DOSE:	500 mg	oral	Tryptophan - L-Tryptophan	(daily)
		oral	Alcohol	(liquid)
		smoked	Cannabis	(plant material)

BODY WEIGHT:

200 lb

At the turn of the new year I decided to try to make healthier choices in my life, like proper diet, exercise, all that stuff, that I had been neglecting for so long. I have been having trouble with insomnia and mood, so I decided to try l-tryptophan as a remedy, as it is a precursor to 5-HT and many seem to consider that to be a major factor in sleep/mood (hence ssris and such). In general, I really just wanted to do an experiment on myself, hoping that I might sleep better because of it.

L-tryptophan is nearly impossible to find in stores, probably because of the EMS outbreak. I did find one website selling it, so I ordered one bottle with 60 500mg capsules of supposedly pure, peak-x free, l-tryptophan. I took one to two capsules shortly before or after dinner every night for five nights and lived my life as I normally would.

The first two days I took one capsule at about 8 pm and basically just watched television for a bit then went to bed. While it didn't help me get to sleep better, I did wake up feeling well rested, which doesn't happen often. Other than that, I barely noticed any effect.

The third day happened to be superbowl sunday. I went to a party and ate some snacks, mostly vegetables and bread, and drank a several shots of liquor. Having experienced very weak effects from the l-tryptophan previously, I decided to take 2 capsules (1 g). I swallowed to capsules with a beer and a shot. About 1 hour later, I began to feel... well, akward I guess. I was feeling unusually anxious (I get anxiety from time to time, but only stress related, never for no apparent reason). It seemed pretty certain that this was due to the l-tryptophan. There were also small changes in perception too. I found myself staring at things like sometimes happens on hallucinogenics. I would say that these effects felt very similar to the feelings one gets just before lsd or mushrooms kicks in.

No visual disturbances, just 'the calm before the storm.'

All in all, I found it somewhat uncomfortable and decided to go home and sleep it off. I would figure that something used as a sleep aid would help me fall asleep, but the weird tripped-out feeling it gave me absolutely would not let sleep come. Eventually I had to take 10mg cyclobenzaprine to help me sleep. That was a weird but not all to unenjoyable.

The next day I took only one without drinking alcohol before bed. I didn't feel the effects that I had the night before, but I had noticed slight changes in perception all day, and it persisted on throughout the night(weird dreams, too). I can't put my finger on exactly HOW things seemed different, but they did. I guess that’s what I get when I mess around with my own neurotransmitters.

Now we come to day five. Perception is altered just as the previous day, though once again slightly noticeably. My mood is slightly better on average (if at all; I’m not terribly depressed to begin with). I feel more rested when I first wake, but other than that it has not helped me sleep better. After work I went home and ate some steamed broccoli, drank one beer, took one capsule of l-tryptophan, and went to a friends house to hang out. While over there I had a few more beers (literally, maybe 3) and smoked a joint with several people.

This was all maybe 15 minutes prior to when the L-tryptophan started kicking in (BTW, it seems to take about an hour to an hour and a half for me to feel any effects once I take a capsule.) Once it did, I damn near had an anxiety attack. I felt very zoned out, tired and very alert at the same, and just plain shitty. I kept breathing heavy and clenching my fists. I almost chipped a tooth from the trauma. At one point a saw a color shift, and very weak color patterns. I couldn't really talk to anyone, and if could I would have said only, 'I feel like I'm losing my mind.' I would definitely not call this a trip. I would call this experience SHIT.

I am writing this the day after, and I still don't feel right. You'll notice that the more potent effects occured when alcohol or pot was involved. I feel that L-tryptophan definitely has some weird synergy with drugs and alcohol. I can see it effecting mdma and tryptamines, and maybe for the better, but my experiences have left me with no desire to take it anymore. After taking this as described on the label (They say 1-3 capsules daily! To hell with that) for 5 days, I would describe how I feel right now like this: Its like I was tripping for four days straight and this is the day after I've come down.

I have never met anyone who like that day-after-tripping, strung-out feeling. I would only take it again to see if it would increase effects of a trip or roll, but that’s really not my kinda thing anymore.

Exp Year: 2006	ExpID: 50382
Gender: Male
Age at time of experience: Not Given
Published: Jun 19, 2006	Views: 32,091
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Cannabis (1), Alcohol (61), Tryptophan - L-Tryptophan (197) : Various (28), Health Problems (27), Combinations (3)