Thursday, August 16, 2007

Adrafinil Adventures, part five

A.A. put it best when he told me that TANSTAAFL in medicine. No matter the benefits gained, the person also incurs drawbacks. Sometimes, it's a matter of whether the pluses outweigh the minuses, such as injecting heroin into your veins for a high, and obtaining that heroin-chic look, in exchange for ruining yourself. Other times, it's a matter of if you can combat the downsides with more medicine, such as weaning yourself off of heroin via methadone.

The main benefits, as I see them:

Increased alertness, without the jitters associated with caffeine consumption. Very sweet.

Increased focus and concentration. Useful at work.

Mood elevation. Who knew?

Possibly more outgoing, as I was talking nicely to my laptop, rather than cursing at it.

The main drawbacks:

Quick addiction. On Friday morning, after I'd taken three in two days, I decided to not take any, when I woke up and my first thought was to pop one. Also, I did seem to be a little more depressed, i.e. back to normal, though this could be because I hadn't run for a little while.

Response suppressant, or the "I'm a robot" factor. Friday morning, I did take one at 0800 at work. We normally get brunch around 1030, so I decided not to eat breakfast, especially since I wasn't hungry. It turned out I was, when I got some food at 1100, and my whole body was shaking while I walked. I actually did need food.

Not sleeping. I like sleep, but until that Wednesday night, I wasn't sure how much.

Possible paranoia, moreso than normal.

The final judgment? I take one in lieu of morning coke or coffee. Per pill, it is cheaper than a cup of coffee, and a little more expensive than a twenty ounce bottle of coke. But it has some amazing effects. I also limit myself to one a day, absent extenuating circumstances.

I do note that it takes a while to metabolize, and wonder how modafinil, or new derivatives coming down the pipeline, would affect me. I also will start to plan the mad quest for staying up for 100 hours, and will document that for your pleasure. My body is a laboratory.

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