Day X of Vitamin B1 Supplementation: FINAL THOUGHTS (Long post)

Day X of Vitamin B1 Supplementation: FINAL THOUGHTS (Long post) *(I posted 10 days of follow ups of my experience using vitamin B1. This is going to be the last journal entry on the subject directly, however I'm always happy to answer your questions through comments or dms.)* **Day X** Final thoughts: I wasn't confident that taking 1 more vitamin every morning would have any effect whatsoever. For stuttering, I figured the issue was so complex that it would require a complex solution, i.e prescribed medication, years of speech therapy, etc. From the very first day I took it, I felt a difference. The difference could be completely attributed to the placebo effect and me having lots of hope/enthusiasm. Whatever it was, fluency was greatly improved that day. If you recall from my posts, it was day 1 of this 10 day report. Since then I noticed caffeine was screwing with the B1 absorption. On workout days this led to a level of fluency that was somewhat worse than before I began taking the supplement. I lift weights at the gym every Monday, Tuesday, Thursday, and Saturday. Since my workouts tend to be difficult, I use caffeine pills or pre-workout supplements to get me through them. Tea and caffeine are notorious for depleting the body's natural levels of thiamine, so clearly I had an issue to address because I certainly felt the different on those days. It was impossible to ignore. Once I developed a timing strategy, this issue was 85%+ accounted for (I will detail my entire strategy below). Since then, being consistent with this strategy has made a noticeable difference. I've added magnesium into the mix as well which also seems to have a muscle relaxant effect, and not in the way that pharmaceutical drugs have, we're keeping it natural over here. My fluency has without a doubt improved, with day to day variation. Some days I'm only slightly better than my average stutter before I began B1, and other days I can count the stutters I've had all day on 1 hand even after speaking with tens of people that afternoon. Energy levels have improved vastly as well, enough to truly make me think I was B1 deficient before I began taking the supplement. I started to wonder how common B1 deficiency actually is and found its way more than you think. The research shows that most people through their dietary habits lose most of their thiamine and end up with chronic deficiencies. Especially middle-aged individuals who drink lots of coffee and tea. ​ **Stuttering intensity average BEFORE taking B1: 4/10**. I was never a horrible stutterer, however its certainly enough to notice if we spend enough time together. I'm a fairly opinionated person and love communicating my ideas to others. I also enjoy fast paced debate style conversations where there is a lot learned from both sides. This is made difficult with a stutter. Of course, like all of you, I can get the words out eventually, but by the time I do the sentence has lost its effect. The lack of fluency was enough to consider my speech jagged & not smooth and it bothered me deeply. ​ **Stuttering intensity average AFTER taking B1: 2.5/10**. I'm more fluent than I've been in a long time. I can't even recall when the last time was that I felt this confident speaking. Since taking the supplements, there's been multiple times where I felt like *I could not stutter*. I would speak quickly and energetically without issues whatsoever. I've reported these events in my prior posts on the subject. I noticed that over-eating would make me stutter more, probably the sensation of being overly full and lethargic increased my stutter. My phone conversations are much more smooth too and unbelievably, I'm able to answer the phone with a simple "Hello" now, which was a nightmare for me before. I would have to resort to saying "Yes, Hello" because somehow I'm able to say that without stuttering. I've answered the phone 3 times now with a simple Hello without issue since starting this. I want to give you some realistic expectations. This is NOT a miracle vitamin. If you have a very severe stutter, it will help but not cure your stutter, not by any means. The vitamin works best when you pair it with other strategies like \*thinking through the sentence fully before you speak it\*. If you try this, you will have bad days where you'll feel disappointing and upset. Stick with it. I will certainly be taking B1 for the rest of my life. ​ **Final strategy for best results** (once working out all the kinks of my personal situation with caffeine): \-I Bought Solgar's 500mg Vitamin B1. \-I take the B1 every morning with water, along with my Biotin and Glucosamine (unrelated to stuttering). I take it 40 minutes before consuming any food. Water is fine. The key is to take it on a empty stomach and let it absorb. \-On workout days where I'll be taking caffeine. I make sure to separate the B1 from any caffeine consumption for at least 90 minutes, preferably closer to 2 hours. This allows the caffeine to interact minimally with the B1 absorption. \-If its a workout day where I've taken caffeine, I will consume another 500mg B1 pill after my post-workout meal along with a magnesium 500mg supplement from Webber naturals. Note that I am doubling the B1 dose on workout days (1000mg total) for the day. \-If its not a workout day, I will simply have lunch with one magnesium 500mg pill. On non-workout days, there is no need to double the dose of the B1, since there's no caffeine intake that day. \-If you notice, the magnesium is always taken right after a meal, otherwise it can be hard on your stomach. \-Do this consistently and I'm confident you will see results. At least, I can happily report that I did. ​ Write me any questions you have, I'll be happy to follow up with you.