St John's Wort

[BeckyBendyLegs]

I know nothing about this stuff. Tell me about your experiences taking it for mild depression / anxiety? Are there any side effects? Did it help? Does it work? Would you recommend it? I have been diagnosed recently with mild PND and am not taking ADs but want to know if this stuff has helped people. Thanks!

My GP recommended this for mild depression.

Took it for approx 6 months and found it wonderful. Took a few weeks to kick in but then really felt a difference.

AD's would have been too much for me and this was a great alternative.

That's how I feel about ADs too - I started taking Fluoxitine (or whatever it is called) and it just felt 'wrong' and I felt so poorly (even though I know that is normal for the start). I actually felt much better and more positive about getting better without them after stopping.

I've considered St John's wort, spoke to my doctor about it but decided to go on fluoxetine which really works well for me.

I know in some countries St Johns Wort is prescribed as an alternative to ad''s - there are many books on the subject if you want to do some research.

One thing my doctor did tell me (she was a GP but also into alternative medicine) that it would be adviseable to see a practitioner who could administer it. There are many different grades of St Johns Wort, I think it's important to get it right. You need to know which ones are good quality and the amount you should be taking to suit you. Don't think just because it's natural it won't have adverse side affects. I've known people who have not got on with it but have been fine with ad's.

I took it for mild depression and anxiety and it did help a lot - had to stop when we began TTC. The only side-effect I noticed was extremely vivid, utterly bonkers dreams.

SJW is fab. use a good brand Kira / Perika or the like. also take a high enough dose 900 -1800mg/day. take a look at a web site 'Kelly's St john's wort' is really helpful. good luck x