OP, I'm kind of in the same boat as you. I want to get off ADD medications and looking for alternatives. How are the lower doses working for you in regards to modafinil? Alos, how was your trial with Gotu Kola?
Well, it's funny that you ask, because lower doses (100mg max) actually do seem to work better. More makes me rather dull and unfocussed, it seems. My assumptions are hardly based on solid data though, since I've only been taking it for a few days. Also I still had some DL-Amph in my system when I started. Smoking is definetely bad - it doesn't make you feel like a jittery piece of shit, like it does when on amphetamines, but it definetely hinders the working mechanism of Moda and makes it even harder to enjoy the rather subtle shift in focus.
Dl-Amphetamine seems to increase negative effects too, I took a small dose of 5mg with moda, just to test. Also Moda started working better (or at all) only after a few days being off the DL-Amphetamines. Can't say if the same goes for Dexamphetamine though - but I guess I wouldn't want to try that combination anyways...
I'm also doing a daily journal, in which I write down the times of when I take moda, when I eat, if i drink coffee or smoke - and how much, and which supplements I take.
Just a few days of data here, like I said - but it seems that Gotu Kola and Vit-D add to the effet at least a little. I didn't notice anything from Gotu-Kola by itself by the way, but it seems like it could be a good complementary to Moda...?
Like I said, hard to judge the supplements. Guess I will leave a specific one out every other day, and also sometimes take none at all - that should make it easier to see if there are real benefits.
Oh, and for me coffee seems to add to the effect, but only up to 3 or 4 cups a day, then it gets worse. I read from a lot of people that coffee actually totally fucked up their stomachs when on "original" modafinil - maybe there's a difference in the generic formula that prevents this? I don't know.
Anyways, all in all I do prefer Moda even in the generic form to amphetamines and MPH at the moment. Just wish I had the real deal and no generic, though. I'm pretty sure that while it works, it definetely works less effective than real brand Modafinil - I can't actually draw the comparison, but it's allways been this way with generics for me...
But by all means - if one was looking for an alternative for add-meds, like I have been, I guess a try couldn't hurt...

Good thing is - practically no side-effects. Except a loss of healthy sleep, if taken too late in the day, that is :D