DOSE:		oral	Rhodiola rosea	(daily)
		oral	Ginseng
			Cannabis

BODY WEIGHT:

170 lb

I made a 4:1 tinture of rhodiola rosea by adding 4g's of the root powder per 1 oz on 100 proof vodka and after allowing it to to steep for 2-3 weeks I strained out the root powder with a cheese cloth.

Me and my girlfriend were both suffering from a mild depression characterized by demotivational syndrome, and a lack of mental reward for our efforts in all activities (I.e. Playing music, creating art, working out, socialization, reading, studying, etc.)

We started consuming a half an oz of the tincture 2-3x daily and eventually increased it to 1-1.5oz for me, and 1.5-2oz for my girlfriend. After about 2 weeks we noticed a difference. Waking up wasn't as hard, activities that once seemed pointless or daunting were once again worth while. We eventually added 5500 mg liquid red ginseng extract 2x daily. This definitely helped it along. The difference was more energy throughout the day.

As a habitual weed smoker I was able to decrease my weed usage while on the rhodiola extract, and with the ginseng I noticed less sedative effects from the weed.

We take about 2-4 weeks off from the rhodiola about every 1-2 months because we don't want to build up a tolerance, which does happen over about 1-2 months. That's why the dosage varies, also we change to dosage depending on if we dose 2 or 3 times in a day.

It definitely can be used to decrease workout fatigue, but I wouldn't rely on it. In 6 months of regular usage I only had about 5 experiences where I felt that the rhodiola noticeably decreased workout fatigue. One memorable instance was when I was a little tipsy and had to go to work. I had a 30min bike ride from the bar to my house and on it I felt like I was about to crash from the booze. When I got home I took a whole shot of the extract along with 5500mg ginseng extract and got back on my bicycle to go to work. (please do not ride a bike after drinking, and don't go to work intoxicated) about a mile into my ride I started to pick up to pace. I was peddling as hard and fast as I could the whole way there and loving it. The level of stimulation was comparable to a strong cup of coffee after taking a few days off from caffeine.

Even though it contains an MAOI there are more alkaloids in it that contribute to its antidepressant effects. There were no adverse effects when used with psilocybin mushrooms, nor was there a noticeable potentiation.

This is not a recreational substance, but it helped take take the edge off life for me and my girlfriend. And it made reducing my marijuana/spice intake less stressful. I can't say it made me stop or removed my desire to smoke, but I can say that I was more successful at reducing my drug intake while on it than when I wasn't.

Exp Year: 2011	ExpID: 97665
Gender: Male
Age at time of experience: 22
Published: Feb 28, 2016	Views: 5,933
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Rhodiola rosea (352) : Retrospective / Summary (11), Therapeutic Intent or Outcome (49), Health Benefits (32), Small Group (2-9) (17)