it’s possible that your body’s tryptophan (an amino acid protein) is being used up to make substances that support immune function, especially a viral load to support macrophage activity so less is available to make serotonin.

I’ve seen incidences of higher levels of Quinolinic acid and Kynurenic acid (alternative pathways for serotonin metabolism) on OAT tests when the body is fighting an infection. Low serotonin can lead to anxiety. It can also disrupt sleep – has this also been the case for you?

Both of these pathways pull tryptophan away from its ability to make enough serotonin. And again, the body does this as a protective response to help support the immune system.

Increasing your animal protein intake (if it’s been low) and/or supporting digestion (stomach acid), or supplementing with tryptophan with B6 its cofactor might help. You can search for it in the B Better Fullscript dispensary. Here’s one possible option.

For rapid relief, you can also try the ice water face dunk to stimulate the vagus nerve and parasympathetic process or some of these other tips shared in this post.

There could also be other reasons like impaired COMT pathway/metabolism that is needed to break down adrenaline (which gives the strong feeling of a panic attack) but if it is only a post-covid symptom, I would assume the tryptophan pathway is likely being affected.

Here is a simple drawing showing the 2 different pathways tryptophan can take: [Image]
Hope this makes sense. Please keep us updated.

if sleep is also disrupted, then it likely is the tryptophan pathway being affected and supplementing with tryptophan and its cofactor B6 in the P5P form should hopefully help.

And yes, the Fullscript dispensary is in the US so no issues there. You’ll need to create an account using the B Better dispensary link to access the full catalog. The details and links to Fullscript are in the Discounts & Resources section of your library dashboard.

 I shared an option/link in my first message above. Here it is again. And if you type in “l-tryptophan” ingredient, and then B6 as another ingredient, it will compile a list of options containing both ingredients so you can compare products and prices as well.

 I like to use silver hydrosol drops in the ear. Mullein garlic oil is also effective.

 no worries – happy to help. I edited my comment to include the link again for you. Get well soon!

Hi  – just wanted to check in. Did you try any of the suggestions? How are you feeling?