Define better.
There’s people that think they’re better with a few drinks in them. There’s people that think they’re better when they’re on meth. Same with pretty much every drug.
But drugs are never, ever a one stop shop for self improvement. I’m not talking treating medical conditions here, that’s a different issue entirely.
It doesn’t matter if an a given drug helps, it never fully works in a vacuum. It takes some degree or another of willingness to change, and some degree of work.
Example: roids. Used appropriately, they can help improve your body. But if you just shoot them and stay at home, it’s a waste of money. That being said, I’ve seen way too many otherwise good people turn into wrecks by using them, so don’t unless it’s on a regimented and careful medical plan. So, while the drugs have benefits, they can only give you an edge, they don’t do the work for you.
If you go to something that isn’t as often abused, antidepressants are a great tool in dealing with depression and related illnesses. But they’re a bandaid. If you don’t do the work needed to fix the underlying issue that’s causing the depression, they aren’t any better than weed, or booze, or whatever because they do have side effects that can be just as problematic as use of recreational drugs (as opposed to abuse or dependency, which aren’t the same as having a toke or a drink after work to deal with the stress).
Afaik, there aren’t any drugs, legal or illegal, that improve the self without effort on the part of the patient. Again, this is not about treating an injury, infection, or whatever. It’s about self improvement in the general sense.
j4k3@lemmy.world 6 months ago
I’m a better person with Adderall. I feel more like myself, like I escape a frustrating fog. I’ve been on it for ~14 years. It doesn’t seem to have the same effects on everyone.
Everything in life is ultimately brain chemistry and addictions. Most of the drugs in our chemistry soup are the substances the human body synthesises on its own. Biology is a funny thing. It can handle immense complexity, but can struggle with precision.
If you have the self awareness to seek out and optimise your brain or body chemistry where it might be lacking, I’d argue that you are the better person than someone that suffers through the deficiencies of their natural biology.
However, humans have a very difficult time assessing their own brain chemistry objectively without biases. It is both harmful and unsafe to self diagnose or self medicate without the assistance of someone that is trained to objectively asses your situation and needs.
lousyd@lemmy.sdf.org 6 months ago
Would it make a difference if you were taking the drug to makeup for a deficiency, or if you were taking it to surpass normal ability?
j4k3@lemmy.world 6 months ago
The only normal people are people you have not taken the time to get to know yet.