St. john's wort and Headaches: What Users Say

• Kat...
• Taken for 1 to 6 months
• February 28, 2015

For Depression "I have suffered from anxiety and depression since I was 10. Since taking St. John's Wort (I use Karma maximum dose once a day pill, ordered directly online), I have felt a significant improvement in my mood. I am so much calmer, I don't lose my temper as quickly. I feel my mood is much more stable. I continue to drink alcohol, which is a depressant, yet I still feel the benefits. I've been taking it for 3 months. I missed a few days, but I felt the benefits within 2-3 weeks. My side effects initially were lost appetite, itchy skin, headaches, and cyclical sore breasts being worse. My libido is the same. My mood has improved by 75%. I still get anxious, but it's much milder. I mainly feel calmer, quieter, and clearer in my head. For me, it worked."

• Tin...
• August 24, 2015

For Depression "I started taking St. John's wort after researching and reading a lot about it. Well, after a couple of weeks on it, I noticed a difference. It's taken the edge off my anxiety and depression. I feel calmer and a lot less irritable! I'm happy with the results and have had maybe one headache when I first started. I will continue to take it and record my progress. I'm now looking forward and feeling optimistic about the future!"

• Vno...
• Taken for less than 1 month
• October 9, 2016

For Depression "I am taking this along with Buspar for my anxiety and depression. I only had anxiety, so I was only taking Buspar, but it seems as though Buspar took away the anxiety and brought on depression. I'm against taking SSRIs or other antidepressants, so I asked my doctor first about possible interactions, then bought some St. John's Wort. Ever since, it hasn't happened to me anymore. I also have no side effects at all from it. Some people say it will give you headaches, but I've never had one. I personally believe that if you truly need this, there will be no headaches because your body needs it. But who knows, that's just my personal opinion :) It doesn't hurt to try it!"

• Ang...
• Taken for 1 to 6 months
• April 19, 2018

For Depression "I strongly recommend this for moderate depression and moderate anxiety. I had a work-related breakdown and was on sick leave for 5 months. My doctor prescribed anti-depressants a few months in. I did not take them. I wanted a more natural approach. So I tried St. John's Wort. I started feeling better about 1 to 1.5 weeks in. I’ve been uphill ever since. It’s been 2 months. I feel great. My life is back on track. So I stopped taking it last week. Mild headaches once or twice in the first week starting up, and last week when I quit cold turkey. No other side effects."

• Oso...
• Taken for less than 1 month
• October 21, 2015

"I started taking this a week ago because I was always so moody and irritable. I lost happiness in the simple things that used to make me smile. Since I've been taking this, I feel in such a lighter mood. No side effects except the first couple of days taking this I had headaches. But so far, so good. I hope it helps to the full effects here in a couple more weeks."

• Ros...
• Taken for less than 1 month
• May 9, 2023

For Depression "I’ve come back 9 days on to say I’ve stopped SJW now. Since I started taking it, I did feel calmer for the first few days (a little woozy, but it wasn’t in a bad way), but sadly, it gave me terrible insomnia. I am really very low, but the one thing I was doing was sleeping, giving me respite from my intrusive thoughts. Sadly, I had multiple nights in a row where I only slept for 1-2 hours. I persevered and got some Zopiclone from my GP, but even with Zopiclone, I only got 5 hours of sleep for the past 3 nights. I plan to try 5HTP next, and if that doesn’t work, sadly, I’ll have to go down the SSRI route. It’s worth noting that I had no other negative side effects, a mild headache the first few days, but very mild. If I carried on, it may have helped my mood, but I’m afraid sleep for me is major!"

• Hub...
• Taken for less than 1 month
• April 15, 2022

"Terrible side effects for me. The whole body hurts, just wanna sleep all the time, my eyes are sensitive, my muscles hurt, being touched hurts, dehydrates you, gives really bloody hemorrhoids, gives nightmares, headache, dizziness, confusion, felt high one night (I was laughing at anything people would say to me and could move my body much), nausea, almost vomit and so on. It was terrible for me, and stopping it was even worse. Since I took it only three days (side effects started like 45 minutes or one hour after the first pill), it did not make my anxiety level lower."

• gan...
• April 9, 2019

For Depression "Terrible side effects. I started first with St. John's Wort tea bags three times a day, and after a week of using, I switched to pills. I used 300 mg pills twice a day for just two days, and at the end of the second day, I was in full-blown panic mode. I also had dizziness, dry and itchy eyes, headache, disturbances in blood pressure, and vivid dreams. Stopped taking pills right away, but it took about three weeks for the symptoms to completely fade away. Would never recommend using it on its own, without consulting a doctor. This is not a safe natural remedy."

• Ali...
• May 8, 2020

For Depression "Currently headache, neck stiffness, no energy, and can't sleep. Hot, sweating constantly. Just feel terrible, like I need a doctor! This is after taking it for 2 days, 2 tabs per day. I feel so stressed for the past 24 hours, like a coiled spring. I cannot relax! Please do not take St. John's Wort."

• She...
• Taken for less than 1 month
• March 18, 2020

For Depression "Do not recommend. Currently vomiting and shaking with an awful headache. This was after 2 doses."