Sam-E, anyone?
07/24/2008 04:04 p.m.

Just to recap yesterday's entry since I added this next one so quickly on top of it....

As for Miah and I, we both endured miserable mornings and decided it's just too difficult to stay upset with one another. I still don't know where "we're" headed, but for the moment we've declared a truce while we sort through things. It's a relief for the time being.

Has anyone else out there in Pathetic Land ever taken this "dietary supplement" called Sam-E? I started taking it about 10 days ago, 200mg in the morning, at the advice of my sleep-disorder physician. Actually, he highly recommended it several years ago as an alternative to traditional anti-depressants, but back then I was able to manage pretty well without it, and I am not very keen on relying on either medication or even some supplements to "fix" what ails me. But since my irritability during "that time of the month" has seemed to increase in the last few years, I decided to try Sam-E. The commercials and most of the info I read on it said it had "no negative side effects." But after my over-the-top anger during the last few days, I decided to dig a little deeper.

What I found were a couple of blog websites where consumers listed a number of side effects that were so similar to one another that it seemed possibly more than coincidence. The most common were:

*increased anxiety/panic
*insomnia (with increased vivid dreaming when sleep did come, sometimes nightmares)
*nausea, gas, stomach pain (which seemed to do more with a stabilizer put in some of the brands)
*headache
*increased outbursts/irritability
*increased anger
*heart palpitations
*chest tightness
*"speeding" sensation
*tingling in extremities
*twitching of extremities
*in extreme cases, difficulty breathing
*confusion
*manic episodes where there was no history of mania before
*decreased libido
*"restless" or "racing" thoughts

None of these are reported by the makers of Sam-E as possible side effects! Also not on the box was the warning that Sam-E can deplete vitamin B12 levels, and that a B12 supplement should be taken as well.

I have been fortunate enough not to experience most of these. The insomnia was a VERY common side effect, but since I have the opposite problem (narcolepsy) I wasn't suprised that I didn't experience trouble sleeping. I have, however, experienced very vivid dreaming and went from having NO bad dreams for years to having had several in the last 10 days. And, while I am aware that my irritability due to hormonal changes has increased, the episode the other night did seem over the top, even for me. Needless to say, I haven't noticed "improved mood". But I have noticed a slight increase in energy and motivation.

Not sure what I'm going to do since I'm not experiencing most of the bad side effects, and I am experiencing increased energy. But being extra angry, if the anger doesn't subside, doesn't seem like a good trade. Oh, and when stopping this medication, apparently the effects of the Sam-E linger much like other anti-depressants that shouldn't be suddenly stopped.

Gotta go give Meme her breakfast.