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Kava - makes me feel bad instead of good

Idgie

Kava Enthusiast
Here is my tale of woe: A few years ago I tried kava. It was very cool. I don't think I ever got 'krunked' even with massive amounts- but definitely got that feel good 'chill' vibe, everything is ok, it's cool, I'm calm, yea this is nice.
And so it went for a year or so of probably 4-7 times a week of kava usage.
Then... I just started feeling .... bad after kava. Not sure how to describe, but the exact OPPOSITE of what it used to feel like. Edgy, anxious, not good. Trust me, I repeated this experiment probably 100 times (no kidding - amazing what we will do to keep chasing that high). I am finally ready to just concede - this no longer works for me. Note- I took an EXTENDED break of 2-3 months with no kava at all (hoping that maybe I needed to reboot the matrix). Same effect when I tried again. I have tried different brands, types, instants, etc (good lord you should see my cabinet).... it all seems to have this same bad, no-good effect. Heavy kavain seem to be the worst, but I have tried the borogurus\borogu as well (different vendors, yes all the 'popular' vendors on this site), it is the same.
Obviously - I am an outlier. :) Has anyone else experienced this? Anybody you know experience this? I have heard of people quitting due to allergic (skin) reactions- is it possible I developed some other type of allergy that will never go away?
Just curious if anybody else has ever heard of this.
 

Gourmet Hawaiian Kava

Kava Expert
Kava Vendor
I have never heard of anything like this, I am sorry to hear that your having trouble with Kava, I wish that I knew what it was and that you could find out and get over it so you can enjoy kava again. How much do you drink at a time? For me if I drink too much I can feel bad or sick, have you tried just drinking a little to see if you still feel bad with that lower amount of kava? I am wondering if you are drinking too much and your experiencing the effects of too much kava. I hope that with everyone's help here that we can figure this out for you so you can start to enjoy the kava. Aloha.

Chris
 

sɥɐʞɐs

Avg. Dosage: 8 Tbsp. (58g)
Review Maestro
every once in a while a strong batch will hit me in a weird way that makes me feel edgy, jittery and anxious ... almost like some crazy high is about to drop, but doesnt. It usually subsides after a while...then I just feel all kava'd up. If you have tried drinking slower and have tried light stuff like tongan/hawaiian vs. boroguru/waka and they both make you feel bad. Then I guess you probably do have an allergy or something that doesnt agree with kava.

the only bad feeling i usually get is if i have too many nights in a row with the heavy stuff...i just start feeling disgustingly groggy and the stomach discomfort can steal the joy from the experience...but I still feel relaxed though.
 

CanAwa

1 kava 2 kava 3 kava COUCH
I sometimes get a bad vibe if my surroundings aren't right or if I have too much too quick. If I space my shells out and give the kava time to kick in I find I have a much better experience . Taken too quickly I get nauseated or feel on edge a bit and that's not what I want kava for . Hope you can figure it out ..maybe it's as simple as my solution ..oh and the strain definately seems to make a difference . I mix a heady kava with a body kava and that seems to work nicely .
 

endwatcher

Is there death before life?
Its a mental chemistry thing.

You should take into account anything and everything that you are taking.

The worst I get is stomach disorder, and sometimes this wierd...unsatisfiable feeling.
I would probably describe it as Pergatory.
 

JonT

Kava Enthusiast
What do you *do* after and during drinking kava?

I have very rarely had the feelings you describe. If I lie down and just take it easy (with the high kavain strains, I listen to the gentle ringing in my ears), it never happens though. It tends to happen if I drink kava at the same time as trying to cram too much other stuff in.
 

pellegrino

Kava Curious
Is it just not only the high kavain stains u can get jittery off? you can get that off boroguru as well? and how strong is the jittery feeling,like to much coffe?
a noob wants to know lol
 

Idgie

Kava Enthusiast
Thanks for all the replies! Set and setting - sitting in my back yard watching the birds. One of my favorite things to do (with or without kava). So I don't think it's set & setting - but I know what you mean. :)
Types and amount - I have DEFINATELY tried all kinds of different kavas from different vendors. Right at the end of the experiment I did try what (to me) seemed like a very small amount - around 2 and 1/2 tbls of root powder. But maybe I will try even less? I'm going to give it a while and try that, I will let the group know if it worked!
The jittery feeling is not as strong as too much caffeine, its' more 'edgy' than 'jittery'. Yeah, ok so I don't know how to describe it exactly. :)
Thanks again
 

violet

Do all things with love
Back when I first began drinking kava Boroguru would give me some serious lift. I'm usually up and about until I go to bed, and I could literally zip around on the stuff. Eventually I began feeling the "heavy" effects Boroguru is known for.

Recently I tried Solomon's, known to be heady. It made me feel almost anxious, a definite "ants-in-the-pants" feeling if I had to sit and do something. Then I discovered if I drank enough of it, I could use it to induce sleep. It hasn't made me feel edgy since, and I think it is a fantastic kava for daytime use.

Not sure how relative my experience is, but when you try different kavas, do consistently stay with one? It can take me going through a half-kilo or more drinking daily to feel the effect profile from a particular kava. I also wonder if it isn't the kavain affecting you like this. I've had great luck with the Hawaiian kavas I have tried from GHK, no edginess just euphoria and :love:. My only issue with the Hawaiian kavas is that I seem to develop a true tolerance to them somewhat quickly and then have to take a break.

Kava is supposed to induce reverse tolerance, but I wonder how common it is to develop a tolerance to kavain? It could be that you are lucky enough to be a lightweight, at least to the lactones that induce lift/euphoria. How much kava do you usually use, and are you straining it before drinking?

I hope your experiment goes well for you!
 
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kavadude

❦ॐ tanuki tamer
I will get that feeling with kava once in a blue moon. I don't know what would help unfortunately. Sorry it's not working for you, I hope you get it sorted out.
 

Idgie

Kava Enthusiast
You guys are great. I think I am going to experiment again this week. Asked above - I have tried 'low' amounts (about 2 1/2 tbls), and I am straining. My hope at one point was that the sediment was the issue (as it seems folks w/ skin problems find that straining out all particles helps) and I would do a double strain, last one with a muslin strainer - but still had issues. I'm not sure the muslin strainer was really getting 'most' of it out though, I may have to revisit that idea also....
I tried to stay consistent (with the same root powder) at one point in the process, but really - I would get desperate and change just to try to get something to work! lol. I probably need to revisit that and try one for a 'consistent' period of time.
I have hit upon something else to try after reading through the thread once more- the 'spacing' of shells. I had become used to doing two doses - half in one giant gulp and the rest later (this was from when it felt 'good'), I never thought to change that. I think I will try small amount of root powder, and doing much smaller 'doses' - I will make it go for 4-5 doses with at least 10 minutes in between.
Please advise if you think 10 minutes is too short.
Thanks again! These forums are the best.
 
D

Deleted User01

I do them about every 20-30 mins but I have my session over the afternoon. Try 10 mins and go from there. I think you are on the right track.
 

violet

Do all things with love
I find spacing my shells apart about every 30 minutes works best for me, some of the effects take at least that long to be fully felt. My experience also got better when I started splitting my grog into 3 shells instead of 2. If you think the problem might be sensitivity, I think you should space shells longer apart than 10 minutes, maybe even an hour or so once or twice, so you can get a feel for what the full course of a small amount of kava feels like in your system.
 

TidyMinion

Kava Padawan
Make sure you're staying very hydrated. Maybe even over hydrate a little. I try to down about 2 liters of water during my 8-9 hours day job and maybe another half to 1 liter in the evening. You'll pee everywhere all the time but it does stave off the dermapothy or at least keep it in check. Also think it helps keep the nausea factor lower during a kava session (although by the 3rd shell of Stone last night I finally understood why the taste is infamous around here).

A couple weeks ago I got another round of it because i was drinking more kava and less water but since i've really kept tabs on the water i'm drinking during the day it hasn't gotten any worse, might even be lessening some. Good luck though!
 

yepimonfire

Kava Enthusiast
I've gotten it a couple of times, usually only happens if I drink kava and wait a long time before the next cup. I also used to sometimes experience depression from kava back when I had bad depression issue from low T. Wish I knew why this happens.


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KavaLot

Kava Enthusiast
I agree Tidy Minion, water breaks during the session and especially afterwards helps get a breakout under control.


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Idgie

Kava Enthusiast
Thanks again everyone! Ok - I had one 'good' experience yesterday - I used most of the ideas above (use small amounts, wait longer between shells) and... something seems to be working! It was very nice - felt like old times (ha). I'm a little bit spooked though, don't want to get too excited... because it was just the one time. I am going to try again during the weekend, and I will be sure to post back here when I can. I used about 2 tbls and a lot of water - waited at least 30 minutes between shells. It felt very nice!!!! (y)
One other thing that I did totally different - I ate half an apple IMMEDIATELY before drinking my first shell, and a few bites before any other shell. I thought maybe I need a little something in my stomach? Other than that it had been about 4 hours since I last ate. I am going to keep an apple handy this weekend and replicate.
Thanks again! I hope this holds true. Whether it does or not I truly appreciate everyone trying to help.
AH- one more thing. I do try to stay hydrated during the day, but some days ... that may not hold true. I will try to keep closer tabs on that today and tomorrow.
 

kavadude

❦ॐ tanuki tamer
You know there might be something to that. I had a lot of boroguru last night and was feeling like crap until I ate some food.
 
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