 5-HTP is one of the most popular mood boosters on the market because it can increase your serotonin levels, but how effective is it? I've been recently supplementing with 5-HTP and in this video, I want to share how 5-HTP impacted my mood, sleep and brain performance, but I also need to warn you about the potential side effects. Hello Inception fan! My name is Greg Austin Cardiff, founder of Your Inception. If you're new to my channel, welcome! We talk about brain hacking and ways to boost your cognitive function with nitropics, supplements and other tools. Please like and subscribe to join our community. Before I share my experience with 5-HTP, what exactly is this? 5-HTP has a fancy name, but it's nothing else than an amino acid, which our body naturally produces. But what makes this amino acid stand out is that it's a precursor to serotonin, an important neurotransmitter associated with better mood, sleep, appetite and overall well-being. People who suffer from bad mood or lack of sleep tend to supplement with 5-HTP to improve their condition, but on the other hand, too much of 5-HTP can cause seizures or fever, so you need to be careful. Supplementing 5-HTP can also help you lose weight, decrease depression, help with reducing migraines and it has a few other amazing benefits. If you want to learn more about them, watch my video by clicking up here. Now to my experience. This was my second 5-HTP test, but this one was longer and with a stronger formula. For this test, a company called Triketra sent me their organic 5-HTP formula that contains 200 mg of 5-HTP, 150 mg of lion's mane and 10 mg of vitamin B6. This is a very quality extract with synergistic co-factors of B6 and lion's mane, which should result in even better effects. So what happened? I started my test by taking 2 capsules, so 200 mg of 5-HTP in total in the afternoon. For the first couple of days, I don't think I got any noticeable effects, but after a week my mood started changing. The first thing that I noticed was that I was getting less nervous, anxious and stressed. I'm generally known to be more on the nervous side, so it was quite easy for me to notice the difference in my well-being and also behavior. Like with most other metropics, I didn't really feel a kick of 5-HTP, but it was more like a steady progression towards a better mood. And that's one thing I really love about 5-HTP, because it doesn't really feel like a drug that gives you this instant kick, which will result in some strong side effects later on, but it slowly helps you feel better. The effects lasted for the complete period of my test, and also a few days, maybe even a week or so after I stopped supplementing with 5-HTP, which was quite surprising, but also very positive. Now the second obvious benefit I got from 5-HTP was improved sleep. During my first test, I used my aura ring to track sleep, but this time I decided not to do it. The reason for that is that whenever I use aura ring, I get this placebo effect right away and I also subconsciously expect myself to sleep better, which then results in a poor sleep. But without the tracker, I just slept the way I slept and wrote down how I felt in the mornings. In general, I was able to fall asleep faster because I felt generally calmer before my sleep. I slept for about the same time, but I felt slightly more regenerated in the morning. Now there's this study that shows how supplementing with 5-HTP improves sleep terrors in children, so that's not directly related to what I just described, but it gives us a proof of how 5-HTP can help in some ways with sleep-related problems. Now I also felt less hungrier during my test period, which is what 5-HTP is known for. Multiple studies show that 5-HTP promotes weight loss by increasing your feeling of fullness, which is exactly what I had noticed. By the way guys, are you searching for the best entropics for your individual needs? If yes, go through our free brain assessment, linked below, and get a personalized recommendation for the best entropics. Now did I lose any weight in this period? Yes, about 1 kg or 2.2 pounds in a month, which is not something I expected and no, I didn't plan on losing weight. Did I? Do it? Hmmm. So overall, my experience with 5-HTP was quite a positive one, but I also noticed a few side effects which you should know about. Now the main problem with serotonin precursors is that as soon as you increase your serotonin levels in your body, your dopamine levels will decrease. And this can lead to people feeling much happier, but less productive. Too high levels of serotonin can also cause nausea, heartburn, gas and feelings of fullness. And this last one I experienced myself. Now to avoid those, I will soon give you a great tip, but before I do it, I want to tell you that those side effects are relatively rare if you follow the regulations and don't experiment on yourself too much. Not to forget, if you take SSRIs, you should avoid supplementing with 5-HTP, because this can lead to serotonin syndrome, which is very, very dangerous. So before you supplement, 5-HTP do consult your doctor. By the way, if you liked this video, please press the like button below and subscribe to the channel. Okay, so how can you avoid the potential side effects? Now the optimal daily range or dosage of 5-HTP is somewhere between 100 to 500 mg. You can take a few smaller dosages a few times per day if you want. Now I know people who would just go for 500 mg straight away for a month or so, which can be too much of 5-HTP. Now what I suggest is to take a lower 5-HTP dosage, like 100 to 200 mg, then take this for a week and then increase the dosage if necessary. That's how you will slowly increase the dosage until you find an optimal daily dosage for yourself. For me, 200 mg of 5-HTP seems to be more than enough, but for some I'm sure that won't do the trick. Also, I'd supplement this for a few weeks, then I'd take a week off and then repeat the cycle if necessary. Cycling in tropics is very important, don't forget about it. Now before I share my final tip with you, where can you buy 5-HTP? Well obviously there are many online vendors that sell it, you can find my favorite ones below in the description and if you use my links you may even get a better deal. Now a monthly dosage of this specific 5-HTP product costs about $23, which isn't that expensive in my opinion and you can get an additional discount if you subscribe. So let's go to the pros, cons and my final verdict. First, the pros. 5-HTP is a great mood booster. It can improve your sleep. It can help with depression. It can reduce your appetite and contribute to the weight loss. And it is relatively affordable. But how about the cons? Well, it can cause a few side effects that I talked about before. You cannot take it if you take SSRIs. And it can reduce your dopamine levels, which leads to lower productivity. So do I recommit it and who is it for? Well honestly I had a good experience with 5-HTP. It didn't really cause any major side effects, it improved my well-being and it just made me feel better. Now this is not game changer and it won't substitute your poor lifestyle. But if you're feeling down or want to improve your sleep, this is definitely a pro to try. But if you're searching for a serious brain booster and there are better supplements on the market to check, watch my next video to learn more about them. Thank you guys for watching and I hope to see you soon again. Stay well.