Anyone try SAM-e?

[GreyBeard]

Also known as S-Adenosyl methionine. I saw it in my local drug store (it's over the counter) and did a little research. I read a bunch of reviews on Amazon and looked over the wiki page. I know, not the most extensive research, but I'm mostly lazy. I also have zero personal experience with this supplement. According to the sources above, it's mostly used to fight depression, but also seems to give people energy and improve joint pain. Some people say it does nothing. Some say it causes insomnia. It may also be useful in treating Alzheimer's Disease. The Wiki page says "SAM is required for cellular growth and repair. It is also involved in the biosynthesis of several hormones and neurotransmitters that affect mood, such as dopamine and serotonin." Like a lot of people, I have read Thomas Yuschak's book on supplements. The fact that SAM-e is involved in the production of dopamine and serotonin make it interesting. It's peak plasmas levels occur 3 to 5 hours after ingestion, most likely making bedtime the ideal time to take it. Dosage may need to be adjusted to avoid bad side effects like insomnia. In some reviews on amazon, people complained of bad nightmares, which may be a good sign as a dreaming aid. Anyone have any experience? I'm thinking of buying a bottle and doing a little experimentation. Worst case seems to be a little insomnia, which I can handle. I'll report back in a few weeks after I have some experimentation under my belt. Would love to know if anyone else has tried it.

[gab]

I'm sorry, no experience with this supplement. Yuschaks mentions it, but I didn't see anything about what it's used for. What would you use it for - dream enhancements or lucid triger?

[GreyBeard]

Yuschaks mentions it? I don't remember seeing it in his book. Did he mention it somewhere else? Maybe I just breezed by that part. I honestly don't know enough about the chemistry of the supplement to comment on what it could be used for. I was hoping it would serve as another trigger, but would be happy with dream enhancement. Since it affect dopamine levels, I thought it may be similar to an L-DOPA type of supplement. It seems to be pretty safe, so I saw no harm in testing it out. FYI, I haven't gotten a lot of experience with it yet. I took a half dose one morning to see if I could feel the affects at all throughout the day. I really didn't notice anything. Will probably try a full dose in the morning before I attempt to take it before bed. Hopefully get a chance to do it this week.

[gab]

It's on pg.57. Adenosine is a type of neurotransmiter, and caffeine blocks it's action. That's all I found about it. I'm using GalantaMind and Choline for trigger and just started with 5-HTP to enhance dreams by creating REM rebound. 5-HTP is 5-hydroxy tryptophan that can cross into brain and creates serotonin.

[DreamChemistry9]

SAMe donates a methyl group to tryptamine via an enzyme to form DMT, the molecule shown to induce dreams. Tryptamine comes from tryptophan (an essential amino acid) when it is decarboxylayed