Claire Posted December 1, 2003 Author Report Share Posted December 1, 2003 Hi Chemar, From your post on another board, you said not to mix 5HTP and St. John's wort. Since both are on this list of yours, I assume that taking them at different times of the day is okay? Expert comments like your scare me because I feel like I am gambling here by not knowing proportions and timing. (neurotherapy worst case is a waste of money--I have never read of negative side effects). Needless to say, I will do lots more research before trying anything--I want to have it ready for the next time (somehow, I suspect there will be a next time). By the way, my son's fears have been gone 4 nights in a row now, hallelujah! We survived this round. Claire Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chemar Posted December 1, 2003 Report Share Posted December 1, 2003 Hi Claire, yes..my son takes the St Johns Wort(minimal dose) in the morning and the 5HTP(again minimal dose) in the evening. The St Johns also elevates seratonin, but seems not to make him sleepy like the 5HTP does We only combine them under physicians direction, and, as I mentioned, at minimum dose, so the overall result is achiving the seratonin elevation that my son benefits from My warning about not mixing them is far more for the person who is going to simply add them without consultation of checking on the doses......this can cause a spiking in seratonin, and that is not good. I am so glad to hear that the fears have subsided. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Claire Posted December 1, 2003 Author Report Share Posted December 1, 2003 Hi Chemar, So sorry for another question... What type of doctor did you find to help you with this--especially the OCD tendencies? Family doctor/Pediatrician, child neurologist, alt. med doctor, child psychologist, child psychiatrist, homeopath or your accunpturist/neurotherapist? Was he educated on these approaches, or did you do the research and he reviewed it? I would love to have some medical expertise to support natual methods but it seems to me that most focus on one approach (allergies, supplements, neurotherapy, pharmaceutical, cogn. behavior) and not the spectrum. Also, do the links that you provided (I will read them this week) discuss how 5HTP and St. John's Wort help to elevate seratonim differentlly from some of the drugs that doctor's prescribe? Thanks, Claire ps He still has the severe tic from the movie. With all this talk of experimentation re supplements on the other board, I feel so badly for 'experimenting with sunglasses at a movie' vs just avoiding the movie (It was my idea, he doesn't care about movies at this age). I can only hope and pray that this goes away in the same week that the other tics/compulsions do after normal CRT/computer. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Claire Posted December 4, 2003 Author Report Share Posted December 4, 2003 My son's tic from the movie is gone. Claire Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Guest_guest Posted December 4, 2003 Report Share Posted December 4, 2003 What is neurotherapy session? can you explain what it does and how one can find a calm spot in the brain? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chemar Posted December 4, 2003 Report Share Posted December 4, 2003 Claire, I am SO relieved for you and your son that he is responding to the neurotherapy. Some call it achieving alpha rythm state. .....are you aware that braces can be tic triggers? Sorry to only be getting to this now...... the doc who gave us most support and guidance is a developmental pediatrician who practices conventional med side by side with alternative, and so very knowledgable and informed. The psychiatrist is conventional, but up on alternatives and also willing to study something when one brings him info The accupuncturist/biofeedback/radiogenics people are qualified in their particular fields. We were directed to them all by an MD who is conventionally trained, but now practices alternative med exclusively. 5HTP and SJW directly elevate seratonin via biochem pathways whereas the SSRI drugs do so by INHIBITING it's reuptake and so maintaining a higher level than would occur in their absence. HTH I really feel for your son on the lip thing......just have to point out again that for mine this was OCD/TS working together. If your doc agrees, the 5HTP REALLY may help here Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Guest_efgh Posted December 4, 2003 Report Share Posted December 4, 2003 Chemar, can you explain to me about neurotherapy. sounds interesting and useful. would wait for your inputs on this and what basically is being done, etc... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chemar Posted December 4, 2003 Report Share Posted December 4, 2003 we have NEVER used neurotherapy for my son, so Claire is best to answer this. I know of people who have done neurotherapy for anxiety depression etc and say that it involved a positive tone feedback thru headphones every time they had high alpha brain waves, which are a good thing. The feedback from the tone would assist them to achieve this high alpha state and bring relief. As I say, this is an area where I am truly ignorant. We have used BIOfeedback for my son which is very different I believe. It involves electrodes and energy fields to "reverse" what is problematic. Our accupuncturist is highly qua;lified and experienced with this technique. I dont know how it works, but I can testify that, for my son, it did...he had it in conjunction with the accupuncture and reflexology, and his therapist considers this combination important as they all compliment each other. A radiogenist was also involved in this treatment for diagnostics, which we found to be uncannily accurate when compared with back up blood work. I really am not an expert on the whys and hows of these alternative treatments, but, as I say...they worked in bringing relief from TS/OCD symptoms and eradicating some infection and allergy related problems Since starting my son on the supplement program, the need for the biofeedback etc has diminished, and so now he just goes when the need arises=hardly ever. However, anecdotally, my son reports that he feels better after one of those sessions than at any other time, and that the accupuncture in particular brings tremendous calm and tic relief. We are on a tight budget, but if I could afford it, I would still take him in for one session of at least the accupuncture/reflexology per week! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Claire Posted December 4, 2003 Author Report Share Posted December 4, 2003 guest, This link will do a better job than I can on neurotherapy--written by a pioneer in it. http://www.brianothmerfoundation.org/emerg...ingfrontier.htm Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Guest_efgh Posted December 4, 2003 Report Share Posted December 4, 2003 Thanks Claire. That link was great . useful info. how is your son doing now? good to know that it helps. does your son have TS/OCD or only OCD? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Claire Posted December 4, 2003 Author Report Share Posted December 4, 2003 guest/Chemar Guest My son has not been diagnosed with either (he even asked his own pediatrician and described his symptoms, but they were too minor and only occasional). His symptoms are tics and compulsiveness (which is associated with OCD, but they must reach a certain point for an official diagnosis). He gets both types of symptoms from computers/TV/movies only, so we avoid the triggers. The movie was an 'failed' experiment after almost 2 years to see if dark sunglasses helped minimize the trigger--this was one of the two worst tic/compulsiveness episodes he has ever had. I am investigating ways around pure avoidance because I think this will be impracticle over time. Chemar, I absolutely get the tic/compulsiveness correlation and overlap. I wanted desparately to try the 5HTP the other night with the lip biting tic. But he just absolutely wouldn't let me buy the pills--remember how for your son no video is more stressful than the tics from the video? Well that is my son and swallowing pills! He tried these tiny mini-m&M pills once for something onceand it took 1/2 hr to get them down. I told him your idea re the straw but he would have none of it. Sigh... Whole Foods has a liquid version of both 5HTP and St. John's Worts--but the taste I am sure will be awful. Maybe a plugged nose and a sweet drink chaser? I want to see which is the lessor of 2 evils for him. If/when something occurs again, I want them available in the house. He is totally game for chewable vitamins that taste good, so I am giving him ones with 200% of the B's right now. The oils for a fatty acids don't affect the smoothie taste, so at least that is okay. Claire Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sheila Posted December 5, 2003 Report Share Posted December 5, 2003 Dear Claire, Thanks for the update. I liked Dr. Othmer's earlier advice to rule out Irlen before jumping into biofeedback as a general rule. It sounds like Irlen isn't the way to go for you, if that was your take after talking with Helen Irlen. If you ever rule it out for sure, please let us know! It seems theaters also bring in other issues that bother some, beyond being such an intense visual experience--major sound stimuli and close proximity to people. I hope your son's lips are healing. By the way, I saw some discussion on another thread about the tone of posts being more gentle at Latitudes site. Let's hope it stays that way. If anyone does see someone being harsh, please let us know and we will block or delete them. Life is challenging enough without added negativity. Sheila Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chemar Posted December 5, 2003 Report Share Posted December 5, 2003 Life is challenging enough without added negativity. Sheila Dear Sheila That is so well said! This board is like a Haven Thanks for maintaining a place where we can truly share and care Cheri Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Guest_efgh Posted December 5, 2003 Report Share Posted December 5, 2003 Hi Any link between tomato ketchup and tics?? cant make out much from the ingredients .. In general does ketchup (for example Heinz or the packeted one that we get in mcdonalds) has the kind of artificial colours, dyes, etc... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Nancy Posted December 5, 2003 Report Share Posted December 5, 2003 efgh, I recently noticed there's corn syrup in ketchup. (Much to my surprise!) That's sometimes a trigger. Just an idea. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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