Drug info - Nootropics - anti-anxiety

[spacelord]

Hey, I was wondering what nootropics would be best to get relief from anxiety (disorders). I figured Picamilon, Aniracetam and Theanine would be good choices.

Any experiences/recommendations? Which of these would be best? Or any others that might help?

Thx for any ideas on that subject

P.S.: I wasn't sure which section to put this question as 'Downers' didn't really seem to fit.

[Zaprenz]

theanine, picamilon - both good options.

phenibut is regularly sold as a nootropic and it certainly can/does have quite strong relaxing, anti-anxiety effects.

^Thing is SWIM personally thinks labelling phenibut as a nootropic is very misleading.

1/2 pint of lager is supposed to actually increase cognitive abilities [any more and quite the opposite] through a number of psychological factors (one obvious is being slightly relaxed makes decision making easier)
- but would you really call alcohol a nootropic [?] I think not.

Phenibut also has it's own withdrawal syndrome - so even if it helps it won't help when you stop.

Other possibly beneficial nootropics:
#Rhodiola rosea [adaptogen herb]
#Ginseng [another adaptogen]

SWIMS advice would be read as much about anything one is thinking of taking. If your reading how amazing something is and how it's cured many people try looking for some more sources of information - nearly all such anti-anxiety drugs/supplements will have some form of downside. [This is more relavent though to the potent ones, compounds such as theanine - you can't really do much harm with it but then it's effects are very subtle]

[Revancheshepherd]

SWIM has tried things like valerian and xanax
Valerian = GABA
xanax = Production of GABA

SWIM has found that on xanax and such things as these, SWIM tends to have way less anxiety but SWIM takes on more risky behaviors compared to being sober

SWIM ended up seeing the psychiatrist and was prescribed Paxil, which took a good month or so to work, but makes me feel great with no anxiety.

If you have serious anxiety issues, you should definetly talk to a psychiatry.

[Zaprenz]

Originally Posted by Revancheshepherd

SWIM has tried things like valerian and xanax
Valerian = GABA
xanax = Production of GABA

Xanax actually increases the EFFECT of already present/released gaba (it doesn't increase production) and hence increases the already present gaba's RELATIVE effect. Think of it like an amplifer/sound system - you can put your hifi on full blast but it only AMPLIFIES the input music.

Valerian Root - Many number of active compounds, some of which activate benzodiazepine receptors on the GABAa channel (evidence is mostly supportive in vitro though - outside the body) Due to the number of potentially active compounds and lack of funded research means the effect of valerian can't really be summarised that easily.

Both are definately not nootropics, xanax also being habit forming - although SWIM definately agrees if the anxiety is serious a second opinion (not via an internet forum) would be good advice.

[Spelvin]

Swim will tell ya that phenibut is absolutely great for reducing anxiety, but be careful as there is a fine line between just enough and way too much, as with any new substance it is best for one to work one's way up over a few tries, spaced out over a few days, and simply not expect to feel any experiences the first time.
In swim's experience picamillon is a so-so treatment for stress, not really worth paying for tho.
Theanine is worthless for stopping anxiety, so swim says, it only makes swim tired and wishing he would wake up, ditto valerian.

[spacelord]

Originally Posted by Zaprenz

Other possibly beneficial nootropics:
#Rhodiola rosea [adaptogen herb]
#Ginseng [another adaptogen]

SWIMS advice would be read as much about anything one is thinking of taking. If your reading how amazing something is and how it's cured many people try looking for some more sources of information - nearly all such anti-anxiety drugs/supplements will have some form of downside. [This is more relavent though to the potent ones, compounds such as theanine - you can't really do much harm with it but then it's effects are very subtle]

I tried Ginseng tea. Unfortunately it didn't do much. But you never know, maybe the product was bad. As it seems to happen regularly with herbal products.

And yes I've been reading on a lot of substances. It seems hard to find anything but information from manufacturers/shops, people for who it worked great and people who felt nothing. Unfortunately there seems to be less valuable info on most things besides benzos.

Originally Posted by Revancheshepherd

SWIM ended up seeing the psychiatrist and was prescribed Paxil, which took a good month or so to work, but makes me feel great with no anxiety.

If you have serious anxiety issues, you should definetly talk to a psychiatry.

I do take citalopram daily. But at the moment it hardly seems enough to fight off anxiety. For some time I reduced dosage. Big mistake. Well at the moment I feel I need something else. My shrink seems to be very reluctant to prescribe anything.

Thanks a lot for answering to everybody

[Broshious]

Magnolia Bark extract contains honokiol and magnolol which should help with anxiety as well as be nootropics.

"When compared to pharmaceutical agents such as Valium (diazepam), honokiol appears to be as effective in its anti-anxiety activity, yet not nearly as powerful in its sedative ability. These results have been demonstrated in at least half a dozen animal studies"

"Other research groups have shown both magnolol and honokiol to possess powerful "brain-health" benefits via their actions in modulating the activity of various neurotransmitters and related enzymes in the brain (increased choline acetyltransferase activity, inhibition of acetylcholinesterase, and increased acetylcholine release)."

[BigDonJuan73]

try some kava kava combined with some of these above suggestions and it should help out, good luck!

[candy_kid]

swim has never tried a nootropic other than piracetam, but he does feel this is an amazing choice in his experience with it-- theoretically (among many many other effects), piracetam upregulates serotonin receptors, which is of course why it has some of it's fancy effects on serotonergic drugs and memory-- and of course keep in mind having enough serotonin is quite responsible for avoiding anxiety

anyway, read into the above as you will- either way, swim gets zero anxiety, ever, while on piracetam. While he wasn't a very anxious person prior to using it, things like doctors offices, dex wearing off, meeting large groups of new people and a number of other things all used to give swim that annoying feeling in the pit of his stomach and the slight nervousness that made socializing less fun in these situations. During the first week or so of piracetam use swim could feel anxiety attempt to surface, like, the mental and physical triggers all hit right up to and before the anxiety- but he never actually got anxious, it was amazing. After a few weeks of use and not one anxious period during the whole ordeal swim ran out for a couple weeks and felt his mind go back to baseline- however, all the anxiety triggers seemed to have vanished (through conditioning I would guess); swim's mood was rock solid, and because piracetam doesn't reduce anxiety the way benzo's do, there was no reverse effect on anxiety sensitivity (which would normally recreate those triggers and then some right?) -- in the end, swim hasn't felt anxiety since before the first time he took piracetam

another anecdote : swim's friend also indulged in piracetam the same time he did. She would get noticeably anxious/excitable in numerous situations prior to using. Despite swim not asking her about it so as to not intrude, starting after just a few days on piracetam her mood to him seemed extremely balanced- once again, going into the weeks after use ceased. She mentioned to him that others people seemed friendlier to her in general and attributed that to the piracetam also

anyway, other nootropics may also work, but swim cant see anything better as far as anxiety goes than having it completely stop -- swiy should give it a shot if swiyou haven't already ordered something else

[Bajeda]

Bacopa Monnieri is one of the only 'proven' nootropics (i.e. research found a statistically significant enhancement of congition) and it is known to have an anti-anxiety effect. Not sure how prominent the effect would be though.