The difference between the two supplements is that SAM-E is actually a man made compound, whereas St. John's Wort is a natural herb that is processed into caplets for consumption. SAM-E typically is in tablet form, like a vitamin, and is only potent and effective (supposedly), when it comes packaged in individually blister sealed packs.

I actually gave SAM-E a whirl at one point, when I started to experience feelings of depression and general blues, which was not my typical demeanor. I noticed I was more irritable, and had a sense that everything was working against me, so I decided to try a natural remedy for my obvious anxiety, irritability, and what I thought was mild depression.

I purchased a package of SAM-E in blister packs online. I think I paid about $28 for the package, which was one months worth. I took one tablet a day, which was 500 milligrams. I soon noticed that taking the supplement was giving me splitting headaches though, so I cut down the dosage to one half of a tablet every morning on an empty stomach.

I still got the splitting, nauseating headaches. I did notice that it seemed to help with my mood a little, but not enough to justify suffering the debilitating headaches. I also noticed a nearly constant tightness in my chest, which scared me into stop taking the supplement all together.

This reaction got me curious if others had experienced the same negative side effects of SAM-E, so I started looking online to see if there were any other similar stories to mine.

What I found were a lot of others who experienced the headaches, and yet others who also experienced the tightness in the chest area, and other side effects like gastrointestinal pain, nausea and some other less common symptoms. Some even complained that SAM-E actually made their depression worse, and made their anxiety reach almost unbearable levels.

There were also others that said SAM-E worked well for them, but they did experience negative side effects, and still others that said it made them feel better with no side effects at all, although these were unfortunately not in the majority, it seemed.

Since SAM-E is only recommended to be started off in lower dosages, it is alarming that many people report being advised to take dosages of 500-800 miligrams from the start. If you ever try this alternative to antidepressants, you should be cautious with the dosages at first, and maybe try starting off very low, then increasing the dose, but only if you experience no negative side effects.

It's difficult to say whether the side effects I experienced were due to an excessively high dosage (too much, too fast?), but they were bad enough that I considered the symptoms worse than the mild anxiety and depression I was experiencing, which was my personal reason for dicontinuation of the supplement.

So, what exactly is SAM-E, and how does it work, you ask? SAM-E (pronounced like the name "Sam" and the letter "e"), is short for it's chemical name, s-adenosymethianone. It is a synthetic form of a specific chemical which is found within the human body that is thought to help regulate mood.

SAM-E is marketed as a natural remedy for depression and anxiety, and an alternative to popular depression medications like Prozac and Paxil, which may have serious side effects, but it is also is taken by some individuals for heart and joint health.

While it may be recommended for mild to moderate depression, most physicians recommend against taking it for people with bipolar disorder, as it may push them into manic episodes.

Copyright 2006 Danna Schneider