Medication / supplements that I have found to improve my stuttering

Medication / supplements that I have found to improve my stuttering *this is not medical advice - these are personal anecdotes that I have experienced as a 28 year old male who stutters with an extensive history of medication use to ameliorate my stuttering - I’ll try to keep this short and sweet - please check if these substances are legal in your country. I do not advise anyone to break any laws and risk serious consequences for something they aren’t even sure is going to work - I wish I started to talking to a doctor and psychiatrist when I was 12 years old. Rather than self medicating until my late twenties Brief intro: 28 Man with a very mild stutter. Some repetitions and prolongations (damn S sound), but mostly blocks. I get embarrassed by it and this has led to social anxiety in my life, further compounded by depression, self isolation, and self medication. Current theory on stuttering: too much dopamine in part of the brain that controls movement of facial muscles. (I don’t have a reference sorry) My theory: there is no unified cause of stuttering and all of us are unique. There are thousands of medications that exist in the world that act on the brain. Each medication has 3 potential options 1. Makes stuttering worse 2. No effect 3. Makes stuttering better My personal goal is to find the ones that make stuttering better I have discussed stuttering with my GP (family doctor) who really didn’t know anything about stuttering, who then led me to a psychiatrist, and I suggest you all do the same! Psychiatrists specialise in disorders of the brain/mind and they are surprisingly knowledgeable on stuttering. Stuttering is often exacerbated with anxiety. Thus, it is important to combat social anxiety and you will likely stutter less. Treatments: Acceptance: this will sound dumb to some. If I truly accepted my stutter then the below text will be irrelevant. Meditation/exercise: improves anxiety Psychological: - speech therapy: this is gonna sound obvious. People study masters degrees and become professionals to become speech therapists/pathologists. If you seriously want to improve your stuttering then this is the most obvious first place to start. It’s gonna take time -psychotherapy - so many posts on this reddit page are about depression and anxiety. Gotta address the depression and anxiety if you wanna survive. Psychological therapy (cognitive behaviour therapy) etc is a logical place to start for someone who is constantly depressed about their situation. I know I am Supplements: (supplements are things that people take everyday, also called nootropics, that change the way the brain chemicals work slightly, not prescribed by doctors): - ashwagandha - Indian herb used for centuries. Works by modulating GABA and cortisol (relaxation and stress hormones). Was completely cured for the first month using this then effects gradually subsided. -Lions Mane (some random mushroom) - has positive effects on stuttering and anxiety. Again, effects subsided after months of use -choline (used to make acetylcholine in brain, very high quantities in eggs). Many people report benefits from taking these everyday. Personally I did not but it’s legal and safe and worth a shot - racetams (the Racetam family of drugs/supplements are quasi legal depending on what country you are from). Some people report being cured from stuttering. I have not found such benefit - phenibut (mostly illegal substance, however is legal to own without prescription in Canada and parts of the world. Other countries have it as doctor prescription only. Works in a similar fashion to alcohol (increasing GABA and improved my stutter 100% and cured all social anxiety.) tolerance develops over time and it is addictive so this is one I use sparingly. Also dangerous to mix with alcohol Medication: - propranolol. Works by slowing the heart down. Decreases physical symptoms of anxiety. Used by professional musicians to calm nerves while performing. Used to improve stuttering but now barely does anything. Use sparingly - SSRI/SNRI : antidepressants that improve mood and anxiety. Mild improvement in stuttering. Safe to take daily. No tolerance - benzodiazepines - (Clonazepam is what I use). Highly addictive class of drugs that also act on GABA. Has been incredibly useful on job interviews, first dates, etc. dangerous to mix with alcohol and addictive -Brintellix (currently on this for depression daily.) works on serotonin. Improves stuttering - Buspirone (currently on this for anxiety). Improves my stuttering tremendously. Serious life saver this one. Side effects include feeling dizzy, insomnia in some people, and increased sex drive. Kind of annoying cuz u have to take this pill twice a day - methylphenidate (ADHD drug). Improves my stutter. I take it sparingly because of the common pattern of permanent tolerance developing to anti-stuttering drugs -vyvanse/adderall (ADHD Drug). Makes my stutter 10x worse. Some girl posted here last week saying it cured her -marijuana(legal in my country but makes my stutter worse), some people report benefit I hope I can help at least one person with this post cuz I wish I had this kind of advice way younger PS - I eat a lot of processed foods and artificial sweeteners. Definitely has potential to make stuttering worse. Plan on total exclusion of these in future - also I plan on making / going to a stutter group where people with stuttering socialise without any stress when I move to Cleveland - avoid abusing drugs/alcohol because this can make your stutter worse. Permanently.