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Provigil Extends Your Day?
John Mearns writes "It looks like before long all caffeine junkies will be able to ditch the bottle of Mountain Dew or cup of coffee in favor of pill. Its not a true stimulant so you don't get the "caffeine crash," just countless hours of alert attentiveness. " It's also
still in testing so it'll probably make you grow horns or something, and is
supposed to only be used for people who are sleepy during the day, but it raises
several interesting ethical questions.
I've used it. The longest I've ever stayed up is 40 hours or so. The only noticible side effect was a slight headache, but that could've been caused by any number of things (I get headaches a fair amount because I don't eat very well :/). Headaches are the most common reported side-effect by far.
.5 hours for each hour of wakefulness), that means I gained 22 hours of wakefulness.
Even after 40 hours of being awake, I was still at nearly full mental capactity and able to work, etc. I did not feel the normal symptoms of sleep deprevation at all (I've stayed awake too long many times, and I'm familiar with how it makes you feel). I did not feel high, either. I was just... awake. I also didn't feel many physical problems (sore back, sore legs, etc) like I expected to, but YMMV, of course.
Afterwards I slept about 9 hours and had a normal next day. By my calculations (figuring you normally sleep
You can find them on the internet if you look around enough. I am hesitant to mention sites, but there are two in the UK that sell 100mg pills. I have been unable to find the 200mg pills. They sell for about $145 + shipping ($15 or so) for 30 pills. That's $5.33 a pill. During my 40 hours awake, I took four, which works out to about $1 per hour.
Many people I tell this to think it would be a good idea to take them during finals. I must warn you that it's probably not a good idea because there is a very good chance your sleep schedule will get completely fucked up. For example, you may stay up for 32 hours, decide it's time for sleep, and then sleep through a final. In other words, I would take it a few times beforehand to get used to it before you decide to jump in and potentially fuck up something important.
He seemed to be getting along just fine, until about day 62 or so, and then he crashed, and crashed hard!
As I've learned the hard way in recent years, you NEED several hours of REM sleep a day. It's not just a matter of feeling "refreshed" in the morning, it's a big factor in mental health.
Provigal affects Birth Control!
I found a few references to possible birth defects as well, however not seriously sightable statements. Even the official website states that dosage during pregnancy should seriously consider the benefits to outweigh the risks.The strangest issue is that for a drug that has been around since the 70's there is very little data about interaction with other drugs and they just recommend you don't use alot of different types. Brings up something I remember hearing about a company in the past that found negative results and decided that they just "hadn't performed those tests". Who knows.
Buyer Beware.
I'm male though, so where do I order my emergency supply! :)
Garth/Darkstar
With Uberman's cycle, you end up getting more REM sleep every day than you would with 8 hours of consecutive sleep. Your brain learns to drop into REM sleep immediately, so each 20-30 minute nap is entirely REM, which adds up to between 2 and 3 hours of purely REM sleep per day, which is more than enough.
Exstacy can make you depressed
While it's true that Ecstacy can make you depressed, it's a bit unfair to say that depression is a side effect of the drug since there are steps one can take to prevent it.
At one point, I considered no longer using the drug because of this very fact. However, I did some research into how the drug works and why it causes depression. Basically, you get depressed because you either have too little seratonin in your brain for it to function normally or you've damaged the seratonin receptors in your brain to the point where you no longer have a sufficient number to support normal serotonin levels.
So, the goal is to counteract those affects in some way. In order to boost low seratonin levels, my friends and I take 5-HTP (the body's natural precursor to serotonin). This won't ensure high serotonin levels in all cases, but usually does. It's also important to maintain high levels of MAOs (monoamine oxidases IIRC...anti-oxidants...vitamin C, for example). The MAOs help your brain metabolize serotonin that is not recaptured by the receptors. If that serotonin isn't matoblized, it can cause brain damage. This is also why people taking MAOIs (the I is for inhibitors) should never take e.
So basically, if you're going to be using e anywhere close to regularly, go down to the local pharmacy/GNC and pick up some 5-HTP and some multi-vitamins (or however you feel like loading up on anti-oxidants). I can't offer any scientific evidence that this works, but within my circle of friends (about 30-45...all of whom follow this advice), not one person has complained about depression as a side effect of e.
Bottom line is: if you're going to do any drug, be educated about it. Read as much as you can about how it affects your body. There is a lot of misinformation on both sides of the issue, so think about the source of the information you read (i.e. trust the government about as much as the buy passed out on the floor with his face in a pool of drool).
"Don't blame me, I voted for Kodos!"
My test drive opinions, negatives first:
- headaches - Very distracting and not fixed with OTC remedies. I consider this a killer side effect. I saw this at both 100mg and 200mg.
- da jitters - well, if you are going all Cornholio, it is going to cut into your productivity. I went from juggling 5 different things at once to dropping three and fucking up one of the remaining two. Maybe you can train yourself to keep it all together.
- elevated blood pressure - This may have something to do with the headaches, but that feeling of impending aneurysm does not rock.
- dehydration - I fly through the water, and all of my piss smells really rank and chemical-like. There is a productivity hit to this I suppose, and it seems like more than that imposed by chugging coffee.
- rebound - the crash can be hard, and the duration of sleep is not really predictable. I tended to be irritable the day after, as well.
positive: you are slightly more alert. 100mg and I can still sleep no problem. in my chair. . .not good. 200mg and you are are awake, but more side effect manifestation.
DO NOT take 4 per shift like the guy up there. You are going to get prescription info from Slashdot?
Don't be a dumbass: check out the info on ANY drug before you take it. Know the maximum dose. Know the interactions. Know the side effects. Know if it is excreted by the liver or kidney if you have problems with one of them. If you are going to take the doctor out of the loop, who is going to look out for your sorry ass?