Alternative to SSRI?

[Charlotte Mom]

I read, either on this blog or OCD parenting, a post that mentioned a drug that can be used to increase the body's production of serotonin versus SSRIs which block reuptake.... something like that... I cannot find the post. Does anyone know what I am talking about? Can you tellme anything or point me to the post where the person said you may want to ask your doctor about this....

[momto2pandas]

Are you talking about 5HTP? That's an OTC (over the counter) supplement, and I don't know much about it except that I don't think it has a very good rap in the medical community.

 

I read, either on this blog or OCD parenting, a post that mentioned a drug that can be used to increase the body's production of serotonin versus SSRIs which block reuptake.... something like that... I cannot find the post. Does anyone know what I am talking about? Can you tellme anything or point me to the post where the person said you may want to ask your doctor about this....

[faith]

Was it this maybe, re Inositol?

 

http://www.latitudes.org/forums/index.php?...c=6396&st=0

[MomWithOCDSon]

I read, either on this blog or OCD parenting, a post that mentioned a drug that can be used to increase the body's production of serotonin versus SSRIs which block reuptake.... something like that... I cannot find the post. Does anyone know what I am talking about? Can you tellme anything or point me to the post where the person said you may want to ask your doctor about this....

 

You might be thinking of Inositol. There is an older thread here (2 weeks or so) on this topic, and LLM here on the forum had a lot of info. Let's see if I'm adept enough to post a link to the thread . . . . .

 

Inositol

[Kayanne]

The amino acid L-Tryptophan is the pre-cursor to serotonin.

 

From wikipedia (bolding and italics are mine):

 

"For many organisms (including humans), tryptophan is an essential amino acid. This means that it cannot be synthesized by the organism and therefore must be part of its diet. Amino acids, including tryptophan, act as building blocks in protein biosynthesis. In addition, tryptophan functions as a biochemical precursor for the following compounds (see also figure to the right):

 

Serotonin

(a neurotransmitter), synthesized via tryptophan hydroxylase.[7][8] Serotonin, in turn, can be converted to

melatonin

(a neurohormone), via N-acetyltransferase and 5-hydroxyindole-O-methyltransferase activities.[9]

Niacin

is synthesized from tryptophan via kynurenine and quinolinic acids as key biosynthetic intermediates.[10]

Auxin

(a phytohormone) when sieve tube elements undergo apoptosis tryptophan is converted to auxins."[11]

 

My husband didn't want to go back on an SSRI, so he has been taking the L-Tryptophan for about 3 weeks. He does think that it is helping.

 

We learned about "pre-cursor loading" from the following The Way Up From Down by Priscilla Slagle, M.D. You can download the free book in .pdf format at:

 

http://www.thewayup.com/ebook/ebook.htm

 

It is an excellent book for someone who is not familiar with all of this stuff--It is full of basic info...when to take, with what types of foods, what vitamins and mineral are essential to take along with it so that the conversion to seratonin can even happen (B vitamins & B6-P5P).

 

Buster, I think you will appreciate that she has several pages of cited sources.

 

She offers some ideas for customization, like adding lecitin (which has Insitol in it) for anxiety...but I think for some people it may take more learning to get things just right.

 

She stresses the importance of balance with these supplements, and I think for low moods and depression, it is probably correct. However, her program also includes taking L-Tyrosine and/or L-Phenlalanine. I think it is important for me to note that these two amino acids are not a good supplement to take if you have TS, because they are pre-cursors to dopamine....I've read on this forum that excess dopamine is a contributor to TS.

 

Since PANDAS and TS have similar symptoms, then I think taking Tyrosine or Phenlalanine shouldn't be done.

 

I'm still trying to find out if PANDAS also has an excess of dopamine....so far the way I understand it...it is more of a regulation of dopamine that is a problem...there is still a lot about PANDAS that I don't get.

 

After about a week on the L-Tryptophan, my husband added in the L-Tryosine, and about three days later, he was having a lot of panic issues again....I found a post from Chemar in this thread: http://www.latitudes.org/forums/index.php?...ic=6533&hl=

And I told my DH to stop the L-Tyrosine (because I suspect he has a very mild case of TS or PANDAS). His panic issues have subsided, but not to the point it was while he was just taking the L-Tryptophan. It has been a week since he stopped the Tyrosine....so I am thinking this stuff does take some time....you can't expect overnight results.

 

Chemical imbalances and vitamin deficencies don't happen overnight either..

 

I hope this info is helpful.

 

~Karen

[Kayanne]

I also wanted to add that many pople also take 5HTP.

 

From wikipedia:

 

"5-Hydroxytryptophan (5-HTP; Oxitriptan) is a naturally occurring amino acid, a precursor to the neurotransmitter serotonin and an intermediate in tryptophan metabolism."

 

So the way I understand it is...your body starts with tryptophan, converts it to 5HTP, and then that it gets converted to serotonin.

 

Since Tryptophan and 5HTP are serotonin boosters....don't take both...just one or the other.

 

~Karen

[LNN]

Here's the info I posted on inositol:

Inositol (Vitamin B8) as an SSRI alternative

a. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Inositol

b. http://www.nutritionj.com/content/7/1/2

c. http://www.naturaladd.com/resources/articles/natural.html

d. http://westsuffolkpsych.homestead.com/inositol_and_ocd.html

e. http://findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_m0IS...55/ai_n6211958/

f. http://www.ihealthtree.com/inositol-powder...e-naturals.html

 

Please note you have to titer up the dosage, just like an SSRI, over about 4-6 weeks. Otherwise, you may get gas, cramps, diarrhea or unwanted behaviors.

 

It helped us during the worst of times last year. Now that we're dealing with far less, we're trying to learn ERP to handle OCD, in the hopes that learning to recognize, manage, and squash unwanted thoughts will be an important life-long tool, whether it be from OCD, anxiety or just regular stress. Like inositol, ERP may not work for everyone, but I think we all need as many tricks in our bag as we can get.