Dr. Hoffer did his research about 30 or 40 years ago and a lot of research has been done since then. Lots of studies were done on Niacin after Hoffer’s original study and they unfortunately all came up negative. You can see our summary here:
There are some compounds (vitamins and supplements) that early but good (duplicated, double blind studies) research is showing positive results. You can read about them here:
There is a condition where people lack B vitamins and this can present with psychosis. Pellagra is rare, but there are a handful of people who become psychotic because of this particular vitamin deficiency.
Up to ten percent of psychosis comes from medical conditions. Maybe Kensmum is one of the lucky few whose family member can be helped by niacin. But I think we’ve all witnessed three good weeks and even three good months in a row. Maybe the AP the son is taking is working; that’s also a possibility.
All I know is that my son gets better by the day_
The AP is the one he was taking before he got ill and the one he overdosed on. He is now on a lower dose and the doctor suggested that he might have had too high a dose previously.
The doctors here freely admit that they don’t know how clozapine works but its interesting that two of the side effects that are common to it - hyper salivation and constipation are also symptoms of pellagra
The research and cure for many diseases was done many years ago. The age of the remedy is not necessarily an indication of its efficacy or otherwise
absolutely tricky Molly-I feel very sad to see the pain we go through as parents but I think it’s nothing compared to what our children suffer.
I will never accept that my son will ‘just have to live with his symptoms’ and I’m not a newbie to this my son has been ill for the last 15 years.
I’m very hopeful that the new studies in the epi-genome system will bear fruit, however the trials they are doing here ( New Zealand ) are into obesity and diabetes. I have seen that trials are being carried out in Toronto and if the niacin proves to be fruitless then I will find some way of coming to Canada and having my son accepted there .
We can never lose hope for our sons and daughters. Every day I think about the suffering my daughter goes through. She doesn’t deserve it - no one does – it isn’t fair. I do hope that better medicine with zero toxicity that can dramatically improve our loved ones life is found sooner than later. There is a lot to read on sz.com on different compounds.
Is your son still on anti psychotics?
@LoyalJazzy There is so much information to consider in your post…I hear that initially you fell ‘madly in love’ and married fairly quickly afterward…The first thing that came to mind is the many warnings I always heard in different Programs about not entering any serious relationships until each person has had a minimum of a year of “wellness or recovery” under their belt. I think this is a fair and valid warning that can apply to anyone with an addiction or a mental illness. Relationships are hard enough for totally healthy people, they take a lot of work and can be stressful under the best of circumstances and should always be “ideally” started from a ‘point of strength’ whenever possible. Of course hindsight is always 20/20. Then I noticed that your post seemed to differentiate between schizo-affective and schizophrenia…as though perhaps schizo-affective was maybe the lesser of the 2 illnesses. I have a sister who is schizo-affective and a son who is schizophrenic and I can tell you there is no better or worse in the situation…both illnesses are extremely difficult and problematic in very many ways. If anything I find the schizo-affective harder to deal with because it kind of encompasses other behavior disorders that come and go including but not limited to depression, borderline personality disorder, ptsd, and ocd to name a few…and then you can still get the “schizo” side which is the delusions, sometimes visions, mood swings, Since you said he is 26 I am assuming you are both fairly young and these illnesses in my experience are often worse in the early 20’s and with proper medication and even therapy they can often lessen with age and maturity…a lot factors play into that though. You both individually have to want to be stable and well and then you both have to find out how to create a low stress living environment because stress is the arch enemy of the mentally ill and will often trigger “episodes” and you need a support system beyond just the two of you. Having a schedule and regular routine goes a long way toward wellness as does being on the right meds and avoiding using any recreational drugs or alcohol.
But the bottom line is that you do not want to end up a statistic, no matter how much love there has been in the past if his impulse control is non existent even sporadically that has to be your first concern, your personal safety. Just because he has loved you and been kind to you in the past and just because you love him now, does not ensure that a deadly accident could not occur during one of these “episodes” and maybe at one time or another he may break his hand on your face instead of a wall…(no offense intended) I get wanting things to work out because of the love you have felt in the past and maybe still feel but what is love if your life is in danger or you are constantly unsure of what may happen next?? Sometimes it is more practical to separate entirely from one another (for a time) work on each of your issues separately -really really work on them, with counseling, psychiatry, maybe a therapeutic groups like DBT or free programs and classes offered through NAMI and then once you each have achieved some really significant progress personally (which could take 3-6 months or even a year), maybe then start over again with each other and proceed cautiously, start to “date” again, and take things slow so you can find out if you both can be as compatible together when you are both really well and stable as you believed you were when you both were in this ongoing chaotic relationship where you aren’t sure exactly what to expect from day to day…
I have had much experience in my family with these illnesses and chaotic, even violent love/hate relationships and they are no picnic for anybody, sometimes you simply have to walk away and start again alone and sometimes if both parties really care enough and work hard on their own wellness then the relationship has a chance to start anew…my advise is only based on my experiences and everyone is different and does things their own way and that is okay. If you ever want to ask for links to websites that might help or other information just let me know I check in here pretty often and like to help if I can…I wish you and your loved one the best. Stay safe.
Yes he has 400gms of clozapine at night . But the last couple of days he’s been reminding me that he needs his niacin and vit c to banish anxiety or voices during the day. He was on a higher dose of clozapine before the latest breakdown and he had little relief from them. He was also on amisulpride. The doctor in the exit interviews seemed to imply that the suicide attempt was to do with too much AP, hence the lower dose. Personally I think they were grasping at an explanation of his speedy recovery.