[this_user]

The one thing that really interests me about this is the long-term damage you are doing to yourself. There appear to be two types of stimulants. There are the legal ones like caffeine that have a moderate effect and are not significantly unhealthy unless consumed in extreme quantities. And there are the illegal ones like amphetamines that have a significant effect, but will also cause a great deal of harm the more you use them. So, there seems to be a clear correlation between the size of the effect and the harm done.

This then begs the question where these new substances stand. Are they barely more than caffeine and mostly harmless? Is maybe the placebo effect playing a role in making them appear more effective to the user than they truly are? But if they do have a significant effect, at what price does it come? The human body needs rest, that is a pretty well-established fact. It seems unlikely that these substances would be able to change this fundamental principle. What does seem likely, if they indeed are effective, is that you are buying more alertness for the moment, but paying for it in the long run.

Normally substances are researched and tested by professionals for years and sometimes decades before declared safe. But even that process is not always perfect and substances with harmful side effects have been known to slip through. Potentially turning yourself into a human vegetable a couple of decades down the road by experimenting with these barely understood substances seems like a dangerous proposition.

[quotedmycode]

Piracetam is one of the most popular ones, it's not hard to find, and it works for most people, or not. The most common side effect is muscle twitches or headaches. Headaches are caused by a reduction of the amount of choline, and eating eggs or taking a choline supplement makes the headache go away. Generally the twitches are not severe and don't affect voluntary movements. The side effects subside upon stopping. I'd say it's a completely different effect than caffeine, as it allows me to concentrate for extended periods and have instant recall. If it is a placebo effect, then whatever it is, it works. Placebo effect means there is an effect because there is expected to be one, so in any case it's useful. Piracetam's effects on the body are well documented, since it's been in use for about 35 years now. That said, I don't think this gives you any more rest, nor does taking it make it so you can't sleep. In fact, if I take too much I feel sleepy almost immediately and wake up feeling pretty good. In any case, these people taking nootropics are the new normal.

[letstryagain]

I tried the racetams but they don't do anything for me. Modafinil does work though but tolerance develops quickly.

Caffeine of course is still #1 for me in terms of efficacy. I'm not desperate enough to use harder stimulants like ephedrines or amphetamines or phenethylamines etc.

[quotedmycode]

And that's the thing about these, you try some, find out what works for you. I don't see anything ethically wrong with taking a brain booster if it improves your performance at work. If you can do that instead of burning out and you really love your job, why not?

[batbomb]

> And there are the illegal ones like amphetamines that have a significant effect, but will also cause a great deal of harm the more you use them. So, there seems to be a clear correlation between the size of the effect and the harm done.

There's definitely legal amphetamines, non-amphetamine stimulants (modafanil, methylphenidate if you want to put it there), and lots of literature statistics about what is and isn't a dose which can perform harm, and often a classification for the older drugs as GRAS. There's things which may behave like a stimulant or can replace a stimulant, but aren't really stimulants (bupropion, atomoxetine).

If you're talking about Meth, well, then, yeah. It's illegal and often harmful. It's also not likely to be pure.

For the most part, anything which people consider a performance enhancing brain drug has probably been used or posited as a treatment for ADHD or Narcolepsy. It's often a stimulant or a reuptake inhibitor, usually relating to dopamine in some way. There's a ton of FDA-approved drugs out there that meet this description.

[MichaelGG]

Methamphetamine is NOT illegal in the US (trade name Desoxyn). It's Schedule II, less harmful than LSD in the DEA's psuedo-think. Now, convincing a doctor to rx meth for ADD or weight loss may be difficult, but it's possible.

[TazeTSchnitzel]

I do wonder if some of these things might be fine in the short-term but incredibly harmful long-term. If some hypothetical drug makes your brain run at 10% greater capacity than usual, will it kill 10% of your brain in the long run?