I am a final year medical student, and during my last exams a lot of things were coming together (e.g. mum diagnosed with cancer, exams, etc.). 

We all know these moments when our nervous system just spirals out of control. In these times, it is very hard to "use thoughts as an antidote" and often breathing/relaxation techniques are also hard to use. While I do not suggest, that we should medicate all bouts of anxiety away, sometimes (e.g. before an exam), these bouts take way more than they give. In these moments "pharmacological crutches" can be incredibly helpful. However, most of the meds available have intense downsides (e.g. duration of action, impairment in cognition, drowsiness, etc.).

Even though I had access to pretty much all the drugs I wanted, I was very hesitant due to their side effects. However, there was one substance that saved me. A substance I have never heard anything about in med school (likely because it cannot be patented and therefore no money to be made and therefore few studies on it being conducted): **L-Theanine**

I found the occasional dose of L-Theanine (e.g. 125-250mg 2x per day whenever bouts of anxiety arose) to be incredibly effective and much underappreciated. 

**Mechanism:**

* Modulates glutamate receptors (AMPA, kainate, NMDA)

**Duration of action:**

* 2-4 hours (enough to soften bouts of anxiety completely)

**Dosage:**

* 125mg worked best for me (250mg made me almost too calm)

**Onset of action:**

* around 30min

**Positives:**

* Does not dumb you down (like e.g. benzos)
* does not impair cortical plasticity like other calming drugs (e.g. pregabalin)
* is cheap
* is very safe
* works on an as-needed basis
* does not impair cognition (in fact, L-theanine is nootropic)
* does not make you drowsy (at low dosages)
* pretty much no side effects
* very little tolerance develops if just used on an as-needed basis

**Negative:**

* only works on as-needed basis (and not general anxiety) (this could also be a positive)

If you have not tried L-Theanine before and/or are hesitant to take more potent drugs (which should never be taken lightly as they do come at a price) and/or you just need to soften some anxiety in times when you need to be cognitively sharp (e.g. date, exam) I suggest you give L-Theanine a try.