History of phenibut
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 – Present - Phenibut is used all over the globe as a smart drug, mood enhancer, sleep aid and recovery booster.
Phenibut effects
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 causes 2 main effects by acting on your nervous system [2, 3, 4].
- 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.
- 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.
Anecdotally, Phenibut also improves sleep quality. We know GABA supplementation does [18], so it’s plausible Phenibut does too, being a GABA-derivative that more effectively crosses the blood-brain barrier.
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].