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I have been taking this supplement called Optimind. Has anybody else got any experiences to share in this regard?

 

https://www.getoptimind.com/

 

I feel like going on and on about it about how great it is but i don't want to sound like a commercial and secondly nobody will even believe me that it is actually that good.

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Never heard of it, but I'm always up for experimenting with these things. Especially if I ever have to go off my stimulant, I will definitely be looking around for alternatives. What exactly does it have in it? Vitamins & herbs? Amino acids? How long have you been taking it - and how do you know it's not placebo effect?

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Well ok. It's got precursors of dopamine and acetylcholine as well as catalysts which help the brain produce these neurotransmitters. I have been taking it for 6 months and the effects are still there. It is 100% non placebo. I play absolutely crazy chess and write code really fast when I am on it. It's like my vision is expanded three fold or something and it ialso does a lot of good to my motivation. I am always up for new challenges and don't feel afraid of talking to people when I'm on it.

I'd say that if you do believe in nootropics then either this or Alpha brain is a good option for you. you may want to check out alpha brain first because it is way more popular and has some 3000 reviews on amazon.com. 

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17 minutes ago, the maze runner said:

Well ok. It's got precursors of dopamine and acetylcholine as well as catalysts which help the brain produce these neurotransmitters. I have been taking it for 6 months and the effects are still there. It is 100% non placebo. I play absolutely crazy chess and write code really fast when I am on it. It's like my vision is expanded three fold or something and it ialso does a lot of good to my motivation. I am always up for new challenges and don't feel afraid of talking to people when I'm on it.

I'd say that if you do believe in nootropics then either this or Alpha brain is a good option for you. you may want to check out alpha brain first because it is way more popular and has some 3000 reviews on amazon.com. 

I just searched amazon and didn’t find either. What am I doing wrong?  ☺️ 

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I'll say that it's awesome that it's working for you.

For me I don't trust "proprietary blends". that don't have rcts behind it.

Additionally in the USA the FDA doesn't regulate supplements so you don't know what you are getting.

That said I do take or have taken supplements.

Aswaghanda, the sensoril type has evidence

NAC, I don't take it anymore but has promise for bipolar depression.

Etc.

My current meds are working wonderfully, so I don't see the benefit of adding unknown blends, even if it's spelled out on the list. if I would, id get the individual ingredients and mix them together. Cheaper that way.

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1 hour ago, argh said:

I'll say that it's awesome that it's working for you.

For me I don't trust "proprietary blends". that don't have rcts behind it.

Additionally in the USA the FDA doesn't regulate supplements so you don't know what you are getting.

That said I do take or have taken supplements.

Aswaghanda, the sensoril type has evidence

NAC, I don't take it anymore but has promise for bipolar depression.

Etc.

My current meds are working wonderfully, so I don't see the benefit of adding unknown blends, even if it's spelled out on the list. if I would, id get the individual ingredients and mix them together. Cheaper that way.

makes a lot of sense and certainly people have some skepticism buying into the notion that something like a pill can improve their brain. however, these blends that they have made have a long history of benefits(for the individual ingredients--bacopa monnieri, l tyrosine, l phenylalanine, huperzine a etc.) and they have just optimized the blend. For example, when I took bacopa monnieri I played out of this world chess for two days(understood pawn structures like never before) and was then back to square one and playing dull uninspired moves. When I took l-tyrosine I played all out aggressive chess for about a week and then back to square one. I have tried various things, mirtazapine also helped me play great chess(for two days, perhaps because of the dopaminergic effect), sometimes lamotrigine did, and I would say even modafinil(the much hyped modafinil) eventually succumbed to tachyphylaxis. Modafinil is banned in chess(and olympics) but that's only because it gives you a short term boost. It doesn't really last. But again I crashed. There's always a crash with any stimulant.  In the show limitless the person says 'our brain is a maze of missed neural connections' etc. and the pill he takes helps him to form those connections. It is the same with myself. I was never able to actually tap into my potential prior to optimind. There are some basic abilities which help you succeed in intellectual tasks. The most important of these is working memory, focus and attention, and concentration ability, the ability to sharpen our mind like a laser. If we increase the concentration of certain neurotransmitters in the brain these abilities can get enhanced and that has an impact on all of our thinking. I think it's ok to be skeptical and prior to taking alpha brain the advertisement sounded to me very similar to what every other company was claiming without for a second believing their own claims. But I sensed a hint of honesty/sincerity in alpha brain's campaign and plus I wanted to find out why the price was so high and what made them think they could sell it at that price. I started taking it and the first week I didn't notice any effect. but I kept taking it and one day i started solving chess puzzles and realized that I was actually getting them right. there was no mood boost or any other concomitant feature such as happens with modafinil but I had to guess that it could only be due to the alpha brain. Since then I took optimind again out of curiosity. And I realized that it really does work. I can't guarantee that it will work for everyone but the company gives free samples and you can take those free samples for about a week provided you provide your credit card info up front with an automatic order to follow the expiry of the trial period. You can however call and cancel before the end of the trial period and if you do they try to make you understand that it take s ahwile to work. You can insist on cancelling anyway however it is seen that it does work. it helps me read faster, write more effectively, communicate better, mix with people better and stay more motivated.

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@the maze runner Thanks for the info & posting about your experience. I agree with both sides here, on one hand supplements/herbs are not regulated, I am always skeptical, but curious at the same time because Ive taken pharmaceuticals half my life (all different kinds, including stimulants as you have) many of them do help, but you often have a great deal of side effects that come with man made drugs that outweigh the benefits.

In fact, I seem to have read that antidepressants might just be placebo... pdocs are sort of playing a guessing game as to what will work.

I'm someone that is quite open to trying new things, moreso if there is a guarantee and free trial (I won't just blindly pay an exorbitant price because of some amazing testimonials). I've read studies that certain supplements do have effect (like NAC, Aswaghanda) so who knows. Companies don't want to bother paying to study these things it seems.

@argh what does rcts mean?

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Randomized controlled trials. Contains placebo groups and single blinding at minimum but usually double blinded.

Placebo really is a hell of a thing. This helps show the true efficacy of a medication

I will concede to maze as my meds are relatively quite benign in terms of side effects. Iirc he was looking at drugs like clozapine.  I think I'd be looking hard at supplements in that case as in the USA, that is a last line medication.

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moreover i have suffered from cognitive deficits due to incorrectly prescribed medication and i feel that i am at a permanent disadvantage due to that. optimind has really given me half my life back. the other half is permanently down the toilet and hopeful thinking won't change that. but better something than nothing.

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