I have sadly developed a phenibut addiction. I had no idea how addictive this drug is. I get terrible anxiety if I dont take it. Has anyone experienced this. What is the best way to kick the habit. A good tapering program from experience would be a great help. I kicked a diazapam habit years ago. So know I can do it.
Mikhal

The same way you kicked diazepam, lower dose every five days add herbals like ashwagandha(a lot of mix them) damn realy you could guess it can give addiction because its strong like diazepam/alprazolam. You will probly need free days from job... or a doctor but this is the way to make it illegal.


Adek

Tapering is the safest method for me. not to mention talking about it and being open. Cut your 500 mg pills in half or in quarters. Wait to take them.

take one in the morning. focus on the issues of the day. be useful focus on being helpful and good to others. feel the grip? First go eat some food. after the meal take a half or a quarter. Let us know how it goes and we are here to support you.


Josh

I went through heavy xanax withdrawal. Was taking 8-16mg xanax daily. I quit using a fuck ton of weed and 2 hours of exercise a day. It was hell. GABAergics shouldnt ever be fucked with which is why i hate when people promote phenibut as a cure all to everything. It might be a cure all but it comes with a hefty price. Getting off heroin sucked getting off benzos was a nightmare....


Joel

Fasoracetam. Memantine (start at 2.5 or 5mg, then increase by 2.5mg every 3-4 days until it kicks in (usually happens at 10mg)). Once you're done, limit Phenibut usage to 1-2g (split across 2 servings) 1-2x/week and take it with fasoracetam. If in doubt, do 1g once per week (with fasoracetam, which you can just take everyday).


Eddie

have you tried upregulating your gabba b receptors with fasoracetam?.....seems to work to a large extent with me....also take....had socia and general anxiety nearly all my life ...phenibut along with 5-HTP, Alpha GPC, Fasoracetam, Sunifiram, Selegeline and Caffeine amazing creative productivity.


Victoria

The basic concept to titrate your body off a substance is to slowly decrease at a rate that your won't notice reduction in the substance it now relies upon. Do not rush. Take your time. Sure, enhance with herbs and other supplements. Valerian helps with the anxiety that accompanies withdrawal and mint or fresh ginger tea helps with nausea (if any) but these should be a last resort. Focus on the exact proper dose each day until you complete your journey.

Source: Chemistry degree, medical background, and life application


Francisco

Ok. So. Add 20mg of fasoracetam 2 hours before first dose of the day. If your dosing more than twice another 20mg of faso 2 hours before 2nd. Everyday cut dose down by 100mg per dose. You wont even notice it until you get down to about 1.5. Then you will notice your depressed, withdrawn dont want to speak or be spoken to. You can add 3.5 grams of kratom at this point and it will help you keep from going back up. Continue breakdown with faso. I ended up just saying fuck it and now take 2 grams of phenibut a day 2 hours after taking fasoracetam. I also take a benzo at night so I can sleep. The faso keeps it where while you dont feel the phenibut high you do feel normal and your tolerance wont go up. Phenibut downregulates and faso 2 hours before resets back to where you were. The kratom is great as well. Could only use 1.5 grams and add kratom to the mix a couple times a day and would be fine. I dont have time to be unmotivated and unhappy, unsocial for whatever period of time it would take to get totally back to functioning normal without it. Without the faso I keeping tolerance from building( I also take memantine in evenings to help this) I was up to 8 grams a day and developed crazy hypertension running 190 over 110. The faso made break down easier. Kratom on bad days. Added benzo for sleep around getting to 3 gram a day point. I was only taking once a day in the morning and sleep was impossible. Benzo of course screws with cognition the next day so I use irda21 one day, phenyl piracetam one day, sunifiram one day, unifiram one day and kinda cycle these to reverse the operant defects from the benzo. All in all I function at such a high level with current stack I dont want to go back to baseline. 100 armoda in morning (up to 150 now) fasoracetam 20mg sublingual, nsi189 20mg freebase sublingual. Had to kill kratom from stack. Alabama made it illegal, thus how I ended up sticking at the 2 gram a day dose 2 hours after faso, armoda, nsi combo. Depending on day I add irda21 (nice because no need to redose that day) or one of the others I mentioned to wipe benzo fog. Take 2mg of clonazepam in evening to go to sleep. Also take c60 for longevity in mornings. Fish oil, b vitamins. Will be adding choline complex to stack next couple days (alpha gpc/cdp choline combo. I feel freaking great all day everyday. I love working and never tire of it. Great mood, can't see any reason to go back to baseline. Unless I start to develop health problems from any of it. Its about quality of life. If I find out in 20 years I lost 3 years off my life due to my stack well every freaking day of that 20 years was awesome. Due to advancement in longevity supplements I think im good. Damn. Long rant. Must be the moda, phenibut, faso, irda21, nsi combo.


Suzanne

If you Google Ash and opioid withdrawal, there's evidence Ash causes physical changes in the neuron that will make withdrawal symptoms more tolerable. The thing with Phenibut is tolerance develops quickly and the addictive potential is high. Some people overuse bc they have heard nightmare stories about withdrawal. I've never known anyone that had such an experience however.And like someone mentioned, the afterglow with Phenibut is most appealing to me. The next day, my whole body feels relaxed. It generally makes me fall asleep at about 750 mg.


Robert

Fasoracetam upregulates gaba receptors and reduces anxiety but it does not take effect immediately. It takes about ten days to get noticeable effects and several months to get the full effects. But it does not build tolerance and you don't have to cycle it.


Tomasz

1. Tianeptine (I managed to withdraw some serious GABA-energic substances with it, works almost imediately)

2. Benzodiazepines with some very long T1/2 (cloranxen maybe). But look out not to go too deep into those two either, 2 weeks of normal dosages would be safe for sure in my opinion.


Matthan

I began using it to treat both moderate social anxiety and long term chronic primary insomnia. I was originally on a prescription of Temazepam. 

After 3 years aboard a submarine, I developed a pretty severe Circadian rhythm sleep disorder. I was run through the gamut of usual sleep aid suspects from lunesta and ambien to Zoloft and trazedone, and finally temazepam. All of which came with its own trade offs.  I sometimes supplemented with melatonin and diphenhydramine. Until I finally stumbled across nootropics and inevitably phenibut.  If possible, I'd like to avoid a return to full blown benzodiazepines, tranquilizers, and pharmaceutical grade hypnotics. 

I have tried Tianeptine in the past, and that does seem like good advice. But is there an alternative to benzodiazepines?And I do intend to step down my use of phenibut gradually. I'm tempted to supplement with F-phenibut to aid in the process.


Mark

Get some Magnolia bark. I've also heard good things about Picamolin or however it's spelled. Taper slow. Should be fine im guessing.Also, Kava and Ashwaganda is going to be a MUST as well


Antonio

There is a risk of excitoxicy by the up regulated receptors caused by long term administration of phenibut. If you cease intake you must also stop taking any kind of ampakines for a long time. I had serious problems after stoping phenibut with sunifiram. I finally got of it with glycine and Ashwaganda with at least  5 % withanolides . Don't tapper of with strong shit like tianeptine . Even kratom might be too much.


David

I went though the same shit and benzos didnt work (after i stopped them i got withdrawals), alcohol helps but i needed to drink every few hours and keep getting anxiety between drinks.

What did work -

I encapsulated the phenibut in to size 1 capsules and took one dose of ten capsules once per day and each week reduced by one capsule.

You can probably reduce quicker but i was being over cautious.

If i was going to do it again i would try split the dose in half and try dosing twice a day (12 hourly) as i did experience increased heartrate for a few hours before each dose on the once a day dosing.


Erickson

eliminate all your withdrawal with tea of OatStraw and Blue Lotus flower. just save yourself the misery. coleus forshkolli would help the metabolic factor and of course lots of extra magnesium for many reasons


Demetri

 How often do you take it? I take it once or twice a week at the most and spaced apart between two to three days. I usually do doses of anywhere from 800 milligrams to 3200 milligrams at once and I don't have any withdrawal symptoms. Of course, I understand people are all different with their metabolisms.


Charles

Valerian root can help manage withdrawal effects while you taper. Just make sure to taper that down too; it acts on the same receptors in the same way, just more weakly


Jacklyn

I had extreme withdrawal. Felt creepy crawlers all over me. Hair fell out, hallucinating, insomnia, not eating. Felt like what I imagine crack withdrawal may feel like. Or maybe a benzo. I lost 11 lbs in 2 days though. So much water weight


Chris

You would need baclofen.. A gaba b agonist... I dont know where ypu got your kratom but there is no severe withdrawal from kratom.. Very minor compared to any opiate... Phenibut you could potentially die from withdrawal or end up permanently effed up from a seizure... Just taper yourself on the kratom if its that unbearable


Ned

I was taking 900mg of phenibut a day for a month and a half/ two months and i was able to wean down and stop quite easily. i usually feel withdrawals pretty intensely too having withdrawn from benzos and opiates cold turkey a few more times then i would have liked. if you taper properly and your dose is low enough you can do it


Douglas

During this time of withdrawal, besides the physical symptoms, of sweats and general malaise, lack of sleep, etc. I have also been plagued by the most negative thoughts, dismal fear and anxiety about the future, sadness leading to low self-esteem. This is very abnormal from my traditional outlook, could these thoughts be part of withdrawal from kratom or Phenibut?


Andrew

Just quit cold turkey and see how it goes IMO. I honestly believe w/d on MOST substances is blown out of proportion. You might experience some agitation or something minor for a few days but who knows. Just quit cold turkey but have some on hand, at least you will see where you are at and know if you will even experience withdrawals.


fr

I have been taking phenibut since Monday everyday up to 4 grams a day since Monday to see how effective fasoracetam is in combating phenibut withdrawal. While it has been a truly magical week I started cutting down on it yesterday. Had trouble sleeping last night and my cutting down to 2.5 grams of liftmode faa proved to be to much. I was having serious anxiety after only sleeping 4 hours even after taking 2.5 grams. In comes the fasoracetam. I took 20mg sublingual instead of dosing more phenibut. Within 20 minutes relief started. An hour later I feel fine! Pretty damn good actually! This stuff may help many people who have been struggling to stop phenibut! Thank the creator of this compound! It was a major risk to try this experiment but I did so in the interest of helping those who struggle with phenibut. I relied on the research and decided it was worth the risk. SOO glad it worked! I was kind of freaking out thinking, krap what have I done. If this fasoracetam does not work I'm screwed! 


Adam

I don't understand the whole phenibut having terrible withdrawals and stuff, I take it on the regular for sleep and gain no tolerance or dependence on it. Which is strange because I used to abuse benzos when I was younger, I had a script but it didn't give me clearance to take as much as I was. Phenibut is like a sleep med made from God.


Ravi

I've taken it 4-5 days in succession but kept my doses low, 250-500mg and after I started feeling shitty during the day I stopped. Even after stopping, withdrawal hit me like next week. This is why people say to stay away from phenibut, you've learnt your lesson as many people did so use it sparingly. I took it 2 times in the past 4 days (250mg) and I'm already feeling shitty.


Jrdn

 I've only ever experienced anhedonia from light phenibut withdrawals. I used it 2-3x/week for the past month at 1.2 to 2g doses and that was enough for a few WD symptoms: trouble sleeping, inability to experience pleasure from otherwise enjoyable activities and maybe slight irritation. 

It's not hell, but I am the type of person that is never sad, depressed, anxious etc. and for the first time in my life I feel this way now. I know it's the phenibut, so I can sort of zoom out, focus on my physical health and know it will pass in time. 

I'm on a low-dose fast taper now and once it's over I'm putting away what's left for interviews and exams.


Cody

I take 1250 mlg (if I take it Monday I will not take it again until thursday, so two days off)no withdrawals or side effects whatsoever . I only take it in the morning when I wake up. Never take 6 hours before bed or you will wake up late if you have somewhere you have to be. I take it primarily for sleep and anxiety purposes. Since I sleep better my brain is clearer and cognitive function is increased .


Nathan

Variability of phenibut potency differs wildly beyween brands, and even between batches. Ive found SNS brand to he generally quite consistent. However, the effects that you report are not common, and in fact sit in direct opposition of the intended effects of phenibut, which likely indicates some neurochemical imbalance that is worth investigation.


Francisco

Its quite simple. Fasoracetam, 20mg sublingual, 3x per day on the days you don't take phenibut. As long as you go 4 days straight with faso, phenibut will feel like the first time every time. Phenibut is downregulating your gaba b with every dose. 4 days of Faso will upregulate them back to normal. I go 4 days faso, then phenibut and 2 grams of faa form feels marvelous every time. You really should switch to the faa form from liftmode. Its so much cleaner. Hcl form (the salty stuff) is 83% phenibut and 17% the salt that holds it together. So at 1 gram you get 830mg phenibut and 170mg of salt. The faa is free amino acid. Its the purest form available. I love my phenibut and this is the only way to go.


Daryl

Yeah. Phenibut was enjoyable the very first time I took it, and never again. What happens is the body responds to being manipulated with tolerances developing in the brain, the liver, or worst, the immune system. You can begin to have allergic reactions to something that you didn't before. Or the liver will start treating it differently. In any case, anything that develops significant tolerance, and also has hangover effects, is eventually something you just shouldn't take. I'm only recently discovering this. Phenibut works essentially like alcohol, as far as tolerance, addiction, hangover, and withdrawal go, so it's best avoided. There are nmda antagonists that appear to have no significiant tolerance, hangover, or withdrawal at low doses so if you have to take something, better one of those. Or even better a relaxing medical marijuana strain, very little tolerance or withdrawal. Eventually, taking nothing and optimzing diet, exercise, sleep, and meditation is best. As you get older, you become intolerant of many drugs, so it's best never to build a tolerance to the worst ones in the first place.


Jim

phenibut is a horrible addiction. talk to an addiction specialist bc bb youre now fucked. scare tactics aside and me shivering about what is phenibut withdrawal gabapentin or lyrica for 3-5 weeks will set you straight. do either of those longer ure fucked as well but at least the doctor will taper you off. phenibut withdrawal however is not a laughing matter. lyrica as well as gabapentin (its shitty cousin that still works) are gabapentinoids like phenibut. only theyre not trash. gabapentin sucks but still not the garbage phenibut is. baclofen is a very close relative but you dont want to do that because baclofen is shit too and instantly addictive. press a doctor for short term lyrica... or drink booze daily and then do benzos daily for booze and see what cycle that will be. i would prescribe you 300mg lyrica a day if i had the power.


DR

Lyrica and gabapentin are better but after using it for years for chronic pain, I would say don't take it if you have an option. Gabapentin has long term addiction and dependence. Withdrawal takes so long to hit, you don't know there is any withdrawal. It causes apathy, for weeks in withdrawal, and probably changes the brain long-term. Acute withdrawal causes seizures in some people. It's a lesser evil however, than most things for the same indication. However, I've recently used low dose lithium orotate and it works wonders for chronic pain. In a sense, lithium naturally occurs in drinking water in a lot of places, so the human genome may be better able to deal with low doses of lithium than with new pharmaceuticals.


Matt

I do get a tolerance to Phenibut, which is fine since I use it occasionally. I certainly never had withdrawals from it. What I like about it is I can do a lot of studying, take it that night, and the next day I remember everything because I slept deeply and long term memories form when you sleep.


Rae

I I ranged from 500mg to 1500. Tolerance had very little affect the dosages. It was based off of how resistant I was to the halo affect that lasted the day afterward. If I felt the glow, I'd take the 500. If I felt nothing I'd take however much I wanted to take. I'd throw in 1.5 doses for fun. This really is something that charges me. People could use it as a mask, instead of embodying the mindset you have on and off of it , and also being congruent with it (being non resistent, ).You also have to live your life. People are naturally in either success or failure spirals. So the sense of that can freak people out and either be in denial about or embrace it. I'd consider the baseline anxiety totally gone even while I'm not on it. I also drink a lot of green tea, (maybe synergistic?). But the fact I had some sort of adrenal fatigue before phenibut leads me to think that "healthy" minded individuals should respect the potency more. As in taking it less in a more spread out schedule. If that isn't enough for anyone; I could have some sort of stockholm syndrome reaction to my addiction, and love the awkward situation I'm put in to acquire more phenibut? hahahaha


Ken

I used to use it every other day. I was technically addicted though. I used about 3.5 grams every other day. Once I stopped, my heart rate was a bit elevated and my anxiety came back a bit more so than before. I used Fasoracetam to upregulate my GABA receptors to stop the withdrawals. It worked after 1 day. If I didn't use it, the withdrawals might not have been that bad. I have heard of people getting really sick from withdrawing though.


Shari

I use daily. I did take break until I was able to order more. But I didn't have any withdrawal symptoms at all whatsoever. I was using it daily for at least 2 months.I'm not taking 3 grams at once either. I take around one gram a day.


Lanie

Important to rotate use. Couple days on and then couple days break from it, tolerance build up can be under control. Or you'll just find yourself taking more and more to get the same effect. 

Also remember to test it on a day that you have nothing on. I remember first time taking it through the day and I got very overwhelmed feeling like I needed to chill out and lay down but I had many things to do so I had to push through it. It didn't make for a pleasant experience. I usually take it around 5-6 and I'm ready for bed by 8-9 and it's started working by then.


Zac

I had a terrible experience with it strictly coming off of it but that's only because I was taking 4+ grams daily. If you stick to the recommended doses and try to not dose too many consecutive days as to keep your tolerance down I'm sure it will be a nice useful tool in your arsenal


Charles

Take breaks in between doses. Tolerance does build up, and in extreme cases the withdrawal can resemble benzodiazepine withdrawal, which can include seizures and even death in extreme cases


Missy

Just tried it for the first time today! I'm physically dependent on xanax taken as prescribed. You don't have to "like" it to develop a dependency. I don't feel like Phenibut is going to tempt me into compulsion but I used to feel the same way about benzos also. Phenibut was very effective and long lasting for me today! I'm glad to have it around in the case something happens to my monthly allotment of xanax. Part of my prescription was stolen this month. FR not lyin. I wouldn't use Phenibut more than twice a week no matter what because I don't want to downregulate my gaba B receptors in addition to the damage already done to my gaba A. I can't imagine being dependent on both. That would be hell! You would probably be better off ordering etizolam or something like that. It works on gaba A and not B. Don't quote me but I'm fairly certain.


Tom

you do not want to take phenibut daily, even low amounts will build it an addiction. And it can be a very compulsive addiction. I had quite a problem with phenibut for about 6-7 months and in ways the withrdawals are almost worse. you may be able to alternate between kava, l theanine, valerian, phenibut, but in no way at all would I take phenibut daily


Jake

You can mini-dose (under 500 mg) every day and experience little effects of tolerance. You won't become dependent at those levels either, especially if you take a small amount of fasoracetam intermittently. The downside is you won't really get the benefits at mini-dose levels. Especially if you weigh more than 200 lbs. Phenibut isn't meant to be taken every day. Take a normal dose (your "sweet spot" dose) every other day instead. During "off" days take 5 mg fasoracetam to reduce effects of tolerance, withdrawals, and dependence completely. This is a widely accepted max frequency of use.


Reiny

 In my case I had built up a tolerance very quickly after a short spate of taking it. That always happens with phenibut and so I simply misjudged the amount. Possibly I was stupid adding other mildly anxiolytic things but sometimes when you get acute anxiety and you haven't slept much either you want something to work even if it means it bludgeons you.

I don't really understand how the overdose of phenibut made me feel more anxious but strangely made me pass out for several hours and my wife couldn't wake me and phoned an ambulance. I was both highly anxious yet very exhausted from lack of sleep and even after it had kicked in a few hours I was still very anxious. I then slept for hours and woke up not knowing who I was and basically psychotic for an hour or so


AK

I use 200-300 mg a day in my stack. Alcohol consumption down by 50-90%. One glass of wine fills me and even that isn't necessary so I hardly bother for up to 21 days or so. I take it with a stack of other good stuff. I have clients I do design work and they like buds. I don't think about smoking with them. Tobacco is not even tempting. I don't take it to get high in a euphoric sense. 

I take it because it is a tool I use to maintain a middle aged adult lifestyle. Looking out for my family.

If someone wants to overuse it and get their panties/boxers in a bunch about it...then fine...that is them.

If someone decides that they can't take it anymore and deals with the devil due to a sharp withdrawal versus a planned gradual one...fine.

If someone takes more than the should that is their deal.

All I know is the effect it has had so far. It has been positive. 

Plus....it's relatively cheap.

As per your concern with other people's lives. It's a good time to focus on your own. Your relationship with your family and friends...even if your well intended concerns about how other people lead their lives seem legit...I would say focus on you...because not all nootropics are for cognition. And people can abuse other nootropics as well.


Leave a reply