Does herbal stuff for anxiety and sleep actually work?

ima keep this short I cant sleep and I have always had anxiety more than usual since I am no longer on Zyprexa and on a different med but I got this tea that has California poppy, l-theanine, chamomile, and skullcap and was wondering if it can help me sleep and not be anxious or if all herbal remedies are just placebo, I have also been reading about kava kava online and people are saying the effects are noticeable but I don’t know if I will try it because of the cases of liver damage
I used to take 250 mg of magnesium every night but the pills were huge and hard to swallow and I didn’t notice any difference in my sleep or anxiety

Some of the herbal stuff does work.

l-theanine has some studies to back it up. There are formulations mixed with melatonin.

I get mild effects from chamomile and skullcap. They are not very strong. I used to take valerian. Same for that. It tastes like shyte, btw.

You don’t have to take magnesium pills, you can get it as a powder and mix it with hot water. Usually it will have a fruit flavor and you take it like an evening beverage. 250 mg of magnesium isn’t a lot BTW. You may want to try 400-500 mg. It is possible to overdose on magnesium, so don’t go nuts - but it will generally give you the runs, if that happens, scale back.

Edited to add that magnesium deficiency is not uncommon - I’m not sure how useful an occasional dose is going to be if you had a deficiency. You might have to take it daily for awhile to notice a difference.

i got the runs from magnesium i think but the same day i drank a spoon of cayenne pepper in water so that may have done it but that was when i stopped using it i think i get a bit of magnesium daily i eat the same thing for breakfast everyday and it has 100 mg magnesium and i eat salmon often but it seems like almost everybody would have magnesium deficiency since even the highest foods in magnesium don’t really have enough to get you to over 400 mg daily unless you eat a ton i might start taking the magnesium powder because i have read magnesium helps mentally

Yeah 250 mg shouldn’t give you the runs. They do use large doses to treat constipation, but if you took grams and grams of it it could be really harmful.

I think it does help but it’s subtle. Anyway, in normal doses it doesn’t hurt and is actually good for a lot of other things.

This is from WebMD:
"Some people use magnesium for diseases of the heart and blood vessels including chest pain, irregular heartbeat, high blood pressure, high levels of “bad” cholesterol called low-density lipoprotein (LDL) cholesterol, low levels of “good” cholesterol called high-density lipoprotein (HDL) cholesterol, heart valve disease (mitral valve prolapse), metabolic syndrome, clogged arteries (coronary artery disease), stroke, and heart attack.

Magnesium is also used for treating attention deficit-hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), anxiety, chronic fatigue syndrome (CFS), Lyme disease, fibromyalgia, cystic fibrosis, alcoholism, mania, recovery after surgery, leg cramps at night and during pregnancy, diabetes, kidney stones, migraine headaches, a long-term pain condition called complex regional pain syndrome, weak bones (osteoporosis), premenstrual syndrome (PMS), altitude sickness, urinary incontinence, a condition that causes burning pain and redness called erythromelalgia, restless leg syndrome, asthma, hayfever, multiple sclerosis, and for preventing hearing loss and cancer.

Athletes sometimes use magnesium to increase energy and endurance."

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I have really severe anxiety and it does not fix my anxiety. I think it might help a little bit, but it is not like a medication. At least I know that the anxiety is not a result of me being deficient in magnesium. I have a lot of health related anxieties.

Oh and you should not take extra magnesium (the amount in food is fine) with certain antibiotics, muscle relaxers, diuretics, or blood pressure meds without asking your pharmacist or doctor.

I use to take Xanax for anxiety and sleep and it worked like a charm. When I became hospitalized due to MI (June 2015) I ended up quitting cold turkey because they didn’t give it to me. I had nowhere to live when I got out so I ended up going to my dad’s an hour and a half away. My new pdoc and family doc simply don’t prescribe it. Period. I don’t give a shyt who you are or how miserable you are. They don’t prescribe it. I get by now taking a mood stabilizer to help me sleep.

Years ago, I took melatonin to help me sleep and it used to work really well but then, over time, it quit working so well and I ended up getting a Rx for Xanax from my old Dr. I know it isn’t great for you but I really miss it. I can see why it is addictive. I haven’t taken it since I quit cold turkey involuntarily.

I wish I could get prescribed Xanax I’m afraid to ask for any benzo’s because they are viewed so recreationally but when I see my doc I’m gonna ask about temazepam which is a benzo but for sleep not anxiety even tho it still works for anxiety but is a lot more sedating and I think I can get that because my sleep is ■■■■■■ and he prescribed trazodone but it had a horrible interaction so I couldn’t take it after the first day of me feeling like I was dying, but, before mi when I was just a young druggo me and my friends were always trying to get Xanax because of how popular it was in music and the media but we never tried it because this guy who sold it was rumored to be pressing them in harder drugs to make them stronger. it must have been rough quitting it cold turkey I bet the withdrawals were terrible they should’ve at least tapered you off of it

I heard lithium orotate helps with sleep. Buy it online. Some people swear by it.

I find that “nighttime tea” or “sleep tea” helps me relax.

Someone told me to take valerian extract to sleep better, but all it did was give me more vivid dreams than I already have.

Inositol has helped with obsessive thoughts.

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i use kava root tea for anxiety. It takes the edge off, and puts me in a state of mind where I can remember my coping skills. You can’t drink more than three cups a week, and you can’t combine it with Tylenol or alcohol, because it is processed in your liver.

I also take gabapentin as needed for anxiety. It is stronger than kava root, but not as strong as a benzo. My doctor prescribed it for me because I needed an anxiety med, but I was afraid of becoming addicted. Gabapentin has a low potential for abuse. It does make me kind of silly, sometimes, but it doesn’t get me high like a benzo would.

Be careful with magnesium supplements. And any metal supplement, for that matter. It is possible to overdose on those.

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Yes they do. I drink herbal teas to help relax. Sleepytime will knock you out! Tension tamer is good, too.

I find that mint tea is very relaxing.

Cbd works really good for both anciety and insomnia