Should i take St. Johns Wort instead of the Lexapro i was prescr.?
hello i was given lexapro and i sort of asked for it also but all the side effects sound horrible at times. I have researched St.Johns Wort and if you get a quality product it seemd as though it may work. I brought up the st. johns wort to the dr. and she said its bad on your liver and its not fda approved. I did alot of research and not one thing says anything about harming your liver as a side effect . Why would my dr ever say that? I know doctors want you on meds because alot of them make more money but should i take the st. johns instead of the lexapro i mean the side effects seem way less. THANKS FOR ANYONES HELP!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!greatly appreciated.. I really want to know if the st. johns will help me feeling a bit better and i wont have to worry about all the b.s. side effects u know?
Re: Should i take St. Johns Wort instead of the Lexapro i was prescr.?
thats kind of your call.. i used SJW to help with some minor depression awhile ago.. it did help and i had no side effects from it.. as for OCD i have no idea if it helps or not.. one thing you should know is if you start taking it and are on it for a while you have to stop for atleast 2-3 weeks before you can start taking any other ADs.. so if it isnt working and then you decide to use the lexapro your going to have to make sure the SJW is out of your system..
Re: Should i take St. Johns Wort instead of the Lexapro i was prescr.?
I agree with punkdizzle that it's your call. I think that St. John's Wart is most effective with depression- I've never heard of it used for OCD, but if you want to go for it, try it out! Just be sure to tell your doctor before stopping the Lexapro and/or beginning the SJW. I think that a lot of people know that there's alternative, natural medicine out there, but I think doctors (except holistic doctors, of course) can get in trouble if they don't recommend medications. For example, if you had heart trouble, and the doctor didn't give you the option of taking Plavix, and you had a fatal heart attack, malpractice will ensue. However, I agree that they should definitely mention the fact of holistic treatment, because after all, they're going to get paid for the visit, regardless whether you agree to take meds. The drug companies are making the money off of the boundless prescriptions, not the PCP's. I, personally, don't believe in alternative, natural treatments for the more serious mental illnesses (I consider these schizophrenia, bipolar disorder/major, suicidal depression, and OCD) because I don't think that they're strong enough, and there aren't many studies on the effects (unlike how you're warned of potentially deadly side effects of FDA approved meds on brochures), but I do think that it's a better way once you're weaned off a psychiatric drug, but only for anxiety and depression. Obviously, with schizophrenia and bipolar disorder, the consequences of not taking the meds is far more severe than the side effects ever could be... God bless!
-GatsbyLuvr1920-
__________________
"Not everything that steps out of line, and thus 'abnormal,' must necessarily be 'inferior.'"
-Hans Asperger
Last edited by GatsbyLuvr1920; 08-23-2005 at 08:24 PM.
Re: Should i take St. Johns Wort instead of the Lexapro i was prescr.?
I experimented with Sr John Wort – and it made my OCD worse.(but that’s me)
Do not trust ignorant GP`s – only take meds from a psychiatrist.
The Fluoxetine is healing me – slowly………
And remember the “alternative, natural medicine”- industry is worth BILLIONS.
Re: Should i take St. Johns Wort instead of the Lexapro i was prescr.?
I also had a less than positive experience with St. Johns Wort...I cried non-stop for no particular reason and it did seem to make my ocd a bit worse...but I have a friend who tried it, loved it and still takes it.
Should i take St. Johns Wort instead of the Lexapro i was prescr.? 
