EPTSmart Drugs / Brain Hacks - Page 2
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iiGreetings
Canada563 Posts
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Gamegene
United States8308 Posts
Would be kind of cool if we saw the drug's relationship with performance as effectiveness decreases over time and usage. | ||
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guN-viCe
United States687 Posts
On March 10 2013 13:14 Whiplash wrote: From what I know from a friend that takes some nootropics, and talks with my dad (he is a pediatrician) basically I've heard that they don't know the long term effects of the drugs, but it most likely isn't too harmful. However, it does give you a little boost, but it is often over-exaggerated. It is basically a very damp version of taking a drug stimulant such as adderall, which is a combination of Amphetamine and Dextroamphetamine. TLDR, people want healthy stimulants. +1 I have dabbled with nootropics, but nothing compares to prescribed stimulants. And the best nootropics of all? A good diet, exercise, and a healthy attitude. | ||
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zachMEISTER
United States625 Posts
I'll say Alpha Brain is phenomenal and New Mood is cutting edge! Love lucid dreaming and intense focus! | ||
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dudeman001
United States2412 Posts
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sob3k
United States7572 Posts
The fact is that we don't understand how the brain works well enough to really do this shit yet, not to mention the data and research simply hasn't been done as to the long term effects, side effects, and even basic efficacy of basically all of this. Drugs and brain chemistry are just monstrously complicated, and to pretend you have really any idea of what you are doing, especially if you are considering using these substances on a regular basis, is basically a pure gamble at this point. | ||
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rasnj
United States1959 Posts
On March 10 2013 14:42 Gamegene wrote: I wonder which drugs SC progamers have used in their careers and when they first started and ended. Would be kind of cool if we saw the drug's relationship with performance as effectiveness decreases over time and usage. This would be a perfect example of where correlation does not necessarily imply causation. I wouldn't be surprised if the most dedicated and focused progamers (/students) with the most pressure on them chose these drugs, while people with a more casual approach didn't. I wouldn't be surprised either if people who was looking for a quick fix and the easy way to become good used drugs such as these. Therefore if people who use stimulants perform better or worse it may not be an indicator of anything except that very correlation. Personally I have experimented with variants of Modafinil (mostly generic brands, but also some "genuine" for comparison) and racetams (aniracetam + piracetam). I never got a noticable effect by racetams over a couple of months of usage, but maybe it is just very suble. I'm not sure, but I would rather wait for more conclusive results regarding efficacy, safety and proper dosage. I have been using modafinil on/off for about 5 years now and I really like it (on/off because you build up a resistance, it is expensive and it probably isn't too healthy). It does not magically turn you smart, but it helps tremendously with motivation, focus and fatigue. I get incredibly motivated, and can focus very deeply which I believe allows me to think more seriously about harder subjects. Furthermore it has allowed me to do double all-nights (i.e. 60-80 hours) on a couple of occasions where I had planned terribly without very bad signs of tiredness. I generally try to avoid using it for staying up very late more than every couple of months, but when you fucked yourself and ignored a deadline it can be godsend. The obvious issue is of course how safe it is and how to get proper medical advice and tests to ensure that there are no adverse reactions. Personally I have found ways to get relevant bloodwork done, but generally it can be hard to go say "can you help test if this prescription drug is having any adverse effects on me?". EDIT: And yes of course good diet, exercise and good attitude is more important, but if you already have that, then nootropics can potentially push you further. | ||
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affinity
United States266 Posts
For "brain hacks", Dual n-back test might be interesting too. I practiced it for a year on and off, but lost motivation/commitment these last couple of months. I might start doing them again, since I felt like it was easier to remember people's names and organize my thoughts when I was consistently doing them. Gwern's page on this (listed below) gives a pretty good overview. Gwern has pretty nice pages on these two topics. I highly recommend reading his stuff. http://www.gwern.net/Nootropics http://www.gwern.net/DNB FAQ | ||
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zachMEISTER
United States625 Posts
On March 10 2013 15:32 dudeman001 wrote: Does alpha brain actually induce lucid dreaming like it advertises? It helps produce a lucid state. I like to take them right before bed, and I'll wake up super refreshed and ready to go! | ||
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obesechicken13
United States10467 Posts
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Elegance
Canada917 Posts
On March 10 2013 13:57 Ramiel wrote: Vasopressin? Interesting. I am an ICU RN, we use this drug for ACLS protocols during cardiac arrest (usually during asystole along with another drug called atropine). I would assume that you would not be taking the vaso in high doses. Because Vaso is a 'pressor' or a medication that at a certain dose range clamps down on the vasculature to increase blood pressure. Most pressors (levophed, norepi, ext ext) are some nasty drugs. Normally they cannot be given peripherally, and in doing so you are damaging many organ systems, and peripheral extremities of the body when used for long periods (which can be a short as a number of days.) So low dose vasopressin? I have heard of it used at some point for septic shock, but have no practice with it. So tacking vaso.... gives you an increased blood pressure. At lose dose I suppose that it could cause increased urine production. But normally vasopressin given at the clinical level clamps the renal artery down so hard, that you can throw a patient into kidney failure, from lack of blood passing through the kidney. (Imagine twisting a garden hose too tight... no water, or in this case blood goes through to the kidney.) As for the rest of the drugs, they are usually used in urinary retention, and some for the treatment of narcolepsy... but other than vaso, i have very little clinical practice with any of them. If your looking to 'enhance' your brain function and activity- i would think a much safer, healther and cheaper way would be the following: 8 hours of sleep, 8 glasses of h2o a day, exercise. But for the lasy people- you can always go and get some pseudoephedrine- this is the over the counter stimulant. Found in: Dayquil, pseudophed. That will give you a kick. Edit: Also holy shit, i was just looking through the ops list again, and i saw this- Selegiline That is an MAOI inhibitor. Normally last line in the use for anti-depressive medications. After SSRI, and tricyclics i think. (Not 100% sure on this, as i don't work psych) From what i remember from nursing school, MAOI's have some serious side effects, as well as dietary effects (ie eating certain foods, like cheese) can cause some wild idiosyncratic effects. The fact that normal people would advocate the use of these drugs.... is pretty weird. Clinically, we use stimulants to increase function. Not any of the above. Yeah MAOI's are pretty bad. Lots of things that you can't do while taking MAOI (including eating chocolate). Could fuck up your blood pressure or give you serotonin syndrome. Anyhow good to see a fellow nurse | ||
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Bourneq
Sweden800 Posts
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anatase
France532 Posts
But, as some people noted, brain, mind and body as a whole need rest no matter how many enhancing drugs you're taking and how good they are. I would not mind trying but I will never give up on sleeping/reading/playing/sporting to relax and relieve pressure on my brain mind and body. It feels people are so lazy to try to have a good hygiene of life that they prefer to rely on drugs instead of looking for other way to improve. For example reading before sleeping is a really good way to improve your mermory, you can also try to speed up your reading and practice differently when trying to learn/remember something (there was a thread with a scientific article on the differents technics used by students to learn). Is it really necessary to use enhancing drugs to feel good, act productively and focus ? Frankly I don't think so, as for my own example i know i am able to focus a lot and well for quite a long time as long as i discipline myself. | ||
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rezoacken
Canada2719 Posts
Selling dreams since -2000BC. Pseudo-science is just another form of mythical bullshit. If you take drugs, don't try to justify yourself. | ||
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cz
United States3249 Posts
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Yggdrazil
France92 Posts
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Najda
United States3765 Posts
It's a long video but they talk about smart drugs for a couple minutes starting at the time I linked (10:30). I've heard Tim Ferriss talk about it before, but in this video he also talks a bit about the side effects. I can't really summarize it without butchering what he says, but it's a lot of interesting anecdotal evidence and he mentions that even though people aren't bringing up negative side effects it doesn't really mean there aren't any. | ||
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MoonfireSpam
United Kingdom1153 Posts
On March 11 2013 07:21 cz wrote: Any good studies supporting the claims about these drugs? Due to ethics most studies focus on kids or adults with ADHD / etc. A quick pubmed seems to suggest that there is benefit in this groups of patients. Most research focuses on methylphenidate and modafinil. http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/20645078 http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/19165529 http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/19243715 Only found one study in healthy volunteers (ethics again) which suggested benefit, however is limited by sample size. http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/22169884 Benefits in the healthy are probably relatively small, but at the top end of performance, small fractions of improvement count. | ||
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Kenpachi
United States9908 Posts
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SlowBullets
United States839 Posts
Caffeine, Amphetamines, Cocaine, (Pseudo)Ephedrine, Cathinones, Nicotine, Modafinil These things will most significantly benefit your long term memory and brain health: Regular exercise, enough sleep, eating plenty of fruits and vegetables These things may or may not cause a small effect on brain function: Racetams, Choline supplements, Noopept, CoQ10, Lion's Mane, "Designed" vitamins (i.e. sulbutiamine) | ||
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