L-Tryptophan??

[Doggygirl]

I'm interested in sharing info with others who use, or have tried L-Tryptophan. I did a search to see if a thread existed on this topic over the last year, but L-Tryptophan only came up in one thread title - and it was posted in the Medications section - figured it would get more visibility here. (sorry if there is something else I didn't find - I'm not the best at searches and picking the right words and options!)

I think it was in the March time frame that a couple of folks here recommended L-Tryptophan as an alternative to GABA, L-Glut, SAMe, etc. for mood management, anti-craving, sleep assistance etc. It was recommended that I purchase from Source Naturals in 500 mg capsules, which I did. L-tryp is also pitched as a booster to the immune system, which I need as a result of long term drinking. (i.e. I have yeast issues and that leads to immune system compromise, etc.)

I think that different things work a bit differently for all of us based on body chemistry. I have personally tried GABA (which I like, and that's my second choice behind L-tryp for mood management) and SAMe (didn't agree with me).

So far (18 days) L-tryp is FABULOUS in my opinion. I do believe it helps my mood stay at a stable level (I'm battling menopause as well as AL!). I have been pleasantly surprised at the relatively low level of cravings compared to previous attempts, and craving intensity in the first few weeks. While I haven't been sleeping a full 8 hours, on previous quits I had a HORRIBLE time sleeping at all early on for more than an hour or two straight. (although Valerian Root really helped with that!)

The recommended doseage on the bottle is up to 3 caps a day. I've only been taking one per day, with the exception of yesterday where I took a "booster" in the afternoon because Saturday (dog training day) is my most difficult day of the week. Otherwise, I take on in the AM with my other morning supplements. (I was a day drinker - so my witching hour starts in the morning!) I have never felt that L-Tryp made me sleepy during the day. My energy has felt good along with my moods.

I typically fall asleep around 9PM - 10PM and sleep very soundly until about 1AM or 2AM (about 4 hours most of the time). If I feel like I won't be able to fall back asleep, I take 2 Valerian Root caps, which often gives me at least 2 or 3 hours more sleep until 4 or 5AM. This is a VAST improvement over the sleep patterns last summer.

On the immune system front, I'm not sure what role L-Tryp is or isn't playing, as I believe the All One plays a role, my low carb diet is playing a role, and probiotics (really strong ones from the doc) are playing a role. BUT...in the last 18 days, I have had 2 spots of what I think was eczema (sp) totally clear up. I believe that is immune system related. Seeing some healing evidence on the outside makes me optimistic about what might be happening on the inside.

Since being on L-Tryp, I really haven't felt the need for the Kudzu and L-Glut - although I have it on hand just in case.

Here are my questions:

1. For those of you who have tried L-Tryp, what was your experience? Similar? Different? If different, how?

2. What were your longer term experiences? If L-Tryp was effective, did it stay effective or did you have to increase doseage to the max to retain effectiveness, and then potentially build tolerance and lose effectiveness?

3. Are there any risks anyone has heard or read about WRT L-Tryp?

In my body, this supplement has felt almost like a miracle, which makes me think there might be a reason it's not more widely recommended here at MWO by members, or by RJ in particular.

Thanks fo any input you have!

DG
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[beatle]

Doggy, you might want to do a search under 5-HTP. This is a form of tryptophan, apparently one step closer to being broken down in your body than L-tryp and therefore it crosses the blood-brain barrier more quickly.

Clinical research shows that tryptophan is effective as a sleep aid and for a variety of other conditions associated with low serotonin levels in the brain, particularly depression-related symptoms.

There was a scare about tryptophan in 1989-1990, in which a number of deaths were traced to impurities in tryptophan from Japan, and all tryptophan was taken off the market in the US. (It was still available by prescription and also OTC in many other countries, though). It was later proven that the deaths were not from the tryptophan, and it has been available OTC for a couple years in the US, I think. This scare may be why tryptophan is not so widely used. Also, it is fairly expensive (I think).

I tried L-tryp for a few days and although it made me sleep very deeply, it gave me hallucinatory dreams (not nightmares, but scary all the same). I tried stopping it for a while, and they went away, and then took it one night, and they came back. This is listed as a very rare side effect, which I unfortunately have. However, I have never tried it during the day, so I think I will after reading your post. (I have a couple bottles of it on my shelf, so hey, why not give it another chance?)

Apart from the side effects listed with the L-tryp, I don't think there is much else negative about it. It is, after all, an essential amino acid. I don't know about long-term effects, but if your body is reacting well to it, I would imagine you have found the right dosage. It's not like a medicine, so I doubt you would develop a tolerance.

[Doggygirl]

beatle, thanks for your response. I didn't realize that L-tryp is a component of 5-HTP - LOL - about the only supplement sold here at MWO that I haven't gotten around to trying! You have obviously done lots of homework on this stuff.

Interesting about the dream side effect. I haven't had that problem - but you might be right that I'm taking it so early in the day that it's not a problem at night (although I'm sleeping much sounder...so something is going on!). Or you are likely right that it's a side effect for only a small %. Funny - Melatonin gives me strange dreams sometimes, and really doesn't do anything to help me fall asleep like it does for others. Different strokes for different folks, no doubt!!

If you do give it a whirl earlier in the day, let us know how that goes.

Thanks again!! Off to google 5-HTP to better understand the connection. If you know of any good material off the top of your head, any interesting links would be much appreciated!

DG
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[Cinders]

Doggy Girl,

I took L-Tryptophan for a while and it helped me a lot in the early AF stages. I agree, I felt a lot calmer and no where near as depressed as when I first tried AF.

I took it mid afternoon and had no hallucinatory dreams.

I would be very intetrested in whether the 5HTP is as effective, more effective or less effective than the L-Tryptophan because it is much less expensive. Reading about them both leads both ways, as usual, because there is a wealth of information on the web but not all of it is correct.

I believe L-Tryptophan is not too widely thought of here because of the fact it was banned at the time RJ was writing her book and many people still think it is. It is also about 3 x more expensive than the 5HTP.

Do you take the AllOne supplement? I think it is the foundation of everything here, to be honest. As a gastric bypass patient, vitamins and minerals are extremely important for me and the physical difference I feel when I use AllOne versus other vitamin/amino acid mixes is amazing. Partly, I think because when I take the pills, it takes so many several times a day to do what one tbsp of AllOne does. I would forget the afternoon ones, etc.

Cindi

[Lila]

I've read that l-tryp and 5htp do the same things. In the Mood CUre she says for some people l-tryp works better than 5htp. It seems like an alternative for some.
I am taking 5htp and I really dont know if it is doing anything for me.

[Doggygirl]

Yes I take All One. I'm sure the fact that I've been taking All One all along - even during my falls from the wagon - did something to minimize withdrawl symptoms this time around. I was not as "nopa dopa" etc. (my withdrawl symptoms weren't what you would call severe the first time, and practically non-existant this time - I don't consider thoughts of AL and cravings a withdrawl symptom....)

I also take B vitamins, L-Carnatine (fat burning), Milk Thistle (liver), Cinnamin (blood sugar leveling), Probiotic (super strength from doc for yeast / gut healin), Omega oils from doc, Evening primrose oil for female hormal crap, and I'm sure I forgot at least one.

I'm hoping to get healed up to where I don't need all these supplements. But for now, I believe I do.

30 of the 500 mg L-Tryptophan caps last me about a month for just over $8.00(US) To me, that's not super expensive compared to some of the other stuff!!

Lila, that's sort of how I felt about SAMe - I couldn't feel a thing. If that's how you feel about 5-HTP, maybe give the L-Tryptophan alone a whirl? I'm no doc...just guessing what I might do.

DG
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[beatle]

Last summer sometime, there was a thread on 5-HTP and Tryptophan-- there has been some controversy about which is better and why. RJ posted and explained the difference well and gave some very good links for people to use if they wanted to do more research. I can't find the thread-- my search function does not seem to be working properly. But I would guess it was in June or July last year.

[Doggygirl]

Thanks again beatle for more input. I figured this has been discussed before, but I couldn't find much of anything in my search earlier today, and I just tried again using "Any Date" rather than 6 months or a year with L-Tryptophan or L-Trypt as keywords...and nothing came up for me either.

I would be very interested in what RJ had to say, and also the links if anyone who is a better searcher than me can find the old posts!

DG

[livingfree]

Hey DG - Great thread

I've been taking L- T for about 4 months. I take it (500 mg) at bedtime as it makes me really groggy. I just switched to 5-HTP and have noticed it doesn't make me tired - so I've added a day time dose. I like it because it lifts my mood and helps me sleep better. I also take L-Tyrosine when I wake up and again at 3Pm (3200 mg) with Vit B Complex and C. This is also a mood lifter and helps me with MY Menopause symptoms (L-Tyrosine supports the thyroid also). I had a Hyst. when I was just 32 so have to keep the hormone producing organs strong!!

There are no long term side effects with L-Trypt. unless you are also taking Rx Antidepressants - which you shouldn't mix the two.

[Doggygirl]

Liv, thanks for this feedback. I didn't know about L-Tyrosine and Thyroid - I know my hormones are out of whack (menopause) so I'll keep that in mind. I'll probably hold off on more supplement experiments than I'm already doing until after my follow up appointment with the hormone specialist doc. That appointment is on June 20th and I can't WAIT!!!!! She is also really into supplements as well as bioidentical hormones which in my limited experience, is VERY unusual for an MD.

Funny that I like taking L-Tryp during the day and it doesn't seem to make me sleepy - just calm and happy. Maybe I should try a second dose at bed time to see if "calm and happy" will translate into longer sleep time if I'm laying down LOL!

Thanks again to everyone - this is all very interesting.

DG
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