Actually, I'm not doing drugs. Well, not in the typical sense of the word. It all started when Tammi over at DarlingsHomeFires started blogging about forgetting and depression and SSRI drugs, which are "specific seratonin reuptake inhibitors".

I've been forgetting a lot of things lately, and feeling REALLY tired a lot of the time. It dawned on me that perhaps I had a low seratonin level. Now, the drugs fix this problem by "tricking" your brain into using less seratonin. I wondered what would happen if instead I tried to naturally boost my seratonin levels.

The result, after two days? I can't blame people that think I'm on Speed. WOW! Its like those commercials where you think the faucet is shiney, and then they "pull away" a film from the whole image and you see something REALLY shiney! I think the best description is that I feel VERY awake. Progress is being made in all areas. Mental tasks that were taking some efforts flow by effortlessly. I'm not tired. Mountains will be noticed in new locations!

My husband certainly noticed. Mostly, I think he noticed that I called him forty million times to report on new and interesting progress around the house, including a list of things he needs to get done so as not to impede my future progress. Although, he said that if this keeps up for a month he'll try what I'm doing.

What am I doing, exactly? Well, some things are known to contribute to higher seratonin levels. Green vegetables, red vegetables, vitamin B-complex, sunlight, exercise (ever heard of "runner's high"?), sufficent water (don't want sludgey seratonin, now do we?). So I made a list of things I HAVE to eat and do, instead of a diet which is all about what NOT to eat. Plus, there are a few things that aren't proven connected to seraontin, but the best guess is that they are. So, I'm also doing an apple and 1/2 teapsoon of cinnamon.

No sugar and no flour, little corn/potato/rice. Other than that, anything goes. And, since there's so much that I have to get into my body, I don't really miss the carbs. And I'm trying to stay away from overly-processed foods.

Frankly, I'm starting to crave spinach and green beans and bell peppers and broccalli. I would choose spicy creamed spinach over chocolate. Not kidding. Bio-feedback rocks! If people can get addicted to smoking, why not veggies? The feedback is kinda the same. Cigarettes get you all happy through nicotene, but veggies get you all happy through seratonin-boosting. I'm going to the gym tonight, and looking forward to it. (Its like I'm in the Twilight Zone!)

Timing is also extremely important. I've noticed I seem to need a booster of some kind about every two hours. Seratonin tends to spiral either up or down. If its going up, you feel more inclined to do things that will keep it up. If its going down, you feel more inclined to do things that will send it even farther down.

In a way, I'm waiting for the other shoe to drop. Like this can't really be happening, like maybe there's something else going on and it will all end as suddenly as it began. Or maybe its all in my head, a wonderful placebo effect. But I don't think so. I think next month my husband is going to wake up one day craving spinach for breakfast!