Use of herbal medicine

[tomf]

Hi all,

I'm 28, Male, uk, I've had anxiety for about 5 years now, basically whenever i have to go somewhere where i've never been before or if it's at a place where there's a small group of people, e.g a family gathering.
In the last year i've started to tackle it by doing Yoga, reading books and seeing a counsellor every 2 weeks.

I was reading a book that suggested a few herbal medicines. I really don't want to take medication if i can help it, but i was thinking that i'm not making amazing progress so it might be worth giving a herbal medicine a go.
suggested was Relora, St johns Wort & Valerian Root.

If anyone has any advice or suggestions on these that would be great. I'm not looking for something that will knock me out lol, just something that will lighten the load of anxiety when i have to go somewhere.

Thank you for any help and advice,

Kind regards,

Tom

[suzy-sue]

St johns wort wont help Anxiety .Valerian is an ingredient in Calms ,you could try them .You can also get something called Bach Rescue remedy ,it is available from the NMP shop .it comes in a spray ,drops which you add to water and pastilles .They are effective for a lot of people .It may be a good idea to look into CBT or Mindfulness therapy for the anxiety issues you have .Even herbal rememdys dont solve the problems just mask them .Your Dr will be able to refer you if he thinks it would be of benefit .There are also courses you can do online as the waiting lists are often quite long .All the best Sue .

[tomf]

Thanks for your reply, i picked up some St Johns Wort today actually, i was debating as to weather to go for the st johns or valerian root.
I have seen a lot of websites say that st johns is effective for anxiety. I guess it all depends on the person.
I have only taken 1 tablet of the st johns, maybe i could switch to the valerian root?
Do you know if you have to give a certain ammount of time before switching to a different herbal medicine?

Thanks for the advice and info, i do EFT with my counsellor, where she taps repeatedly and i think of situations that have made me anxious, it helps unblock these negative thoughts and free's the brain of them apparently.

[suzy-sue]

St Johns wort is more effective for mild to moderate depression its not very effective for anxiety .It doesnt work straight away and has to be taken every day .It can have side effects of making you feel worse ie more depressed before you see any benefits .You said you only need something to be taken when and if you go somewhere .So Valerian would be a better option .If you take this it can also give you side effects of an upset stomach, so start on a small dose and see how you go .This can be taken as well as SJW and on a when needed basis .Magnesium and a B6 complex will also help and can be taken alongside the other two mentioned ...all the best Sue

[ljd]

rescue remidy is good and any othe rbach flower remedy depending on the problem

[tomf]

thanks for the advice, very interesting, i am going to get some Valerian Root today, probably the capsules ones.
Good to know that they can be taken together, although after this weekend i think i will stop taking st johns wort just to be on the safe side.

I have found the st johns wort has stopped me 'looking ahead' as it were.
I have something coming up which had been making me anxious a bit, and i was replying how it might go over and over in my mind, but since ive taken st johns wort ive found it has stopped me from being anxious, it's like it has stopped me from looking too far ahead.

[tomf]

Well I've been taking the valerian root for about 2 weeks now. I do feel a little bit more confident about google out to places. Not a massive difference but I think it's helped a bit.