Phenibut

Phenibut (or, alternatively, fenibut, phenybut) (brand name Noofen, Citrocard), contracted from β-phenyl-γ-aminobutyric acid (β-phenyl-GABA), is a central depressant and derivative of the naturally occurring inhibitory neurotransmitter γ-aminobutyric acid (GABA). The addition of aphenyl ring allows phenibut to cross the blood–brain barrier. Phenibut was developed in the Soviet Union in the 1960s, and has since been used there as a pharmaceutical drug to treat a wide range of ailments, including posttraumatic stress disorder, anxiety, depression, asthenia, insomnia, alcoholism, stuttering, and vestibular disorders, among other conditions. In the rest of the world, phenibut is not approved for clinical use, and is instead sold as a nutritional supplement. It has been reported by some researchers to possess nootropic actions for its ability to improve neurological functions, but others have not observed these effects. It is generally accepted that phenibut has anxiolyticeffects in both animal models and in humans.

Phenibut is a close structural analogue of GABA, as well as of baclofen (β-(4-chlorophenyl)-GABA), pregabalin (β-isobutyl-GABA), and GABOB (β-hydroxy-GABA). Originally thought to act as a selective GABAB receptor agonist, phenibut has since been found to act preferentially as a blocker of α2δ subunit-containing voltage-gated calcium channels, similarly to gabapentin and pregabalin. As such, phenibut is a gabapentinoid.

Anyone tried this?

 

"Phenibut: The Soviet smart drug

1963, St.Petersburg, Russia – A Soviet Union lab scientist by the name of Perekalin synthesizes 3-phenyl-4-aminobutyric acid, an experimental drug intended to calm psychiatric children.

1964 – Professor Khaunma labels the drug Phenigamma and reports the first findings of its tranquilizing effects in the Byulleten Eksperimental’noi Biologii i Meditsiny.

1975 – Phenigamma has spread from clinical practice to public use under the name of Phenibut. The Soviet Ministry mandates its use for astronauts in space flights due to the drug’s revolutionary psychologically calming yet cognitively stimulating effects.

2001 – Over 300 scientific publications have studied Phenibut’s nootropic and pharmacological properties.

2014 – Phenibut is used all over the globe as a smart drug, mood enhancer, sleep aid and recovery booster.


Phenibut is a derivative of GABA (gamma-aminobutyric acid). GABA is the primary neurotransmitter in your body that regulates the neuronal excitability of the central nervous system. Basically, GABA makes sure that your brain does not become hyperactive.

Why not just supplement with GABA directly then? Phenibut crosses the blood-brain barrier more effectively than GABA itself in supplement form. GABA is naturally produced in the brain itself, therefore it normally does not need to cross the blood-brain barrier to be effective [1].

In humans, Phenibut supplementation has 2 main effects [2, 3, 4].

1. It is a nootropic (smart drug). Phenibut primarily increases motivation, attention and concentration with a weaker effect on memory and little effect on overall intelligence.
2. It is a strong anxiolytic (anxiety killer). Phenibut is used to treat panic attacks, stuttering, Parkinson’s disease, neuroses, vestibular (balance) disorders, spasticity, epilepsy, hyperactivity, insomnia and post-traumatic stress disorder. Pick-up artists use Phenibut to shake the nerves of cold-approaching beautiful women.

Both are the result of Phenibut’s effect on the activity of your nervous system.

In addition, Phenibut has mood enhancing effects. It has thymoleptic (anti-depressant) properties and can reduce irritability and fatigue. It is clinically used to treat asthenic-depressive syndrome. [2]

These psychoactive effects are similar in mechanism to alcohol but without the depressant effects. In the upper/downer classification of drugs, alcohol is a downer, but Phenibut is neither. Phenibut gives you focus and calmth without the jitters of caffeine or the cloudiness of alcohol.

Phenibut’s effects can easily last the rest of the day, even though Phenibut’s plasma half-life is only 5.3 hours [2]. This is because Phenibut’s action on the GABA receptors can linger long after your kidneys have excreted all the Phenibut [16, 17]."

 

That's a big shame. So is it worse than GABA drugs?

 

Hm, best not to play around with this drug it seems. Thanks for the information Markku.

 

It's like anything can cause tinnitus while on it,that withdrawal story is pretty severe though.
One of the reasons i like to stick to low dosage and unregular usage,those short period symptoms
are very rare though and as i explained numerous times to psychologists and psychiatrists.
" Your treatment seems plausible and effective BUT not everyone reacts the same way to meds ".
I prefer not to be an exception to the rule,they hold on to the rule without exception.

" We're puzzled " i like to look at the big picture first.

 

Just got some today and it does work! Well, works for me anyway! I combined it with trobalt and it worked like a treat! I'll try this combo for a few weeks see if it lowers it even further.

 

[Comparative evaluation of the neuroprotective activity of phenibut and piracetam under experimental cerebral ischemia conditions in rats].
Abstract
The neuroprotective properties of phenibut and piracetam were studied in rats with cerebral ischemia caused by bilateral irreversible simultaneous occlusion of carotid arteries and gravitational overload in craniocaudal vector. In addition, the effects of both drugs on microcirculation in brain cortex under ischemic injury conditions were studied. Phenibut and (to a lower extent) piracetam reduced a neuralgic deficiency, amnesia, and the degree of cerebral circulation drop, and improved the spontaneous movement and research activity deteriorated by brain ischemia.

The neuroprotective effects of R-phenibut after focal cerebral ischemia.
Abstract
R-phenibut is a γ-aminobutyric acid (GABA)-B receptor and α2-δ subunit of the voltage-dependent calcium channel (VDCC) ligand. The aim of the present study was to test the effects of R-phenibut on the motor, sensory and tactile functions and histological outcomes in rats following transient middle cerebral artery occlusion (MCAO). In this study, MCAO was induced by filament insertion (f-MCAO) or endothelin-1 (ET1) microinjection (ET1-MCAO) in male Wistar or CD rats, respectively. R-phenibut was administrated at doses of 10 and 50mg/kg for 14 days in the f-MCAO or 7 days in the ET1-MCAO. The vibrissae-evoked forelimb-placing and limb-placing tests were used to assess sensorimotor, tactile and proprioceptive function. Quantitative reverse transcriptase-PCR was used to detect brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF) and vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) gene expression in the damaged brain hemisphere. Both f-MCAO and ET1-MCAO resulted in statistically significant impairment of sensorimotor function and brain infarction. R-phenibut at a dose of 10mg/kg significantly improved histological outcome at day 7 in the ET1-MCAO. R-phenibut treatment at a dose of 50mg/kg significantly alleviated reduction of brain volume in damaged hemisphere in both f-MCAO and ET1-MCAO. In R-phenibut treated animals a trend of recovery of tactile and proprioceptive stimulation in the vibrissae-evoked forelimb-placing test was observed. After R-phenibut treatment at a dose of 50mg/kg statistically significant increase of BDNF and VEGF gene expression was found in damaged brain hemisphere. Taken together, obtained results provide evidence for the neuroprotective activity of R-phenibut in experimental models of stroke. These effects might be related to the modulatory effects of the drug on the GABA-B receptor and α2-δ subunit of VDCC.

 

@Danny Boy could you please specify the dosages you used?

 

@Danny Boy, are you sure it's not the Trobalt that lowered your tinnitus and not the Phenibut?

 

Sadly not. Trobalt doesn't work as well anymore. Phenibut works on GABA and dopamine, which are already two useful tools which work for tinnitus.

 

500 mg x 3 is what they recommend. But I take 500-1000 mg personally.

 

This stuff basically functions as a weak, less predictable benzo. It's a positive allosteric modulator of GABAb, and has some GABAa action as well as I recall.

The withdrawals from Phenibut are horrific; fairly similar to withdrawing from one of the fast-acting benzos (Xanax).

There's literally no reason to take this stuff. It's a less effective, more dangerous benzo. If you want to take benzos, take one of the long-acting ones, instead.

Over the years I have read numerous and reliable reports of people developing chronic tinnitus as a direct result of Phenibut use.

 

Phenibut is not classed as a benzo. It's classed as a gabapentinoid.

Phenibut has nothing to do with a benzo. And I take low doses.

 

I didn't say it was a benzo, I said that it was functionally equivalent, causes dependence in the same way that benzos do, and has essentially the same withdrawal effects including tinnitus.

1-2 grams a day isn't a staggering dose, but you're definitely playing with fire, whether or not you want to believe that.

• Psychotic symptoms during phenibut (beta-phenyl-gamma-aminobutyric acid) withdrawal
• Phenibut withdrawal after only a handful of uses?

etc, etc, etc. This stuff is dangerous. It comes up over and over on benzo boards; people have absolutely developed tinnitus and had seizures as a result of phenibut use and withdrawal.

If you want some anecdotes of people developing chronic tinnitus after using what you're calling "low doses", I can certainly point you towards some.

Be careful with this stuff, Danny. I'm not trying to be a jerk, I just don't want you to get hurt.

 

I fully agree with @linearb.

Phenibut works for me as well but it's probably worse than benzos when it comes to tolerance building (not addiction). Way less potent though.

If you take it for 4-5 days continuously, take a break for a couple of days at least.

My usual dosage is 750 mg-1 g once a day. But I've only used it 5-6 times in the past 6 months.

 

@Danny Boy, I thought Keppra had helped you? How bad is your tinnitus now?

 

Keppra doesn't work for tinnitus? My tinnitus is fine.

 

Then why are you taking Phenibut?

 

Because, someone combined Neurontin with Trobalt and was practically cured. So thought I'd experiment.

 

@Danny Boy: why can't you tell us clearly how your tinnitus and hyperacusis are when you are not taking any drugs or supplements?

 

I don't have hyperacusis anymore and my tinnitus is a 2-3.

 

Gotcha. Well, do be careful mixing all these GABAergics. And also note, Phenibut is not equivalent to Neurontin. Yes, they are both technically gabapentinoids, but the mechanisms are not the same (despite some overlap).

 

Out of curiousity, what does "2-3" mean to you? Are you only able to hear it in very quiet environments, or are you able to hear it lightly any time you listen for it?

 

Can't hear it outside and hear it inside, but it doesn't annoy me. I can mask it easily anyway.

 

Well, here we go again, same person getting cured again... for the X:th time.

 

I've been on Phenibut at the 2 gram level and thought I was cured.

I mean you still have a muffled hissing sound but it's nothing compared to hardcore tinnitus.

Even the next day the tinnitus is still heavily muffled... sounds great?

Well no! Not at all... the piper has to be paid.

I used Phenibut 5 years ago before I had tinnitus. After using it for about 13 days out of 21 I had horrific withdrawals... which included head splitting headaches, temporary tinnitus, stiff joints, shakes, sweats, acne and horrific anxiety... oh yeah and 5 days of insomnia.

After that delicious experience I only used Phenibut once a blue moon and it was fun once you never used it more than two days in a row and washed out for at least 5 days.

The first few times using it can be compared to GHB if you are old enough to remember what that was like back in the day.

When I got tinnitus 3 years ago I had basically forgotten about Phenibut until I heard that benzos were useful for tinnitus.

Well I couldn't obtain benzos easily so I bought some Phenibut.

It works like I said above but after a couple of days the tinnitus come back with a vengeance.

I found that after a couple of days of thinking you were cured the new onslaught of peak spiked tinnitus caused me to almost collapse into a panic attack... oh and sleep is then impossible.

The result is five days of hell until the Phenibut has been completely washed out and your brain chemistry balances itself out.

Now I had that kind of experience after only using Phenibut for just a couple of days after not using it for months.

It's like the more often you've ever used it the faster the onset of withdrawals becomes.

It's no solution for tinnitus. If you stayed on it permanently you'd have kidney issues because it's so acidic.

And it gives you weird brain zaps and muscle tremors after even a couple of weeks of only using it 3 times a week.

I can't stress how bad this chem is for tinnitus sufferers.

Avoid!

P.S.
Even if you braved the side effects I listed above eventually your tolerance would go up forcing you to up your dose increasing said side effects.

This dose escalation would finally result in you choosing to hop off the pheny-train before you hit the brick wall of kidney failure... anyway at that stage it would no longer be masking your tinnitus.

But jumping off a 6 or 7 gram a day addiction would give you withdrawals up there with serious benzo withdrawals... the newly resulting catastrophic tinnitus would make you wish to god almighty you still had your old tinnitus.

I am talking from experience, not what I've read.

And mixing this with Trobalt wow! Phenibut lowers your seizure threshold! We are talking like serious danger here folks.

I don't want to come across like I'm popping the new tinnitus cure balloon but I have to clear this up before anyone is hurt reading this thread.

 

It was @preslys. I wonder what his situation is as he no longer posts here.

 

I talked recently with preslys, he's still alive. I think he told me his tinnitus is 0.5/10.