shipply
12th September, 2006, 12:52 AM
I am 20 years old & have dealt with depression for approx. 10 years now. About a year ago I started taking St. John's Wort after having several bad months of persistent depression and anxiety. I stopped taking the herb after a couple of months because I was bad about remembering to take 3 doses a day. I want to start again and am wondering if it is safe/effective to take the 900mg in one dose as I have seen suggested by some. I also suffer from memory problems, social anxiety, low energy, and I have most symptoms of Adult ADD. (I was never diagnosed with ADD or any of these disorders as a child because I never consulted a doctor about them). There has always been a very high stigma in my family that mental disorders basically don't exist, and certainly not in my family so you can see the complications that arose with my persistent mood swings and depression as a teenager.
I am now going on my 3rd year in college and have begun to see another relapse in depression, stress, & anxiety problems and am determined to do something about it before it gets out of hand again (before I lose all will to help myself). I am extremely reluctant to take perscription anti-depressants due to my family situation as well as personal preference (I'd like to avoid the side affects & avoid any kind of dependency on drugs). I have been reluctant to start taking St. John's Wort again but am feeling desparate. I have a lot of trouble focusing on school work & would like to start taking Ginkgo biloba as well because I have heard that it helps some with ADD symptoms. I have also been researching kava kava and am considering taking that to help with anxiety/stress/social anxiety issues. I am mostly curious about what effects these drugs will have together as well as what the best ways & times of day for me to take them are.
I am now going on my 3rd year in college and have begun to see another relapse in depression, stress, & anxiety problems and am determined to do something about it before it gets out of hand again (before I lose all will to help myself). I am extremely reluctant to take perscription anti-depressants due to my family situation as well as personal preference (I'd like to avoid the side affects & avoid any kind of dependency on drugs). I have been reluctant to start taking St. John's Wort again but am feeling desparate. I have a lot of trouble focusing on school work & would like to start taking Ginkgo biloba as well because I have heard that it helps some with ADD symptoms. I have also been researching kava kava and am considering taking that to help with anxiety/stress/social anxiety issues. I am mostly curious about what effects these drugs will have together as well as what the best ways & times of day for me to take them are.