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Nootropics

gwern.net

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Re: Nootropics

#71

Post by unimpressive »

ebbv wrote: post #54
fowlerpower wrote: post #28

Does anyone else think this shit is totally bat shit crazy? I may be of the minority here but I am definitely not the minority in the real world. If you care about health why not exercise and eat healthy and never take any type of drug for any reason unless you are sick.

You're not alone but unfortunately there's a lot of people on this site who are extremely irrational but think they are very rational.

People on both sides of this would probably say that about each other. (And on both sides of many other issues I might add.)

Re: Nootropics

#72

Post by codezero »

perfectfire wrote: post #61

I've been on (legally, with a prescription) Modafinil (4 straight days of nausea), Armodafinil (made me really sleepy), Dextroamphetamine (3 times including right now), Adderall (constantly felt sick), Adderall XR (even worse than Adderall), Ritalin SR (about the same as Adderall), Bupropion twice (Wellbutrin, no noticeable effect). Pretty much everything other than Dextroamphetamine either made me feel sick or stran…

:(

This sucks.

I tried a lot of different combos of medications and was lucky to have a doctor that let me very clearly experiment with what worked.

My dose: Adderall XR 30mg + Adderal 10mg (around 2pm)

I tried Adderall, Vyvanse, Ritalin and Concerta (long acting Ritalin)

Ritalin had the best cognitive effects but the worst side effects. I slept, but I didn't really sleep. Over time, I developed terrible atrophy as well as a deep sense of apathy.

Adderall has been my rock. Straight Adderall is "bad" for me – the side effects are very strong. Any nervous tick I have is amplified very intensely. I play with my hair, I fidget, I bite my lips etc...

Adderall XR is very stable, but not very strong. So I take it, and sometimes I supplement with direct Adderall.

The most functional combo I ever had was accidental, it was Concerta + Adderall (not XR) but my doctor said it was bad/questionable to mix the two kinds of stimulant (ritalin/adderall) so I abandoned it.

It really is about finding the sweet spot between cognitive benefits and side effects. I still have some side effects, but my invariant is sleep. If a medication fucks with my sleep, I don't take it. Adderall, if anything, helps me sleep better, so it works quite well for me.

A solution to picking off facial hair, if that's really the problem, is to shave it all off. Same with hair on your head. If then, you are doing great, then problem solved.

Also, it doesn't hurt to get a barrage of tests done, maybe you have more stuff going on than just ADHD, and other medications may have a more significant effect on your wellbeing.

Re: Nootropics

#73

Post by thatswrong0 »

aidenn0 wrote: post #51
throwaway123912 wrote: post #14

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Melatonin has worked wonders for me as well. However it's worth mentioning that the 3mg capsules I bought are WAAAY too strong and cause me to wake up with a dry mouth and a headache after a couple of hours of intense dreaming and nightmares. Instead now I split the caps open and take a tiny fraction of the melatonin every night. It takes me a few weeks to go through a single capsule.

Trader Joes sells 500mcg tablets.

Plus they're chewable. Probably the most convenient though a tad expensive.

Re: Nootropics

#74

Post by HalfwayToDice »

The best nootropic is getting a good nights sleep.

It takes effort! Preparing for bed early and disciplining yourself to put the light out is not easy. Not nearly as easy as popping a pill. But it's so much more effective than any drug listed here.

And for a safe and provable quick cognitive boost, take some caffeine, preferable green tea with theanine.

Re: Nootropics

#75

Post by nhaliday »

dajohnson89 wrote: post #27
RandomInteger4 wrote: post #23

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I don't know if I'd call President Obama a health nut; maybe Michelle, but not sure about Barack, unless he quit smoking and switched permanently to the gum.

Nicotine gum is awful for your teeth and gums, and there's a lot of anecdotal evidence that it thins out hair.

Do you have a source for the first assertion? I can't find any studies on google.

I'm skeptical because people so often attribute many of the negative effects of other chemicals in tobacco to nicotine with no evidence (a point the OP hammers home at https://www.gwern.net/Nicotine). Even the FDA seems comfortable with this conflation, as evidenced by their disposition toward e-cigs.

Re: Nootropics

#76

Post by _yvjs »

jonathankoren wrote: post #70
marodox wrote: post #53

Earlier quoted context omitted.

He probably has tried drug free, exercise and sleep over a month.

Where's the write up? Many people, including myself, find exercise to be mind numbingly boring, and intellectually insulting. (Pick up a weight and put it down? That is quantitatively zero work, buddy. No thanks.) Never underestimate the motivation to find a quick fix.

No self-experiments but he has posted this https://www.reddit.com/r/slatestarcodex/comments/537w8h/phys..., a twin study showing decreased body fat and increased grey matter in response to exercise.

Re: Nootropics

#77

Post by lcarlson »

jonathankoren wrote: post #70
marodox wrote: post #53

Earlier quoted context omitted.

He probably has tried drug free, exercise and sleep over a month.

Where's the write up? Many people, including myself, find exercise to be mind numbingly boring, and intellectually insulting. (Pick up a weight and put it down? That is quantitatively zero work, buddy. No thanks.) Never underestimate the motivation to find a quick fix.

Sports are the best drugs!

Re: Nootropics

#79

Post by TeMPOraL »

astazangasta wrote: post #62
pmcginn wrote: post #41

Earlier quoted context omitted.

If you care about light why not work outside in the sun and not use electricity and lightbulbs unless there's an eclipse? I can't even tell if you're serious. Trying to improve on nature is the foundation of science.

> Trying to improve on nature is the foundation of science. This is an interesting statement. I would say, trying to improve on nature is one particular notion that was instrumental in the history of science. Specifically, we can trace this back to alchemical beliefs in the notion of perfecting the human soul/body/etc. via aqua regia and so on, which were about achieving an "art" which would exceed the limits of what…

I'd say, s/science/engineering/, or even s/science/technology/. A big motivator for the progress we've made as a species is that the natural state of life generally sucks, and we'd like to have it better than it is by default.

Re: Nootropics

#80

Post by lisper »

HalfwayToDice wrote: post #74

The best nootropic is getting a good nights sleep. It takes effort! Preparing for bed early and disciplining yourself to put the light out is not easy. Not nearly as easy as popping a pill. But it's so much more effective than any drug listed here. And for a safe and provable quick cognitive boost, take some caffeine, preferable green tea with theanine.

This. And use Flux. Blue light after 9PM is the enemy.
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