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Hey all,

I've recently heard that 5HTP might be useful when recovering from significant journeying in to heavier realms, I guess in terms of cognitive function and generally fatigue? :huh:

How exactly would it help, and does anyone have any experience with it?

Cheers.

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It's meant to boost seratonin levels in the brain, so it should be useful if you've somehow depleted the available seratonin.

Seems to work IMHO

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Yes

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I think when it's activated it makes you sleep pretty deep but psychologically there may be some anti stress effects.

not really sure just a guess really.

edit. cant remember if it makes you sleep or awake?

Edited by wert

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I use 5htp and L-tyrosine.

Precursors to seretonin and dopamine. I don't know if it makes a difference, but I'm not that sensitive to my bodies subtle responses, possibly due to past behaviour. The science is sound and it seems the right thing to do from a supplementing perspective. If you don't believe in taking a multivitamin then I don't see why you would take this, the principle is the same. If you believe in supplementing and you are a journeying personality, then it would probably be beneficial.

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Drop me a line for some nootropic advice if you are having memory/concentration lapses but beer alternative almost nailed it in one, if he was talking about tryptophan.

5htp is different in that if you take too much your brain will produce more serotonin than it needs.

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While tryptophan doesn't have the danger element it also doesn't have the reliability of 5htp which can cross the bbb no worries.

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Thanks guys!

Any recommended retailers out there?

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I think it's supposed to help improve mood & sleep quality in serotonin-depleted people. But like BeerAlternative said, unless you've depleted your levels somehow... So if your "journey"(*) is to some realm where you're taking MDMA (or possibly mescaline, not sure about that one) that depletes serotonin, then yeah, 5htp could help to fill 'er back up. But the thing is, most classic psychedelics don't deplete serotonin, so I'm not sure that 5HTP would have any greater benefits in those situations than if you'd taken it in the same setting (eg. a night without sleep or dinner) sans drugs.

Taking it around any kind of MAOI is probably a Bad Idea, and though I would have to re-read the literature about different types of MAO inhibitors to be sure about that, it seems a needless risk, considering the dubious benefit offered.

I would read this article before loading up on the stuff as a supplement/self-medication. It points out that the whole issue isn't as simple as "low-serotonin-bad", as we have been led to believe, and how in some cases dosing with 5HTP can actually make matters worse. I dunno, could be a Big-Pharma-funded-crock, but I thought they made some interesting points:

Conclusion

5-HTP in the treatment of depression has languished for years. Intuitively, the potential is extraordinary, but from a practical level efficacy is no better than placebo. In review of the science, effective integration of 5-HTP into a patient management plan is much more complicated than simply giving some 5-HTP in order to have more serotonin throughout the system.

Administration of 5-HTP alone is contraindicated for depression and any process involving a catecholamine component due to its ability to facilitate depletion of these neurotransmitters. 5-HTP should be administered carefully in patients because depletion of dopamine and norepinephrine may exacerbate existing disease processes or precipitate onset of catecholamine-related problems.

Administering serotonin or dopamine amino acid precursors should never involve administration of only one amino acid. Improperly balanced amino acid precursors are associated with decreased efficacy, increased side effects, and depletion of the nondominant system.

*p.s. I know the rules about self-incrimination, but we are still allowed to actually talk about pharmacology here aren't we?

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Definite maoi no no and I cant even think why you would want to. There might be safe combinations but why does it even warrant investigation?

Never found 5htp sufficient to keep my mood stable after mdma, personally. Too many other factors than just sert depletion.

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Re the balance of sert and dop supps, in my case tyrosine seemed it could be used for days in a row before trypto or 5htp was necessary to maintain the balance..... /IME

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Definite maoi no no and I cant even think why you would want to. There might be safe combinations but why does it even warrant investigation?

The original question was pretty unclear about what kind of "journeying" we're talking about here. I thought I'd mention it in case aya was one of these "heavy realms", as I believe the MAOI effect often outlasts the trip itself, so that even taking things the next day could have interactions. I was just trying to cover all the bases.

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I dont know about recovery after an experience i stopped the disco biscuit train along time ago,but i do know that 5-htp has helped with lowering anxiety levels and helps me keep my shit together in time's of stress.I find it works better when taken in the morning rather than the evening as i have trouble sleeping when i dose at night.Honestly 5-htp has hepled me work through some serious anxiety and anger issues i cant recomend it enough.

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5 gs + of cyans for example... :scratchhead:

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5htp seemed to help me alot more when i believed it was helping

since i converted to being skeptical of everything its certainly doesn't help me half as much.....

Edited by Change
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it can do alot more fucking with your highs and lows than its worth IME.

if you cant take mdma and recover your not eating the right fruit n vegies. Or your eating a bunch of shit you know nothing about and need to suck it up.

edit. typo

Edited by wert

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I apologise for not being clearer in my OP. MDMA has got fuck all to do with me or my question.

Thanks for the input though guys.

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5htp seemed to help me alot more when i believed it was helping

since i converted to being skeptical of everything its certainly doesn't help me half as much.....

This is because 'belief' is far more powerful than anyone gives credit. Science fails to explain the placebo effect, even when almost miraculous, logic defying results occur. These are labelled placebo effects and and removed as deviations from the experiment. From my own reading, i have formed the opinion that 'belief' could begin to explain seemingly 'magical' acts by shamans/mystics/monks, miracles by saints, superhuman strength and not bleeding while under hypnosis.

There is perhaps more to the mind than we really allow ourselves to 'believe'. Are we exploring human limits with scientific method, or trapping human potential within a skeptic's prison?

Edited by Conv3rgence
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Skepticism and being a twat are two different things that somehow came to mean the same thing.

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Just as an aside my experience with 5htp is that it initially made me feel great. I've given it a go 3 times now and always have the same experience. First week I feel happy and content. Then i suspect 5ht receptors become downregulated and I start getting depressed.

Not a long term supplement for me personally.

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Am I right in suggesting that 5htp is more drug than supp? I think I am.

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I love placebos...

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Hey Wert, I've been taking 5htp for a while now, has been noticeably beneficial at times, definitely not placebo but at the same time I wouldn't want to rely on it daily or in combination with certain meds, although I have been taking Damiana daily for the last month which has been helping keep me in happier spirits - but very strong aphrodisiac effects to put up with

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     5-HTP can pass your blood brain barrier, while 5-HT cannot. This means that when you supplement 5-HTP, you want to make sure it gets converted to 5-HT in your brain and not your periphery. The enzyme that converts 5-HTP to 5-HT is aromatic L-amino acid decarboxylase. It is found in your stomach and periphery, as well as your brain. This means that we have to inhibit it, so that your 5-HTP has time to pass your blood brain barrier. EGCG is an inhibitor of L-amino acid decarboxylase (Also known as DOPA decarboxylase). ALWAYS take EGCG with your 5-HTP to ensure that your brain is getting the serotonin, and not your periphery. Excess 5-HT in the periphery can cause heart valve damage.

Dosage and time schedule:

5-HTP (with 400mg EGCG)- 100mg before bed for 3-7 days following MDMA use.

 

https://www.reddit.com/r/DrugNerds/comments/15m9sf/mdma_supplementation/

 

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Hmm

 

How long has this information been known?  

 

Green tea extract right?  So unless ecgc is isolated it might Contain stuff that isnt conducive to sleep.

 

Luckily when I was taking ecstassy with handfuls of supplements, green tea was one of them.  Maybe this was the very logic behind it, only I wasnt aware of it :P

 

You seem familiar to me PD

Edited by ThunderIdeal
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