Brain Function Boosters

[quote]Wise Guy wrote:
Bushy is right about keeping 5 HTP at 50mg.

I would NOT start just dumping those products down my gullet. Start with a couple at a time.

For sleep, the absolute safest/most natural ones with zero side effects, is L-Theanine and Inositol all the way.

Next, you might want to add phGaba. Just remember it needs cycled. Maybe 5/2 or 4/3, or 3 weeks on, 1 off.

Im of the opinion if your younger you probably don’t need melatonin.

5 HTP is very person specific. Some it works great, some not.
[/quote]

Thanks for the words of caution. Let me assure you that you couldn’t be more wrong about my approach. I added the compounds one at a time, and I titrated the dosages until I found what worked for me.

Also, if you notice, I have my regular stack of only three items, and I add to it as I see fit. I know how I respond individually to each one.

The product I initially bought for 5-HTP is 200mg/capsule, so this is one I did not titrate. I’ll dial it down; I just need to get a different product. Believe it or not, I read the whole thread. What were the dangers, again? Something about poor BBB penetration, so most of the serotonin floods the bloodstream (bad)?

Finally, I second the nod to L-Theanine and Inositol. Similar to how the “noop” (love it, btw) stacks start with vinpo and huperzine, someone who is just looking to relax before bed - this would be a great place to start.

PS - We need a “noop” word for relaxants… LOL

Double post.

Is GABA OK to take with Pira/Ani? How bout L-Theanine? GABA analogs…

[quote]Affliction wrote:
Finally, I second the nod to L-Theanine and Inositol. Similar to how the “noop” (love it, btw) stacks start with vinpo and huperzine, someone who is just looking to relax before bed - this would be a great place to start.
[/quote]

Care to explain more about this stack?

I usually am all about looking shit up on my own but right now I’m on a deadline @ work…sorry for being lazy.

[quote]duddy wrote:
Is GABA OK to take with Pira/Ani? How bout L-Theanine? GABA analogs…[/quote]

GABA makes me sleepy, so I wouldn’t take it before studying or whatnot, but if you mean “with” in the sense of “in the same day”… I’ve used GABA in conjunction with L-Theanine plenty. The effect is quite different, in my opinion. Never taken any 'racetams, yet.

Phosphatydylserine seems to work well for me, I’ve been taking it along with Piracetam and Vinpocetine.

Does anyone know where I can find bulk aniracetam besides Bulk Nutrition, they dont accept paypal.

[quote]B rocK wrote:
Affliction wrote:
Finally, I second the nod to L-Theanine and Inositol. Similar to how the “noop” (love it, btw) stacks start with vinpo and huperzine, someone who is just looking to relax before bed - this would be a great place to start.

Care to explain more about this stack?

I usually am all about looking shit up on my own but right now I’m on a deadline @ work…sorry for being lazy.[/quote]

L-Theanine and Inositol work to relax the mind, ease stress and anxiety.

They are both very, very well tolerated, and can be taken every single day. They are, for the most part, completely side effect free and one doesn’t really build a tolerance, unlike some other things.

A great natural, safe sleep stack to start with, like affliction wrote.

[quote]duddy wrote:
Is GABA OK to take with Pira/Ani? How bout L-Theanine? GABA analogs…[/quote]

phGaba and L-theanine would be perfectly fine to take together, and in fact would probably work in some sort of synergy together as well.

I would try and take the phGaba at night.

Your probably gonna want to take the racetams in the morning and/or the afternoon - and ph GABA at night - so any interaction with phGABA would be nil - And totally fine.

"The students ingested either 100 mg/d of SHR-5 or a placebo for 20 d preceding and
during an examination period. Physical and mental performance was assessed before
and after the period through a series of objective tests and subjective questionnaires.

They observed a treatment group improvement in a motor skill test wherein the
subjects moved an object through a maze as fast as possible while trying not to
touch the walls of the maze. Students in the treatment group also scored higher on
their academic exams than those in the placebo group."

Biotest sells Rhodiola Rosea in their Supp section. The above is from one of the study references (the first).

Just ordered a couple of bottles.

Sometimes I take theanine, inositol, and a glass of red wine and it knocks me out really fast.

[quote]middleageguy wrote:
Sometimes I take theanine, inositol, and a glass of red wine and it knocks me out really fast.[/quote]

Hey guys, what’s a good dosing schedule for Inositol?

Wow, this thread is huge like fucking Xbox!!

I’ve made it to about page 30, and I’m still working my way through it!

I’ve been interested in taking Cognitive Enhancers for a long time, and thanks to this thread, I’ve never been more informed. I didn’t even realize how wide the scope of possible products were, and to complicate it further, the insane possible combination and stacks that could be created from the basics alone.

all very informative. though I’ll admit, I feel like I need to be on these things to fully assimilate all this information! haha

I tried explaining this stuff to some friends of mine, and I found I could never articulate the information in as eloquent a way as some of you r guys do here.

Anyways, I’ve been wondering a few things about modafinil and adrafinil.

specifically, I live in Canada. I know that moda is a seizable by customs when imported. does this mean it is illegal to have with out a prescription? or just that you can’t bring it in to the country? If you need a prescription, how would one suggest going about getting it? I’d much rather my insurance cover moda.

As for Adrafinil, I understand it is cheaper, but there is some concern for liver damage due to the metabolisation of it into moda. How would one suggest cycling it? How hard is it to get up my way? Any recommended sites that sell it? I’ve looked on BN and PF as BBB suggested those sites for other supps.

I remember reading that one person took it on a mon-fri and took weekends off. They mentioned being a bit slow on monday when they started to cycle it up again, and that saturday they still felt it pretty strong due to it being in the system still.

would you guys suggest instead starting on sunday and finishing thursday? this way you still have it’s effects friday, and are primed easily come monday. maybe? Or taking a larger dose monday, instead of friday as they had done (if I recall correctly they were taking 300mg and doubled it on friday).

I’d love to answer these questions myself through experimentation, but sadly I can’t since I am unable to locate a source. lol

Also, I’ve been looking at a few of these things and come up with some stack ideas, but I still want to tweak them a bit.

how much do you guys spend a month on your nootropics? What would you consider a reasonable price for these things? 50, 100, 150 dollars a month? I’m sure at 150 you won’t be buying just one or two things however.

[quote]Battle Pope wrote:
specifically, I live in Canada. I know that moda is a seizable by customs when imported. does this mean it is illegal to have with out a prescription? or just that you can’t bring it in to the country? If you need a prescription, how would one suggest going about getting it? I’d much rather my insurance cover moda.
[/quote]

It is seizable by customs, but at the same time I’ve had plenty of drug packages checked by customs and still allowed through. I think it depends on the discretion of the customs agent. Personal supplies are allowed. Possession without a prescription is illegal, but you are never going to get caught for that, and if you did, it would be of minor consequence.

If you want a prescription, it will be pretty tough. I actually did get a prescription after a couple years. By that point I didn’t even want it haha. Basically you will have to tell them that you are extremely fatigued. They will give you blood tests, and then put you on an SSRI. Don’t take the SSRI, go back in a month and tell them it did nothing. You may have go through several SSRIs. Eventually, you will get a referral to a psychiatrist. Most MDs don’t know about modafinil (alertec) in Canada. Tell the psychiatrist that you don’t feel depressed, and you think serotonin is not the issue. At that point he will give you either an SNRI, bupriprion, or moda.

[quote]Battle Pope wrote:
Wow, this thread is huge like fucking Xbox!!

I’ve made it to about page 30, and I’m still working my way through it!

I’ve been interested in taking Cognitive Enhancers for a long time, and thanks to this thread, I’ve never been more informed. I didn’t even realize how wide the scope of possible products were, and to complicate it further, the insane possible combination and stacks that could be created from the basics alone.

all very informative. though I’ll admit, I feel like I need to be on these things to fully assimilate all this information! haha

I tried explaining this stuff to some friends of mine, and I found I could never articulate the information in as eloquent a way as some of you r guys do here.

Anyways, I’ve been wondering a few things about modafinil and adrafinil.

specifically, I live in Canada. I know that moda is a seizable by customs when imported. does this mean it is illegal to have with out a prescription? or just that you can’t bring it in to the country? If you need a prescription, how would one suggest going about getting it? I’d much rather my insurance cover moda.

As for Adrafinil, I understand it is cheaper, but there is some concern for liver damage due to the metabolisation of it into moda. How would one suggest cycling it? How hard is it to get up my way? Any recommended sites that sell it? I’ve looked on BN and PF as BBB suggested those sites for other supps.

I remember reading that one person took it on a mon-fri and took weekends off. They mentioned being a bit slow on monday when they started to cycle it up again, and that saturday they still felt it pretty strong due to it being in the system still.

would you guys suggest instead starting on sunday and finishing thursday? this way you still have it’s effects friday, and are primed easily come monday. maybe? Or taking a larger dose monday, instead of friday as they had done (if I recall correctly they were taking 300mg and doubled it on friday).

I’d love to answer these questions myself through experimentation, but sadly I can’t since I am unable to locate a source. lol

Also, I’ve been looking at a few of these things and come up with some stack ideas, but I still want to tweak them a bit.

how much do you guys spend a month on your nootropics? What would you consider a reasonable price for these things? 50, 100, 150 dollars a month? I’m sure at 150 you won’t be buying just one or two things however. [/quote]

Welcome to the club Battle

The general consensus from most, and strongly suggested by myself, is to start with a B complex vitamin, vinpocetine and DMAE.

Start doses for Vinpo and DMAE low, like 10mg/200mg aday.

Gradually triple that over a period of a couple weeks.

While you are doing that read and re-read this thread. I’ve been through it three times.

Oh, and I’m partial to Power Drive, sold right here on this site.

[quote]Thomas Gabriel wrote:
At that point he will give you either an SNRI, bupriprion, or moda. [/quote]

Tom,

I have heard from a few that complaining of day-time drowsiness is the ticket to getting moda.

FYI

[quote]Battle Pope wrote:
how much do you guys spend a month on your nootropics? What would you consider a reasonable price for these things? 50, 100, 150 dollars a month? I’m sure at 150 you won’t be buying just one or two things however. [/quote]

Vinpo + DMAE can be had for less than 15 bucks a month

I’ve been taking 4-600mg of DMAE for the past 2 weeks first thing in the morning. I love the stuff.

I really feel “better” all day long.

Especially post-workout where my brain was usually lagging behind. Now, I’m really not that wiped out (in my head) PWO.

Good stuff.

Now I’d like to give some other noops a go. But not for a bit.

[quote]B rocK wrote:
I’ve been taking 4-600mg of DMAE for the past 2 weeks first thing in the morning. I love the stuff.

[/quote]

Nice work. I have found 600mg of DMAE to be my sweet spot too - 200mg in Power Drive and a couple extra 200mg caps to boot.

You gettin in a B complex, Creatine and Vitamin D3 to boot?

I have found B complex to be like a little turbo booster for noops

well apparently DMAE is a banned substance in canada. and a quick google search actually led me back to a thread here, where some one mentioned a bunch of other stuff being banned:

“DMAE is also on the banned list for supplements, as are Bovine/porcine adrenal extract (containing adrenocortical hormones), Vitamin A greater than 10,000 IU, GotuKola extract, Theobromine, Zinc Pyrithione, TEA Salicylate, L-Tryptophan, and L-carnitine.”
and yohimbine (because that was what the thread was about).

hmmm Gonna need to get me a pill pushing doctor. I guess I’ll have to do my homework and bring in such a wealth of information the doc will just let me have what I want.
(one can only hope! but if I was a doc and some one dropped 300 pages of info on my desk for something, i’d probably give it to them).

in other news, I’m not pleased with health canada. not pleased at all.