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Tips for a nootropic newbie?

TheAppleCore

TheAppleCore

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Joined
Jul 14, 2007
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It just occurred to me this morning that I'd like to start experimenting with a nootropic regimen. However, being far too lazy to sift through dozens of pages of Big & Dandy threads, I decided to see if I could get some quick tips on a silver spoon. ;) I really know next to nothing about them. I'd like something that is generally considered safe as a daily supplement, but also has a noteworthy effect. If anything exists that exhibits a boost to short term memory, I'd be interested. I consider that one of my weakest cognitive faculties.
 
TheAppleCore said:
It just occurred to me this morning that I'd like to start experimenting with a nootropic regimen. However, being far too lazy to sift through dozens of pages of Big & Dandy threads, I decided to see if I could get some quick tips on a silver spoon. ;) I really know next to nothing about them. I'd like something that is generally considered safe as a daily supplement, but also has a noteworthy effect. If anything exists that exhibits a boost to short term memory, I'd be interested. I consider that one of my weakest cognitive faculties.
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I'm very interested in how this thread will go.

Working in a kitchen has shown me that my short-term memory is fucked.

(Sorry, I guess this was social material, delete this post if you wish my moderator bretheren.)
 
A tablespoon is way too much in my experience. 1/4 of a teaspoon is about 800-900mg depending on your batch, and it's my favorite dose, or maybe 1200mg sometimes. More than that seems to reduce its effectiveness for me. But you need to get a feel for it first or you may not notice the effects. But I bet you'll appreciate them. :)
 
I've tried a few nootropics, and I found piracetam together with a choline source (I usually took lecithin) the most worthwhile of any. The overall benefits of it seem to become more apparent over time as one cycles on and off of it, while at the same time there's a very tangible effect felt upon taking it even just once.
 
Is one normally suppose to "cycle" on and off nootropics, rather than just taking them daily or whatever? What would be a normal cycle? Do you have to taper at all?
 
A few of the reports I've read on piracetam mention it, which is where I got the idea. IME if I take piracetam for too long continuously, I get diminishing returns along with minor headaches. So it's always worked best for me when I've alternated 2 weeks on with 1 week off. And I've never tapered from it, to no ill effect.

Edit: Also, I've gotten nothing out of taking so-called "attack doses" on the first day or two of a piracetam regimen. I would bet that it's something dreamt up by piracetam vendors, for obvious reasons.
 
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Piracetam is your best bet for beginning with nootropics. I've been using it, cycling off for a week every couple of weeks, in combination with lecithin and it has been incredible for improving my memory, concentration and speed of thought.

One thing I must warn you about- piracetam potentiates just about every psychoactive drug I've used it with. Tread cautiously with your doses when you begin experimenting with it.
 
Xorkoth said:
A tablespoon is way too much in my experience. 1/4 of a teaspoon is about 800-900mg depending on your batch, and it's my favorite dose, or maybe 1200mg sometimes. More than that seems to reduce its effectiveness for me. But you need to get a feel for it first or you may not notice the effects. But I bet you'll appreciate them. :)
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My stuff says 1/4 teaspoon = 700 milligrams. I guess I never stopped taking the "attack dose." I meant "teaspoon." Personally, I never found the benefits to be worth that horrible taste day in and day out.

Then again, I have had no particular reason to be smart anytime recently. :D

That will change in a couple months when I take my TESL course. Maybe I'll try it again then. Then again, maybe wandering around SE Asia with a tub of crystalline white powder isn't the best idea.... :\

Whatever you do, steer clear of aniracetam. Too dose-dependent. Seemed like a yucky stim to me. :(
 
Thanks for the info thus far. I'd heard good things about lecithin as well. I'm a bit disappointed that piracetam isn't available off-the-shelf though.
 
junctionalfunkie said:
My stuff says 1/4 teaspoon = 700 milligrams. I guess I never stopped taking the "attack dose." I meant "teaspoon." Personally, I never found the benefits to be worth that horrible taste day in and day out.

Then again, I have had no particular reason to be smart anytime recently. :D

That will change in a couple months when I take my TESL course. Maybe I'll try it again then. Then again, maybe wandering around SE Asia with a tub of crystalline white powder isn't the best idea.... :\

Whatever you do, steer clear of aniracetam. Too dose-dependent. Seemed like a yucky stim to me. :(
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Ugh, I dislike aniracetam too. It felt dirty to me.

I definitely do not recommend the "attack dose", at all. I'm telling you, it's more effective at 800-1200mg. Up to twice a day, though I usually just do once.

I usually take piracetam every couple of days or so. I used to cycle 2 weeks on and 1 week off or even take it daily for months, but I feel like it's overall helped me to keep my mind agile and even work out some childhood issues with focus I had, and I only so often think of it anymore.

TheAppleCore said:
Thanks for the info thus far. I'd heard good things about lecithin as well. I'm a bit disappointed that piracetam isn't available off-the-shelf though.
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Lecithin is good for sure... and natural. It contains choline, phosphatidylcholine, and phosphatidylserine, which helps protect the nerve cells.

I also highly recommend Hydergine, but you have to order it from overseas... it's not illegal but it's technically only available in the US by prescription. I very much found hydergine to be useful... at the time I was depressed and it really helped a lot to level out my moods. It also helped a lot to potentiate piracetam. I can't explain what exactly it did, but I liked it. When I get older I think I will take it daily. Our dear Dr. Hofmann, who invented it, took it every day for his entire life and he lived to 102 and was still spry and totally together until the very end.

I also like oxiracetam, though it's basically the same as piracetam, but different in an indefinable way, perhaps a bit more acute. I've recently obtained pramiracetam too, which is interesting... I got some great effects from it once and other times not really anything.
 
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I've tried piracetam on and off for a while. I have found it difficult to tell whether it is having a real effect or just imaginary. Colours seem slightly brighter and I feel cognitively a little sharper, but maybe this is just my imagination. It doesn't seem to have any unpleasant side effects apart from on the bank balance.

I have read about hydergine, and I have no doubt that it has effects on cerebral blood flow, but whether these are useful in a young person, I don't know. There is some question about the risk of cardiac fibrosis from ergot related compounds, so I have avoided.

Modafinil works fairly well for maintaining alertness e.g. for an all day exam, with few side effects.

I have found the best nootropic to be lots of cardiovascular exercise, a good diet and avoiding boozing. A good social network, learning foreign languages, a musical instrument etc. are good for the brain and great at staving off dementia. I would concentrate on those before trying to get a quick pharmaceutical fix. I looked into this area and couldn't find any good evidence for nootropics in healthy young adults. Maybe there will better evidence in the future. I used to get pharmaceutical grade GHB before it was re-classified here, and it was far superior to booze - no brain damage and no hangover. The government has our best interests at heart?
 
Are you buying piracetam in bulk powder? The pills are like 40 times more expensive than the bulk powder... you can get 250 grams for $20. 250 grams is a lot of piracetam.

I agree with your last paragraph. However, I do find piracetam to be quite useful for the correct purposes. I work as a computer programmer which requires a lot of complex thought, and juggling multiple projects simultaneously. When I take piracetam, everything is just easier. I find that it dramatically increases my ability to multi task and quickly link together concepts. I don't notice it really much at all if I take it and am not doing something intense with my brain.
 
Be wary of piracetam!

I'm not trying to be a fear-monger, but I believe it is capable of permanently altering the functionality of the blood-brain barrier in some individuals; additionally, there are reports of withdrawal reactions from piracetam that include myoclonic seizures.

Piracetam is not completely benign, I want to stress that point as emphatically as I can.

Most people will not have problems with it, but a few will.

I certainly would NOT recommend piracetam or other nootropics to Applecore.
 
^ Thanks for the educational post, Roger. The common assumption seems to be that piracetam can be treated like table sugar, which is a disturbing reminder to be careful whose words you believe...
 
No, it's not considered a nootropic.

There's also a lot of positive evidence of piracetam's effects. So definitely be wary, but I recommend trying piracetam responsibly to anyone who desires that kind of effect, and see what it does for you. It also has the potential to be extremely neuroprotective.
 
Not to derail the thread, but is there anyone besides me who has noticed no effect whatsoever from hydergine?
 
My biggest general advice is to add and subtract things one at a time and try to have a couple weeks at between changes. It is also good keep some notes about what effects you have gotten because you might give up your regimen for a while and want to start things up again but not quite remember which one's did what for you.

DMAE is cheap and to spite claims it doesn't cross the blood brain barrier it really does do something. The clue your getting to much is often a stiff neck, headaches, or way to many vivid dreams. I like the dreams though :)
 
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