Fases del desarrollo

The truth is that we are all addicts – the question is whether we know what we are addicted to or not. And if we do know, then the only smart move is to consciously choose what stimuli we become addicted to. Remember, homeostasis will preserve whatever habits, behaviors, moods and feelings, and addictions we have.

Most people do not know what they are addicted to or how much they are addicted to it, and of those who do know, few choose to align their addictions with their chosen goals. To get themselves addicted to activities or things that would suit them better than their current addictions.

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Using drugs is the lazy and effortless way of activating your brain. But it does work quite well to certain extent, disregarding the eventual toll it may take on your health.

It is only a short-term solution and shouldn’t be more than a small staple of your entire arsenal of tools when it comes to BOOH and being productive. Consider it a way to jumpstart yourself into a specific state needed to reach goal X.

Drugs can never be our main source of stimulation for deriving satisfaction and contentment from life; or well they can, but that would be pretty pathetic. The real linchpin of productivity and happiness comes from developing a strong integrity and work ethic, consciously reprogramming the brain’s reward system, and

implementing positive habits. The goal of any sound human being should be to gradually move away from any form external

stimulation as much as possible so as to become as independent as one can be in terms of feeling good; not having to rely on drugs, activities, food, or other people just to feel good.

Drugs such as alcohol, nicotine, and caffeine (coffee, tea, energy drinks, cocoa etc.) are usually helpful in the short-term but should be used in moderation or very selectively in the long-term because they are all pretty easy to get addicted to. There’s also some research that suggest these, and other drugs will yield adverse effects on the brain in the long-term. The research about caffeine and its effects on the brain are inconclusive.

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Responsible Drug Use

There is a right way and a wrong way of using drugs and substances. The right way requires a ‘responsible’ approach of carefully

considered and planned use as opposed to a random and indeliberate way of using drugs. When you find yourself in the situation of needing to drink more than two cups of coffee to get a buzz, or if you absolutely need coffee to wake up in the morning, then you’re using it irresponsibly and in the wrong way. That means you have ventured far beyond the point of increasing scales of return in terms of personal productivity and health.

If you are about to become addicted it goes without saying that it’s important to quit or take a break immediately – or homeostasis will want it to remain as a part of your normal condition. To form an unnecessary addiction is utterly foolish as it will demand quite a bit of mental energy or willpower for you to focus on quitting the addiction. This mental energy could’ve been put to much more productive use had you not gotten yourself in this situation in the first place.

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A lot of people have an uneducated view of drugs and substances. They believe all drugs are dangerous by virtue of being banned by the state or by lobbying organizations. Little do most people know that many of the world’s most profound works, especially in literature, art, and music, sprang from a productive and somewhat responsible drug use. Ayn Rand did most of her writing on

amphetamine. So did Jean Paul Sartre.

Sartre actually said in an interview that he didn’t think he would’ve been able to complete some of his books if he hadn’t used corydrane (amphetamine). The interviewer then proceeded to ask him if it was worth it; what if Sartre had perhaps seriously harmed himself in the process?

Sartre responded that he didn’t think it had much negative effect on him, but if it really did; then he was willing to pay whatever price it would bring with it. He said was willing to die for the sake of writing those books. That to me sounds like someone taking full

responsibility for his actions.

I am a firm believer in eating healthy, exercising, and all that stuff. I have put in many years of reading and trial and error to find what works best for me… Yet, my conclusion after many years of

optimizing diet, meal timing, meal size, etc., is that I don’t think that diet, including use of drugs and substances, comes anywhere close to

BREAKING OUT OF HOMEOSTASIS

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the act of practicing activities and activating the brain on a daily basis.

To activate the brain and practice some skill on a daily basis is way more significant; that’s the 80/20 of becoming smarter and healthier. If this wasn’t the case; it would be very hard to explain why guys like Ludwig Wittgenstein, Einstein, Napoleon, Winston Churchill, Stephen King, Mark Twain, Ernest Hemingway, Donald Trump, Jack Kerouac, and many more super-successful and smart people have been able to live somewhat long and healthy lives despite having what we today consider decadent life styles; eating unhealthy diets or being heavily addicted to various drugs – especially alcohol, nicotine, and caffeine. Sure, you might pose the nature vs. nurture question; you might say that they were only lucky or very abnormal because they were

blessed with super-human genes, but I doubt that was even nearly as significant as the fact that they activated their brains their entire lives, and fanatically stuck to their crafts day in and day out.

Sugar

Sugar is the opium of the masses. If sugar were to be banned we would have a world war on our hands within a matter of days. Sugar keeps people doped up in a lethargic and docile state and prevents them from thinking deeply about their situation. Sugar keeps most people from ever reaching a point of critical mass in terms of discontent and focus. It hinders them from building up a sufficiently strong discontent with their current state of affairs to break out of homeostasis.

Eating sugar on a daily basis is one of the worst things you can do to your body and brain over time and it may seriously damage your hormonal levels. Drinking soft drinks on a daily basis is probably the one single unhealthiest thing there is in terms of dieting.

Almost everyone is addicted to sugar, and while it isn’t specifically classified to be a drug, its negative effects are worse than most illegal drugs. If this comes as news to you I strongly advise you to put aside at least one whole day to do thorough research about its harmful effects – in doing so you may live many years longer. It just may be one of the wisest things you could possibly spend a single day of your time on in terms of long-term health. Sugar has no benefits that cannot be gained elsewhere in superior ways nutritionally speaking, and it’s extremely addictive and harmful to you.

Don’t believe me?

Try going a month without sugar in any form (including fruits, milk, and artificial sweeteners). It’s a lot harder than you’d expect. Most people can’t even go a day without sugar – that’s how addicted they

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are. Think of that the next time someone you know excuses him or herself to take a break and goes to buy candy or soda and blames it on their low blood sugar or energy – that’s the addict getting withdrawal symptoms and running to get his next fix while making excuses to avoid taking responsibility for his condition and fixing it. Of course, few people look at the situation from this point of view. They don’t question it or consider it weird because they’re used to it. They don’t take it the least bit seriously: “It’s just some candy, chill out...” On the other hand, if the same person was to use some drug decreed illegal by society, he’d be met with serious negative social feedback and be thoroughly questioned – maybe on the TV show Intervention. Such conduct reveals the uneducated view that most people have in terms of drugs.

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In the end, drugs won’t work very efficiently in the long-term unless your diet is on point. If you drink a several cups of coffee per day you’ll likely end up with sleeping problems as well as becoming deficient in important minerals (calcium, iron, magnesium, zinc) – because the caffeine has an antagonistic effect on your ability to absorb the minerals, especially if you drink the coffee while you are eating or in the vicinity of meals. Being deficient in these minerals will make you less relaxed and a common symptom is that you get recurring cramps. I used to get cramps in my hands and thighs all the time before I began started consuming more zinc.

This is why I limit my daily intake of coffee to a maximum of two cups and don’t drink past 2 PM. If I go against my better judgment and choose to drink coffee after 2 PM I rarely sleep well that night.

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PA R T

TH R E E

THE BRAI N