“Don’t lower your expectations to meet your performance. Raise your level of performance to meet your expectations.” – Ralph Marston
Contents:
1.) Introduction
2.) The Risks of Modafinil
3.) How To Start Using Modafinil Safely
4.) The Benefits of Modafinil
5.) In Closing / Relevant Reading
1.) Introduction:
So you’re in Monk Mode, but you find yourself regularly lacking the energy and focus you need to complete all the tasks you assign yourself. You find it hard to concentrate when reading books, and your workouts suck because you get tired quickly. What do you do about it? Other than getting your testosterone, estrogen and thyroid checked, you start taking modafinil.
Some of the most influential people throughout mankind’s history have done drugs. Freud developed his psychoanalytic theory under the influence of pharmaceutical grade cocaine, Winston Churchill took nitrous oxide and Francis Crick, was supposedly (it’s disputed) high on LSD when he discovered DNA. Like it or not and irrespective of stigma, sourced well and dosed correctly chemical compounds can help an individual think in new ways and perform at an elite level.
Now whilst I shan’t ever be advocating the consumption of outlawed narcotics here at Illimitable Men, there are a class of substances known as nootropics that can greatly enhance a whole range of things. Effects vary from the enhancement of creativity and memory, to the alleviation of depression and fatigue.
In fact, you probably unknowingly take at least one nootropic everyday: caffeine. Caffeine is the world’s most famous nootropic, relied upon and consumed by millions day in, day out. Many people will shamelessly admit to a caffeine addiction because it’s socially acceptable and carries no stigma, but at its essence caffeine addiction is a biological addiction.
The main problem with caffeine is that tolerance is developed quickly. It’s a diuretic (you keep needing to go to the toilet, which interrupts your productive phases) and positive effects only last for a few hours (at most) before another dose is needed, and so when caffeine wears off, the individual experiences a horrible crash. Take it for too long and you become dependent, caffeine is habit-forming.
Modafinil is one of the strongest nootropics on the market, in truth I’d say its potency puts it somewhere between a drug and a nootropic, as it’s too weak to be a drug but too strong to be a nootropic. Luckily for you, the powers that be disagree with my assessment and classify modafinil as a nootropic off-label and a prescription medicine on-label. As such getting hold of the stuff is simple, and to my knowledge there is no penalty for possessing it (but this may vary by jurisdiction, so do research on the laws in your country before ordering anything.)
In the US under the controlled substances act, modafinil is categorised as a schedule IV drug, meaning to legally purchase the compound you need a prescription for narcolepsy or shift work sleep disorder, however in some instances it is given for sleep apnea. Most people cannot get a prescription from their doctor for modafinil, or even if they can, find it is cheaper to buy it online than with medical insurance. I’ll tell you exactly where you can source it from a reputable supplier further in.
2.) The Risks of Modafinil:
When one first takes modafinil they must exercise extreme caution, because before you start taking it you don’t know how high or low your body’s natural tolerance is.
According to my research, there are effectively three types of responders: non-responders, standard responders and sensitive responders. Most of the advice on “getting started with modafinil” out there is aimed at standard responders, and so if you’re a sensitive responder and take the conventional advice on dosing, you’re going to have a horrible, frightening experience with it. Nobody else will tell you this, you’ve heard it here first.
The reason you won’t hear this anywhere else is because either A: the blogger/vlogger discussing their experience with modafinil is a standard responder and so didn’t need to be cautious or B: the site you’re on actually sells modafinil and doesn’t want to persuade you out of a purchase, so they’ll omit if not play down the compound’s potential risks.
I’m not a standard responder (I’m a sensitive responder) and I don’t sell modafinil, so I can speak from a prudentialist perspective and guide you on how to use modafinil off-label in the safest way possible.
When you’ve never taken a substance before and want to try it for the first time, it is in your interest to assume you are a sensitive responder. If you’re not, you can scale up your dosage to obtain the desired effects. If you are, you save yourself from experiencing a long list of adverse side effects. So if you’ve never taken modafinil before, but want to try it, assume you’re a sensitive responder.
If you assume you are a standard responder and you’re not, you can experience any combination of the following side effects:
– Loss of consciousness
– Dizziness (a focus so strong it feels too intense to look at things or make sudden movements)
– Cardiac arrhythmia (irregular heartbeat)
– Heart palpitations (stronger heartbeat)
– Complete loss of appetite (you try to eat, take two mouthfuls and feel as if you’re full)
– Migraines
– Increased anxiety/paranoia
– A tight throbbing sensation in the throat
I have experienced all of the above side effects (yes, I even blacked out), and yet I still recommend this substance. Why? Because it obliterates fatigue, increases concentration and improves your motivation and sense of well-being. That is of course assuming, you take it correctly.
All the adverse effects I experienced were due to being a sensitive responder who didn’t know how to take it correctly, I didn’t know how to take it correctly because there was a lack of pre-existing information on how sensitive responders should dose. I had to single-handedly figure out how to take modafinil safely as a sensitive responder, and having suffered as a guinea pig on your behalf, you can avoid the negative effects by learning from my mistakes.
The first time I ordered modafinil I was told to take 100mg of modalert (that’s half a tablet) on an empty stomach. This will do absolutely nothing if you’re a non-responder, and the effects will kick in very quickly (within a minute) if you’re a standard responder.
However this is what nobody else will tell you: if you’re a sensitive responder, you will black out and then feel extremely dizzy for anywhere up to 2 hours, because 100mg on an empty stomach constitutes an overdose due to your naturally low tolerance level. The first time I took modafinil was the one time I blacked out on it. I blacked out because the instructions provided were bogus, they were bogus because they assumed a base level tolerance that was too high. As I said earlier, for the sake of one’s safety it should be assumed you are a sensitive responder until proven otherwise.
3.) How To Start Using Modafinil Safely:
The first time you take modafinil should not be on an empty stomach, because taking it on an empty stomach leads to vastly increased potency of the compound and can completely overwhelm you with dizziness.
As for dose, do not take any more than 50mg. Assuming you possess the modalert 200 variant, the pill is 200mg and thus a quarter of a pill is 50mg. Use a sharp knife or pill cutter to cut the pill in half (pill cutters are better as they are more precise), then cut it in half again. If you are sensitive, this will stop you from blacking out because less pill equals lower dosage. 200mg (an entire pill) is far too high a dose for sensitive responders.
You should eat at least 3 large eggs or 5 regular eggs before taking modafinil, the choline will prevent you from getting migraines, and if you combine this with ample hydration, you won’t experience any headaches.
To minimise the risk of heart palpitations or cardiac issues, you should supplement with 200mg of L-Theanine. If you still experience cardiac issues after taking modafinil, try upping your L-Theanine supplementation to 400mg. If you have no luck there, try upping to 600mg. If you continue to have problems, do not increase your L-Theanine supplementation any further. Modafinil is no good for you and you should avoid it, it is not worth hurting your heart to enjoy a nootropic.
Modafinil requires timing if you do not want to upset your sleeping pattern. The substance has a half-life of 16 hours, but sleep should be attainable 9-12 hours after ingestion. Assuming you sleep 8 hours a day, you should take it within the first 4 hours of being awake. If you woke up at 11am and took it at 3pm, you’d be able to go to sleep by 3am. If you woke up at 5am and took it at 8am, you’d be able to sleep by 8pm. Time your dose correctly to avoid a sleepless night.
You hear a lot of nonsense about people suffering from modafinil-induced insomnia, but this is because they have stupidly popped an entire pill at a party late in the evening, mixed it with alcohol, and now idiotically wonder whilst they’re shivering in a stranger’s bed blacking out over and over again at 8am the next day.
The simple fact of the matter is if you take modafinil like an idiotic infant at a college party, it will harm you. If you take it sensibly, it will enhance you.
You should not drink tea, coffee or alcohol when taking modafinil unless the dose you’ve taken is too weak and you wish to increase its potency without taking additional modafinil. Caffeine interacts with modafinil, significantly increasing the chances you experience heart palpitations and anxiety. Despite its L-Theanine content, even green tea can cause these problems due to its caffeine content. This is why when on modafinil, I recommend supplementing with L-Theanine rather than drinking green tea; this way you get the L-Theanine you need to balance yourself without bringing caffeine into the mix.
Personally I haven’t noticed any tolerance build-up, and like initial sensitivity, whether one builds a tolerance will vary from individual to individual. Nonetheless, if you’re a sensitive responder taking a quarter of a pill a day, 40 pills will last you just over 5 months. Of course if you do build tolerance, you will get through more quicker. Those who build tolerance have reported being able to keep tolerance down by cycling modafinil 5 days on and 2 days off, so if you do build tolerance, this is worth trying.
As a final note, you should plan your day out before taking modafinil, and then immediately set to enacting your plan once you’ve taken it. If you do not, you may find yourself wasting your enhanced energy and focus on nonsense. Whilst modafinil most certainly does give you focus, it does not give you discipline. If you choose to read clickbait or have conversations on social media, this is precisely what you’ll waste hours upon hours doing. Be mindful, and use this time of enhanced faculty to do the things that really matter.
In summary:
– Take no more than 50mg – this is a low dose that will prevent dizziness/fainting
– Take modafinil shortly AFTER food, not before or with – this will reduce its potency
– Drink lots of water to prevents headaches
– Eat at least 3 large eggs or 5 regular ones before taking modafinil – this prevents migraines
– Supplement with 200mg of L-Theanine – this prevents heart palpitations and anxiety
– Do not drink any tea or coffee, as caffeine will interact with the modafinil and potentiate it
– Do not drink alcohol with modafinil, it can lead to blackouts and memory loss
Please bear in mind these are guidelines to begin taking modafinil safely, they are not hard rules for continued consumption. For instance, people with higher tolerances find they do not get the most out of their modafinil unless they combine it with coffee. Until you are more intimately familiar with your tolerance level, these guidelines are a good starting place.
4.) The Benefits of Modafinil:
On modafinil, you will stop being lazy and become motivated, things that normally feel like a chore won’t feel like one. If you are constantly tired, you will stop feeling tired. If you have problems concentrating, concentrating will become easy. Modafinil allows you to unlock your full potential and properly seize the day, there is nothing else quite like it to reliably boost productivity.
Many people’s general fatigue stems from low dopamine, and modafinil fixes this by prohibiting dopamine transportation, allowing greater dopamine to accrue in the brain.
Many people report elevated mood when taking modafinil, which is probably an effect of increased dopamine resulting in the alleviation of sub-clinical depression. That is to say, the person in question unknowingly suffers from sub-clinical depression due to low dopamine, and the dopamine increase caused by modafinil has alleviated this, resulting in a greater sense of well-being.
– Increased aggressiveness:
Conventional sites classify this as an adverse side effect and I can see situations in which it could prove unhelpful, but considering the vast majority of men are meek and unassertive nowadays, I think it’s more of a benefit than a detriment. Men looking to reclaim their masculinity will probably agree with me on this.
Modafinil will make you bolder and more short with people. When I’m on modafinil, I’m less conflict avoidant. It’s not so bad it sends you into a neurotic rage, but it certainly lowers your tolerance for nonsense. Let’s put it another way: if you are the kind of person who is normally too scared to ask for things, you won’t feel that way when you’re on modafinil.
– Reduced appetite/weight loss:
On low doses of modafinil there is a greater disinterest in eating, you may eat if you desire it, but you won’t actually feel hungry. If you want to reduce calorie consumption in order to lose body fat, or you wish to keep to a certain feeding window because you’re fasting, this aspect is incredibly useful. Many people report weight loss after consuming modafinil for some time.
– Addiction suppression:
People seek dopamine from unhealthy consumption, such as eating junk food, smoking or doing drugs. As modafinil boosts dopamine, unhealthy addictions will fall to the wayside. There are reports of smokers giving up cigarettes, and even preliminary research looking at whether modafinil can be used to cure cocaine addiction.
Modafinil bonds to the same receptor sites in the brain as cocaine by increasing dopamine, except unlike cocaine the effects last significantly longer and it does not make the user feel high. You could probably use modafinil to beat a cocaine addiction, although as someone who’s never been addicted to cocaine, I’m unable to test this hypothesis for myself.
– Enhanced cognition:
Greater focus and clearer thoughts, improved short-term memory recall and superior concentration. It may increase or decrease your creativity, but this factor seems to vary from individual to individual. According to the twitter poll I conducted on self-reported modafinil users, it is more likely to increase rather than decrease creativity, but will most likely have no bearing on it.
– Fatigue alleviation:
Modafinil does not come on suddenly and intensely unless you take a dose your body can’t handle. It is not like other stimulants such as caffeine or cocaine where you will feel immediately wired, quickly reach a peak and then crash. Modafinil does not wire you, but rather it will imbue you with an increased sense of effortless concentration. Any sense of fatigue that was bogging you down will immediately clear up, and you will feel more energetic.
5.) In Closing / Relevant Reading:
What kind of people take modafinil? Winners take modafinil, be they students at ivy league colleges, high-powered lawyers or top finance execs. Winners take modafinil because they’re ambitious, driven, and want to perform at their best. There are few other substances out there that can give you a kick in the ass the way modafinil does, and as long as you use it intelligently you can get an edge without paying in pain.
As for sourcing Modafinil, there are many different vendors of modafinil on the internet, some sell fake products, others sell generics rather than the branded stuff. I got my modafinil from Modafinil Cat. Modafinil Cat has a great tracking service and the modafinil they sell is 100% legit pharmaceutical grade straight from the manufacturers in India, if you want good stuff they’re your guys.
PLEASE NOTE: I am not a medical professional and thus the information contained herein does not constitute medical advice and should not be construed as such. This information is purely for educational purposes.
You can buy L-Theanine here, and Modafinil here.
Other articles you may be interested in:
Champion’s Mentality
Monk Mode
How To Be Happy
