The average individual is so busy stressed, and perpetually anxious. There are currently about 40 million Americans officially diagnosed with anxiety related disorders, with many others having the occasional mild anxiety episode.
This is not surprising seeing as many people have to share their time between juggling multiple jobs, raising the kids, not getting enough sleep, social media intrusion, entertainment on demand and many other activities, little wonder we’re all stressed and consistently anxious.
In fact studies have shown that there are more people suffering episodes of panic attack now than there ever was in the history of man. You would think that with the many technological advancements humanity has made, life would be easier and stress or anxiety would be minimized.
Instead, it looks like technology has effectively worsened our quality of life and disrupted our sleep quality. For instance, the lines between work and private life is virtually nonexistent, seeing as most people even have to work albeit in a lesser capacity after official working hours, and in many cases, without any extra compensation.
It is not unusual for an employee or employer to receive calls or urgent emails late at night, with the other party expecting that immediate action would be taken on the issue. As if the almost inexistent work-life balance isn’t bad enough, the average individual has to worry about job insecurity.
Research has shown that more millennials would most likely have to switch between five jobs in five different industries over the course of their working careers, which means that the days of lifelong job security are virtually over. When you have to worry about all of these issues, it is very easy to become overwhelmed and anxious all day long, every day. Which is why many people are fast turning to pharmaceutical aids to help them cope and “de-stress”. For some, it’s antidepressants and anti-anxiety prescription meds. Unfortunately, these often have unwanted side effects.
For others who prefer natural and organic options, there are reliable and safe nootropic supplements for anxiety and stress. These are actually called Anxiolytic nootropics owing to their ability to help improve moods, reduce feelings of anxiety, and aid relaxation.
These are different from conventional nootropics that play a critical role in improving cognition, memory, mental acuity and learning. Unlike most antianxiety prescription medications, these are popular because of their minimal or zero side effects, natural ingredients, and excellent effectiveness.
Most nootropics typically contain certain ingredients that complement each other, producing a synergistic effect that’s designed to boost your neurotransmitters, reduce the production of stress inducing hormones like cortisol, increase the production of “feel good” hormones like endorphin and dopamine to counter the effects of stress hormones, and improve your cognitive capabilities. Some of these ingredients include:
- Ashwagandha
- Picamilon
- Lion’s Mane Mushroom
- L-Theanine
- Sulbutiamine
- Phenibut
- Folic Acid
- Tyrosine
- CDP-Choline
- Rhodiola Rosea
- N-Acetyl Cysteine
- Vitamin D
- Melatonin
Please note that this is just a list. Not all anxiolytic nootropics will have all of these ingredients in them. More often than not, they’ll have some combined, enough to produce the results you need. Let’s look at the most important of these ingredients individually.
Common Ingredients Found In Antianxiety And Anti-stress Nootropic Supplements
- Ashwagandha
This herb is fast becoming very popular owing to its brain boosting, cognition enhancing and mood altering properties. As an effective adaptogen, it has been proven to help with the improvement of stress related conditions.
As a result, it is has been linked to anxiety relief, mood enhancement and sleep improvement. It does this by limiting the amounts of cortisol –stress hormone- dumped in the body.
Naturally, this translates into a drastic improvement in your health and immune system. Studies have linked it to reduced anxiety levels in individuals suffering from general anxiety disorder (GAD), and lower stress levels.
It may also be effective in the treatment of related illnesses like panic disorder and depression. Chronic anxiety and mental stress patients who took ashwagandha for 60 days tested positive for lowered serum cortisol levels and a generally improved sense of well-being.
- Picamilon
Picamilon is not only popular for its ability to boost your cognitive functions (memory improvement, faster learning speed, increased concentration and mental alertness) improve your productivity, it is also great for stress relief and mood improvement.
This is possible courtesy of its tranquilizing properties. It is particularly well liked because of its combined ability to keep you calm and relaxed while increasing your mental capabilities. This is in direct contrast to many performance enhancing drugs that keep you wired. And wired is the last thing you want to be when you are stressed and anxious.
Users often claim that it gives them a sense of energized calmness. This is great because most anti-anxiety meds can cause brain fog, inhibiting your mental alertness in the process.
In Russia, where it is regulated, it is often sold as a standalone prescription medication for conditions like migraine, depression, and a wide variety of health conditions. However, in the US where it is not regulate, Picamilon is often available as a dietary supplement.
- Lion’s Mane Mushroom
Also known as bearded tooth fungus, yamabushitake (in Japan), bearded hedgehog and bearded tooth mushrooms among other names, Lion’s Mane Mushroom is one of those plants that has so many benefits to your nerves.
For people looking to permanently enhance their brain functions, and trigger neurogenesis, this ingredient just might be what you need. While it has been around for a while –was primarily used to treat what is now known as neurodegenerative diseases, it has recently become popular thanks to high market demands from smart drug users.
However, lion’s mane mushroom isn’t just a key ingredient for smart drugs. It is also a very excellent anti-anxiety and anti-stress drug. Courtesy of its nerve growth factor (NGF), proteins which help regenerate your nerves, it is both effective for improving cognition as well as lowering your anxiety levels.
It is said that taking this on a frequent basis helps you develop the “brain of a lion and nerves of steel”. As you already know, we all could do with a little more steely nerves and less anxiety.
- L-Theanine
Commonly found in green tea leaves, L-Theanine is a compound that helps to relax your nerves without necessarily sedating you. It’s particularly effective for ameliorating anxiety and stress because of its role in stimulating the production of dopamine in the body. Dopamine belongs to the group of “feel good” hormones that help improve your sense of well-being, and makes it easy for you to relax. This is why people who drink oolong tea or green tea, tend to feel relaxed after taking them.
- Rhodiola Rosea
Rhodiola is popularly known in Asia as an extremely effective tonic for relieving exhaustion and tiredness. New research has also determined its effectiveness at combating, preventing and ameliorating the dangerous effects of stress in the body.
This is possible through its restorative properties which help rejuvenate your cells, aiding the production of beta-endorphins and mild opiates while limiting the production and abundance of cortisol, the stress hormone.
These properties combined with its ability to help lift your mood, increase your energy levels and aid cognitive improvement, goes a long way in contributing to the elimination of your anxiety and stress.
In fact, the scientific community is currently researching its properties as an antidepressant. This clinical study showed that taking rhodiola twice a day in specific dosages produced results that helped relieve the symptoms of mildly or moderately depressed people and insomniacs. For best results, users would need to take between 50 mg and 680 mg daily.
These are some of the more important ingredients that you need to have in any anti-anxiety and anti-stress nootropic supplements. This is in direct contrast to ingredients commonly found in core nootropic supplements whose sole purpose is to improve concentration, increase productivity, enhance mental alertness and combat narcolepsy.
Conventional nootropics typically tend to keep you stimulated and active for a longer period of time. This is how you end up getting more done over the course of the day.
In this next section, we’ll be looking at the best nootropic supplements for anxiety and stress, and highlighting why they are your best option for getting rid of anxiety and stress.
Top Natural Nootropics Supplements for Anxiety and Stress
- Mind Lab Pro
Mind Lab Pro has an assortment of pure ingredients -11 of them, all of which make it an incredibly good natural nootropic supplement for anxiety and stress. Manufactured by Opti-Nutra Ltd, Mind Lab Pro’s ingredients are combined to help improve mental clarity, focus and concentration, while keeping you relaxed.
Some of its key ingredients include vitamins B6 and 12, Lion’s Mane Mushroom (500mg), Citicoline/Cognizin, L-Theanine/Suntheanine (100 mg), Rhodiola Rosea (50 mcg), N-Acetyl-L-Tyrosine (175 mg), Pterostilbene (500 mcg), Phosphatidylserine (100 mg), Vinpocetine (6 mg).
Each of these compounds/ingredients complement each other to give you the best possible results. So, not only do you get to be super-productive and smart, these help keep away the regular pressure induced stress and anxiety many people deal with.
The great thing about Mind Lab Pro is that it contains no stimulants, unlike many other nootropics. Yet, it still delivers great results for its users who say it helps them stay calmly motivated, eliminates brain fog, enhances their mental clarity and acuity, improves memory recall, and keeps them relaxed during the course of the day.
Each bottle contains 60 capsules and is priced at $65 per bottle. You’ll need to take 2 capsules to get the maximum benefits from the supplement, and one bottle will last a month. The company also offers a full refund in the event that you are unsatisfied with the purchase.
- Alpha Brain
This is arguably one of the more popular natural nootropics supplements known not only for its cognition enhancing capabilities, but also for its super-effective anti-stress properties.
Manufactured by Onnit, one of the world’s foremost nutritional supplements companies, Alpha Brain is a stimulant-free nootropic that contains Vitamins B6, L-Tyrosine, L-Theanine, oat straw extract, AC-11, alpha GBC, bacopa monniera extract, L-leucine, pterostilbene, vinpocetine, and huperzia, serrata extract.
All these ingredients combine to not just boost your mental capabilities, but also keep you calm, relaxed and stress-free. Each bottle contains just 30 capsules, with users required to take two capsules per serving.
This means one bottle will only last through 15 servings or days. So, you’ll likely need two bottles for a month’s supply. Users recorded excellent mental clarity, lower stress and non-existent anxiety levels when they started using it.
However, the effects seemed to weaken with continuous usage. So, the best way to use Alpha Brain may be to use for a few days, cycle off for 2-5 days and then get back on it.
- RISE
Manufactured by the folks at Nootrobox, RISE is one of the company’s nootropics supplement, and one that enjoys wide usage in Silicon Valley. Its active ingredients include rhodiola rosea (300 mg), bacopa monniera extract (500 mg), L-Theanine, and a-GPC (300 mg). Its anti-stress and anti-anxiety properties are primarily because of the presence of the rhodiola rosea ingredient.
This is the perfect nootropic supplement for fighting stress and anxiety during the course of the day and night. Users have reported feeling calm even when under pressure and in otherwise stressful situations after taking the supplements. Users are required to take just 2 capsules daily to ward of any stress and its attendant results.
Other honorable mentions include Insight which contains decent amounts of ashwagandha, rhodiola rosea and l-theanine, Modafy, Mod and NooCube. These excellent nootropic supplements are also effective at combating stress and anxiety while improving the user’s cognition, productivity and mental stamina.
