Everything we take – After 20 years of testing supplements!

Over the years we’ve been asked for a peek inside our complete supplement lineup 👀

So here it is – this post is a list of all supplements we take or have close at hand!

Update 2026: We’ve been working to reduce supplements.

As we do, I move them to either paused or ‘no longer using’ categories.

The reason in most cases is simply because peptides have helped so much, we don’t need them anymore.

This group member is really going all in with peptides!

I’ve also removed all softgels in an effort to eliminate free glutamate exposure. I pierce them with a syringe and transfer the liquid into a vegan capsule 🙂

Staple Supplements

These rarely change and when I have time, capsules are in pill boxes in advance!

We take the lowest recommended amount except where indicated.

We use one container per day | Push-to-open pill boxes: https://a.co/d/bMCqw3D

Multi vitamin: Junior Nutrients Pure Encapsulations – it doesn’t contain ultra high B vitamins, copper or iron, and does include the most bioavailable forms of vitamins.
- Other Positives: Capsules are small. Easier than using each vitamin individually – we may go back to that though because there are NO other multi choices that meet our needs 😬
- Potential Issues for us: Some citrate forms, calcium, methylated vitamins, ascorbyl palmitate. I’ve been experimenting with removing it.

4 caps is the adult recommended dose but we use 2-3 or less, relying on food sources for additional vitamins

Minerals – important when we don’t use a multivitamin: Trace Minerals – Pure Encapsulations

Alternate: True Minerals

Both above mineral choices contain some citrate forms but of the two, True Minerals is superior and at least designated corn free

Why use a mineral blend?

Zinc – Lowers toxic copper levels and stops histamine flares
Selenium – Builds antioxidants to shield the brain from inflammation
Molybdenum – Clears toxic sulfites (sulfur)
Chromium – Balances blood sugar to prevent mood swings
Boron – Lowers neuroinflammation and supports gut health
Iodine – Supports a calm and stable thyroid metabolism
Manganese – Assists brain enzymes without triggering hyperactivity
Lithium Orotate – Calms brain excitability, anxiety, and sensory overwhelm (we use more separately, below)
Potassium – Maintains basic cell fluid and nerve signaling
Vanadium – Works with chromium to support steady cellular energy

More Staple Supplements:

Pro Resolving Mediators – SPM Metagenics – Marine lipid concentrate – costly but I find them worth it, 1-2 caps / day
- Derived from and more potent than omega-3 fatty acids
- Directly modulate inflammatory pathways and promote tissue repair. Excellent for immunity and joints
- We pierce the softgel and put it into a vegan empty capsule
Saw palmetto – Androgen (DHT) detox – teen: 2x per day – See my blog post here (I pierce the softgels because the brand is so superior to capsules)
Lithium orotate – a trace mineral, 5mg for calm and many brain benefits (mylein sheath) Klaire Brand
Vitamin D3 – Life Extension liquid 2,000 IU – 1 drop in AM
Vitamin K2 as MK4 (not MK7) – fraction of a capsule
Magnesium – in many forms
- Taurinate (relaxation) am only
- Threonate (cognition) am only
- Malate (muscles & nerves)
- Glycinate (calming)

Acetyl L-Carnitine – brain and heart health – me, 1 cap, AM
Adenosyl/Hydroxy B12 – Pure Encapsulations – powder from caps used sublingually to avoid additives
- Boosts energy & brain health – Essential for cellular metabolism, muscular energy, and overall cognitive function.
- Supports nerve & muscle recovery – Aids in nerve repair and helps stop muscle cramping and Restless Legs Syndrome (RLS).
- Cardiovascular & blood support – Helps lower homocysteine levels and supports healthy red blood cell production.
- My post for how important B12 supplements are and options is here: Your Body is Ghosting Vitamin B12 — Win back cognition & stamina, for good!
A note about Fatty15, C15:0 fatty acid – I’ve taken for 4 years – but don’t recommend. It’s not worth the cost. Someday I’ll cancel the subscription 🙂
Spatone liquid iron – best absorbed iron I’ve found that doesn’t cause any side effects – 1 packet per day

Peptides and Bioregulators

If you’ve been following us, you know that peptides have been life-changing for us.

These amino acid chains have allowed us to remove many supplements we no longer need.

If you want to learn more about peptides, we have a resources page which has posts, videos & more and is a great place to start!

We don’t take ALL of these peptides and not at once – it’s just a photo of all we’ve tried!

What we use regularly

All are capsules unless noted

Each name is linked to our blog posts for much more info

KPV – mast cells, inflammation, yeast & bacteria
TB4 Frag 1-4 and TB4 Frag 17-23 spray – inflammation & healing
Thymogen Alpha 1 – immune regulation & acute illness (also contains Vilon)
Larazotide Acetate – gut tight junctions
Bioregulator Peptides: Various, including – Thyroid, Pineal (epitalon), Collagen, Vessels, Lungs, Stomach, Liver, Adrenal, and more – see our bioregulator guide for all organ / gland options ☺️
- Brain Bioregulators: Cognition and brain health (intermittent use) – I interchange and review them all in this Brain Peptide post – also see: CogniPep for kids
ARA 290 – nerve repair

The next two are technically small molecules but often discussed alongside peptides:

NAD+ as a Sublingual Spray – Current dose is 1 drop every few days for maintenance
5 Amino 1 MQ – energy & fat cell metabolism support

Not currently using because we don’t need them anymore:

Selank – Anxiety, pain (spray)
DSIP – Delta Sleep Inducing Peptide (spray)

How I store Peptides & bioregulator capsules:

This compartment box from target contains the ones I’m testing it rotating out.

The push button pill box (Amazon) holds ones I know I’ll be using daily.

Menopause related

All are covered in this post:

https://diaryofrecovery.com/over40

VitaWoman Blend has replaced the Natures Marvels Ovary

DHEA / Pregnenalone – from LifeForce or Douglas labs, 1/4th of a cap per day
Bioregulators: Adrenal plus, VitaWoman blend which contains 5 essentials: Ovary, Placenta,
Thyroid, Hypothalumis, and Collacell (a skin elasticity bioregulator – can’t say enough about how effective this is at reversing the effects of gravity!)
5 Amino 1 MQ – energy & fat cell metabolism support (love this!)
Creatine Monohydrate – a well- studied, popular supplement for energy & fatigue, 1-2 caps per day

Acute needs

Digestion: Bioregulator Peptides – Stomach, Pancreas, gastric mucin, and also Larazotide Acetate
Magnesium oxide (laxative) – works as well as mag citrate
Lysine – antiviral that is miraculously effective for my daughter’s finger warts (gone in a week after months of other attempts)

Electrolytes – Quinton hypertonic water or Salt stick capsules, as needed
Organic CBD – Harmony brand (organic is so important) – infrequent use, topically for acute body pain
Organic activated charcoal – binder, for other Detox needs see my post here
Acute Illnesses (cold, flu etc..):

Using Thymogen (and optional NAD+) has resulted in many other people reporting no illness (when exposed in the same house) or very short lived ~ 1 day. We find it to be remarkable!

Sleep – not using anymore

Reducing free glutamate exposure (to near zero – for example, no softgels) and removing all hidden added calcium (for example, no baking powder etc..) helped so much we don’t need sleep aids anymore, not even DSIP

And yes, I can hardly believe it! 🛌

•••

Tip! To reset circadian rhythm, you may want to try very low-dose melatonin (0.1 – 0.5mg) about four hours before you want to fall asleep, it helped my daughter.

Intermittent or Currently paused

L-theanine: Liquid up to 0.25ml before daytime meals to reduce excitability from glutamate exposure. We don’t use it at night. … we don’t use it anymore because I removed all sources of free glutamate
Calcium D Glucarate – detox support including estrogen / hormones (teen: 2-3 caps / day) I removed all sources of calcium because is suspect they caused behavior issues
DiCalcium Malate – If dealing with PANS or glutamate sensitivity, watch for any rage with calcium and stop or consider adding L-theanine alongside small doses.
Huperzine A – a nootropic for cognition, we love it.. just don’t need it anymore with all the peptides 🙂 My blog post is here. (1/8 capsule, Life Extension brand )
PQQ – mitochondria support – we do like it! Read my blog post here (we don’t take it every day but do use it).
DMG – methylation support & adaptogen works to overcome negative effects of stress and degenerative diseases. Great for mood, energy, well-being, and more – removed because I’m doing a trial of removing all methylated supplements
- A vintage era post I wrote is here, we switched brands but used consistently for 14 years! DMG: An All-Natural Wellness Builder
Fisetin – senolytic to help usher dead cells out of the body – especially brain. It’s not ideal for people with slow COMT (which is why we removed Neuroprotek a decade ago.)
- “Like your body’s own Marie Kondo” autophagy is all the rage for longevity – we like peptides more and they deliver more notable changes.
- We take it on and off – 1 cap, AM
Glutathione – Pure Glutathione Gold – we used 200mg for detox, liver support but the liver bioregulator peptide is better without sulfur side effects
Enzymes: Pancreatin 2000, I selected this one because it’s not derived from mold, but we don’t need enzymes anymore

No longer using

• Optimal PC (Choline / Phospholipid Complex) – Seeking Health – good for brain health but I don’t like the algae oil or softgel

• Mucuna Puriens – for nerve health & tremors (1/2 tablet) see blog post here – we don’t need it anymore. (See ARA 290 for nerve repair)

Aloe vera capsules for acid reflux (teen) – no longer needed with Gastric Mucin Bioregulator Peptide
Beef Liver Capsules – Grass Fed (1-3 caps per day) — A concentrated source of vitamins, minerals, and other essential nutrients – histamine concerns
NovaFerrum / ProFerrin Clear – histamine concerns
Elite IgG – immune, gut and inflammation – not needed after we began using peptides

• Prodrome Glia – Such a waste of money. Omega 9 Plasamlogens are said to restore brain white matter, myelin sheath, and heart membranes (1-2 caps per day) – took for 6 months, can’t say I noticed anything. Stopped in June 2025 (after 1 year) I notice no difference without it

• NR / Tru niagen for NAD+ enhancement taken (300 mg / day) – note this is not NAD+ and hardly effective. I don’t recommend it.

• Oil of oregano capsules (during viral illness) among other immune supports! We use Thymogen peptide now instead

• Berberine or Goldenseal – for bacteria and reducing PANS flares (excellent for tics & OCD), We now use KPV instead — see my PANS post here

• Vinpocetine – Increases blood flow to the brain 1/2 tablet per day. – not needed anymore – TB 500 replaced it, see this post https://recoveringkids.com/3gen

• St. John’s Wort: mood regulation (teen 3x a day) – it was helpful for years, no longer needed. For anyone with mood issues who isn’t on an SSRI (eg. Fluoxetine) and needs more help, I highly recommend St, John’s Wort.

• GABA – it recently caused me extreme dizziness when taken at night for sleep (lowers BP). I haven’t given it to my daughter in many years.

BCAA – Branched chain amino acids – regulate blood sugar, protect liver, building blocks of muscles. Peptides give us plenty of amino acids and more targeted 😉

• Vitex, DIM – tried for months to help with PMS symptoms however she seems better without them

• Alpha GPC Choline – brain health – I read it can cause slight depression for some, I replaced it with optimal PC but we didn’t have issues that I saw with alpha gpc

• Apigenin for hot flashes was needed and VERY helpful during perimenopause (my post here) I just don’t need it anymore – highly recommend!

Removed over the years:

• Countless, too many to list!

• The most notable one is – ALL Probiotics (they caused autoimmunity, anxiety and tics) — See my important post about them here.

•••

To keep this post positive, I won’t list all the other ones we tried and removed.

If something didn’t make this list, there is most likely a reason.

The reason could be specific to us / our needs, or could be more general.

•••

I’ll boldly say, as an admin of the Recovering Kids group we have tried OR considered almost all supplements, treatments and diets floating around the health stratosphere!

We love that everyone has a unique path and we may very well not be using something that helped you greatly.

Our path is just one of many.

Thank you for being here 🤍

If you’d like help considering supplements, our Digital Mind tool may be something to consider: