Posted by karaS on September 26, 2004, at 19:00:38
In reply to Re: Supplements for brain fog?- » karaS, posted by JLx on September 25, 2004, at 20:57:07
> Seems like some of the best info is in the long threads, not to mention that you and Simus were pretty funny. :)
Thanks. We did have a good time on some of those posts!
> > I'm sure that my cortisol is all out of whack too. Might as well be a morning person with screwed up cortisol than a night owl with same problem, eh?
>
> Well, if you have a day job anyway! In "The Cortisol Connection" Talbott described the normal rise and fall cycle throughout day and how we screw it up by our tendency to have a lot of activity and stress in our evening hours. I recall him saying that he took theanine himself at a certain time each day to try to counteract that. I'd like to try that some day.Exactly. Trying to fit into the day time work hours schedule has always been a challenge for me. I really need to read up on the HPA axis and cortisol as I always seem to keep coming back to that issue. I think I remember reading in a post here that l-theanine exacerbated someone's depression after a while. Something to do with serotonin I think . I could be wrong.
> Have you ever taken anything specifically for hormone changes? I took a herbal women's formula for years and it was helpful, probably because of the DHEA. Last year I tried both pregnenolone and progesterone. The progesterone was very disappointing after I had read such good things about it. Aside from one tantalizing day of feeling like I had a lot of zip and spring in my step, it was awful.I used progesterone cream for a short while. I don't remember it doing much at all. Now I'm taking maca but nothing else. I'm afraid of taking hormones really. For one thing I had fibroids which were estrogen dependent.
> > Yes, sugar is very stimulating for me also and gives me hypoglycemia as well as contributing to restless leg syndrome.
>
> By that do you mean vague little jumpiness feelings in your legs? When I get those, I usually try magnesium and if that doesn't work, I add a little calcium, and if they don't work, I add a little potassium. Some version usually does the trick.That sounds like it might be RLS. Some people have it really bad and can't sleep because of it. They usually get prescribed a dopaminergic drug like Mirapex.
> >I do have a light box though I haven't been using it much.
>
> I saw your post elswhere about that after I posted. I was surprised to see that you didn't find much value in the Sunrizer....I've always wanted one of those because I thought it sounded very body-friendly to be woken up gradually with light.I expected miracles and no one thing probably could have helped my poor sleep habits. It might be worth trying again someday whem I've improved other things.
> Have you ever seen this site http://www.cet.org/default.htm?AutoMEQ.htm~main and it's Morningness - Eveningness Questionnaire? Before I read that, I was thinking that I was using my light visor early enough in the AM but now I think not.I'll have to read it after I finish this post otherwise I'll lose what I've typed so far. It sounds like you're saying it's best to be used really early in the morning. Is there no end to the torture?
> >This did help a lot. It's maintaining that schedule that is the really hard part because my natural instinct is to go to be later and later and later on each progressive night.
>
> Oh, I know what you mean. I still do that too. The only difference now is that it doesn't seem so bad if I have to get up in the morning because I only sleep 6 hours instead of 8.I was (am?) really much worse. I would go to sleep at 6:00 or 7:00 in the morning and then I'd get a call to work at a temp job the following day. Then I'd end up with little or no sleep because I'd have to be getting up around the time I'm used to going to sleep. Is it any wonder I couldn't think straight on these jobs? DUH!
>
> > I really should try shutting off the computer and the TV by 8:00 PM. Of course I'd be cutting off two of my very few pleasures left but that's another story...
>
> I'm not sure the TV counts so much as long as you watch it in a darkened room, unless you have one of those monster TVs maybe. What I notice when I get in the habit of getting to bed early, or when I use my light visor in the morning early enough, is that when about 10 PM rolls around, I start feeling just desperate to sleep. That's really pretty cool then to just fall asleep right away after a near lifetime of insomnia.Wow, that is way cool! I'll definitely have to start using my light box regularly at an early time.
>
> > I haven't started my anti-Candida program yet. Too many plans and too little motivation.
>
> Yeah, I hear ya. I could just kick myself for getting on the sugar and carb bandwagon again after having done so much of the anti-Candida effort last fall.It's so hard to keep that up indefinitely. I think realistically you have to accept that there are going to be times that you'll fall off of the bandwagon. You just have to discipline yourself to get back on after that has happened.
> > I've never heard of pantethine before. Sounds like it's worth a try.
>
> Me neither. I think I'm going to get some as it sounds like it might neutralize some of the ill effects of the yeast, even without the anti-Candida measures.
>
> > The reason I think this is that I have cholinergic urticaria. Larry mentioned that this is thought to be caused by incomplete protein metabolism. That might help explain my depression as well (if there isn't enough of the amino acids available in my body to make neurotransmitters) and it would explain why I have aboslutely no reaction to taking tyrosine supplementation - even in very large dosages.
>
> I noticed that on the other thread. Have you tried the...bromelain, was it?I did but I was feeling nauseous so I stopped it. It may have been due to these new multivitamins I'm taking but I stopped other things to try to figure it out. I'll have to try it again when my system settles down.
> > I've recently had luck with taking extra magnesium. I swear I have much less brain fog the following day after the evening I've taken it. It seems so hard to believe that it could help so much. I'm still testing it but there's no doubt in my mind that it's helping.
>
> Magnesium is great stuff. No matter how crappy I feel, or how slipshod I am not taking helpful supplements or watching my diet, I've found that if I at least still take magnesium, then I don't get the extreme "hate myself" blues and suicidal ideation/feelings that always before characterized "the pit" of depression for me. That's a big deal as I used to not only feel suicidal but also beat myself up for it...in that inimitable depressive style. ;)Yup. Know what ya mean.
> I started taking magnesium after I ran across George Eby's site about it. I know you're familiar, most people here are by now I think, but here's the link anyway for lurkers: http://www.coldcure.com/html/dep.html I found that linked on a British psychiatric journal's site, and when I asked my psychiatrist about whether he thought magnesium might help me, he responded negatively. Fortunately, I didn't listen to him!
Actually, I was only recently introduced to that site. I haven't read everything yet but lots of good info. Re: your pdoc's response: if the drug reps aren't pushing it at their doors, then they don't seem to have a clue!
> > It's just maddening! You said something so similar to Simus when she wrote: "As if anyone would choose to live like this!"
>
> That's the wonderfulness of coming here, people understand.Absolutely. I had no one to talk to about any of these issues. This site has been a God send.
> > Yes, I trust them because Larry recommended them even though I haven't placed any orders with them yet. How long does it take to get your order? Do you live in the States or Canada?
>
> I live not too far from Simus, depending on what she considers "central" Michigan. I am a bit northwest of Grand Rapids. I don't recall specifically how long it took for my BAC orders, but I'm sure it was something reasonable like a week.What a coincidence how all of us (you, me and Simus) either live in Michigan or lived in Michigan. I lived there for at least 9 years.
Take care,
Kara
poster:karaS
thread:359642
URL: http://www.dr-bob.org/babble/alter/20040901/msgs/395437.html