5-HTP
Health Benefits

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Unlocking Well-being: 5-HTP's Remarkable Health Benefits

The comments below reflect the personal experiences and opinions of readers and do not represent medical advice or the views of this website. The information shared has not been evaluated by the FDA and is not intended to diagnose, treat, or prevent any disease or health condition. Always consult a qualified healthcare professional for medical concerns.
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Depression
Posted by Jillery (North Carolina (nc)) on 11/24/2013 86 posts
 ★★★★★

All this information goes to show how differently we all are and all can react to different supplements. There is not just one cure all for depression. Look at the book Nutrition Power and it discusses the different types of depressions. My holistic psychiatrist suggested I read it. I weaned myself off psych meds about 8 years ago using the TrueHope site and vitamins. I have been off meds but have not been taking supplements or meditating like I should have. I went into a large depression after losing my job (situational depression)-- I found this new psychiatrist and I am taking multi vits, omega 3's, D, aminos along with additional 5HTP and GABA. It seems I am serotonin lacking as the last two supplements got me around the corner. But everyones system is vastly different. Best wishes. I get most of my vitamins on Amazon-- the better brands.

Depression
Posted by Neukoln (Edinburgh, Scotland, Uk) on 02/03/2013
 ★★★★★

I can't find the post, but someone commented that taking a lower dose of 5HTP is more effective. [It may have been on the Depression pages?] I have to agree with this. I had crippling depression, and so I had gradually increased to 300mg/day (3 x 100mg) thinking that I needed the maximum dose - because my depression was almost making me bed-ridden. But that very high dose gave me a weird anxiety, and racing heart, and I took ages to fall asleep. And I got very loose bowels too.

I am now taking 200mg. I break open one of the capsules and have 50mg under the tongue 1/2 hour before breakfast, then 100mg under the tongue 1/2 hour before dinner, and finally 50mg under the tongue 1/2 hour before bed. I feel so much better. My depression has completely gone. I feel happy. I am thinking of reducing the 100mg dinner-time dose to 50mg. But maybe when the Winter has passed.

Depression
Posted by Adam (Southern, California) on 09/26/2012
 ★★★★★

I am a 26 year old male who has suffered from depression and sleeping problems for years. I have been on medication such as Effexor XR, Trazodone, etc. I was also diagnosed with ADD, given a prescription of Adderall XR. Ever since I was a teen I suffered from the issue of getting too much sleep. I always felt tired. Sleeping 10 hours would result in me feeling exhausted upon waking. No amount of sleep could remedy the issue (no matter how little or how much). I enjoyed Adderall because it made me feel "Awake" and able to concentrate on my studies; However, the side-effects were too great. I recently started supplementing 100mg of 5-HTP before bed. I have been waking up in the morning naturally after 6-8 hours of sleep. The beneficial effects of 5-HTP have been a live saver for me. I feel happier, my quality of sleep has improved beyond measure, and I feel rested and refreshed in the morning. I highly recommend this to people suffering from the "too much sleep" problem. There are many who suffer in silence, give this supplement a shot!

Depression
Posted by Kristina (Beverly, Ma) on 04/03/2010
 ★★★★★

I'm sorry for the delay in my response - I take the 5htp once a day at about 10:30am. If I took it immediately upon waking, I'd probably take two a day... but taking it at that hour, I only need one.

I usually feel pretty good all by myself in the mornings.

Depression
Posted by Kristina (Beverly, Ma) on 03/25/2010
 ★★★★★

I used to take an Rx SSRI for seasonal depression and weight loss but after two years, my body decided it didn't want it anymore. I got anxious to the point of paranoia, I binged on sweets, and I lost the will to do much beyond sit in front of my TV/computer.

I weaned off it and discovered 5-htp. When I first began taking it, I took low doses (25 mg or 50mg) a couple times a day. It would work fine for a couple days and then I would have side effects like bone aches, sleepiness (no matter how much sleep I got), anxiety, and constant hunger. I tried taking smaller doses and found it to have no effect. Frustrated, I nearly stopped taking it.

I then found a time-release capsule of 5-htp. There is at least one company that makes it in a 100mg. It works incredibly well. I haven't felt this "normal" in a very long time. I'm awake during the day and I sleep at night, I eat normally and stop eating when I'm no longer hungry, and I'm able to handle stressful situations calmly. I honestly don't feel like I have any side effects.

I am 32 years old and female. The other things I take daily are a 'complete' vitamin, rhodiola rosea 400mg lysine 500mg, glucosamine/condroiton, fish oil, and 1000 mg of vitamin D. I've been taking all of those for years before taking 5-htp.

If you're having trouble with the 'normal' doses of 5-htp, I highly recommend trying the time release version before giving up on it entirely.

Depression
Posted by Denisse (Long Beach, CA, USA) on 05/07/2009
 ★★★★★

5-HTP for depression. This little pill did wonders for me. I had been feeling depressed for around a month due to heavy family problems. When I finally put all my symptoms together (oversleeping, hopelessness, sadness, emotionally unstable) I instantly came to this site. Cold showers did not appeal to me at all; I live in sunny CA and still get cold. I ordered the pills and thankfully they came the next day. I take one or two (depending on how I am doing) 100mg pills a day. My mood has definitely improved and I am finally returning to my normal self. They also seem to have reduced my terrible headaches. I recommend 5-HTP to all!

Depression
Posted by Jose (Leominster, Massachusetts) on 02/20/2009
 ★★★★★

I work as a psychotherapist, the 5-htp, and the St. John Wort work wonderfully in a lot of my patients (I can not prescribe it, but I work with an open mind psychiatrist who takes care of it.) However, the low mood normally comes with other issues, like not including healthy foods in their diets or the lack of very important nutrients in the diet (e.g., vegetables, fruits, etc, that grow up in poor soils,) bad sleeping habits, intoxication with chemicals, lack of exercise, NOT enough SUN, the lack of vitamine D, causing what is know as "Seasonal Depression." It is very common in people living in areas with harsh winter, not caused by the cold weather, but the lack of sun (Who would want to a sunbath in winter??? ;) You use 5-HTP because you can not sleep? Are you sure is not because the lack of Vitamin B12? (common if you are vegetarian and you do not take care of it.) and check for the other >70 causes...

It's better if we avoid to treat "the symptom," and look for a more comprehensive approach.

Just trying to fix the "depression issue" the same way as the allopatic medicine does, but substituting the drug with something "natural" to get rid of the symptoms on the long run will not be very helpful. If you are taking the 5-htp, first know the CAUSE OR CAUSES of your problem. (e.g., does it occur every time you eat some type of food? Are you taking "zero calories food." that normally have Sucralosa -Splenda, a very potent poison? Are you just Dehydrated? Caffeinated beverages like green tee and coffe could cause it, because they are potent diuretics if you are not taking enough water, etc.

Another issue is that your body needs to adjust to the doses. All the SSRI (Selective Serotonin Rehuptake Inhibitor,) the drugs used to treat depression by allopatic medicine, every time it starts with a very low dosis: E.g., Prozac (Fluoxetine) with 10 mg per day. After one week, if necessary, they increased to 20 mg per day, until a maximun dosis of 80 mg per day.

The same with the 5-htp, You can start with a lower doses of 50 mg per day and increase it until a maximun of 300 mg. But, please, when treating the depression you need to take in account all other factors that could be affecting your mood. We were brain-washed by the Big Pharma that for every symptoms we need to pop-in a pill to fix-it.

In the internet you can find the 5-htp about $10 a bottle (a Zoloft prescription for a month, will cost you more than $700 !!!!) so if you really need to take it, do it after you help yourself taking in account all other factors that could be affecting your mood/headaches.

God Bless You

As the last comment, we can find more than 50 causes for depression: Social issues, espiritual issues -e.g.: guilty feelings; genetic, nutricional deficiences, life style, lack of sun, bad breathing habits or lack of pure air, exercise, dehidratation, intoxication buy heavy metals or chemicals and so on (by the way, is very UNCOMMON that a mental health provider will check all possible causes.)

Depression
Posted by kellie (vancouver bc, canada) on 01/13/2008
 ★★★★★

Hi, I found 5 htp a couple years ago on the internet, looking for some thing to help my saddness and depression, so i heard about 5 htp , well i was desprite and i took 2 + 100 every day, it helped me so so much, I go off it some times because the side effects for me are, it makes me get my period more ofton , mind you i think that is when i was taking 300 mg. And also it has caused me to get itchy palms of my hand, and the back of my head . but now that iv gone down on them and taken a break for a few months,

im good . but i have to go on them because it helps me so much for depression. I have just discovered the 5 htp with 200 mg L- Ter , wow as far as I'm concerned its a bloody miracle. it changes my whole mood. Makes me very happy. But for sure one other side effect- I'not as hungry when im on it and i dream more vividly. But as far as iI' concerned it's a wonder drug. Let's just hope the drug companys don't take them away .



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