User Reviews for 5-htp

I've been depressed for as long as I can remember leading to a suicide attempt and long term hospitalization. I took seroquil for depression in the past which was horrible. I started with 100mg at night of 5htp and I felt like I was high on MDMA and couldn't sleep at all. However I'm now taking 50mg in the am and I've only had positive symptoms. 5htp has turned my entire life around. I feel as though it's the first time in my life that I'm not forcing myself to be happy and on 50mg a day I sleep better, and it has helped me bond with family due to my fun and optimistic attitude. I'm much less aggressive as well.Read More Read Less

helps lower pain and helps me sleep.

is this treatment safe to take with Ramipril? I have not started it yet

I have been taking 100mg of 5HTP for about 2 months now. It helps with anxiety which in turn helped with depression. The best part about this is once you take it after a meal at night, its much easier for me to fall asleep. I used go to sleep at 3 or 4AM due to anxiety keeping me up, but after taking 5HTP i go to sleep around 10 and wake up at 6 or 7 EASILY. Then I wake up feeling happy and refreshed. The only negative about this is I get a headache sometimes, but this is quickly counter acted by taking a couple advils. Read More Read Less

SO great! My daughters friend had told her about it and what a difference. I have only been using for a little bit but so far so good. My daughter really loves it, trying to get my husband to try it as well, he is in need!!

Started taking 5-htp for general anxiety based on web info gushing about its effectiveness, bought NOW brand 100 mg. Label said take 3x per day with food, which I did. After 48 hrs, started getting bad diarrhea, along with a dizzy/weak feeling much like the bout of anemia I used to have. Another 24 hours and the problems persisted, stopped taking the 5-htp and they resolved within a day. There were no warnings on the label about these possible side effects, but a quick google search showed that these were the most common side effects of this product... why would the producer of this product fail to put these common side effects on the back of the label??? Are they that greedy that they can't give informed full disclosure? Pretty much cost me 2 days of sickness to try their product.Read More Read Less

Started taking 5-htp for general anxiety based on web info gushing about its effectiveness, bought NOW brand 100 mg. Label said take 3x per day with food, which I did. After 48 hrs, started getting bad diarrhea, along with a dizzy/weak feeling much like the bout of anemia I used to have. Another 24 hours and the problems persisted, stopped taking the 5-htp and they resolved within a day. There were no warnings on the label about these possible side effects, but a quick google search showed that these were the most common side effects of this product... why would the producer of this product fail to put these common side effects on the back of the label??? Are they that greedy that they can't give informed full disclosure? Pretty much cost me 2 days of sickness to try their product.Read More Read Less

Gave me horrible headaches and cause me to have serious irregular vaginal bleeding for SEVERAL weeks at a time. After reading all of these reviews I only found a few who said they experienced abnormal spotting from this medicine. I will not be taking this medication anymore to see if this resolves the bleeding issue as it’s a nuisance and I notice absolutely no difference in my mood if anything it made me more anxious trying to find a reason for the constant spotting.

I take this product 5 bro, it helps to put me to sleep at night. That is what the description i read would do for people, is sleep

I have suffered depression since my teens, and have various & severe mental illness throughout my entire family history. I have been on and off antidepressants for years, but nothing has ever 'worked'. I would give up on them after a few months, until things got absolutely unbearable again & would finally drag myself off to the doctors to try another one. Even St Johns Wort had awful effects, and I essentially got to the point of accepting my perpetual unhappiness, and considering suicide as inevitable & the only option for future relief. Until.... 5-htp. I am extremely aware that everyone reacts differently to different chemicals, but for me, it has been a godsend. I take 2 x 100 casuals at night, and from day 3 onward, I have literally never felt better. I sleep, have lovely calm dreams (as apposed to constant nightmares), wake up energised & I am happy & completely at peace. I have suddenly & completely gone off sugar, and although I am not overweight, I have lost 3 kilos in 2 weeks. This would actually be my only warning; if you are someone who struggles to gain & retain weight, I would be careful on 5-htp & force yourself to eat, even if you don't want to. Other than that, I have had a 100% positive experience with no side effects whatsoever, & I would encourage anyone who has depression to give this supplement a chance. Read More Read Less

I've been feeling depressed for so long I can't remember when things were different. Only recently have I admitted to myself the seriousness of what's going on. I've tried 5-htp: 100 mg extended release twice daily and I noticed a positive change BUT seemed to always get tired late in the afternoon. Crazy as it sounds it did not help with evening sleep. I've switched to only one pill a day and have not concluded any definite result. I might try CBD in place of the one omitted pill, or might reverse the schedule for when to take the 5-htp. If I didn't get so tired I'd give it a 5-star rating. I've got to admit that sometimes I get so desperate for one good day that I'd try almost anything. Depression can be very frustrating, always getting your hopes up only to be let down. I should note that I've been taking 5-htp for about 5 weeks. By the way, I have gone the route of prescribed meds with bad luck results. I don't intend to return to any of them. I've tried to be straight here because I know that what works or doesn't work for me may not be the same for you. It all seems to be a wait and see approach similar to prescribed meds. Something my doctor says, "try this and if it doesn't work we can try something else". After a while it grows old.Read More Read Less

This product is very dangerous i recently seen on some websites that people are taking this drug with another deug called Molly's i want to exspress how dangerous this is at any dosage i recently have taken th e drug with Molly because i seen so many people saying it works little did i know it would put me in the er for dehydration but it was a serve i took the 200mg pill the day after i took the molly because i was feeling down and i thought the drug was safe take well my story ends this when i went into the er my hand where purple and my vanes looked black i was up for 2 day straight.not only that but it wasn't alowing me to eat either every time i would try to eat o would feel even more worse or i would throw it up now i am aware that not eatting and vomiting are some of there effects but how ever they dont want to tell u how harmful this drug cam be i was told by doctors that im lucky to be alive if i would ha e waited another day i would have die of dehydration and iknow what ur thinking that u will keep drinking water and u will be fime thats what i thought but apparently it SENT me to the er i had to have so many test done and im glad i came out alive ut now i suffer from anxiety and deep depression i wouldn't recommend this product for anything that has to do with mixing it with any other drug Read More Read Less

I have been struggling with depression and anxiety since 1993. This is the first time I have felt almost immediate relief. I will continue taking at night with my other meds. Usually I wake up and do not even want to get of bed. In the last week when I wake up, I feel hope and purpose.

I was taking 5-HTP for anxiety + depression in place of regular, prescribed SSRI medications. I took it for about 4 months, and took 100mg 1-3x a day with food, in the morning/afternoon. I found no improvement to my mood, sleep quality or anxiety levels. Absolutely nada. I did experience heart burn, bloating and major irritability. It was very uncomfortable. A lot of supplements that use multiple herbal remedies are not adequately regulated and can have traces of microbial or chemical contamination. I don't believe they are very pure/clean/safe things to take. Maybe if I benefitted i'd continue, but I feel it did do nothing & introduced more unpleasant symptoms. I stopped taking it and in a month or two returned back to my normal, depressed self without the bloating, heart burn and less irritability. Read More Read Less

Had to stop taking after 9 days due to dizziness, nausea and eventually a black out. Still suffering from occassional nausea and vomiting 2 weeks later. Only took 100mg daily before bed and would not recommend 5htp as it made me very ill.

I have been on 5-HTP for nearly 8 years, and much happier for it. I started it after my boyfriend died unexpectedly and I fell into a severe depression (normally I suffer from mild depression). I didn’t have insurance, and started researching alternatives to SSRIs. I had taken Zoloft for a spell years ago and it worked for me okay (though I didn’t like the side effects). The day I started taking it it worked! I was able to get out of bed and do the dishes, a major accomplishment at that time in my life. Over time and with an increased dosage, my depression and anxiety lifted and my concentration and focus improved. It also helped my sleep, and I didn’t experience a decreased libido like I did on Zoloft. My advice: 1) Work with your doctor if you want to try this. Do not take 5-HTP with other meds unless instructed by your doctor as this can cause bad interactions (e.g., see #3 -serotonin syndrome). 2) Start with a low dose and work your way up. I started with 50 mg. Over time I upped it by 50 mg increments until I found what worked for me (150 mg once a day). 3) Serotonin Syndrome (where getting too much serotonin is toxic) is real, but from what I have read you have to take 300 mg or more before you see toxic effects. This information may change over time as research teases this out, and I suspect it differs depending on the person. 4) Take an enterically-coated version of 5-HTP. This means it breaks down in the intestine and not the stomach. After a year or so of taking uncoated pills, I started to experience stomach rumbling and discomfort, and a low-grade fever. The enteric pills eliminated this issue. 5) Get a good quality product to ensure you are getting a pure product. I take Solaray. 6) If it makes you sleepy, take it at night. I initially tried it on a Saturday day, when I knew I’d have the day off and could see how it made me feel. It made me drowsy. I now take it ~45 minutes before bed and that’s worked well for me.Read More Read Less

Began using 5HTP when I lost my insurance for a while and had to go off of Pristiq. AWFUL drug to stop taking abruptly. I was greatly helped by 5HTP! I really don't think there's anything on the planet that could have removed all of the symptoms of that experience, but this was a lifesaver. I noticed an improvement the 2nd or 3rd day, and have been taking ever since. It's also helpful for anxiety and good sleep. I do find that I need to go off for a few days or so as it seems to lose it's effectiveness. A word of caution, try to hang in there if you get stomach issues. They go away after the first week, and the and the quick desolve tablets are easier on the tummy. Also start out with a lower dosage if you do have issues. Great stuff peeps!! Read More Read Less

it's important to take 5 htp with a green tea extract supplement to avoid heart valve damage. please research the combination to learn about it and prevent health issues.

(Part 2) Today is the 4th day of taking 5-HTP. I still feel sad, have negative thoughts and bouts of anger, but they quickly dissipate and no longer linger on to consume me like what they used to. There’s this sense of calmness that is allowing me to make sound judgements and decisions without being hampered by negative feelings all the time. I feel like the decisions that I make will lead to positive results, as opposed to bad endings that I used to feel prior to taking 5–HTP. Might be too early, but I can safely say that I am no longer a victim of my own depressive thoughts. I am no longer a person who is constantly sad and angry. The only flip side is that 5-HTP does wreak some havoc in my stomach and I feel bloated with gas at times. But it does seem to feel less intense as the days go and I am hoping that my gut will get used to this supplement. Overall, what a miracle supplement. My only regret is that why didn't anyone informed me about 5-HTP earlier. I feel as if so many decades of my life wasted on being weary all the time and so many days and opportunities to seek happiness were missed. Nonetheless, better late than never. Read More Read Less