Does trazodone upregulate or downregulate 5ht2a/c receptors

Whether it is a stimulant or one that is more of a painkiller that you have tried and it has completely removed your feelings of anger/rage/hatred...

need some strong shit that can repair the brain from alcohol & drug damage

Hello. I am an experienced anxiety patient and I use different medications and they are all based on the monoamine hypothesis. For as long as I can remember, whenever I take magnesium glycinate, my anxiety increases slightly. This is very important because another pathway of anxiety is the glutamate-gaba cycle. Glycine is a cofactor of this pathway. So it is causing a problem somewhere in me. In fact, it should first increase glutamate and then provide relaxation and sleep by converting to gaba, but this is not the case. I see people suffering from this condition. What is the source of this problem and where should we touch and fix it?

I've been looking for a great all in one complex for a long time and came across this today. I'm currently on Venlafaxine so I'm not sure how all this would react to my current medication. I'm working from home so I have somewhat a sedentary lifestyle. Any thoughts? Ty.

https://imgur.com/a/oqaleUa

Hello!

I wanted to ask for your experiences with nootropics and neuroplasticity. I am not asking for medical advice, but for patient experiences to compare with my own.

These last days I have been using the FAQ and the Search function on this subreddit to take some notes.

Mental conditions

• Supposedly, I (F29) suffer from dystimia since I was 9 years old, with some major depressions in certain points of life. Failure in school, socialising, work, etc. Currently a NEET with disability recognised since 2014.
  • Since I was 9, had taken lots of SSRI's, anxiolytics and neuroleptics that could have messed up my brain for life.
  • It seems I was misdiagnosed with BPD 11 years ago (in my country psychiatrists don't use CPTSD as a diagnosis, and TEPT is only used for serious violence-related trauma).
  • Also, I was diagnosed Aspie (ASD-1) in April 2024. The private psychiatrist I visited in August said I could have ADHD too. Still, I think it's not Asperger's, BPD nor ADHD, but just CPTSD.
• In October, I was assigned a psychiatrist in the public system, and he told me I don't seem a pwBPD at all. For our next appointment (Feburary 2025) he has the intention to change the BPD diagnosis for the Aspie one and fix my medical record.
  • This psychiatrist seems to be very understanding, has a high professional profile, and he is okay with me testing supplements because he knows I am cautious, I do a lot of research, and I keep him informed.
  • The problem is that I can only have appointments with this psychiatrist every 5-6 months. I want to test some supplements (vitamins and nootropics) and then tell him about my findings on February.
• For now, I am saving money for a AUDHD brain screening to test if I really have them, and testing combinations of meds and supplements to fix my issues.

Issues to fix

• My biggest concern right now is the total lack of pleasure and volition.

  • The only way I can move is with "second-hand dopamine", this is, social pressure or copying emotions and actions from others through empathy.
    • Currently a NEET. I can contribute to other projects (second-hand dopamine) but not to my own career (avolition). I don't even do it for people, enjoyment, justice, etc. It just goes automatic.
  • I rather have my own volition, pleasure, and emotions because, even if prosocial, I am not a very social person, nor I enjoy socialising (this is not an anhedonia issue for me, but my identity).
    • Still, the trap of empathy can causes me have an "automated social mask" that makes me agreeable to people, and they may have interest in being with me even if I can't enjoy relationships, nor keep them.
  • The irony about this is people being the key for me to move, but also the key cause for me to be depressed.
    • People give me movement, but in exchange I lose myself: this makes people become some kind of "empathy entrapment". The way to fix this is getting *my* movement back.

• Other facts (not that important)

  • Hypersensitivity, especially to lights in the night, loud noises, looking at people's eyes (to avoid empathy spiralling and hyper-focus).
    • Can't watch media on my own (e.g. YouTube, series, reading comics, manga, etc) because I am too hypersensitive to it. I am only focused on real-life stuff, not fiction, because it seems practical to me, they make sense, and mostly in text-format.
  • Second-hand emotions. I don't feel emotions as "mine", but as a copy from others, or what "makes sense" (logical human nature).
  • Anhedonia, phyisical, recreational, anticipatory, consummatory, emotional unless empathy makes me a prosocial being.
    • Still, some areas are still good to go: love to learn, to read about a lot of different topics, if I am able to draw I enjoy focusing a lot on aesthetics, etc.
  • I don't feel anxiety, nor stress. If something bad happens, I don't react with those, but with a big sigh and withdrawal.

Current treatment

• Elontril 150mg (Bupropion/Wellbutrin sold in Europe by GSK pharma company).

  • I raised the dose to 300 mg and I couldn't keep it, the effects made me feel severely depressed. 150 mg seems the best dose. Still, I didn't have this big happiness effect people talk about for more than 2 days.

• Rubifen 5 mg (1/2 Rubifen 10 mg).

  • I can't take 10 mg without getting too hyper-focused and anxious, so in order to get the dopamine but not the hyper-focus, I take 5 mg instead. But it's too much too.
  • My problem is not distractions (in fact, the opposite) but lack of dopamine, so finding balance with Rubifen dosage is very tricky.

• L-Glutamine + Plantago ovata/Psyllium.

  • It helps with digestive issues like IBS-C. L-Glutamine helped a lot with motility.

• Almost-vegetarian gluten-free diet

  • Still taking eggs and milk, sometimes I have to eat meat if I am outside (not many veggie options where I live).
  • Gluten-free diet is helping me not have so much brain fog, nor digestive issues.
  • Some other data: My body weight is average, or even "good-looking", but I have a weird big fat percentage (near obese). My phase angle is the one for a woman in their 50s (it seems only people with special born conditions or mitochondrial issues have low phase angle).

Future Treatment

• Meds

  • Continuing with Bupropion and Rubifen.
  • Maybe asking my psychiatrist to try out Modafinil (milder than Rubifen?) or even IMAO's in the future (very last chance?).

• Neuroplasticity

  • Becoming more physically active.

    • Going every morning for a walk and when I get enough dopamine, also go back to the gym.

  • Find a way to mix different brain activities in the day.

    • It's very difficult for me to change between activities in the same day.
    • I can only "boot" in one kind of activity: e.g. prosocial, exercise, reading/learning, personal project, etc.
    • But this is counterproductive: If I focus on a personal project, I don't exercise nor get enough sunlight. If I go out, I won't be able to sit on the PC and work on my project.
    • Naps help with "rebooting".

  • Force myself somehow to sleep more?

    • The problem is being a short sleeper: I sleep 4 h per day, with low deep sleep time, I don't feel tired at all (not insomniac), but dopamine still is null.

• Supplements

  • Vitamins. For now, I am taking a multi-complex, but I am interested in:

    • Vitamin B12, for neuroplasticity and fixing avolition.
    • Vitamin D3 for neuroplasticity and fixing anhedonia.

  • Omega-3. (Maybe EPA 1500 mg + DHA 500 mg would be best?)

    • DHA (500-1000 mg) for cognitive improvement.
    • EPA (1000-2000 mg) for cognitive improvement and depression.

• Nootropics

  • N-Acetilcisteine (NAC), already bought, my plan was starting with 300 mg, then 600 mg, until max 1200 mg.

  • L-Theanine, it could help with hypersensitivity, even if I don't feel stress or anxiety.

  • L-Tyrosine, already bought. It would be an alternative to Rubifen. My plan was starting with 1 g after having tested if NAC is good, check different combinations and see how it goes. If I get too nervous, I would lower L-Tyrosine.

  • Creatine, I will get some soon. It could help with energy, avolition, persistent depression.

  • Others

    • Sarcosine, this would be an alternative to NAC+Tyrosine/Rubifen. It supposedly helps with avolition too.
    • S-Adenosilmetionina (SAM-e), this could be an alternative to Bupropion + Rubifen.

Treatments I learnt about on Reddit

CAUTION: I am still learning about these.

• Possible alternatives
  • Magnesium treonate (memory, anti-brain fog, mild antidepressant). This suplement is also very popular on r/IBS as it helps with constipation. IBS is a common condition between Autistic folks.
  • Rhodiola rosea (cognitive function, anti-stress, anti-fatigue).
  • Lion's Mane (brain repair, anti-brain fog, mild antidepressant). Could help with Autism and CPTSD.
  • Ashwaganda (anti-fatigue, anti-stress, sleep fix). Could be a non-sedative alternative for benzodiazepines?
  • Cordyceps (anti-fatigue).

Guys, if you have similar symptoms and have already tested any of these...

1. Could you please tell me about your experience?

2. Do you see big beginner's mistakes in this treatment I am designing?

3. Would you first start testing with vitamins and Omega3 and then trying out NAC, L-Tyrosine, L-Theanine, etc?

4. Do you have recommendations or comments about this?

Thank you very much. Have a nice day!

Are there any supplements or nootropics that can eliminate or reduce the damage caused by anticholinergic meds?

I have struggled with lack of motivation, low energy, and mental focus, a long time and during that time I started searching for nootropics that could help me, let me tell ya Ive tried racetams, I’ve tried direct dopamine boosters, reuptake inhibitors, you name it, I’ve tried a lot of natural mood boosters saffron, Mucuna, ashwaghanda, alpha gpc, etc.

How this combination came to be was a bit of an accident, I had been taking ephedrine for a pretty chesty cough I had after catching a cold and kept taking it for a while, during that time I was taking ephedrine I had went to a supplement store and found some paraxanthine pills and decided why not, I bought them and immediately tried them, at first nothing was out of the ordinary and I expected very little because I’ve always been hyper conscious that a lot of the initial benefits you notice from supplements were placebo effects, well I tracked onset of action and I noticed very awake with zero jitters that I normally get, the other thing I noticed was that it felt similar to drinking coffee after taking a long caffeine break, (note I have very high caffeine tolerance and have been drinking coffee daily since I was very young oftentimes multiple cups a day with zero jitters and usually the caffeine calms me down I’ve tried long breaks and caffeine still relaxes me) it felt great but I was still very skeptical. Over the next few days I noticed It had incredible synergy with ephedrine, like GREAT synergy, and I was no stranger to the energy boost you get from coffee and ephedrine, but this was different this was like my brain had reached flow state, my depression disappeared and throughout the entire couple of weeks I was on the stack I accomplished more than I have in the entire year all thanks to that stack, the effects of paraxanthine are almost identical to afinils in my experience but much shorter and because the compound doesn’t cause me tolerance or increase heart rate for me like regular caffeine can for some people I feel like it’s the perfect background piece in more complex nootropics stacks, I’m going to test it in combination with phenylpiracetam and see if it outperforms the ephedrine in synergy of effects. TLDR: Ephedrine + Paraxanthine is my favorite nootropic combination and feels more synergistic than ephedrine and caffeine and completely different

5-Day long attack dose of 3,600 - 4,200 mg (3 to 4 pills daily) then 1,200 - 2,400 mg daily for a couple of days. Pills are German medical-grade ordered by a doctor and brought from the pharmacy, were kept refrigerated, and I had them with eggs for choline. It did nothing.

Greetings and good evening everyone. Today I picked up a bottle of NAC from Walgreens and am gonna try it out. I am curious as to peoples opinions on NAC and how you guys perceive its benefits?

Current stack: B complex vitamin Magnesium (have oxide but will buy a better version when I run out) Ashwaganda for high stress weeks Fish oil Collagen supplement

Any recommendations for dealing with the effects of taking adhd medications and helping with brain fog I get from long study sessions?

Perhaps it's on the 'boring' side as supplementation goes but Zyrtec or generic allergy meds are phenomenal if you have inflammation issues associated with seasonal/chronic allergies. I also noticed my eye bags (sinus buildup) went away after dosing for a few weeks.

If yes, should i just take a bigger dose? How much?

Similar experiences on Piracetam?

I've recently decided to implement 2g of piracetam to my daily morning routine a week ago. In this week, I've noticeably percieved a great improvement in my own speech pattern, way of thinking and especially in my own social communication, that I've never felt before.

Words that I'm looking for in conversations come a lot more quickly, diverse and precise, which in turn aids in a smoother flow of speech and thus better communication with others. I feel a lot more witty and socially open and accepted. Furthermore, feelings of social anxiety diminished greatly and I'm a lot more open/relaxed. My own way of thinking also improved to a more positive outlook on troubling topics and responsibilities and I can think ahead of myself, which I struggled to do before and and made planning at work easier.

I haven't felt a feeling of stimulation or motivation at all from it, yet due to the improvements, in my opinion, brain function, the anxiety to partake in social interactions reduced greatly and beginning to do work responsibilities began to become a bit easier to do.

I'm not sure, except a certain couple ofcourse, if these experiences got potentiated or modulated by other supplements that I'm also taking at the same time as well. Alongside, I'm taking:

Both mornings and evenings:

• NAC: 800mg
• Fishoil (1200mg DHA/1500mg EPA): 2g
• Natural Elements premium Multivitamin

Morning:

• L-Tyrosine: 2600mg
• Citicoline: 300mg
• Huperzine A: 200mcg

Evening:

• Ashwagandha: 700mg
• Magnesium Bisglycinate: 400mg (in elemental magnesium)
• Creatine: 6g

It feels, all in all, that I've improved a lot as a person due to it, yet I find myself to struggle to exactly pinpoint what and where exactly my daily intake of piracetam improved my being, as I've read that it is able to influence multiple regions and interacts differently from person to person in terms of neurochemistry.

Has this happened to someone as well? May they be open to share a similar experience? Thanks.

Specifically caffeine and adderall. I found a great sense of relaxation and clarity with the L-theanine, but seeing as I have ADHD I need adderall and also need to consume caffeine for productivity. I was looking at different threads and I can’t seem to get a clear answer of whether or not it affects stimulants. Mainly for mental/cognition (studying/test taking).

I'm looking for some niche/obscure nootropics I can use, and want to hear your experiences.

Oxidative stress happens when excessive dopamine binds to its receptor.

I;m wondering do DRIs cause oxidative stress?

Hi all, I'm looking for some insight or advice...

I've been taking one St Johns Wort tablet a day at 7am with breakfast, from Boots in the UK, 250mg (equivalent to 875-1500 mg) for the past 29 days.

I had been feeling better and not experiencing what I would call side effects relating to the tablets (I would have thought side effects caused by the tablets would come on within an hour or so of ingestion?)

This week however in the afternoons I started to feel agitated, like a chemically stimulation feeling in the brain in the evenings for a few hours. Some days that was the major thing in the day that I felt was wrong so was keen to do something about it, as other than that I would have been very happy with progress.

I wasn't sure whether to keep the same dose, increase or decrease but yesterday morning I decided to try an approximate 1/4-1/5 reduction in dose by sanding the side of a tablet slightly before swallowing it.

About 1.5 hours after I took it I started to feel a bit strange in the head, not agitated like previously but like a pure depressed feeling in the brain, and tired. I convinced myself that the small reduction in dose caused it and I shouldn't have done it. The feeling lasted all day.

Today I woke ok and decided to take the full tablet as before, the same feeling happened again within the 1.5 hr window of ingestion.

So I'm not sure what to do, it did seem to be working apart from the mild afternoon agitation but now I seem to have upset the process somehow.

I have three options it's seems, go for a higher dose, stay the same and hope it irons out or decrease slowly by more tablet sanding.

I'm not sure what the studies doses refer to and other people's posts refer to when they state the mg amount, whether it's the amount on the front of the box or the equivalent amount in the small print....

About ten years ago I took the higher dose tablets around 425mg for around 6 months without issue.

Am I not taking enough and that's caused the afternoon agitation?

Am I taking too much ?

Or is it still just settling in slowly a f what I've experienced at just settling in effects because of the low dose... ?

i had taken 10mg b1 hcl + benfo 250mg combo and my hunger roofed the top. I’m an fairly active asian male (28yo 60kg 168cm) probably 12-15% fats high in muscle and low bone density. i work out everyday but have been feeling dip in mood and energy levels throughout the day. ever since i started magnesium threonate + b complex i’ve got back on track. today i introduced Mega benfo from life extension and it was like limitless pill, my vision brightened, my apathy roofed and i felt like i could conquer the world. it was constant throughout the day until about evening time i felt the energy dip and made me real sleepy. i went to bed to get some rest but ended up not being able to hence im writing this. also bear in mind i use stimulants like coffee and vape but those are short acting and the crash is real hard. mostly habit forming and you keep having to hit your next fix. this benfo is nothing like those, they don’t give me super focus for a brief time they gave me laser sharp calmness for a whole day, with exception of maybe 1-2hrs total of “down” time. most noticeable effect is the clarity of mind, thinking positively and my depression seems to be at bay. anyone wanting to try this pls make sure you have sufficient magnesium levels before you begin this protocol. also ensure the other co factors like b complex are in place. also have your potassium high, that can be done thru eating foods high in potassium or electrolytes. b1 depletes or use us potassium real good I heard, but it will regulate back up once your body is accustomed.

in conclusion, i would say it’s like the feeling you get after running a long distance just without abnormal heart rate and fatigue.

I take: Mag threonate 144mg elemental at 830AM with coffee and some light snack

Mega benfo: 10mg thiamine HCL + Benfo 250mg at 10 AM

B complex with low dosages ( below 10mg for each B vitamin ) after Lunch

Now i’m planning to goto bed after taking magnesium glycinate. will update soon. so far it’s been only my first day of this. not planning to take benfo tomorrow and will see how long the effects last.

We all know the fundamental rule in the Nootropics world: no substance has been proven to enhance IQ. Mathematics, a subject often associated with IQ, is a prime example.

Given my demanding engineering job, I’m eager to improve my cognitive abilities. My experience with NDRIs as ADHD medications has led me to realize that focus is just one aspect of what I truly seek.

Here are my speculations:

1. Working memory is vital to problem solving skills. While we cannot increase its capacity, stimulants can enhance its utilization and scheduling.

2. The ability to “visualize” is crucial, but paradoxically, I’ve discovered that certain substances works differently in enhancing this ability. Lion’s Mane and Alpha GPC appear to work a little bit. Interestingly, while increasing VTA dopamine levels with Ritalin makes me feel overly grounded and hinders my ability to immerse myself in a “problem-solving space,” raising norepinephrine levels make this ability return.

3. Logical thinking. While having a picture idea in mind is helpful, it’s not enough to solve a problem. We need to follow a rigorous chain of thoughts. Oxiracetams appear to be the solution for this.

That’s what I want to convey: all the supplements and drugs I mentioned are never intended to enhance intelligence. However, they work in the background to facilitate brain function and make tasks easier.

Do you have any nootropics advice for solving math problems or similar brain-demanding tasks?

Science.bio for some reason only sells 500mcg sprays of BPC-157 for $150. I’d much prefer something quite a bit smaller for quite a bit cheaper

So I took 60-90mg of saffron extract for a week or so

And I’m genuinely shocked at how sociable I was today.

The amount of meaningful and enjoyable conversations I had in the span of 6 hours is beyond me.

I had been on 30mg Saffron extract for 3 months (it takes at least a week to kick in it seems)It was working quite well and consistently throughout the entire 3 months (took a six day break at the end of October. Minimal withdrawals). I thought it was too good to be true as I’ve always been subject to withdrawal & dependency hoopla.

I want to make it clear that saffron wasn’t the only variable here. A lot of things fell in line conveniently enough on this day, but this supplement deserves some credit.

The following is a journal entry from last week. I’m perfectly aware of how crazed and manic it seems initially.This is intentional because I thought it was hilarious lol. I’ve just copy and pasted this from my notes app on my phone. Anywho, I’ve reduced to a significantly lower dose (back to 30mg) and I still feel great.

I am not in a manic state.

23/11/2024

Ok so I’m gonna try to be concise but what the fuck? Before we begin, worth noting I was on 600mg of Ashwagandha KSM-66 but I definitely did not feel like this at all with just the Ash/

To kick things off, I ran into an old school friend in the gym who I hadn’t seen in a year. This kid was the brightest in our class and also the quietest. We had a real genuine heart to heart conversation as we worked out together.

IN THE GYM 

I could tell nobody’s been there to hear him out in a while. This person in particular isn’t particularly sociable but at the end he insisted I stayed in touch and gave me his number.

NEXT I Tried to get some 100% dark chocolate after my workout (serious mood booster; highly recommend) but it was out of stock. The shop manager followed me as I made my disappointed exit thinking I stole something, and I just joked along with it and showed him my bag so he could check if I indeed did steal something. 

Usually this shit really irritates me (I’m black) and I'm liable to make my agitation with employees very clear...but on this occaison I just laughed along with him about how disappointed I was that I couldn’t find my chocolate. I then recommended that he try it himself when its back in stock so he could understand my disappointment; we left off on a laugh.

My search for the cocoa continued however

I went to an actual dark chocolate shop afterwards. I was bantering with the employees about how obsessed I was with the cocoa and they couldn’t stop cracking up. It was great.

Ok now this next part was really cool

I’m in a cafe doing some work sipping some tea. The girl opposite of me had a ton of books by some Russian poets she was checking out. Out of nowhere I take a break from my work and go “yo let me check that out. Osip Mandelstam you say?” Usually I'm far too awkward to break out of character and strike up a conversation with strangers around me.

Before you know it we’re talking about Russian fiction for a good hour or so. Got to know all about her and she got to know all about me. Our passions. Our goals. Our favourite books. How translations of Tolstoy didn’t do him justice. A lil bit about everything. She insisted I showed her my favourite book.

I was into her. Her body language and demeanour suggested that the feeling was mutual. She told me she’s a frequent customer at that cafe, so when I was tempted to ask for her number I decided to leave her on a cliffhanger. Look forward to seeing her there again soon and seeing what happens. 

We stayed until the café closed and afterwards I even got properly acquainted with one of the café staff and learnt all about his story. Had another lil heart to heart and spoke about his past struggles and his former career as a music journalist. At some point he brought up my YouTube channel he had heard about through the grapevine (I’m usually quite secretive about it) and he insisted on checking it out.

Now at this point kids, I need to highlight the moral of the story, which is:

If you are INTERESTED you become INTERESTING. 

Inquisition. Listening. It’s the most effective method of bonding with people. When you become an ACTIVE LISTENER and ask the right questions, people will reciprocate. Pay close attention when people speak. Expand on their thoughts and feelings. Don’t OPPOSE views you can’t make sense of. Instead, ask them to expand and elaborate. Make it very clear that you want to understand them. 

A fundamental need for all people is to be heard and understood. Be the one who fulfils that need.

You can do this without supplements (albeit it's easier)

Now back to the story, because there’s more lol. In the evening I needed to go buy a webcam and immediately complimented the teenage employee on his outfit. We spoke a lil more about stylings and the perfect hoodie that he should get to go with the rest of his fit. The shop was crazy busy because of Christmas season and I told the cashier to “hang in there. You’re almost done” as I was paying, and damn did he need to hear that lol. He told me about how hectic that particular Saturday had been - I always empathised for retail workers because I only know how much I hated that shit.

And last - but certainly not least - at the very beginning of the day I got a haircut from a Palestinian barber. Usually I’m quite shy to speak Arabic with native speakers (I’m only semi fluent) but on this day I made him feel more at home I feel like. We spoke about the war and his upcoming holiday to Jordan to go see his family for the first time in months. Needless to say, that conversation meant something.

I don’t want to overhype it, but I cannot stress enough how unusual a day like that is. It would be silly to attribute everything to a simple spice; I’ve learnt to be quite socially adept as it is (although it is a drain), but it definitely played a part.

I recommend trying saffron extract/ saffron if being social and friendly is something you struggle with. 

God bless

edit:

Looking back on it just a week later it still feels “valid”? I’m not as excited after dropping down to 30mg but I still feel enthused. I suspected I’d come tumbling down the way some of you Reddit skeptics have alluded to.

Someone on this sub suggested it was one of the few things that just WORK long term with minimal side effects. I also believe there’s no such thing as a free lunch but if there is one…It just might be this stuff??

Can someone give me a source for pramiracetam?

I've been using noopept recently and I used aniracetam before but I forgot where I got it...

Some shipment from spain never arrived (package got rerouted due to error???)

Ordered Phenibut and other items for $282 on August 29th with $15 USPS shipping. Without my consent GlobalPost was used, it's now November 30th and nothing arrived yet.

When asking about my package if it is lost or if returned to them it they told me “did you purchase insurance?” Which they made ZERO mention of. So they just made up some bullshit excuse not to reship or refund me.

After numerous emails to them that get ignored, they, out of pity, said they will reship only one item If I pay an additional $42!

Basically they ripped me off and asked for more money if I wanted a reship. As of now they won’t respond after I asked for an invoice before making the payment, which they would scam if I sent without an invoice.

When I actually received their Phenibut before this, it was the most awful thing from the 10+ vendors I used. It had a gasoline smell, absolutely no effect even after dosing 11g, felt sick, horrible, even BodyShock had better quality than them. Overall just bunk quality and doubt it’s actually Phenibut.

have a look

They almost scammed me when I received their Phenibut too

Ps: They are actually PureRawz in disguise. Also, search “RCD.BIO” in Reddit. You’ll see many fake accounts vouching for RCD.BIO lol. Check the account karma.

I am new to reddit. I dont know any other sub that talk about health tips, and diet and best food.
Please someone help me.

Debilitating neuropathy in my feet, hands and legs. Has anyone ever experienced the same and did it improve over time? I really regret taking it.

This a supplement you can buy in the US and it's absolutely amazing...

I wont break down all the science nor am I qualified to do so, I understand it enough from what I read but I would just like to put my experiential/anecdotal evidence on it.

So I recently went through withdrawal for roughly 30mg 7OH, 500mg FAA Phenibut, and 2mg xanax a day habit, and decided to look into supplements that could ease or speed up my recovery process.

4 supplements that I used that I deemed the most valuable was...

1. L-Theanine - Regulate glutamate, anti-anxiety, brain recovery
2. Vitamin C - Binds or occupies to opiate receptors, reducing major withdrawal symptoms (minus restless leg syndrome)
3. NAC - Boost brain health by regulating glutamate
4. Agmatine - Lowers tolerance, helps withdrawal symptoms especially, brain recovery

Agmatine was a new one for a me and a huge success in my tapering. I was having glutamate surges, restless leg syndrome and other unwanted side affects 1 day after taking Agmatine sulfate 500mg 4x daily the very next day I did NOT notice any restless leg syndrome, I also noted that I wasn't feeling any cravings for my next dose and that all my previous substances I was taking the effects and increased in feeling and duration aka the lower tolerance affect which included weed, 7oh, phenibut, alprazolam. It will negate most of the euphoric affects from these substances but then enhance other aspects like it, example the analgesic affect from 7oh is feels almost two-fold then it was before and instead of taking twice a day I found myself able to dose once a day without the urge to do another. Also the head buzzing and pounding you get from phenibut/xanax withdrawal started to dissipate rapidly, I tappered off all three of these in 1 week with little to minor suffering, I'd say first two days were a little hectic then everything else was a walk in the park. Agmatine isn't a magic pill, but i'd say its the closest thing we got, it even actually makes you feel pretty good physically and mentally but just all-round godsend substance for addiction. If you haven't checked Agmatine I highly suggest it! Especially anyone trying to get off substances, we need more information out there on things like I mentioned l theanine, vitamin c and agmatine. These are all non rx that are actaully helping us recover rather than giving us temporary relief.

Don't take my word for it though! Theres others who claim the same here on reddit.

Yesterday I was supposed to take my 0.5mg xanax before bed thats how far I tapered in a week, but the thc edible I took knocked my ass out, the agmatine made it feel like it was my first time trying weed 0_0, I was obliterated. Fastforwawrd I wake up after falling asleep only to realize I missed my xanax dose and wasn't at all feeling bad or craving it, this is almost 36 hours past last dose!

Subject is 30-40F. Here's a description of symptoms present since forever:

1. Blood pressure - typically 95/65, which is normal but very low within normal (the threshold to low is 90/60).
   • She goes to 85/55 on her worst days, and it's when she's almost lethargic, but these don't happen often, maybe 3 days per month.
2. Partying - can barely make it past 11pm without yawning, having gotten up between 8-9am. And if she somehow makes it past 2am, she'll be extremely tired on the next to the point of spending half of the day in bed.
3. Sleeping - ~1-2h more than an average person of their age would sleep.
   • A typical day: she gets up at 9am, I get up at 10.30am. She falls asleep at midnight. I fall asleep at 4am.
   • A party day: she gets up at 9am, I get up at 11am. She falls asleep at 12.30am, immediately after getting in the car, while I'm driving us home for 1 hour. She moves to the bed on arrival, I go work out or do something else.
4. Napping - 1-2 times a week, could be anywhere between 30 minutes and 2 hours.
5. Capability to stay awake when circumstances require it - absolutely non-existent. Imagine a situation where someone's life depends on you staying awake several hours longer than typical. The sense of importance or urgency to complete a mission would keep a regular person awake.
6. Narcolepsy, sleep apnea - unlikely, symptoms don't match either, never diagnosed. No snoring.
7. Depression (developed ~4 years ago, the only non-forever symptom on this list) - successfully treated with cariprazine (Vraylar). Full remission for 21 months and counting. Unsuccessful attempts in the past with aripiprazole (Abilify).
8. Anxiety (generalized and social) - treated with bupropion for years with limited results. Generalized anxiety is getting worse and worse over time. Social anxiety has always been extremely high. Attempts were made with a couple other drugs parallel to bupropion to no avail: escitalopram (Lexapro), venlafaxine (Effexor). Currently added buspirone (Buspar), only 2 weeks in, so it's too early to tell.
9. Relationship with sleep - definitely not healthy, it sometimes feels like sleep itself is the purpose of her life. (And no, this isn't depression - it kept her in bed whether she was asleep or awake, and she would sleep even more.)
10. Yawning - yes, infrequently mid-day, but the frequency increases tenfold past 6pm.
11. Lab results - green, almost top to bottom. Literally two not-so-important tests are red, and not far that off. I used GPT to generate a crazy-long list of labs so maybe we could figure it out, but nope. All the important stuff is green.
    • lactic acid: from red (May) to green (Sep)
    • DHEA sulfate: red (276; normal is 19-237)
    • CMP: green
    • CBC w/diff: green
    • lipid panel: green
    • iron: bottom of green (iron supplemented; resolved)
    • ferritin: green
    • vitamin D, B-12, folate, zinc, magnesium: green
    • homocysteine: green
    • aldosterone: green
    • creatine: green
    • creatine kinase: green
    • TSH, T4, T3, T3 reverse, thyroglobulin antibodies, thyroid peroxidase antibodies: green
    • IGF 1: green
    • plasma renin activity: green
    • epinephrine, norepinephrine, dopamine: green
    • aldosterone: green
    • cortisol: green
    • insulin: green
    • hemoglobin A1c: green
    • ammonia: green
    • estradiol, prolactin, FSH: green
    • testosterone, total and free: green (but see below)
    • coenzyme Q10: green (0.86)
    • carnitine, total, free, esters, ratio: green
    • amylase, lipase: green

I want to stress the fact these are her forever symptoms, they are the case today and they were the case when we were dating 20 years ago. Most of these symptoms aren't applicable to early childhood or never measured. But what goes back to early childhood, as early as she remembers and as early as her parents can corroborate, social anxiety (expressed as extreme shyness, crying before leaving for school, having no friends and playing by herself, feeling judged, avoiding situations where she could be judged, etc.) is a forever symptom.

Lack of energy levels is most likely mental, not physical (except for 85/55 blood pressure days). She's too tired to do engage in anything that requires efforts, but when forced to doing it, she'll actually do it. She'll resist at first, whine how she's tired, moan while getting out of bed, then complain some more, then do it. Even small requests of her, like me our our kids asking her for something relevant, is met with an immediate expression of tiredness and a sigh before she moves to do it. She has to go to work, so she does it, but has no internal desire to do it and feels no reward from it. All she loves is sleeping, followed by laying in bed with TV or Instagram, followed by (in the past) eating.

Current relevant medications or treatments:

1. Testosterone pellets:
   • Round 1: 5 months ago no results on energy levels or motivation whatsover. Got from 27 to 140H on total; free wasn't tested. The only noticable result is she now feels hot or just normal, while she always felt cold her entire life. The prescribing doctor discussed this with her, and prescribed a medication to increase T3 - but worth noting her T3 (as well as TSH, T3 reverse, T4, and more) was green before testo and on testo.
   • Round 2: 3 weeks ago - dose increased +25%, too early to say
   • Meanwhile, in my case, 30-40M, from 600 spiked to 2,200, and stabilized around 1,400, and the results have been fantastic. Motivation started 2 weeks in, strength gains started 6 weeks in. Crazy results. Amount of sleep needed for full rest decreased. Around a month ago, I started getting sleepy and less motivated again, so got a round 2 with +5% dose, and already feeling the effects. It's fantastic again.
2. Phentermine 37.5 mg: 8 months in, to help maintain the diet and lose weight. She went from early obesity class 3 to mid-class 1 since, and continues the effort. She just started a transition to half-dose, with a goal of withdrawing it a couple weeks later.
   • Note: all the symptoms described are her forever symptoms, and not in any way related to the weight loss process started in March.
3. Semaglutide & tirzepatide:
   • Semaglutide: 5 months in, dosing every 6 days, dose 2.0 mg.
   • Tirzepatide: 3 months in, dosing every 6 days (offset by 3 days in relation to semaglutide), dose 10 mg
   • The purpose is to transition off phentermine, and promote a more "natural" sense of fullness, and help the body burn more. The results are fantastic - she feels actual fullness after eating a portion that we both would normally laugh at in the past, and all food noise is gone.
4. Cariprazine: depression, full remission.
5. Bupropion: anxiety, helps some, but anxiety is rampant.
6. Buspirone: anxiety, just started, awaiting results.

Failed experiments so far:

1. Adrafinil - tried up to 800 mg a day, absolutely zero effects.
   • Tried standalone, and with Austinootropics' "Tru Focus" pills that contain phenylpiracetam, alpha-GPC, noopept. No difference.
2. NAD+ injections: zero effect.
3. NMNH pills: zero effect.
4. CJC-1295 ND + Ipamorelin - no visible increase in ability to push cardio or weights more. But it's probably a mental limitation, not a physical one, so we keep administering it. CJC+Ipa has a proven track record.

Inconclusive or mildly successful experiments so far:

1. SS-31 and MOTS-c injections: completed a full cycle of SS-31, then MOTS-c. It increased her blood pressure (which is always a good thing for a 95/65 person) and energy somewhat, and she would stay up a little later than usual, or be able to party more, but it's only a mild improvement. Nothing life altering. "Fine, I guess" would sum it up well.

What medications, nootropics, peptides or anything should we look at to help her get some energy and/or motivation? (Or what labs to do next?) Tips especially welcome from former low energy/motivation people that found their way out of that state.

Absolutely no schedule 1 substances please. Only legal stuff - whether unregulated, unscheduled but prescription-only, or schedules 2 and below with prescription. If you have a prescription, please share what kind of doctor prescribed it - e.g. whether it was a general practicioner, or what kind of a specialist/clinic (e.g. psychiatry, neurology, weight loss, sleep studies).

How is your experience with it ..and I been taking it 1.5 to 2.5 sublingual for a week × alertness a bit ×calmness ×people Pleasing stopped ×can sleep on it no issue 😶‍🌫️will selegiline long term has benfit or not??

I'm adding piracetam+modafinil + bacopa monnieri not that great

Please share ur experience with it ❤️