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GABA, 5-HTP and melatonin isn’t working anymore for my insomnia and tryptophan gives me a migraine – what should I do?

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Today I’m addressing a great question I received on a recent tryptophan blog about insomnia and the use of the amino acids GABA and 5-HTP in a combination product together with melatonin, and what the next steps should be when you are not getting the expected results. And if continuing with tryptophan is a good idea when it seems to be causing a migraine and isn’t leading to a whole night’s sleep. Here is the question:

I have suffered from insomnia for most of my life. I just got your book and am loving it! Thank you for all that you do. My symptoms seem to be high for both low GABA and low serotonin [here is the questionnaire].

I also believe I have a blood sugar problem, so I’m starting to follow your suggestions for that.

I’ve been taking a supplement for sleep that has both GABA and 5-HTP in it, along with melatonin. It worked for a year, however it just recently stopped working.

I thought maybe I should try tryptophan. After taking only 220 mg per night, along with 5 mg of melatonin, I was able to sleep, but not through the entire night. However, the next day I woke up with a horrible headache/migraine. I know it was the tryptophan because I did a trial and tried a night without it and then again with it and the nights I took it, sure enough, the migraine would return.

I must add that I had bloodwork done and tested low for melatonin, which is why I was adding the melatonin into my protocol.

My question is: do I continue with a higher dose of GABA, 5-HTP and melatonin, since it worked for a year i.e. do I up the dosage of the supplement I’ve been taking? Or do I continue trying different doses of tryptophan?

I shared this response in my comment (with some additions for this blog post).

Always first address the nutritional foundational aspects

Firstly, I was glad to hear she is loving my book The Antianxiety Food Solution (my Amazon link) and implementing dietary changes. This is so foundational to any protocol for both anxiety and insomnia. Too often, someone hears me talking about the amazing amino acids and forgets the nutritional basics of real whole food, quality animal protein (like wild fish, pastured eggs and chicken, grass-fed red meat), organic veggies and fruit, healthy fats (like olive oil, coconut oil and butter), fermented foods and broths, and no gluten, caffeine or sugar.

I don’t ever have clients push through

With regards to her trial of tryptophan I shared that I don’t ever have clients push through on a product that is causing any adverse effects, and especially when it’s a migraine. She was smart and trialed the tryptophan twice to make sure it was the tryptophan that caused the migraine and not something else.

Capitalize on what has worked and increase one at a time

With regards to the GABA, 5-HTP and melatonin I shared that I always like to capitalize on what has worked in the past (or is currently working) and would rather increase the 5-HTP and/or melatonin and/or GABA one at a time.

Notice that I said increase these products one at a time. She is taking a combination product so it’s impossible for her to do this. Maybe her GABA levels are now good (because her progesterone levels have improved due to be on a regular zinc supplement or because she has been doing regular yoga sessions) and maybe she needs more serotonin support (because her estrogen levels are off because of recent exposure to xenoestrogens in plastics).

Even though is research showing that a combination product containing GABA and 5-HTP improved sleep and sleep duration more than the use of either of the two amino acids alone, based on her feedback, if we were working together I would have her do each of the GABA, 5-HTP and melatonin separately. This way it’s easy to mix and match and increase one and possibly lower the other, until the ideal combination is found for her unique needs at this time in her life.

She may even find she only needs GABA or only needs 5-HTP or only melatonin. She may also find she needs sublingual melatonin for helping her fall asleep and timed-release melatonin for helping her stay asleep.

She mentions the amino acid questionnaire so it sounds like she is clear on her symptoms: low GABA physical anxiety affecting her sleep and low serotonin mental worry-type of anxiety affecting her sleep. So as she trials the individual amino acids she can see how she does symptom-wise in order to find the ideal amount.

Other factors to consider with insomnia

It’s often straight-forward with the amino acids and the great thing is that one you have the correct combination you will see results in a few days to a few weeks. But There are other factors we may need to consider with insomnia:

  • Keep in mind that 5-HTP can raise cortisol and low blood sugar can indicate adrenal issues so looking at high cortisol as a factor in the sleep problems would be something to consider. A 4-collection saliva test will measure this and my favorite product for lowering high cortisol is Seriphos. Other nutrients for adrenal support may be needed too.
  • Just addressing low blood sugar can often improve insomnia. Eating to support blood sugar swings, early morning sunlight and no blue light after dark can make a world of difference.
  • Other sleep factors we always want to consider: sex hormone imbalances, parasites (they are more active at night and can keep you awake and play a role in high cortisol), accidental gluten exposure, SIBO (small intestinal bacterial overgrowth), candida, sleep apnea and mouth breathing, EMFs (WiFi in the home, commuting with the iphone on, a new cordless phone etc.) and medication side-effects (benzodiazepines are a common one).

I really appreciate questions like this being posted on the blog so others like you also get to benefit. This question also demonstrates just how our needs for certain nutrients can change over time and how we may to keep adjusting what we are doing.

In case you have questions about specific products that I use with clients, here is my supplements blog and more information on GABA for the physical type of anxiety and 5-HTP/tryptophan for the worry-type of anxiety.

Can you relate to this scenario? Feel free to ask your questions about sleep, GABA, 5-HTP, tryptophan and melatonin and share your experiences with these products and how they have helped you or if you’ve had issues with any of them.

Help! I’m worried all the time! Soothe with supplements and tame worry with food!

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Some of my simple tips for worry were shared in the April edition of Women’s World so here they are for you to enjoy in case you didn’t see them in the magazine. I’m quite chuffed to see it’s for a piece called “Ask America’s Ultimate Experts.”

I share tips about the benefits of a B- complex vitamin (for adrenal support), vitamin B6 (especially for PMS-type anxiety and worry, the calming amino acid called GABA, plus the mood-boosting and calming benefits of a grass-fed burger (loaded with zinc, iron and omega-3s) and pumpkin seeds as a snack (because they’re rich in both tryptophan and zinc)

Here are my tips from the article:

#1 Soothe with supplements

Here are some supporting articles and research for some of the above tips. A good B- complex vitamin for adrenal support has been shown to minimize psychological stress after a natural disaster and vitamin B6 (or pyridoxine) helps with PMS-type anxiety and worry.

A paper titled Pyridoxine in the treatment of premenstrual syndrome: a retrospective survey in 630 patients, reports the following results:

The daily doses of pyridoxine hydrochloride varied from 40 to 100 mg early in the study and from 120 to 200 mg in the later period of the investigations. The response to treatment was recorded as good (no significant residual complaints) in 40 per cent or more of patients taking 100-150 mg pyridoxine daily and in 60 per cent of patients treated with 160-200 mg daily. Together with partial response (useful benefit but still some significant complaints), the positive effect of the treatment increased to 65-68 per cent and 70-88 per cent respectively. No symptoms consistent with a diagnosis of peripheral neuropathy were reported

The calming amino acid called GABA helps with the physical-tension and stiff-and-tense-muscles type of anxiety and helps with worry and inhibition of unwanted thoughts.

#2 Tame worry with foods

Professor Felice Jacka, nutritional psychiatry researcher, discusses the mood-boosting and calming benefits of grass-fed beef (loaded with zinc, iron and omega-3s) on our Anxiety Summit interview: The Research – Food to prevent and treat anxiety and depression?

Pumpkin seeds are rich in tryptophan and zinc and research shows that a functional food made from these seeds actually helps with social anxiety.

Here are a few minor discrepancies in the above sections:

  • In #1 dopamine is not a calming brain chemical but instead it’s stimulating and helps with focus and motivation. The B vitamin mentioned contain folic acid whereas methyl folate is the preferred choice.
  • In #2 the GABA product recommended is 500mg and I find starting much lower is a more effective approach with my clients.

#3 Cue calm – open a worry window

Opening a worry window is a new approach for me and I’d love to hear if it helps you now or has helped you in the past.

Anti-anxiety gummies and low serotonin

Ali Miller, RD, shares a recipe for anti-anxiety gummies (you can see it in the PDF) and I love that it includes coconut water, ginger and turmeric. I’d replace the cup of orange juice (which is high in sugar) with water and use 2 tablespoons instead. Be sure to watch that these gelatin gummies don’t make your anxiety (or depression or sleep worse). It’s a small amount of gelatin but if you’re eating a lot of them and you’re prone to low serotonin, this may be a problem for you. I write about this in a blog post here – Collagen and gelatin lower serotonin: does this increase your anxiety and depression? If it does cause an adverse reaction it doesn’t mean you can’t eat them, instead it simply means you may need to take tryptophan when eating them (if low serotonin is the issue.

If you’d like a PDF of the article you can grab a copy here.

I’d love to hear if any of these approaches have helped you or your clients/patients. Keep in mind that it’s a fun article that is by no means comprehensive in terms of addressing all the possible root causes of anxiety.

GABA helps with inhibition of unwanted thoughts

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There is plenty of research and clinical evidence showing that low serotonin promotes worry and ruminating thoughts and we know that using tryptophan (or 5-HTP) can help with easing these worries and unwanted thoughts i.e. the worry-in-the-head type of anxiety.

The calming supplement GABA has long been recognized to help ease the more physical type of anxiety where you feel body tension and may have stiff and tense muscles.

Over the last year I’ve been getting feedback from women in my community saying that oral GABA supplements also helps some of the head symptoms too and now we have some new research supporting the possible mechanism of this – Scientists identify mechanism that helps us inhibit unwanted thoughts:

We are sometimes confronted with reminders of unwanted thoughts – thoughts about unpleasant memories, images or worries. When this happens, the thought may be retrieved, making us think about it again even though we prefer not to. While being reminded in this way may not be a problem when our thoughts are positive, if the topic was unpleasant or traumatic, our thoughts may be very negative, worrying or ruminating about what happened, taking us back to the event.

Scientists have identified a key chemical within the ‘memory’ region of the brain that allows us to suppress unwanted thoughts, helping explain why people who suffer from disorders such as anxiety, post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), depression, and schizophrenia often experience persistent intrusive thoughts when these circuits go awry.

Professor Anderson, Dr. Schmitz and colleagues showed that the ability to inhibit unwanted thoughts relies on a neurotransmitter – a chemical within the brain that allows messages to pass between nerve cells – known as GABA. 

GABA is the main ‘inhibitory’ neurotransmitter in the brain, and its release by one nerve cell can suppress activity in other cells to which it is connected.

Anderson and colleagues discovered that GABA concentrations within the hippocampus – a key area of the brain involved in memory – predict people’s ability to block the retrieval process and prevent thoughts and memories from returning.

The study is looking at GABA concentrations within the hippocampus and there is no mention of the use of GABA supplementation to enhance this process:

While the study does not examine any immediate treatments, Professor Anderson believes it could offer a new approach to tackling intrusive thoughts in these disorders.

Ideally the next step will be to study the use of oral GABA supplementation. I’ll be reaching out to Professor Anderson to share details about the effectiveness of sublingual GABA.

I would also love to know what levels of GABA the study participants had in their gut and what other low GABA symptoms they had.

Here is the study abstract: Hippocampal GABA enables inhibitory control over unwanted thoughts

Feedback on GABA helping with overactive brain and perseveration

When I shared this research on facebook two people commented on how the Source Naturals GABA Calm product I recommend helps them with this aspect of anxiety.

Tiffany shares how Source Naturals GABA Calm helps calm her overactive brain:

I have definitely noticed that sublingual GABA Calm that you suggest helps calm my overactive brain.

Dawn shares how this same GABA product has helped her a lot:

I have an old TBI [traumatic brain injury] and the physiology of PTSD, from childhood trauma, so a double whammy. This sublingual lozenge makes a big difference in my day if I start to get anxious, or begin to perseverate on something that really isn’t all that important.

Perseverate is not a word I use very much and in case you’re not familiar with this term, the Oxford dictionary defines it as follows: “repeat or prolong an action, thought, or utterance after the stimulus that prompted it has ceased.” It’s also defined as: “the tendency of an idea to stick in your mind or recur, or getting stuck on something mentally and not being able to shift gears.” In psychiatry it’s “the persistent and pathological repetition of a verbal or motor response, often seen in organic brain disease and schizophrenia.”

Updating the GABA questionnaire and GABA blog

I’m using this research and feedback to make a preliminary update of the low GABA section on the amino acid questionnaire:

  • Do you have intrusive thoughts, perseverate or have an overactive brain? Or do you have unwanted thoughts – thoughts about unpleasant memories, images or worries?

I’ve also updated this recent blog post – Anxiety, compulsive thinking, counting behaviors: gluten, tryptophan and inositol where I to share my feedback on a question I received on how to approach working with a child with anxiety, compulsive thinking and counting behaviors. I mentioned GABA as a possibility but with her symptoms and this new research, a GABA trial would definitely be something to pursue.  

I’d love your feedback

  • Do you resonate with any of this and have you seen this benefit when using GABA, in addition to the relief of physical anxiety?
  • If you’ve also observed improvements in your ruminating thoughts when using tryptophan, I’d love you to try and share how GABA helps and how tryptophan helps i.e. how you feel before and after with each supplement?
  • Also, if you are also using tryptophan and/or 5-HTP how do you know if it’s these amino acids or the GABA that is helping?
  • I’m really looking for the differences you observe as you support low GABA vs low serotonin?  Are they clear or are they blurred?
  • If you’re a practitioner what feedback do you get from your clients/patients about low GABA vs low serotonin?

As I mention above I would love to see follow-on research showing that sublingual GABA supplements can actually shift this. I’ll be reaching out to the study authors sharing what we see clinically so your feedback is valuable and appreciated. 

GABA is calming for me, doesn’t work for my daughter’s anxiety and makes my son sleepy

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I’m sharing this question I received on my GABA Calm blog to illustrate how different people respond to GABA and how some people may not even have the low GABA type of anxiety. Here is the question this mom posted:

I have used GABA (several brands, just open capsule and sprinkle small amount under tongue) for years now, with calming results within minutes. It was recommended to me by 2 family members, both bi-polar, who were tested by Dr. Amen. I have also used it with my children (now adults); my daughter says it doesn’t work for her. (She has anxiety issues and occasional panic attacks, and Rescue Remedy helps her.) It does work to calm my 3 sons, but one says it makes him sleepy, and lasts into the next day, so he won’t take it. Trudy, have you heard of this reaction? It seems extreme for such a small amount used. He is a college student and ‘medicates’ with caffeine, if that makes a difference.

She shared that she uses 500mg or 750mg capsules of GABA, and get several doses from a single cap (so maybe 100mg per dose).

This is what I shared with her: we are all biochemically different and one form of GABA (or GABA combined with other amino acids/nutrients such as GABA Calm) may work for one person and not another. Also one person may need more and another may do fine with much much less. Also anxiety has many underlying causes, with low GABA only being one of them.

If I was working with your daughter I’d have her trial higher amounts of GABA for the anxiety and panic attacks. I’d also look into low serotonin and a trial of tryptophan too especially if her anxiety is the worry, ruminating anxiety with insomnia and the blues, with increased afternoon and evening cravings for carbs and chocolates.

If I was working with your son, because it does work to calm him, I’d start by having him trial just 25mg of GABA and increase slowly from there, monitoring how he feels. His anxiety may also be related to his caffeine consumption – which can also affect sleep and the fatigue he feels in the morning could be related to that.

Note: She did ask this question on the GABA Calm blog and was planning to have them trial this form of GABA. I typically don’t have clients use GABA Calm at night (because of the tyrosine) but it’s certainly worth a trial especially with her son.

If you’re completely new to the amino acids for anxiety here is an overview with questionnaire, precautions and how to do a trial.

Anxiety and how it affects women and the heart: Gaiam TV interview

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GAIAM TV home page trudy regina 2

About 18% of the US population has anxiety, it’s increasing, women are affected more than men, women make less serotonin than men, men tend to not talk about being anxious, and anxiety puts a big strain on the heart.  Listen and read to get the details in this 5 minute clip from my recent interview by the wonderful Regina Meredith on The Healing Matrix show on Gaiam TV.

  • I worked in the clinic of nutritional psychologist and amino acid pioneer Julie Ross, MA, author of The Mood Cure and The Diet Cure. I learned so much from her and the clients who came to the clinic. Julia’s expertise is in the area of amino acids
  • The amazing amino acids! which ARE miracles for ending anxiety and stopping sugar cravings
  • When I wrote my book The Antianxiety Food Solution, I wanted to pull from the expertise of Julia Ross and all the other wonderful people doing this type of work 
  • About 18% of the US population has some kind of anxiety disorder, be it generalized anxiety, panic disorder or social anxiety (and others).  The numbers are likely even higher than this because if you haven’t been diagnosed you haven’t been included in this number
  • The incidence of anxiety is increasing and there are higher numbers in Western countries because of the junk food we’re eating
  • Women are also affected at twice the rate that men are.  This may be due to the fact that woman are caretakers, taking care of those around them but not of themselves. Women also make less serotonin and have the effects of hormonal changes
  • Serotonin is often associated with depression but low serotonin can also cause anxiety – the anxiety in the head, with ruminating thoughts and worry.
  • Anxiety may be more of an issue with men than we realize. Men often don’t seek help, often don’t talk about the fact that they are anxious, and tend to under-report their symptoms
  • A gentleman I’m working with at the moment, wants to help other men who have anxiety!  [how inspiring is that!?]  Now that he is talking about his anxiety, his friends are opening up about their anxiety.
  • Persistent anxiety has physical effects on the body and we need to take it seriously.  It puts a huge strain on the heart and increases our risk of heart disease and stroke.
  • Anxiety raises cortisol, increases blood clotting and messes with hormonal balance
  • Don’t tolerate your anxiety and stress! Don’t wait until you have a panic attack! 

Enjoy this GAIAMTV “Healing Matrix” preview where Trudy Scott is interviewed by Regina Meredith.

You can watch the hour long interview on the Gaiam TV site: Trudy Scott on the connection between anxiety and nutritional deficiencies. (You can either join Gaiam TV for a monthly fee or you can get a 10 day free trial subscription if you’re not already a member. Just click on “Start Your Free Trial Today” on the Gaiam TV page.)

You can also view another sample from the interview here where I talk about the “80% of my clients” gluten-mood connection and sugar and more

And here is the blog with an overview of the whole interview: red meat, liver, sugar, coffee, chocolate, leaky gut, GABA, tryptophan and much more.

It’s all powerful stuff and backed by plenty of science-based research and clinical results! 

I wish you a calm, relaxed, stress-free, no-overwhelm, no-panic, anxiety-free and fear-free life! You deserve to feel great and making these food and nutrient changes can make this happen!

If you need more resources to help you on your journey you can find this special Gaiam TV offer here.

PS. Enjoy a good chuckle at my expense….did you notice my funny face right at the start and then again at the end of the video?  I hadn’t just eaten a lemon and I wasn’t even whistling! Funny isn’t it!?  Laughter is good for us so I didn’t have Gaiam TV edit it out.

PPS. Thanks to my darling sister Wendy who went shopping with me when I was visiting South Africa in December. She helped me pick out the jacket!  

Antianxiety Food Solution: caffeine, gluten, sugar and real food

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 gaiamtv trudy scott 5 aafs

I was thrilled to have been invited by Gaiam TV to be interviewed by the lovely and visionary Regina Meredith. The interview was an hour long and aired for the first time on January 30 at 5pm mountain time, as part of The Healing Matrix show.

In this sample video you can hear me talk about food and mood, how some people tolerate feeling anxious, the “80% of my clients” gluten-mood connection, that caffeine has to go (yes! it does!) and the toxic effects of sugar. I share this amazing fact: ‘If we address nutritional deficiencies and balance brain chemicals i.e. we address these neurotransmitter imbalances, then the desire for sugar just goes away”, and no willpower is required.

Enjoy this GAIAMTV “Healing Matrix” preview where Trudy Scott is interviewed by Regina Meredith.

You can watch the hour long interview here: Trudy Scott on the connection between anxiety and nutritional deficiencies.

You can either join Gaiam TV for a monthly fee or you can get a 10 day free trial subscription (if you’re not already a member). Just click on “Start Your Free Trial Today” on the Gaiam TV page.

As mentioned in a previous blog post, I spoke with Regina Meredith about the very powerful food mood connection, my story with anxiety and panic attacks and why I am so passionate about helping people overcome anxiety.  We discussed why grass-fed red meat and liver are so important and how I love sardines. We had a discussion about vegetarianism and why many people with mood problems do better with animal protein. I also talked about giving up chocolate and coffee (yes! really!), the toxic effects of sugar, and why gluten may be making you anxious. A healthy digestive system is imperative for good health and good mood and we discussed leaky gut and stomach acid at length. Finally I wrapped up with an overview of the incredible and amazing amino acids that end anxiety, worry, depression, and stop sugar cravings in their tracks, so zero willpower is required! It’s all powerful stuff and backed by plenty of science-based research and clinical results!

I hope you enjoy watching it as much as I enjoyed doing it!  And I hope you find solutions to your anxiety, worry, fears, overwhelm and panic attacks.  You deserve to feel great and making these food changes can make this happen!

If you need more resources to help you on your journey you can find this special Gaiam TV offer here.