Completely eliminated my severe anxiety symptoms with three supplements!

[Hip]

@Jebie Denko
What do you mean by nervousness/butterflies? These supplements seem to work for generalized anxiety disorder, whose symptoms I describe in this post. Butterflies sounds like a normal level of worry.

See "The difference between normal worry and GAD" on this page.

 

[Jebie Denko]

Nah i have generalized anxiety have been diagnosed for it, have had it since i was younger, but it only got worse the older i got it seems, have had it severe for the last 4+ years. I've had most symptoms of generalized anxiety, but my worst one is the stomach butterflies/anxiousness. It was so bad at one point that i struggled to even get out of the house, it has impacted me massively it made it nearly impossible for me to do anything, the only thing that has helped me a little is vigorous exercise, it's like i just have this massive chunk of it sitting in my gut, and it doesn't improve unless i make it go away.

 

[Roxs]

Going to purchase some choline bitartrate for my social anxiety today.

 

[Hip]

Nah i have generalized anxiety have been diagnosed for it,

Fair enough. People often use the expression "I had butterflies in my stomach" when referring to things like going for a job interview; that's why I thought you may have just normal healthy worries. But I appreciate that panic disorder (PD) and sometimes GAD can manifest the butterflies stomach symptom.

Do you have acute panic attacks, which is characteristic of PD, or is your anxiety fairly constant, which is characteristic of GAD? Physical manifestations like butterflies, heart palpitations, dizziness, chills or hot flushes are common in panic disorder (PD).

I have not had any butterflies stomach manifestations myself, so I would not know if these supplements can help. And I am not sure if they would help in the case of PD (but as far as I know, nobody with PD has yet tried them).

Are these stomach symptoms you have the core of your difficulties? For me it was the mental symptoms of GAD, the sheer intensity of the mental anxiety, that I found crippling.

 

[Jebie Denko]

Nah no panic attacks not major anyway, Yeah it's constant it's there all the time and i have no idea why i'm not really one to get anxious or nervous about anything really. Yeah it's by far my worst symptom it impacts everything from socializing with strangers and just feeling uncomfortable in general. I've had most symptoms of gad, from physical to mental. It's definitely not your everyday case of butterflies, Really nasty case of it feels like my stomach is literally full of butterflies/anxious as if I've just eaten a plate full of butterflies.

 

[Roxs]

@Hip

Just want to say thank you for providing the information here, the NAG has really helped me! I got it on sunday, and threw out this week I have been much more relaxed in situations that I would usually be very anxious and irritable. Had a interview today, and although I didn't get the job (under-qualified) I was very loose and talkative, even made a joke with the interviewer; when usually I would be super self conscious and anxious, with my only goal to get out as soon as possible.

One question, since I had such good results with NAG, would combining it with flax seed oil and turmeric give even better results?

- What brand do you recommend (something I can get off of amazon or in stores)?

Thanks again.

 

[Hip]

@Roxs. No particular brand recommendations. As I mentioned, you will get better results with multiple supplements.

 

[Tortoise]

Unfortunately NAG didn't work for me. I think my anxiety/palpitations/light & sound sensitivity etc are probably due to depleted adrenals and part of the ME/CFS rather than a separate anxiety issue.

 

[Hip]

Unfortunately NAG didn't work for me. I think my anxiety/palpitations/light & sound sensitivity etc are probably due to depleted adrenals and part of the ME/CFS rather than a separate anxiety issue.

Thanks for the feedback anyway, even though NAG did not work for you.

 

[Sherlock]

I ran across this:
Choline in anxiety and depression: the Hordaland Health Study
from AJCN 2009 FFT

Objective: We examined the cross-sectional association between plasma choline concentrations and scores of anxiety and depression symptoms in a general population sample.

...

Conclusion: In this large population–based study, choline concentrations were negatively associated with anxiety symptoms but not with depression symptoms.

 

[Leah1978]

Actually, let me post my full list of 29 anti-anxiety supplements and drugs in this thread.

Note that if for any reason one or more of the top three supplements do not work for you, then substitute them with another medication from this list. It can take a little trial and error before you find the supplements that work best for you. If your anxiety is severe, then you may want to add additional supplements anyway.

Anti-Anxiety Supplements List

The most potent anti-anxiety supplements are those towards the top of the list:

• N-acetyl-glucosamine 1000 mg twice daily (the most potent anti-anxiety treatment)
• Flaxseed oil 1 tablespoon (15 ml) of this oil daily (taking more may cause diarrhea)
• Turmeric 1000 mg twice daily (not to be confused with curcumin)
• Very low dose amisulpride 12.5 to 25 mg daily (more info on this effective drug here)
• Arginine pyroglutamate 1 heaped teaspoon (5 grams) twice daily
• Taurine 2 to 4 grams when needed (fast acting; best to use short term for a day or two)
• Citrulline malate 3 grams twice daily
• Vinpocetine 10 mg daily (take with food)
• Vitamin A 25,000 IU daily


• Saccharomyces boulardii yeast probiotic 3 capsules daily
• Jarro-Dophilus EPS probiotic 5 capsules daily
• Inulin (prebiotic) 3 heaped teaspoons daily (more info on prebiotics here)
• Inositol powder 2 heaped teaspoons (15 grams) daily
• Choline bitartrate 500 to 1000 mg once or twice daily (treats social anxiety well)

• Aloe vera juice 1 tablespoon (15 ml) twice daily
• Transdermal magnesium cream applied to skin once or twice daily (how to easily and cheaply make your own magnesium cream described here)
• Horsetail herb extract 600 mg daily (contains 10 mg of silica)
• Evening primrose oil 5 ml (4000 mg) twice daily

• Pregnenolone 25 to 50 mg daily
• Propolis 4000 mg twice daily (but don't take before bed, as it may keep you awake)
• Curcumin 1000 mg once daily
• Terminalia chebula herb 1500 mg twice daily
• Grape seed extract 500 mg once daily

• Acetyl-L-carnitine 500 mg twice daily
• L-carnitine 1000 mg twice daily
• Bacopa monnieri herb 1 to 2 grams daily
• Phosphatidylserine 400 mg once or twice daily (works best with omega 3 oil)
• Cetirizine (Zyrtec) or loratadine 10 mg daily (antihistamines have anti-anxiety effects)
• Piracetam 1000 mg has an anti-anxiety effect, especially in combination with choline bitartrate

Note: the horsetail herb extract fights kidney infections; if you have a chronic kidney infection, the inflammation can lead to anxiety symptoms.

The supplement N-acetyl-glucosamine (NAG) may not be advisable in Lyme disease, since NAG can feed the bacteria.



Anti-Anxiety Supplements and Drugs That Also Have Anti-Psychosis Effects

It is known that mild psychosis can manifest in people who have severe anxiety disorder. This is sometimes called anxiety psychosis. Along with my severe anxiety levels, I often experienced psychosis symptoms (thankfully relatively mild psychosis), especially on days when my anxiety was more severe than usual.

Psychosis is defined as a loss of contact with reality (involving confused or disorganized thoughts, lack of self-awarenes, lack of insight, unwarranted suspiciousness, paranoia, false beliefs).

Fortunately, I found that certain specific supplements had both anti-anxiety and anti-psychosis effects, and these were very useful for me. The supplements that I found reduced both my anxiety and psychosis symptom are these (listed in approximate order of efficacy):

N-acetyl-glucosamine 1000 mg (or more) twice daily — the best.
Amisulpride in very low doses 12.5 to 50 mg daily — also excellent. At much higher doses this drug is an antipsychotic, so it is not surprising it helps to reduce psychosis even at very low doses.
Flaxseed oil one level tablespoon (15 ml) daily (more may cause diarrhea).
Vitamin C powder 3 grams in a glass of water, taken three times daily — much cheaper if you buy in bulk powder.
Phosphatidylserine 400 mg once or twice daily (works best with omega 3 oil) — much cheaper if you buy in bulk powder.
Niacinamide (a form of vitamin B3) 1000 mg twice daily (though I found higher levels of niacinamide may cause some slight emotional blunting, but this side effect will probably not occur in other people).


Note: you do not have to read this whole thread if you think you may want to experiment with these supplements. You can just choose some supplements, and try them out. It generally requires several supplements taken in combination to get a strong anti-anxiety effect.

Hi there,

I was wondering how much Turmeric to take if it comes in a powder cooking form, not pill form?
How do I determine 1000mg if that is the dose you recommend?

Thank you,

Leah

 

[Leah1978]

I had hellish, unrelenting generalized anxiety disorder for several years, and, having tried hundreds of supplements (as well as SSRI drugs and TCA drugs) in my frantic efforts to treat it, I recently found 3 supplements that seem to pretty much eliminate my anxiety!

• The first and most potent anti-anxiety supplement is N-acetyl-glucosamine (NAG), taken at a dose of 1000 mg twice daily (not be confused with glucosamine sulfate, which will not work for this purpose).

• The second most potent is flaxseed oil, one level tablespoon (15 ml) daily. Note that you want flaxseed oil, not flaxseeds.

• The third is the herb turmeric, at a dose of 1000 mg twice daily (turmeric contains 3% curcumin, and many other active ingredients including: demethoxycurcumin, bisdemethoxycurcumin, tumerone, atlantone, and zingiberone). This herb can be bought cheaply as turmeric powder used for cooking.​

My anxiety was so severe that on bad days it would often border on mild psychosis. So it is quite amazing that just by taking these 3 supplements together, I have pretty much eliminated my anxiety disorder symptoms. OK, I still have chronic fatigue syndrome, but ditching the anxiety is a great improvement.


Anti-Anxiety Effects — Mechanism of Action

It is not entirely clear why these 3 supplements work so well for me. They are all anti-inflammatories, and they may work by reducing inflammation in the brain. Recent research has shown that brain inflammation can cause many mental symptoms, including anxiety symptoms, depression, ADHD, and many others. So the anti-inflammatory properties of these supplements may be the mechanism by which they eliminate anxiety.

On a similar note: on days when my sinusitis was worse, my anxiety levels would shoot up. My theory is that in some people, sinus inflammation may be a prime factor causing anxiety symptoms. Perhaps inflammatory cytokines in the sinuses spill over into the brain (the brain is situated just next to the sinuses), precipitating brain inflammation, which in turn leads to the anxiety symptoms. I observed that that N-acetyl-glucosamine dramatically reduced my sinus inflammation, and so this may be the mechanism by which N-acetyl-glucosamine eliminates anxiety symptoms.

Another consideration is that these 3 supplements are all useful for irritable bowel syndrome (which I have), and it may be that their anti-inflammatory action in the gut helps lower overall body inflammation, which can help lower brain inflammation.

By reducing the inflammation causing your anxiety symptoms, you are treating the very source of anxiety, biochemical speaking.


Further Info

The full list of 29 supplements and drugs that, by trial and error, I found had a useful anti-anxiety effect on me is given here:

http://chronicsorethroat.wordpress.com/site-map/treatments/#anti-anxiety-treatments

The most potent anti-anxiety medications I placed at the top of the list (N-acetyl-glucosamine being the strongest, at least for me). I literally tested hundreds of supplements for their anti-anxiety effects, and this list only contains the medications that worked for me. And from the feedback I received, it seems that these supplements are often very effective for others too.


Being "Wired" Related to Anxiety?

I have the impression that the "wired" feeling in ME/CFS patients is related to anxiety. Feeling wired (as in "wired but tired") may be a mild version of anxiety, or be related to anxiety. I certainly find that I never feel wired when I take these anti-anxiety supplements. So these anti-anxiety supplements may also help people eliminate the "wired" state of ME/CFS.


Update February 2015:

People often ask me the question: "Are you still taking these anti-anxiety supplements, and are they still working?" The answer is yes: they are still working well, even after three years, and in fact if I stop taking these supplements, although there are no withdrawal symptoms as such, I notice that my anxiety soon returns, within days. So this indicates the supplements are still effective.

Hi there,

I was wondering how much Turmeric to take if it comes in a powder cooking form, not pill form?
How do I determine 1000mg if that is the dose you recommend?

Thank you,

Leah

One more thing, In your opinion, what are your thoughts on breastfeeding and SSRI's V's what you take?( Tumeric Nag and flax oil?? It seems as tho your combination would be safer than the SSRI's for both baby and I. Im a nursing mother, but suffer terribly from anxiety that becomes very physical and drives me just about nuts!! Interested in your thoughts on this matter if any!!

Thanks again

 

[Hip]

Hi @Leah1978

1000 mg of turmeric equates to just under one level teaspoon of turmeric powder. I have updated the first post in this thread now to mention this teaspoon measure.

If you live near any Asian grocery stores, you may find that they sell a 1 kg bag of turmeric powder very cheaply, and that will last for a few years.

I don't know about SSRIs and breastfeeding, but it says in this article that as a precaution, you might want to avoid SSRis during breastfeeding, but there seems to be no hard and fast rules about this.

Certainly if N-acetyl-glucosamine, flaxseed oil and turmeric work successfully for you, as they appear to have done for many others posting on this thread, you may find that your anxiety symptoms disappear entirely, and so can dispense with SSRIs. I will keep my fingers crossed.


Note also that SSRIs are not the only pharmaceutical route to treat anxiety; there are lost of other classes of drugs that can be used instead. See this list.

 

[acer2000]

Hip do you find the versions of Curcumin that are engineered to get into cells better are more effective? i.e. The one that was studied in Alzheimers, Longvida I think its called maybe? Or does regular old turmeric work fine.

 

[Hip]

Hip do you find the versions of Curcumin that are engineered to get into cells better are more effective? i.e. The one that was studied in Alzheimers, Longvida I think its called maybe? Or does regular old turmeric work fine.

I don't think it is the curcumin within turmeric that is having the main anti-neuroinflammation and anti-inflammatory effect. Rather my guess is that it is the ar-turmerone compound in turmeric that's doing the trick. Ar-turmerone is thought to be a microglial activation inhibitor, so may counteract brain inflammation via this mechanism.

Curcumin I find does have anti-anxiety effects, but certainly not as much as turmeric. I tried a more bioavailable form of curcumin, Meriva, but noticed no additional benefits to compared to regular curcumin.

 

[perchance dreamer]

Longvida has much more of an effect for me than Meriva and the other forms I tried. It made me extremely sleepy at first (maybe from calming brain inflammation?), but doesn't now. It's helped my short-term memory tremendously.

 

[Hip]

Longvida has much more of an effect for me than Meriva and the other forms I tried. It made me extremely sleepy at first (maybe from calming brain inflammation?), but doesn't now. It's helped my short-term memory tremendously.

That's very interesting. I think Longvida claims 65 times more bioavailability than regular curcumin, whereas Meriva claims 29 times more bioavailability — but in reality Meriva is only 6 times more bioavailable, according to this criticism of the Meriva research (the criticism also points out that Meriva is only 20% curcumin by weight, so a 500 mg Meriva capsule only has 100 mg of curcumin in it). I am not sure if there are any similar criticisms of the Longvida figures.

 

[Negcreep]

Hi there, I'm a 33 y/o male and I've suffered from GAD most of my life. In the last few years I've also developed painful gastritis, probably from all the pharmaceuticals I've taken over the years. It comes and goes but I'm now in a situation where I can't take many drugs and supplements that would have previously helped my anxiety. Regular exercise is the only treatment I have and it certainly doesn't work instantly. It takes many months to get a real reduction in anxiety.

So, I'm thinking of giving NAG a go. I was just wondering if NAG was known to cause any kind of stomach irritation? I mean ANYTHING at all....even magnesium supplements hurt me at the moment. Omega 3 fish oil capsules cause a painful ache for a few hours (so I'm probably excluded from large amounts flax seed oil too). I tried BCM-95 (Curcumin extract) recently and found that too painful as well. Turmeric in food seems OK, but I'm assuming that this is much less than the dosages you're recommending.

I really am at my wits end here so I'm really hoping I can tolerate NAG.

Hip, there isn't all that much mentioning of NAG for anxiety online other than your various posts. Are you receiving general good feedback from people that have tried it?

 

[Hip]

@Negcreep
N-acetyl-glucosamine its thought to protect the lining of the stomach and intestines, so if anything I would guess that NAG should calm your stomach. By the way, with your stomach sensitive, have you considered that you might have intestinal hyperpermeability (leaky gut)? NSAID drugs can cause this. In the thread linked to, there is a list of supplements that can treat leaky gut, plus details on how to test for it.

On this thread there has been a lot of feedback from people trying this NAG / flaxseed oil / turmeric combination to treat their generalized anxiety disorder: roughly around 50% report very good or excellent results, but equally the other 50% say that this combo did nothing at all for them. So it either seems to work very well, or not at all.

 

[Negcreep]

@Hip
Ok that certainly sounds promising. Even if I only get a partial reduction from the anxiety with NAG it would be amazing. I have ordered some of the Jarrow 700mg capsules on ebay, and I'll be reporting back here once I've tried it a few times.

I have been reading about leaky gut syndrome since coming across this thread. I have often wondered if there was a link between my gastritis/gut issues and my anxiety as they often seem to go hand in hand. This is now my second occurrence of major gastritis, and I am now firmly pointing the finger at NSAID usage. I will never take another NSAID in my life if I can help it.
I will certainly try some of the treatments you've suggested. Since my stomach is so sensitive I can only try one new supplement at a time and see if it causes me discomfort. The only other thing I'm taking right now is Bimuno new (Glacto-oligosaccharide prebiotic) and Optibac Every day Probiotic, these look like they could be useful for anxiety and for leaky gut.