Across 170 first-hand reports, people mentioned a side effect 18 times (about 11 per 100 reports). The most common: drowsiness, vivid dreams, liver damage. User reports show what people notice — they can't tell you whether Valerian is safe for you.
“I then tried raising GABA instead, using Valerian, Passion Flower, L-Theanine etc. All at max dosage, no effect whatsoever.”
“Negative effects on sleep quality came from valerian...valerian vastly improves my latency but quality drops significantly.”
“I've tried boosting GABA with Passion Flower, Valerian, L-Theanine, B-complex and more. No effect.”
“I then tried raising GABA using L-Theanine, GABA, Valerian, Passion Flower etc. No effect. None.”
“I’ve used a range of supplements, as well as sleep support acts but still have many problems.”
“Melatonin and Valerian Root have worked wonders for my sleep but be aware that Valerian does cause really vivid dreams.”
Conclusion: In conclusion, valerian could be a safe and effective herb to promote sleep and prevent associated disorders. However, due to the presence of multiple active constituents and relatively unstable nature of some of the active constituents, it may be necessary to revise the quality control processes, including standardization methods and shelf life.
Conclusion: The available evidence suggests that valerian might improve sleep quality without producing side effects. Future studies should assess a range of doses of standardized preparations of valerian and include standard measures of sleep quality and safety.
Conclusion: There is no high quality evidence to support the effectiveness of any dietary supplement for dysmenorrhoea, and evidence of safety is lacking. However for several supplements there was some low quality evidence of effectiveness and more research is justified.