Question:
I am currently taking 100mg of wellbutrin and 20mg of Prozac daily. I am getting sexual side effects from the Prozac. I am considering switching to 5 Htp. Has anyone tried it and what have your experiences been? I have heard that 5 htp is suppose to be as effective as Prozac or other ssri's. Did you have side effects from the 5 htp?
Answer:
This really made me laugh. Some of the stuff I read on thiswebsites. Let me get this straight? You are taking wellbutrin and Prozac and are considering switching to 5HTP? HAHAHA I think you will be severely disappointed. 5HTP is very weak compared to drug antidepressants. What I would do is just go off the Prozac and increase the Wellbutrin. Increase the wellbutrin to maybe 300 mg. Wellbutrin has no sexual side effects. I tried 5HTP and it was a big joke...hype. 5HTP does not compare to Prozac, nor any other antidepressant. I have tried it. It did nothing for me. I have a theory as to why. It's all very well increasing serotonin levels. At the end of the day the said serotonin is not getting to the right areas of the brain. AD help serotonin to get to the right places by blocking the uptake. I might be wrong. Any comments? There won't be any side effects from 5 HTP, but the effect is overrated, IMO. You didn't mention what your sexual side effects were from your Prozac, but in any case, you might consider switching to a different SSRI. Celexa has a lower incident rate of male erectile dysfunction, for instance. You might also increase your Wellbutrin dose to 150 mg; or, as the other fellow recommended, try a full antidepressant regimen on Wellbutrin alone. If you have the patience to wade through the literature, I recommend that you go to the following website and study the various different ADs there. You might be able to find one that will work for you, but not impact your sexuality as much: http://www.mentalhealth.com/fr30.html You may also wish to emphasize the importance of this subject to your pdoc.
That was my experience too. Awhile back I tried using 5HTP to replace
Celexa. BIG mistake! Consider replacing the Prozac with the full anti-depressant dose of wellbutrin as others have recommended. No sexual side-effects. See 5-HTP is great. Take at least 500mg a day for good results. But there are far more factors that lead to depression then lack of Serotonin. Take 2,000mg of L-Glutamine each day to increase levels of Glutamate in the brain. Pure Glutamate is not like monosodium-glutamate which is harmful to the mind. Take 2,000 to 4,000 mg a day of L-Tyrosine each day if you are severely depressed. Dopamine is far more important to sense of well being then Serotonin is. Take 2,000mg a day of DL-Phenylalanine which will inhibit endorphin breakdown in the brain which will do wonders at alleviating depression. Take 2,000mg L-Taurine each day. Take 1,000mg GABA each day to take of the edge of any anxiety you may have. All these amino acids should be taken on an empty stomach in the morning. Take two table spoons of unencapsulated refrigerated flax seed oil. Take 2,000mg or more of DHA each day. Take 2,000mg or more of Borage Oil. All these essential fatty acids are needed by the brain. Omega-3 is great. Take a good multiple vitamin. My personal favorite multiple vitamin and I believe to be the best is "My Favorite Multiple" brand by Natrol. Take extra folic acid each day because it is important to the conversion of the amino acids above into neurotransmitters. Take extra chromium in the form of chromium picolinate.
Take extra selenium in the form of selenomethionine.
Take extra vitamin C each day. 5,000mg to 20,000mg extra.
Take extra 1,000IU of vitamin E each day in the form of d-tocopheral not
dl-tocopheral. Make sure the bottle says it is 100% d-tocopheral.
Take extra betacerotine. Take gingko. It is the only herb I use. I use GNC brand and take 4 or more tablets a day. Find a health food store that carries blatterwrack in bulk also called seawrack. Take this each day for organic iodine as well as other trace minerals. This is a seaweek and buy it in powdered form and take 1 table spoon each day mixed with orange juice to kill the taste. Eliminate Beef and Pork and Eggs. Especially Beef. The saturated fat in this meat will make your blood thick and cut down on blood flow to the brain. Eliminate partially saturated fat because it contains damaged fatty acids that are now toxic. Eliminate sweets. The L-Glutamine and the extra chromium you take will eliminate the cravings for sweets and alcohol. Eliminate saturated fat.
Don't eat fried food.
Eat lots of cold water fish. Also eat chicken and turkey etc. for meat.
Eat lots of FRESH produce not cooked if possible.
Eliminate Soda Pop and especially Cola. If you do these things you will be on your way to good health and eliminating depression for good without toxic drugs.
Dopamine is far more important to eliminating depression then Serotonin. No the Serotonin is getting to all areas in the brain. The standard dose of 100mg a day is not enough. Take 500mg of 5-HTP a day starting out until the
body is saturated with it.
