Amino Acid Therapy for Mental Health | Featured Summit with Dr. David Jockers

Introduction to Endorphins and the Show 0:00

Endorphins are like our inner joy. And so that's where we just feel comfy, like in our own skin. So when you don't have enough endorphin, you just fell really unsettled, really ungrounded. You're really emotional, very sensitive to criticism. You're more sensitive to pain. So if you stub your toe, you feel it from head to toe as opposed to just in your tow. Like you just are extra sensitive everything. And then you're seeking food, your seeking substances or exercise or something to give you that comfort.

Welcome to Take Back My Brain with Lori Hammer, where real healing starts in the brain. I'm Lori, a functional nutritionist and mom who's walked the path from anxiety and burnout to clarity and calm. Each week, we're going to dive into brain-based tools like amino acid therapy, gut health, fasting and faith to help you reclaim your energy, emotions and sense of self.

Lori Hammeru2019s Recovery Story 1:01

All right, well here I am with Lori Hammer, Nutritional Therapy Practitioner. And Lori, how did you get involved with nutrition therapy and amino acids? Oh gosh, that was a long time ago. Way back in 1996, I was struggling with an eating disorder, anxiety, depression, suicidal thoughts and all those things. And I, was trying to figure out how to stop all of that. and nothing was working. I had a professor that sent me an article on amino acid therapy and food cravings and how that can eliminate those.

So I called out to this place in Mill Valley, California. And they said, yeah, come out. It's an outpatient program. I couldn't get into inpatient programs because I wasn't suicidal enough. And my weight wasn' t low enough, so I needed to find something else. Anyway, I went out to this place called Recovery Systems in California, and it saved my life. They found out that I was definitely addicted to what I eating, so I sensitive to when I'm eating. So all the gluten, all of the dairy that was binging and purging on, I super sensitive too.

I had celiac disease, thyroid issues. And then most importantly, they tested some amino acids on me and that stopped the craving cycle. It lifted my anxiety, lifted the depression off and it literally saved my life. That was my first introduction to functional nutrition, which wasn't called functional nutritional back then. Yeah, absolutely. So you've got your own pain to purpose story. Let's talk about some of the neurotransmitters. You said that they did some testing, right? And so what did they find with that testing?

So I was low in serotonin, GABA, my catecholamines were low, endorphins, like everything across the board that really affects your mood. I Was low on all of those things and I had a lot of glucose regulation issues. Yeah. Blood sugar dysregulation. How did that impact the brain? Well, if your blood sugar goes up and down, your brain gets depleted very, very quickly and you can't think. You get depressed, you get anxious. It affects all of your cognition and your bring can repair or detox. Yeah, it's a major stressor on your body meets all your systems.

And so what do you recommend for stabilizing blood sugar? I would imagine that's kind of, you know, when you talk about like the the hierarchy of needs for your brain, that has got to be near the top. So what are you recommending for clients as far as a blood, sugar stabilising nutrition plan? Yeah, definitely. We've got to get enough protein in. Most people don't eat enough proteins and don' eat up healthy fats. So get the bad fats out, good fats in, bump your protein up. I usually have to double protein for everyone in order for their brain to stay stable.

And then we use some amino acids.I love using glutamine. That helps with glucose regulation and other nutritional supplements. But dietary is always foundation, getting enough sleep, movement, all those things to keep your glucose stable Yeah, that's so key.

Blood Sugar and Brain Stability 3:56

Now let's talk about how you incorporate the amino acids and why that is so important. Yeah. Absolutely. So I believe that when we balance the brain first, everything below the neck gets easier to deal with. And so when people come to me, almost 100% of the time we're using amino acid. I have an assessment that I do on people that concentrates on five areas. serotonin, GABA endorphins, your catecholamines, and then glucose. And so we assess those. It's a form that you fill out, so it's all symptom-based.

Then based on that, we try different amino acids. In the first appointment that people have with me, We actually take an amino acid, say tryptophan, open it up, put it underneath your tongue, wait a couple minutes, you know, stare at each other awkwardly, and then see if your body responds to it. And oftentimes it does. So by the end of that first appointment, we know which amino acids your bodies going to respond to, what's going lift your depression, What's gonna help with that anxiety, ADD, OCD, And then we move on from there.

That's the first introduction. So the amino acids, you basically open them under the tongue so they get some sublingual absorption into the bloodstream and they're real fast acting. That is correct. Yeah. Within two to five minutes, You'll notice a difference. And the way that you know if somebody is in need of that is that they notice the difference? Like if they just don't notice difference, would that be a sign that that was not the right? Yeah, usually that's a sign that it's not the right one.

Sometimes there's medication interference if people are on a few medications. They may not feel anything because they're so numbed, but most of the time we'll just start with people, what they respond to, and then go from there. Yeah, that's good. Now, there are a lot of clients I'm sure that come into you and they're doing a lotta different things or they've been doing, you know, liver cleanses or detoxes, diet, taking a bunch of supplements, but they still will feel anxious.

Using Amino Acids to Assess and Treat 5:57

I mean, I am sure you see this all the time. Why do amino acid deficiencies, why do they often block progress even in advanced functional protocols? Well, because they're foundational to everything. Amino acids are needed from head to toe. So your neurotransmitters have to have amino acids in order to function. Your enzymes, your digestive process, you're hormones, everything is dependent upon those amino acid. And so if you are deficient in those, I don't really care if have MTHFR or anything else.

You have address the foundations first. Yeah, and so when you're looking at different neurotransmitters, what are the main ones that you are testing like on your questionnaires and using the amino acid therapy? So the one to be serotonin, so we're working on that, GABA, your endorphins, you catecholamines, which includes dopamine, or I mean, dopamine and then glucose regulation. Yeah. So serotonin, are you testing that with tryptophan or 5-HTP? And is there a difference? Yeah, so I like to start with Tryptofan because that converts into lots of different things in the body so your body can use that more efficiently.

If people don't respond to Trypophan, then I'll try 5HTP because just converts in to seratonin. Right. And what are some of the main roles of seretonin in a body? What are the symptoms that somebody might be deficient in serotonin? Well, anxiety, depression, OCD, PMS, you have a hard time getting to sleep or staying to asleep at night. Afternoon or evening cravings, most people don't realize that when you some weird phobias that you can't get over hyperactivity in the brain where you just can stick to a thought.

Most people think that's ADD or ADHD, but that can be a serotonin deficiency as well. Hmm. Okay. Yep. And then how about GABA? So GAB is kind of like the brakes in the brain, right? Kind of a gas pedal, like glutamate would be a, a GAS pedal neurotransmitter and the, the breaks is GABI. Right. Helps, helps stop it. We, we need both. But we also need the break. So what are some of the main symptoms of GABO deficiency? that you just don't relax. You feel overwhelmed all the time. you feel like just kind of the whole world's coming in on you.

So GABA just lets us take go, you know, just take that deep breath and let it roll off. It's kind when you have enough GAB you respond appropriately to stress. When you are deficient in GAba, your biting people's heads off, right? You're reacting inappropriately. it doesn't match the stressor. Now, I know for women also that progesterone, right, which is key hormone that we screen particularly in higher amounts in the luteal phase or the second 14 days of the menstrual cycle is really critical for GABA productions, GAB agonist.

And women as they're going into, either if they are really stressed in the second half of their cycle or if the are going in to perimenopause and menopausal,

Serotonin, GABA, Dopamine, and Endorphins 8:51

oftentimes see a big drop in progesterone levels and that can play a role with that anxiety. Are you seeing that? Yeah, I do see that. I wouldn't say it always correlates. So sometimes, you know, when I'm doing like a Dutch test or something, or they come to me with blood work, their progesterone looks good, but they're still deficient in GABA. so it doesn't necessarily always mean a correlation, But it is a factor, for sure. Yeah. It's not always a fact. But if it's low, then that can continue.

Definitely. Now, how about dopamine? What are you looking at? what are some of the main symptoms with dopamine. A lot of apathetic depression, you just don't care or you don t have a lot to drive. Low mental energy, low physical energy. You know, those ADD, ADHD symptoms, craving things for focus or for energy whether that would be caffeine or, something else to raise those levels. And just feeling super scattered all the time. So not able to focus, but also not driven and motivated either. Correct.

Kind of combination. How about you had mentioned endorphins. So what are some of the symptoms of an endorfin deficiency? Endorphines are like our inner joy. And so that's where we just feel comfy, like in our own skin. When you don't have enough endorfins, you just fell really unsettled, really ungrounded. You're really emotional, very sensitive to criticism. You're more sensitive to pain. So if you stub your toe, you feel it from head to toe as opposed to just in your tow. Like you just are extra sensitive everything.

And then you're seeking food, your seeking substances or exercise or something to give you that comfort. Hey friend, just a quick break to remind you if calming your brain is the missing piece in your practice or in you're home, my Mind Thrive certification course teaches you exactly how to do that with targeted amino acid therapy. So it's real science, real results, no band-aids. Enrollment is now open. Link is in the show notes. Back to the Show. Yeah. That makes sense. Yes. Especially the pain, you know, we release a lot of endorphins when we're laughing, for example, when were exercising.

Okay. We will also release endorfins. In fact, that's what's, what gives us the quote unquote runners high, right? Right. Endorphin release that we are getting, but people that are endorfin deficient, oftentimes doing high intensity exercise is actually really bad for them because they're already. They're are already defeated. Over stressed. Yeah, Yeah, so that's really key. So the main things that you're looking at are GABA, serotonin, dopamine or catecholamines in general and that, you mentioned dopamine, but I guess it could also relate to adrenaline and endorphins.

That is correct. Now, what patterns are you typically seeing? Is there a particular neurotransmitter that people tend to be more deficient in than others? And are there certain combinations that your seeing typically? Typically, I see serotonin. That seems to be the first one that gets depleted. I think it's because we just don't utilize it very well. People have a lot of digestive issues, so breaking down seratonin is hard for people. And I would say serotonin and GABA together, both of those deficiencies, but it really kind of just depends on the person and what's going on.

But women in general, i would seratonine and gaba deficiency. Serotonine, GAB and one of the big root cause factors that you're seeing driving those Oh, diet is huge. So just a poor diet, not eating enough protein, and not having good healthy fats. Sleep. I mean, we've decided that sleep isn't important in our society. If you can't sleep, you cannot heal. That will drain your neurotransmitters faster than anything else. Diet and sleep. Lack of sunshine. Just getting outside in that early morning sun, getting out outside midday, trying to get outside at night at sunset.

Those basic things I think are huge and then we just got environmental toxins. You know, people who have been, you know receive some jabs or, they're just putting things in their body and in there homes. They just haven't detoxed themselves or detox their homes well. So I think all of those factors together just create a depleted state for most people. Yeah, for sure. And then and then obviously we talked about in the beginning, you're starting with good nutrition, getting them doubling their protein, and getting healthy fats on board.

I'm sure colorful fruits and vegetables, things like that. More of a real food based diet, prioritizing good sleep, circadian rhythm. Is there anything else that you are getting people started with on your initial plan? Yeah, changing your mindsets. I mean, God created our minds to kind of dictate our health, right? So if we have poor thoughts, we had poor health. So it's just helping people realize who they were created to be and shifting that mindset, which is always helpful. Yeah. That's key.

And then you start implementing these different amino acids, what kind results are you seeing utilizing the amino acid? Oh man, I see so many amazing, amazing results. And like I said, people get to experience that in that first appointment. It's like, cause they work so fast, right? So within a week or so people are like oh my goodness, you know, like this weight has lifted off my chest. The anxiety lifts, the depression lifts. You know I get people on medications all the time, when they come to me.

So we're able to get off those medications, with the help of their prescribing doc of course. But it's just great to see people actually be able to feel again, because people come, they're so numbed. And they've been numbing for years. They've on meds for 15, 20, 25 years, and so just seeing people to start to enjoy life again. I have spouses who'll call during the appointment or come to the appointments and they are like, thank you so much, cause I had my wife back or I've had husband back. or had a kid the other day, he just wasn't sleeping.

The amino acids helped him sleep through the night. He hadn't slept in seven years through night, his parents retired, right? We did the amino acid and all of a sudden he starts sleeping again. That's life changing for everybody in the family. Yeah, there's no doubt about that. And so yeah, these amino acids are fast acting, which is great. I know I use them with my wife, right? So she responds really well to GABA. So I give her a form of GAB and she notices it relaxes her, helps her sleep better.

She notices that really, really quickly. Yeah, these things work really, really well. And if somebody comes in, let's say they're GABA deficient, where do you start your dosage? Is there a particular type of GABAs you like to use? And what would be like a starting dosages? Anywhere from like 250 to 500 milligrams, generally speaking. That's why we test to see what people need. Some people will need 2,000 milligrams. I mean, some people just need more than others. But start low, work your way up to decide what you need, And how do you generally test with that?

So that's just sublingual underneath the tongue. We just figured out what. Basically giving them the dose that they start to feel the relaxation. Correct. And then I dose anywhere from two to four times a day for people. Yeah and and the good thing is like with GABA it's not like if you take it you were going to sometimes people think these things are like drugs. Right. And even magnesium like I've had people you know we have a product called brain calm magnesium. Yes. If they take during the day they think they're going get sleepy and I'm like no it is not that.

No. Calm brain during day actually is a focus brain. Mm-hmm and at night when your circadian rhythm sets sets in your melatonin is released and that calm brain now becomes Tired and tired. Yeah. Well, I think people mix those two things up too because I'll ask people you know how you're feeling They're like, oh man. I feel tired I'm like Is it really tired or is it relaxed? And people don't feel relaxed till they forget what that feeling is and the ability to distinguish between, oh, no, the supplements making me tired, or the supplement is actually relaxing me and my body is supposed to be relaxed so that it can focus and do what it's designed to do.

Yeah, that's key. And also if you are very sleep deprived, feeling sleepy actually is what your body needs to Now, one of the things I was looking at your website that you

Lifestyle Foundations for Brain Health 17:08

really specialize in helping moms, right? And, you know, I've got four young kids, so I get it. You know I talk to my wife every day and you that having young can definitely be stressful and draining. There are a lot of moms that are out there that're dealing with anxiety, a lotta these types of issues. And so what are you seeing with the moms you're taking care of? Yeah. And there's burnt out. One, because they're not getting enough sleep. I mean, of course, you have four children, and you're going to get the most amazing amount of sleep, but the goal is that we get you quality sleep when you do get it.

The amino acids do help with that. But it's just, the amino acid just helps to build the body back up, to building that brain back so that you can have a calm presence. When you are deficient and your brain is running on empty all the time, you're stuck in overdrive, and you get on this hamster wheel, right? You get in this Hamster Wheel and this constant depletion, the constant Depletia, then you never able to get off of it. And so the amino acids are a key piece in helping people get of that hamsters wheel so that they can be present with their kids.

So they still find their husband attractive, so they they, can go out and do things with other people and don't want to just stay home all of the Yeah, for sure. Now, when you're working with somebody that's serotonin depleted, how do you start the supplementation? Do you try tryptophan first, 5-HTP? I think you mentioned trypophan. And then what are the dosages that you are looking at? Yeah, so again, we're doing the sublingual. So what dose do they respond to? So I start with tryptophan first.

Most people need 1000 to 1500 milligrams of trypophane two to four times a day to keep their mood stable for, you know, three to six months. And then after that, they just kind of use it as needed. Each individual is a little bit different, but that's pretty typical. Yeah. Then with with dopamine, how are you addressing that? Yeah, so I start with tyrosine most of the time, and it's also good for your thyroid. So most people respond to tyrasine. If not, I'll use D-L-phenylalanine or L- phenyl alanine to help with that.

And again, probably 500 to 1500 milligrams, two to four times a day, depending on the person. Yeah. That's really good. Now, have you used anything like phosphatidylcholine, omega-3 fatty acids, magnesium, some of these other beneficial compounds for the brain? Absolutely. So I use those all the time. I like the phosphocoline, the Phosphatidylserine, I love the omegas, magnesium, mineral. We're using salt all time, really good salt is amazing. It's like little spark plugs for the brain. Just getting in those foundational fats, minerals, vitamins, all those, and the protein.

Yeah, because so many people are really actually deficient and depleted in a lot of these minerals. Trace minerals... Dehydrated chronically dehydrated. Absolutely. Yeah. So these are our big factors. Now, do you recommend you mentioned sun? Do you recommended light like in in your protocols? Like whether it's like red light or infrared or anything like that? Yeah, definitely do. I think all of those are wonderful adjunct therapies. They think they're super important. It's super cloudy here, so I'm gonna go outside, but I am not gonna get a whole lot of quality sunlight.

You know, I'll turn on my redlight, turn my therapy light. Yeah, that's so good. I try to get in the sauna four to five days a week. A hundred minutes a day is always my goal. It doesn't always happen but—but that is my always goal to really get that really positive infrared light to support the mitochondria. Absolutely. Yup. All right. And then, yeah, so you're seeing these great results with people utilizing the amino acid therapies and we talked about the dopamine, serotonin, GABA. How about endorphins?

What are you doing to help support endorfins.

Results, Dosing, and Medication Support 21:08

So mainly D-phenylalanine, so it's DPA. And again, 500 to 1,500 milligrams two to four times a day is good for most people if they respond to it. But that can make a profound difference for people just feeling good about who they are. Yeah, for sure. So when somebody comes in, they fill out a questionnaire that kind of gives you a hint towards which neurotransmitter to try first. Correct. Yes. And then go ahead, you do sublingual amino acids until you see basically what dosage... A response. ...to notice that they feel better.

And then how do you set up their protocol? Like as far as that goes, based on that dosage, let's say it took a thousand milligrams of GABA and they felt significantly better. Do you now have them take like, do split the dosages? Do have him take a 1000? How do go about setting that up? Yeah, so I have them take a thousand at a time. Usually it's two to four times a day and we'll do the same. If they've responded to tryptophan, do same thing. Tryptophane, probably a 1,000 milligrams, two or four time a days.

So you're taking some good supplementation for a little bit, but it is going to rebuild that brain. It is gonna rebuild the neurotransmitters and help you feel better. Then your gut protocols and all those other things work better when the brain is calmer. That's how we deal with that. I'll add magnesium and the omegas and minerals and almost things in as well. Yeah. And it makes sense. You're addressing the brain first. So you're helping calm, create a state of calm in the. Brain when the, brain is stressed and overwhelmed response in, the body and when you, are in fight or flight or some sort of panic response, your body's not wired to heal in that state.

No, no, you are stuck in. That danger response. Yeah, yeah. Are you doing anything for them to help activate vagal tone as well? Activate the vagus nerve. Yeah, so I do have some devices I like to use. One of them is the DNA Vibe. That's one of my favorites for the vagal tone. But we might do some exercises or, you know, I'll refer them to somebody who can really help them with that if it's pretty severe. Um, but the amino acids just call me and the body helps with the Vagal Tone. No doubt, no doubt.

Well Lori, sounds like you're doing really, really great work. Did we miss anything here today? I know we talked a lot about your strategies as far as nutrition, lifestyle, getting good sun exposure, sleep, right? All the things that, you know, I'm talking about all the time on my podcast. foundational things that you just can't get you can overlook those things and then really getting on these amino acids and and figuring out which of these Amino acids is going to be most beneficial for you and getting the right dosage as far as that goes and obviously you're seeing great results with this any other practitioners are as well you've been doing this a long time is there anything else we missed that we that our listeners really need to hear with Well, I think they really need to hear, you know, because mental health is such a huge issue right now and people are over-medicated with SSRIs, ADHD meds.

You know all those kind of things and the amino acids are an amazing alternative to those. And it helps people to wean off those medications without issues. There's so much protracted withdrawal going on right with the SSRIs, so many issues out there. So I just want to encourage people that there are other alternatives out there and amino acid therapy is huge for, I would say, replacing those medications and then rebuilding your brain, rebuilding in your body so that you don't need that anymore.

Yeah. So when you start giving, so when somebody does come in and they're on these medications, obviously as you started them on, these lifestyle principles as well as the amino acids, you tell them to go back and start working on a weaning strategy with their prescribing doctor. And how does that usually work? Usually it works really well. I mean, most doctors, there's only been a few over the years that are like, yeah, I'm not working with you, so we just find another one. But most docs are, like yeah I don't really want you on these meds either.

And so you need to have somebody who knows how to wean you off well and then we The only one you really have to worry about is when people are on an SSRI with tryptophan or 5-HTP. We're just really careful about how we dose that and when we do that for people so that they can wean off of those as well. But the rest of the amino acids, there's a few precautions, but not very many in regards to medication withdrawal. So it just helps that process become so much easier so you're not feeling like this outer body experience when you taper off all these meds because a lot of people get anxious.

They'll get flu-like symptoms. The get the protracted withdrawal where they're super anxious again. And so the amino acids help those things not to happen. Dr. Justin Marchegiani Yeah. How about benzodiazepines? They're highly addictive. What—so is there a certain strategy you take, you know, a protocol or a strategy with people that are coming in with those? Yeah, so those need to be weaned off super slow. So we really need a work with their doctor on those. But GABA is super helpful with weaning off the benzodiazepines, tryptophan, tyrosine.

Yeah. Just creating that protocol that fits best for that particular person. I want to make it very personalized, but you can get off those as well. Now do you start with a lower dosage if they're on these medications and then gradually increase if it makes them feel well while they are decreasing their medication dosages? What is your philosophy and how do practice this form of art with somebody that's on medication? Well, and it is art. So we'll use SSRIs, for example. If somebody takes their SSRIs in the morning, we won't do any tryptophan or 5-HTP for at least six hours after that.

And then the dose is very, again, like you're saying, if we dose smaller, an increase. We'll start with that lower dose and then increase as they're able. Then once they are off that medication, then we can do the trypophane or five-htp all day long and really fix that deficiency. Yes, really great work because there are so many people that are on these medications and most of the time these things can be turned around with lifestyle, nutrition, and these amino acids. And so, you know, if you've got kids that you're worried about with perhaps hyperactive disorders, start with the things that we're talking about today.

Getting them on good nutrition. Good sleep habits. good circadian rhythm. and then look at Lori's website, lorihammer.com. If you can avoid taking these medications to begin with, it's always that much easier. You can address these symptoms through lifestyle and amino acids and different supplements. That way you don't develop that dependency to being with. But if you are taking medications or you know somebody, somebody you love is taking this medications, there is a path out of it. It's a little bit of a slower grind, right?

But there's hope. Yeah, absolutely. Can I share a story of a client I recently had? So I had a young lady who came to me on five different medications and she had been on them since she was 12 years old. And so she on ADHD meds, SSRIs other mood med, you know, things to combat, all the side effects and stuff that run there. So she came on to be on 5 of them. It took us 10 months for her to get off all 5 medications, but now she can actually feel she's 35 years and old and I've never been able to feel all the feels.

Helping Moms Heal and Final Takeaways 28:28

And you know, she ran a marathon, her hormones are balanced, like she just feels good. She looks totally different. I wish I could show you a before and after picture because she came to me feeling so forlorn, so bedraggled, just disheartened. Now she's just this vibrant, beautiful woman. who's, you know, figuring out life. Is everything perfect for her? She's still struggling. Like, I don't even know what to do with this emotion. But she's learning how to deal with those things. And she is in counseling and, doing all those other things, but she finding out who she, and it's just beautiful to watch.

So she has a pretty extreme case, coming to me on five medications, But it turned out beautiful for. Yeah, that's amazing. I'm sure you're seeing stuff like that on a regular basis. That's fantastic. Guys, you can check out Lori's website. She's got a lot of great information there. And again, she has got she created the calm mom method, which is a proven approach to help moms manage anxiety, restore energy and live with purpose. So it is Lori hammer.com. Definitely checkout her website and of course, I know you work with people that aren't just moms that just have to be where you have your personal testimony.

Correct. Also many, many moms are dealing with a lot of these issues, anxiety, depression, um, not able to feel like you talked about issues and they don't have to suffer like that. We can make changes, change your lifestyle, get their blood sugar balance, optimize their sleep, and get them on some of the amino acids and those start really noticing the benefits. Absolutely. Well, great Lori, this has been a wonderful interview and you're helping so many people out there. So I just want to encourage you to keep doing that.

You're doing great work. Any last words of inspiration here for our audience? You know, when you just remove the interference, your body can heal. And I feel amino acids are part of that and God created our bodies to heal, so we just have to give it all the right stuff. Yeah, I love that. Well, thanks so much, Lori, guys. Again, check out her website, lorihammer.com, and you can start taking back control of your health today. Be blessed, everybody. Bye-bye. Thanks for listening to Take Back My Brain.

If today's episode helped you connect with hope or direction, I want you to follow the show, leave us a review, and share it with someone who needs it. And if you're ready to start your own healing journey, explore our courses and our coaching programs at lorihammer.com backslash store. So until next time, remember you cannot medicate away a nutrient deficiency and healing your brain isn't just possible, it's powerful. you