5-HTP for Anxiety User Reviews (Page 4)

• Lulu
• Taken for 1 to 6 months
• August 18, 2020

"I have been taking 200mg of a 5htp blend that also has B6 for two months. I take it with dinner every night and I also take a probiotic every afternoon with lunch. It has definitely made my mood swings, depression and sleep problems go away! Although I do still have anxiety in public places I have always had this and it isn't as bad. I feel like everyone has anxiety in public, it's encoded in our DNA as a safety mechanism. I will say though that after going off 5htp because I ran out for about a week my mood swings and depression came back quickly and seemed worse then they were before. The change felt drastic and that kind of scared me a bit. Otherwise Id give it a 10."

• Denver
• Taken for less than 1 month
• October 17, 2019

"Took 5-HTP for 1st time in like a year..took 400mg along with probiotic and about an hour later got nasty stomachache along with nausea & feeling like I would throw up. Think it was a combination of too much at once along with empty stomach. So I'm going to try smaller dose along with eating before."

• Miche...
• November 3, 2017

"I was very optimistic about this supplement. Unfortunately for me personally I had major sharp pains in my right side of my abdomen (possibly my liver). It even woke me up at night. I couldn't take it anymore as it seemed unsafe to continue. The brand I used was "Now" brand. Maybe it was the brand. However I would caution others to be careful if they also get sharp stabbing pains. Happy it helped others. Didn't agree with me."

• Sandr...
• Taken for less than 1 month
• December 13, 2020

"I have been taking 100mg 5-htp at night and it works really well for me (I have PTSD/anxiety). I've tried prescription SSRI like Prozac and that didn't work. This herb works for me way better. I'm calming through out the day and I feel way less nervous and I no longer have a dark cloud over me. I'm so happy I decided to give this a try. Some side effects I do get especially in the beginning is kind of weird dreams and sometimes seems to raise my anxiety by the 3rd hour but then goes away. I have barely any anxiety the morning I wake up and lasting all day till night time I take my medication. This seems to be a life saver for me. I will continue to use it and see how I do!"

• Anony...
• Taken for less than 1 month
• November 24, 2021

"I read online that this could be a good alternative to a SSRI (I have moderate OCD and GAD) so I thought, why not try it? BAD MOVE. Took it before I went to bed on full stomach … felt like I was hungover the next day and my limbs became numb and tingly. I am 36 hours past taking one pill of slow release 200 mg and I’m still feeling the effects. DON’T take it. Not worth it. Just gonna eat well, sleep well, and put into practice better my therapy. Side effects not worth it. Hoping this reaction will clear up shortly."

• Ahmed
• Taken for less than 1 month
• August 6, 2019

"I suffered from High Level social phobia more than 25 years , my face become red and I can not speak , many years I resist this without medication , Since the last 5 years , I usually take inderal 40 mg on the social situation , but today . I bought , 5 htp -60 , pieces 100 mg , I opened the capsule and make it half (50 mg) , I think 50 mg every day with inderal 40 mg , will work fine with me , best regards"

• Jennnnn
• Taken for less than 1 month
• August 29, 2020

"I've been struggling with anxiety and panic disorder for 3 years now and finally built the courage to try a supplement. This is my 3rd day on Natrol's Daily Stress Relief. It has 5-Htp, magnesium, B6 and 12 and some other vitamins. 100mg after breakfast. Everyday it's been different. My first day was amazing. I felt the physical symptoms I was anxious but I didn't fear the sensation. I that even makes sense. I was in tears because I haven't felt not not being scared in 3 years. My 2nd day was horrible... terrible anxiety symptoms, constant palpitations, panic attack and a meltdown. Today is my 3rd day I felt so off today...anxious, irritable, like nothing satisfied me (I'm usually a happy, upbeat person despite the anxiety) I was thinking about not taking it anymore because it feels like I'm getting more negatives than positives but I read a few comments about taking a lower dose. So tomorrow I'm going to try splitting the pill in half and take 50mg. I hope it makes me feel better."

• Brian
• Taken for 1 to 6 months
• February 26, 2020

"I decided to give meds a break and though it was hard getting off them, I felt somewhat ok for a while. I physically felt better yet I still had worse social anxiety. My nerves have felt somewhat on end for past two years. I don’t like meds or side effects, I’ve tried a million remedies. I can say 5 htp is probably the best natural supplement I’ve tried in regards to my mental health though having had a few bad experiences. (Taking on empty stomach) (taking early) (taking right before bed, which kept me awake). Though I’ve repeatedly decided to not take anything or tried other supplements, taken with food in afternoon or at night, every day, or even every other day has been beneficial."

• Portend
• April 17, 2017

"I felt great...very calm and confident. But combining 5-HTP with alcohol has caused adverse reactions. Additionally, I feel a sudden down swing, sometimes, and take a second dose, each dose being 50 mg. Since the supplement I take called Medulla also contains GABA, I am not sure I am doing the right thing, especially drinking up to 4 glasses of wine per night. Lately, I have poured the wine out, because I've felt odd. I am afraid that combining this with other supplements I take, plus Avapro for hypertension might eventually do harm, as the depression feels on the edge of returning and I feel agitated at times."

• Abigail
• Taken for less than 1 month
• January 31, 2019

"I took 2 pills about 2 hours ago. The back of the bottle said too. They are 100mg each. I have really bad anxiety which leads to my panic attack. It's been happening more often than not. Anyway I took 2 pills about 2 hours ago. Not feeling too good right now. My stomach feels yucky. I feel a little warm. Definitely not hungry, and I'm tired. I feel crappy actually. I've never tried these before. Maybe my body is trying to adjust. I will keep taking them, but only take one a day. I really need this to work. My anxiety is getting the best of Me."

• Hello...
• August 19, 2020

"I have tried 5HTP 100mg and 50mg for Anxiety/alcohol withdrawal and I have had a good experience with it, I know there are a lot of different brands of 5 htp, I usually stick to the natrol brand I've tried another brand but that one made me feel really paranoid and high anxiety n feeling not good, but after I tried the Natrol brand and it didn't make me feel wired and panicky I think some brands are generic or they add a lil extra something in those off brand ones. I start by taking little by little too so it won't hit so hard if I take the whole dose (like a quarter of a whole) just to see how I feel in a few minutes."

• Zobo
• Taken for less than 1 month
• June 9, 2019

"7 days ago I went cold turkey off Phenibut (dangerous beware severe withdrawals) no sleep, extreme anxiety (I also have generalised and panic attack disorder) and extremely bad depression which I’ve never had. I came across 5HTP which has seemed to help with the depression and anxiety but it’s only been 3 days. Still can’t sleep but my brain is in a bad way due to also being an ex painkiller addict (clean from pills for almost 5 years) and recently Phenibut. I’ve got a very high tolerance to all forms of medications etc and started at 100mg but it didn’t do anything, 300mg seems to take the edge off but I don’t plan on going on a higher dose or for a long period of time because these adverse effects from Phenibut withdrawals only last a few weeks."

• NotKa...
• Taken for 1 to 6 months
• October 26, 2023

"I had been on an SSRI for months after finding out my dog had cancer in combo with empty nest. I was just not in a good place. After gaining back all the weight I worked so hard to lose, and feeling pretty numbed out from the drugs, I decided to wean off them. I read a lot about 5-HTP, had taken it in the past with decent results. I actually feel really good with 100 mg a couple of times a day, BUT I do combine it with L-tyrosine to stabilize my dopamine. I have read this is important and it must be because I actually feel much better than I did on the SSRI meds. I will say nausea does happen (taking it with a protein helps with this), and do not combine it with L-tyrosine before bed. I am still currently taking both and feel pretty good! If you're on the fence, try looking up 5-HTP & L-tyrosine articles to help explain how they work in tandem together."

• Anonymous
• Taken for less than 1 month
• August 30, 2021

"I’ve been dealing with some intense anxiety and sadness. Pretty sure all my symptoms point to anxiety. I started a supplement with 5Htp in it. Took it for 2 days and had a massive dizzy spell so I stopped taking it thinking it was the supplement. Started a week later and it’s been four days and I honestly feel my symptoms are much worse than before. It’s 50mg of 5Htp, I’ve researched the other ingredients in the supplement and no other ones seem to make my symptoms worse. I will take a break and see what happens."

• Janelle
• Taken for 1 to 6 months
• January 5, 2019

"Used generic at 100 mgs for slight depression mild anxiety. Got skipped heartbeats especially upon any muscular exercise and was becoming increasingly worse. Figured out this was the only new supplement I had started and used for 1 month. It certainly helped me into a deep sleep, but the skipped heartbeats ( like 40 in one minute ). Scared me- so I stopped. In two days following, my heart returned to normal rhythm. Starting a different brand now at 50 mgs— will keep you posted after one month."

• Anna
• April 24, 2018

"I was recommended this by a close family friend who also suffers from anxiety. I took 50mg a couple of times a week a few months ago and didn't notice a change or any negative side effects at that time. I have been feeling more anxious over the past few weeks due to hormonal imbalance/other issues so I decided to try again one night when the anxiety was really bad just to see if it could alleviate some of it. I took 1 50mg capsule about an hour after dinner and for the first few hours after I took it I actually felt noticeably less anxious. At one point, my entire body felt very peaceful and relaxed and almost had a warm feeling to it. It did not help me sleep though like some people commented, I woke up multiple times throughout the night and tossed and turned and then around 6AM woke up feeling nauseous, wide awake, and anxious again. I'm not sure if this is because of my hormonal imbalance issues right now or side effects from this, but not sure its worth it to try again."

• Dopey
• Taken for less than 1 month
• September 2, 2022

"I found that both the 100mg and 200mg made my depression much, much worse. I cried more, thought of suicide more often and felt completely hopeless. I started with 200, then reduced it to 100 and still had the same thing happen. Although the thought of suicide is never really out of sight as an option being on 5-HTP made it worse. I actually started formulating plan, making a will, etc. I stopped taking it and about a week later I was back to my usual depressed self - minus the urgent need to commit suicide. Be careful. Prozac did me the same way."

• Jill
• Taken for less than 1 month
• September 2, 2023

"Life changer! My naturopath suggested I start taking 100mg a day for my depression. It's day 2 & I already feel a massive difference in my thought patterns. The past few weeks have been very dark for me & full of racing thoughts. I finally feel normal again."

• regina
• Taken for less than 1 month
• February 11, 2022

"BE CAREFUL! I took 5-htp without any advice from the doctor and it kick started my panic attacks journey. Of course I had some trauma deeply rooted in my subconscious, that was the primary reason of my panic attacks, but 5-htp unleashed all of it! I ended up having to go to a psychiatrist and went on SSRIs to fix myself. The doctor told me the dosage advised on the 5-htp box (100-200mg/day) was way to high for me and that messed up my brain. Just don’t take this without a doctor’s advice, please, it might do more harm!"

• JCM
• Taken for 1 to 6 months
• January 21, 2022

"I am very sensitive to any medication, and have “inverted” symptoms from some (valerian gives me nightmares). So taking 5-HTP 3 years ago for acute anxiety I felt the effects immediately. Now am taking it again"

• John
• Taken for 1 to 6 months
• August 4, 2021

"When you first take 5htp you should start out slow, 50 mg a day a few hours before sleep. Make sure you use a reputable brand and make sure it is enteric coated and have with vitamin b6 and C so it can convert to serotonin. The enteric coating will help prevent the 5htp from converting to serotonin in the stomach, which can cause stomach upset. Up the dosage slowly until you start noticing a benefit. (Effective dosages are between 50 to 300 mgs a day.) As with any supplement or medication give it time. Give the product at least 6 - 8 weeks to notice a benefit. Always talk to a medical professional before taking any new supplement or medication. And never take the product with and MAOI or SSRI. You could develop serotonin syndrome. Read the article below to educate yourself on 5htp and the current research."

• Anxious...
• Taken for 1 to 2 years
• March 3, 2022

"After the loss of some family members, a sudden realization of past trauma and a prolonged period of stress at work I started having panic attacks and rising anxiety which I couldn’t explain being a really logical person. With the onset of the pandemic and the surrounding stress and negativity it resulted in more frequent spells of anxiety and worry. 5HTP really helps me lift myself off the bottom step of extremely low periods and moments of rising panic & anxiety and helps me get more restorative sleep to enable recovery. I take 100mg at night and 50mg in the morning for a week after a troubling episode and reduce down to 50 / 50 and then 50 etc and reuse if needed. It’s an absolute savior - no side effects and no embarrassment of continuous calls to the Dr who takes days to get back in touch and only offers SSRI’s."

• Diana
• Taken for less than 1 month
• August 30, 2022

"I have tried 5-HTP on a couple of occasions. The first time it made me really tired. Almost scary tired because I couldn't get out of bed. I wasn't wild about the effects so I stopped taking it. Then a couple of months later I tried it again because I was suffering from anxiety and I had few other options. I had a really bad experience. Again, it made me really tired. I didn't like that it also made my depression worse. It altered my thinking so that I was having more negative thoughts. I had one experience where I was sleeping and I woke up feeling like I was suffocating. It also gave me nausea, vomiting and diarrhea. I think it actually also made my anxiety worse. I had one incident where I started feeling extremely anxious for no reason. I have had panic attacks before and the feeling was similar. Overall I have not had a positive experience with this drug."

• Healt...
• Taken for 5 to 10 years
• January 19, 2023

"I have taken this supplement for over 7 years. I’m not sure if it still works as good as it used to and came here to see about raising dosages. My experience has been overall good. I am a diagnosed NPD. I have increased anxiety around anyone who does better than me in life. To put it mildly I loathe anyone who might have some sort of leg up on me. My son-in-law is one of these people. Very confident person and can’t seem to be manipulated by anyone. I’m not kidding when I say I just absolutely can’t deal with myself when I am around him or any strong male really. My speech is off, I have stomach knots, inside is like a raging fire in my head. I’m working closely with a therapist to change my way of thinking and understand it’s actually me that is the problem and that I am just an insecure old man with a lack of empathy. I have noticed on days when I take a double dose of 200 mg before seeing my son in law I am much more lively and actually enjoy my Son in law."

• LucyA...
• Taken for 1 to 6 months
• April 23, 2024

"I came off escitalopram a couple of years ago and my anxiety had gotten really bad recently (triggered by a lot of pressure at work and home). I was waking up every night with a pounding heart and having panic attacks and crying most days. I had tried a variety of different supplements but none seemed to have any effect. Then as a last resort before going back to the doctor, I started taking a couple of 5-HTP capsules before bedtime each night. Within a matter of days, my anxiety had subsided massively. I am now able to cope with everything going on at work, I no longer wake up in the night with a racing heart, and feel so much better. I am so glad I found this supplement as I was at my wit’s end."