drtbear1967
Musclechemistry Board Certified Member
Generalized Anxiety Disorder (GAD) is the most common form of anxiety. Temporary anxiety turns into GAD when you experience 3 or more of these symptoms for 6 months: Restlessness or feeling on edge, being easily fatigued, difficulty concentrating or mind going blank, irritability, muscle tension, sleep disturbances. You can also think of GAD as having difficulty shutting up that asshole voice in your head.
Benzodiazepines are usually prescribed. One of them is oazepam, a fast-acting drug with side effects like clumsiness, daytime drowsiness, a feeling of whirling motion and headaches, all of which will kill your workout. And it can be addictive. The good news? There's an herbal alternative: passionflower. A study published in the Journal of Clinical Pharmacy and Therapeutics put passionflower in the ring with oazepam. A group of people diagnosed with GAD were divided into two groups. Group one was given 45 drops of passionflower extract plus 1 placebo tablet per day for 28 days. Group two was given oazepam, 30 mg per day, plus placebo drops. Each was assessed by a psychiatrist during the study.
The Results: Passionflower and oazepam tied for effectiveness at lessening the symptoms of anxiety, BUT passionflower won when it came to fewer side effects. The oazepam group reported job impairment from the side effects of the drug the next day. This wasn’t reported by the passionflower group. Passionflower is "a significant improvement over benzodiazepines in the management of GAD especially when drug-induced impairment of job performance is to be avoided." Passionflower extract can be found at health food stores or online. It can also be bought in tea form. For the tea, pick up some loose-leaf passionflower and a tea ball. Steep for 10-15 minutes or longer for more potency. Passionflower can be taken any time anxiety puts you in a choke hold. Be aware that it WILL mellow you. It's especially beneficial when taken before bed. The study used 45 drops per day, but you can adjust the dose. Generally, one serving = 1 ml of extract or 20-30 drops.
Benzodiazepines are usually prescribed. One of them is oazepam, a fast-acting drug with side effects like clumsiness, daytime drowsiness, a feeling of whirling motion and headaches, all of which will kill your workout. And it can be addictive. The good news? There's an herbal alternative: passionflower. A study published in the Journal of Clinical Pharmacy and Therapeutics put passionflower in the ring with oazepam. A group of people diagnosed with GAD were divided into two groups. Group one was given 45 drops of passionflower extract plus 1 placebo tablet per day for 28 days. Group two was given oazepam, 30 mg per day, plus placebo drops. Each was assessed by a psychiatrist during the study.
The Results: Passionflower and oazepam tied for effectiveness at lessening the symptoms of anxiety, BUT passionflower won when it came to fewer side effects. The oazepam group reported job impairment from the side effects of the drug the next day. This wasn’t reported by the passionflower group. Passionflower is "a significant improvement over benzodiazepines in the management of GAD especially when drug-induced impairment of job performance is to be avoided." Passionflower extract can be found at health food stores or online. It can also be bought in tea form. For the tea, pick up some loose-leaf passionflower and a tea ball. Steep for 10-15 minutes or longer for more potency. Passionflower can be taken any time anxiety puts you in a choke hold. Be aware that it WILL mellow you. It's especially beneficial when taken before bed. The study used 45 drops per day, but you can adjust the dose. Generally, one serving = 1 ml of extract or 20-30 drops.
