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TouchPoints™ neuroscience device for stress relief, improved sleep and focus and reduced cravings

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TouchPoints™ basic are non-invasive neuroscientific lifestyle wearables that use patent pending neuroscience to relieve stress, improve sleep, performance, and focus, and can reduce cravings and anger.

I shared some information about these TouchPoints™ neuroscience devices a short time ago and it created some interest. This week I was just on a private call with one of the founders, Dr. Amy Serin and I’m so impressed with what I learned about these EMDR-type devices that I’m sharing their indiegogo campaign (happening right now) for the new lower price point device (the basic). The Basic device doesn’t use an iphone or ipad. I am somewhat concerned about EMFs with their other device and I’m still looking into this to determine if it is an issue.

This Basic device can be worn on a wrist-band or can be worn on a belt, socks, shirt etc.

I have NOT yet used one of these devices myself or with clients but I have purchased one to test and will share more as I learn more. Please do share your experiences too!

As with addressing any imbalance too much of something can be problematic. I received this feedback from a colleague who is a psychotherapist:

We use bilateral stimulation in our work with various gadgets – bilateral music with headphones, bilateral tappers etc. It’s been used with EMDR for 20 years. I haven’t seen this gadget before but the idea is not new. It can also be TOO activating and increase sympathetic arousal for some people.

If they work you I do see these as a great add-on to the nutrition work I do for anxiety (diet, adrenals, amino acids like GABA etc.) and could be especially helpful if you can’t tolerate supplements right now (like during a benzodiazepine taper or being highly sensitive).

You can find all the details here

 

Tryptophan and melatonin make a big difference but why do I still wake at 4am?

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waking-up-early

I get many questions on the blog about problems with sleep: not able to fall asleep, not waking rested and waking in the early hours and not being able to go back to sleep. By far the most common question is “Why do I still wake at 4am and can’t go back to sleep?”

So let me share one of the typical questions I receive and my feedback in the hope that something you read here may help you or someone you’re working with. Here is the question:

I purchased Lidtke l-Tryptophan and time release melatonin and notice a big difference in my sleep. Instead of waking up every two hours I’m sleeping better but still wake up at 4 am and can’t get back to sleep. GABA hasn’t helped. What can I take to get back to sleep and what are your thoughts on Seriphos Phosphorylated Serine? I think my anxiety has to do with my adrenals because I wake up in a sweat and am way past menopause.

Since she is seeing a big difference with tryptophan and timed-release melatonin, low serotonin is the likely root cause of her insomnia or at least one of the root causes. We always want to capitalize on what is already working. Too many people don’t see expected results with 1 x 500mg tryptophan at bedtime and 1mg timed-release melatonin and start looking for other solutions when the answer may be right in front of them.

Here are the steps I’d follow with a client with similar sleep challenges:

  • Try more tryptophan, increasing it slowly over the course of a few weeks in the hope that it more will provide more serotonin support. This is what I call an amino acid trial where you rate and log your improvements as you incrementally increase – with the goal of finding an optimal amount for your needs. We all have different needs and post menopause it’s not uncommon for women to experience anxiety, depression and insomnia related to low serotonin and fluctuating sex hormones. We also always want to capitalize on what is already working.
  • Also, to add to what’s working, add tryptophan mid-afternoon if it’s not already in place. When someone scores high on the low serotonin questionnaire the typical timing of tryptophan is mid-afternoon and an hour before bed (always away from protein). Serotonin levels start to decline mid-afternoon hence the benefits of a mid-afternoon dose. Start low and increase slowly.
  • I would also suggest trying the tryptophan opened up (at both times) to see if this makes a difference.
  • Taking a tryptophan at the 4am waking can help you go back to sleep so this is worth trying. For some people 500mg at 4am is too much and using 125mg or 250mg works well. You determine the amount based on how you feel when you do get up. If you were able to go back to sleep easily buy wake groggy then it’s too much.
  • Some people are reporting better results with Lidtke Tryptophan Complete (which has all the co-factor nutrients) so this may be worth trialing too. I’d start by adding to what is already in place.
  • If we get benefits with any of the above by are not quite there then I would suggest additional timed-release melatonin until sleep improves.

This is always done slowly and methodically over the course of a few weeks. I always have my clients carefully log what they try and what is working and not working.

Other factors we’d make sure are addressed:

  • What GABA was used, was it trialed (starting low and increased) and was it used sublingually?
  • Is high cortisol at night a factor? Doing an adrenal saliva test will provide the answer. If it is then the Interplexus Seriphos is the best for lowering it. It’s best to take 1-3 x Seriphos about 2-3 hours before the high cortisol.  [UPDATE: INTERPLEXUS SERIPHOS WAS REFORMULATED IN 2016 – PLEASE SEE BELOW FOR MORE ON THIS]
  • Is gut health a factor? Look into SIBO, gluten sensitivity, other food sensitivities, dysbiosis and parasites (which are often active in the early hours and can cause night sweats)
  • Is there a sex hormone imbalance? Even with someone way past menopause, the night sweats mean this should be ruled out. The addition of amino acids starts to balance the hormones but more support may be needed.  
  • Is any caffeine (even decaf) still being consumed?
  • Is blood sugar stable? Make sure to have breakfast with animal protein and healthy fats and the same at each meal and for snacks. Consider a trial of glutamine during the day and just before bed for added blood sugar stability
  • Are medications a factor? Current medications or prior use of benzodiazepines or SSRIs can affect sleep even long after they have been tapered.
  • Is sleep apnea a factor?

We also address all the usual sleep hygiene factors: dark room, cool room, quiet room, no cell phone or clock radio on the bedside table, no late night computer use and getting some early morning light.

Many essential oils can provide added benefits when diffused at night or mixed with a carrier oil and used topically. One lovely combination I share on the Essential Oils Revolution 2 (happening now) is lavender, roman chamomile and neroli which helps both insomnia and anxiety.

There can be many other possible root causes of insomnia: autoimmunity, Lyme disease, pain, past trauma or grief and even genetic polymorphisms, all covered on the recent Sleep Success Summit.

Have you used tryptophan or other amino acids like GABA (for the more physical tension) and melatonin to reduce or eliminate early morning waking episodes?

If you’re a practitioner, have you helped your clients/patients with this methodical approach?

What else has helped you?

Update August 27, 2016 : INTERPLEXUS SERIPHOS HAS BEEN REFORMULATED -I am doing research to find suitable alternatives. For now, feel free to read through the comments below for discussions about this.  Once I have some useful information I’ll create a new blog post. 

Update November 18, 2016: Here are some possible alternatives to Seriphos

Update January 20, 2017: The Original Formula of Seriphos has been reintroduced you can read more about this here

 

Lavender, roman chamomile, and neroli essential oils for anxiety and sleep

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Lavender, roman chamomile, and neroli essential oils for anxiety and sleep

Lavender, roman chamomile, and neroli essential oils have been found to be beneficial for anxiety and sleep in patients going through a surgical procedure. 

The aromatherapy blend was in a ratio of 6 :  2 : 0.5  for lavender: roman chamomile: neroli.  

Participants received 10 treatments before percutaneous coronary intervention/PCI (formerly known as angioplasty with stent) and the same essential oil blend was inhaled another 10 times after the procedure.

Here are the details of the study: Effects of aromatherapy on the anxiety, vital signs, and sleep quality of percutaneous coronary intervention patients in intensive care units

The purpose of this study was to investigate the effects of aromatherapy on the anxiety, sleep, and blood pressure (BP) of percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI) patients in an intensive care unit (ICU). Fifty-six patients with PCI in ICU were evenly allocated to either the aromatherapy or conventional nursing care.

Outcome measures patients’ state anxiety, sleeping quality, and BP (blood pressure).

The aromatherapy group showed significantly low anxiety and improving sleep quality compared with conventional nursing intervention.

If these surgical patients could see these results imagine how these essential oils could help you if you suffer from anxiety and/or sleep issues.

Join us on the Essential Oils Revolution 2 to hear me cover this and  and other essential oils combinations for anxiety and insomnia.

essential-oils-revolution-banner

Here is the summit registration link:
https://qt247.isrefer.com/go/EOR16reg/trudyscottcn/

Have you found that this combination helps you with anxiety and sleep?  What ratio works for you?

 

Sleep restriction for insomnia – Dr. Breus on the Sleep Success Summit

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sleep-success-summit

As you probably know, insomnia is often a big issue if you have anxiety and/or depression. I like to address low serotonin, low GABA and low blood sugar for the sleep and mood issues but sleep issues can be caused by so many factors.

The Sleep Success summit addresses so many of these other factors: the adrenals, the thyroid, the gut, hormone health (all of which can impact sleep), plus topics on sleep apnea (and the inflammation connection), MTHFR, autoimmunity, using essential oils, sleep problems we see in kids and so much more.

sleep-summit-speakers

Dr. Michael Breus is the host of the summit and is interviewed by Sean Croxton: “An Interview with The Sleep Doctor.” He shares:

We know that when people aren’t able to stay asleep or fall asleep there is always some type of a mental component, either anxiety or depression (60-70% of the time)

There are just not a lot of people out there treating insomnia other than just prescribing pills and I’m not a big fan of that. Now you have two problems – you have a sleep problem and you have a pill problem.

I learned something new listening to Dr. Breus’ interview. He uses an evidence-based technique called “sleep restriction” to help his patients with insomnia.   He says it trains your brain to know when to sleep and it works for about 50% of his patients.   When the “sleep restriction” technique isn’t enough he uses cognitive behavior therapy to help with the negative thoughts and worry around the lack of sleep and supplements. He does use medications short-term (a few weeks only) to break the insomnia cycle.

I’m so intrigued by this “sleep restriction” method that I went looking for the research and found this study published just last month: 70% of the women receiving cognitive behavioral therapy for insomnia (CBT-I) said they had no more insomnia after 8 weeks and 84% said they had no more insomnia after 24 weeks!

A randomized clinical trial was conducted among 106 perimenopausal or postmenopausal women aged 40 to 65 years with moderate insomnia symptoms and 2 or more daily hot flashes.

Telephone-based cognitive behavioral therapy for insomnia (CBT-I) – which included sleep restriction, stimulus control, sleep hygiene education, cognitive restructuring, and behavioral homework – was compared to menopause education MEC/ information about menopause and women’s health.

At 8 and 24 weeks, 33 of 47 women (70%) and 37 of 44 (84%) in the CBT-I group, had scores in the no-insomnia range, compared with 10 of 41 (24%) and 16 of 37 (43%) in the MEC group.

Dr. Breus’ expertise is CBT-I and he is new to the naturopathic and nutritional world so we do have some professional differences of opinion, like buying Cosco magnesium (I would suggest looking for a quality product just like I do with all supplments) and avoiding 5-HTP and melatonin (although I do agree we do need to be informed consumers when using them).  The good news is that because he’s new to this he does ask great in-depth questions of the experts on the summit.

Other great interviews to check out:

  • Ben Lynch, ND – Are Your Genes Affecting Your Ability to Sleep?
  • Izabella Wentz, PharmD, FASCP – Getting to the Root Cause of Hypersomnia and Thyroid Fatigue
  • Magdalena Wszelaki, HHC – Your Hormones Could Be Affecting Your Sleep
  • Alan Christianson, NMD – Heal Your Adrenals and Get Better Sleep
  • Daniel Kalish, DC – How Sleep Influences Functional Medicine
  • Amy Myers, MD – Sleep, Functional Medicine and Autoimmune Function
  • Eric L. Zielinski, DC, MPH(c), BA – Sleep and Essential Oils: What’s the Connection?
  • Emily Fletcher – How Meditation Cured my Insomnia!
  • David Wolfe – How Your Environment Could Be Affecting Sleep! (Earthing and grounding for better sleep + Analyzing your environment to sleep better)

You can REGISTER HERE

You can PURCHASE HERE (it’s summit special pricing until the summit ends) 

I’d love to know if you’ve ever done cognitive behavioral therapy for insomnia (CBT-I) and if it helped you?   Is yes did it include all of the following: sleep restriction, stimulus control, sleep hygiene education, cognitive restructuring, and behavioral homework? Please share in the comments.

GABA the calming amino acid: common questions I get asked

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gaba-faq

GABA is the main calming neurotransmitter and the amino acid GABA is wonderful for boosting low levels of GABA and thereby eliminating physical anxiety, tension, panic attacks and overwhelm. It can also help reduce pain and insomnia. I get asked great questions about GABA on the blog all the time and here are some common questions that you may find helpful.

A question about GABA, tyrosine and other neurotransmitter imbalances

GABA Calm – who can take this as it has tyrosine? Can someone with low serotonin or high serotonin take this? Or is it best to take straight GABA for those who are not meant to take tyrosine. Can a person who has low GABA have other neurotransmission issues i.e. high dopamine or low serotonin?

Here is my response: The GABA Calm (by Source Naturals)  has a very small amount of tyrosine so unless it’s contraindicated it’s the one I use with most of my clients. You would not use it if you have melanoma or Grave disease and would watch carefully if you have high blood pressure or migraines. You can read all the amino acid precautions here.

Many people with low GABA levels may also have signs of the other low neurotransmitters. The best way to figure this out is to do the amino acid questionnaire and do a trial of the relevant amino acid. 

You mention high serotonin and high dopamine so I’m guessing you have had the urinary neurotransmitter test done. I’d like to share that I don’t place much value in urinary neurotransmitter testing and prefer to have my clients do a trial.

A question about GABA, getting a red flush and migraines

I’ve had lifelong migraines along with anxiety and depression that have waxed and waned. I’d like to try the aminos and curious if you have any special recommendations or contraindications for migraine with aura.

I’ve tried GABA in the past but ended up with a red flush like a niacin flush. Any ideas on why that might have happened? I suspect maybe the dose was too high. I wanted to try the GABA Calm since it has a low dose of GABA but I’m not sure if tyrosine is a potential migraine trigger.

Would love a little enlightenment on all the above so I’m not so gun shy and doing more harm than good.

Here is my response: Tyrosine is an issue with migraines and I avoid it with clients with a lifelong history of them especially if they are still having them (please see the precautions). If they choose to try a product with tyrosine they simply stop if a migraine is triggered.

Too much GABA can cause a flush and breathlessness. I find this to be case when 500mg or 750 mg and above is used to start. I have my clients start on the 125mg found in GABA Calm and slowly build up.

When Calm Calm can’t be taken opening a capsule of a GABA-only product is what we do. You can find the GABA/theanine product I use here. Some of my clients are pixie dust people and need 1/10th of capsule or 200mg GABA so starting low is important for everyone but even more so if you have had a reaction in the past.

Don’t forget that 1000mg of vitamin C can help to negate the effects of an amino acid. Hopefully this will give you more confidence to do a trial.

A question about SIBO/candida and GABA and 5-HTP

What do you do or recommend for people with SIBO/ yeast Overgrowth and can’t sleep well as a result (can’t stay asleep)? I have played with 5-HTP and GABA in the past, but they seemed to have the opposite effect (caused more insomnia). I have read that with overgrowth issues, these products can travel down the wrong metabolic pathway. Have you found this in your clients?

Here is my response: The amino acids will only help with sleep if neurotransmitters are low i.e. GABA will help if GABA is low, 5-HTP or tryptophan will help if serotonin is low. There is actually a great study that shows that a combination of GABA and 5-HTP may help insomnia.

If they are making sleep worse I’d wonder if doses are too high, and I’d look at quality and fillers. I’d also do a trial with tryptophan as 5-HTP can be an issue with high cortisol and this could impact sleep.

Tryptophan can convert to quinolinic acid without the correct co-factors, so taking zinc, curcumin and B vitamins etc. are important. Some people find the Lidtke Tryptophan Complete to be more helpful that the 500mg Tryptophan if they don’t have the co-factors as part of their current protocol.

It goes without saying that foods that make SIBO and candida symptoms worse should be avoided as they may cause bloating and would keep you awake.

With insomnia I’d also look at the following: low blood sugar, parasites, high cortisol, gluten, being on the computer, prior or current benzodiazepine prescriptions.

GABA, new found peace and a woman’s cycle

I have taken your recommendations I heard you speak about on your most recent Anxiety Summit about GABA – and have been experiencing some new found peace that I thought was forever lost to me. It has been truly wonderful! Thank you! I have a question – in your experience, have you found that different levels/amounts of GABA were needed at different times in a woman’s cycle? I would be interested to know if there is any research or observational data related to GABA receptors and how they are affected by the hormonal ups and downs – AND how to respond to that with supplementation and/or food and lifestyle adjustments.

Here is my response: I love this – new found peace! Thanks for stopping by and sharing. GABA is closely related to progesterone which we know fluctuates during our cycles so for some people mirroring this can help even more i.e. some of my clients find it’s beneficial to take extra GABA just before their period or when anxiety symptoms increase.

I have not seen any research on GABA supplementation in the 2nd half of the cycle (luteal phase) but recently blogged about how tryptophan helps PMS symptoms of anxiety, tension and irritability.

If you asked one of these questions on the blog – thank you! I get to learn and now we get to help others who may have similar questions.

I hope these have been helpful for you personally if you are taking GABA or trialing GABA or if you’ve had less than idea results or are wanting to fine-tune for even better results.

If you work with the amino acids with clients or patients, I hope these questions also help you and them.

If you have a question please go ahead and ask it in the comments.

Tryptophan for anxiety, sleep and mood: in Put Anxiety Behind You

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put-anxiety-behind-you

Tryptophan is an amino acid I use with clients all the time. If you have the low serotonin symptoms of anxiety, worry, depression, insomnia, PMS, TMJ, anger issues, winter blues and afternoon/evening cravings, tryptophan can provide relief very quickly, provided you use a quality tryptophan product and find the right amount for your unique needs. I do a trial of each amino acid with my clients.

Dr. Peter Bongiorno, ND, a doctor of naturopathic medicine, also uses tryptophan with his patients. Here is an excerpt on tryptophan from his newest book Put Anxiety Behind You: The Complete Drug-Free Program:

Tryptophan (sometimes referred to as L-tryptophan) is a naturally derived amino acid that serves as a precursor to the neurotransmitter serotonin, which is needed to help you stay asleep. Low levels of tryptophan contribute to generalized anxiety and panic attacks. Back in the early 1990s, a laboratory I was associated with at Yale University performed “tryptophan depletion studies” and which volunteers who were already prone to anxiety were put on a tryptophan-free diet. Within days, these people were extremely anxious, panicky and unstable – and they had lots of trouble staying asleep.

I usually give people 500 – 1,000 mg of tryptophan at bedtime, but I may dose up to 2,500 mg. Take tryptophan at bedtime with a slice of simple carbohydrate (like an apple slice) – the carbohydrate will increase insulin levels and insulin will promote tryptophan absorption in the brain. In my clinic I use a supplement called Tryptophan Calmplete, which includes B vitamins.

Although most conventional psychiatrists are afraid to mix natural medicines like tryptophan with conventional medications studies suggest that they can be safely combined. One eight-week randomized controlled trial of thirty patients with major depression combined 20 mg of Prozac (an SSRI medication) with 2,000 mg of tryptophan as daily treatment for major depressive disorder. This study demonstrated that combining tryptophan and an SSRI improved mood and helped patients stay asleep.

If you look up tryptophan on websites like WebMD, they are going to tell you that tryptophan is unsafe. The reason for this is because in the early 1990s there was an incident of Eosinophilia Myalgia Syndrome, a condition contracted by thirty people who most unfortunately got sick (and some died) after ingesting tryptophan supplements. This tragic event occurred because the company making the supplement had no quality controls, and allowed the introduction of bacteria. These deaths had nothing to do with tryptophan itself. My sense is that the folks behind conventional websites WebMD, who should be doing their homework, let these ideas persist on purpose. The drug companies who advertise with these websites then benefit from continuing the misinformation. I have taken tryptophan myself, have used it with family members and countless patients with absolutely no problem save for the side benefit of better sleep and mood.

This book is an excellent resource for anxiety, where addressing nutritional imbalances with a supplement such as tryptophan is part of the bigger picture of addressing sleep, doing thought work and mind-body work, balancing hormones and blood sugar, exercising, adopting a healthy real foods diet, and making sure you have a healthy digestive system.

He uses the analogy of a stool – when one of the legs or supports is weak, your health suffers.

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I’m a research-geek and love to be able to look at the studies so my only negative comment about the book is that all the studies mentioned in the text are not listed in the references and studies that are listed in the references are not numbered so they can be easily found in the text.

His other book Holistic Solutions for Anxiety and Depression: Combining Natural Remedies with Conventional Care is also excellent and is geared to therapists and other practitioners. You can read my review of that book here.

I had the pleasure of interviewing Dr. Bongiorno on The Anxiety Summit (season 3) – our topic: Serotonin and Anxiety, Happiness, Digestion and our Hormones. And I’m excited to share that he’ll be speaking on Season 4 of the Anxiety Summit. We’ll be taking a deeper dive into serotonin and tryptophan.

I also had the pleasure of meeting Dr. Bongiorno in person and hearing him present at the New York City Integrative Healthcare Symposium earlier this year.  

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Dr. Bongiorno is co-director of Inner Source Natural Health and Acupuncture in New York City. President of the New York Association of Naturopathic Physicians, he is a contributor to numerous blogs and online magazines, including DrOz.com and Sharecare.com, and is regularly interviewed as a natural medicine expert on national television and radio.

Dr. Bongiorno has been kind enough to offer a copy of Put Anxiety Behind You: The Complete Drug-Free Program as a giveaway. We’ll do a drawing and select one lucky reader and announce the winner next Friday. If you’d like to be entered in to the drawing simply comment below and share:

  • why you’d like to win the book
  • if you’ve used tryptophan and what results you saw/see
  • which section you’re most excited about reading and why (just go to the Amazon preview via this link and check out the table of contents and sections of the book)
  • which holistic approaches you already use personally or if you’re a practitioner, what you have used with your anxious patients/clients

5/12/16 UPDATE: Thanks for participating and commenting – the winner is Liz. We’ll contact you to get a mailing address and get a copy of the book to you! Enjoy it! 

If you missed out I encourage you to still check out the table of contents (with the look inside Amazon feature) and get the book if it feels like a fit for you. Check out the comments below to be inspired further.

Please share your feedback (and questions you may have) in the comments section below.