Nootropics – My experience with Modafinil!

Nootropics

–

My experience with Modafinil

Disclaimer: I have a script from a medical doctor who has consoled me in taking this medication, which is a schedule 4 drug. I have medical supervision and dosages from my medical doctor and they have made their recommendations for what i should and should not take. I recommend that before you take this or any medication I talk about on my blog that you talk with a medical specialist who can help. Therefore, I neither do or do not recommend that you take this medication… If you do so it is of your own and your own specialists choice…

Count. Daniel John Fogarty.

Have you ever wanted to feel like you were awake and focused, like you have had a good night sleep? Have you ever had to pull an all-nighter with exams? How about doing an extremely long and laborious work assignment? Or spent time clubbing/partying and you have work to do?

If so to each, some or all of the above – Then you might have been reaching for copious amounts of caffeine, energy drinks or worse yet amphetamines to keep you going and functional. While I personally believe that every human being over the age of 25 years should be getting 6-8 hours sleep… I also believe that caffine and similar stimulants should not be abused and should only be used to help you get through times where you need to use them the most… Such as days when you are unwell or when you need that extra pick-me up of motivation to get things done.

But there are some of us who cant sleep, who have seasonal insomnia… Indeed there are others who for some reason or another just cannot function some days… Their mind doesnt work, especially when they wake up and have to cope with a 5am working schedule. In these cases, I will say with the reservation of desired success that the use and medically recommended dosage of Modafinil helps…

Modafinil Does Help!

Modafinil does help and I have been taking prescribed Modafinil now for the last 4 months. I went to go and see a psychiatrist and they prescribed it to me so that when I was working full time I would have the energy, the focus, the drive and the motivation to get out of bed in the morning and arrive at work on time.

25 minutes after taking Modafinil… I WAKE UP!

When I wake up early in the morning I struggle to get up out of bed, I usually take my Modafinil and organize my daily regime of Organic Vitamins, Niacin, Piracetam, Choline and other forms  of supplements which will assist me throughout the day of being a busy Postman. For you see, 25 minutes after taking Modafinil… I WAKE UP! I wake up and I am alert as if I have had a 20 hour sleep. I am alive, alert and I am waiting at the train station with my fresh morning juice and I am ready to start the day.

Compare taking of Modafinil with other commonly prescribed supplements or psychostimulants for sleeping disorders, Methylphenidate (ritalin)t or Dexamphetamine and you will quickly come to realize that Modafinil is not an amphetamine. I am not a fan of amphetamines, prescribed or otherwise. Having had both Juvenline and Adult onset ADD/HD and learning to overcome some of its limitations has been interesting… But I have noticed all round that Modafinil helps me to operate and function with full capabilities and with no losses or come downs that I would have with one or more cups of coffee or in the after effects of the two above medications mentioned.

I have found when taking Modafinil that the benefits outweight any potential negatives. This is why I talked and went through the correct Medical Channels/Authorities who granted me the opportunity to take it. These people are experts in Pharmacology and know what the effects of Modafinil do on the human body.

But what about the pharmacology of Modafinil?

The research into Modafinil is limited. Scientists, Neurologists and Psychologists alike do not know much about its long term effects. Short-term and immediate effects have been noted and it is not considered to be Neurotoxic substance. I.e. A substance which would do you or your body any long-term harm. Of course, the pharmacology of Modafinil is that it activates the D3 receptors in the brain, which is one of many Dopamine Receptor sites in the human nervous system.

Dopamine is a reward drug, which enables humans and animals alike to experience a sense of reward, acheievement and increased motivation when performing a task. Be that task writing an essay, going to work and sorting shelves, cleaning the house, performing math or teaching and/or lecturing. This sense of increased stamina via the sense of acheivement, increased motivation and reward are some of the more positive benefits to taking Modafinil.

Considering that Modafinil can last in your system for up to eight to fifteen hours, I recommend that if you take it that you make mental plans to get quite a few things done upon it. I have often cleaned, written an essay, gone out on a date and written a blog on Modafinil with time to spare to read a good book or too. Again these are some of the more positive benefits I have found to taking Modafinil.

NEGATIVE SIDE EFFECTS OF TAKING MODAFINIL:

There are some side effects or allergic reactions to Modafinil, which have been noted in very limited cases in the medical literature and some of these negative side effects are:

• Sore Throats
• Headaches
• Minor Skin Rashes
• Minor Bruising
• Muscle Weakness
• Insomnia

Of course insomnia on Modafinil is to be expected if you take it a few hours before going to bed. This is because Modafinil’s half-life or most noticeable activity can last anywhere from 8-15 hours… Which is a long time. This is why I take it so early in the morning, so that come by 8pm that night I can start to wind down and rest if I so desire. While Modafinil is not speedy or rushy like other Psychostimulant’s such as amphetamine, it can keep you alert. However, I have known people to have taken Modafinil, gone for a three to four hour sleep and to have awoken completely refreshed.

This depends upon the person, their internal Constitution, health and genetic make up. I recommend that if you wish to take Modafinil that you go and see a professional specialist or medical doctor and that you do your research. Having done both and noticed only the positive effects of Modafinil in my life until this date, I plan to continue to take it.

I plan to continue to take Modafinil!

I plan to continue to take Modafinil as long as I continue to wake up early and work a physically demanding job. I have found that this supplement helps me to function, be a functional, productive and capable adult and because of this I have found that I can really live my life to the max and too the full. If you want to learn more about Modafinil and use it to improve the effects on your life, then I recommend you do some research on it too.

Until next time,

Count. Daniel John Fogarty @ reallifedevelopment.me on Thursday 9th of January 2014.

Nootropics – Piracetam and Choline Part 2…

What I got after personally taking Piracetam and choline for 6 months.

Having taken Piraceam and Choline now for the last 6 months, what I have found is that the use of each has increased my memory. Before taking them, I was only able to focus on 4-5 objects or “things” in my working, short term and long term memory. Retrieving information from my memory was a struggle and I noticed that my ability to access and store my memories was somewhat challenging and hard.  I have found that even at my advanced age of 26 still having trouble at times remembering where I put the house or car keys…

I DONT KNOW, MAYBE ITS A MALE THING…

But I have since found that my attention to detail has improved. Not just in the finer context of a social situation, but also in my ability to achieve some form of dynamic and systematic pattern recognition. For instance I can better see at times, when I am delivering mail as a postman – The wind blow and when it blows I see and hear the trees glisten, whistle and move around me, causing some leaves to fall down to the ground. As the leaves do so, I can see the multiple shades of color that they bring and watch how they move all together in a motion of a symphony…

Does that sound like I am high on Piracetam? Maybe, but if I’m high on Piracetam and Choline, then I’m also lucid at the same time with my increased ability to concentrate.

LETS BE HONEST HERE!

Let’s be honest here, as a writer who has overcome a major learning and social disability in his youth, by focusing on his development alongside Nootropics – I admit that it has not always been easy for me to concentrate, communicate and make levelheaded and accurate conclusions in both my writing and my socialisation. Yet with Piracetam and Choline my ability to be increasingly cognizant has been noticably increased both in myself and in others.

I will never go back to where I was before taking these supplements as a 26 year old man.

What I once found challenging, I find no more and no longer. I am now allowed to better cope with and mature in my mental and cognitive abilities. I have matured to the point that I will never go back to where I was before taking these supplements as a 26 year old man.

My intelligence too has increased on Piracetam. I am unsure if this intelligence increase is however, due to other nootropics and cognitive enhancers that I want to write more about soon – Such as Nicotine, Modafinl, B-Vitamins and Methylphenidate… Perhaps it is a combination of each, but I do know that I think a hell of a lot clearer, make faster decisions and and solve problems one hell of a lot easier after taking Piracetam than what I did before consuming it.

Piracetam and Choline has also led me to becoming more motivated!

This above combination, which I am sure I will attribute to the Piracetam and Choline has also led me to becoming more motivated. As I have said in other posts on creating quick and fast income – I have had businesses in the past, but have lost them due to the “controlled crashing” of the financial markets in 2008. Piracetam mixed with choline has made me more motivated, more alpha, more dominant… I feel that it is Piracetam and Choline which has allowed me to get back on my feet finally… That matters most to me!

Self doubts expressed…

But then again, could this all be placebo. Could it be just the Ritalin/Methylphenidate and the Modafinil which I take? Could Piracetam and similar Racetam-Choline admixtures be doing nothing? Who knows, but one thing I do know is that I am not the same person who started to take them 6 months ago… And even if I get a minor improvement, a minor edge on life, my intelligence and sense of well-being through this mixture – Then I will continue to take it!

I recommend you give it a go…

Count. Daniel John Fogarty @ reallifedevelopment.me on Saturday 4th of December 2013.

Nootropics – Piracetam and Choline Part 1…

How to upgrade your brain.

I’ve been taking two Nootropics and cognitive enhancers called Piracetam and Choline for over 6 months now and what I have noticed is a sizable change in my ability to remember and use my memory, pay attention to what is going on around me and in social conversations, to be able to concentrate on advanced tasks at work and also write, increase my intelligence and find new and novel ways to solve problems. Finally, if not most importantly – I have had my motivation for life and the events that life brings in the world around me… All of this from taking Piracetam and Choline

And I do find it curious, that I was going to write a book on cognitive enhances and Nootropics at the beginning of this year (2013) and that, prior to this blog… Events in life happened where I could not write or further publish my empirical findings and experiences on these Nootropics because of my Personal Development moving me into financial education, health and my development as a man in forming relationships.

Considering now that I am starting to work out the more complex and interesting areas of my life, I have allowed life to bring me back to writing on Nootropics in his blog and what I have found is that while I will still be releasing a book on cognitive enhancers and Nootropics – The only difference will be that most of the information in this book, will be a modified version of what is written down here in this blog and the articles it contains in an edited and condensed fashion.

Considering that this is the case, I felt it pertinent for disclosures sake that I admit here that I have no medical degree. What I write here is my own opinion on what Piracetam and Choline have done for me. I also realize that what may work for me may not work for you and this is why I advise that you talk with your medical practitioner, naturopath or similar professional and work out a plan for the administration of this drug if you wish to try it.

The pharmacology of Piracetam and Choline!!!

Piracetam is a drug that…
Choline is a drug that…

* Increases Memory
* Increases Attention
* Increases Concentration
* Increases Intelligence
* Increases Motivation

But what about the pharmacology of Piracetam and Choline – How do they work?

Because I’m lazy, I went to this Wikipedia (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Piracetam) page and I found the following:

“Piracetam (sold under many brand names) is a Nootropic in the racetams group… A two-week regimen of Piracetam was reported in 1976 to enhance verbal memory in healthy college students in a double-blind, placebo-controlled study… Piracetam appeared in animal studies to have increased communication between the two hemispheres of the brain and increased activity of the corpus callosum.”

And

“Piracetam increases performance on a variety of cognitive tasks… may reflect its enhancement of cross-hemispheric communication and of cognitive function in general, rather than a specific improvement … Piracetam also seems to inhibit brain damage caused by a variety of factors”

When looking into the effects of Choline, this Wikipedia article says the following:

“Choline is a water-soluble essential nutrient. It is usually grouped within the B-complex vitamins. Choline is the precursor molecule for the neurotransmitter acetylcholine, which is involved in many functions including memory and muscle control.”

And

“Choline must be consumed through the diet for the body to remain healthy… Choline supplements are often taken as a form of ‘smart drug’ or Nootropic, due to the role the neurotransmitter acetylcholine plays in various cognition systems within the brain. Choline is a chemical precursor or “building block” needed to produce acetylcholine, and research suggests that memory, intelligence, and mood are mediated at least in part by acetylcholine metabolism in the brain.”

Having known now the basic pharmacology and benefits of both Piracetam and Choline, in the next post we will explore the personal benefits I have derived from taking both Nootropics on a constant base for just over 6 months.

Until then,

Count. Daniel John Fogarty @ reallifedevelopment.me on Monday 30th of December 2013.