I've been lurking these forums for some time for nootropics research and have never contributed until now. I have learned so much from you all.
I apologize in advance that due to my humanities background this may read more like an erowid post than an n=1 controlled experiment.
Background:
I became interested in nootropics to ameliorate the difficulties of long-term post-concussion syndrome. I had a series of 3 mTBI's within a 10-month period starting 2 years ago. These injuries caused increased anxiety, difficulty concentrating, persistent memory loss, and forced me to take a semester off from my studies. I was also diagnosed with ADHD in my late teens and prescribed ritalin/adderall, but stopped taking them a few years ago due to insomnia. I had also previously engaged in moderate-heavy alcohol abuse and weekly marijuana use since my teenage years.
I have already experienced a great deal of progress from oral nootropics and regular strenuous physical exercise. However, I am currently a student-athlete at an elite university. I have some regrets that I took my pre-concussion baseline intelligence for granted and used it to put in minimal academic effort and party all the time. Ideally, a cycle of cerebrolysin will restore my cognition to baseline and facilitate the mental energy for an academically and socially rewarding semester.
I sorted out my current stack from a year research and self-experimentation. I've tried almost all of the -racetams, afinils, various forms of choline and some other research chemicals. Also note that I weigh 100kg so dosages are intentionally at the upper end of spectrum.
Current Stack:
Daily:
500mg x3 Curcumin
1g Lion's Mane
8,000 IU's Vitamin D
5g Fish Oil
5g Creatine Malate
25g x3 Fasoracetam sublingual
25g x3 Coluracetam sublingual
25g x3 Noopept sublingual
2 Capsules of BRAINERGY-X
3mg Melatonin
Workout Days (3x Week):
+5g Creatine Malate
15g x2 BCAA's
As needed (roughly once a week)
CILTEP
5-HTP & Phenibut
Until 2 Weeks Ago:
200mg Amantadine prescribed by my neurologist
Cerebrolysin Experience Log:
The plan is to use the five 5ml Ampules to taper up/down, with the bulk (20 doses) at 10ml spread out 5x week over 4 weeks. I will use IM injections with a 10cc syringe, 1" 23g needle, and 5um filter.
I plan on continuing all current supplementation stack throughout the 5 week cycle.
Day 1: I picked up the package with the cere Friday afternoon. I proceeded to inject myself with 5ml around 5pm. After injecting myself I felt a bit of a rush, probably mostly to do with the thrill of self injection. About an hour later I go and have a brief workout. The weights feel just as if not more heavy than normal but I feel an increased sense of awareness that may or may not have been placebo. I proceed to go out and have 6-7 drinks and definitely get a strong buzz but I feel very much still in control. I couldn't fall asleep right away but that could have just been from the rush of self-injection.
Day 2: Wake up feeling pretty normal. I should have noticed some slowness from the alcohol but I feel well rested like a normal day. Unfortunately, I have severe diarrhea. Still feeling pretty normal otherwise.
Day 3: I inject another 5ml in my thigh in the AM. I tried to get some reading done but wasn't any more/less productive than normal. I still have pretty severe diarrhea though. That night I proceed to get very very drunk off of half a bottle of wine and around 8 shots of 100 proof moonshine with my girlfriend. We are drunk enough to decide to walk to the bar in single-digit temperatures, and I am acutely aware of the cold. More sensitive than I should be after that much booze. At the bar I have another four drinks. When we get home I am extremely intoxicated but still shockingly totally in control. My girlfriend is totally passed out unconscious in my bed after consuming much less than me.
At this point around 1 am, I drunkenly decide to inject a second dose of 5ml of cere into my thigh to prevent a hangover the next morning. Fortunately, no injection mishaps occur and I fall asleep around 2 am.
Day 4: I have to wake up at 7am for a morning conditioning session with my team. I frequently struggle with getting out of bed early. My alcohol consumption the night before under normal circumstances would require that I be bedridden for the entire day. However I am able to get out of bed with no issues. I feel slightly foggy, but alert and in a good mood. The conditioning session goes well and I feel like I have plenty of physical energy/motivation. I inject 10ml around 11am. I resume having bad diarrhea and an upset stomach though.
I take a nap and then wake up and finish editing a research paper on some highly intellectual material due in 2 hours. I feel a sense of grace under pressure and a definite lack of stress. I simply do what I need to do to improve my paper and accept the circumstances. It's just a very clean energy. I feel very clear-headed. I don't dwell on or get depressed about the fact that I have a looming deadline.
I finish the paper and then go out to see the 50 Shades of Grey movie with my girlfriend. It is a terrible movie and the entire time I am feeling very critical of the poor acting and script though I am in a good mood and have not had any alcohol. I miss the challenge of my academic work, and wish that i was back catching up on my other classes and challenging myself. I am definitely feeling the cognitive effects at this point, but nothing lifechanging.
Day 5: Another early morning conditioning session that goes well. Fortunately, the box from allegromedical has arrived so I am able to properly filter the solution and IM all 10ml at once into my buttocks using the 23g 1" needle. This method is much more comfortable than a 20g needle in each thigh. I have class for the rest of the morning and early afternoon. I feel good mentally, but have a bad stomach ache and diarrhea. I go back to my room to lie down but I don't feel tired enough to take a nap. I am not getting anything done and pop a 1mg xanax at 6pm and fall asleep soon after.
Day 6 (today): I wake-up to an alarm set for 4 am as I have a substantial amount of reading to do for class. I inject 10ml first thing. I am not as productive as I could be, but I feel engaged with the material and I am able to stay awake and cover what's necessary. I write a brief response paper on the readings and email it to my professor. I feel really good about getting everything in on time and completed. I still have mild diarrhea, but it's almost better thanks to Kaopectate.
I go to class at 11am feeling "on a mission." In the discussion seminar I am able to recall around 30% more of the material and am able to follow everyone's comments more than normal. I don't feel any anxiety at all about participating in the discussion, which is usually an issue for me.
After this class I have a very difficult seminar on some extremely complex topics for which I have done none of the reading for at this point. I go and sit down in a crowded on-campus cafe and eat while I try and read. A cute girl I don't know sits down across from me as there are very few empty seats. I effortlessly start a conversation with her and she responds well. I feel very confident. I ignore her to concentrate on my readings and am able to get through quite a bit in spite of the noisy environment.
The seminar goes well in spite of my lack of preparation. I am able to retain enough from the readings to contribute to the discussion in a meaningful way. This is a very difficult class though, and my 140 IQ is pretty average at my school; some of the discussion is simply way over my head. The discussion takes a turn towards some of the readings I didn't get to and I feel no anxiety this. I simply just don't participate without guilt for the last 20 min of class. I talked to my friend in the class afterwards and he said I made some good points about the assigned readings. Cerebrolysin definitely gives you greatly increased mental energy, but you still have to improve yourself with meaningful activities while on it.
After class and dinner I have been completely absorbed in schoolwork and for the past 6 hours. Time has completely flown by, but I have been incredibly productive the entire time. Must be dopaminergic.
Week One Effects:
Positive:
Hangovers totally eliminated. Sense of calmness, clear-headed clean energy. Waking up early requires very little effort and I feel very well rested upon waking. Not necessarily increased motivation, but a lack of dread of mental fatigue. Definitely shifts your focus in social situations from your own feelings/anxieties/insecurities to perceiving reactions/body language of others since you care less what others think about you. Starting on day 6, this stuff feels more powerful than any other nootropic I've tried. The only thing that compares is Adderall without the negative sides. This feels like it could be life changing if the effects continue over the course of the next 18 days.
Negative:
Severe diarrhea. Moderate upset stomach. This can be ameliorated with over the counter medication. Like others have said, this definitely takes a few days to kick in. At first the effects are only noticeable if you abuse your brain with sleep deprivation and/or substance abuse as I did otherwise you should feel pretty normal for a few days to a week. Kicks in subtly at first.
Order/Injection Notes:
I ordered 4 packs of 5x 10ml and 1 pack of 5x5ml from nootropic.eu. Shipping took exactly 3 weeks from Lithuania to East Coast of US in spite of some possible delays from record-breaking snowfall on this side of the pond. Package looked kind of janky and looked like it may have been inspected by customs, but all was well packed and intact. Packaging and instructions
Ordered 1" 23g needles for injection, 1.5" 5um filtered needles to draw it up, and 10ml syringes from allegromedical.com after everything came. Shipping was fast.
The first few days my needles hadn't arrived yet so I bought some 5ml 20g needles from behind the pharmacy counter at CVS. It felt like buying cigarettes for the first time in high school, but the pharmacist was very nonchalant.
IM injections were definitely more uncomfortable with the 20g needle on the vastus lateralis (outer thigh). I switched to the buttocks once the 23g needles and 5um filters arrived. I noticed no pain, discomfort, or swelling with the 2nd method.
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tl;dr
Cerebrolysin greatly reduces hangovers and makes it much easier to wake up early. Doesn't kick in right away, but has to potential to be life changing in terms of the boost in mental energy, general awareness, and anxiety reduction. Also causes diarrhea.
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