But we probably shouldn't need stimulants to have careers.
I think that's why you get downvoted for suggesting that people take drugs to fix their problems.
Source: I also take drugs to function with a career and am sad about it.
It seems to me that some consider it a form of cheating when you don't change your diet or the sports / exercise regimen, work-life-balance etc. I've tried changing my diet and different workout styles, they just didn't have the effect that stimulants provide. To me, it's essentially "if it works, it works".
What makes you sad about it?
If there is a stimulant that only hurts your health a little, and it becomes popular in your industry, you will have to take it in order to remain competitive, because the workload will be adapted to the new standard.
> It seems to me that some consider it a form of cheating when you don't change your diet or the sports / exercise regimen, work-life-balance etc.
The difference is, if you later find out that some specific diet or exercise regimen hurts your health, you can change it. If you find out that coffee (or modafinil, in the future) hurts your health, but you are socially expected to use it, then it just sucks to be you.
If it was possible to go into stasis, floating in a vat, hooked up to a computer, where your employer could extract optimal productivity from you... would you do it? How long would you stay in the vat?
Because that's how I feel taking stimulants every day to get my job done. Sure, I'm an effective employee. And yes, "it works". But I can't help but feel something important has been lost.
I've actually thought about being hooked up to a computer and not deal with this failing body that has annoying quirks and issues and makes me see doctors. I'd love to try at the very least. But I'm self-employed and like what I do - not sure how I'd feel about it if productivity gains didn't translate into income gains very directly, which translates to financial security, which helps deal with anxieties.
Do you struggle with side effects that make the experience not overwhelmingly positive?
It's all still "overwhelmingly positive" to set out the problem you started taking it to solve...
But now that you're making me unpack it, I guess it's because when I'm on stimulants I'm working. When I'm off stimulants, I'm resting but very exhausted from the stimulants.
It makes me into an efficient worker drone though, which is the problem I set out to solve in the first place. So... mission accomplished?
If I could somehow make the same money without having to drug myself, I think I would feel better about the situation.