Low dose dextro-aphetamine for ADHD in everyday life, weed for music and various other enjoyment, only occasionally. Alcohol and whatever nose-friendly stimulants are available for parties. Psychedelics at most annually(ideally 2C-B or (1p-)LSD, but I've tried a whole host of different ones) for deep contemplation and introspection.

Watching my brother destroy his life with Heroin has kept me away from opioids for the most part, but I don't like the way they make me feel anyway.

Opioids are no joke for sure. If you have good self discipline and can limit yourself to one every 2 to 3 days, it can be amazing and safe. But it makes you feel really good and many people don't have the self control required, so I recommend staying away. If you develop a physical dependence, it is not pleasant to say the least.

I mean I've tried opioids, but they make me nauseous. And tired. And i specifically avoided trying really strong ones because yeah, I know I wouldn't be able to handle it. It took years of suffering even to be able to control my cannabis use...

I’ve settled upon: Caffeine at work, alcohol not at work, molly to party with friends, weed to party on my own.

THC containing gummies, once a week, for music enhancement before bed.

Tangential details...

The 2018 hemp farm bill allows products to have up to 0.3% THC, but it took years for people to realize that gummies are hefty enough that 0.3% means a gummy can have 10-20mg of THC. So, at the ripe age of 57 I finally tried THC.

It was very frustrating because most of the good stuff I expected didn't happen: no euphoria, no munchies, no relaxation. I do get some of the negative things, like dry mouth. The one good thing I get is music enhancement, but only if I do it once a week or less (10-15mg). I've tried doing it more frequently and upping the dose to compensate, but nope: if I invoke the genie too frequently he refuses to come out of the bottle.

I’m surprised you do it before bed! I find that especially with edibles, using thc too close to bed makes me sleep deeply but wake up groggy. Typically I need an afternoon nap the next day. I believe thc fucks with REM.

Food is totally unchanged for you? Wild! What about movies/tv?

I get very little effect from weed unless I take a huge amount, in which case I also feel miserable with "too much" symptoms. It just doesn't seem to work for some people

Yup, it isn't enhanced at all, and I don't get extra cravings.

Although I gone up to 25mg while I was experimenting to find a dose that works best for me, my target is 10mg. Maybe that isn't enough to trigger munchies.

Because the only thing I find it good for is music enhancement, I like to take a gummy around 9pm-10pm, then two hours later put on three albums with a particular kind of music, then hope that I get enhancement. If I'm feeling tired that day, though, I put it off because sucks to hit the sweet spot and then immediately fall asleep and not get to enjoy the music.

By enhancement, I mean I experience pronounced stereo separation and deeper notes seem to be very resonant. Sometimes I get little floaty and feel like I'm suspended in zero gravity while I drift to the music. Because I do it only once a week, I don't notice any disruption of my sleep.

EDIT: you asked about TV/movies. I don't watch them, so I don't know.

Meh I think I’m done with THC. You’ll always find plenty of enthusiasm and love everywhere for it, but then I never really met or talked to a single person who didn’t eventually became conflicted about it and concluded the negatives far outweigh whatever you get out of it.

Thankfully it’s doesn’t cause any serious harm to you as far as drugs go.

I wonder though, about a 100 years ago, when weed was criminalised, it wasn’t just made illegal - people went out of their way to destroy and get rid of every single hemp plant they could find in nature. Across the whole globe no less. That’s quite a statement. Maybe that’s bound to happen again.

Nice to meet you. I've actually concluded(through experience) that heavy cannabis use has mainly downsides with no upsides, but that sporadic use only has upsides. I have several friends who feel the same way. They smoke even less than me, maybe a couple times a year. I've met some people who completely swore it off too.

Everything in moderation

Especially moderation :)

Is there anything other than THC in those gummies? Many of the effects might depend on non-THC cannabinoids. Also, for some reason, some effects happen upon smoking or vaping but not through edibles. There are various theories about why, but it's all very complicated.

Part of my experimentation was to try many different doses, just thc, thc + cbd in various ratios, ones claiming to have "live rosin" or whatnot.

I did finally try a real joint -- of course it hits much faster, but the lung irritation and health concerns weren't worth it.

I'm a bit jealous of people who have a great time. A guy in the band I'm in is 45 and has been a daily smoker for 30 years. He is highly functioning -- has a good job, has kids -- and can work while high. I guess he knows exactly his response and does enough to feel good but not enough to cause problems. He also has a really high tolerance.

Some people just don't have the brain chemistry for it, I suppose.

I'm kind of jealous of your friend. I've been a daily smoker before, and I'm usually able to like do simple tasks and such. But I just get too lazy and dysfunctional. And I feel dumber. Part of me is drawn to that because it's so much easier to be dumb. But I also depend on working memory to make a living and also for my favourite hobbies. Eventually I learned that the only thing that actually works is occasional use. I can't be completely abstinent because then I never actually learn moderation, and I just end up binging again. But if I know I can enjoy myself if I want to, I don't have to be constantly thinking "fuck I want some weed". And then when I do finally give in, there's this shame spiral about it that leads to binging. Whereas now I can just smoke if I feel like it, have a great night of sleep and go on with my life the next day.

AI hype

I doubt you'll get too many serious replies, but as a Canadian my DoC is cannabis.

Running, hiking, lifting

Serious? I pre & post all of those + bicycling. Whammy, huge difference, especially if you leverage e.g. the caffeine for mental work, or whatever else each chemical is good at.

Had some funny experiments in there but would never go back to nothing. It doesn't make sense, especially if you don't have an addictive personality & any chemical risk is more likely associated with quitting beneficial chemicals than staying on them too long.

Arrogance

That's the good stuff!

LSD is my happy place -- and Adderall, but I've a prescription for that one!

Microdosing?

Methylphenidate

> high doses (300mg)

What's the equivalent of a 300mg IV dose in oral ingestion?

Per article it's 4-5 shots of espresso. Apparently caffeine is absorbed quickly by the gut, so if you shoot it all down at once, you'd get similar results.

Caffeine, nicotine, thc and alcohol.

Zungenwurst, can't get enough of it

meth and adderall

web3 projects not working out; schadenfreude in general; the smell of my own farts.

Adrenochrome

Mushrooms

Books.

benzodiazepines.

crypto laced with AI

That stuff will mess you up, man.

you want to try some snowcrash...?

open source utopia

chocolate

ketamine

Music. String ensembles are the best, choir is a close second. Rapid response, mild euphoria, no unpleasant side effects. Repeated exposure can induce fatigue, making it an excellent sleep aid.

Successful debugging session euphoria.

Caffeine pretty much every day, I can only have it in the mornings though or it interferes with sleep. Alcohol a few times a week, usually just one or two drinks. Now that i'm mid thirties the booze hits me much harder than before and hangovers are easy to get. Pot gummies on the weekend when I want to relax. I know quite a few heavy users who will smoke a couple joints then go do yardwork - crazy. If I have any i'm eating a heavy meal and playing video games. I sleep great with it. I started smoking cigars over the pandemic, only a couple times a month, you certainly get a nicotine buzz that is kind of nice. It is smelly though so I don't do it often and it's more for the ritual and relaxation than the buzz. Amyl nitrates for other recreation.

Wow writing that all out makes me look like a degenerate :)

Mushrooms and LSD are solid and the only drugs I still fuck with from time-to-time as I enter my 30s. Also seem to be popular among the HN and nerd/professional crowd. Pot and mdma don't really have a place in my life anymore. I still love to drink but I cut back mainly for fitness goals.

Personally, prescription medications are great: legal, consistent, safe, and effective.

Wellbutrin (NDRI) every morning. Helps with attention and alertness. It isn't classified as a stimulant, so I don't need to deal with the regulations around regular ADHD meds. It also helps with sexual dysfunction caused by other meds.

Benzos for social events. Way better than alcohol. All of the chill and none of the impairment. :)

kratom.

leverage.

Prescription amphetamines.