Opinions on St. John's Wort?

I don't think I have ever tried it surprisingly. I've tried so many natural supplements for various conditions and I don't feel I've gotten enough out of any to justify the cost. I hope you find some answers.

Hi Red,

I used SJW after I was first diagnosed with Crohn's. I didn't want to go on anti-depressants. That was over 8 years ago. It worked well for me...but then I was only on Asacol at the time.

It is supposed to aid with digestion as well as being for depression. It will also start cleaning up your liver. If you have a lot of allergies SJW may detox you in a way you might not want...sometimes in the form of a hellacious cold. According to what I've read allergies are an indication of a sluggish liver. SJW may metabolize your medications faster through the liver.

Be sure to check any contraindications relative to anything else you are taking. You will want to be careful of prolonged sun exposure if you do take SJW.

Hi Sherry -
I know I've read some about interactions.... I was considering taking some myself a few weeks ago.

In a book I have, the article about SJW says that it can "accelerate the biotransformation of many drugs" which would lessen their effect - and cites an incident in which cyclosporine lost its effectiveness in a transplant patient because of the SJW.
The article then goes on to say that a lot of other meds use that same pathway.... so SJW might interfere with the absorption of other meds.
Here's a link.....
http://www.nlm.nih.gov/medlineplus/druginfo/natural/329.html

Don’t know anyone who takes SJW so I do not have enough information to recommend it.

I have to agree with Quincy that theanine and SAMe are effective for mood maintenance. SAMe is expensive but if it works then I am sure it is worth it. Theanine is in tea and is the reason why the caffeine in tea does not cause jitters as it does in coffee. My girlfriend prefers this brand that keeps her mellow and helps her sleep at night:

www.vitaminshoppe.com/store/en/browse/sku_detail.jsp?id=SR-7444

A good multiple vitamin with generous amounts of B-complex might help. They don’t call B-complex the stress vitamins for nothing. Rainbow Light is a good brand and not too expensive.

I am surprised that vitamin D is not in your signature. It’s a natural supplement that even Quincy takes an ample amount. Members in the Crohn’s forum swear that not only does it help with IBD but that they notice it also seems to help with their fibromyalgia and depression.

Sherry, I was a little concerned about SJW when I was looking for an herbal remedy a couple of months ago, and I found at my local natural food etc store a liquid herbal extract called "Good Mood Tonic", by Herb Pharm. It contains extracts of St. John's Wort Flowering Tops, Ashwagandha root; Skullcap flowering herb, and Prickly Ash bark, and is supposed to promote positive mood and healthy emotional balance. It seemed to do so with me, but I only take it sporadically. It seems to have no negative effect on my flare situation. Part of my concern regarding SJW dates from taking it a number of years before I was diagnosed with UC -- I had withdrawal issues when I stopped taking it, which is an indicator that it has a strong biological effect and given the pile of drugs I now take, I worry about interactions, etc. The tonic seems to work on a homeopathic basis, so that I'm not taking as much of the herb in the tonic as I would in a pill.

Here's the link to the product. http://herb-pharm.com/catalog/goodmoodtonic-p-228.html

the main site is herb-pharm.com

I tried it before going on Lexapro. It didn't do anything for me; so I went the antidepressant route.