I hear ashwaganda actually helps? Anyone tried it?
Please do not recommend weed
And if you say alcohol you’re a very fine comedian
lithium is available as an over-the-counter supplement but be quite careful with it if not getting regular blood work to test levels
Definitely be careful with lithium. If you have kidney problems or you suspect that you do then avoid it.
If you’re taking small, subclinical doses though I’d say go for it - there are a couple of papers that I’m aware of which have studied regions where a domestic water supply has a higher naturally-occurring amount of lithium. We’re talking about miniscule amounts because if it was high enough to be a problem then it would cause problems or it wouldn’t be deemed safe for drinking.
What was found in the papers was that after controlling for variables, the rates of suicides in the region where lithium was higher in the water supply had significantly lower suicide rates that nearby regions whose water supply didn’t have lithium in it.
It would be really interesting if there was research done into very low, subclinical doses of lithium for people with chronic mental illness across a range of symptoms because I’d love to see what the results would be.
L-theanine and magnesium help mildly with anxiety
If you’re deficient in vitamin D (quite common), taking a vitamin D supplement might make you feel somewhat better
Some people see some benefit from supplementing 5-HTP (5-hydroxytryptophan, precursor to serotonin in the body)
Sadly not a whole lot of options tbh :(
ashwaganda does something but I wouldn’t say it actually helps (for me anyhow, others have different experiences). Vitamin D feels like it does something for seasonal depression. And L-Tyrosine feels like it does something for adhd-like symptoms
Sunlight, flintstone vitamin, and a big glass of water? I don’t really think there are many OTC anti-depressants, the prescription ones are already garbage enough, I can’t imagine random supplements will do much good.
I’ve been getting into herbal teas lately. Tons of chamomile and lavender to keep me calmer. I have a pitcher which I prepare a strong batch in and like to keep in the fridge for iced tea.
Edit: Some people will get super tired and fall straight asleep from the lavender.
