Ephedra/Stimulant Abuse

Nutrition
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[quote]DanErickson wrote:
I hope those drugs don’t ruin your pretty face. Seriously… get help if you need it, talk to a doctor; it may be extremely unsafe to come off of it or to lower your doses without medical supervision![/quote]

Ohhhhhhhh, you’re from Ontario. That’s where I just moved from and I am so homesick.

After this morning, I won’t be putting off finding a doctor here any longer. Got really dizzy this morning just after waking up. Dizzy as in I was sure I was going to pass out. I think my really low blood pressure is coming back. This used to happen to me all the time in my teens/early 20’s at the gym before I ever took ephedra. I can only imagine what will happen on ME days now.

Thanks Dan. Btw, where are you from in Ontario?

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[quote]MsM wrote:
MISCONCEPTION wrote:
Charles Poliquin has talked about this extensively in many of his seminars. He doesn’t like to use stimulants year round, and starts very small increasing dosage over many months. We the full dosage is reached, they stop and rebuild there adrenals.

Right now you should take an adrenal stress test to see if your cortisol is depressed in the morning, this is common when people abuse stimulants and start running of adrenaline.

the protocols to rebuild your adrenals depend on what your circadian cycle currently is.

as a general rule
icrease vit c, take some adrenal extract, extra b vitamins, fishoil, and lay off it for awhile.

I will have to do a search on here then to find some of Poliquin’s ideas on use of stimulants. Thanks for pointing me in that direction.

Oh I know that my adrenals are out of whack without even doing a test.

Any suggestions about how much vit c and b to use? I do use a ton of fishoil already. The adrenal extract I have never seen before. Now that I’m settled in the new house, the diet is pretty good so I think that’ll help a ton also.

Thanks a ton for those ideas. [/quote]

Adaptogens such as Red Korean Ginseng can help you recuperate from stress and tough workouts. Rhodiola Rosea is a very powerful adaptogen; take it when you need energy. It is a Cortisol Modulator, meaning that if your cortisol is too low it will help you raise it and if too high, it will help you lower it. Take only 1 tab per day, as it is very potent. Stevia is a natural sweetener and a great adrenal recovery aid. Cold Fx is also a surprisingly good product. It is good for adrenaline glands, fat loss, decreasing insulin output, and regenerates the pancreas.

If you really want to fully recoop your adrenals I suggest getting a phone consultation with pOliquin but getting an adrenal stress test prior.

You have no way of knowing if you are yin or yang deficient. I am only saying this because it helped me tremendously.

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side note? try Caffeine-Free Spike, and Power Drive together. Should help you out when your off the ephedra.

PS. I love ephedra but haven’t used it for years.

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[quote]MsM wrote:
tootles27 wrote:
You can vent as much as you want. You are not being hard on yourself, it’s just really frustrating!! I’ve been where you are now and maybe if I got to vent I would have been better off. (^:

I don’t know how you did it all on your own. I really don’t. You are one strong woman.[/quote]

It’s really not being strong just stubborn and pigheaded!! There were times I could have been in real trouble when I stopped so if you feel the same, get to the doctors. I hope you are feeling better. -Cara

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where do you buy that much ephedra from, the only place i know that sells it is suppscanada

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[quote]MISCONCEPTION wrote:
side note? try Caffeine-Free Spike, and Power Drive together. Should help you out when your off the ephedra.

PS. I love ephedra but haven’t used it for years.[/quote]

Thanks and I plan on trying this very soon. I have been wanting to order Power Drive but had to put it off for a little while until I got settled into the new house and they had somewhere to deliver it to.

Can I ask why you stopped using it if you love it so much?

I’ve been using ginseng too and the valerian. Haven’t really noticed a difference yet. Not sure how long it should take to notice though.

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[quote]tootles27 wrote:
MsM wrote:
tootles27 wrote:
You can vent as much as you want. You are not being hard on yourself, it’s just really frustrating!! I’ve been where you are now and maybe if I got to vent I would have been better off. (^:

I don’t know how you did it all on your own. I really don’t. You are one strong woman.

It’s really not being strong just stubborn and pigheaded!! There were times I could have been in real trouble when I stopped so if you feel the same, get to the doctors. I hope you are feeling better. -Cara[/quote]

Stubborn works for me:)

Thanks Cara. Much better than yesterday.

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[quote]Evhybrid wrote:
where do you buy that much ephedra from, the only place i know that sells it is suppscanada[/quote]

Oh, in every supplement store, there is always a secret drawer somewhere that has things not displayed OTC. You usually have to know them fairly well though. I have never ordered it online.

129

[quote]MsM wrote:
DanErickson wrote:
I hope those drugs don’t ruin your pretty face. Seriously… get help if you need it, talk to a doctor; it may be extremely unsafe to come off of it or to lower your doses without medical supervision!

Ohhhhhhhh, you’re from Ontario. That’s where I just moved from and I am so homesick.

After this morning, I won’t be putting off finding a doctor here any longer. Got really dizzy this morning just after waking up. Dizzy as in I was sure I was going to pass out. I think my really low blood pressure is coming back. This used to happen to me all the time in my teens/early 20’s at the gym before I ever took ephedra. I can only imagine what will happen on ME days now.

Thanks Dan. Btw, where are you from in Ontario? [/quote]

Hey Msm,
Thanks for your response!
I am from kitchener. I hope bad things don`t happen to you when you come off those drugs, now that you mention your low blood pressure I am even more sure you should talk to a doctor about the situation. May I say… so odd to hear a girl talk about ME days, that is awsome, we need more girls like you in my city!

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[quote]MsM wrote:
I can relate with the coffee thing. When I am done with ephedra, I plan on working on the caffeine intake also. Chocolate, don’t even get me started on that. I have a love/hate relationship with it. I love it, it hates my thighs. lol I do try to stay away from it except once in a blue moon I’ll have it PWO.
[/quote]

You know, chocolate isn’t so bad. Stick to the really dark stuff (>85%), and it’s lots of healthy fats, fiber, and protein with pretty minimal sugar. Also, although chocolate has caffeine, it’s a drop in the bucket compared to a cup of coffee.

Another thing crossed my mind that might help you out a little: Are you taking antioxidants? Maybe some Co-Q10, some R-ALA? Also, there has been research to show that phosphaditylserine has good stress relief and anti-cortisol properties.

Good luck! I hope the doc has some ideas for you.

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[quote]DanErickson wrote:
Hey Msm,
Thanks for your response!
I am from kitchener. I hope bad things don`t happen to you when you come off those drugs, now that you mention your low blood pressure I am even more sure you should talk to a doctor about the situation. May I say… so odd to hear a girl talk about ME days, that is awsome, we need more girls like you in my city!

[/quote]
Kitchener? That’s awesome; I just moved from London.

Nothing too terribly bad has happened. Most things are just annoying presently: weight/water, low energy levels, irritability. The only thing that I think is of some concern at the moment is the BP. Very light headed and dizzy first thing in the morning right now and yesterday during/after training. Mind you, this was normal for me before I ever took anything. Ephedra simply brought me up to what would be consider on the normal/low side.

ME squats tomorrow:) Maybe when I head back home to visit we could hit the gym sometime? I’m all for it.

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[quote]graphicsMan wrote:

You know, chocolate isn’t so bad. Stick to the really dark stuff (>85%), and it’s lots of healthy fats, fiber, and protein with pretty minimal sugar. Also, although chocolate has caffeine, it’s a drop in the bucket compared to a cup of coffee.

Another thing crossed my mind that might help you out a little: Are you taking antioxidants? Maybe some Co-Q10, some R-ALA? Also, there has been research to show that phosphaditylserine has good stress relief and anti-cortisol properties.

Good luck! I hope the doc has some ideas for you.[/quote]

Chocolate is great! I couldn’t agree more.

Not currently taking any Co-Q10 or R-ALA, no. I did look up phosphaditylserine though. Any idea on a good brand? Seems to have some pretty decent cortisol blocking properties when used at certain doses. Thanks for pointing that out because I’d never heard of it before.

Doctor’s will be tomorrow. Took longer than I thought to register my son at school. My father has a doctor here and goes for testosterone shots on a regular basis so I’m going to go with him tomorrow to his appt and see what they have to say there or at least book my own appt. I’d like to at least have my BP checked.

Is there anything else anyone can think of that I should/could ask them to check for? I just don’t want to come across as a hypo-chondriac. I’m already uncomfortable discussing it with a doctor anyhow but if it means getting things back to the way they should be, I will.

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[quote]MsM wrote:

Not currently taking any Co-Q10 or R-ALA, no. I did look up phosphaditylserine though. Any idea on a good brand? Seems to have some pretty decent cortisol blocking properties when used at certain doses. Thanks for pointing that out because I’d never heard of it before.
[/quote]

I’ve been taking NSI Phosphatidylserine Complex 1000mg formula. I take 4 pills a day (it’s standardized to 20%). It should be noted that most of the studies that were done were on bovine PS, but that is generally not available anymore. This, and any other formula you are likely to run across is derived from (the dreaded) soy. I did find a study on soy PS, and it seems to still be a valid way to reduce cortisol and help with stress.

Good luck!

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You don’t sound wierd at all! I am a total stim junkie and have been for the last 5 years. Between ephedra, Adderall and all the other non-ephedra stimulants, I have put my body through hell.

I started getting migraines with nausea and vomiting, itching unbelievably on my arms, nightmares (when I could get to sleep, which was rare.) I slowly started lowering my intake of each everyday, and stopped mixing them. My symptoms have subsided in the last 2 weeks and I feel much better than I did all jacked up.

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[quote]RBaker69 wrote:
You don’t sound wierd at all! I am a total stim junkie and have been for the last 5 years. Between ephedra, Adderall and all the other non-ephedra stimulants, I have put my body through hell.

I started getting migraines with nausea and vomiting, itching unbelievably on my arms, nightmares (when I could get to sleep, which was rare.) I slowly started lowering my intake of each everyday, and stopped mixing them. My symptoms have subsided in the last 2 weeks and I feel much better than I did all jacked up. [/quote]

I am SO glad to hear you say that! Good for you. I know it’s harder than what one would think. Those were not good sounding side effects you were having.

That’s great that you’re feeling better. I am some days too.

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[quote]graphicsMan wrote:
MsM wrote:

I’ve been taking NSI Phosphatidylserine Complex 1000mg formula. I take 4 pills a day (it’s standardized to 20%). It should be noted that most of the studies that were done were on bovine PS, but that is generally not available anymore. This, and any other formula you are likely to run across is derived from (the dreaded) soy. I did find a study on soy PS, and it seems to still be a valid way to reduce cortisol and help with stress.

Good luck! [/quote]

A little twist thrown into the whole thing. Not really a good idea for me now to start trying new supplements, I don’t think. Went to the hospital this morning and blood pressure was a little low but not as bad as I thought. They did find a mastoid infection though behind my right ear.

Apparently it was pretty bad so now I’m on a very high does of anti-biotics for the next week. That could have been causing a good part of my symptoms like the headaches, balance issues and irritability. I plan on keeping your suggestion in mind but I think not for a few days. When I try too many new things at the same time, it’s hard to tell what is caused from what.

Anyways, I look funny right now and my ear is sticking out. I am feeling a little relieved to know that some of these physical things may go away in a few days and were not caused totally by what I thought.

Everyone’s suggestions have been fantastic and if I need them, I plan on trying some more of them when I am not freezing my butt off with a fever.

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What a relief that you got yourself checked out. Right now a fever is a walk in the park, right? (^:

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Hey, thanks Bushy. Will do.

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[quote]MsM wrote:
Hey, thanks Bushy. Will do. [/quote]