[savemylife]

I resisted the possibility of a psychological aspect to this for a long time, but eventually (when other things didn't pan out and enough doctors told me "it's all in your head") I gave in.

So I've seen several psychiatrists (both in the US and abroad), tried every kind of drug, and spent many months in psychotherapy. I feel like I really did investigate that angle thoroughly, and it's not the problem. I'm pretty confident in saying that it's not in my head.

[Alex3917]

Have you tried smoking high-CBD cannabis? If you have both muscle problems and brain fog, then it's possible that the brain fog is coming from the CRP and other stuff that's getting released as your muscles break down. CBD is non-psychoactive and doesn't even act in the brain, it just attaches to receptor sites on your muscles and works as an anti-inflammatory.

It won't fix the root problem, but I'd recommend trying it (in moderation). High-CBD cannabis pretty rare, but they do sell it at Harborside in Oakland.

This podcast explains the science much better than I can:

http://matrixmasters.net/archive/Various/218-Little-TellsCan...

[carbocation]

> it's possible that the brain fog is coming from the CRP and other stuff that's getting released as your muscles break down

CRP is not released by muscle breakdown. It is a predominantly liver-produced acute-phase reactant that is an inflammatory marker. Myoglobin, on the other hand, is released by muscle breakdown, but this is only appreciably released in severe circumstances such as a crush injury. The major harm of myoglobin is to the kidneys, not the brain, and I'm quite certain that CBD does not help this.

>CBD is non-psychoactive and doesn't even act in the brain

CBD acts in the brain.

[Alex3917]

Thanks for correcting the science. My more general point though was that chronic low-level inflammation causes a large percentage of depression / brain fog type things, and CBD can help with this:

http://www.google.com/search?sourceid=chrome&ie=UTF-8&#3...

And depression/anxiety causes inflammation too, so you really have to break the feedback cycle.

[metamemetics]

A great anti-inflammatory supplement besides cannabis is Turmeric due to its high Curcumin content.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Curcumin

In vitro and animal studies have suggested that curcumin may have antitumor,[9][10] antioxidant, antiarthritic, anti-amyloid, anti-ischemic[11], and anti-inflammatory properties.[12]

[Alex3917]

Thanks for pointing that out, I didn't know that.

[carbocation]

Interesting; I've never heard that before. Do you mean that there is peripheral inflammation and the cytokines pass through the blood-brain-barrier, or do you mean that there are actually inflammatory cells that enter the brain and cause depression? Also, can you cite something more specific than a Google search? Most of those are for-profit or interest group websites.

Edit: I found an NIH reference: http://www.nimh.nih.gov/science-news/2009/key-molecule-in-in...

Of the two options I mentioned, it's the former (peripheral inflammation with release of cytokines). Thanks for sharing.

[Alex3917]

Yeah, if you Google for cytokine theory of depression there are a bunch of papers. I'm not an MDPhD so I have a very limited understanding of the science, but from observation and personal experience the hypothesis seems quite accurate. The good news is that it's extremely easy to manage, the bad news is that no one knows this.

[jacquesm]

You do realize that smoking cannabis can be against the law ?

And that if savemylife is in the wrong jurisdiction that can put him/her in an afwul lot of trouble ?

I take no stance on whether or not it should be legal, it's just a fact that it currently is illegal in many places and I'm kind of surprised that you'd suggest someone do something that may very well be against the law where they live.