Supplements and Mental Disorders

The concept of giving the brain the nutrients it needs to function optimally is being embraced by more and more people around the world. There are many vitamin/herbal supplements that you can take for bipolar symptoms, or when tapering off of antipsychotic medications. I've scoured books and the internet over the past year seeking to find ways to help balance my physical and mental body and I thought I'd share some of the information I've come across.

First is a link to a site called Safe Harbor which offers articles focusing on alternative mental health treatments for bipolar and other mental disorders. Though some of the articles are a bit old, the information is still very relevant. I found the article by actress Margot Kidder (of Superman fame) a good beginning resource for where to start when taking supplements. The primary remedies for manic depression she takes are the amino acids tryptophan, L-taurine and the neurotransmitter GABA. She also takes L-Tyrosine and L-Glutamine  along with a combination of choline and inositol and a multivitamin in the morning. She notes, as did my psychiatrist, that tryptophan should not be taken with a serotonin reuptake inhibitor (SSRI). It can lead to serotonin syndrome, which is an excess of serotonergic activity at central nervous system (CNS) and peripheral serotonin receptors. In other words, too much serotonin can make you very sick or even be fatal. 

Another helpful blog is Nutrients Cure ADHD and Bipolar Disorder. Here I found a man, Allen Darman, who along with his son Willy, have used supplements to treat ADHD and bipolar disorder. He gives an extensive list on the page that I linked above of what they've found to keep the mind and body in harmony. Allen updated the supplements over the years, and in 2010 he listed this protocol for his son's Willy's baggies of nutrients. I'll share just a few of the nutrients he recommends, but for more details and dosages click on the protocol link:

• multivitamin and minerals
• vitamin c
• vitamin b complex
• vitamin d
• zinc
• coconut oil
• evening primrose oil
• omega 3-6-9
• cod liver oil
• Free Form Amino Acids and Necessary Co-Factors
• N-Acetyl Cysteine
• Reduced Glutathione Source
• Taurine
• Tryptophan
• Acetyl L-Carnitine
• Phosphatidyl Choline
• Alpha Lipoic Acid

As you can see, he mentioned some of the same supplements--taurine, tryptophan and choline--that Margot Kidder said helped her symptoms. At some point over the years, I have taken most of the supplements Allen and Margot have mentioned, but not all at the same time, so I don't know of their effectiveness for bipolar disorder. Because sleep is so important to handling neurological disorders, many of these supplements, such as tryptophan, taurine, and GABA are helpful for sleep as well. There is also some debate about whether we need omega 6 and 9s. There is evidence that we have plenty of 6 and 9 in our diet, and most people don't get enough omega 3, so right now I'm taking an omega 3 pill for when I start tapering Depakote (should start the switch over to the sprinkles in about a one and a half weeks).

I'll cover some books I've read and their supplement suggestions for mood disorders in an upcoming post.