I have symptoms from both low GABA and low serotonin on your questionnaire. So I suspect I need to supplement with both. The main issues I have (anxiety, panic) are common to both deficiencies. I took a trial dose of 1 Gaba Calm and it seemed to help a bit. Should one continue increasing the dose of GABA or introduce some tryptophan next?
I am trying to avoid GABA side effects because now that I read your last post on tingling etc (which would be a huge trigger for me), I’m anxious about that.
I feel like adding a bit of tryptophan before increasing GABA and going up like that, one at a time. Versus going higher and higher with GABA since the symptoms are on both lists – in order to avoid overdoing it with one .
Does that make sense or do you still recommend doing one at a time (I just read on one of your blog posts that one should try one amino acid first before introducing another one)? Thank you!
Liz asked this great question on one of the blogs where I discuss how there can be an extremely large variation in dosing for GABA and how too much can cause a niacin-like flush and tingling.
Her concerns are very valid – especially for someone who is anxious – but I still recommend doing a trial of just one amino acid before introducing another. In today’s blog I share why this is my recommendation and why sometimes there is an exception to this recommendation (and how best to implement it).
My recommendation and her results
Liz is correct, I do always recommend doing a trial of one amino acid at a time before introducing the next one. I confirmed that this is still my recommendation and also reminded her that when “one GABA Calm seems to help a bit” it’s a positive sign. When I hear this it’s a big clue that you are on track and the next step is to continue to increase the GABA to determine if you’ll get even better results. I told her we are looking for a wow effect in a few days to weeks.
In case you’re wondering, she did increase just the GABA (without adding tryptophan) and shared “I’ve now increased to 2 GABA Calms and it helps a lot!”
With this kind of result she may decide to stay with just 2 GABA Calm or she may decide to increase yet again if this amount hasn’t substantially reduced her low GABA symptoms of physical tension, anxious thoughts, self-medicating with sugar or alcohol to relax, feelings of panic, pain etc. You can see all the low GABA symptoms here).
As always, I also reminded her what when you are new to the amino acids and other anxiety nutrition solutions like eating real whole food, quality animal protein, fermented foods, organic produce, healthy fats, gluten/sugar/caffeine removal, eating for blood sugar control, addressing gut health and pyroluria, my book “The Antianxiety Food Solution” is a great place to start. It’s a comprehensive approach – amino acids AND diet.
She has “been eating organic, gluten-free, whole foods for 10+ yrs” (this is a wonderful foundation). However the stress of the last few years has really gotten to her and she has been meaning to get my book to get some help with amino acids. Hopefully she now has a copy!
Why do I recommend doing a trial of one amino acid at a time before introducing the next one?
As she mentioned, she has overlaps with low GABA and low serotonin symptoms: “anxiety, panic.” This is not uncommon. Although they do differ – with low GABA it’s more physical and with low serotonin it’s more mental – it can often be challenging to figure out which neurotransmitter imbalance is the issue. Doing a trial of one of the amino acids and seeing/feeling the results provides the answer.
In this case, Liz discovered all or some of her anxiety was caused by low GABA levels. I say some, because it can be due to both low GABA and low serotonin. Once she has a good baseline of GABA and assuming she still has some lingering anxiety symptoms (and other low serotonin symptoms like PMS, anger, low mood, afternoon cravings etc – see them all here), she would then trial tryptophan without changing GABA dosing.
Laying in the tryptophan (after doing an initial trial) would help Liz know that low serotonin is also an issue for her.
And it would have all been challenging to figure out what was doing what had she done some GABA and some tryptophan and then more GABA and then more tryptophan.
Too much GABA and the adverse effects
Liz was understandably concerned about potential adverse effects of using too much GABA after reading this blog post: How much GABA should I use for my anxiety? It depends on your unique needs (and there is an extremely large variation in dosing). (This is the blog she commented on)
I’ve also published these blogs with similar messages:
- Too much GABA causes a tingling niacin-like flush sensation (in the brain and body). It’s awful and very uncomfortable!
- High dose GABA (750 mg) caused her to feel anxious and nervous with feelings of panic. She also felt agitated, flushed and hot
Learning about adverse effects like this may make you feel more anxious rather than educated and empowered – hence her question about using tryptophan. However, too much tryptophan can also increase feelings of anxiousness and keep you awake (and it’s going to complicate the trial).
Knowing about vitamin C as an antidote often helps mitigate some of the anxious feelings but when it doesn’t then there may be an exception.
Why there may be an exception to my recommendation (and how best to implement it).
Typically when someone has profound fears that hold them back and stop them from using any of the amino acids, my recommendation is always to start with serotonin support as it can allay fears, worry, obsessing and ruminations about possible adverse effects.
In a situation like Liz describes, if anxious thoughts and worrying prevents her from increasing GABA, we would discuss all of the above and I’d help her decide what to do next:
- Layer on tryptophan before she has found her ideal dose of GABA, without any change to GABA i.e. one change only. And then go from there to increase the GABA and eventually increase the tryptophan later if she needs to
- Stop GABA and switch to tryptophan only and then come back to GABA. It isn’t ideal to lose the gains experienced, even when GABA only “seems to help a bit.”
The good news is that Liz felt comfortable enough increasing the GABA and saw the benefits. This may not be the case for everyone and the above are some options to consider.
A few GABA product options – a sublingual, a powder and a cream
Liz used Source Naturals GABA Calm lozenges (a good low dose of 125 mg). It’s one of the many products I recommend. Another one is Now GABA Powder (which does need to be measured out to provide a 125 mg typical starting dose). Keep in mind, some individuals need less to start.
When using GABA powder I have clients use a handy mini measuring spoon like this one (my Amazon link) and share more about how to measure out GABA powder on this blog).
For Source Naturals GABA Calm lozenges and Now GABA Powder:
- You can purchase these from my online store (Fullscript – only available to US customers – use this link to set up an account).
- If you’re not in the US, you can purchase these at iherb (use this link to save 5%).
Somnium GABA Cream is available in the US and elsewhere with international shipping. Read more about the product and who may benefit from using a cream, and grab my coupon code to save 15%.
Additional resources when you are new to using GABA and other amino acids as supplements
As always, I use the symptoms questionnaire to figure out if low low GABA or other neurotransmitter imbalances may be an issue.
If you suspect low levels of any of the neurotransmitters and do not yet have my book, The Antianxiety Food Solution – How the Foods You Eat Can Help You Calm Your Anxious Mind, Improve Your Mood, and End Cravings, I highly recommend getting it and reading it before jumping in and using amino acids on your own so you are knowledgeable. And be sure to share it with the practitioner/health team you or your loved one is working with.
There is an entire chapter on the amino acids and they are discussed throughout the book in the sections on gut health, gluten, blood sugar control (this is covered in an entire chapter too), sugar cravings, anxiety and mood issues.
The book doesn’t include product names (per the publisher’s request) so this blog, The Antianxiety Food Solution Amino Acid and Pyroluria Supplements, lists the amino acids that I use with my individual clients and those in my group programs.
If, after reading this blog and my book, you don’t feel comfortable figuring things out on your own (i.e. doing the symptoms questionnaire and respective amino acids trials), a good place to get help is the GABA QuickStart Program (if you have low GABA symptoms). This is a paid online/virtual group program where you get my guidance and community support.
If you are a practitioner, join us in The Balancing Neurotransmitters: the Fundamentals program. This is also a paid online/virtual program with an opportunity to interact with me and other practitioners who are also using the amino acids.
Wrapping up and your feedback
I appreciate Liz for asking this question. I do hope this information has been helpful for you and for her too.
Now I’d love to hear from you – does any of this resonate with you? Have you felt anxious or fearful about increasing your dose of GABA? And how did you resolve it?
If you’re a practitioner is this how you advise your clients/patients?
Feel free to share and ask your questions below.
Hello, I have been following you for years and appreciate the help you offer. I was in an mentally abusive work environment for the past year. My supervisor enjoys teasing people and even though I explained saying things like I need a shock collar, that they make medication for my racing thoughts , refusing my promised raise until I could prove I wouldn’t have another mental health episode and slamming the table yelling my name when I tried to talk was abusive to me but he wouldnt stop. Upper management are his friends and HR said I was using my BPD diagnoses as an excuse. I broke my tooth from stress and was having panic attacks. I started taking Gaba Calm and believed it helped a little. I added tryptophan and that was a nightmare. I couldn’t figure out why I was dead exhausted. After my son was diagnosed with a rare tumor I started following you and try to buy organic food and limit environmental toxins. I am also gluten-free but have been stress eating and am now pre-diabetic after being in remission after my gastric bypass in 2015.
I stopped the tryptophan and gaba for now. Praise God I now work in a supportive work environment but I’m still stressed having just started and there is a lot to learn. My mood has improved immensely. I still feel on edge and am thinking of using the gaba cream you suggested at night. I hate how quickly I get angry too because I feel I’m an empath and I hate this feeling. I have a great therapist but I still have a hard time relaxing. Any advice would be greatly appreciated. Thank you for all you do. I have not watched your videos because I have a very short attention span since moving to a new city 7 years ago. I’m not sure if that’s stress, being lonely in a “new” city ( I have not made many friends as I’ve been a “train wreck” since my son has been dealing with this awful tumor since 2015 and surgery to remove his humurus and scapula in 2020 and his constant pain and deep depression) or menopause. Thanks again.
Michelle
Gosh what a dreadfully toxic work environment. It should be reported!
With feeling on edge with tension we look at low GABA and many folks love the Somnium GABA cream. With feeling on edge that is more irritation and getting angry we look at low serotonin. Keep in mind folks do better on 5-HTP than tryptophan
I am sorry to hear about your son – hopefully one of the amino acids may help his pain and mood too
Hi Trudy,
Thanks for your amazing work!
Few weeks ago, I started with tryptophan (600mg late afternoon + 900mg before dinner + 600mg before bed) which worked wonderfully for anxiety & sleep for a week, and then stopped. Since then I’ve tried to increase the dose to close to 3g per day (split similarly into late afternoon, before dinner and bed), and decreasing the dose to 1g. However, this hasn’t worked, and I’ve gone through many of your articles and the Q&A to see if other people have had similar challenges but haven’t found anything (at least yet!).
I’d highly appreciate your high-level thoughts how would you find a solution here. My main challenge has been anxiety which has kept me up at nights.
I’ll also try out GABA to see if there is an effect alongside tryptophan.
Many thanks!
Teemu
In situations like this I look at factors that that may skew results – things like hormonal shifts (sex hormones and thyroid), gut issues (eg accidental gluten exposure), intake of collagen/gelatin (can lower serotonin), using vitamin C at the same time (it’s the antidote), diet (new foods, alcohol intake, gluten, used too close to protein etc) and have my client log any other changes (diet, supplements, location, EMFs, cosmetics etc) carefully so we can look for a pattern.
I also look at the tryptophan product itself – good quality professional grade is key (but shouldn’t stop working) and also fillers (a filler that aggravates gut health may affect sleep/anxiety and override any serotonin-boosting effects after using it for awhile).
May I ask which tryptophan product are you using?
Many thanks Trudy
I’ve used puhdas+ tryptophan (local producer / https://puhdasplus.fi/), it doesn’t have anything expect tryptophan. I also tried Life Extension’s which I felt didn’t work so well for me. I’ll receive lidtke’s I think in few days, so will test it out as well. I started using quicksilver’s liposomal GABA 2-3x 125mg daily which I think has been positive – Do you know if the phosphatidylcholine in it affects sleep / dreams as I stopped remembering dreams after started taking it? I also tested supplementing with P5P 25mg (during lunch for pyroluria) which made me too alert to sleep next night so didn’t continue (did this with 30mg zinc which I haven’t taken since).
I removed gluten c.1.5months ago and feel my digestive system has been working (really) well since. I’m not taking any collagen, gelatin, Vitamin C, nor drinking alcohol. I have waveguide’s qi shield EMF device at home which I think is the most studied in the market. I’m taking grass-fed liver supplement (c.1g), Rosita’s cod liver oil (1tbs), hypereleon’s olive oil (1tbs), LYMA health supplement (2-4x), 300mcg melatonin and Natriumhealth’s Sleep support (lemon balm 500mg, bacopa monnieri 200mg, uridine monophosphate 200mg, oleamide 100mg, primavie shilajit 100mg). I only use parfum and deostick, and live in Helsinki.
I’ll check hormones again (last time / 6months ago both were in range). I’ll also start taking tryptophan earlier before dinner (have taken c.15min before). I’ll also go back to not eating any dairy to see how it will impact.
I’ll report back once testing these out – thanks very much again for your answer, and if you have any further ideas here
Hi Trudy,
Lidtke is not available in my country, I can only get what is available on iherb. Is there any other acceptable brand of Tryptophan?
Tess
Lidtke products can be shipped – may I ask which country and if they have said they don’t ship there?
It’s a matter of trialing a few different products (I would skip Source Naturals Tryptophan – I’ve seen less than ideal results with this one). Please keep us posted on which one works for you and how it helps. And feel free to use my link as it helps supports this work I do https://www.iherb.com/?rcode=BAN2021)
Hi Trudy!
I did the questionnaire and I feel I have both low serotonin and GABA. I have OCD and compulsive hand washing/fear of germs that I now believe is a trauma response (PTSD). I have tried 250 and 500mg of Lidkte tryptophan opened on the tongue. 250 I did not feel anything but later in the day my OCD got worse. With the 500mg I did maybe feel a very slight lift but I got a headache and lightheaded and also had a very bad evening that day. I then went to 5-htp. I use the Natrol brand as that is what our health store had in stock. First time I did 25mg on the tongue and got a headache; second time tried to swallowed a whole 50mg capsule (headache came on later but not real change in mood ; and a few hours after had a bad OCD episode). I was a bit worried to open a whole capsule on my tongue due to the effects of the others. Would this all indicate I do not need either one or is it worth still exploring? I wasn’t sure because of the headache/lightheadedness. I did look online and it said it could happen for 7-10 days as the body adjust to the new levels of serotonin but I trust you more 😉
I did today try the Natural Factors PharmaGABA chewable. I started with 1 and felt a bit lighter so I added another. Not much change though but at least no headache or lightheaded feeling and some of the tension in my shoulders has let up (I feel like it’s been a good 18 months since that has happened). No sure which way to go from here. I would love to help with the OCD thoughts and fears but with the reaction of the supplements not sure if I should keep going with those. I also have DFH inositol powder so maybe start there with the OCD?
Would love to know our thoughts on this. I really want to get this more under control while I am doing therapy and preferably without medications.
Nichole
As mentioned in my other comment too much tryptophan/5-HTP can cause opposite effects. We also do an initial one-off trial to see if other low serotonin symptoms improve or get worse with whatever dose we use. And we methodically trial increasing and/or decreasing either tryptophan or 5-HTP and then the other (over a good few weeks) before adding in GABA support or adding inositol.
This is not the case with tryptophan and 5-HTP : “7-10 days as the body adjust to the new levels of serotonin”
Also there is GABA vs pharmaGABA and some do better on one vs the other.
With OCD there is also gluten issues and PANADS/PANS to consider and rule out