Depression from Kava

[Buoe173]

I have heard of kava years ago but i only tried Kona Kava and it didnt do much.

So its been many years and i tried Moi' kava, because i heard i heard it was a good high strain.

i had 2 sittings and the first cup i drank gave me really strong euphoria and felt extremely empathetic towards everything. It was a good experience so i drank another cup an hour later. I felt the strong feeling again then i hit a strong depression. Before the session i had no depressed feelings at all, if anything i felt pretty good.

I drank several cups of water after each session.

I tried drinking kava with half the amount of kava (a spoonfull) i used with 2 sessions again. I drank half a cup than the other half spaced with 5 minutes in between each. and it gave me a decent feeling then a few hours of light sad background feeling.

is there something im doing wrong?

 

[Chaucer]

I have not personally experienced depression as a result of kava. I take it mostly for anxiety but I would characterize myself as having some depression as well that usually kicks in after an episode of obsessive worry. Since I began taking kava, my anxiety has been under much better control and as a result my depressive episodes have been much fewer. So I would say that I get pretty much the opposite effect. The question I have for you is: Do you already suffer from depression or is this something new for you?

 

[ThePiper]

IVe gotten that problem from kavas that arent noble, but obviously moi shouldnt be a problem. PErhaps you are hypersensitive to the heavy effects? MY suggestion would be to try a stimulating kava and if it still bothers you, put it down for a whilea nd try again in the future. The most stimulating strain I've had recently is Poni Ono from kavafied.

Come to think of it, I do get that from noble strains once in a blue moon, but I almost enjoy it. It's like I've slowed down enough to appreciate the truths of the universe... Impermanence, for example. Also this feeling has given me insights on relationships because I feel withdrawn enough to be objective. It might feel kind of cold or sad, but sad is just another band of color in the emotional rainbow, and it has its value.

 

[wanderingwoodsmith]

The only time I have felt an underlying sadness after a kava session, was when I had something weighing heavy on my heart, or in my subconscious, that needed dealt with. I instead tried to escape the feeling and tried not to deal with it using kava. Kava brought it to light anyways, and allowed me to deal with my issues in a better state of mind. If this is something that may apply to you, dont fight your feelings. Kava seems like it could be a great tool to deal with deeper issues. And like @ThePiper said, it has a nice side to it that can be enjoyed, sadness doesn't have to be badness. Being sad once in a while is very healthy. It means your not ignoring your feelings.

 

[EQ]

Kava does not cause depression.

While meditating I've hit states of pure bliss but some thought came out and I became enraged. Did meditation cause this anxiety? It's easy to cast the blame, but we have to admit our imperfections before we can work on them.

 

[Buoe173]

Thank you so much for the responses everyone!

I think i might lay off of kava for a while and do some introspection. I had no idea that kava could bring things out like that. Thats actually pretty incredible.