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New to Kava in the U.K.. but disappointed...

PH001

Newbie
Hey all,

I'm 44 and have been battling with the unpleasantries of alcohol since I was 17. Don't really drink much during the week but the weekends are just the same repeat of excessive consumption and the associated tiredness and hangover Sat and Sun.

I knew enough was enough but the social circles just make it so hard for complete abstinence. Moderation has always been virtually impossible for me..if it's there I will drink it. I knew I needed an alternative that didn't involve dangerous class A compounds (which I've never tried, and don't really want to).

So....Kava! Yes, was so enthused to hear about this about a month ago but only just found this forum relatively recently.

I made my first purchase from iHerb of this (mainly because it gets a good rep on their site)...

Kava King Products Inc, Instant Drink Mix, Vanuatu Blend
https://uk.iherb.com/pr/Kava-King-Products-Inc-Instant-Drink-Mix-Vanuatu-Blend-1-2-lb-226-8-g/52760#questions-and-answers


It arrived with DHL within 2 days with no customs hassles at all so all good there. Tried it for the first time last weekend by mixing 3 teaspoons into about 250ml of warm water with a little milk and honey into a shaker. Shook for 30 seconds and downed it. Got a tingly numb tongue but not much else. Waited 30 mins and repeated with 4 teaspoons... pretty much the same effect but nothing else.

The next day I decided to up the dose so went to 8 teaspoons in 250ml. Still nothing apart from a numb tongue.

So - where have I gone wrong here? I'm guessing you just get what you pay for and that Kava has a low concentrations of kavalactones, or maybe I prepped it wrong.

Reading on here, maybe I should have tried one of the following:

Squanch Fijian Waka (for night)
Squanch Fijian Lawena (for day)
Kava Supreme
GHK Kumakua
Kava Kauai Special Reserve
Kava Kauai Waka from Vanuatu

I'm looking for something that I can enjoy with music sat at home and also something I can socialise with instead of alcohol. Please help!

 

Groggy

Kava aficionado
Admin
Hey all,

I'm 44 and have been battling with the unpleasantries of alcohol since I was 17. Don't really drink much during the week but the weekends are just the same repeat of excessive consumption and the associated tiredness and hangover Sat and Sun.

I knew enough was enough but the social circles just make it so hard for complete abstinence. Moderation has always been virtually impossible for me..if it's there I will drink it. I knew I needed an alternative that didn't involve dangerous class A compounds (which I've never tried, and don't really want to).

So....Kava! Yes, was so enthused to hear about this about a month ago but only just found this forum relatively recently.

I made my first purchase from iHerb of this (mainly because it gets a good rep on their site)...

Kava King Products Inc, Instant Drink Mix, Vanuatu Blend
https://uk.iherb.com/pr/Kava-King-Products-Inc-Instant-Drink-Mix-Vanuatu-Blend-1-2-lb-226-8-g/52760#questions-and-answers


It arrived with DHL within 2 days with no customs hassles at all so all good there. Tried it for the first time last weekend by mixing 3 teaspoons into about 250ml of warm water with a little milk and honey into a shaker. Shook for 30 seconds and downed it. Got a tingly numb tongue but not much else. Waited 30 mins and repeated with 4 teaspoons... pretty much the same effect but nothing else.

The next day I decided to up the dose so went to 8 teaspoons in 250ml. Still nothing apart from a numb tongue.

So - where have I gone wrong here? I'm guessing you just get what you pay for and that Kava has a low concentrations of kavalactones, or maybe I prepped it wrong.

Reading on here, maybe I should have tried one of the following:

Squanch Fijian Waka (for night)
Squanch Fijian Lawena (for day)
Kava Supreme
GHK Kumakua
Kava Kauai Special Reserve
Kava Kauai Waka from Vanuatu

I'm looking for something that I can enjoy with music sat at home and also something I can socialise with instead of alcohol. Please help!
Welcome to KF. You are not doing anything wrong, often times it takes us a period of time for our bodies to get adjusted to kava, similar to SSRI meds. We refer to it as RT or reverse tolerance. I recommend you look at the link below for more information.

http://kavaforums.com/forum/brdc-document/frequently-asked-questions.1/

As for the kavas, I agree with your choices, they are all excellent kavas. It will eventually come down to the ones you feel help you the most. We are all different in the way kava affects us. We have a section for every vendor, with customer reviews and it may be a good place to start as well. You may also want to touch base with @Edward, he is a kava distributor in the UK, although there may be some vendors who ship to the UK.
 

Krunkie McKrunkface

Kava Connoisseur
So - where have I gone wrong here?
Where you went wrong was in not drinking kava every day for 2 months before drinking kava. Or rather, you have RT, reverse tolerance. Some people have it at first. I did. Some people never get it, and some never get over it, but for most it is a relatively brief period, from a few days to a couple of months, during which people's bodies do not respond yet to the kavalactones in kava because they are unfamiliar, and the receptors in your body that can process kavalactones need to be woken up and trained.

As Krunʞy said, those are all excellent kavas for your purposes, but none of them will do anything for you until you are out of RT. I would suggest getting a cheaper kava for RT till you muddle through, then get the good stuff when you can appreciate it and get your money's worth.
 
Last edited:

the_wilderness

Kava Enthusiast
Yes, RT. The kava king you have is an ok place to start while you overcome this because it's got the effects but is much cheaper than others available.
Have patience and respond to your own body. I have long reverse tolerance and I need much more than the recommended dose, too. With KK it's 4 tbsp, and because it's a rough kava on the gut for me, I'll strain it if I'm feeling like I'm pushing my limits. Drinking it while I wait for a kwk shipment to come through actually.
 

PH001

Newbie
Thanks for the warm welcome chaps. I've never heard of reverse tolerance until now...how strange! I guess it could work out pretty expensive drinking it every day just to overcome RT. I'll try some different brands eventually and hopefully some from the list above as looking around the stuff I had seems a bit cheap at £10 for 227g but as you say, probably OK for the RT stage.
 

Groggy

Kava aficionado
Admin
Thanks for the warm welcome chaps. I've never heard of reverse tolerance until now...how strange! I guess it could work out pretty expensive drinking it every day just to overcome RT. I'll try some different brands eventually and hopefully some from the list above as looking around the stuff I had seems a bit cheap at £10 for 227g but as you say, probably OK for the RT stage.
I'll tag @Edward one more time, he may be able to help you keep those costs down, as he is from the UK as well. The learning curve (for lack of a better term) is well worth the initial expense and contrary to Krunkie Mc..'s advice, I would encourage you to invest in a better kava and keep a steady daily intake to break through RT.

You didn't mention the dosage you started out with, which may also be hindering your progress, I recommend you stick to 4 Tbs per session and don't forget to do a second wash. You can adjust the dosing later to your liking or once you feel the full benefits from kava. Kava Supreme is probably your best bet for now as it is one of the heavier kavas on your list. It's also available on Amazon, though I am not sure if they ship to the UK, this is where Edward may be able to keep the costs down for you.

Another couple points worth mentioning are to make sure you drink on an empty stomach, so no food for at least 4 hours and keep drinking it daily, the kava Supreme is best for nighttime use.
 

PH001

Newbie
Thanks - I should have mentioned that I did receive a PM from Ed and have responded. The dose was as originally stated.. 3 teaspoons, then 30 mins later 4 teaspoons, the next day 8 teaspoons. I will try 4 tablespoons with fruit juice next and see how I go. I can't do a second wash with the stuff I have as it is micronized!

The supreme seems like a good shout.
 

Groggy

Kava aficionado
Admin
3 teaspoons = 1 tablespoon, that's not enough, try measuring in tbs instead and remain consistent on the dose. Many people measure in grams instead, as different kavas have different volumes, something else to keep in mind.
 

PH001

Newbie
Yep, sussed the dose thing - just wasn't sure if micronized was different with it being more 'dense' so to speak. Also got some Lecithin granules arriving tomorrow - anybody feel these are worthwhile as an emulsifier for the ground stuff?
 

SelfBiasResistor

Persist for Resistance!
Hey all,

I'm 44 and have been battling with the unpleasantries of alcohol since I was 17. Don't really drink much during the week but the weekends are just the same repeat of excessive consumption and the associated tiredness and hangover Sat and Sun.

I knew enough was enough but the social circles just make it so hard for complete abstinence. Moderation has always been virtually impossible for me..if it's there I will drink it. I knew I needed an alternative that didn't involve dangerous class A compounds (which I've never tried, and don't really want to).

So....Kava! Yes, was so enthused to hear about this about a month ago but only just found this forum relatively recently.

I made my first purchase from iHerb of this (mainly because it gets a good rep on their site)...

Kava King Products Inc, Instant Drink Mix, Vanuatu Blend
https://uk.iherb.com/pr/Kava-King-Products-Inc-Instant-Drink-Mix-Vanuatu-Blend-1-2-lb-226-8-g/52760#questions-and-answers


It arrived with DHL within 2 days with no customs hassles at all so all good there. Tried it for the first time last weekend by mixing 3 teaspoons into about 250ml of warm water with a little milk and honey into a shaker. Shook for 30 seconds and downed it. Got a tingly numb tongue but not much else. Waited 30 mins and repeated with 4 teaspoons... pretty much the same effect but nothing else.

The next day I decided to up the dose so went to 8 teaspoons in 250ml. Still nothing apart from a numb tongue.

So - where have I gone wrong here? I'm guessing you just get what you pay for and that Kava has a low concentrations of kavalactones, or maybe I prepped it wrong.

Reading on here, maybe I should have tried one of the following:

Squanch Fijian Waka (for night)
Squanch Fijian Lawena (for day)
Kava Supreme
GHK Kumakua
Kava Kauai Special Reserve
Kava Kauai Waka from Vanuatu

I'm looking for something that I can enjoy with music sat at home and also something I can socialise with instead of alcohol. Please help!
Before writing it all off to RT, I would try at least one of the higher quality products. I haven't had that Kava King instant in a long time... probably the last time was in 2012 but even back then it wasn't in the higher level of potency. Definitely not what you're expecting as an alcohol replacement.

That list looks like some quality products but I would move the Squanch Waka to the day and Supreme for night.
 

PH001

Newbie
Good call. I'm going to try both ends of the spectrum so I can really compare the difference between Heady and Heavy. Thinking:

*Kava Supreme (Heavy)
*Tonga Pouni Ono (Heady)
 

Zaphod

Kava Lover
Yep, sussed the dose thing - just wasn't sure if micronized was different with it being more 'dense' so to speak. Also got some Lecithin granules arriving tomorrow - anybody feel these are worthwhile as an emulsifier for the ground stuff?
Lecithin is unnecessary for microgind. Your stomach will do all the work of extracting the KL. When I first started it took 2-3 TBS of microgind to get the effect I was looking for. It is okay to slowly work your way up to the right dose - best not to overdo it, but I think you need to up that dose.
 

Krunkie McKrunkface

Kava Connoisseur
Thanks for the warm welcome chaps. I've never heard of reverse tolerance until now...how strange! I guess it could work out pretty expensive drinking it every day just to overcome RT. I'll try some different brands eventually and hopefully some from the list above as looking around the stuff I had seems a bit cheap at £10 for 227g but as you say, probably OK for the RT stage.
twenty quid for a pound of medium grind is not a bad price at all, IMO. Comparable to the price of a beer, perhaps a bit cheaper. Oh wait, that's a drink mix. Still, works out to, if it is 3 tsp to the serving, about 80 new pence for a glass, no? A Coke at Sainsbury or Tesco will run you 1.25 or 1.30
 

Groggy

Kava aficionado
Admin
just wasn't sure if micronized was different with it being more 'dense' so to speak.
That's a good point, maybe start at 3 tbs and up it every few days until you break through the rt.

Kava supreme only comes in medium grind (as do most other kavas like Squanch), so pick up a strainer with it, a nut milk bag will do. Traditional prep is very easy.
 

Synaps3

Newbie
If you're still there, I'd say prepare a drink with 4 tablespoons and then drink it slowly until you feel effects. I needed a full four to feel anything.
I also made a side drink free of Kava that I can use as a chaser because it tastes pretty bad at that concentration.
 
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