I guess he is doing this alittle back wards but at least he is now making an effort.
valerian root has calming properties, get some and try it out this weekend to see how he responds. keep us posted.
bizi

Thanks ladies. He has been doing things inside the house for exercise.

He has been taking his st Johns warts. But needs something else, he
says now that he is going back to work.

He would have gone back, but no insurance.

Donna

Forgot to tell you. We just got back from Will's 5th birthday party.

Wow, it was crowded, at Chuckie Cheese's but he had a great time.

So did all the rest of us. There were about 22 of us all together.

It was great to have one for just him. It was neat to see all his
gifts. And I think he saw that there was lots of people there for
him.

It doesn't usually happen that way.

Donna

Donna sorry i missed this i've been really out of it.

what is he taking right now and how much of it?

St John's wart has antidepressant effects and also has herb-drug and herb-herb interactions...

for memory... i don't know of a med. Sometimes antidepressants help if the problem is due to poor concentration secondary to depression... in that case St. John's Wart could help (assuming no other meds). a doc would have to evaluate if this is the case however. adding meds or herbs to St. John's Wart is not easy peasy.

i don't know if he has other medical conditions - that is important too.

i will look more things up in the morning interaction wise on the herbs. there are different types, and not documented everywhere unfortunately. Valerian root has shown cross-tolerance with benzo's and has potential to change plasma levels of some meds if used in therapeutic quantity.

the one herb that comes to mind, indicated for elderly population is Gingko Biloba for memory. but there is a lot of garbage on it, and no real solid trials to demonstrate efficacy in a younger population. it does stimulate microcirculation in the brain. there are potential side effects. i don't remember regarding interactions at the moment.

i think the best would be if you can get him to a doc, on regular meds, where interactions are rigorously tested and documented, and the medication is under FDA regulation for active ingredient.

many herbs including valerian and st.johns wart have herb-herb and herb-drug interactions so you really have to be careful, particularly as the herbs are not regulated so you don't know how much you get one dose to the next, one bottle to the next. side effects and tolerance are additional problems you can run into.

waves

I believe he isn't taking anything for the other condition right now.

Except presidone, when he has infections,or not feeling well. he has ulcertitus colitus. And it can get bad. So he has tried a couple of
things that work for a while and not at another time.

Donna

Dear Donna,

Prednisone causes
~memory difficulty
~anger
~anxiety

M.

Hi Donna,

can he do exercises to improve concentration - crosswords, difference puzzles, sudoku... most anything. often improving attention/concentration will improve memory - and there are ... no med interactions.

DO NOT add gingko to st. john's wart. gingko additionally has potential for serious interactions with anticoagulant drugs (eg aspirin, warfarin) as well as serotoninergic agents that include st. john's wart and many antidepressant drugs, notably SSRI's.

i'd also un-recommend valerian unless the poor concentration is caused by anxiety. DO NOT combine valerian with st. john's wart however.

peppermint infusion is sometimes considered helpful with mental alertness. don't get anything strong like pills. just a cup a day should be harmless.

if he can't see a doc and the st. john's wart is helping, i see no reason not to just keep that up... better than nothing, but he should see a doc asap, es. if he is having serious problems with attention, concentration, or memory.

if/when anything is prescribed, TELL the doc about the st. john's wart. if there is uncertainty about interactions with what is prescribed, he my advice is to suspend the st. john's wart for 3 weeks, after any taper period, before starting any other therapy.


i'm sorry there really isn't a magic memory pill.

here's wishing him well

~ waves ~