An Experience with Modafinil(erowid.org)
erowid.org
An Experience with Modafinil
https://erowid.org/experiences/exp.php?ID=100310
343 comments
Modafinil is a pretty amazing drug. The come down after one use isn’t too bad. But if you’ve been using it daily for a week, the comedown is BRUTAL: pretty much feel like you have zero energy and feel like laying prone for 8 hours.
Once did 48 straight awake on it and felt wide awake 36 hours in…
Distinctly remember the 1st time I took it. Was perhaps 8pm at night and I swore it was 8am in the morning and I’d just had an amazing sleep: felt completely wide awake and alert.
Once did 48 straight awake on it and felt wide awake 36 hours in…
Distinctly remember the 1st time I took it. Was perhaps 8pm at night and I swore it was 8am in the morning and I’d just had an amazing sleep: felt completely wide awake and alert.
A friend of mine has used this before and they did alternating low ~30mg doses that same someone had previously used a similar dose Adderall in highschool and early college and preferred the feeling of Modafinil.
They told me they had read multiple studies before hand as well as personal accounts (such as from the venerable https://www.gwern.net/).
That person told me that the feeling was less intense but enough to keep the significantly longer periods of focus without feeling complete lock-in like you might experience on other similar drugs. That said, they also did say the dehydration was heavy and to keep that in mind.
They said the reason they alternated was they had found that given the longer 15 hour-ish half-life they felt effects strong enough the following day that if they dosed again it started making them feel uncomfortable. That said they are typically very sensitive to most substances. They also felt that you should do your dose early enough, 7-8am, so that by the time 1am or so rolls around you can still get mostly a normal sleep.
They also told me that one time they had done multiple consecutive doses and the come down depressive like symptoms were just as bad as the same symptoms from coming off consecutive doses of Adderall. They thought that if you're prone to dangerous depression this one might not be for you.
They did not endorse doing this but to each their own.
They told me they had read multiple studies before hand as well as personal accounts (such as from the venerable https://www.gwern.net/).
That person told me that the feeling was less intense but enough to keep the significantly longer periods of focus without feeling complete lock-in like you might experience on other similar drugs. That said, they also did say the dehydration was heavy and to keep that in mind.
They said the reason they alternated was they had found that given the longer 15 hour-ish half-life they felt effects strong enough the following day that if they dosed again it started making them feel uncomfortable. That said they are typically very sensitive to most substances. They also felt that you should do your dose early enough, 7-8am, so that by the time 1am or so rolls around you can still get mostly a normal sleep.
They also told me that one time they had done multiple consecutive doses and the come down depressive like symptoms were just as bad as the same symptoms from coming off consecutive doses of Adderall. They thought that if you're prone to dangerous depression this one might not be for you.
They did not endorse doing this but to each their own.
If you're bipolar, you probably already know to be careful with drugs, but I just want to reiterate that it also extends to modafinil.
I'm type-II bipolar, so it's not too severe, but I could tell the moda was making my manic swings worse. It was subtle, and I didn't realize it until I had a few significant(for me) manic episodes. Stopping it seems to have helped. I was a little worried about 'kindling' and causing a permanent worsening of symptoms but that doesn't seem to have happened.
I'm type-II bipolar, so it's not too severe, but I could tell the moda was making my manic swings worse. It was subtle, and I didn't realize it until I had a few significant(for me) manic episodes. Stopping it seems to have helped. I was a little worried about 'kindling' and causing a permanent worsening of symptoms but that doesn't seem to have happened.
Modafinil had only major flaw in my experience, but it was significant enough for me to stop taking it; it made it very difficult to stick to a 24-hour circadian rhythm.
To illustrate, if I got a full night sleep, then took modafinil, I would be up for easily 18 hours without feeling any urge to sleep...which seems great until it's 5am, and you need to be at work again in 4 hours.
The apparent solution to the problem is just take modafinil again in the morning. This worked for a while, but there's a limit to how much modafinil can cover a sleep debt. While modafinil had a strong effect preventing the symptoms of sleep deprivation, it had an even stronger effect blocking the capacity to sleep. Modafinil can lead to a very strange and unpleasant feeling of desperately needing to sleep and not being able to.
To illustrate, if I got a full night sleep, then took modafinil, I would be up for easily 18 hours without feeling any urge to sleep...which seems great until it's 5am, and you need to be at work again in 4 hours.
The apparent solution to the problem is just take modafinil again in the morning. This worked for a while, but there's a limit to how much modafinil can cover a sleep debt. While modafinil had a strong effect preventing the symptoms of sleep deprivation, it had an even stronger effect blocking the capacity to sleep. Modafinil can lead to a very strange and unpleasant feeling of desperately needing to sleep and not being able to.
Very effective, but quickly diminishing returns for me. If I do one pill a week, that day is awesome. But as soon as I step it up to 2 I'm overwhelmed and might even take a nap I wouldn't have otherwise. This is only 100mg.
But the reason I stopped taking it is that I'm just a salaried employee. It doesn't matter if I'm super focused or not. I'm still getting paid the same amount. There's no point in artificially elevating myself.
But the reason I stopped taking it is that I'm just a salaried employee. It doesn't matter if I'm super focused or not. I'm still getting paid the same amount. There's no point in artificially elevating myself.
I sort of fell down the rabbit hole of nootropics over the past year, of which Modafinil is a frequent recommendation.
I don't know if I would really recommend nootropics to the average person (because there is risk involved, and many of these substances have had very little in the way of human studies), but it's been an interesting journey. It was kind of a pandemic hobby I picked up.
My favorites are Aniracetam and Phenylpiracetam. (Both have become increasingly difficult to source though, despite still being legal in the US.) On top of a stack of supplements (magnesium, vitamin D, zinc, and fish oil).
I don't know if I would really recommend nootropics to the average person (because there is risk involved, and many of these substances have had very little in the way of human studies), but it's been an interesting journey. It was kind of a pandemic hobby I picked up.
My favorites are Aniracetam and Phenylpiracetam. (Both have become increasingly difficult to source though, despite still being legal in the US.) On top of a stack of supplements (magnesium, vitamin D, zinc, and fish oil).
I've been using Modafinil daily for about 2,5 years and I am currently under its effect.
I buy it online and pay with Bitcoins.
I use armodafinil if I want more focus, and I use modafinil if I am tired.
I don't take the full dose, which is 150mg (armodafinil) /200mg (modafinil)- I break the tablets into 4 and pop them if I feel like I am unfocused or tired. In the course of the day, I rarely take more than 1 full dose. For reference, I know of people who take it for narcolepsy who routinely consume 8 full doses a day (200mg x 8).
For me it's been a clear net benefit without any noticeable side effects. I think it makes me about 20% "smarter"/"better", let's me learn and achieve more and generally improves my life.
My experience is that it keeps you wide awake for a very long time. Highly potent. Absolutely no focusing activity for me like dextroamphetamine / amphetamine / methamphetamine. As a result ADHD treatment value is low. Gave me some nasty joint swelling rather quickly so had to stop using it. If I were to market it I’d call it “clean coffee”
Tried it a few years ago.
It does work.
The feeling of laser sharp focus and high energy is quite pleasant and is clearly helping to work for long hours.
But it ended up with a severe burn-out in my case.
Not 100% sure it was the Modafinil, but retrospectively I think it made me drain my batteries a lot quicker.
My advice, if you need to work a lot, the best nootropic you can get is good sleep, healthy food and a bit of caffeine.
The feeling of laser sharp focus and high energy is quite pleasant and is clearly helping to work for long hours.
But it ended up with a severe burn-out in my case.
Not 100% sure it was the Modafinil, but retrospectively I think it made me drain my batteries a lot quicker.
My advice, if you need to work a lot, the best nootropic you can get is good sleep, healthy food and a bit of caffeine.
I used Modafinil almost daily for a few years. It was amazing at times, and some of my projects' success I can attribute directly to Modafinil. One of the main downsides was (what I assume was?) the lactose they use as a binder (if you get the cheap Indian variant at least) wreaked havoc on my digestive tract.
Over time I started to get panic attacks, culminating in a finaly, massive, life altering experience. I haven't touched it since. I don't think it was soley due to the drug alone--but it almost certainly didn't help.
Modafinil is awesome, but it's not a cure for whatever underlying problem you have.
Over time I started to get panic attacks, culminating in a finaly, massive, life altering experience. I haven't touched it since. I don't think it was soley due to the drug alone--but it almost certainly didn't help.
Modafinil is awesome, but it's not a cure for whatever underlying problem you have.
Note if you are a NCAA athlete or subject to USADA/WADA rules, Modafinil (aka Provigil) is strictly banned in competition.
Don't destroy a scholarship/career messing with stuff without knowing the consequences.
Don't destroy a scholarship/career messing with stuff without knowing the consequences.
I experimented with Modafinil back in 2013 when I was working on a startup like project, where I had a lot to do in different areas (hardware, software, backend, frontend etc etc).
Modafinil really helped me concentrate. But sometimes it was also a "miss". That is, I would focus on something totally unrelated to my project. For instance, one day I spent 6 hours comparing Vegas hotel room prices over different days of a month.
The side effects were annoying, to say the least. Itchy ears and eyes, dry mouth, occasional anxiety, talkativeness etc.
Modafinil really helped me concentrate. But sometimes it was also a "miss". That is, I would focus on something totally unrelated to my project. For instance, one day I spent 6 hours comparing Vegas hotel room prices over different days of a month.
The side effects were annoying, to say the least. Itchy ears and eyes, dry mouth, occasional anxiety, talkativeness etc.
So weird... I just had a dream about Modafinil last night for no apparent reason and then I wake up to see this post on HN. What an odd coincidence.
I haven't thought about Modafinil in years but back when 'Limitless' came out and I was in my mid-twenties I experimented with it very briefly, along with a host of other "nootropics", but the risk of Stevens-Johnson syndrome put me off of it pretty quickly. It still shocks me when I think about how foolhardy I was to order this Rx drug from overseas.
I haven't thought about Modafinil in years but back when 'Limitless' came out and I was in my mid-twenties I experimented with it very briefly, along with a host of other "nootropics", but the risk of Stevens-Johnson syndrome put me off of it pretty quickly. It still shocks me when I think about how foolhardy I was to order this Rx drug from overseas.
Also see this mothership of information:
https://www.gwern.net/Modafinil
https://www.gwern.net/Modafinil
My personal experience was that modafinil was actually activated or significantly potentiated by caffeine. The stack together was like speed.
I'm taking Ritalin for years and it is super helpful.
It puts me much closer to who I want to be than who I would be without it: Im much more motivated to do things I enjoy doing.
I stopped taking it half a year ago because I started to get annoyed by my wife do to her slightly messines.
Now I need to find the right balance.
For me this is the same thing as glasses.
We should talk much more open about such things.
I do have adhs and hard sleep issues just as a side note.
It puts me much closer to who I want to be than who I would be without it: Im much more motivated to do things I enjoy doing.
I stopped taking it half a year ago because I started to get annoyed by my wife do to her slightly messines.
Now I need to find the right balance.
For me this is the same thing as glasses.
We should talk much more open about such things.
I do have adhs and hard sleep issues just as a side note.
Mostly all true. I have taken modafinil quite a bit. You can buy it in India from a chemist for next to nothing. If you take it every day for a couple of weeks in small amounts the efficacy does get less. If you increase the dose you don't get more returns. Used sparingly for study or concentrating it is nice. It is also good if you are tired and have to do some long task that requires little but constant attention - driving or flying for example. Take as much as you need, do your job then sleep, all good. Piracetam is also to be recommended. Again don't do it all the time and be sensible. Smart drugs work but getting something for nothing is always tricky...
I took it for years alongside Dexedrine for ADHD, then my insurance stopped covering it and the cost for Provigil was prohibitively expensive (like $1700 a month), so I went off it. I think the patent expired so you can get a generic now, but unfortunately, getting prescribed it again in addition to the Dexedrine has just been more of a pain than it’s seemed worth. I’ve been able to get Nuvigil (very similar chemically and created for the express purpose of extending the modafanil patent) scripts easily, but it legitimately doesn’t work for me, sadly.
Anyway, I feel like I was extremely productive on 400mg of Modafanil a day, and I understand why people have used it for nootropics.
Anyway, I feel like I was extremely productive on 400mg of Modafanil a day, and I understand why people have used it for nootropics.
I read this and cant help but think this man a highly irresponsible person.
I generally approve of anyone modifying their own consciousness on there own time. And I get what he did ended up harmless and even beneficial, but if you are going to experiment with psychoactive pharmaceuticals, do it on you day off for your first ever does. This guy not only went to work under the influence of drug that he didn't know what the effects on his person would be but did so in job were he is directly treating other people at a hospital. I get where we come form here there is a culture of move fast and break things but maybe not when those things are potentially other people.
I generally approve of anyone modifying their own consciousness on there own time. And I get what he did ended up harmless and even beneficial, but if you are going to experiment with psychoactive pharmaceuticals, do it on you day off for your first ever does. This guy not only went to work under the influence of drug that he didn't know what the effects on his person would be but did so in job were he is directly treating other people at a hospital. I get where we come form here there is a culture of move fast and break things but maybe not when those things are potentially other people.
Is this person insane? Four hours of sleep and six cups of coffee per day? Lay off the drugs and get a good 8 hours sleep.
Caffeine, cocaine, amphetamine... it all boils down to dopamine:
https://podcastnotes.org/huberman-lab/episode-39-controlling...
Highly recommended podcast! https://hubermanlab.com/controlling-your-dopamine-for-motiva...
Highly recommended podcast! https://hubermanlab.com/controlling-your-dopamine-for-motiva...
I love modafinal. I was able to get a legit prescription for it from a doctor for "Adult ADD"
You are _awake_ but not the way caffeine or ritalin do it. You're not buzzing. Just _awake_.
However, it didn't do anything for my ADD so I didn't use it for more than a month. For a while I used my remaining supply to de-jet-lag myself after an international flight. (Pre-pandemic, I'd do an international flight about once/month.) It worked well for this. I'd use it to stay awake the first full day I landed, then my clock would be fine.
You are _awake_ but not the way caffeine or ritalin do it. You're not buzzing. Just _awake_.
However, it didn't do anything for my ADD so I didn't use it for more than a month. For a while I used my remaining supply to de-jet-lag myself after an international flight. (Pre-pandemic, I'd do an international flight about once/month.) It worked well for this. I'd use it to stay awake the first full day I landed, then my clock would be fine.
Sometimes it causes anxiety borderline with terror. Not worth it.
I experimented with modafinil for a week once. Early on, it seemed great—I was productive and had a good mood. By the end of the week, I really didn't feel any different from baseline, and it was exacerbating my bad habit of clenching my jaw during focused work, leading to soreness in my face by the end of the day. I did not perceive the benefits to be enough to continue.
Modafinil is great while you use it for some specific situations, but it’s a bad idea to take one everyday. From my experience, doing even half dosage everyday made my body feel sick, my muscles were tense all day and overly exhausted. There are other drugs that are way better than modafinil.
I’ve wanted to try Modafinil for a long time but I’m too nervous to order it online. My doctor won’t prescribe it to me, saying it is only for extreme narcoleptics, though I think the real reason is that its street value is pretty high… because it works.
Modafinil user of 4+ years speaking from experience, the benefits of this drug outweigh the risks and adverse reaction in my case.
I was prescribed Vyvanse but quit it (flushed the remainder of the pills in the bottle down the toilet), I had to stop when I felt the clammy hands, cold sweat and heart palpitations. On top of that, it made me feel like a zombie.
Modafinil provided me with the calmness to concentrate and ability to stick to something for hours on end without the feeling of depletion after hours of taken an amphetamine, with the only adverse reaction being a foul smell in urine.
I was prescribed Vyvanse but quit it (flushed the remainder of the pills in the bottle down the toilet), I had to stop when I felt the clammy hands, cold sweat and heart palpitations. On top of that, it made me feel like a zombie.
Modafinil provided me with the calmness to concentrate and ability to stick to something for hours on end without the feeling of depletion after hours of taken an amphetamine, with the only adverse reaction being a foul smell in urine.
[deleted]
I used to use this when freelancing and a big deadline was approaching, I found it very helpful. It felt like I could get at least twice as much done in a day.
However I stopped using it after getting into a minor motorbike accident. Another motorbike was driving on the shoulder (pretty typical in Thailand) and I didn't spot her while turning at an intersection, even after checking both directions. The tunnel vision side-effect is no joke!
However I stopped using it after getting into a minor motorbike accident. Another motorbike was driving on the shoulder (pretty typical in Thailand) and I didn't spot her while turning at an intersection, even after checking both directions. The tunnel vision side-effect is no joke!
Regulations are sticky. The FDA follows the precautionary principle. Political game theory incentivizes restricting what the electorate can do rather than giving them more freedoms, and being blamed for whatever harm may fall upon them from their licentiousness. Reversing drug laws specifically seems to require both clear evidence of benefit, and widespread support from the public and media. This leads me to believe that modafinil will takes ages to be rescheduled.
[0] https://www.gwern.net/Modafinil#fn28
[1] https://www.gwern.net/docs/modafinil/2002-deroche-gamonet.pd...