Taking Baclofen with supplements

[eight days a week]

Sorry guys, I was wrong to ask a few posts back that for feedback on supplements that are available in the UK...rather selfish of me, I wish this thread to be help to anyone who is taking Baclofen and considering taking any supplements, wherever they are, and I know that kava is still widely available in some parts of the world.

Originally Posted by Greg

Anyway back to the original topic. I don't think any of the well-known supplements would clash with baclofen. You could always try a very small amount just in case. Baclofen's sedative effects by being a GABA-B agonist would seem to be the main thing to consider. Personally I have found its effects to be very different to GABA-A agonists, and the sedative effects haven't been an issue for me, but others are much more sensitive to baclofen sedation.

I'm not sure about that Greg, certainly not about the sedative effect being the main concern. The reason I started this thread is because I'm worried about messing with Gaba and Gaba-b agonists, (and to a lesser extent serotonin precursors), through additional supplements whilst taking Baclofen. It could theoretically quite possibly interfere with Bac's mechanism, and I'm too scared to experiment!

I'd really welcome any more input on this

[beatle]

I agree with 8 here. I haven't done much research on this (yet!), but St. Johns Wort, tryptophan (and 5-HTP), as well as SaME are all natural, OTC "supplements", and definitely interact with SSRIs, and should never be taken together.

We don't know much about baclofen and it's mechanisms yet, and it could well be that there are natural supplements out there that, even if not dangerous, might interact with baclofen in some way, be it positive or negative.

Time to do some research.

[beatle]

Originally Posted by Greg

I don't think any of the well-known supplements would clash with baclofen. You could always try a very small amount just in case. Baclofen's sedative effects by being a GABA-B agonist would seem to be the main thing to consider. Personally I have found its effects to be very different to GABA-A agonists, and the sedative effects haven't been an issue for me, but others are much more sensitive to baclofen sedation.

Well, I also agree with this, depending on what "well-known substances" Greg is referring to. If it is just vitamins and minerals, it seems very doubtful that there would be interactions with bac (although, who knows? Has anyone tested this?)-- and if there were interactions, they would probably be subtle (again, who really knows?).

As for the sedative effects (most people here refer to it as somnolence -- I don't know if there is a difference), I too have not experienced this at all. However, I am very sensitive to most other bac side-effects. As we have learned over and over again, people react incredibly differently and individually to medications, supplements, and, well, anything we put into our bodies, including food. Individuals also react individually to combinations of all these. I would surmise this could include supplements, even if it is rare and seems illogical.

[reggie]

I have found for those having sleep problems that the combination of my last dose of BAC 50mg( Im currently on 200mg) a day and one magnesium oxide at 320 mg and valerian 2g I sleep like a baby( not that I know what a baby sleeps like) but it feels like I am... Weird dreams though Alien abduction type stuff but I still wake up on Earth and not the 9th planet
Reg

[Greg]

I apologise for taking this topic too lightly. Yes I was mainly thinking about vitamins and minerals, but herbal products and amino acids are also regarded as supplements by many people. In this case, then yes some caution is needed. I have also heard of serious interactions, especially 'serotonin syndrome', between natural substances like St John's Wort, tryptophan, and 5-HTP and drugs that affect serotonin (SSRI's and maybe other antidepressants). I haven't heard of baclofen itself affecting serotonin levels but I don't claim to know everything about baclofen. Herbal sedatives such as Valerian could potentially interact with baclofen although Reggie seems to be able to combine the two OK. I would repeat my advice to take a new substance in a small dose to begin with to be on the safe side. By all means do as much research as you can before taking something new, and yes I agree we are all different.

Reggie thanks for that tip about magnesium oxide and valerian allowing good sleep while taking bac. I'm by far and away the main whinger around here about not being able to sleep when taking bac anywhere near bedtime so I'll definitely be trying this.

[eight days a week]

Originally Posted by Greg

I would repeat my advice to take a new substance in a small dose to begin with to be on the safe side. By all means do as much research as you can before taking something new, and yes I agree we are all different.

Reggie thanks for that tip about magnesium oxide and valerian allowing good sleep while taking bac. I'm by far and away the main whinger around here about not being able to sleep when taking bac anywhere near bedtime so I'll definitely be trying this.

Excellent advice Greg!

As I understand it Valerian takes time to build up in your system to really do its 'job'. Some have suggested it can be used as a benzo replacement for tapered withdrawal (i.e. as the amount of benzo is slowly reduced, valerian is introduced, and increased).

St. John's Wort has been mentioned, but I've read warnings about using it with alcohol, so I take 5-HTP instead, which works really well for me. I guess that's a question for the Holistic Healing forum, I shall check it out!

I suppose the main question is, are people wary of, or have serious concerns about, taking supplements which affect Gaba alongside Baclofen, even if they are naturally occurring substances, which are derived from food in diet, for example?

[Virgil]

Originally Posted by eight days a week

As I understand it Valerian takes time to build up in your system to really do its 'job'.

Hi again, 8!

I currently take 450mg valerian root as, and when, required; I take it when getting into bed. It does seem to help me get off to sleep and I have not found it necessary to let it build up in my system. However, I'm now beginning to wonder about taking valerian with baclofen (and alcohol). I'm going to look into this. One of the problems is that my alcohol addiction specialist is very knowledgeable about medications (as one might expect!) but knows very little about supplements. A tricky one.

V.

[beatle]

If you have liver issues, you might want to check into valerian and the liver.

All this stuff has been taken up over and over again in the Holistic Healing forum -- except baclofen with supps.

[eight days a week]

A very useful tip beatle, thanks

Although this topic is indeed about taking supplements specifically with Baclofen, it's good to see any other issues addressed if they pop up, and it sounds like directions to the Holistic Healing section are very helpful.

[beatle]

Originally Posted by eight days a week

Although this topic is indeed about taking supplements specifically with Baclofen, it's good to see any other issues addressed if they pop up, and it sounds like directions to the Holistic Healing section are very helpful.

I should just mention that the Holistic Healing forum has been pretty sluggish for a while, and many of the discussions of these topics -- sleep problems and advice, as well as supplements -- took place a long time ago. So you will need to do some searches to find them.

I'd do the searching for you, but I am apparently search-challenged (on this site only)