. This regimen is more geared at maintaining one's energy levels as well as improving overall mood, which is what I need most. ENERGY. For B1, I take 150-300mg a day. For B5, about 50mg twice a day, Vitamin C could be anywhere from 500mg on up. The Fish oil helps with mood. I'd recommend starting off low, say one capsule and increasing by one capsule every week or two because you might not like the effect it has on you if you just start out taking 8 or 9 capsules all at once. Another thing, I noticed that if I only take the fish oil without B1, B5, and vitamin C I have less energy and thus don't feel as well. Now, that is a regimen for a low energy depressive. I must note that there are other supplements out there to help with energy, such as amino acids and herbs, but like I said, amino acids and herbs never really worked for me. However, I have noticed on more than one occasion that SAM-E did give me more energy. Another great supplement to help you with energy that I found works is COq10. Unfortunately for me, I had to stop taking it because it made me nauseous. This side effect doesn't happen to everybody, however. I also noticed that if you try COq10, more is not always good. I could only take 30mg a day and more than this actually started to make me feel tired, believe it or not. Now, one last matter, that is sleep problems which I have had my share in the past. Some depressives, esp. bipolars and schizophrenics have a lot of problems sleeping. Sometimes antipsychotics help with this. Other times, sleep meds are necessary. I also found that Benadryl helps me fall asleep, but I don't recommend taking this every night for an extended period of time because of daytime drowsiness and/or depressive symptoms. I have tried melatonin for sleep, and this works great for a couple months at 3mg a night. After that, it does not seem to work well at all. Now, if sleep meds are the only way you can sleep restfully, then that is the best choice, of course. They are potent and they work, no doubt. I, on the other hand, don't need sleep meds, but I'm not opposed to them. I would have taken them if I had them, believe me because the worst thing for your depression is not getting enough sleep. So, this is what I take at night before bed. I take 250-500mg of B3, 50-100mg of B6, 200-400IU of vitamin E, and 1/4 of a 3mg melatonin tablet. Whether the melatonin really works anymore for me, I don't really know, but it might help. I must note that in some people taking melatonin supplements can actually make depressive symptoms worse, so please use caution or ask a doctor about it. This regimen actually helps me to sleep, strange that may sound. It may not work at all for you, but I'm just putting it out there for anyone that has tried sleep meds and not found any relief. Also, understand that one may start to sleep better not only because of what supplements you take at bedtime, but also because of the supplements you take during the day. And also, it may take a while for your body to begin to adjust to taking supplements with your meds. Remember, don't overdose on vitamins. That won't help you at all. Sometimes taking less than the dosage on the bottle is more helpful and taking a lot more actually gives you undesired side effects. I hope this information helps some people. It may not work for everyone, but it has sure helped ease my depression somewhat.
poster:Lao Tzu
thread:830120
URL: http://www.dr-bob.org/babble/alter/20080326/msgs/830120.html