Re: Experience with tryptophan therapy?

Hi JBB,

First of all, it is normal for your wife to feel a little trepidation about making the change from Prozac to L-Tryptophan. My best advice to ease the stress of worry about what to expect (!) is to arm yourselves with as much knowledge about L-Tryptophan as you can possibly lay your hands on.

Here's a few starters:

http://www.truestarhealth.com/Notes/1385001.html
http://www.emmadavies.net/blog/amino-acid-trips.aspx
http://www.diagnose-me.com/treat/T138573.html
http://chemistry.about.com/library/weekly/aa110402a.htm

Also, it might be a good idea to keep in mind that worrying unduly about something that has not yet happened is more likely to make it happen than not. ;) Our minds are wonderful and powerful at the same time, and with our thoughts we can actually create our own downfall or our own success.

Also, it is extremely important that she not go 'cold-turkey' with the prozac. It is much safer to wean oneself off the prozac under doctor supervision first before attempting a new treatment.

As you have noted, your wife seems calmer on the L-Tryptophan than before, this is a good sign, although I would caution against expecting too much around her PMDD time. It takes about 3-6 months of consistent use (along with diet and regular daily exercise) to see a complete turn-around.

Improvement will be exponential, and your wife should not feel discouraged if she still presents with symptoms in the 6 month window. You should both notice that although she might still have symptoms, they should start abating and becoming more controllable and easier to manage.

It took me 1 whole year of consistent effort and treatment to effect a complete cure, to where I have not had one PMDD episode at all right up until this moment that I am writing here.

Here is a chronology of events that might be helpful:

1st 2 weeks: Maximum allowable dose of L-Tryptophan daily (1500mg), on an empty stomach (or with a SMALL high carb snack) 1 hour before bed time & daily excercise for 1 hr in the form of brisk walking. Some side-effects occur such as excessive sleepiness, upset tummy and occassional headache. All these were temporary and went away when my body adjusted to the L-Tryptophan. Adjust dosage if side-effects are too heavy, and increase again slowly once body has acclimatized itself.

Weeks 2 - 4: Go to half the maximum allowable dosage (750mg), on an empty stomache (or with a SMALL high carb snack) 1 hour before bedtime & daily brisk exercise for 1 hr. Side-effects should have abated completely by now, if not keep adjusting dosage.

Weeks 4 - 6: Go to daily recommended dosage (500mg) per day, follow guidelines as above.

Weeks 6 through to end of 6 months: Continue on daily recommended dosage (500mg). Take it as before, and continue to watch diet, stress situations, and do exercise daily. By now you should have been well on the way to seeing some noticeable and consistent positive changes in mood, appetite, sleep patterns, energy level and overall feeling of wellbeing.

After 6 months: Take recommended daily dosage in two weeks from ovulation until at or after menstruation. Follow recommendations above. Eventually, it is not even necessary to take the L-Tryptophan for these 2 weeks of the month, but only as needed (when there has been a bit of stress, etc.). By listening to one's own body, one learns the cues as to when it would be propitious to take the L-Tryptophan or not.

Even as I write this, I still take L-Tryptophan on the odd occassion, just as a maintenance, about once a month. If I get ill, L-Tryptophan is part of my regimen as the stress illness can produce in the body affects the immune system and serotonin levels. Unlike Prozac which is basically a prescription up to menopause for many women, L-Tryptophan is a healthy supplement recommended for a maximum time of 6 months to 1 year, depending on the severity of symptoms, after which maintenance doses can be taken optionally.

The most important bit of advice that I can give is that each month gets a little easier than the month before, and this is what your wife should be aiming for in terms of expectations.

All the best, and if you have any more questions re. treatment with L-Tryptophan please don't hesitate to ask me.

Anthea

PS: Here's a tip for all the patient and wonderful husbands and partners of PMDD sufferers who read this forum ... even if your spouse is in denial about her PMDD and is at the moment refusing treatment ... you CAN take L-Tryptophan and ease your own stress! L-Tryptophan is a completely natural substance, an essential amino acid which gets depleted in our bodies through inadequate diet or undue stress.