L-Theanine: The Magical Mood Boosting Amino Acid
I just love experimenting with new mood boosting supplements, especially because mood disorder runs in my family. I have been plagued with depression, anxiety, panic, anger, etc for a good portion of my life. I was doing pretty well until I recently went a bit overboard with my turpentine parasite cleanse. My health started to decline just a bit...and with it...unfortunately my mood. Well, that's not exactly what happened. So I had decided to start taking organic sulfur again to try and fix my health. But organic sulfur is no joke! It's a super strong oxygenating and detoxifying substance. If you're not ready for organic sulfur, it sure can throw you for a loop! So ofcourse I took too much and went to my favorite korean spa to sit in the near infrared sauna. On my drive home I was extremely shaky and I knew I had messed up pretty bad this time! Unfortunately I had induced anxiety... and so I had to remedy the situation. I wasn't ready to give up on the sulfur quite yet. I had to find something that would balance out the anxiety that the sulfur was causing... just until my body got used to taking it again. So I perused through my enormous supply of supplements that take up way too much space on my kitchen counter. I found an old bottle of Calm G. It was actually prescribed for me by a doctor a long time ago. I took it for a while and then stopped. But now, after over-ingesting my organic sulfur, I was pretty desperate to be calm again. So I took my Calm G pills a few times and they were working, however I noticed they were running low. Perhaps only 3 pills left? So I looked online for more Calm G, but they were $70 a bottle! That's a lot of money! I had to think fast. I looked through the ingredient list of Calm G. I was already taking most of the supplements that were listed. But one ingredient seemed to really call out to me. L-Theanine! So I went online to do a little research. I was pleasantly surprised at what I found. L-theanine is an amino acid found in Green tea that induces a profound sense of relaxation and euphoria. It actually places your brain in an alpha wave frequency- which is the frequency that your brain is in when you meditate. Pretty interesting! It also helps lower blood pressure, improves memory, learning, focus, protects from cognitive decline, etc... The list goes on and on. But what I found to be really fascinating is that a whole bunch of people on amazon claim that they've ditched their psychotropic drugs and replaced them with l-theanine! And even better, although the l-theanine promotes relaxation, it doesn't make you drowsy like other mood boosting supplements. So ofcourse I had to invest in a bottle of l-theanine and run some experiments on myself. I purchased a bottle of Bluebonnet non-gmo l-theanine 200mg. On Day 1, I took one pill with breakfast... and wow! I went to my favorite korean spa and I was so relaxed and feeling so good that I just couldn't believe it! I was standing in the shower thinking to myself, “Wow, this shower is amazing!” Then I sat in a hot tub stuffed between two other ladies. I can't stand being in a crowded hot tub, but I was like, “Wow, this is amazing!” It was as if the two ladies were not even there....and I'm empathic. I feel everyone. I thought, “Is this for real? L-theanine? Seriously?” I was high. Real high on l-theanine. I drank some water and went to lie down in the oxygen room approximately 30 minutes later. I usually can't lie down comfortably after drinking water. My stomach will make all types of gurgling sounds and I may even feel my heart beat through my stomach as if there's a struggle taking place. But this time, after taking l-theanine, my stomach was perfectly quiet and relaxed. Weird! I actually ended up staying at the spa longer than usual. I almost couldn't peel myself off the floor of the oxygen room. I felt so relaxed! But the craziest thing is that when I got back home from the spa, I started vacuuming and doing laundry! I felt so good that I wanted to clean! L-theanine made me calm, yet super energized and productive! After cleaning it was time for me to do some yoga! It was crazy... I was effortlessly touching my head to my knees. I had become super flexible too! So there's one caveat to be forwarned about... After I took the 200 mg l-theanine on Day 1, I went to sleep and woke up around 4am to use the restroom. I went back to sleep and had one of the worst lucid dream nightmares ever! When I finally woke up, the middle of my forehead (3rd eye) was pounding. I was like, “Oh no... l-theanine! Why?” I was so disappointed. I went online and looked up l-theanine and nightmares. It turns out that there is a link. But, I was hopeful because I actually took only one of my natural sleep pills that night instead of two. I was thinking I didn't need to take 2 that night because of the l-theanine. So obviously something went wrong with my sleep that needed to be rectified. “More tests must be ran”, I pronounced. FYI My good friend also tested out l-theanine, but he took his dose right before going to bed and he had many many nightmares. Truly unfortunate! The good news is that neither one of us had nightmares after the first night. So I believe that the nightmares must have been an initial adjustment period for the brain and body to get used to this new advanced substance. That's my intuitive feeling. I tried taking l-theanine in the morning on an empty stomach with aloe and my pepzin pills and l-glutamine but it got me a bit shaky... so no l-theanine on an empty stomach! I tried meditating in the morning after taking the l-theanine dose with aloe but my meditation didn't last too long. I didn't feel so good meditating on l-theanine...perhaps because it already placed me in a meditative state? So I decided that my morning meditation would have to take place first before ingesting the l-theanine. It worked out well though because after only 1 or 2 days of taking l-theanine I was no longer experiencing my usual bouts of morning anxiety so I really didn't need to take it immediately! I think I also added CoQ10 on day 2 or 3? I can't remember. But CoQ10 is one of the ingredients in my Calm G pills so I concluded that perhaps the two worked synergistically together. Besides feeling really relaxed and energized daily, I also noticed that my sleep improved tremendously and I was waking up earlier with more energy. I also noticed that I was way more productive and happier than usual. I was getting a lot more calls for reiki sessions...and my bank account was growing more than usual. Very interesting! L-theanine attracts money! The evening of Day 4, I started getting a really bad headache and joint pain. FYI I am prone to headaches and joint pain so I don't think the l-theanine caused it. In fact, I think the l-theanine actually helped my headache and pain. After taking my pill, I decided to go swimming. And although the swim cap was tight on my head, which is terrible for a headache, the l-theanine put me in such a good mood that it didn't matter. So it appears that l-theanine helps with mood and pain.
In conclusion... I am completely sold on l-theanine! In fact, I am so sold on it that I got on the phone to call a close relative of mine who is currently experiencing treatment resistant depression. I told him that he has to try l-theanine. He said he was willing to give it a shot. So let's see how it goes. I will definitely write an update if he actually goes through with trying it. But in the meantime... have a mood disorder? You might want to give l-theanine a shot! Final thought...I think the trick to life is to stay as calm as possible at all times...and guess what my friend?...L-theanine will definitely achieve that goal! Here's to staying peaceful, calm, happy, energized and productive!
And now for my legal disclaimer... This article is not intended as medical advice. I am not a licensed doctor. Please speak with your doctor before trying l-theanine. It may interfere with certain medications. Peace and Blessings!
Jennie H is a Reiki Master Energy Healer, Co-Founder of Self Saviorz Society California Non-Profit 501(c)(3), Poet, Author and Entertainer with goals to help raise the vibration and consciousness of humanity!
