The New Yorker’s Brain Gain: The underground world of “neuroenhancing” drugs
A young man I’ll call Alex recently graduated from Harvard. As a history major, Alex wrote about a dozen papers a semester. He also ran a student organization, for which he often worked more than forty hours a week; when he wasn’t on the job, he had classes. Weeknights were devoted to all the schoolwork that he couldn’t finish during the day, and weekend nights were spent drinking with friends and going to dance parties. “Trite as it sounds,” he told me, it seemed important to “maybe appreciate my own youth.” Since, in essence, this life was impossible, Alex began taking Adderall to make it possible.
Seriously? As an “efficiency-obsessed” Harvard student, I absolutely understand the appeal of such mental steroids. Imagine, all the wonderful/crazy/exciting/amazing things I could do if my brain could focus a little bit better, for longer periods of time, if I didn’t need sleep, if I never wearied from writing that damn response paper.
However, if you need a drug to help you keep on top of things, I feel like that’s a sign that something is amiss in your life, that you haven’t examined your priorities, that you really don’t know what you want out of life.
It’s incredibly easy as a Harvard student to just want EVERYTHING. But, that’s just a sign of not actually wanting anything.
Your thoughts?
Comment below…
I think this is a very sensitive subject, and it is a sad fact.
I understand how all the Alexes may feel. I studed my masters in a Japanese university, in Japanese (when I was not even fluent). By the time I submitted my graduation paper, my health had been eroded by the lack of sleep, and my spirit surrendered to the emotional pressure of having made such effort.
I never took any drugs, nor do I regret not having taken them. I don´t agree with the illusional effect drugs may give you now, and the lasting damage they may cause to your body. Still, I understand Alex may have wanted to feel successful by coping with everything, as well as he could. To keep that image.
I felt successful by doing good in my studies. But I can´t avoid feeling like a looser when I think I had no life during that time.