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Ashwagandha (Withania somnifera) Reports of Use |
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Written by Reverend MeO
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Saturday, 28 February 1998 |
“In the land of the blind, this 3rd eyed Ayurvedic herb is king.”
For all of the information below, 900mg. of a 1 1/2% pure Withanolids extract from the root of Withania somnifera was used -- without any other herbs or medications.
THE PULL & THE VISUALS Within about 45 minutes the sedation begins, a tiring and drying effect upon the eyeballs -- eyelids fight to close. Sleep comes very easy at this time. While it is possible to fight the sleep-pull, it is uncomfortable. The behind-the-eye-visuals begin soon after laying down. They are continual and easy to make out. While they are well-defined, they change very often -- with no certain image staying more than 30 seconds. Upon laying down, the body goes still, and you can feel yourself floating. This works well sometimes with the visuals. It is very possible to look down upon your sleeping body. TOLERANCE? There is no large degree of tolerance that builds with continuous use of Ashwagandha. However, if after taking the herb nightly for several weeks, you stop for a night, and then continue the next evening, the visuals are clearer than with steady nightly use. WILL I PAY FOR THE WONDERFUL SLEEP IN THE MORNING? If 8-10 hours of sleep is not allotted, you will wake up feeling mentally and physically “fuzzy”. No matter how much sleep you get, eyes will be glossy and lightly red. IS THIS HEALTHY? Health benefits can be found with continual use. A resistance to sickness and an over-all healing effect starts. A friend compared this effect to Ginseng -- I prefer to compare it to Echinacea. PAIN RELIEVER / MUSCLE RELAXANT Oh yeah! With other sedating herbs (Valerian, Skullcap, Passion Flower, et al) my body tends to wake up exhausted -- and with a lower back pain from sleeping too long. This is NOT the case with Ashwagandha. The body wakes up, without any pain at all -- with a warm and soft protective sheen seemingly coating the entire being. If you do suffer from chronic pains (which Ashwagandha relieved), the pains will return about 4-6 hours after waking up -- as it seems that this is the time the herb wears off almost completely. (Total time of action: ~10-12 hours) DREAM RECALL -- LUCIDITY As with many “sleep” supplements (5-HTP, Skullcap, etc...) dream recall is enhanced, even though some of these items are said to decrease REM activity. Some way or another, dream recall and lucidity comes much easier with any of these substances, though. Ashwagandha seems to greatly assist dream recall (not as well as 5-HTP, I must add), and chances of lucidity (once again, not as well as 5-HTP). Eyelids begin to flutter soon after sleep begins.
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