Herbs and Vitamins for Anxiety and Panic Attacks

I was once diagnosed with social anxiety about 10 or so years ago. Some people think that anxiety is just someone feeling anxious about something, but it is so much more than that. My anxiety caused me to get flushed, my heart rate would speed up, and then it would turn into a full-blown panic attack, and I would think I was having a heart attack or feel like I was going to pass out. After fighting with my unwilling doctor for two years, he said there was nothing wrong with me, he finally agreed after I gained a tick behind my ear that made me unable to eat for two weeks (because it the spasm of the tick would trip my gag reflex when I tried to eat) to give me a prescription, and a diagnosis. I was diagnosed with Social Anxiety and Panic Attack Disorder. I was prescribed Lexapro, which worked for the first year then quit working, abruptly. I was then switched to Zoloft, for about two days, as it caused me to sweat non-stop.

After being switched back to Lexapro I decided it was time to deal with my issues on my own. My doctor vaguely suggested therapy along with medication in the beginning, but gave me no good reasons why I should go that route. I was not informed of side effects from the medications at the time and found that all of my creativity and sex drive was stripped away for the first six months or so. Once off the pills I felt much better and was able to use breathing techniques to get through my anxiety and panic attacks. I also found some vitamins and herbs that helped when I needed something stronger than breathing. I used Vitamin B6 with St. John's Wort until I learned that the later could effect the ability of my birth control pills to work properly. With further research I learned that the herbs Valerian, lemon balm and kava all help with anxiety. I also have found that the mineral magnesium works as a muscle relaxant and can help with the stress a panic attack puts on the body.

The herb Valerian root (Valeriana officinalis) is used as a sedative on the nervous system and a relaxant for the muscles (Reader's Digest, 2009, Pp128). It also helps with headaches, which can sometimes be a result of an anxiety attack. According to Mosby's the recommended dosage of Valerian extract is 400-900mg, before bedtime (2010, Pp592). It is recommended that Valerian not take with MAOIs.

The herb Lemon Balm (Melissa officinalis L.) is used as a sedative and it has mood-enhancing abilities(Reader's Digest, 2009, Pp73). The leaves are the part of the plant that is used and can come in an extract. According to Mosby's the recommended dosage is 80mg of Lemon Balm extract combinewith120mg Valerian root extract, tid (three times a day) (2010, Pp390).

The herb Kava (Piper methysticum) has a sedative and it is an anxiolytic (Skidmore-Roth, 2010, Pp.369). Anxiolytic is defined, by the Mirriam-Webster's Medical Dictionary, as a drug that relieves anxiety. It acts directly on the limbic system, which is the parts of the brain that are concerned with emotion and motivation. According to Mosby's the recommended dosage of Kava extract is 45-70mg tid (2010, Pp370). Take it with a meal for increased absorption. It is also recommended that it not be given to children under 12 (Skidmore-Roth, 2010, Pp370).

The mineral Magnesium works as a muscle relaxant, which can be helpful to someone suffering from anxiety issues. The stress of anxiety can take it's toll on the shoulder muscles and the neck muscles. According to the Encyclopedia of Nutritional Supplements the recommended daily intake of Magnesium is 280mg (Murray, 1996, Pp161).

Although all of the B vitamins can aid in the calming of anxiety issues, vitamin B6 (Pyridoxine) seems to be the most important because it helps to form chemical transmitters in the nervous system (Murray, 1996, Pp100). According to the Encyclopedia of Nutritional Supplements the recommended daily intake of vitamin B6 is 2mg (Murray, 1996, Pp101).

Avoid caffeine if you suffer from anxiety. It is a stimulant and will only make you more jittery.

Resources
The Complete Illustrated Book of Herbs. (2009). Reader's Digest. New York.

Murray, M. (1996). Encyclopedia of Nutritional Supplements. Three Rivers Press. New York.

Skidmore-Roth, L. (2010). Mosby's Handbook of Herbs & Natural Supplements. Mosby Elsevier. St. Louis, Missouri.