Report out 2: Saffron extract

[branchandroot]

Okay, but for real though, the saffron extract is doing some neurochemical lifting, here.

Today I have: done two loads of laundry, including sheets, remade the bed, vacuumed, put away the groceries, made taco pie, watered the plants, made a batch of homemade tortillas, washed all the cooking dishes, and I feel astonishingly not like a used dishrag. Accomplished and reasonably relaxed, rather. It is not inconceivable that I may be able to scrub the cats’ water fountain out in a bit.

It’s been ages since I had the energy/focus/making-things-happen-ness to make tortillas, and I love homemade tortillas with a great passion, so this is a definite win.

(The saffron has enough oomph to cause some mild withdrawal symptoms, in fact, if you miss a dose, so treat this like you would any other psychoactive and keep an emergency dose.)

Comments

[krait]

Woohoo! I'm so glad for you, and astounded by that list; that's definitely more than I mange on most days!

I now wish I had homemade tortillas; if this is a very specific side effect of saffron then perhaps I should raid the spice rack tonight. :D

[branchandroot]

[cackles] Don't know if it's specific, I had a really amazing taco on a good tortilla a few weeks back and have been low-key craving real corn tortillas ever since. But I'm pretty sure being able to say "yes, and now I will make some" and... just /do/ it is down to the saffron

[umadoshi]

I'm so glad this is working well for you! (And am also now trying to look into it, because heaven knows very little works for me even remotely.)

Can I ask which brand you're taking? There are so many stories about different brands of herbal supplements having almost no actual active ingredient in them. >.

[branchandroot]

Sure! I used "Source Naturals Serene Science" for my ramp-up, despite epic eye rolling over the brand name, because they had 15mg tablets and allowed me to start very small and see what happened.

Once I was sure this was doing something, I went for Tiki Nature 100mg capsules. The only filler they have is rice flour, which I can deal with.

The trick is definitely to find brands that will list all the ingredients, which a lot of "supplements" refuse to do on sale sites. It's all just marketing fluff, no glimpse of the actual label. Bad, bad sign that.

Still not 100% sure that the main effect this has isn't on depression, but depression and anxiety and executive function are all wadded up together so tight that it gets me results in any case. I'm in favor of results!

[umadoshi]

Thank you! I'll take a look and see if we have either of those brands here.

A couple posts back you mentioned being careful about serotonin--does saffron increase it/add enough of it that I should adjust other meds before trying it, or is it just "keep a close eye out in case something goes weird?" (I'll also check with my pharmacist before actually adding it in, but pharmacists' level of knowledge about supplements can vary.)

depression and anxiety and executive function are all wadded up together so tight that it gets me results in any case. I'm in favor of results!

That's the important part!

[branchandroot]

Saffron appears (from preliminary studies and anecdotal evidence) to increase serotonin. If you're already on something that increases serotonin, I'd just be alert for the standard signs of overdose while you ramp up, unexplained fevers and such. But I, for example, am on twice the "maximum" dose of mirtazepine and hit 100mg of saffron without any issues. So I don't think this is a contraindication, any more than any other 'helper' med is that you might take to increase the effect of your main med. Just keep an eye out.

[umadoshi]

So I don't think this is a contraindication, any more than any other 'helper' med is that you might take to increase the effect of your main med. Just keep an eye out.

Okay, that's good to know! ^_^ Thank you!