GABA

GABA Oolong tea in children with autism: improvements in sensorimotor skills, autism profiles, anxiety and sleep (new research)

December 2, 2022 By Trudy Scott 14 Comments

A small feasibility study, A double-blind, placebo-controlled, randomised-designed GABA tea study in children diagnosed with autism spectrum conditions, explored the effect of drinking GABA Oolong tea on sensorimotor skills, autism profiles, anxieties and sleep of children with autism.

It was a very small study with nine children (5 male and 4 female) but the results were very promising… “significant improvement in manual dexterity and some large individual improvements in balance, sensory responsivity, DSM-5 criteria and cortisol levels with GABA tea.”

In addition to reducing anxiety (in all but one participant – more on that below), the paper lists the following additional information related to sensory issues, cortisol levels and sleep:

Results also demonstrated that sensory responsivity improved in two-thirds of the participants and autism symptomology decreased in over half, with four of these individuals being positively re-classified on the DSM-5 scale
Differences between evening and morning cortisol levels, deemed the ‘carryover’ effect and cortisol awakening levels were also decreased in over two thirds of the participants, which we attribute to a reduction in stress response which may have helped to reduce sensorimotor responsivity in individuals with autism.
Contrary to our hypotheses, GABA Oolong tea did not appear to impact sleep, with no discernible differences noted in a range of sleep parameters compared with the placebo, despite parents’ subjective reports that their children appeared to sleep more deeply.

They conclude as follows … “These results suggest that sensorimotor abilities, anxiety levels and DSM-5 symptomology of children with autism can benefit from the administration of GABA in the form of Oolong tea.”

What is GABA Oolong tea?

When I shared this study and results on Facebook, I had a few people ask if they could simply add the amino acid GABA to their Oolong tea: “Is it just brewed tea with GABA powder added? Or does someone make a specific tea? I can totally add some GABA to my daily tea.”

It’s not regular oolong tea with GABA added, instead it’s specially fermented to increase GABA levels naturally. Amber GABA Oolong tea by Meileaf is the actual tea used in the study and they share this on the product page.

The farmers achieve this by alternating the leaves between air and a nitrogen rich environment (with no air) during the oxidation phase. This is done over a matter of hours and naturally increases the GABA levels in the tea leaves.

They also share this: “In order to be called GABA tea, the leaves must contain at least 150 mg of GABA per 100g (normal oolong has about 6 mg so that is 25 times higher).”

GABA Oolong tea does also contain theanine, caffeine and epigallocatechin gallate. There is a large part of the study dedicated to theanine so feel free to read that at your leisure.

How much GABA was ingested by study participants?

It was a surprisingly low dose of GABA! They were given 4 cups a day of the GABA Oolong tea and this provided a total of 39.2mg GABA for the day. The authors share this about the amount of daily GABA the study participants received:

With the GABA Oolong tea the dose would be approximately 280 mg per 100 g tea. Based on using 3.5 g per tea portion this equates to 9.8 mg of GABA; multiplied by 4 throughout the day, being 39.2 mg of GABA.

I’ve reached out to confirm which tea was used in the study since Meileaf mentions that this tea contains 205 mg of GABA per 100 g whereas the study states there was 280 mg GABA per 100 g tea. I see consistency with assessing GABA levels accurately being a possible issue (more on that below).

One of the first questions I had was how could such a small amount – 39.2 mg GABA for the day – be so effective? I typically have clients start with 125 mg GABA and they may end up using this dose 3 or 4 x day (so 375 to 500 mg GABA total for the day.)

That said, we are all unique and as I’ve shared, there can be an extremely large variation in dosing. In this blog I share how Syd gets sleep and body anxiety benefits with just 1.5 mg to 3 mg GABA and yet Christina’s agoraphobic client was able to leave the house with 3000 mg GABA.

My other questions: the placebo, caffeine, a histamine reaction, low cortisol and B1 depletion

With new research there are always many factors to consider and I have a number of other questions I’d love to see addressed:

Why did the placebo tea also contain GABA? It had 22.2 mg per day of GABA – about half that found in the GABA Oolong tea.
GABA Oolong tea does contain small amounts of caffeine and how would this affect susceptible individuals? One child was more anxious – was it due to caffeine or was it too much GABA for his needs or a histamine reaction due to the fermentation process (or something else)?
Do we need to be concerned about long term use and depletion of vitamin B1/thiamine which happens with regular tea.
And what about the effects if someone already has low cortisol levels?
Will there be standard levels and accurate measures of GABA in the various GABA Oolong teas that we can rely on? This applies to consumers and practitioners wanting to try this approach and for ongoing research.
How much of the effect was also due to addressing dehydration and helping with dietary oxalate issues which are known to be common in autism?

Hopefully new ongoing research with more participants will shed light on some of these questions.

I’d also love to see head to head research comparing GABA Oolong tea with supplementation of the amino acid GABA, and a study where both are used for possible synergistic effects.

I do appreciate that the authors attempt to address the GABA blood brain barrier (BBB) debate and how GABA could work, focusing on a permeable blood brain barrier in epilepsy and increased epilepsy in autism. This angle is new to me. I’ve addressed the leaky BBB at length here in my interview with Dr. Kharrazian (it’s a theory) and one of my interviews on a prior Anxiety Summit (there are many possible mechanisms and the peripheral effects).

If you’re new to symptoms of low GABA (and cases highlighting the calming effects of the amino acid GABA used as as a supplement)

GABA (gamma aminobutyric acid) is a calming neurotransmitter and the calming amino acid GABA used as a supplement can raise GABA levels. With low GABA levels you’ll feel a physical-tension and stiff-and-tense-muscles type of anxiety.

The other symptoms we see with low GABA are panic attacks, physical tension in certain settings like public speaking or driving, and the need to self-medicate to calm down, often with alcohol but sometimes with carbs and sugary foods. Insomnia can also be due to low GABA and you’ll experience physical tension (rather than the ruminating thoughts which is the low serotonin type of insomnia – although it’s not uncommon to experience both). GABA also helps with muscle spasms and pain relief when muscles are tight.

Here are are some case studies where you can read about the calming effects (and other benefits) of the amino acid GABA used as as a supplement:

Resources if you are new to using GABA and other amino acids as supplements

If you are new to using GABA or any of the other amino acids as supplements, here is the Amino Acids Mood Questionnaire from The Antianxiety Food Solution (you can see all the symptoms of neurotransmitter imbalances, including low GABA and low serotonin).

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, sugar cravings, self-medicating with alcohol and more.

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. You can find them all in my online store.

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.

Have you used GABA Oolong tea with clients/patients or personally? How much and what benefits have you seen? Which product have you used?

If you’ve also used the amino acid GABA sublingually and with success, I’d love to hear how much (and which product) and how it compares with GABA Oolong tea for anxiety, insomnia, sensorimotor skills and/or autism symptoms (as applicable to you, your child or other family member and/or your client/patient)?

If you have questions please share them here too.

A weighted blanket increases pre-sleep salivary concentrations of melatonin in young, healthy adults – a new study

October 28, 2022 By Trudy Scott 7 Comments

A new paper published earlier this month, A weighted blanket increases pre-sleep salivary concentrations of melatonin in young, healthy adults provides yet another mechanism supporting the benefits of a weighted blanket for improving sleep and also reducing anxiety – an increase in melatonin. The authors share that “Weighted blankets have emerged as a potential non-pharmacological intervention to ease conditions such as insomnia and anxiety. Despite a lack of experimental evidence, these alleged effects are frequently attributed to a reduced activity of the endogenous stress systems and an increased release of hormones such as oxytocin and melatonin.”

Here are some of the details from the study:

It was a small in-laboratory crossover study and included 26 young and healthy participants (15 men and 11 women)
The heavier weighted blanket was about 12% of their body weight
The following were measured: “salivary concentrations of the stress hormone cortisol, salivary alpha-amylase activity (as an indicative metric of sympathetic nervous system activity), subjective sleepiness, and sleep duration.”

The only difference found was a 1 hour increase of salivary melatonin from 10pm to lights off at 11pm. It was about 32% higher when using the heavier weighted blanket.

No other differences were found in terms of subjective sleepiness and total sleep duration.

The study concludes as follows:

Our study is the first to suggest that using a weighted blanket may result in a more significant release of melatonin at bedtime. Future studies should investigate whether the stimulatory effect on melatonin secretion is observed on a nightly basis when frequently using a weighted blanket over weeks to months. It remains to be determined whether the observed increase in melatonin may be therapeutically relevant for the previously described effects of the weighted blanket on insomnia and anxiety.

The authors only identified an increase in pre-sleep melatonin in this study. But keep in mind these limitations of the study: participants did not have insomnia or anxiety, and they were young (and melatonin declines as we age). The authors didn’t find an improvement in subjective feedback on better sleep and they did not measure subjective changes in anxiety levels – which I don’t find surprising.

However, as you’ll read below, many individuals in my community responded favorably when I posted this new study on Facebook, sharing how using their weighted blankets does improve their sleep and reduce their anxiety. I share some of the anecdotal feedback below.

Feedback from real people: improved sleep, calm body, soothing and less anxiety

Here is some of the feedback from folks in my Facebook community:

Krys shares this: Ever since I started using a weighted blanket my sleep has improved. I think I need a heavier one. I believe the one I have is only 12 lbs. I was born in Poland, and we always had very heavy covers. Usually feather filled comforters, which made me feel secure and helped with sleep. I have a lot of past trauma and did not notice the weighted blanket to be confining.

Christine shares this “I love my weighted blanket and sleep much better with it. I definitely sleep more soundly…less waking up. I bought it about 3 months ago and plan to use it year round. It is a faux fur glass bead filled one….it is super flexible and I can tuck it in and around all the nooks and crannies around my body. I considered a flatter, more stiff one but preferred the tucking option.” Christine’s weighted blanket is 15lbs and she plans to use an electric blanket to warm it up in winter (and switch it off /unplug it, before getting into bed).

Courtney shares this: “I started with a 12lb, then 20lb, now I have a 25lb one lol. I absolutely love my weighted blanket and can not sleep without it…I use it year round, it’s not hot but yet keeps you warm. And I feel like the weight keeps you from tossing and turning as much. It feels like a hug lol.” The hug comment makes me wonder if they provide endorphin support too.

MaryKatherine shares this: “Wow that is seriously amazing. They definitely help me. I love weighted blankets…I feel almost instant calm in my body when I use weighted blankets. It does take 10-15 min for full effect.”

Tana shares this: “I love my weighted blanket. It helps me relax. I sleep so much better.”

And then she shared this: “After this post I thought I should let my teenage daughter try my weighted blanket . She has anxiety and poor sleep habits. She loved it. I will be ordering her one.” How wonderful is this?

Brenda shares this: “Love mine… I find it helps my AM anxiety. I’m kind of a hot sleeper, so I can’t keep it on for long, but I pull it up in the early morning, and it just gives a nice feeling of safety almost. I know a guy who does this with his dog when he’s having PTSD anxiety attacks.”

Willow shares this: “I have a cooling weighted blanket that I use all year. It is completely magical. I bought it hoping to sleep better but I didn’t expect it to be so incredibly soothing. Mine is 100% organic bamboo with glass beads. I find the cooling cover perfect all year. I honestly LOVE this improvement in my life.”

Katie shares this: “I love mine! I got one for each of my kids too. For my son I got a lighter one for kids, though he prefers my heavier adult blanket. He has ADHD and anxiety and really loves the weight. We all sleep deeper and fall asleep faster. Sometimes I use mine during the day when anxiety is especially high and it helps to calm my nervous system.”

Many folks are going to need additional nutritional support for their anxiety and insomnia

One person shared this: “I love my weighted blankets but it took awhile to get used to the heaviness on me… It’s not a miracle particularly if my stress and anxiety is much higher but I’d rather have it then not. It’s more helpful if I’m calmer.”

I agree. Many folks are going to need additional nutritional support for their anxiety and insomnia. This is where my work with addressing low GABA and low serotonin comes into play. Also, we may need to consider high cortisol and always need to address gut health, diet, caffeine/sugar/gluten intake, parasites, EMFs and everything covered in my book “The Antianxiety Food Solution.”

Here are a few (of many) useful resources from the blog:

Feel free to use the search feature to find additional anxiety and sleep resources and success stories.

Resources if you are new to using GABA, tryptophan and other amino acids as supplements

If you are new to using any of the amino acids as supplements, here is the Amino Acids Mood Questionnaire from The Antianxiety Food Solution (you can see all the symptoms of neurotransmitter imbalances, including low GABA and low serotonin).

Have you had success with a weighted blanket …for sleep issues and anxiety?

If you have seen these benefits with a weighted blanket:

I’m also curious if you’ve observed reductions in sugar cravings, less anger issues, less irritability, less PMS symptoms, less negativity and less worry and panic attacks? These are all symptoms of low serotonin. I suspect that if there is an increase in melatonin there may also be an increase in serotonin (which is used to make melatonin).
Have you noticed any other benefits?
Be sure to share which weighted blanket you have, what percentage of your weight it is, and how often you use it.
Have some of the nutritional approaches helped too?

If you have not seen benefits or didn’t like using one, please feel free to share your experiences.

If you’re a practitioner, do you recommend a weighted blanket to your clients/patients?

If you have questions please share them here too.

Urinary neurotransmitter testing reports elevated GABA when it’s really low: using the low GABA symptoms and a trial of GABA is best

September 23, 2022 By Trudy Scott 4 Comments

Francoise posted this feedback and her surprise about her elevated GABA levels – as reported on a urinary neurotransmitter test. She was justifiably confused because she had looked at the low GABA symptoms and resonated with them i.e. physical anxiety/tension, stiff and tense muscles, stress eating, self-medicating with alcohol, insomnia and intrusive thoughts etc:

I previously bought Gaba Calm after reading your blog since my symptoms seemed to match your description [of low GABA].

However, I recently did an exhaustive neurotransmitter test to realize that it was the exact opposite, having a significantly high level of GABA.

Unfortunately, I’ve looked all over the internet after talking to my doctor, and it seems that no one knows how to downregulate GABA.

Not sure what to do from there, but thought I should let you know that the situation exists despite not being common.

I posted this feedback for her: I do not use urinary neurotransmitter testing as it’s not accurate. I use the low GABA symptoms questionnaire and we do a trial of GABA if low GABA symptoms are present.

She said it perfectly – “I previously bought Gaba Calm after reading your blog since my symptoms seemed to match your description” i.e. it’s very likely she does in fact have low GABA symptoms and if we were working together I’d have her do trial of GABA.

I did ask her what her doctor and the lab recommended and to share the name of the lab/test and have yet to hear back. I will share when I do.

Someone else also had the neurotransmitter report high GABA so she stopped taking her GABA supplements

When I shared Francoise’s comment and my feedback on Facebook, I had someone share a very similar outcome. Kristin had already figured out that she had low GABA levels (based on the symptoms questionnaire), was already taking GABA with good results and was then told to stop taking GABA because the urinary neurotransmitter test reported elevated GABA levels!

This is what Kristin shared on Facebook: “I just did the neurotransmitter test. It said I was high in GABA as well, so I stopped taking it.”

These were the questions I asked her: Why were you taking GABA at the time – was it because you had/have low GABA symptoms and was GABA helping to ease these symptoms? I also asked which lab did the test and what her practitioner recommended? She shared the following:

I was taking GABA for anxiety. It was helping. .

My doctor recommended that I stop the GABA and use supplements to support the areas I was low in, which were: Dopamine, Norepinephrine, Epinephrine, and Serotonin (was VERY low).

Doctor’s Data is the company. And it wasn’t a cheap test.

I was surprised that even though GABA was helping Kristin, the doctor said to stop using it. What does also concern me too is that supporting dopamine, norepinephrine and epinephrine without supporting GABA can actually increase anxiety. I’ve seen this backfire a number of times.

After seeing my post and our Facebook back and forth she decided to start back on the GABA products she had been taking: GABA Calm 1-3 tablets a day and if she is struggling terribly with morning anxiety, then 1/2 to 1 tablet as needed. In the evening she takes 2 capsules of Neurocalm which has 100 mg of GABA (and some other ingredients).

Kristin confirmed that, once again, GABA was helping to ease her intrusive thoughts, anxiety and physical tension, all low GABA symptoms.

I said to Kristin that I’d reach out to Doctor’s Data and have done so. I shared all this and I am hoping to hear back from them. I’ll keep you posted when I do.

Kristin has offered to share this blog with her integrative doctor who prescribed this test. I’m hoping she does and you do too.

I appreciate both these women sharing their experiences so I can share with you.

Urinary neurotransmitter testing falls short and other practitioners weigh in too

I find many functional tests extremely useful and Doctor’s Data is well regarded in functional medicine. However, I do find it very unfortunate that so many practitioners continue to use and recommend this test when it’s not useful, doesn’t correlate with symptoms and so often causes confusion, like in these instances (which are just two of many similar cases). By the way, they are not the only lab offering urinary neurotransmitter testing.

Be sure to read this older blog: Urinary neurotransmitter testing falls short where I share more about why I’m not in favor of this testing.

This feedback from Nora Gedgaudas, author of Primal Body Primal Mind sums up what I often hear from other practitioners:

I have considered the urinary testing approach and was even enamored of the concept at first. Once I looked into the idea more closely, though, it just didn’t add up for me. I have been using amino acids now to address issues of mood, health and cognitive functioning for over 20 years. I have never used anything other than mood/symptomatic screening to guide amino acid supplementation. Results tend to be uniformly good to excellent. The sheer overwhelming complexity of amino acid/neurotransmitter activity in the human body/brain-and the compartmentalized nature of the biochemistry of each seems to best lend itself to a more functional and symptom-related evaluation. Lab testing simply falls short of the mark here.

A colleague and good friend of mine, Dr. Josh Friedman posted this in the comments section of the above blog post (back in 2014), further supporting what practitioners are reporting about this testing:

About a year ago I got excited about urinary neurotransmitter testing. I had been using Julia Ross’ pencil and paper neurotransmitter deficiency assessment for many years with good success. Over the past year I have done the neurotransmitter testing on about 10 people with very inconsistent results. With 2-3 we hit a home run, where the recommended supplements were just the right thing to diminish the presenting symptoms. More often than not the recommended supplements seemed to give little relief or even make the symptoms worse. Additionally the testing and supplements are quite expensive.

I have since given up on the testing and as I have found the pencil and paper NT deficiency sheet to be a more effective guide to treatment. When I am unable to make progress I will often turn to serum amino acid testing and the neurotransmitter markers on the Organic acid test offered by many functional medicine labs. In addition to information about neurotransmitter functioning, the Organic Acid Test provides information about other factors involved in mental health symptoms including levels of the yeast Candida, the bacterial infection Clostridia and others.

Of course, I wholeheartedly agree with both of them.

As you can see from these two cases (and the many others in my book and on this blog), using the low GABA symptoms and a trial of GABA is best. It’s the most effective way to determine if you need GABA initially and to monitor how it’s helping. It also doesn’t cost you anything more than your time and the GABA product/s.

Resources if you are new to using amino acids as supplements

Have you done urinary neurotransmitter testing and did any of it correlate with the neurotransmitter deficiency symptoms?

Have you been told to stop GABA that was helping to ease your symptoms – based on labs showing high GABA?

If you’re a practitioner I’d love to hear your experiences using the urinary neurotransmitter testing.

If you have questions please share them here too.

GABA is a life saver for anxiety, theanine helps at night (insomnia) and 5-HTP makes a significant difference in lessening daily pain

September 16, 2022 By Trudy Scott 16 Comments

Joie has Sjogren’s, Hashimoto’s, fibromyalgia & collagenous colitis (all diagnosed after severe mold exposure) and shared how GABA is a life saver for her anxiety, how theanine helps at night with her insomnia and how 5-HTP makes a significant difference in lessening her daily pain. Here is her wonderful feedback in her own words (my feedback for her follows):

I was diagnosed with Sjogrens several years ago. I also have Hashimoto’s, Fibromyalgia & Collagenous Colitis. All of these happened after a severe mold exposure which destroyed my pituitary, and caused Exocrine Pancreatic Insufficiency (EPI). I have to take human growth hormone injections daily, as my pituitary isn’t working, digestive enzymes for the EPI, and have experienced the anxiety and depression you’ve written about.

The GABA has been a life saver for me (for my anxiety), and I share this with all I know who experience anxiety. I also use L-theanine at night because of insomnia. The 5-HTP has helped somewhat for sleep. L-tryptophan didn’t seem to make a difference. However the 5-HTP has made a significant difference in lessening my daily pain levels, which I am most grateful for.

Unfortunately, I am also taking Klonopin and Gabapentin, both of which I have tried to get off of but keep finding myself back on both in order to have greater than 5 hours of sleep at night. Even with these, I often awaken after 4-6 hours and take 1-2 chewable GABA which allows me to go back to sleep and get 2-4 more hours of sleep.

She shared this on the blog, Sjogren’s syndrome: tryptophan and GABA for anxiety, and moisturizing for dry skin and inflammation?, where I write about the prevalence of anxiety and depression in this autoimmune condition, and the fact that serotonin and GABA are often low.

I shared how sorry I was to hear how mold has impacted her but that it was wonderful to hear the GABA has been a lifesaver for you in terms of anxiety (and when waking in the night) and that theanine helps her sleep. It’s wonderful that 5-HTP helps ease her daily pain (here is fibromyalgia research on 5-HTP) and helps somewhat with her sleep issues.

Has she increased the amino acids to the optimal doses for her unique needs?

My question for her was this: “how much of each of these amino acids are you using and have you increased them to the optimal doses for your unique needs?” I asked this because many folks don’t do this and we always want to capitalize on what is working.

Here are some examples that relate to Joie:

When 5-HTP helps with pain relief we also do afternoon and bedtime trials to see if it can improve sleep further. And we always explore some of the reasons why serotonin may be low and address those too. You can read more on that here: what causes low serotonin

I shared that tryptophan doesn’t work for everyone and some do better with 5-HTP, but I do also consider melatonin when sleep is an issue, especially timed release to prevent waking in the night.

Since GABA is a lifesaver for her in terms of her anxiety and also helps when she wakes, trialing higher doses at bedtime may prevent the early morning waking. The same could be said for trialing a higher dose of theanine and using both GABA and theanine together at night (a 2019 study shows the combination decreases sleep latency and improves NREM sleep).

High cortisol, rebound sleep issues with meds and/or poor fat digestion?

If she has already done the above, I’d explore high cortisol and do a 5-collection an adrenal saliva test). When cortisol is high during the night, the use of Seriphos can be a game-changer for many.

Unfortunately both Klonopin and Gabapentin (especially the former) can cause rebound insomnia even when they seem to be helping in the short-term.

I also mentioned that my recent blog post many be helpful since she mentions exocrine pancreatic insufficiency, which could affect sleep by impacting her fat digestion – Waking in the night due to environmental toxins: impacts on the liver, gallbladder and fat digestion (making oxalate issues worse). This has relevance whether or not oxalates are an issue.

Autoimmune-Paleo (AIP) diet, pyroluria and moisturizing for reducing inflammation

It goes without saying that since Sjogren’s, Hashimoto’s and even Collagenous Colitis are autoimmune conditions, following an Autoimmune-Paleo (AIP) diet is key too. I have links to some AIP resources on the above Sjogren’s blog post.

In this blog I also mention pyroluria which may be relevant for someone with Collagenous Colitis and is crucial to address when there has been toxic mold exposure or other chronic issues like Lyme disease or MCAS. More on this here.

And you can also read about the value of moisturizing for reducing inflammation.

I thanked her and said I plan to share her results and my response as a new blog as I feel it will help others and give hope!

Resources if you are new to using amino acids as supplements

Has GABA helped with your anxiety and insomnia? What about theanine? And 5-HTP for your pain? Or melatonin for sleep?

Have you used taurine with success for fat digestion? Or Seriphos for high cortisol?

What else has helped you with symptoms like these ones?

If you have questions please share them here too.

Rebound insomnia after tapering a benzodiazepine: will taking GABA or any other natural supplement interfere with healing?

August 26, 2022 By Trudy Scott 16 Comments

This question was posted on one of the GABA blog posts by Fran, asking about about using GABA for insomnia shortly after having tapered a benzodiazepine she had used for 15 years:

I am a senior who took benzodiazepines (clonazepam) on advice of my doctor for sleep because of chronic fatigue for 15 years. Last year I weaned myself off the medication and it has been just over 10 months. No one tells you that when you stop taking them you go into a rebound insomnia phase and it can last a long time. The doctor still won’t admit that!

I joined benzo buddies, a group I found out about on your site and found much encouragement from the posts of many brave and determined people. One post mentioned that the drug actually overrides your GABA receptors so when you stop taking it they have to heal to become active again. My question is: Will taking GABA or any other natural supplement interfere with that healing. The writer of the post feels taking nothing is best for the brain to return to normal and that only time will do that.

I said I was sorry to hear about her struggles with her benzodiazepine prescription. Sadly it’s all too common and it’s seldom that folks are cautioned about the rebound insomnia and other issues seen with benzodiazepines.

I love benzo buddies and other benzo support groups and often recommend that clients join one of these groups for the community support aspect. I am really happy that Fran found encouragement.

However, I respectfully disagree with their message that GABA supplements or other supplements should not be used and that you should just wait for time to heal. We want to use everything at our disposal in order to heal as quickly as possible. And quality sleep is imperative for healing.

Also many of the most severely affected folks are part of these support groups, so it may well be all that they know, hence the advice they dispense.

Many do get relief with GABA during and post benzo taper and it won’t affect long-term healing (with a very low dose)

It is true that GABA receptors can be affected by benzodiazepines but despite this, many of my clients and others in my community do get relief from GABA during this period. Since we are all unique, some folks may have an issue, so we always do a trial with GABA if someone has rebound insomnia (and other low GABA symptoms of physical tension/anxiety, stiff and tense muscles, stress eating etc).

When someone can’t tolerate GABA they will know very quickly – typically in 1-2 days. If you can’t tolerate GABA it may feel the same as someone who takes GABA and doesn’t need it (i.e. GABA isn’t low) or when someone takes too much. This could make you feel light-headed, dizzy, feel a flush and/or feel too tired. You may even feel more anxious. Vitamin C is a wonderful antidote to all this and these short-term adverse reactions won’t interfere with long-term healing.

We also start with a very small dose – I typically have someone start with 25mg GABA and go up from there – and only use sublingual GABA. For some very sensitive folks we will start even lower as in this example where Syd gets sleep and body anxiety benefits with just 1.5 mg to 3 mg GABA.

Other nutrients that may also help with insomnia

We may also use other nutrients to help with sleep support and rebound anxiety (which is also common) and other symptoms, all based on each person’s unique needs. These may include tryptophan or 5-HTP if serotonin is also low (this can affect sleep and cause worry/ruminating type anxiety), melatonin if that is low (either sublingual or timed-release) and Seriphos if cortisol is high too. We may also combine GABA with theanine (research shows the combination may help some folks).

A full functional medicine and nutritional workup is recommended in order to be as nutritionally stable as possible. Ideally this happens before tapering starts but even if it’s done after the fact it can help with healing and symptom relief. Addressing histamine imbalances is one factor to consider as this can impact sleep (more on that below).

This is an important question that many folks ask so I appreciate her asking so I could share it as a blog post for others in a similar situation.

I am waiting to hear back about what happened when she did use GABA and how much she used. She mentioned that she did take GABA for a time at first but it only worked for a while. I find that during the taper and post taper, GABA needs can fluctuate as healing starts to take place. I have clients adjust up and down as needed.

More on benzodiazepine withdrawal and histamine issues

These medications have the most debilitating withdrawal reactions in all of medicine and Valium blocks DAO/impacts histamine levels:

World Benzodiazepine Awareness Day 2017: Awareness and Anxiety Nutrition Solutions

Benzodiazepines (Xanax, Klonopin, Ativan, Valium, Librium, and others) as well as Z-drugs (Ambien, Lunesta and others), which are similar, have the most debilitating withdrawal reactions in all of medicine.

This happens in regular, everyday people who are taking the medications exactly as their doctor prescribed. It also happens to people on what they think are “low doses” and is not just a “high dose” problem.

The benzodiazepine valium blocks DAO and impacts histamine levels: wisdom from Yasmina Ykelenstam and a tribute to her brilliance

Many people doing a benzodiazepine taper are often switched to Valium which is a DAO [diamine oxidase blocker (or histamine liberator)] and this further prevents histamine from being removed from the body [and can lead to increased anxiety].

Dyes are also triggers…the pink Xanax can be problematic.

GABA is as effective as benzodiazepines (which should only be prescribed for short-term use)

Many folks who have used benzos in the past, find GABA to be as effective. Another woman in my community, Dee, shared that she had taken Xanax in the past for panic attacks and her functional medicine doctor suggested GABA Calm as she wanted a natural product. This is her encouraging feedback: “I was amazed how it works just like the Xanax did – instant calm feeling within 10 mins of taking 2 capsules. I use them as needed when I am having heightened stress and anxiety.”

Ideally we want to use GABA instead of one of the benzodiazepines – which are all too commonly prescribed for anxiety, insomnia and pain – in order to avoid tolerance issues, dependence and withdrawal/tapering issues. The fact that they are used long term – like 15 years for Fran – further compounds the issues. Even a few months can be problematic for some folks. It’s important to be aware that this class of medication is intended for short-term use i.e. 2-4 weeks only.

Resources if you are new to using the GABA and other amino acids as supplements

If you are new to using GABA and any of other the amino acids as supplements, here is the Amino Acids Mood Questionnaire from The Antianxiety Food Solution (you can see all the symptoms of neurotransmitter imbalances, including low GABA).

Have you used GABA with success while tapering a benzodiazepine or shortly after tapering is complete?

Have you used other nutrients to help while tapering or post taper? If yes, which ones?

Did you find that GABA was not helpful? (which product and how much did you use?)

If you have questions please share them here too.

Low lithium questionnaire and how we use lithium orotate with the amino acids

August 19, 2022 By Trudy Scott 44 Comments

This is the low lithium questionnaire that I use with new clients in order for us to figure out if a trial of low dose lithium, in the form of lithium orotate, may be helpful. The hallmark of low lithium is a rollercoaster of emotions. Keep in mind that this is just one of 12 questionnaires that I have my clients complete. Many of the following symptoms can have multiple causes, the labs may relate to other deficiencies and the conditions have other root causes. This questionnaire simply provides additional evidence that lithium orotate may help.

We typically do a lithium orotate trial, starting with 5 mg once a day, and going up to 10 mg twice a day. We do this after we have started trialing the respective amino acids for low serotonin, low GABA, low endorphins, low catecholamines and low blood sugar. A big clue that lithium orotate may be helpful (when many of the symptoms below are checked off) is when the amino acids for low serotonin (tryptophan or 5-HTP), low GABA (GABA or theanine), low endorphins (DPA or DLPA), low catecholamines (tyrosine or DLPA) and low blood sugar (glutamine) are not as effective as expected (based on the amino acids mood/neurotransmitter questionnaire).

Low lithium questionnaire

Symptoms
Mood swings (a rollercoaster of emotions)
Addictions and/or cravings
Depressed
Low self-esteem
Boredom
Easily distracted
Rebellious, disruptive behavior and/or aggressiveness
Irritability
Restless/internal anxiety (similar to low serotonin worry/ruminating anxiety)
Restless/external anxiety (similar to low GABA physical anxiety)
Anxiety ups and downs (fluctuations)
Melancholic pessimism
Suicidal thoughts
Disorganized with planning difficulties
Focus issues/ADHD
Insomnia
Procrastination and/or no initiative
Jack of all trades, master of none
Impulsive and/or lacking tact
Poor insight
Risky behavior
Cognitive issues
Migraines or cluster headaches

Effectiveness of amino acids
The amino acids for low serotonin, low GABA, low endorphins, low catecholamines and low blood sugar are not as effective as expected (based on the amino acids mood/neurotransmitter questionnaire)

Labs
Low white blood cell count
Low red blood cell count
Anemia
Low platelet count

Conditions
Anorexia nervosa
Heart disease (heart arrhythmias, history of heart attack)
Raised blood sugar or diabetes
Kleptomania
Alcoholism
Alzheimer’s disease
Fibromyalgia
Bipolar II
Gout
Hyperthyroidism
Nearsightedness or glaucoma
Herpes infections (current or prone to them)

If you are new to low dose lithium / lithium orotate

As I share in this blog, Upping my tryptophan and lithium orotate have been absolutely profound for me: I’ve been depression free and anxiety free for over a year, I’ve used lithium orotate with many clients and use it when folks have mood swings and anxiety ups and downs. It’s harder for the amino acids to work when there is a moving goal post and lithium orotate evens things out.

You can read Katrin’s wonderful results: “Upping my tryptophan dose and also including and upping the dose of lithium orotate has been absolutely profound for me. I’m off my SSRI/antidepressant (which I was off and on for a number of years). I’ve been depression/anxiety free for over a year. So fantastic.”

The above blog also includes additional information on the differences between low dose lithium / lithium orotate and prescription lithium carbonate. The latter is used at much higher doses and does have side-effects.

One of the many ways lithium works is via the impact on neurotransmitter production. This paper, Potential Mechanisms of Action of Lithium in Bipolar Disorder, states this: “At a neuronal level, lithium reduces excitatory (dopamine and glutamate) but increases inhibitory (GABA) neurotransmission.” It also increases protective proteins such as BDNF (brain-derived neurotrophic factor), helps reduce oxidative stress and is neuroprotective. This paper is referring to lithium carbonate and not lithium orotate but until we have more research on lithium orotate, I feel comfortable extrapolating, given what I’ve seen clinically with lithium orotate.

I’ve also blogged about low dose or microdose lithium here: Microdose lithium formulation is capable of halting signs of advanced Alzheimer’s and improving cognition. In a study published in 2020, “a team of researchers has shown that, when given in a formulation that facilitates passage to the brain, lithium in doses up to 400 times lower than what is currently being prescribed for mood disorders is capable of both halting signs of advanced Alzheimer’s pathology and of recovering lost cognitive abilities.” In this study, they used lithium citrate in similar doses as the lithium orotate i.e 3.2 mg to 6.4 mg NP03 based on 70kg of body weight (which is around 154.3 lbs).

Resources if you are new to using the amino acids as supplements (and where to get lithium orotate)

You can find the amino acid products I use and a number of different lithium orotate products in my online Fullscript store.

Do you resonate with any of the above and have you used lithium orotate with success?

Was the rollercoaster of emotions and fluctuating anxiety a hallmark for you before using lithium orotate?

If you’re a practitioner, do you use lithium orotate with your clients or patients?

If you have questions please share them here too.