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Top 7 Supplements for Stress Resiliency, Sleep, and Mood

By Dr. Linda J. Dobberstein, DC, Board Certified in Clinical Nutrition

March 7, 2022

Top 7 Supplements for Stress Resiliency, Sleep, and Mood
Stress affects everyone differently. Some individuals push through stress and seemingly have no problems until they crash in sheer exhaustion. Some may find themselves craving and eating food to calm their emotions, while others may not want to eat. Yet others resort to excess exercise, alcohol, drugs, gaming, gambling, or sex to relieve stress. Some people may fall apart in tears at the slightest provocation and struggle with resiliency.

For as long as mankind has existed, stress has been and will continue to be part of life. Even if you lived on a remote island with perfect climate and no responsibilities, stress will be there. How you adapt to and bounce back from stress depends on many things such as skills, attitude, beliefs, rest, and nutritional fortification. Here are some of my favorite nutritional supplements for stress management and resiliency.

1. Daily Energy Multiple Vitamin

This superior quality multiple vitamin is the most fundamental foundation to a nutritional supplement regime. Diets today fail to provide all of the different nutrients necessary for health, which affects you, your children, and future generations.

Sugar and processed foods lack optimal nutrients and actually cause your body to use more nutrients to metabolize these pro-inflammatory foods. Poor diets and lack of nutrition stresses your metabolism, thyroid, adrenals, blood sugar, cholesterol, blood pressure, mood and nerves, physical and mental energy, sleep quality, hormone levels, detoxification, muscles and bones, exercise tolerance, gene signals and methylation, and much more. Further stress on your body occurs with medication-induced nutrient depletions and other environmental toxins.

Discernment of product quality is critical for how well it can work for you. Tell-tale signs of quality differences are identified by looking at the forms of B vitamins and the amount in the product.

An exceptional quality multiple vitamin will have all B vitamins in their natural form. If your multiple vitamin has one or more of the B vitamins with HCl (hydrochloride) after the individual B vitamin name, it is a non-coenzyme, synthetic form which is harder to absorb and use.

Avoid products that have sugar/sweeteners, food colorings, and preservatives. Products that are tightly compressed into tablets are generally much harder to digest and metabolize. Gummy multiple vitamins may taste good, but won’t provide the depth of support that your body needs.

More information may be found at:

Quality Spotlight: Compare B Vitamins

Are You Taking Folate or Folic Acid? Read This First

Vitamin B12 Essential for Energy, Mood, and Overall Health

B Vitamin Deficiency: Are You at Risk?

Optimizing Your Nutrition for Reproductive Health

Mastering Menopause: Make It a Smooth Transition

Birth Control Pills Deplete Critical Nutrients

MTHFR Gene Defects, Methylation, and Natural Support

2. Adrenal Helper

Adrenal Helper is a blend of holy basil, rhodiola rosea, cordyceps, gamma oryzanol, and eleuthero (Siberian ginseng) which are adaptogenic herbs. These herbs have been used for centuries as support for stress tolerance, mental and physical fatigue management, and overall vitality. They especially help your brain and adrenal glands (HPA axis) adapt to stress as well as help immune homeostasis.

During high states of stress, these herbal ingredients help modulate and calm down excess responses. Adaptogenic herbs help your body recover and rejuvenate from chronic stress. These herbs work best when used long-term to help your body regain vitality and stress tolerance.

Adrenal Helper does not contain any adrenal glandular compounds or stimulants, making it suitable for those with immune challenges or who are highly sensitive.

More information about adaptogens may be found at:

Adaptogens, Stress, and the HPA Axis

Adaptogen Rhodiola Helps Stress Resilience, Cognitive Function, and Mood

Rhodiola Helps Stress, Adrenals, Stamina

Social Isolation and Stress Management

Stressful Times Require Stress Tolerance Support and Antioxidants

3. Stress Helper

Stress Helper contains a blend of three nutrients – acetyl-l-carnitine (ALC), carnosine, and pantethine (vitamin B5).

This combination of nutrients is helpful in management of stress eating, feeling stressed and worn-out, brain fog and sluggish thinking, detoxification, blood sugar and cholesterol metabolism, vagus nerve activity, nerve irritation, mitochondria support, and more. It works great with Daily Energy Multiple Vitamin and Adrenal Helper when you need to get through a tough day without the jitters of caffeine or the empty calories of a sugar buzz or other quick fix.

More information may be found at:

Acetyl-L-Carnitine for Brain Health, Blood Sugar, Fertility, and More

Acetyl-L-Carnitine Protects Blood-Brain Barrier from Alcohol Damage

Carnosine for Skin Cell Health, Stress Tolerance, Blood Sugar

Support the Mighty Vagus Nerve

3 Key Nutrients to Take If You Drink Alcohol

Pantethine – Boost Your Brain, Cardio Health, Metabolism, and Detoxification

4. RelaxaMag

Stress tolerance, quality sleep, blood pressure regulation, mood, energy, recovery, muscle relaxation, heart, digestion, neurological function, and your parasympathetic (rest/repair/relax) autonomic nervous system depend upon on magnesium. This mineral is vital for cell metabolism, mitochondria, and energy mechanics. It buffers against acidic pH inside cells and is involved with over 300 different types of cell activities.

RelaxaMag is particularly helpful for brain support as the magnesium is chelated to glycine. This combination is highly absorbable into your brain, so it helps calm nerve-stress feelings and supports the parasympathetic nervous system. RelaxaMag may be taken during the day to help with mood stress or at night to promote relaxation and deeper sleep.

Magnesium: A Notable Mineral Essential for Life

Insufficient Magnesium – Public Health Crisis Declared

Magnesium Depleted by Numerous Drugs

Magnesium works together as team with potassium and thiamin/vitamin B1. These nutrients are readily depleted by 21st Century stressors.

Potassium – A Valuable Mineral for Health

Magnesium and Vitamin B1 – Team Players Needed for Brain, Muscles, Metabolism, and More

5. Sleep Helper

Sleep Helper contains theanine, taurine, lemon balm extract, and passion flower. This combination of amino acids and herbs support relaxation in your nerves. It can be used during the day to help manage anxious, irritated feelings and in the evening to promote more restful sleep.

Theanine supports insulin sensitivity and blood sugar management. It also aids immune tolerance to germs and foods and assists with gut lining and joint repair. Taurine is used by your liver and gallbladder to help with detoxification. Cell membranes and mitochondria also require taurine for function and antioxidant protection. Taurine is found in animal foods. Those who are on a plant-based diet will lack adequate taurine intake.

A good night’s sleep and relaxation support helps your body recover and repair from the day’s wear and tear and prepares you for the next day’s demands. If you get don’t get a good night’s sleep, your glymphatic system, the brain’s waste removal system, gets back-logged. Stress tolerance, mood, energy, and cognitive function, etc. suffer.

Sleep Helper is often combined with RelaxaMag. Additional support for more challenging sleep concerns may include TriCal, Calcium AEP, and Melatonin.

More information may be found at

Theanine: Stress Management and Beyond

L-Theanine as a Remedy for Wound Up Nerves

Sleep – Molecular Clean Up Time for the Brain

Glymphatics: Keeping the Brain’s Waste Removal System Healthy

6. Daily DHA

Daily DHA is a blend of omega-3 fish oils EPA and DHA that are essential for normal physiology and inflammation management. Omega-3 oils are directly involved with the production of anti-inflammatory prostaglandin 1 and 3 production (PGE1, PGE3). Your body needs an abundance of omega-3 oils, PGE1 and PGE3. American diets are high in plant-based oils (vegetable, safflower, sunflower, corn, soy, etc) which promote high amounts of pro-inflammatory prostaglandin PGE2. Too much PGE2 promotes inflammation and puts your body on fire with diminished repair.

Cell membranes and neurotransmitters require adequate omega-3 oils to work for memory, mood, energy, cell signals, immune tolerance, and gut lining integrity. Omega-3 oils keep red blood cells slippery and bendable as they travel through blood vessels and into cells to bring in oxygen and nutrients and take waste out. Your eyes, mouth, skin, heart, blood vessels, cholesterol, blood sugar, leptin, insulin, gallbladder and liver function, reproduction, and especially your brain need abundant DHA and EPA for proper function.

If you don’t eat cold-water fatty fish like tuna, salmon, herring or grass-fed animal products, it is very difficult to have enough omega-3 oils to counter-balance high intake of omega-6 plant-based oils.

Plant-based foods like flax seeds, chia seeds, and walnuts, etc do provide omega-3 oils. However, this type of oil (ALA) needs vitamins C and B6, iron, zinc, and magnesium to convert into EPA and DHA.This process is very inefficient and many individuals do not have the ability to do so either because of genetics, nutrient deficits, or gut problems.

Why High Quality DHA is So Important

DHA is Vital During Pregnancy

Natural Support for Menstrual Discomfort

GMO’s, Roundup, and Sunscreen Linked with Diminished Brain Resiliency

7. PhosphatidylSerine

PhosphatidylSerine (PS) is included in this list because of its role with the hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal (HPA) axis, neuro-electrical function of your brain, and its effect on your circadian rhythm. PS is a special fat different than omega-3 DHA and other fats. It is critical for neurotransmitter function, mood, thinking, emotional stress tolerance, coordination, season changes, and memory.

If you have habitual trouble getting to sleep at night, take PS at dinner and bedtime with RelaxaMag, Daily DHA, Vitamin D and possibly Calcium AEP. This helps attenuate chronic stress irritation in the HPA and supports circadian rhythm cycles. If this has been a problem for years, it may take a while for this regulatory process to get back in shape.

More Information may be found at:

Omega-3 DHA and Phosphatidylserine: Two Are Better Than One

Amazing Brain Nutrient Helps Memory, Learning, Focus, and Mood

Get Back in Sync and Sleep Better in 7 Days

Improve Mood, Focus, and Memory with Phosphatidylserine

Feed Your Busy Brain

This is Your Brain on Pop

Best Nutrients for Postpartum Health

Stress, Panic and Self Care

Managing stress must be done at all ages. Children and older adults need support too. Super Mini Multi, DHA Kids, PhosphatidylSerine, and Coral Calcium provide a nice blend of vitamins, minerals, and good fats for stress tolerance and mood support in both of these age groups. Add in Vitamin D to enhance overall support. A body and brain nutritionally well-fortified is just as important as a full gas tank and other fluids in your car when you are on a road-trip.

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