Just ran across a paper in the Orthomolecular Library:
Niacinamide’s Potent role in Alleviating Anxiety with its Benzodiazepine-like Properties: A Case Report (PDF link)
In lay terms: niacin (niacinamide) can work like a psychiatric drug.
I would say, even better, since I was put on Gabapentin for shingles pain, and that worked well. And for two weeks or so, it helped my anxiety. And then stopped working. My doctor gave me a tapering off schedule that would have lasted
18 months. (I shrank that to 4 months by using chelated magnesium.) Drugs like Valium, Prozac, and others have some serious side effects for many people.
Quote:
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A case report demonstrated that the use of 2500mg of niacinamide (nicotinamide) per day ameliorated severe anxiety in a 34-year-old male patient. It appears that niacinamide has therapeutic properties similar to the benzodiazepines.
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Benzodiazepines are barbiturates (names end in -pam) used for insomnia, anxiety, and depression.
Quote:
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Niacinamide might exert its effects through its modulation of neuro-transmitters that are commonly unbalanced in those areas of the brain associated with anxiety. Niacinamide might also reduce anxiety by shunting more tryptophan toward the production of serotonin and/or by simply correcting a vitamin B3 dependency. The use of niacinamide for extended periods of time appears to be safe, but megadoses can cause sedation, nausea and vomiting.
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I'm doing fine on 3G a day: and I have noticed a lessening of my anxiety! Mine was never at a level where I was seeking a prescription: I felt it had a real-world cause because I was so sick for years and it was ruining my life. But I am glad to see it go
Quote:
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The only medications that completely resolved this patient’s anxiety were benzodiazepines. In an effort to wean off the benzodiazepine, the patient took increasing doses of niacinamide (nicotinamide). As demonstrated in the following case report, niacinamide was effective for addressing the benzodiazepine withdrawal symptoms and managing anxiety.
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This particularly got my interest because getting off psychiatric drugs can be a terrible ordeal, freezing people between the side effects of a drug which may or may not work, and the hellish symptoms of tapering off. When I was leaving gabapentin, my mood could plummet into the worst despair I have
ever felt. But a quarter of a magnesium pill; and I was cheerful again.
I know some people find these drugs to be life-changing in a good way. But for everyone else, there is a good alternative to explore.