Neurological Benefits Of Magnesium

[jlinc]

Hi,

I've struggled with depression since at least middle school, about age 12. Sometimes it was better, sometimes worse. I always wondered what was wrong, why I couldn't think well of myself, always thought I was less than everyone else. I was bright and got good grades, but couldn't track things well. I was always the odd one out.

Fast forward to about age 24 or 25 and I began to chalk my problems up to a really tough home life with a mentally-ill mother. That didn't help, but now I'm thinking it was only a part of the whole picture.

I was diagnosed as celiac in 2003, and it took me a long time to read up on everything and be able to stay gluten-free, and, eventually, DF, too.

I'm 36 now, and I've been on mega-vitamins for about 3 years: C, D (8000 Mg -- a lot, I know, but I had my blood tested and I need it), E, B, Zinc, Calcium.

Just recently I tried Magnesium again, and decided to try a much higher dose. I'd been taking 400 Mg and then stopped for about a year. When I went back to it, I tried 900, because i know I always need a lot more than 'normal' people. The depression finally started to lift! I felt better but thought I'd try 1300, and I feel like a...gasp...normal person.

I'm able to keep multiple thoughts in my mind at once for the first time. It's easier for me to do little tasks that just bedeviled me before, like laundry. I used to feel like laundry was living hell, and I'd put it off as long as i could. Now it seems very easy and I just do it. But, most of all is the way I feel about myself: I feel like a happy, confident person who can make his own decisions for the first time in my life.

Okay, and here's the weirdest thing: I've always been a little autistic. Not much, but I always struggled to find the 'appropriate' emotional response to other people. Now it doesn't seem like a mental puzzle I need to unlock. It's like my emotions are much more available to me and I can smile easily and hold others' eyes during conversation.

I've read some studies showing breakthroughs with magnesium and treatment-resistant depression. I've also read that autism may respond to magnesium in some cases, but the research seems to be much more unclear.

I'm wondering if anyone else here has had a similar experience to mine with magnesium?

Would love to hear your experience.

Best,

Josh.

[Takala]

Have taken it for years after reading about how it was necessary to have magnesium working in concert with the other vitamins and minerals to get the full effect. I mainly was trying to prevent more bone loss (pre figuring out that it was gluten intolerance causing it) and it is used by a lot of women who are plagued with irregular periods, pain, endometriosis, etc.

It also is supposed to be helpful if one eats a lot of fructose, which messes up your calcium use. I used to have a big problem with crystals in my kidneys and a lot of infections, and kept getting conflicting advice. I went on the boards and into PubMed, researching, and decided to try supplementing with calcium CITRATE after the urologist told me not to use calcium bicarbonate. That cut down on a lot of the problem, but then, this was way before the gluten intolerance thing was completely figured out - I had the bone loss but nobody was putting all the symptoms together.

I haven't been taking as much magnesium lately, just what is in the other multivitamin and the calcium supplement, because I am long time on the gluten free diet, relatively healed ( I think.... ) and I eat a lot of almonds, which are high in it, and peanut butter. I couldn't do a lot of it because it has a laxative effect. I may try adding a little more in to see if there is a difference.

It doesn't surprise me at all that you've had a good effect from it, there are many people here who come on here newly diagnosed and you can see their writing and their mood improve with the gluten free diet and after they have started taking vitamin/mineral supplements - maybe a normal person doesn't need them, but we surely do.

[plumbago]

Can you share with us which magnesium supplement you take (that is gluten-free)?

Thanks.

[jlinc]

Can you share with us which magnesium supplement you take (that is gluten-free)?

I take two 400Mg caplets from Now (cheapy brand, I know). Also take 500Mg as a component of a large multi mineral called Max-A-Min, which I got from the now-defunct Wild Oats stores. It doesn't go bad, but when I'm done with it I'll need to find a new source.

[sa1937]

I take two 400Mg caplets from Now (cheapy brand, I know). Also take 500Mg as a component of a large multi mineral called Max-A-Min, which I got from the now-defunct Wild Oats stores. It doesn't go bad, but when I'm done with it I'll need to find a new source.

For what it's worth, Whole Foods has taken over the Wild Oats stores...