Do You Take Nootropics?

Modafinil and armodafinil (not at the same time) -- 1/4 pill a few days a week, for a few years. Also a heavy coffee drinker.

Positives:

- On good days, it would help with a sort of focus where I sit down and the day just whizzes by. I could often get a lot of grunt work done, or deep dives that don't require a lot of outside thinking.

- I'm pretty reserved, and I felt more chatty when taking.

Negatives:

- Works well as an appetite suppressant. I already have trouble gaining weight, so this is obviously bad. And along with the coffee I drink, it just wrecks my stomach.

- Maybe I'm misremembering/misattributing, but my mood seemed worse

- I'd often feel either spaced out or rushed. This usually means my entire day is shot, given the drug's half-life

I only sometimes take Magnesium & Vitamin D3. Lions Mane and Vegan Omega 3 DHA & EPA is nice too. Sometimes psychedelic mushrooms (although not strictly a nootropic).

https://wiki.nikitavoloboev.xyz/health/nutrition/supplements

I use L-Theanine fairly regularly. There are some other supplements I take (like Ashwaghanda) that aren't necessarily considered nootropics.

I take quite a variety of supplements and nootropics. I started experimenting several years ago.

I haven’t taken anything insane, but the biggest thing I have noticed is being able to be more consistently productive. Your sleep metrics dictate your day’s performance.

Coffee + L-Theanine is beginner friendly and very good.

For improved performance also avoid inflammation. Vitamin C, Fish Oil, and NAC can be taken throughout the day for a noticeable cognitive boost. Avoiding sugars and artificial things is very helpful.

For information on all sorts of things, Leo and Longevity has great blog articles and YouTube channel.

I had for a little bit been taking adrafinil mod-late last year when my sleep schedule was completely out of order and I was going two or three days with only a few hours of sleep. It helped reset me there, can’t speak to any supposed cognitive effects because I wasn’t looking for them at the time and the effects are generally pretty subtle.

NMN+Quercetin (6 months)

70% DHA fish oil (long time)

D3+MK4 (long time)

Micro magnesium (years on and off, I swear taking magnesium makes my muscles twitch more than they already do)

Phenylpiracetam maybe once every 1-2 weeks for acute effects (2-3 years)

I think that there is no free lunch in the human brain. If you take something, your brain will adapt to an equilibrium, down-regulating whatever transmitters you are manipulating. Strategies like drug cycling, minimal use, etc can all be used to partially mitigate this. But in the long run, sleep, exercise, diet, sex, and social relationships are the contributors to a healthy brain.