kalmia_latifolia
Dad, scientist, gardener, living in the SE USA
Hey folks,
For about a month, I had low doses of kava nightly. Only once did I exceed 2 tbsp med grind (~5tbsp Damu from KWK, and I was krunk enough I forgot my jacket in an Uber!), and most nights I had on the order of 1 tbsp, or an equivalently low dose (2-3 kava candies or 1-2 tsp of instant, etc.). I found that I was pretty sensitive to larger doses of kava- even 2 tbsp med. grind left me with noticeable next day effects (lethargy, often a small headache). I really don't care about getting krunk, I'm into kava for the gentle relaxation at the end of a long day and would happily use small (50-200 mg kavalactones) daily if there were no side-effects.
I noticed, however, that I've had an intermittent mental 'fog' for the last couple of weeks. Most of the time, I feel fine, but occasionally I'll be sacked by mild vertigo, headaches, cloudy thinking, and lethargy. Caffeine makes it worse, especially if its on an empty stomach. I'm not sure if these effects are due to kava or something else going on in my life- allergies, some random bug picked up from my kids, etc. I had my last kava on Saturday night (chewed 0.6g of whole root, which, by the way, was surprisingly effective and tasted fine to me!), and the symptoms have persisted. I'm not going to take any more kava until they've cleared up, and then I'll see if they come back.
I've searched through the forums fairly carefully, and haven't seen anyone else report this set of symptoms. I'm not concerned enough to go to the doctor, the effects are relatively mild and are slowly getting better. But has anyone experienced, or heard of, similar symptoms from light kava use? If not, it certainly doesn't rule out an idiosyncratic reaction on my part to kava, but I'd love to know if this was a common side effect. Thanks!
For about a month, I had low doses of kava nightly. Only once did I exceed 2 tbsp med grind (~5tbsp Damu from KWK, and I was krunk enough I forgot my jacket in an Uber!), and most nights I had on the order of 1 tbsp, or an equivalently low dose (2-3 kava candies or 1-2 tsp of instant, etc.). I found that I was pretty sensitive to larger doses of kava- even 2 tbsp med. grind left me with noticeable next day effects (lethargy, often a small headache). I really don't care about getting krunk, I'm into kava for the gentle relaxation at the end of a long day and would happily use small (50-200 mg kavalactones) daily if there were no side-effects.
I noticed, however, that I've had an intermittent mental 'fog' for the last couple of weeks. Most of the time, I feel fine, but occasionally I'll be sacked by mild vertigo, headaches, cloudy thinking, and lethargy. Caffeine makes it worse, especially if its on an empty stomach. I'm not sure if these effects are due to kava or something else going on in my life- allergies, some random bug picked up from my kids, etc. I had my last kava on Saturday night (chewed 0.6g of whole root, which, by the way, was surprisingly effective and tasted fine to me!), and the symptoms have persisted. I'm not going to take any more kava until they've cleared up, and then I'll see if they come back.
I've searched through the forums fairly carefully, and haven't seen anyone else report this set of symptoms. I'm not concerned enough to go to the doctor, the effects are relatively mild and are slowly getting better. But has anyone experienced, or heard of, similar symptoms from light kava use? If not, it certainly doesn't rule out an idiosyncratic reaction on my part to kava, but I'd love to know if this was a common side effect. Thanks!
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