- This topic has 12 replies, 6 voices, and was last updated 14 years, 1 month ago by
.
-
Posts
-
Hey everyone,
I was searching for ways to increase endorphins naturally and came across this substance. I'm down to 6mg of pred but my body is fighting me really hard not to go further; the pain is not that much worse but the fatigue is bad and blood sugar drops too low quite often. Anyway, I'm feeling pretty bummed, I was hoping to get down to at least 5 mg, maybe I still will but it's going to take a long time from this point on, I think. So this led to my search for endorphin boosters.
In addition to exercise, acupuncture, spicy foods, laughter and chocolate (yes!), I found 5 htp. At first I was encouraged by what I was reading, but then I found articles about a sometimes fatal side effect called Eosin-something?-syndrome; it causes flu like symptoms that can lead to death. They don't know if this was just caused by a particular batch made in China in 1990, I think, or if it is something inherent in the substance itself. I searched here and found a few posts about it, I think Parisa had one.
I'm really getting down b/c nothing is working right now; it's the lowering of the pred I know, but I could really use a boost. I'm doing DIY acupuncture 3 times/week but it's difficult to get the needles in my back by myself. I guess what I'm hoping is that some of you here use 5htp and find it safe. Let me know. Thx!
Linda,
have asked your doctor about LDN? If you are taking any medication with codein etc. in it, you can not take LDN, but if you don't then maybe this would help because the LDN rebuilds our endorphins. I am not pushing it, but it has really helped me. Today I walked through the whole convention center in SA, all three floors going from the front of Market St to the back on Bowie St and then back again. seven months ago I would not been able to do that. Did real well. Three of us went to check over the facilities one more time so we will know where to place our people for traffic direction to the concert and even before that for the rehearsals. Concerts are open to the public on Friday evening and Saturday evening, I will let you know the time next weekend.
Take care, Hope you will feel better soon.
Eva:D
Eva Holloway
Linda, I too am stuck at 7.5 mg of prednisone. I have tried to go down a little more, but I flare bad. I am hoping that the LDN will continue to help me and I will be able to go lower. I've not heard or looked into the substance you are talking about. I have been reading from a Dr. C in San Francisco who believes that we should support the adrenal cortex through these steps; cod liver oil for vitamin A. Eat animal fat, no simple sugar, limit carbs to 75 grams a day. limit or stop caffeine(Coffee is my last vice) now I drink 50/50.I hope to go down even more. vitamins B-6 and C and believe it or not raw milk. If these steps don't work then start adrenal cortex extract. Don't know if you've already read or looked into these ideas, but I am going to give them a try, even though I have not been doing much milk these days. Guess if I flare bad it will prove a bad idea. If memory serves me you can't take LDN because of pain relievers, correct? I have been looking into some natural pain meds (boswellia) as a possible alternative. The website for the info I talked about is http://www.westonaprice.org/Steroid-Drugs.html He explains it way better than me, as I am trying to figure it out myself. Also I read somewhere that there is a natural cortisol that is prescription that is supposed to be safer, don't recall the name right now. (brain fog?) I apologize if that link doesn't work, for some reason that seems to happen to me. If I try to go straight to it from the site, it won't go. But if I retype it on my own into the search through google it goes right away? any ideas?
Hi! I would love to be on LDN, but I am taking tramadol. I've been trying to stimulate more endorphin production by doing acupuncture at night before I go to bed, it's helping some, but the fatigue is just crushing right now. I wonder if you're thinking of DHEA, Jim. I've given it a thought as well, but my blood sugar is such a mess right now that I'm afraid to do anything that will affect it. I was hoping for some relief with theis 5 htp, but the more I research it the more I'm concerned about it.
Why does everything that works have to have side effects that are dangerous, or are intolerable to my stomach? I'm running out of doors to open!
Hi Linda and all. Today with a clearer mind I remembered hydrocortisone. But looking into that further it seems no better than prednisone. There are allot of threads, just looked at one from Davit and A Friend that look into prednisone replacement, without any really good options. I guess I'll still try Dr. C (San Francisco) hollistic MD ideas and give them a try. Seems like stress is a big one too. And that it can takes months to replace the cortisol naturally. Hard not to stress sometimes when these matters are very complicated…. One positive note is I have had a sinus thing going on for the past four days, and I've been taking one benedryl daily, and my joints feel better, just like Dr. Brown said! Not sure how long I can use it, the package doesn't give me an overall time to stop, just take no more than 4 every 24 hours. My G.p.yesterday gave me a script for 10 days augmentin, wish she would have given me two months worth. I wonder Linda if there is something you could replace the Tramadol with that wouldn't be contraindicated with LDN? Just a thought. 🙂 jim
Hi Linda,
There's always bee venom therapy (BVT). It might be a good choice for you since you already know acupuncture– it's supposedly more effective if the bees are made to sting acupuncture points. In addition to stimulating endorphin production, BVT also stimulates production of cortisol– a nice bonus for people for people trying to wean themselves off of corticosteroids.
Phil
"Unthinking respect for authority is the greatest enemy of truth."
- Albert EinsteinThat's too bad. What happens when you are stung by a bee?
"Unthinking respect for authority is the greatest enemy of truth."
- Albert EinsteinHi Linda,
You could always undergo desensitization therapy for the bee sting allergy. It's actually not a bad idea if your allergic reactions to bee stings are severe– it might save your life some day.
Are you taking alpha-lipoic acid? The reason I ask is because it acts as an anti-inflammatory, and because the S isomer has antinociceptive properties.
Phil
"Unthinking respect for authority is the greatest enemy of truth."
- Albert EinsteinLinda,
Can you point to the articles that said that 5HTP might not be safe? I'd like to take a look at them.
Phil
"Unthinking respect for authority is the greatest enemy of truth."
- Albert EinsteinLinda,
I gave up for now, trying to get off the prednisone all together, but I did switch back to hydrocoritsone. As much as I hope to get off this stuff, my adrenals are not ready to be on their own, due to thyroid issues. Is your thyroid under control? I ask because my Doc has told me that until the thyroid behaves, my adrenals will continue to be stressed. I went from 2.5mg pred to 20 mg hydrocoritsone, which gives my adrenals more support than what I was taking with the pred. Sorry, I don't know much about 5HTP. I also take DHEA.
I hope you get some answers.
Donna RA and Lyme.
5htp would increase serotonin levels right? I don't believe in increasing serotonin levels as increasing it would cause your liver to work extra harder. When you have a tumor your serotonin levels go up and I was told by a doctor that high serotonin levels would cause a metases of liver. Please do some more research on it. If you want to increase your serotonin levels then eat a lot of walnuts as they increase serotonin levels naturally.
The topic ‘ 5htp’ is closed to new replies.