St. John's Wort

[ardrum]

I'm 23, and I think I've had mild to moderate social anxiety (particularly interacting with anonymous people) for much of my life. I read that St. John's Wort has been proven to be an effective treatment (better than placebo) for depression and anxiety if symptoms are mild to moderate (but not severe).

Has anyone had any luck with St. John's Wort?

[JimmyB]

I'm taking it at the moment and most of my symptoms are starting to lift after 6 weeks. It'll probably take months for it to completely cure and for your brain to operate as it should. It apparently takes 6 weeks for it to start working effectively though.

[ardrum]

Yeah, I read how it's the most commonly prescribed solution in Germany for mild to moderate depression/anxiety.

I've started on it, but I won't be expecting any results for awhile. Thanks for the response, JimmyB!

[michelle17]

Wow it works for anxiety? My mom takes em cause she says they put her in a better mood. I'm gonna start taking them!!

I looked online to read about it, and I found another solution called amoryn. I can't post the site because I dont have enough posts yet but just search for it on google.

I dunno, it looks pretty good I guess! But I think I'll just start taking St. John's Wort for now.

edit - I've been reading up on that same site and found another natural supplement called seredyn..im reading the testimonials and they sound great! Type in seredyn dot com for it, and also check out amoryn. I hope this isnt too good to be true cause I'm definantly gonna buy one or the other..maybe both. Tell me what you guys think!

[princesspink]

Good to know - I'm all about being in a better mood too! I'll try it out - are there any side effects with pregnancy?

[Robbed]

I'm not sure what kinds of side effects St John's Wort has in terms of pregnancy. But you might want to look into this further AND ask a doctor if you pan to use St Jhn's Wort while pregnant. On the other hand, St John's Wort CAN have side effects. Side effects from St John's Wort are somewhat similar to SSRI side effects, although they seem to be both less frequent and less intense. Also, St John's Wort does not appear to have the withdrawal problems that SSRIs often do.

[Jamima]

Jimmy B, how much do you take? I'm think of taking this since I can't find a doctor right now and have concerns about long term drugs. Thanks.

[Phil]

Jamima, Dont't bother. St johns wort is of no use whatsoever! The evidence for this is mainly anecdotal altho I am aware of some more intense testing but the bottom line tends to be more placebo than the actual herb effecting any cure.
Psychiatric help may be beneficial but meds generally do the trick over the short term. But if long term meds are the answer than go with it, they will do more good for you than an overrated herbal remedy, thats for sure.

[Jamima]

Thanks Phil. Maybe St. John's Wort works better for depression. I've heard it's supposed to be good but I didn't know if it worked for anxiety.

[Robbed]

Jamima, Dont't bother. St johns wort is of no use whatsoever! The evidence for this is mainly anecdotal altho I am aware of some more intense testing but the bottom line tends to be more placebo than the actual herb effecting any cure.
Psychiatric help may be beneficial but meds generally do the trick over the short term. But if long term meds are the answer than go with it, they will do more good for you than an overrated herbal remedy, thats for sure.

Keep in mind that St John's Wort is in many ways similar to meds such as the SSRIs. And one way in which they are similar is the hit-and-miss nature of efficacy and side effects. After all, a test comparing Zoloft to St John's Wort and placebo showed that neither St John's Wort not Zoloft was better than the other (but St John's Wort had fewer side effects), and that placebo was more effective than either! SO ST John's Wort may not have worked for you. But it MIGHT work well for someone else. And considering that it is generally MUCH more benevolent than SSRIs in termsof side effects and withdrawal, why not give it a try?

But wait! There's more. The efficacy of St John's Wort is even HARDER to measure due to inconsistencies as far as strength from one sample to another, as well as the fact that some folks do better with a low strength and others do better with a high strength. Also, some do better with whole herb and others do better with standardized extracts. So keep all this in mind. St John's Wort is certainly not as simple and straightforward as you might think.