L-Tyrosine and DL-Phenylalanine are two of the best recovery supplements I’ve come across recently.
Don’t be fooled by the obscure-sounding names. Both of these compounds are amino acids, meaning that they’re building blocks of proteins. They’re available for less than $20 on Amazon.
Specifically, these two compounds are precursors to neurotransmitters. They will boost your mood and help to restore balance to your brain chemistry.
I’m way past early recovery and I still observed very positive effects with both.
I wish I’d known about them right after I’d quit drinking!!
Note: L-Tyrosine can lessen the effects of mucuna pruriens, so it’s not recommended that you take them together.
L-Tyrosine: Calm Focus
L-Tyrosine is used to produce dopamine and noradrenaline. Stressful situations deplete these brain chemicals (noradrenaline specifically) and supplementation with L-Tyrosine is used to decrease stress, stimulate mental activity, preserve memory and ameliorate caffeine withdrawals.
I decided to try L-Tyrosine after reading that Tim Ferris (author of 4-Hour Workweek and 4 Hour Body) recommended it to kick coffee withdrawals. People who drink a lot of coffee and then stop suddenly go through a mild withdrawal that L-Tyrosine completely reverses.
Because it is stimulatory, it’s not recommended that you take L-Tyrosine before bed.
I started taking it in the morning (along with magnesium taurate, which I take upon waking and before bed) about a month ago. My goal was to reduce my coffee intake and feel a bit peppier in the morning.
I had very low expectations because every amino acid I’ve tried in the past seemed to do nothing. (Exception: L-Tryptophan made me sleepy, but I felt groggy in the morning.)
Shockingly, I was immediately able to reduce my coffee intake to one cup and I felt a calm energy throughout the morning. I had no jitters but I made easier conversation with my clients, and my mood was better than usual. All that from just the first dose!
L-Tyrosine has now become a morning staple for me and I continue to feel better without drinking more coffee. 2-3 cups is the most I’ll have these days.
You can use Amazon to purchase the brand I use here:
DL-Phenylalanine: A Brighter Outlook
I first learned about this compound while reading an article by a guy named Matt Finch, who has an outstanding website that helps people with opiate addiction.
DL-Phenylalanine, which is actually two amino acids blended together in a lab, is often used for alcohol withdrawals in addition to benzodiazepines.
Because I was taking L-Tyrosine in the morning, I decided to try to take DL-Phenylalanine after lunch to see what effect it might have on my mid-afternoon slump.
It cleared the slump away like a fresh breeze and provided me with energy and a little bit of euphoria.
The first day I took it, I noticed that I was able to do my job more easily and had no problem motivating myself to get my own workout in.
The effects felt like caffeine (without the jitters) mixed with a benzodiazepine. I can see why this compound is used for alcohol and opiate withdrawals, and as with L-Tyrosine, wished that I’d known about it long ago.
You can purchase the brand I used here:
Life-Enhancement For Less
I’m a big fan of compounds that help people kick withdrawals and achieve a better state of mind without prescription drugs.
It’s not that drugs are necessarily bad, but there are often cheaper alternatives in the form of natural herbs and cheap amino acids that we’re never told about.
There’s no incentive for Big Pharma to market things that can’t be patented and cost so little!!
I don’t plan to take L-Tyrosine and DL-Phenylalanine forever. But they’ve earned a place in my medicine cabinet – which now consists entirely of non-prescription, over the counter or herbal remedies.
People in recovery deserve to know about safe compounds that can aid in relieving stress and enhancing performance in every day life.
Fit Recovery will continue to serve as a compendium for the best holistic solutions that I come across.
-C
I was taking Cymbalta, Seroquel and Trazadone i 2004-2006 when my naturopath suggested L-tyrosine and DL-Phenylalanine I have taken them to replace all three and they work great. My endocrine system collapsed and my Adrenal Gland and Pituitary gland stopped working. They gave me 3 to 6 months to live. Needless to say I am alive and have survived Covid and a catastrophic car accident in which I died four times. Natural medicine has saved my life.