Ask HN: Do you take nootropics? • Hacker News Board

Re: Ask HN: Do you take nootropics?

#31

Post by josephagoss » Sat, Mar 21, 2015, 1:18 PM UTC

I take Modafinil every now and then. It's very powerful and can give me an amazing level of focus.

Even though research suggests that they have little negative long term side effects I do worry about taking them and would prefer a more natural method to get the same result.

Basically it's like this; If I get home from a 10 hour workday almost falling asleep, I can take one pill and suddenly it's like the day starts over again as my focus has returned. At the moment I feel like I need to do it as I have projects I work on in the evening that are important for my career progression.

Re: Ask HN: Do you take nootropics?

#32

Post by netman21 » Sat, Mar 21, 2015, 1:22 PM UTC

I take nicotine. I am not a coder; I write non-fiction. I figure it was good enough for Mark Twain, it is good enough for me.

Re: Ask HN: Do you take nootropics?

#33

Post by Igglyboo » Sat, Mar 21, 2015, 1:22 PM UTC

I've been taking vyvanse(before that adderall) for the past 10 years. I wouldn't have been able to graduate from highschool without it, I can barely function at my job(devops) without it.

I haven't noticed any long term affects, it definitely works though. It's scheduled so it's not easy to get but it definitely works compared to some of the more hit or miss OTC nootropics.

I'm willing to answer any questions if anyone is interested.

Re: Ask HN: Do you take nootropics?

#34

Post by Igglyboo » Sat, Mar 21, 2015, 1:22 PM UTC

I've been taking vyvanse(before that adderall) for the past 10 years. I wouldn't have been able to graduate from highschool without it, I can barely function at my job(devops) without it.

I haven't noticed any long term affects, it definitely works though. It's scheduled so it's not easy to get but it definitely works compared to some of the more hit or miss OTC nootropics.

I'm willing to answer any questions if anyone is interested.

Re: Ask HN: Do you take nootropics?

#35

Post by Lewton » Sat, Mar 21, 2015, 1:22 PM UTC

StevePerkins wrote: post #24

I took piracetam years ago when I was considering a career change and prepping for the LSAT exam. I believe that its legal history is somewhat similar to ephedra... 10-15 years ago you could buy it over-the-counter or online, but since then it's been taken off the market in the U.S. Regardless, my experience was that its only value is the placebo effect. If a substance actually does anything real, and there is potent…

>Regardless, my experience was that its only value is the placebo effect. If a substance actually does anything real, and there is potential for a pharmaceutical company to patent and profit from it, then you can generally rest assured that it will be scheduled to require a doctor's prescription. For just about everything, the over-the-counter options consist of vitamins and quackery. So either blatantly break the law, or don't.

Just a counter-point. Melatonin is OTC in the US (sadly not where I live) and the efficacy of melatonin on sleep quality is pretty hard to dispute. It's not what you'd normally call a nootropic maybe, but having melatonin on hand has significantly improved my life

Edit: oh. Yeah. Of course, Adrafinil is OTC in the US too and that's the prodrug for Modafinil. Definitely not placebo either

Re: Ask HN: Do you take nootropics?

#36

Post by Lewton » Sat, Mar 21, 2015, 1:23 PM UTC

PlzSnow wrote: post #23

NO! I investigated nootropics extensively. If you want to know the fruits of my research: * anything that "works" has a very pronounced psychoactive effect on the brain. Which is scary in the long-term. * by far the biggest cognitive boost you can get is SLEEPING WELL! Do this FIRST! It's easy to fix and gives a huge boost in output. * caffeine works as well as many nootropics, with little to no side-effects if taken…

Well, luckily there's a drug for improving sleep too

http://www.gwern.net/Melatonin

Re: Ask HN: Do you take nootropics?

#37

Post by [deleted] » Sat, Mar 21, 2015, 1:24 PM UTC

StevePerkins wrote: post #24

I took piracetam years ago when I was considering a career change and prepping for the LSAT exam. I believe that its legal history is somewhat similar to ephedra... 10-15 years ago you could buy it over-the-counter or online, but since then it's been taken off the market in the U.S. Regardless, my experience was that its only value is the placebo effect. If a substance actually does anything real, and there is potent…

[deleted]

Re: Ask HN: Do you take nootropics?

#38

Post by Igglyboo » Sat, Mar 21, 2015, 1:24 PM UTC

jacques_chester wrote: post #2

I take Ritalin, prescribed for ADHD-I. It's made a positive impact on my life. From time to time I am able to actually get stuff done . I also trialled dexedrine (which made me behave like a ... not nice person) and strattera (which did nothing for me).

You should try vyvanse, I used to take Ritalin and then my doctor trailed me on vyvanse and it lasts the entire day with far less negative side affects than Ritalin. I immediately fell in love, it's still patented though so it isn't cheap without insurance.

Re: Ask HN: Do you take nootropics?

#39

Post by pliftkl » Sat, Mar 21, 2015, 1:24 PM UTC

LeonRobrotsky wrote: post #14

M-F I take one 200mg tablet of caffeine in the morning. I also quit getting blackout drunk 4-5 nights a week.

While I wasn't getting blackout drunk repeatedly, I definitely had an unhealthy relationship with alcohol, and removing alcohol had enormous positive effects on my cognitive abilities.

I also do a heavy dose of caffeine in the morning.

Re: Ask HN: Do you take nootropics?

#40

Post by sumitviii » Sat, Mar 21, 2015, 1:28 PM UTC

Lewton wrote: post #36

PlzSnow wrote: post #23

NO! I investigated nootropics extensively. If you want to know the fruits of my research: * anything that "works" has a very pronounced psychoactive effect on the brain. Which is scary in the long-term. * by far the biggest cognitive boost you can get is SLEEPING WELL! Do this FIRST! It's easy to fix and gives a huge boost in output. * caffeine works as well as many nootropics, with little to no side-effects if taken…

Well, luckily there's a drug for improving sleep too http://www.gwern.net/Melatonin

MIT has a patent on doses less than 1 mg and some(not exactly >1 mg) higher doses can have harmful effects.