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Anyone playing poker on Ritalin? Let us know if it puts you "in the zone" the same way.

Yes, it can contribute to longer, more focused sessions, but the side effects like going through bottles of tylenol and not being able to sleep adequately for several days afterwards is a pretty big deal.

Yes it does.

When I take Adderall it's like a switch has been turned on. I'm able to sit there for hours on end and concentrate. I don't get bored at all and I'm able to remain focused. The only downside of this drug to me is the really bad headaches at times, and if I haven't eaten I will get an acidy stomach burn. I'm very happy I have it prescribed to me.

Ace™

why is this?

Of course you are happy, the generic name for adderall is amphetamine. There is a reason people like it, but only people that like potent speed, with all the CNS and cardiovascular side effects it entails. But you're young, so keep reving it up, God will tell you when to stop.

Barry Greenstein's Ace on the River mentioned SSRI helps with increasing serotonin. Which helps Poker player's performance. Anyone tried that?

Because amphetamine leads to prolonged focus, which will cause you to stare longer at a screen, probably blinking/looking away less often. Additionally, it leads to a suppressed appetite, meaning if you aren't careful you'll not eat right, and it dehydrates the body because you piss every 30 minutes, and if you're not careful you'll be too busy playing poker to refill your glass of water. It's easier to just pop a couple tylenol than to sit out and walk across the room, you see.

The side effects are ridiculous, and I want to be off the stuff after another 8 months, that'll make a full year using regularly (I take daily breaks as often as I can) while playing poker. Hopefully I'll have banked enough by then that I can be a little lazier with the grinding, but with the year's end coming up and the tax man just around the corner, I'm going to rev it up now and slow it down in a few months. Because of the nature of the drug and how quickly one gets addicted to it, not to mention the side effects, taking amphetamines without a very good excuse is asking for trouble.

SSRIs are antidepressants. I do not trust them because they are dangerous, take months to ween on and ween off, and fundamentally alter brain chemistry. Amphetamines also increase seratonin, but they are much safer and effective for selective use. You can't just pop an SSRI, it's a very gradual plan and straying from your doctors orders there can cause suicidal tendencies because your brain chemistry is very delicate.

My undergraduate was in Psychology with a focus on Pharmacology, so I'm pretty sure my responses are accurate but you should find somebody like a MD or a PsyD to give you the skinny. I am prescribed amphetamines, but I do not tell my doctor that I self-medicate.

I don't consider myself that young, I'm 31 years old. I don't take it for poker souly from the impression you seem to be getting. What does God have to do with any of this lol??? I take it because it helps me in life. People take anti-depressants because they have chemical imbalances and it helps them so them can function, etcl. I've always had a problem concentrating and becoming bored very easily. This prescribed drug helps me do things that I couldn't do on my own.

Well, its a prozac nation, so I'm sure some people have. If you want to pharmacologically help yourself, beta-blockers (propanolol, which dampens down your adrenaline production) during live tournaments or important cash games, a half a Xanax and scotch back in the room to wind down.

I didn't mean to sound snide about the aderall, I am ADD and was given it once, it just made me feel, well sort of normal, I didn't really see the attraction. I like the way my mind works on its own, and even though the ADD tendency has brought about many difficulties in my life, I am still pretty successful despite the scatteredness. Then I looked the drug up in the PDR, so just be careful, adderall is a potent stimulent with a high risk of abuse. For some reason I had no problems getting rid of what I had left, my more normal thinking friends gladly took it off my hands and asked for more.

It's not some miracle drug fixing a problem specific to you. Amphetamines improve mental performance of damn near 100% of the population. Does this mean you should take them? Well, I dunno.

I do not abuse this drug at all, and I've never taken more than my prescribed amount. I'm sure it can be horrible for a lot of people, but I am not one who sits at the computer for hours on end trying to make money by playing poker on the internet.

Yeah, having a flexible schedule means I can handle the side effects like an erratic sleep schedule and marathon sessions, if you have to worry about a day job then it's probably a good idea to schedule your amphetamine use.

Well now you're just sound like you have more of a money problem, and in order for you to stay up long hours you abuse amphetamines. But what do I know...