Effects - Kava Kava for pretty severe anxiety/ panic????

[blackdb1]

Swim is wondering is kava kava strong enough to have an effect on him??? About a mnth ago he got an RX to .25mgs alprazolam 3x a day. That was not enough to break through panic attacks however. Swim got this RX from an E.R. dr.. Swim showed the doc his evaluation sheet and told the dr. he was evaluated by diagnosed with GAD, SAD, ADHD & panic disorder. The dr. saw that swim needed relief of TRUE anxiety and wrote an RX to 21 .25mgs of alprazolam. This was to last swim till June 6th when his psychiatrists appointment was scheduled for. June 6th just so happened to 21 days away so swim went home with one .25 a day. He however took as the bottle stated "take three times daily as needed". So when a Saturday rolls around and swim had been zoootin all night from focalins he took his last 2 alprazolam. This left swim disappointed as ever!!! He really was able to relieve SOME anxiety/ panic!!! Well swims pops told him to call the dr. cause he had originally stated that he was gonna give swim enough to get through and thought maybe a mistake was made getting the filled. Swim thought NO WAY!!! Well swim called them around 10PM and the nurse of the ER answered and asked blah, blah, blah... The usualy name address whatnot... Swims draggin this out too long. haha
Well the nurse said she'd call right back. But in hospital time swim thought "right back" could be 2 days. haha Well not even 30-45 seconds later swim got a call from the nurse saying it was a mistake! Swim told her the nearest pharmacy and she called it in and called swim back to say "there are 42 waitin at the pharmacy whenever you're ready!" WOW! Swim now had more to take to relieve anxietys. ,

So the time goes by and swim sees a psych on june 6th. Swim told him it takes at LEAST 2 to feel any relief. The doc put swim on .5mgs 3x a day to try out. Well it turns out that .5mgs lowers the anxiety but not much. Swim is hoping to get the dosage adjusted correctly but doesn't wanna rely on it all the time.

So swim has heard about kava and how it has anxiolytic properties. He saw a couple posts (can't remember where) that said a small-medium dose has effects similar to .25mgs xanax? Could swiyou nice peeps give swim an idea that if Kava can take away the usual GAD then swim could save the xanax for when he needs something strong. He's always wanted to try it since he was about 17-18 years old, which was before swim got RX'ed benzos. swim just doesn't wanna come acroos as a drug-seeker even though he needs more alprazolam to effectively get back into a regular state of mind.

Now finally to swims quwstion... Swim can feel anxiety relief off of .25mg but it takes 1mg to really start to keep the anxiety down. He would however need 2mgs to kill a full blown panic attack! Swim is wonderig do swiyou guys think swim will feel effects of kava? Or will he not feel relief because of the xanax doses he takes!

Really swim would love to have a legal effective anxiolytic!!! He just hopes it will relieve anxiety so swim can save the alprazolam for desperate times! All replies appreciated -bdb1-

[Bajeda]

It is essentially impossible to predict the quality and intensity of effects swiy could experience from Kava. It is also inadvisable for anyone on these forums to provide swiy with medical advise.

However, if swiy thinks Kava could work for him then its worth a shot. He may want to be cautious about overlapping effects when taking alprazolam and kava-kava in close proximity to one another. Also, I don't think Kava would be especially effective for use in panic-attack situations, though my giraffe finds it useful for calming his nerves in general, especially in stressful situations such as when he exams coming up and wants to chill out but doesn't want the level of intoxication / cognitive impairment he gets from anxiolytic doses of particular benzodiazepines.

I would suggest that swiy looks at some of the threads in this forum concerning preparation to find an effective method should he indeed decide to go through with his kava kava experiment. Different types of kava can have their own peculiarities, so it would be advisable for swiy to try and obtain high quality material and perhaps (cost permitting, or if small quantities are available for purchase) try several varieties to see if one has more advantageous anxiolytic effects on swiy.

Good luck, and if swiy decides to try Kava, do let us know how it goes.

[blackdb1]

Swim will definately follow through with the experiment and post the results of the experience! It'd be so relieving to find an ethnobotanical that effects anxiety. Especially swim as he has HORRIBLE, HORRIBLE anxiety. It will be very interesting finding the potential of anxiety relief or even the 'calming' effects from kava!!! swibaj swim was not trying to seek medical advice, just wanted to see if any swimmers had used both substances in similar enviroments and what kind of relief they get from the two!!!

Now swim just has to find a store that carries it. Swim knows that sourcing is AGAINST THE RULES!!!! But as for the store; swim has many herbal stores head shops and whatnot about 5 mins away from swims house!!! Hopefully swim will be able to get a good, cheap, well-tasting product! However swim knows this is not going to have a GOOD taste. Although hopes at least it is downable so swim can find results from both and will classify his previous, during, and after for both substances.

This may take swim a few days but if this post gets lost away in the archives swim will post a whole new comparison thread. All of swiyou keep hoping and praying swim will get a good little experiment going on!!! haha He will probably give this to bout 3 orf his buddies all being aware of what's goin' on and he'll give placebo, alprazolam, and kava kava. then we can see if placebo is a fairly significant effect on Kava.... Hopefully to be continued soon! -PEACE-

[PoolShark1184]

SWIM has been using kava steadily for a few years as well as various benzos and has found kava to be superb to the benzos in helping with general anxiety however swim doesnt think kava would help for panic attacks.

if swiy really wants some help relieving anxiety, swim recommends zen buddhism. the right perspective mixed with daily meditation works wonders for a lot of people.

swims advice to swiy concerning benzos, dont get hooked! Same goes for kava.

good luck, and get the powdered kava!!! dont waste time with extracts and pills.

[blackdb1]

Essentially swim wants something to keep him calm on days when anxiety levels aren't high. He doesn't want to depend on benzodiazepines to get through every day!!! He wants to save his benzos for serious panic and anxiety. Swim is now on 3mgs of klonazepam a day and 1.5mgs of alprazolam a day.

Swim also got on suboxone last week and that is helping the anxiety ALOT!!! Swim just will try the kava for relaxation before sleep or mild anxiolytic effects on less stressful days. Hopefully it can work and swim wont have to take these benzos just to get through the day. He has also been taking walks, eating healthier, and practicing breathing techniques. These have helped quite alot actually! Is there anything else swim can do to lessen his anxiety??? Maybe certain vitamins, nutritional tips? Swim is looking for anything to keep from swim having such bad anxiety so swim doesn't have to take banzos so often!!! Any replies are appreciated greatly!!!

[zornthro]

Benzo can sometimes be pretty bad. It has a very high addiction potential and can often make anxiety worse when going off (there are cases of people committing suicide after quitting xanax). Kava works for anxiety but it can never be known for sure how it effects someone until they try it. Using it regularly is probably key. After a few weeks kava might provide releif for SWIY. Make sure SWIY finds a good vendor because quality of kava can varry depending on where it is bought.