Natural Remedies for Anxiety

Cold Showers

Posted by Lisa (Victoria, Texas) on 01/17/2008
★★★★★

I woke up early this morning and went right into one of the worst panic attacks of my life. Nausea, dizziness, heart rate going at about twice what it normally does... I found this site after looking for quick ways to lower my hart rate because I was having trouble breathing. I decided to give the cold shower treatment a try and, while I regretted it for the first five minutes or so, I am now feeling totally back to normal. I'll be sure to use this method in the future as it works so much faster than any medication I have tried.

Niacinamide

Posted by Cordell (Minto, New Brunswick, Canada)
★★★★★

I would like to share a remedy I successfully used to cure schizophrenic thoughts. I was always shy as a kid, and little bit "paranoid" I guess you could say. But when I turned 24 I gradually began to have more paranoia, coupled with anxiety, and sometimes felt I was hearing voices. No, not the audible kind that people usually hear, but more or less I felt there were more thoughts in my head than my own; too many to deal with at once. Some very hateful thoughts had emerged and I sometimes became obsessed over certain angry thoughts, feeling like I couldn't relax and eventually would have a panic attack and feel out of control, possibly cry from too much stimulation etc. I soon found myself trying to figure my thoughts out, but they often made no sense, and I would play psycho-analytical games with other people thinking I really knew what they were thinking about me. I was always suspicious, and eventhough I didn't want to feel this way that's what happened.

Anyway, I know there are others out there that share a similiar story: how they once felt normal than started having some sort of mental illness, be it brain fog (which I also had from the obsessive paranoia), or adhd or whatever it may be. Niacinamide could be the answer to your problems. On the advice of Ted, a famous contributor to this site, I began taking 2000mg - 3000mg of Niacinamide (niacin can be used, but the flushing may become too annoying at such doses for some people). I noticed within a couple days my excessive paranoid thoughts dimnished almost completely, but I continue to take 500mg tablets everytime I feel them coming back.

I also continue to take at least one B 50 tablet a day to prevent deficiencies. It works~! I realize not every form of schizophrenic thoughts may be cured this way, but its worth a try for anyone seeking help like I did. High doses of niacinamide have cured my excessive anxiety, paranoia, and schizophrenic thoughts and even helped to solve stomach ailments I have had for years along with keeping myself more alkaline.

The alkaline remedy I used with most success in over-acidity was 1/4 sodium bicarbonate, and 1/4 potassium citrate (a 99mg tablet) in a glass of water 3x a day. This also helps to keep me much more stable. When I added sodium carbonate to this mixture sometimes it also helped with over-anxious thought patterns, and to calm the brain down. I hope this helps someone like it did for me.

Peace and love. Cordell

Acetyl L-Carnitine

Posted by Sandi (Arizona, USA) on 06/20/2021
★★★★★

Thanks to the info on here, I just tried acetyl L carnitine for my anxiety. I am pleased to say I think it's helping. My husband took it years ago for neuropathy and it was great. My son is trying it for his neuropathy as well. My anxiety has been so bad because my husband died six months ago after fighting lung cancer for 14 months. My checkup showed elevated blood pressure. High blood pressure causes anxiety which raises blood pressure which causes more anxiety and round and round. So I am so happy to find something besides Xanax that actually makes me feel somewhat better. Now hopefully I can get my blood pressure down. 🤪🤪

5-HTP

Posted by Gord235 (Vancouver, Canada) on 11/07/2021

That's hilarious! I suppose as you were reading your own comment you were thinking, "This person sounds pretty intelligent, too." ha, ha.

Magnesium

Posted by Monacoluna (Atlanta) on 09/26/2016
★★★★★

I have anxiety and irritability. Magnesium is a life saver. I can really feel myself mellow over the course of the day when I take it regularly. Very grateful I found it.

5-HTP

Posted by Jasonmchicago (Chicago, Il (usa) ) on 06/12/2011
★★★★★

Serotonin is a vital neurotransmitter for all types of things... From mental to physical health. I had severe anxiety and tried different things from Velirium Root to different aroma therapies... The one thing that works amazingly was 5-HTP. It helps one get serotonin and serotonin helps with anxiety, depression, sleep problems (converts to melatonin), and muscle health (let's you get delta sleep so that your body can release growth hormone and repair muscle tissue). In the book "Pain Cure" there's a great recap of all the benefits of serotonin.

I HIGHLY recommend it for anxiety/depression. It helped change my life... Along with Yoga, MSM (joint pain), etc.

Thanks EC!

Acetyl L-Carnitine

Posted by Caricater (Smyrna, Ga) on 12/30/2011
★★★★★

Please note that L-Carnitine and Acetyl L-Carnitine are different! L-Carnitine can help you lose weight and improve heart function, but for anxiety and depression, ALC is the one you want. ALC may benefit those with glucose issues and has been shown to improve memory and cognitive function. There are studies that an increase in oxidative stress while taking ALC is possible. If so, 100-600mg of alpha lipoic acid (ALA) will not only combat this side effect, it will increase the anti-aging effects!

Cold Showers

Posted by Jon (Monongahela, PA) on 09/30/2008
★★★★★

Oh God...this is the most greatest thing in the world. I embrace the Eastern philosophy of medicine which talks about natural and organic treatments to the ailments that we all suffer. Unlike Western medicine that gives you toxic pills to swallow only to treat the symptoms and not to cure you. I feel great. I've never been so happy and energetic in my life and I feel like I'm high all day long...of course with out the impairment of psychotropic drugs. HIGHLY RECOMMENDED...yeah, there is the hesitation associated with jumping into a swimming pool, but please, just "bite the bullet" and do it.....every day.

THANK YOU EARTHCLINIC.COM!

Magnesium

Posted by Doris (Murfreesboro, TN) on 12/05/2007
★★★★★

My son suffered from anxiety and depression after his divorce. I read an article by George Eby about Magnesium Glycinate for depression. I bought my son some of the magnesium and after a few days he started feeling better and talked about having more energy and concentration. He took 800-1000 mgs. for a few days to build it up in his system, then backed down to 400 mgs. The Magnesium Glycinate really changed his life.

Ashwagandha

Posted by Cathleen (Los Angeles, Ca) on 11/24/2014
★★★★★

I have found myself to dramatically feel less burdened by daily stress when I'm taking Ashwagandha twice a day. My counselor suggested the improvement was attributable to other changes I've made in life but when I tested by ceasing Ashwagandha I returned to having more tense feeling days including clenching of teeth. I have tried both Organic India brand which is available at Whole Foods and Swanson's Ultimate Ashwagandha and while both were effective I believe the Swanson product worked best. Both of these products were only made from the root of the herb and I would love to hear from others if results have been better from taking both the root and leaves (I haven't yet tried).

Magnesium

Posted by Ryan (Texas, US) on 09/04/2014
★★★★★

Those of you with anxiety issues, start taking magnesium. every day take at least 250 mg; I personally take 500 mg. It will make you go to the bathroom a lot if you take too much. You won't notice any effect on you for maybe a week. Then bam your anxiety is gone.

GABA

Posted by Kathy (L A) on 07/04/2014
★★★★★

Hello!

My husband has been using GABA for a few years....maybe 5 years and there have been NO side affects at all, except to calm him down...I even take a pill when I'm going to be in a stressful situation, like visiting his mother, for example! lol

5-HTP

Posted by Joe (Sterville, Co) on 03/11/2013
★★★★★

I've read a few posts on the use of 5HTP and unusual symptoms (headaches, pains, etc) after using for awhile. Just wanted to recommend The Mood Cure book which helps to explain that these symptoms could possibly be caused by too much serotonin (serotonin syndrome). The gist of the 5HTP part is just using it long enough, and in proper doses, to where you feel better. Once you start getting abnormal symptoms, it can indicate that you are getting too much of a good thing, at which point you would stop or cut back.

5-HTP

Posted by Marigold (Anchorage, Ak) on 04/10/2010
0 out of 5 stars

5-HTP for anxiety/depression

After reading some posts on this website, I decided to try 5-HTP for my general depression and social anxiety. After taking it the first time, I really noticed it made me feel kind of happy and giddy, so I was excited, and I also felt less anxious and more able to be what I consider myself. However, about a week taking just 50 mgs twice a day, I noticed I would get headaches. Then after about a week and a half I got a horrible headache, which I think might have been a migraine. It came on suddenly and lasted for about an hour of excruciating pain and nausea, and more mild pain and tension the rest of the day. Afterwards, for about a week, I started getting strange pains all on the left side of my body, in my leg and hip and shoulder. The migraine was on the right side of my head. I was pretty sure the 5 HTP was causing my everyday headaches, and was starting to feel like it lead to the migraine and subsequent left-side-of-the-body pains. I stopped taking 5-HTP and and my head-aches and body-aches have subsided completely. I am glad this supplement has worked for some people, but I just wanted to share my experience.

Rhodiola

Posted by RR (Vancouver, Canada) on 02/21/2008
★★★★★

Rhodiola is amazing! I've been taking rr for about 6 months with fantastic improvements. I suffer from major anxiety/stress disorder, minor depression, was taking effexor xr for 5 years prior to this wonderful herb..the effexor caused me to gain 35lbs, made me sweat heavily, and actually gave me more anxiety, the sweating is still a problem, but is getting much better since taking rhodiola, almost gone, except when i get really anxious - socially, i start to sweat from my head/face..which is pretty dam embarrassing..DONT TAKE EFFEXOR! as this never happened before even with the anxiety i had.
Since taking rhodiola and stopping the effexor..i've lost the 35lbs that i gained..alot faster then iv'e ever lost weight before...so YES..it does help you lose weight..as long as you exercise hard and eat reasonably healthy. I dont eat that great, still eat pizza,wings, and drink beer occasionally. Just cut that deep fried food..mcd's etc to a minimum. EXERCISE is the key to losing weight with this herb, although when i took a break from working out...i still dropped a couple pounds.

Thanks to rhodiola, i'm almost back to my old self, except for this lingering little bit of anxiety. rhodiola works best with other herbs, acutally makes those other herbs work better then if u were to take them alone. My stress is so dramatically reduced, i almost feel normal again.

I'm currently on the search for the best combination to combat this left over anxiety issue, looks like i'll try 5-htp as people seem to have success with this combo.

I've been using the Arctic Root brand, from proactivebio, and currently trying out the
Ameriden brand..just google ameriden..you'll find it...apparantly its from Siberia where this
root was first discovered.

And as far as i know..you cannot grow it properly here, the active compounds will not be present
if grown here, needs that cold arctic condition to grow properly.

U have nothing but to benefit from taking this herb. I'm getting my whole family on it now!

and usually takes about 2-3 weeks before you really notice the effects!

B-Complex With Zinc

Posted by Tiberius (Oklahoma) on 02/06/2024
★★★★★

TLDR: Stress B-Complex that includes Zinc, Avoid stress & emotional distress like the plague(especially when the situation doesnt directly involve you), get outside in the sunlight, and welcome happiness and peace into your life every chance you get.

I beat a terrible case of anxiety without the use of pharma drugs. And by terrible, I mean absolutely terrible. I had never dealt with it before, but it hit me like a freight train out of nowhere. One night at work, I had a massive panic attack, thinking I was having a heart attack I rushed to the ER only for them to find nothing. I developed a fear of going to work as I worked alone, and I was scared to be alone. I was in constant fear that "something" (anxiety, panic attack, heart attack) was going to get me or "something" was going to happen. Constant insane tension. I had multiple panic attacks over the course of a few weeks and ended up in the ER on multiple occasions only for them to find nothing.

After a trip to my regular doctor he prescribed me some meds, which I refused for obvious reasons. However while I was there he gave me some excellent advice: "You are like chicken, be like duck." He explained that stress is like water. I was like a chicken because my "feathers" absorbed the water. And I needed to be shedding the water like the feathers of a duck. Eventually as you "absorb" water, the weight of it adds up and you will eventually begin to be crushed under the weight of it. This is when you run into anxiety and panic attacks. So, I took his advice and stopped allowing myself to take on stress that I didnt need to take on. I stopped allowing myself to get emotionally involved in other peoples problems or to be disturbed on any level. This doesnt mean I became heartless, unhelpful, or uncaring, it just means that I refused to allow things to needlessly cause me stress, especially when it wasnt my problem to begin with. If someone came to me with some drama or a problem, I didnt take it to heart and dwell on it. I would converse with them and offer my advice and condolences, etc. But thats where the problem would stop for me. As a matter of my own health, I would seek to get my mind into a place of peace and happiness as soon as possible and keep it there. Whether that was through a hobby, watching funny videos, having fun with a friend or family member, etc.

Through some research, I had read something about Zinc being crucial for helping you deal with stress. Its been a long while since I read up on it, and I'll probably butcher the recap, but something along the lines of, when you stress/worry, your body burns through your stores of Zinc, and when it runs out you get that anxious tense feeling we call anxiety. Anyways, again, full disclaimer, dont quote me on that, this was all years ago.

However, there are a lot of vitamins and minerals that contribute to dealing with stress/anxiety. Magnesium, calcium, vitamin D, copper, B vitamins.. the list goes on. I have good reason to believe in my case, Zinc made the difference.

I found a supplement, its a Stress B - Complex that includes Zinc. This for whatever reason works for me 100%. It doesnt include every vitamin or mineral that can help manage stress/anxiety, but this one works for me. I personally think the Zinc is what made a difference for me. As I was taking another B-Complex that didnt include Zinc and it didnt work.

Also, sunlight and the outdoors. In addition to the mental diet and the supplements, I found that getting myself outdoors helped a lot. Due to work, I was a night owl. I hardly every got out during the day. I made it a point to get out, take walks, go fishing, attending family get togethers and things like that.

All together my terrible run in with anxiety, lasted probably a month or less before I got a serious handle on it. In the years since, I've had it try to come back but I'm more than well enough equipped to handle it. Usually it happens during times I'm dealing with something stressful and all I need to do is step back from the stress and take my Stress B-Complex for a few days to knock it out again.

I'd give the brand of the supplement, but I dont know if giving exact brands is allowed here. I will say its usually readily available at Wal Mart. Brown bottle, with a yellow lid and label.

L-Theanine

Posted by Joseph A. (Stockton, Ca.) on 09/01/2021 73 posts
★★★★★

I have read a lot about L-Theanine and just want to get this info out to people who take L-Theanine for Anxiety, Relaxation, and how to search for interactions with supplements and or prescription medicines.

First of all, when purchasing L-Theanine, it is imperative that you purchase only the companies that list Suntheanine on the front container, it represents the best of L-Theanine. Theanine without the name Suntheanine is very, very inexpensive and it will not be the product you want to help your problem.

Dosages, companies supply 100mg, 125mg, 150mg, 200mg, you can safely take approximately 8,000mg L-Theanine (Suntheanine), I have found that 400mg (2 capsules each with 200mg each) in the morning and same in the evening. With or without food is fine. Of course, you can take less, depending on your reason for taking it. If you want to check for interaction(s) then Google that question yourself, it is not necessary to ask, just know that many of your questions can be answered by Googling your question.

Anxiety searchers can find relief from Severe Anxiety with Serpina (Indian Snakeroot) (Amazon) or 500mg-1000mg of N-acetyl-L-Carnitine, Amazon sells 500mg, 1000mg and 1500mg pills. Magnesium glycinate also helps but not as good as the other two products.

Acetyl L-Carnitine

Posted by Joseph (Stockton, CA) on 10/22/2021 73 posts

Hi Sandi,

I am very sorry for your painful loss, I know it can take its toll, however life goes on and I want to explain a few things to you. First of all there is a book out called “Medication Madness” by Dr Peter Breggin, you will learn a lot. Now Serpina I used for my ill son with Schizophrenia, mental illness, insomnia, psychosis, etc., it is an herb developed in 1934 in India as the worlds first Anti-hypertensive medication, it restores normal blood pressure in hypertensives. This pill also fights Anxiety (best), reduces fevers, calm the nerves, used as a sedative in some psychotic disorders. Almost no side effects except when taking Antipsychotics or cold flu medicines. Sold at Amazon for $7.00 for 100 pills 4mg. I took my son off of antipsychotics and replaced with Serpina for 8 successful years, he did well until OCD entered his life, then medication was given Antipsychotic poison again, needless to say I learned the hard way with interaction so I stop Serpina. You can stop cold turkey, no food is needed prior to taking. I will reply to questions. Joseph

Magnesium

Posted by Ray (Memphis, Tn) on 12/11/2016
★★★★★

I found researched about anxiety and panic for years and have found that magnesium plays a huge role in adrenal system (as well as vitamin b deficiencies). Epsom salt baths, celtic sea salt are both very good for also getting magnesium into the diet. Since the soils are so depleted in minerals due to pesticides, etc, is one of the biggest reasons we are so magnesium deficient no matter how many veggies we consume. Everyone is so depleted in magnesium also because most diets are filled with additives, chemicals, processed sugar and flour along with coffee (caffeine depletes minerals esp magnesium- from our bodies making anxiety much more prone than ever before.). Stress also plays a huge role but diet is always number 1.

5-HTP

Posted by Gord235 (Vancouver) on 10/24/2021
★★★★★

I successfully transitioned from an anti-depressant, anti-anxiety medication(Paxil) to 5HTP-50mg by gradually reducing Paxil by 50% each day while increasing 5HTP TO 50mg. The whole weaning process took about four days. Note: experts say an anti-anxiety ant-depressant should never be stopped suddenly and I agree. I tried that once and found myself doing some irrational things.

CAUTION: I did find when I increased the 5HTP to 100mg, it actually increased my anxiety. This happened when my health food store brought in 100mg strength instead of the usual 50mg strength. Fortunately I realised what was happening and split the remainder in half and everything was fine from there on.