Who has experienced full recovery of their mental function?

[movbikwaet]

I am for now assuming this is possible.


I have been researching this and it quickly led me to treating it as a mild traumatic brain injury.

Looking at mild traumatic brain injury, it seems a full recovery is possible with:

Good diet (antioxidants and protein)
Suppliments (magnesium, B vitamins, omega 3)
Exercise (Promotes brain recovery, and reduces stress)
Meditation (to retune the brain)

Reading a lot of studies on TBI, magnesium, BCAAs, B vitamins, L-carnitine and exercise strongly promote whats called neurogenesis, this is growth of brain cells with new connections being formed, even growth of the hippocampus which shrinks during depression.
In severe TBI, There are even cases of people missing parts of their brain recovering some function by whats called brain plasticity, where the brain rewires itself and compensates for the missing part.
So if this can happen I cant see why a full recovery from drug induced damage isnt possible.

Some of the neccesary nutrients needed are also common deficiencies (magnesium and vitamin D).
From what I have read it seems the brain will adapt to what you can throw at it, it is assumed now you can raise your intelligence through mental exercises. Also the brain can upregulate receptors if needed.
Speaking to a psychologist and psychiatrist, derealization and such is stress induced, and there is no such thing as permanent brain damage from drugs, after research on how the mind works this makes sense.

homeostasis is also important, so not drinking or smoking, keeping regular sleeping patterns, exercising and eating the same time each day is important.


What have peoples experiences been like?

 

[gman2008]

After more then 15 years of serious drug (various drugs) and alcohol abuse this subject really interests me! I have quit drugs and alcohol for over 3 months now (don't even take legal drugs painkillers etc). I am planning to abstain for at least a year hopefully for good. After 3 months my head is clearer but still depressed and unmotivated to do anything.....i know i have done ALOT of damage to my brain specially with mdma, butane gas and alcohol....hopefully your right and and my brain will recover, only time will tell.

 

[movbikwaet]

After more then 15 years of serious drug (various drugs) and alcohol abuse this subject really interests me! I have quit drugs and alcohol for over 3 months now (don't even take legal drugs painkillers etc). I am planning to abstain for at least a year hopefully for good. After 3 months my head is clearer but still depressed and unmotivated to do anything.....i know i have done ALOT of damage to my brain specially with mdma, butane gas and alcohol....hopefully your right and and my brain will recover, only time will tell.

If you plan to abstain and recover it takes more than just time.

If you want advice I would suggest devoting a year to recovery, with exercise, diet(and supplements), meditation and forcing yourself to do things if you have to.

 

[gman2008]

If you plan to abstain and recover it takes more than just time.

If you want advice I would suggest devoting a year to recovery, with exercise, diet(and supplements), meditation and forcing yourself to do things if you have to.

I understand what your saying....easier said then done though i have spent most of the last 2 months in bed. The first month i was weight lifting and feeling fantastic but soon as the second month hit i dont know what happened been sleeping over 12-16 hours a night then eating then back to bed on the laptop.
Gonna try my best to snap out of it on the new year and set myself some goals.

 

[chrisalt]

After more then 15 years of serious drug (various drugs) and alcohol abuse this subject really interests me! I have quit drugs and alcohol for over 3 months now (don't even take legal drugs painkillers etc). I am planning to abstain for at least a year hopefully for good. After 3 months my head is clearer but still depressed and unmotivated to do anything.....i know i have done ALOT of damage to my brain specially with mdma, butane gas and alcohol....hopefully your right and and my brain will recover, only time will tell.

Good luck man. I read the part about the butane gas and it struck a nerve. I only did it a handful of times but I have huffed gasoline and shoe polish when I was a teen and had no money. That shit is truly disgusting and harmful.

About the MDMA I did up to 10 pills a week for 4 years. This was 5 years ago. I have such anxiety and depression it's unbearable. I feel no better sober (even 5 years later). I'm still addicted to benzos and I'm finally giving up a 3.5g a day weed habit after 11 years. So this is more then likely why I am still fucked.

I hope you guys are right about the recovery because if not I dunno how me or a lot of people I know are gonna see 30.

 

[DooMMooD]

I'm probably at about 98% of where I used to be mentally before I started doing drugs. Everythings still there, but just not QUITE back to 100%. Almost as if i've been slowed by fractions of milliseconds. Been on subs for a year, down to .875mg, havent' done another drug besides smoking pot and rolling once this summer, since February.

My brain is my greatest asset, so for me 98% isn't cool, despite (not trying to brag) being well above most people. Those few nanoseconds or whatever I've been slowed down to me make a difference.

So it does get better. I dunno if i'll ever be 100% again though.

You're right that your brain will "adapt", but those new adaptations may mean that you'll never be the same as you were before. Based on the inherent nature of the word "adapt", which includes change. Meaning your brain is changed. Not necessarily in a worse way, but still changed.

 

[nervousone]

My problems with questions like this is how do we know what 100% is? If I have been a drug addict for 12 years and I clean up, I mean, I don't think it is fair to assume I would feel the same after 12 years even if I was sober the whole time! The body is constantly changing; not to mention everyones drug use history as well as individual neurochemistry is different as well.

Rather than stressing about being "100%" again just stick to you plan of eating a healthy diet, exercising, and meditating. Everything will fall in to place

 

[gman2008]

Good luck man. I read the part about the butane gas and it struck a nerve. I only did it a handful of times but I have huffed gasoline and shoe polish when I was a teen and had no money. That shit is truly disgusting and harmful.

About the MDMA I did up to 10 pills a week for 4 years. This was 5 years ago. I have such anxiety and depression it's unbearable. I feel no better sober (even 5 years later). I'm still addicted to benzos and I'm finally giving up a 3.5g a day weed habit after 11 years. So this is more then likely why I am still fucked.

I hope you guys are right about the recovery because if not I dunno how me or a lot of people I know are gonna see 30.

Thanks for the encouragement man. Try to give up the benzos and weed (not at the same time) that must play a big part in you still feeling rough!

 

[movbikwaet]

I hope you guys are right about the recovery because if not I dunno how me or a lot of people I know are gonna see 30.

Well its not me, my psychologist thinks the brain can recover.



98% is good, the 2% can be put down to aging.

I have 2 friends, one who suffered a physical TBI, he was pretty bad but somewhat recovered well in a few years and he did not even look after his health. (so so diet, smokes, cocaine).

My other friend who is not quiet as sharp from a few pills but he gets wasted every weekend, he is otherwise very healthy.

All these people still drink.


Yes speaking of %s is bad, what I would consider recovered is being able to present similar: bodylanguage, speech patterns, mechanical tasks(driving, cleaning), living a life functioning on the same level as previously.

 

[Foreigner]

My recovery from MDMA abuse involved refined diet, supplements, exercise, and devoting myself to something I was passionate about. If you don't know your passion then I suggest you start looking. An active interest in something will rekindle those neurons.

After that, I took a specific nootropics regimen for about 3-4 months, and did a heavy dose of LSD once a month. I don't get depressed nearly as much now.

The biggest trigger for any kind of depression these days is stress.

 

[KingBlueTwista]

You're completely on the right track mate. Exercise, meditation, good nutrition and supplements have been integral in my (ongoing) recovery. I used (and abused) drugs for about 4 solid years, every day, high as fuck on whatever I could get my hands on, since about the age of 16. What fucked me up the most was, I believe, mega-sessions of mephedrone (we're talking 48 hours round the clock dosing), ridiculous doses of MDMA (a few times at ~1g) and simply crazy concoctions of psychedelic drugs. I quit the mindfuck rampages about 3 months ago. There's only so long that insanity can rule you, before you become a vegetable.

But trust me, it gets better every day. Personally I feel that meditation has been the most crucial aspect in regaining my former mental capabilities. Done properly, it synchronizes brain-waves across the entire brain structure, creates harmony between the various areas and I imagine along with this, the different neurotransmitter systems. This is key, as drugs, especially prolonged and varied use imbalance NT systems. Even in healthy people, brain-waves are not usually in sync across the entire brain. Disharmony between brain-wave frequencies across different areas correlates significantly with mental illnesses of all kinds. It therefore seems, theoretically, and also experientially, either that meditation practice can heavily assist in reversing the damage, or speed up the process of the reformation of neural networks into a pattern conducive to health of mind. The amount of meditation I've had to do to get this far is not insignificant, I usually practice for around 2 hours a day. But then again the damage we have done to ourselves is not insignificant either.

You also require the building blocks with which to rebuild your brain, so nutrition and supplementation are very important. Nutrition-wise eat lots of vegetables, focusing on greens especially, lean meats of all kinds, fish, berries and nuts. Avoid anything sugary as much as possible, especially sweets and cereals. Some fruits are okay, but generally the sugar to nutrient ratio is unfavourable. Sugar is an inflammatory, which will slow down the healing process, and also makes your insulin levels fluctuate wildly, which is terrible for your mood and general brain recovery. Recent peer-reviewed research correlates insulin resistance, which comes from eating sugar in reasonable amounts, with the onset of Alzheimer's disease later in life, so I'm sure you can imagine the detrimental effects it has in the interim.

Supplements you should take you've already mostly listed, although I'd also take a good multi-vitamin (source natural's 'men's life force multiple' is excellent, and good value as far as they go. There are a LOT of shit multivits out there that will probably do you more harm than good, so be sure to do thorough research) and 'macrolife's macro greens'. Further down the road of recovery I'd recommend looking into Piracetam, as that helps you also to regain and even surpass previous functionality, especially in the memory and language department. But I'd save that for a while, you want to return to relative equilibrium before you start tinkering with the structure of your brain again.

Daily exercise is also very integral, as one of the most effective ways to release BDNF, short for Brain Derived Neurotrophic Factor, which basically promotes the creation and survivability of neurons. Plus it also makes you feel good, which is also key to an effective recovery. You need to be in a good mood to do the things which you enjoy, and as Foreigner above me said, devoting yourself to something you are passionate about is also very important. If your brain has nothing to grow for, why would it grow at all? Hence why BDNF is severely lowered in chronically depressed patients. The patterns it forms correlate with what you feed it, sensorially and conceptually, guided by the energies of emotion.

Socializing is also crucial for brain health. It activates many brain areas and keeps you content. Even if you feel like you don't need people, you will notice the difference in your mood when they are prominent in your life (unless you are a clinical psychopath). Oh, one last thing, play Dual-N-Back! Daily training for >20 minutes has been shown to increase fluid intelligence (which is basically logical ability, ability to see the connections between things). Here's a link - http://themindflow.com/flash.html. I think that's it. If there's anything you wanna prod me about feel free to ask

And best of luck to you my friend! Keep us updated on your progress.

 

[KingBlueTwista]

Ha I just realised I didn't really answer your question.

My recovery is nowhere near complete, but I have come some way with a strict daily regime of an hour of exercise, two hours of meditation, half an hour of dual'n'back, good food and keeping the brain active with things I enjoy like reading philosophy and playing guitar. In some ways I feel like I may eventually surpass my previous capacities, that is not to say I am thankful that I fell into that soul-sapping vortex of chemical annihilation, but I am also not resentful of it. Suffering is integral in the forging of a man. A Phoenix rises from ashes alone.