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How to Beat Anxiety and Resolve Panic Attacks with Targeted Amino Acids: Wellness Mama podcast

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Today I share my wonderful interview with Katie, the “Wellness Mama”. We talk about my favorite topic: How to Beat Anxiety and Resolve Panic Attacks with Targeted Amino Acids with some extra questions about pregnancy and nursing that I’m not often asked about. Katie is mom to 6 children and many in her community are moms too.

Here is some of what we cover in our interview:

  • nutritional deficiencies commonly linked to anxiety, depression, and other problems
  • my own story of recovery from severe panic attacks
  • why perfectionism and worry might have more to do with body chemistry than your personality
  • all about the key anti-anxiety amino acids: GABA, theanine, tryptophan, 5-HTP (and others)
  • how low vitamin D, low zinc, high copper, and other nutritional factors add to anxiety
  • the low zinc and high copper play a role in postpartum depression
  • the potential neurotransmitter issue that leads to cravings
  • biochemical reasons some people are introverted or socially anxious
  • guidance for pregnant moms who can’t take amino acids (and what to do if you’re nursing)
  • the way an MTHFR mutation is linked to anxiety and how to resolve it

Here is a snippet of our interview on the topic of how to assess for low neurotransmitters and do a trial of GABA or tryptophan, and how quickly they work:

Just like you test your vitamin D levels – that’ll tell you that you’ve got low levels and you need to supplement with vitamin D, then you’ll retest and see that your levels have come up. With the amino acids and the low neurotransmitters, I find using a questionnaire is the best way to assess the fact that you may have low GABA and you may have low serotonin. Then you do a trial of the amino acid based on your unique needs, and then you redo the questionnaire and you see how things have changed.

If you use these targeted individual amino acids based on your unique need, you can see results very quickly – within five minutes, and then over the course of the next few weeks you should be seeing results very quickly. Some people will say, “I’m not seeing any impact, should I keep trying, you know, how long should I be aiming for.” The thing that, about the amino is that are so amazing, is that you get results right away. If you don’t get results, it means it’s not enough or it means you don’t need it. The anxiety is not caused by low serotonin or low GABA.

I also talk about my personal experience with low serotonin and perfectionism:

I discovered low serotonin was a factor because although the GABA helped with the physical anxiety and the panic attacks, I still had this perfectionism issue. I remember working in that computer job and being called up to do an appraisal. And they told me I was too much of a perfectionist and I needed to let go a little bit. I couldn’t believe anyone could think that was a bad thing. So it was interesting how, as you start to implement some of these, you start to realize some of these other things that you may think is just a personality thing or it’s just me, it’s just the way I am – you realize that some of these things can be related to biochemical imbalances.

As I mention above Katie does ask me about using the amino acids during pregnancy and while nursing:

I don’t recommend anyone take them during pregnancy. It’s difficult advice for me to give because I know that there are so many issues with SSRIs during pregnancy. Because we don’t have the research, it’s not something that I can recommend. If you are prone to anxiety or you’ve had anxiety, get that sorted out before you get pregnant. I know, that’s easier said than done. A lot of women really want to get pregnant now or they are pregnant and then they realize that they’ve got the anxiety. So that’s a very difficult situation.

Once you’ve had the baby, if you are having really bad anxiety, obviously you’ve got to talk to your doctor and make sure that they are okay with you taking the amino acids right after nursing and then waiting four to six hours before nursing again. It is one way to do it. And then monitoring the baby to make sure that they are okay. There are actually two studies that came out recently showing that tryptophan and tyrosine, doesn’t seem to be an issue in breast milk.

You can listen to the entire interview (and download the interview mp3 file and read the transcript) via the Wellness Mama podcast #105 blog.

For additional information on products over and above those we covered in the interview here are some recent blogs:

Katie, is the “Wellness Mama” and her goal is to help other families live more naturally through practical tips, real food recipes, natural beauty and cleaning tutorials, natural remedies and more. Her blog is a wealth of information and if you don’t tune in to her podcasts and get her newsletter I encourage you to check her out.

Here are a few really good ones to get you started (although they really are all excellent!):

She shares this on her site: “my real goal with the blog is to help you and to create lasting changes so that our children can grow up in a better world.” I just love her mission and passion and all the very practical and safe solutions she offers!

The Antianxiety Food Solution: This Book Is a Total Game Changer!!

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I write multiple blogs each week and the website is a wealth of information (be sure to check the comments too – I love the community feedback and questions and learn so much from you!) BUT the foundation of all that I teach and how I work with my anxious clients is outlined in great detail in my book The Antianxiety Food Solution, so I recommend this essential reading to make the basic food changes (for some people that’s all they need to do), and before using any of the nutrients, and especially before using targeted individual amino acids.  

Valerie Gangason posted this wonderful review on Amazon recently: This Book Is a Total Game Changer!!

If you have anxiety, panic attacks or phobias, read this book. It’s an eye opener and a complete game changer. It pushed me to re-evaluate the way I eat and to make some serious shifts in my life. FYI-sugar is the devil

I love the comment about sugar being the devil and commend her for re-evaluating how she eats and for making those serious shifts. It’s how you get results and I ever get tired of feedback like this.

Grab your copy from Amazon here if you don’t yet have it. If you already have a copy I’d love a review on Amazon please! And if you have an older copy with no index you can grab a copy of the index here

Feel free to share your great results or ask questions in the comments.

Tryptophan and ascorbic acid for anxiety caused by lead toxicity

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lead-toxicity

Lead toxicity is a factor when it comes to anxiety, panic disorder, phobias and depression, even with low levels of lead exposure.

This 2010 paper, published in the Archives of General Psychiatry, Blood lead levels and major depressive disorder, panic disorder, and generalized anxiety disorder in U.S. young adults reports the following:

In this sample of young adults with low levels of lead exposure, higher blood lead was associated with increased odds of major depression and panic disorder. Exposure to lead at levels generally considered safe could result in adverse mental health outcomes.

The paper discusses a possible mechanism of action i.e. lead disruption of neurotransmitter production (of the catecholamines and serotonin):

If lead exposure contributes to the etiology of these disorders, the mechanism of action could involve perturbation of neurochemistry, such as brain monoamine neurotransmission.

Lead exposure is known to disrupt catecholaminergic systems, and depression and anxiety disorders are strongly associated with disturbances in these systems.

Studies in animals show that chronic lead exposure can decrease serotoninergic activity in several brain regions including the nucleus accumbens, frontal cortex, and brainstem.

It is surprising that generalized anxiety disorder was not associated with increased lead levels in this study but other research does find anxiety correlations:

Addressing lead and other heavy metal toxicity is not to be taken lightly and can often be quite a lengthy process. Finding a knowledgeable practitioner who understands chelation is important. We covered much of this in my interview with Dr. John Dempster on season 4 of the Anxiety Summit – Anxiety and heavy metals: chelation of mercury and lead

The good news is that while you are working on lead detoxification there is promising research that supports what I see in my clients: using the amino acid tryptophan reduces and often completely eliminates anxiety, panic attacks and depression while you are dealing with other underlying issues. In this instance it’s the lead toxicity but it could also be Lyme disease or gluten sensitivity or Hashimoto’s thyroiditis and many other conditions.

The animal study I’m referring to was published at University of Lagos paper in 2012: Neurobehavioural and neurotoxic effects of L-ascorbic acid and L-tryptophan in lead exposed rats and states that:

The sub-chronic exposure to lead decreased brain serotonin, while causing oxidative stress by decreasing reduced glutathione levels, antioxidant enzyme activity and increasing lipid peroxidation and brain protein contents.

Ascorbic acid attenuated [or reduced] both lead induced neuronal oxidative stress, and abnormalities in behaviour.

Tryptophan ameliorated [or improved] lead-altered neurobehaviour [such as anxiety and aggression].

Co-administration of ascorbic acid and tryptophan on lead exposed rats showed a reversal in all indices assessed towards the physiological state of control. This suggests that ascorbic and tryptophan can be used to compliment chelating therapy in lead neurotoxicity.

I don’t know if you can extrapolate the dosages from the rat to a human weight-wise but since I have a curious mind I did some calculations: it turns out that they used a rough equivalent of 2000mg of ascorbic acid and 1000mg of tryptophan for an adult human. The starting dose for tryptophan is typically 500mg, and less if you’re sensitive or a “pixie dust” person. I would start here and do an amino acid trial, increasing over a few weeks until anxiety symptoms start to resolve. You can read more about the amino acids process here

Have you used tryptophan (or other amino acids like GABA) to reduce or improve anxiety symptoms with success, while dealing with a bigger underlying issue such as lead toxicity?

If you’re a practitioner, have you helped your clients/patients with tryptophan while dealing with lead toxicity?

GABA, the calming amino acid: expert opinions

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gaba-opinions

GABA (gamma-aminobutyric acid) is one of my top nutrient recommendations for clients with physical tension, anxiety, overwhelm and panic attacks. I’m often asked if it really works and is it even worth taking so here is some feedback from practitioners from the Anxiety Summit, all of whom I consider experts on the topic.

Julia Ross, MFT, pioneer in the field of amino acid therapy, my mentor and the author of The Mood Cure and The Diet Cure shares this wisdom about GABA during our interview: Eliminating Anxiety: Amino Acid Therapy and Adrenal Balancing on season 1 of the Anxiety Summit:

Among other things, GABA relaxes the nerves in the muscles in the body. One of the most common kinds of feedback that we get from people who are doing a GABA trial is that it seems to take effect so quickly. This may be because, unlike tryptophan, which has to be converted into serotonin, GABA is the neurotransmitter and the amino acid all in one and requires no conversion.

There isn’t often a GABA discussion when the topic of the blood-brain-barrier doesn’t come up and whether GABA actually does work. Of course Julia addresses this too:

There is a myth going around, based on one old study, that GABA doesn’t cross into the brain, that it doesn’t cross the blood-brain barrier. But there are other studies that show that it does [here is a paper published earlier this year], and our clinical experience is overwhelming. This is the most popular trial that we do, the GABA trial, using only 100 mg. It zips right into the brain, and people immediately feel relaxed physically and mentally.

I see this with my clients on a daily basis and I can certainly attest to that personally too. I like to share that I was a “GABA girl”: when I had my terrible anxiety and panic attacks in my late 30s anxiety, GABA worked beautifully for me. It was amazing and life-changing! Zero anxiety and no more panic attacks!  

We are all individual and you may find that theanine works better for you than GABA. Julia talks about this too:

I would say about 15 to 20 percent of people who need this GABA-type relief of the tension and stress, don’t seem to get it from GABA. In those cases, most of them do get it from the amino acid, l-theanine, instead, in our experience.

Dr. Josh Friedman, is dear friend, colleague and integrative psychotherapist who uses amino acids and other nutritional approaches in his practice. I also had the honor of interviewing him on season 1 of the Anxiety Summit. I ask him if he uses GABA with his patients and what he thinks about the naysayers. I just love his answer:

[GABA] is definitely something I use. I am not a biochemist, so I actually don’t really know whether it crosses the blood/brain barrier, nor do I care actually. The first question should be, is it harmful? Are any of these things going to cause harm? And the answer with all the amino acids are no, they’re not going to cause harm, especially when compared to psychiatric medicines. The second question is, does it work? Is it helpful for our patients that we see in our practice?

GABA certainly worked for Meme Grant, GAPS Practitioner, Nutritional Therapist, FNTP, and fellow African. She had anxiety, panic attacks, didn’t enjoy speaking in public, had insomnia and was an emotional eater. I also interviewed her in season 1 and she shared this:

I took GABA for the first time in the afternoon and had no panic attacks that afternoon, and I took one in the evening and I did that for a couple of weeks, and I haven’t seen a panic attack since.

I find that many people do well with a combination of GABA and one or more of theanine, taurine and glycine. All of these are calming amino acids and since we are all unique you may find that one of these combinations work better for you.

Dr. Hyla Cass, M.D. board-certified in psychiatry and integrative medicine and the author of Natural Highs and The Addicted Brain and How to Break Free, talks about this in our interview: The Addicted Brain and How to Break Free   

If someone has anxiety, it’s not a Valium or a Xanax deficiency. It could be a GABA deficiency. And that could be due to stress. So if you’re low in GABA, there are some really cool things to take – theanine, glycine, taurine. The different nutrients work together and when we add them together, it’s more than the sum of its parts. So adding glycine and GABA together is going to give you a better result and you don’t have to use as much as each of the individual ones. So that’s nature’s Valium.

Jonathan Prousky, ND, MSc, editor of the Journal of Orthomolecular Medicine and author of Anxiety: Orthomolecular Diagnosis and Treatment shares this in our season 2 interview: Tapering off psychiatric drugs so they do not ruin your life

I have found GABA to be invariably helpful and I don’t really know exactly how GABA works but I know it to be very, very safe and, to me, that is fundamentally important. It’s not associated with any withdrawal, with any tolerance, with any habituation, so people can try it without a lot of concern.

Dr. Prousky uses both regular crystalline GABA and pharmaGABA but prefers the latter. He uses it as part of his SRR model for helping his patients taper of psychiatric drugs such as benzodiazepines. SRR stands for sedation, relaxation and regulation:

  • Sedation: one gets the sedating effects of GABA (he uses pharmaGABA at a dose of 100-200 mg)
  • Relaxation: niacin at a dose of 250-500 mg (immediate-release)
  • Regulation: melatonin (generally about 3mg) to helps regulate the sleep-and-wake cycles

GABA really does work if your anxiety is a result of low GABA levels. As Julia so wisely says:

On a scale of zero to ten, zero is not an unrealistic goal when it comes to anxiety.  It’s really the human potential and GABA [and tryptophan] give us access to it.

So we have many expert opinions but the best way to figure out if GABA works is to try it. You’ll know within 5 minutes if it’s working for you. This is one of the reasons I love the amino acids: you get results right away and it makes you feel less anxious right away, giving you hope while you deal with other factors that may be contributing to your anxiety.

How much GABA do we need and how do we take it? I find that GABA is most effective when taken sublingually. Source Naturals GABA Calm is a great sublingual that contains 125mg GABA, 50mg Glycine, 20mg taurine, some magnesium and 25mg N-Acetyl L-Tyrosine. I also really like Nutritional Fundamentals for Health GABA-T SAP which contains 300mg GABA 300 mg and 150mg theanine. This is pleasant-tasting when opened on to the tongue and seems to be most effective when held there for about 2 minutes.   GABA products that contain 500mg and 750mg are often too much for most of my clients.

You can find these and other GABA products that I recommend here

If you’d like to learn more about GABA from the above experts, you can get details of the Anxiety Summits here 

You’ll also learn about many other nutritional and biochemical causes of anxiety: gut health and the microbiome, hormone imbalance, methylation issues, other low neurotransmitter levels, pyroluria (causing social anxiety), oxalates/gluten (special diets), pyschoneuroendocrinology, heavy metals, poor liver health, adrenal issues like high cortisol, mold, candida, parasites and much more!

Have you used GABA or any of the other calming amino acids and found benefits? Please share what product and how much worked for you?

If you have not tried GABA, were you a naysayer but now feel more inclined to look into this?

The Anxiety Summit – How Gluten Elimination Healed Me and Eliminated my Anxiety

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Lebby Salinas, The Fooducator®, certified health & wellness coach, is interviewed  by host of the Anxiety Summit, Trudy Scott, Food Mood Expert and Nutritionist, author of The Antianxiety Food Solution.

How Gluten Elimination Healed Me and Eliminated my Anxiety

  • Lebby’s gluten story and how she nearly died
  • The gluten testing she did and what she learned
  • The C.R.A.P diet
  • Community work and the Fooducation® Movie Series
  • Buying local produce

Lebby Salinas suffered from many food allergies and illnesses that conventional medicine couldn’t diagnose or cure; at one point, becoming very ill and needing to be hospitalized. After many years and many thousands of dollars, she took her health into her own hands.

Lebby took Hippocrates at his word and began to “Let food be thy medicine and medicine be thy food.” She discovered that it was more about what was wrong with the foods she was eating, not what was wrong with her body.

She shared how her healing journey is a continual journey shared this:

When you have anxiety you are told to just think positive and just change your thoughts and I like to say just change your food!

Most of her life she had been eating what is referred to as the S.A.D. diet (Standard American Diet) consisting of a lot of what she calls C.R.A.P. 

C= carbonated and sugared drinks

R= refined sugar

A= artificial flavors and dyes and

P = processed foods

The first time someone suggested a connection between food and mood and anxiety she found the idea so foreign.   It was only later that she figured out how bad gluten was for her health and how it made her so sick and caused anxiety and panic attacks.

Dr. Charles Parker, holistic psychiatrist, was the first doctor who recommended that she eliminate gluten and dairy, rather than prescribe her antidepressants. This was based on IgG food sensitivity testing.

Later the doctors at another hospital said she didn’t have celiac disease, could eat gluten, looked at her like she was “a bit crazy” and prescribed Xanax to calm her down. She was sent home and her husband was told to get her things in order.

Lebby shared how she was then referred to Dr. Tom O’Bryan, he did the Cyrex test and said she needed to do the elimination diet and heal her gut or she would likely die.

She shared that doing the Cyrex testing and working with Dr. Tom “literally saved my life!” And that he is going to write up a paper on her illness and great results.

You may recall my great interview with Dr. Tom on season 2 of the Anxiety Summit: Gluten’s impact on the inflamed brain: reducing anxiety and depression

Here is one of the great statements Dr. Tom made during our interview:

No human on the planet can digest gluten! Whether or not it causes symptoms like anxiety or depression or arthritis why eat anything that would cause inflammation!

Dr. Tom also talked about his new product during our interview: 

Glutenza™ is a gluten pulverizing formula uniquely designed with powerful enzymes, prebiotics and probiotics to break down gluten proteins by targeting both internal and external peptide bonds. Glutenza™ goes beyond the traditional DPPIV enzyme, offering superior degradation of gluten proteins by breaking down unhydrolyzed gluten peptides.

Dr. Tom is host of the well-known summit called ‘The Gluten Summit – A Grain of Truth’  (the interviews are excellent and are highly recommended if you want to learn more about gluten issues).

The training that Lebby did once she had recovered was through Dr. Tom’s office and is called the Certified Gluten-free Practitioner training.

I love that Lebby has taken what she learned and now helps others in their healing journeys, as The Fooducator®,  and a certified health & wellness coach. The more she studied health, food, and nutrition, the more passionate she became about sharing with others the power of holistic health and the power that “real food” has in nourishing and healing our bodies, minds and spirits.

One thing she has started is community effort to help improve the health and wellness of communities via the Fooducation® Movie Series that works towards “Changing lives one movie at a time.”™ 

Here are some of her “Fooducator approved movies you absolutely have to watch”: Fat Sick and Nearly Dead, The Future of Food and Ingredients.   You can watch some trailers on her site GetFooducated

lebby salinas getfooducated

If you are not already registered for the Anxiety Summit you can get live access to the speakers of the day here: www.theAnxietySummit.com

Missed this interview or can’t listen live? Or want this and the other great interviews for your learning library? Purchase the MP3s or MP3s + transcripts and listen when it suits you.

You can find your purchasing options here: Anxiety Summit Season 1, Anxiety Summit Season 2, and Anxiety Summit Season 3.