Nootropics have become a popular topic and supplement over the past few years due to their ability to help you focus and work for longer hours without feeling drained. But are they all they're cracked up to be?
About 3 years ago now I first tried nootropic supplements. I started out with a combination of noopept and modafinal. To the best of my knowledge, noopept was designed specifically to be a smart drug, whereas modafinal is used as a prescription drug to treat narcolepsy people happened to catch on to it's nootropic properties and benefits.
I had first heard about nootropics while researching if increasing your IQ was possible through training (My IQ hasn't increased lol) and came across them by chance. I had discovered that a lot of top CEOs were taking this stuff called "modafinal", so after some more looking into it I decided to order some to see what all the fuss was about. This stuff wasn't readily available over the counter so I had to place an order online for them and within 2 weeks they had arrived. I had also ordered noopept at the same time and it arrived a few days earlier.
The taste of noopept mixed with water was nothing short of awful, but all the same, I downed it along with one pill of modafinal and hoped for the best. Within an hour I could feel myself already becoming more alert and awake. It was great, I was able to focus on my work and was performing at my potential.
Now here's where I made one of the biggest mistakes of my life. I started to feel tired after about 18 hours of being awake so I thought, "fuck it", and took another dose of each of them. Soon after I was back to being alert and working well again as if it was only midday. Stupidly, I continued this process of dosing on top of doses to keep going and working without sleep.
Within 3-4 days my mind entered a hyperactive state where I was alert, but no focused. I had tunnel vision, but that tunnel vision would change from idea to idea every hour or so. I was scribbling ideas for new tech down on paper at an impressive rate, the problem being, months later when I looked back at those scribblings, they were just idiotic ideas.
After a full 7 days had past without sleep due to the stimulant effects of the 2 nootropics I was taking, I had gone completely fucking bonkers. I was still scribbling ideas down on paper which at the time made sense, but looking back at a later date you could clearly see the decline in my cognitive functioning over the course of the week and my fall into madness.
It was at this point I had the bright idea to call people and tell them I had merged science and religion into one and had scientifically calculated that I was immortal......
And as you can probably guess, it wasn't long until I was sectioned into a mental facility where I ended up spending 6 weeks in pure hell.
I had been diagnosed with drug induced psychosis and at a later stage, schizophrenia.
So, to cut a long story short, do I think nootropics are good, or bad?
The answer to that depends on a number of factors.
- Are you disciplined enough to take the correct doses and manage to keep your sleep pattern?
- Do you have pre-existing mental illnesses in your family?
- Do you really need them?
If you have the discipline to not take that extra dose to put in those extra few hours after your initial dose wears off, you have no history of mental illness in your family and you really cannot focus no matter how hard you try, then they may work for you.
But be warned, as with taking any substance there can be negative side effects. I was a young idiot in thinking I could handle any amount of them without experiencing any harm. I guess I learned my lesson the hard way.
But I do have to say, based off the first day of taking them, I was more focused and alert than I had ever been, if I had just gotten some sleep things might've worked out differently. Everyone's situation is unique.
Choose wisely!