I have never heard of this problem but I hope you will take your doctors advice and try it. Not only could it help your depression and anxiety, but it will also be beneficial for your health! Let us know. Hugs GB

wildflower....I have heard about this recently. Where did you get your testing done if you don't mind me asking?

Reed 31 talks about something like this a lot.

Given that you can find her in the members' list anyway, I hope she doesn't mind me passing this on:

http://www.dailystrength.org/people/3126326

Send her a hug and get to know her. You might have something similar. :)

gramybear - Thank you. Your kind words of encouragement are always much appreciated. Hugs to you.

sibiiii - Of course I do not mind you asking! I had the test done at my psychiatrist's office. It was a simple saliva swab and they sent it out to a lab who does the testing. I had results back within a few days. The particular lab they did my testing through was Millennium Health, but I know there are several other labs who do it. I think it is often covered by insurance but if not, isn't too expensive. I would definitely encourage you to ask your doctor about it. Please let me know if you have any other questions I might be able to answer.

bridgie 101- Thank you for providing that link! I will definitely connect up with Reed 31. That's a great idea. I do recall I think I have seen her post here about something similar, but I didn't think to connect up with her directly. Thank you for the suggestion!

Surprised that you really see this testing through your psychiatrist office. Usually which is unfortunate that would just prescribe medication without seeing if there are underlying causes. That's great that ur doc this this. I'm looking into this as well as I'm Seymour more this I just don't know where to start and don't believe my insurance will cover these type of tests which sucks!

Ooops sorry....siri miss interpreted my voice. What I meant to say was it's good that your psychiatrist perform this test is usually they just want to prescribe meds and not check bloodwork etc. i've been heavily researching on this as well, the problem is my insurance won't cover these type of tests.

sbiiii - I am very lucky that my psychiatrist suggested the test. I hadn't even known such a test existed. That is frustrating your insurance will not cover it. I would still encourage you to find out more information, though. I do not know an exact cost, but I think the test isn't too expensive even if you have to pay out of pocket. My psychiatrist said it ranges from about $50-$200 and is charged on a sliding scale based on income. If that is doable for you, I think it's certainly worth looking into. I really hope you can get it done. It is nice to have some of the guesswork taken out of trying new meds. Makes you feel a little less like a guinea pig.

Oh, and just to clarify, the test I had done tested for the folic acid genetic defect, as well as genes that are responsible for making enzymes that metabolize medications. The results provided a guide as to which specific medications might work well for me and which might not based on my genetic makeup.

Yes def. checking into that as well as determining if I'm under or over methylated. Not sure if you ever heard of Dr. Albert Mensah And Dr Bill Walsh; they perform these type of tests for their patients. They have over and over explained to the general public and clinicians that the majority of folks who are anxious or depressed are mistakenly prescribed antidepressants, when in fact they were just deficient in certain nutrients, etc.

Is your Psychiatrist located anywhere in the south?

I do talk about this a LOT! I just couldn't believe that I had anxiety since age 3 and went to the BEST doctors (Mayo Clinic, physicians in Japan and Switzerland, etc.) and NO ONE found the problem until I went to Walgreen's Little Clinic!

It's the MTHFR gene mutation and if you have it, it's like a GIFT. At least it was for me. I started on the folate and have not had ONE anxiety attack since. This has COMPLETELY changed my life.

It also helped my IBS, migraines and other issues. AND the right folate has also driven down my homocysteine level which cuts my risk of heart disease, Alzheimer's and Parkinson's.

OB/GYN doctors routinely test for this if a mama has had miscarriages. Folate is CRITICAL. In fact, it's so important, that they put folic acid in everything "fortified and enriched." When mamas don't get enough folate, they can have trouble with miscarriages or their baby can have SEVERE neurological issues like spina bifida. But if you have this gene mutation your body can't convert folic acid into folate efficiently.

You can ask your doctor for the MTHFR test and folate levels at the same time so you know how much methyl folate to take. If they won't do it (some don't know about this yet, but OB's and the Mayo Clinic Cardiology department are recognizing it's importance now), you can get it for $99 at 23andme.

I hope if you have anxiety or depression, bipolar or schizophrenia, you will look into it. It is SUCH a cheap and easy fix.

I can't advocate enough for this. When I was medicating my anxiety, I knew it was still there and I was just quieting it. With the folate, I'm treating the root cause and it's a WHOLE nother Oprah. Every day I wake up and just say "Thank you!"

And yes, anyone who wants more information about this can send me a message.