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Has anyone tried GABA for insomnia caused by anxiety?

Posted by raili @raili, Oct 19, 2024

I feel that at times my insomnia is caused by anxiety.Since I am already taking temazepam (weaning off of it)I am pretty sure my doctor is not going to prescribe any anti anxiety medication for me.So i am grasping at the straws hereeee somewhat. I can order Gaba on line.Do you think its worth trying?

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bajjerfan | @bajjerfan | Nov 9, 2024
In reply to @blueopal "If you mean Gabapentin I don't think it'll work at all for depression and anxiety. I..." + (show)
Profile picture for blueopal @blueopal

If you mean Gabapentin I don't think it'll work at all for depression and anxiety. I have been taking it for several years for neuropathy and nerve pain. I also have depression and anxiety I'm taking Effexor as an antidepressant, and I don't think it's working at all.

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GABA aka gamma-aminobutyric acid is NOT GabaPentin. GABA is the skeletal building block from which GabaPentin, PreGabalin/Lyrica and Baclofen are derived. Note that GABA is contained within the names of GabaPenti and PreGabalin.
https://my.clevelandclinic.org/health/articles/22857-gamma-aminobutyric-acid-gaba
https://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/326847
I tried it years ago, but don't recall much in the way of anxiety relief. You can pretty much take it in unlimited amount from what I remember, but not if it's the form with inositol in it. One recommendation was to open say the 1,000mg capsules and dissolve the contents in a small amount of warm water first. If you try it, then try it slowly to to see how you might react and maybe slowly increase the amount if you feel any benefits.

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laurie6 | @laurie6 | Nov 10, 2024

I have tried it. Be sure to be checking your blood pressure (BP) while taking it because it lowers BP.

I take meds for BP, so it’s important to be aware of your blood pressure when adding it. Or anything, really.

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raili | @raili | Nov 11, 2024
In reply to @laurie6 "I have tried it. Be sure to be checking your blood pressure (BP) while taking it..." + (show)
Profile picture for laurie6 @laurie6

I have tried it. Be sure to be checking your blood pressure (BP) while taking it because it lowers BP.

I take meds for BP, so it’s important to be aware of your blood pressure when adding it. Or anything, really.

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my blood pressure is normal as a rule so I am not taking any medications for it.
I have not seen any improvement by using Gaba so far either for anxiety or sleep but its only been couple weeks or so
Thanks for your pos t about blood pressure thou

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raili | @raili | Nov 11, 2024
In reply to @bajjerfan "GABA aka gamma-aminobutyric acid is NOT GabaPentin. GABA is the skeletal building block from which GabaPentin,..." + (show)
Profile picture for bajjerfan @bajjerfan

GABA aka gamma-aminobutyric acid is NOT GabaPentin. GABA is the skeletal building block from which GabaPentin, PreGabalin/Lyrica and Baclofen are derived. Note that GABA is contained within the names of GabaPenti and PreGabalin.
https://my.clevelandclinic.org/health/articles/22857-gamma-aminobutyric-acid-gaba
https://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/326847
I tried it years ago, but don't recall much in the way of anxiety relief. You can pretty much take it in unlimited amount from what I remember, but not if it's the form with inositol in it. One recommendation was to open say the 1,000mg capsules and dissolve the contents in a small amount of warm water first. If you try it, then try it slowly to to see how you might react and maybe slowly increase the amount if you feel any benefits.

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thanks for this hint.I have been using 500m capsules once a day.And no improvement in sleep or anxiety.Feeling of dullness thou.Might try 1000mg or dissoving it in water.Or I havent use it long enough yet.

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yanks950 | @yanks950 | Dec 20, 2024

My psych doc recommended Calm Aid to me. He said the active ingredient in there has shown to be sometimes just as effective with anxiety and sometimes sleep as Ativan. Has anyone tried these?

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raili | @raili | Dec 20, 2024
In reply to @yanks950 "My psych doc recommended Calm Aid to me. He said the active ingredient in there has..." + (show)
Profile picture for yanks950 @yanks950

My psych doc recommended Calm Aid to me. He said the active ingredient in there has shown to be sometimes just as effective with anxiety and sometimes sleep as Ativan. Has anyone tried these?

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I am not familiar with Calm Aid.Will look it up,
I have now taken Gaba for some weeks and it helps somewhat but also makes me very tired during the day.

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linusrox1 | @linusrox1 | Jul 16 1:49pm
In reply to @kildaren96 "I’ve taken gabapentin and stopped using it because of the drowsiness and blah feeling I had..." + (show)
Profile picture for Nanci @kildaren96

I’ve taken gabapentin and stopped using it because of the drowsiness and blah feeling I had during the day, but I was also taking it during the day back then. I stopped taking it. Then I went back on just 100 mg at night after a fall resulted in some minor fractures of my pelvis (now healed) and I was not sleeping well at all although I also suffer from insomnia and poor sleep overall. Like you, I felt drowsy during the day even on that small dose. I decided that maybe it took some time to be in my system to work and I started taking it early evening at 8 PM instead of around 11 PM, closer to bedtime. That has worked much better for me for sleeping during the night although I still seem to end up getting up for 1-2 hours at some point in the wee hours before going back to bed and to sleep, but it’s curtailed the sleepiness during the day. I don’t know when you take yours, but if you’re taking it late, you might try taking it earlier and see if it helps with the daytime drowsiness.

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@kildaren96 GABA aka gamma-aminobutyric acid is NOT GabaPentin. GABA is the skeletal building block from which GabaPentin, PreGabalin/Lyrica and Baclofen are derived. Note that GABA is contained within the names of GabaPenti and PreGabalin.

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brendaelk1 | @brendaelk1 | Jul 21 5:59am

I am on a small dose of methadone so I cannot take anything narcotic or powerful. I have fibromyalgia and I do take Lyrica which helps me a lot. I just take it at night because it will increase your appetite. The doctor gave me 5 mg of melatonin but it is not that great, and you get less from it over time. I get maybe 5 hours of sleep if I am lucky!

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genie15 | @genie15 | Jul 22 7:37am

I trued GABA supplements for insomnia. Did not work. I did more research and found that ingesting GABA orally is getting it by the wrong route. It doesn't cross the blood-brain barrier efficiently, so it doesn't get where it needs to be to work well. Over the counter supplements of GABA are a waste of money. In desperation I tried some deep breathing exercises and some vagus nerve exercises. Both eork pretty well.

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stevej940 | @stevej940 | Jul 23 8:20pm
In reply to @genie15 "I trued GABA supplements for insomnia. Did not work. I did more research and found that..." + (show)
Profile picture for genie15 @genie15

I trued GABA supplements for insomnia. Did not work. I did more research and found that ingesting GABA orally is getting it by the wrong route. It doesn't cross the blood-brain barrier efficiently, so it doesn't get where it needs to be to work well. Over the counter supplements of GABA are a waste of money. In desperation I tried some deep breathing exercises and some vagus nerve exercises. Both eork pretty well.

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@genie15 I have had some help from GABA in the past. But you have to use pharmacy grade so it crosses the blood brain barrier. Not something cheap from Walmart. I don’t know that it is a good solution long term. CBTI maybe a better long term solution.

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