10 minutes ago, LostinCanada said:

So this one is tricky...it is definitely high histamine....I have reintroduced it and after 2 days I was getting hives again...then I hit a wave so I haven't been taking it. I am going to try for once a week but I think if you are eating fish, that is better...I wish I could.

I personally believe it is better to get what you need from food as opposed to supplements if possible. Some on here had very bad reactions to fish oil. @AAoffZ_2 and @NBJ71 if memory serves me right.

 ❤️🙏

So interesting, thank you. I’ll keep my bottle but try it later when i feel more stable. How does the magnesium treat you? I’m trying so hard to get more magnesium in my diet but it’s hard. Also curious about the DGL as my stomach has been very temperamental since the histamine stuff started. Do you like it? 

16 minutes ago, pluto said:

How does the magnesium treat you?

I don't have any issue with it.... don't know if it helps but it isn't hurting either. 

16 minutes ago, pluto said:

curious about the DGL

I think it has been great for me in dealing with reflux and nausea....it has xylitol and steva in it.... have not been able to find a pure one without additives. I don't seem to react to anything in it negatively. 👍

 

DGL Deglycyrrhizinated Licorice Chewable Tablets | Natural Factors USA https://share.google/NBLOY4jdAtp9AqnE5

 

Edited February 12Feb 12 by LostinCanada

19 minutes ago, pluto said:

planet

Lol...I didn't put that together!  Thanks for the connection!

Hi @pluto

 

Lost in Canada is absolutely right. Both myself and AAofZ-2 had horrific reactions to cod liver oil capsules. It took a few days to build up in my system, after maybe the 5th day I was in real trouble. It took quite a while for the symptoms to ease too,  maybe a couple of weeks. My nervous system reacted very badly too it. I believe it was a very similar experience for AAofZ, she felt acutely ill. 

 

As LIC says, if you feel that you need the omega 3, I’d suggest you try to get it from natural food sources. If you feel you need to take fish oil, as with everything, start with very small amounts and slowly increase over time.  I hope this helps.
 

Take care 

 

Nick. 
 

 

Edited February 12Feb 12 by NBJ71

On 2/12/2026 at 4:54 PM, NBJ71 said:

Lost in Canada is absolutely right. Both myself and AAofZ-2 had horrific reactions to cod liver oil capsules.

Thank you so much for sharing your experience and I’m so sorry that happened to you both. I know on SA they pretty highly recommended fish oil and also magnesium for people who could handle it. I guess I’m not sure whose opinion to go with. Are there folks on here who have had positive experiences with it?

44 minutes ago, pluto said:

Are there folks on here who have had positive experiences with it?

Many do not react and some do....the most important thing is, when trying anything new.....just try one thing at a time and start with a tiny bit.

Also use a company that is well known and check the list of ingredients...go as pure as possible. ❤️🙏

I’m getting a little ahead of myself as I don’t plan to taper for a while, but strategizing helps me. I’m going to be switching to a compounded liquid to finish my lithium taper. I’m currently taking one extended release lithium pill a day, 450mg. I seem to recall seeing somewhere that it’s better to gradually transition from the pill to the liquid? How should I transition, particularly given that my pill is extended release? Somehow I couldn’t find the post explaining this specifically on SA. Are most people pretty easily able to transition to the liquid form of their drug? What happens if I can’t tolerate the switch? How jarring will it be for my body to go from extended release pill to instant release liquid? Thank you so much. 

@pluto there are many things to consider before doing this. I think sticking with the xr pills in smaller strengths as part of your dose would be preferred for as long as possible.

This is what a quick search mentioned:

The elimination half-life of lithium remains generally consistent between extended-release (XR/ER) and immediate-release (IR) formulations, averaging approximately 18 to 36 hours for both. The primary difference when switching from lithium XR to lithium IR is not a change in the drug's elimination half-life, but rather a change in its absorption kinetics, resulting in higher peak plasma concentrations (

) and more pronounced fluctuations in blood levels. 

Key Differences Between Lithium XR and Lithium IR

Half-life (

😞 Remains about 24 hours on average for both types.

Peak Concentration (

😞 IR formulations peak faster (1–2 hours) and higher, while XR/SR formulations have a delayed peak (4–12 hours).

Side Effects: The higher, faster peak of IR (immediate-release) can lead to more frequent side effects like nausea and tremors, whereas XR provides a lower, more stable peak.

Bioavailability: While both are highly absorbed, total exposure (area under the curve, AUC) is similar over 24 hours. 

Switching Implications

When switching from XR to IR, you may experience sharper peaks in the serum concentration about 1–2 hours after dosing. Because the half-life is the same (around 24 hours), the time it takes to reach a steady state remains roughly the same—approximately 4 to 7 days. 

5 minutes ago, LostinCanada said:

@pluto there are many things to consider before doing this. I think sticking with the xr pills in smaller strengths as part of your dose would be preferred for as long as possible.

This is what a quick search mentioned:

The elimination half-life of lithium remains generally consistent between extended-release (XR/ER) and immediate-release (IR) formulations, averaging approximately 18 to 36 hours for both. The primary difference when switching from lithium XR to lithium IR is not a change in the drug's elimination half-life, but rather a change in its absorption kinetics, resulting in higher peak plasma concentrations (

) and more pronounced fluctuations in blood levels. 

Key Differences Between Lithium XR and Lithium IR

Half-life (

😞 Remains about 24 hours on average for both types.

Peak Concentration (

😞 IR formulations peak faster (1–2 hours) and higher, while XR/SR formulations have a delayed peak (4–12 hours).

Side Effects: The higher, faster peak of IR (immediate-release) can lead to more frequent side effects like nausea and tremors, whereas XR provides a lower, more stable peak.

Bioavailability: While both are highly absorbed, total exposure (area under the curve, AUC) is similar over 24 hours. 

Switching Implications

When switching from XR to IR, you may experience sharper peaks in the serum concentration about 1–2 hours after dosing. Because the half-life is the same (around 24 hours), the time it takes to reach a steady state remains roughly the same—approximately 4 to 7 days. 

Thank you so much. A couple clarifying questions: if it is better to stick with the ER pills for as long as possible, how would I do that if they only come in increments of 150? The next pill down is 300 which is an awful big leap. Or I guess I’d have to switch to IR and then taper more slowly from there? Sounds like the transition of 5-7 days might be uncomfortable but I’d just have to do it and things will settle down? I was on IR for many years with fairly few side effects (well, “side effects” but the intended effects of the drug were horrible) re: nausea and tremors. When I reinstated my psych chose the ER version. I just know my system is sensitive so I’m just trying to find the least bumpy way possible to start making tiny cuts.

@pluto here is the link from SA 

https://www.survivingantidepressants.org/forums/topic/2976-tips-for-tapering-off-lithium/?do=findComment&comment=32409

 

27 minutes ago, pluto said:

how would I do that if they only come in increments of 150? The next pill down is 300 which is an awful big leap

I was thinking do part of your dose in pills 300 mg in ER and the other 150 mg in liquid?  I haven't read the link so I am sure it will address your questions and concerns. 🙏❤️

@pluto did you notice this part? 

 

"Using a combination of tablets or capsules and liquid

Rather than switch directly to an all-liquid dose, you may wish to take part of your dose in liquid and part in lower-dose tablets or capsules, gradually converting to all liquid as you get to lower dosages. This can be very convenient and reduce any problems switching from one form of the drug to another.

If your doctor prescribes liquid and tablets or capsules at the same time, most likely he or she will have to indicate "divided doses" in the prescriptions to get the drugs covered by insurance."

 

 

23 hours ago, LostinCanada said:

@pluto did you notice this part? 

 

"Using a combination of tablets or capsules and liquid

Rather than switch directly to an all-liquid dose, you may wish to take part of your dose in liquid and part in lower-dose tablets or capsules, gradually converting to all liquid as you get to lower dosages. This can be very convenient and reduce any problems switching from one form of the drug to another.

If your doctor prescribes liquid and tablets or capsules at the same time, most likely he or she will have to indicate "divided doses" in the prescriptions to get the drugs covered by insurance."

 

 

Oh this is great thank you! Yes I did see, all very helpful 

@LostinCanada 

 

im really struggling to make it to enough calories with my diet limitations. do you find you're usually able to eat enough calories? i'm feeling discouraged and frightened and am struggling to keep high calories in my diet besides meat. the oats and potatoes seemed to actually have been disagreeing with me.

28 minutes ago, pluto said:

. do you find you're usually able to eat enough calories

I am older than you and female so I don't need as much. All you can do is see what works for you. Can you make smoothies? Add extra fats to things? Do sweet potatoes work for you? 

AI search:

High-calorie, low-histamine eating focuses on fresh, unprocessed foods, particularly healthy fats, specific starches, and freshly cooked proteins. The key is to avoid leftovers and aged, fermented, or cured foods. 

Johns Hopkins Medicine

Johns Hopkins Medicine

 +4

Here are high-calorie, low-histamine foods categorized to help with weight gain:

1. Healthy Fats and Oils (Highest Calorie) 

Fats are the best way to increase calories without added histamine. 

Coconut Products: Coconut oil, coconut milk (canned, no additives), and coconut cream.

Oils: Extra virgin olive oil, avocado oil, and ghee.

Nuts and Seeds (If tolerated): Macadamia nuts, pecans, chia seeds, and flax seeds.

Nut Butters: Freshly made almond butter (or blanched almond butter). 

Johns Hopkins Medicine

Johns Hopkins Medicine

 +4

2. Starches and Grains

Roots: Potatoes, sweet potatoes, and white rice.

Grains: Quinoa, millet, and oats.

Baked Goods: Homemade bread, muffins, or pancakes made with unbleached flour, coconut flour, or tapioca starch. 

Johns Hopkins Medicine

Johns Hopkins Medicine

 +3

3. Proteins

Crucial: All meat and fish must be extremely fresh, consumed immediately, or frozen directly after purchase to avoid histamine buildup. 

London Chest Specialist

London Chest Specialist

Meat: Chicken, turkey, lamb, and beef (not ground/minced).

Fish: Fresh or flash-frozen cod, trout, and halibut.

Eggs: Pastured eggs (yolks are safest; egg whites can be histamine liberators, but are tolerated by many when fully cooked). 

Johns Hopkins Medicine

Johns Hopkins Medicine

 +4

4. Dairy (If Tolerated) 

Fresh, unfermented dairy is Generally low in histamine. 

Johns Hopkins Medicine

Johns Hopkins Medicine

Cream: Heavy cream and liquid milk.

Cheese: Fresh mozzarella, ricotta, mascarpone, and cottage cheese.

Butter: Grass-fed butter. 

Johns Hopkins Medicine

Johns Hopkins Medicine

 +4

5. High-Calorie Snacks and Tips

Homemade Energy Balls: Made with coconut, almonds, and maple syrup.

Smoothies: Coconut milk, mango, macadamia nuts, and chia seeds.

Roasted Chickpeas: (Some people need to avoid legumes, but many tolerate fresh cooked ones).

Cooking Method: Boiled, steamed, or baked is best. Avoid frying or grilling. 

MedicalNewsToday

MedicalNewsToday

 +4

Example High-Calorie Meals:

Breakfast: Oatmeal made with thick coconut milk, topped with sliced mango and macadamia nuts.

Lunch: Fresh chicken breast with sweet potato and zucchini, drizzled in olive oil.

Dinner: Salmon baked in olive oil and herbs with white rice and broccoli. 

MedicalNewsToday

MedicalNewsToday

 +3

4 minutes ago, LostinCanada said:

I am older than you and female so I don't need as much. All you can do is see what works for you. Can you make smoothies? Add extra fats to things? Do sweet potatoes work for you? 

AI search:

High-calorie, low-histamine eating focuses on fresh, unprocessed foods, particularly healthy fats, specific starches, and freshly cooked proteins. The key is to avoid leftovers and aged, fermented, or cured foods. 

Johns Hopkins Medicine

Johns Hopkins Medicine

 +4

Here are high-calorie, low-histamine foods categorized to help with weight gain:

1. Healthy Fats and Oils (Highest Calorie) 

Fats are the best way to increase calories without added histamine. 

Coconut Products: Coconut oil, coconut milk (canned, no additives), and coconut cream.

Oils: Extra virgin olive oil, avocado oil, and ghee.

Nuts and Seeds (If tolerated): Macadamia nuts, pecans, chia seeds, and flax seeds.

Nut Butters: Freshly made almond butter (or blanched almond butter). 

Johns Hopkins Medicine

Johns Hopkins Medicine

 +4

2. Starches and Grains

Roots: Potatoes, sweet potatoes, and white rice.

Grains: Quinoa, millet, and oats.

Baked Goods: Homemade bread, muffins, or pancakes made with unbleached flour, coconut flour, or tapioca starch. 

Johns Hopkins Medicine

Johns Hopkins Medicine

 +3

3. Proteins

Crucial: All meat and fish must be extremely fresh, consumed immediately, or frozen directly after purchase to avoid histamine buildup. 

London Chest Specialist

London Chest Specialist

Meat: Chicken, turkey, lamb, and beef (not ground/minced).

Fish: Fresh or flash-frozen cod, trout, and halibut.

Eggs: Pastured eggs (yolks are safest; egg whites can be histamine liberators, but are tolerated by many when fully cooked). 

Johns Hopkins Medicine

Johns Hopkins Medicine

 +4

4. Dairy (If Tolerated) 

Fresh, unfermented dairy is Generally low in histamine. 

Johns Hopkins Medicine

Johns Hopkins Medicine

Cream: Heavy cream and liquid milk.

Cheese: Fresh mozzarella, ricotta, mascarpone, and cottage cheese.

Butter: Grass-fed butter. 

Johns Hopkins Medicine

Johns Hopkins Medicine

 +4

5. High-Calorie Snacks and Tips

Homemade Energy Balls: Made with coconut, almonds, and maple syrup.

Smoothies: Coconut milk, mango, macadamia nuts, and chia seeds.

Roasted Chickpeas: (Some people need to avoid legumes, but many tolerate fresh cooked ones).

Cooking Method: Boiled, steamed, or baked is best. Avoid frying or grilling. 

MedicalNewsToday

MedicalNewsToday

 +4

Example High-Calorie Meals:

Breakfast: Oatmeal made with thick coconut milk, topped with sliced mango and macadamia nuts.

Lunch: Fresh chicken breast with sweet potato and zucchini, drizzled in olive oil.

Dinner: Salmon baked in olive oil and herbs with white rice and broccoli. 

MedicalNewsToday

MedicalNewsToday

 +3

thank you. i'm female but i'm tall and like to go for long walks so i start to feel the lack of calories pretty fast. trying out some new grains that I hope will work. thank you for the ideas.

7 minutes ago, pluto said:

. i'm female

Sorry...I don't know why I thought otherwise. I know it is so frustrating....I just wish I could eat normally... ❤️🙏

16 minutes ago, LostinCanada said:

Sorry...I don't know why I thought otherwise. I know it is so frustrating....I just wish I could eat normally... ❤️🙏

me too. some days I just feel really overwhelmed by this and it helps to reach out. thank you for your thoughts.

Just feeling scared and sad today. Having more trouble eating than usual due to histamine responses, nauseous and its impacting my sleep, sometimes headaches. I feel sick all the time. In many ways my withdrawal and recovery are progressing but this food stuff is causing everything to go backward. I didn't use to worry that I was "one of the people who would never recover" but it's begun to occur to me more lately. it's been 6 months with no progress on the intense, intense food sensitivity, after 3 years of tapering.

 

I love the community here, when I have less brain fog I look forward to spending more time reading everyone's threads and responding, but it's hard today. Feeling very alone with my withdrawal despite having some supportive people in my life. So appreciative of having a place to bring this. Just trying to distract myself today. 

Edited February 20Feb 20 by pluto

1 hour ago, pluto said:

nauseous and its impacting my sleep, sometimes headaches. I feel sick all the time

Are you staying hydrated…it is so important and can help with the nausea and headaches…i often make a diy rehydration drink…2 cups water, i tbsp natural sweetener like maple syrup and 1/4 tsp salt. 
Do you drink ginger tea or peppermint tea? 
What foods are you tolerating right now? 🙏❤️

13 minutes ago, LostinCanada said:

Are you staying hydrated…it is so important and can help with the nausea and headaches…i often make a diy rehydration drink…2 cups water, i tbsp natural sweetener like maple syrup and 1/4 tsp salt. 
Do you drink ginger tea or peppermint tea? 
What foods are you tolerating right now? 🙏❤️

 

Thank you yes, im a big water drinker, i drink several water bottles full a day and salt my food pretty thoroughly. the headaches are tied to the food, i had some frozen turkey breast yesterday and immediately got a headache that lasted all night. the nausea i think is my body just being upset. 

 

today it feels like i reacted to everything i ate. i have some low histamine frozen bison that seems like it went ok, though i got really really sleepy which can be a histamine reaction for me, then some butter and broccoli and i got agitated afterward. those are usually my safe foods. just feeling scared that the safe foods dont seem as safe as they used to.

 

thank you for responding to all of my messages, i don't mean to be a bother. just a very hard week.

 

I'm just not used to being this sick, I don't recognize myself.

Edited February 21Feb 21 by pluto

I’m trying very hard to connect to others who were medicated young and are coming to terms with the lost time. If anyone is interested in connecting about that please feel free to message me or respond to this at any point. 

Edited February 22Feb 22 by pluto

I seem to have gotten what I deserved for messing around with OTC meds during withdrawal. A few weeks of Pepcid went great, then I tried to raise my dose to help with the severe histamine issues, probably too quickly. The past 3 days have been deteriorating sleep and increasing agitation. Tonight was 1-2 hours and I’m up walking around in the middle of the night. Will this pass? Is there anything I can do besides just not taking anything else? I’ve learned my lesson, I just wonder how tough this lesson will be. You all were completely right. There are definite patterns in how brains work during withdrawal. 

21 minutes ago, pluto said:

I seem to have gotten what I deserved for messing around with OTC meds during withdrawal. A few weeks of Pepcid went great, then I tried to raise my dose to help with the severe histamine issues, probably too quickly. The past 3 days have been deteriorating sleep and increasing agitation. Tonight was 1-2 hours and I’m up walking around in the middle of the night. 

Im really sorry to read this. I do tend to see that we make ourselves worse trying to make ourselves better. That has been my experience and observations at least,

 

21 minutes ago, pluto said:

Will this pass? Is there anything I can do besides just not taking anything else? I’ve learned my lesson, I just wonder how tough this lesson will be. You all were completely right. There are definite patterns in how brains work during withdrawal. 

Yes definitely! Our bodies are good at healing themselves we just need to not stand in the way. Unfortunately there are no magic cures Im afraid. Just avoid things that make it worse as and give yourself lots of time and love.

13 minutes ago, Chippy said:

Yes definitely! Our bodies are good at healing themselves we just need to not stand in the way. Unfortunately there are no magic cures Im afraid. Just avoid things that make it worse as and give yourself lots of time and love.

Thank you for saying this, i really appreciate it. It helps to have somewhere to bring this. Will it get better even if I’m already eating and sleeping poorly? I’m afraid this will just spiral out of control. Any way to estimate how long it could take?

Edited February 24Feb 24 by pluto

27 minutes ago, pluto said:

Thank you for saying this, i really appreciate it. It helps to have somewhere to bring this. Will it get better even if I’m already eating and sleeping poorly? I’m afraid this will just spiral out of control. Any way to estimate how long it could take?

I wish we knew. Everyone is so different. Anything we can do to not hold it back we should do. But I’ve heard of people smoking 40 a day and eating junk food (definitely not recommended!!!) and still recover! You will too. No one knows the trajectory but believe it!