K-Guides: Kindly tell us about yourself, your occupation?
Martin Bravek: I am a founder of Leafoflifekratom.com, a tattoo shop owner, and living in Dunnellon, which is a very small town in central florida.
K-Guides: Please describe which health conditions that led you to try Kratom?
Martin Bravek: It is related to arthritis by sitting for 21 years like a contortionist while doing many hours tattooing (sometimes 12 hours a day) as well a back injury from farm work. This all resulted in severe depression and almost led to suicide. The inability to do what I love and cherish (work and Horseback riding, farm work).
K-Guides: Please describe the type of Kratom strain that has worked well for you and how much you take (in grams) regularly?
Martin Bravek: I usually take green and white kratom. Since they are “headier” than reds, I like the mood lift from the greens as well the energy and focus from white strains. I hardly ever use red’s, even though they are more pain relieving but don’t have the mental uplift like greens and whites. I usually dose four times a day, between 6-8 grams depending on the potency of the particular strain.
K-Guides: How you take your Kratom and if you use one variety or multiple?
Martin Bravek: I usually take it through toss & wash. Used to make my own capsules since the taste is hard to get used to.
Found it to be to work intensively on a daily basis and switched to making shakes and smoothies – but still tasted horrible. I find that the toss and wash are the fastest, most effective, and if done correctly, you don’t taste it since it is quick.
I try to rotate as much as possible to avoid tolerance buildup – different greens and whites. I tend to like green and white Maeng Da’s as well as Hulu’s and Jong kongs – found some excellent green Borneo to work great as well.
K-Guides: You said that you dose 6-8 grams and four times in a day. How did you find your “sweet spot” dosage? What will you suggest to beginners?
Martin Bravek: I was lucky and found the right amount pretty much right away. However, when suggesting it to a client, I try to advise that less is indeed more.
I suggest starting with a teaspoon wait about 30-40 minutes and pay attention to the pain level as well as the mental state.
If nothing changes, I tell them to wait about 2 hours and repeat with a teaspoon and a half and so forth till the right amount is found.
I find that most people will take between 5 and 10 grams to get the right amount for them. I also found that the weight and height of a consumer don’t play a role in how much they need to find the sweet spot.
K-Guides: Which potentiators do you think goes really well with the kratom?
Martin Bravek: I also would advise taking some potentiators such as acidic beverages with the kratom as well an excellent fat source (coconut oil, etc.) it will make it work better. I also would advise you to drink a lot of water and take magnesium, to avoid constipation
K-Guides: In the media we have heard many side effects of Kratom? Have you experienced any with kratom?
Martin Bravek: No bad experiences, no side effects. No addiction or bad habits. The only side effects are the ones that come back what take it for the begin with. Such as any remedy or supplement.
Kratom might dry you out and can, therefore, lead to having problems with their bowels (minor though). There’s a lot more that could be said about how to take it and what to do to make it work better (red bubble method, extracts, etc.). But you could literally fill a book with it
K-Guides: What is your concern about FDA warnings/statements against Kratom use and detention of kratom-containing dietary supplements?
Martin Bravek: FDA has lost the war on Kratom and shot themselves in the foot when tried to schedule, all it did raise awareness to people that want to get out of the opiate habit and look for alternatives.
K-Guides: As being a Kratom vendor and lover, are you involved in any activity to keep kratom legal and safe?
Martin Bravek: Yes, signing petitions, emails to representatives as well as lawmakers to put forth federal regulation for the safety of the consumer. Thankfully no harmful activity in my part of the USA.
K-Guides: Can you share any advice that you think would help kratom lovers based on your experiences?
Martin Bravek: I would advise being realistic (it is a botanical and not a synthetic after all) when starting Kratom and don’t give up if it doesn’t work, even after several attempts. Sometimes it’s not the right dose, the wrong strain, a cheap strain therefore ineffective.
I always advise asking for lab results that show a particular strain and not just “Kratom.” It is detrimental to their health and should be advised that contaminants can occur and that there are several bad players in the industry that their main goal is profit and not compassion.
Therefore, they cut corners and neglect the health of their ‘ uninformed clients.
