Why is it so hard to get smart?

Well,first and foremost,thank you for your service to your country!

I would,if I was you,go by medical and tell them the same thing you posted here.

It coul be a number of factors,including stress,that could be causing this.

It could be also a lack of minerals or vitamins in your body.

It could also be the most common condition that effects a person in your occupation.

It is called "Lackofnookie".

reply to post by Oneolddude


Some nookie would be nice right about now but I doubt that it's one of the reasons my intelect is plumiting. I'll need a more reliable source to confirm that fact.

reply to post by Stop-loss!

Well, for example, I recall one study...okay, everybody has a certain length of a string of random numbers they can remember and recite back after hearing, i.e. experimenter says " 1...8...9...5...3...8...7...2...2...1...6...3...9...5...6...4...7..."etc. and the test subject repeats back "1 - 8 - 9 - 5 - 3 - 8 - I can't remember any more"...the smarter you are, the more numbers you can recite back, but everybody has a certain string length...anyway, this study was done on MIT students, they tested them once for a baseline string-of-numbers-length, and later retested them while on vinpocetine, and the string length went up something like thirty percent for the group...kinda thing... which does agree with my own experience and that of my friends who also use it...
But anyways, good luck, yupyup.

your either getting old, losing sleep or playing yourself.

I love getting smart, and find it pretty easy compared to others(academics, anyways)

everyones different

reply to post by SPACEYstranger


I can agree that most people are different in their learning fields but im trying to find out what exactly makes us smarter then others. It could be genetics or chemicals that we take in or just plain sleep time. That way I can figure out what makes me tick and therefore make adjustments to my routines.

reply to post by Stop-loss!


If it was in the food or the water, then there would be nobody who is "smart". And really smart is relative. What is smart? What kind of smart are you talking of? Smart in decisions? Street Smart? Book smart?

Im very intelligent, but some areas I lack in such as math where I am not so smart.

I think being smart is relative and is not so easily defined.

reply to post by orionthehunter


The only part of the brain that produces new neurons is the hippocampus. While it is where working memory is stored before moving on to long-term memory, memory itself is stored across the entirety of the cortex. What happens when you learn something new is not that new neurons form, but instead the neurons that are already existent in the brain create new connections with other neurons, creating larger neural networks.

On topic, your problems are most likely caused by a lack of sleep. I know even after one bad night of sleep I have trouble paying attention in any of my classes and I don't really retain much of what was said. Novel experience also help in developing the brain. One of the best things you can do as you get older is to learn a new language, as it involves the majority of the brain and almost everything about it is new.

[edit on 21-3-2010 by Xcalibur254]

you could eat lots of fish and other brain food. Sleep well, go for a run twice a day, and sex every day, drink 6 cups of water, ideal amounts of all vitamins and minerals.

You wont be any smarter for it, but your brain will work much better.

Seems like a blatantly obvious conclusion.....

Originally posted by greeneyedleo
reply to post by Stop-loss!

 

If it was in the food or the water, then there would be nobody who is "smart". And really smart is relative. What is smart? What kind of smart are you talking of? Smart in decisions? Street Smart? Book smart?

Im very intelligent, but some areas I lack in such as math where I am not so smart.

I think being smart is relative and is not so easily defined.

I guess the kind of smarts im talking about is the kind that can get you a good paying job. I would't know what type of smarts that is since it can be a mixture of those you mentioned above but I too lack in the math department a lot.

Edit to add: I wasn't talking about the food stateside but more into the middle east part of the world just to clarify.

[edit on 21-3-2010 by Stop-loss!]

Originally posted by SPACEYstranger
you could eat lots of fish and other brain food. Sleep well, go for a run twice a day, and sex every day, drink 6 cups of water, ideal amounts of all vitamins and minerals.

You wont be any smarter for it, but your brain will work much better.

Seems like a blatantly obvious conclusion.....

I can try all those except maybe for the sex part since there is very limited females here that are single but thanks for the advice.

I've been dealing with stress myself. I would like to share what I've learned thus far.

Stress is your number one problem. Learn how to deal with that, and everything else will fall into place.

Stress is a specific response by the body to a stimulus. That stimulus disturbs or interferes with the normal physiological equilibrium of an organism. Stimulus can be food, bacteria, fear, and academics, basically anything that is physical or emotional.

Your limbic system prioritizes itself over all other processes in your body. It will prioritize stress before anything else, including immune, cardio, everything. Drugs don’t solve: they merely Speed things up, or Slow things down. They can be nice, but they don't solve the long term problem.

You have to find a way of relieving the stress. I would guess you are in a "threatening situation" stress. You can be in distress, or eustress. I would guess you are in distress (which is negative). Eustress is a positive outlook on a bad situation. It doesn't mean you accept the bad, but that you find a way for your mind to deal with the bad. Eustress asks: What can I learn from this?

These things are bad for stress: Smoking, Alcohol abuse, drug abuse, poor diet (as you said), witnessing violent behaviour, and decreased exercise.

There are three stages of stress to the system by the body:
Stage of Alarm - Can still deal with or resist stress.
Stage of Resistance - Have adapted to stress, resistance increases.
Stage of Exhaustion - The body can no longer handle stress
This is when symptoms manifest and immune system shuts down.

Since you know you are in for the long haul, you can't just leave the stressful situation.

Here's some things that might keep stress in check:
The body needs Nutrition : Vitamins & Minerals. Eat more coloured veggies and fruits (1/3 fruit, 2/3 veggies). That means that if you have a choice between spinach or corn, choose spinach. In fact, I avoid corn. It spikes your blood sugar and makes you stupid. The more you eat veggies, the less they taste like crap. (don't add too much salt). If you get the opportunity, eat more tree nuts.

Meditate (I haven't done this yet, but I am beginning to be able to sit still)

Stay Active. Extremely important because it allows your limbic system to transfer chemicals to all parts of your body. The more active you are, the better your brain will feel. I am asthmatic and having issues right now, and because of that I am a little fearful of too much exercise. I have found a solution by listening to music whenever possible (sometimes the same songs over and over so I'll have them in my mind), then when I don't have music, they are often still in the back of my mind. I call it always having a skip in your step. Make sure you listen to positive music, and possibly instrumental as that greatly stimulates the mind. I would suggest Daft Punk (message me if you need help on that) and Mozart.

Pets and activity/interaction. I don't know if you have access to this, but I suppose you could substitute by forcing yourself to love your fellow a-holes.

Reduce ingestion of toxic drugs, legal or otherwise

Social support (including professional IF you can trust them)

Don’t pretend bad things aren’t happening, don’t deny stressors

Create time management strategies

BEST WAY TO REDUCE ANXIETY is to…become LEARNING FOCUSED. Instead of looking at something as a problem, find a way to learn something from it. This is really important not only for relieving stress but also for dealing with life.


You should know that there are many people here at ATS who are thinking warm regards for you.

It's all about the focus man.

They say we only use 10% of our brain at one time. Now think if you can devote your full 100% of thinking about remembering that number line, that someone posted earlier.

Instead of thinking how hard it is going to be remember them, just focus on the numbers. He also said something about how a drug increased their memory, that's because all drugs are just intense focus drugs. They take your focus off the world around you, and you can just concentrate on one thing.

Just like being 10 years old again, that's what I said it felt like the first time I got high

reply to post by Stop-loss!


Then if that was the case there would be more "non-smart" people. Tons of intelligent people in the military who spends lots of time in the middle east and it doesnt affect their intelligence - contrary to what many will say about our military

But I believe people offered some great advice: sleep, exercise and a good diet will always aide you in your ability of learning.

Also, I think reading books helps to. I see it as brain excercise. Even though you are in the military and in theater, you can still take online classes. Take one. Get your brain exercised and ready for when you get out and can take classes full time.

[edit on March 21st 2010 by greeneyedleo]

Stress creates cortisol and cortisol can wreak havok on the memory. If the food is bad( I don't know the contents of military foods) it could be your vitamin or mineral deficient.

Your mind purposefully focuses on what is important, and throws away what isn't.

You are on a constant state of alert, which creates constant stress,that is what your mind if focusing on, that is what is important.

Thank you for serving, I am sorry you are in these conditions. But I would start with some vitamins if you can get your hands on some.

Is there any way you can take 15 minutes out of your day to decompress? And maybe do a form of meditation? Just simple like taking your mind somewhere nice?

post deleted;

[edit on 21-3-2010 by Faiol]

sorry, I just read the last paragraph

in your case, well, it seems that you have some problems, go see a doctor right away

its not normal to have to write everything to be able to remember ...

I'm in agreement with nixie_nox. Vitamins are the way to go at least initially. High doses of niacin will improve working memory and boost cognitive performance. I take niacin, & c in very large doses along with a b-50 and the improvements are drastic. I went from not remembering next to anything, to having near photographic memory most of the time.

[edit on 21-3-2010 by unityemissions]

reply to post by unityemissions


I love the niacin, too, but we do have to warn Stop-loss!...if he is not already taking a chunk of niacin, he will get that histamine-flush-redness-itching reaction, when he first begins dosing the niacin...It can be alarming if you are not expecting it, oh my yes...
(I love the C also, that's the one thing I'm never without (or it's like having a hangover, I am highly acclimated to it), 8 to 10 grams a day.)





[edit on 21-3-2010 by nine-eyed-eel]

[edit on 21-3-2010 by nine-eyed-eel]

reply to post by nine-eyed-eel


Agreed. It depends on ones normal histamine levels. If it's already higher than average, he may burn alive! I personally take the natural slow release formula, it's niacin boded to inositol: inositol-hexanicotinate. This will prevent the flush in 90% of cases. I also take vitamin-c along with each dose of niacin. Niacin releases histamine, while ascorbic acid tends to destroy it, so they balance each other out. DO NOT take pure niacin over 50mg before figuring out how bad you will react. Personally, I take 1 gram of INH along with 2 grams ascorbic acid + bioflavinoids thrice daily.

Yes, to my understanding certain enzymatic processes become activated in the presence of high serum ascorbic acid. When we supplement, the body utilizes much more than usual. When we abruptly stop, it takes the body a while to figure out that it's no longer being supplied, and in the meantime we deplete our bodies of AA. I must take 4 grams daily minimum to keep from starting to sneeze. Usually 6-7 grams is my optimal dose. I haven't had more than a few sneezes since starting this regiment nearly two years ago!

[edit on 21-3-2010 by unityemissions]

reply to post by greeneyedleo


Thanks for the kind regards GEL. I will admit that eversince I joined this site I have gotten a little smarter everyday but thanks for the advice and for clearing my myiopia.