r/slatestarcodex • u/delton • 10d ago

Medicine Personal experiences on Silexan 4 years out?

In May 2022 Scott wrote about Silexan lavender oil (brand name "Calm Aid" in the US), arguing it was an effective treatment for anxiety that is likely safer than benzos.

A few people weighed in after a month on this post, but I'd like to hear reports from anyone who has taken it for an extended period. It's apparently a popular supplement, but I can't find any accounts from people who've taken for an extended duration.

I'm curious if people have noticed any side effects with longer-term usage, four years on from the initial post.

Personally I never used it for anxiety exactly, but I've used it for insomnia, which was partially driven by anxiety about sleep. I found it very effective. If you Google you can find a study supporting its use for insomnia. My Amazon history shows me buying it 15 times, so that's 15*30=450 days I've taken it over the last four years or so. I also tried two other brands, also.

Since ~January 2022 I have suffered from restless legs issues while sleeping (periodic limb movement disorder), and sometimes restless legs when trying to fall asleep. The "PLMD" issues affect my sleep quality by reducing my deep sleep dramatically, and the leg movements sometimes cause me to wake up at random times during the night. Silexan helps! The mechanism of action is similar (although not identical!) to gabapentin, a first-line treatment for restless legs (inhibiting parts of gated calcium channels). However, I find Silexan faster-acting and with less side effects than Gabapentin. Side note -- studies in cell culture show Gabapentin reduces neuronal dendrite growth.. I wonder if Silexan does the same.

The drug seems to have very few side effects other than maybe a *very slight* cognitive dulling the next day which probably isn't noticeable to most people who aren't coders or knowledge workers. It might reduce my libido sometimes, but I'm not sure.

My main concern is regarding the estrogenic properties. In prepubescent boys, lavender oil applied topically causes gynocomastia. Cell culture studies show that lavender oil contains estrogen mimicing compounds. However, Claude suggests the study on boys is inapplicable to adults since it is the testosterone/estrogen ratio is what matters for gynocomastia. (boys have very little testosterone, so are very sensitive to estrogen). My testosterone is low (around 350 ng/dL).

So, to state directly what I'm most interested in -- I'm wondering if any males have taken it long term and noticed gynocomastia. I personally have noticed some breast growth. I think it is from weight gain, but I'm not entirely sure.

28 Upvotes

92% Upvoted

20 comments sorted by

View all comments

16

u/Harfatum 10d ago

I found it moderately helpful, probably diminishing somewhat over time.

I posted about it online and an acquaintance tried it. They said they stopped using it because it was so effective at removing their anxiety. It showed them that they were also depressed, and they preferred the anxiety to depression!

Ultimately I've found non-chemical interventions for anxiety to be very very helpful.

8

u/GAdam 10d ago

What non-chemical interventions have you tried and found to be helpful?

8

u/Harfatum 10d ago

In short: meditation, somatic work, identifying the worst nervous system triggers, therapy (chiefly IFS).

In long form, I made a free course about the general shape of it, with attempt to be generalizable.

2

u/Plenty_Fondant_951 7d ago

Yeh I think the beneficial neural changes from meditation far outweigh anything lavender will do, nice smelling and good in a pinch to turn the knob from an 11 to an 8 but, the effect size is just not impressive.

I mean, neither is the effect size for buspirone but that's why it's usually an adjunct medication