Has anyone d/c St John's Wort while tapering benzo's

[[bu...]]

Hi,

 

I posted last week that I thought I could c/t my p.m. dose of SJW - boy, was I wrong!  I skipped 2 days of 375 mg and had lots of trouble, especially the sleeping part I missed the most and the mood swings are really bad too.  (I don't know if I have any friends left right now).  Anyway, I'm currently taking one in the morning and one in the evening.  I'm going to try again just opening the caplet and pour some of it out and go from there.

 

I read that SJW occupies the same CYP pathway as benzo's and it will make you suffer from a "wide variety of adverse side effects" (from the Road Back Science).

 

Thanks,

 

Buffy

[[rd...]]

I have never heard of anyone suffering from withdrawal from discontinuing st. johns wort. I have taken it in the past and quit with no problem. From what I understand st johns wort can reduce the effectiveness of a benzo but by itself shouldnt cause any withdrawal if discontinued.  This is from wikipedia:

 

"St John's wort has been shown to cause multiple drug interactions mainly through induction of the cytochrome P450 enzyme CYP3A4, but also CYP2C9. This results in the increased metabolism of those drugs (benzodiazepines), resulting in decreased concentration and clinical effect."

 

Are you tapering off a benzo?  I think that would be more likely the cause of your problem and not the st johns wort.  In fact if anything discontinuing the st johns wort while taking a benzo would make the benzo more effective. (assuming the st johns wort was interfering with effectiveness of the benzo in the past)

[[bu...]]

Yes, I am on a very slow taper of diazepam but since I joined this forum and found out that SJW was contributing to the w/d, I'm starting to taper it also. 

 

I am having a challenging day today, because of a sleep issue.  I get to sleep and wake up 3 or 4 hours later and really feel washed out. 

 

Anyway, somehow the SJW and the benzo have a synergistic effect, so when you decrease one, the other is affected also.  Also, I have taken Diflucan 3 times this week, and that decreases SJW too. 

 

What is almost worst is that outside of my benzo buddies, I have no one to confide in, because this is the 3rd drug w/d in the last 5 years and it is too much to burden others with.  Oh well, I just ate some yogurt and think I am feeling better now - just a little scatter brained. 

 

Lots of love,

Buffy 

[[...]]

Don't want to offend anyone here but we do understand that cytochromes are enzymes involved in the metabolism of drugs within liver, right? And that metabolism is a tricky and complex field of medicine.

 

Guessing or trying to understand which enzymes do what in what amounts is dodgy business for the layman. Buffy I applaud you for trying but if it were me I'd focus on discontinuing one drug at a time - really.

 

"(I don't know if I have any friends left right now.)" At first glance that look hiliarious-funny. But if you mean it, maybe try going around from person to person explaining that you are a "making a medicine changeover which can cause irritation and wonky mood swings." Apologize where you think it'd help.

 

Hey, it's fully worth a shot when you got nothing to lose. Right?

 

Good luck dear.

Ten

[[bu...]]

Hi,

 

I've decided to d/c one drug at the time now.  So, now I'm back on the regular dose of SJW, 375 a.m and p.m., but still have problems from the c/t last week.  I will not attempt that again. 

 

Yes, SJW sounds so innocent, almost like a vitamin,  but it isn't.  It is chemically similar to Prozac and so now I'm handling it from that angle.  It does things to your neurotransmitters - serotonin, dopamine, etc.  It really fries your brain when you deprive it of what it is use to receiving every day.  I found some other sites on the internet where folks said the same thing, so I know it is not just my brain chemistry.

 

At this time, I'm in a recovery mode - not reducing anything until I get some equilibrium back in the game.

 

Thanks,

 

Buffy

 

[[rd...]]

Actually Buffy I was taking st johns wort for several months and quit while tapering off klonopin.  I didnt notice anything unusual when i quit the st johns wort.  I stopped the st johns wort because i had read that it can interfere with Benzos so quit to not have anything interfere with the benzo while tapering.  My entire taper was painful and I dont remember the st johns making anything better or worse.