NSI-189 on its own vs underneath a Semax base, anyone compared both?

Posted by retired_coldplunge in Cognitive & Nootropic - 2 points, 6 comments.

I have been running NSI-189 at 40 mg daily for about six weeks now, and honestly the change has been subtle in a way I did not expect. It is not a focus thing like Semax, at all it is more like background music I did not know was off until it came back on. I am recalling names and small tasks more easily, and my mood feels less brittle on hard gym days. Nothing dramatic, just a softer landing.

What I am wondering is whether layering a small amount of Semax on top would actually add to that or just muddy it. Fwiw I have used Semax before and liked the clean focus, but I have never run the two together for any length of time.

For those who have tried NSI solo versus NSI with a Semax base, did the combination feel additive, or did one just take over? And if you stacked them, how did you time the doses through the day? 📰

Comments

• nina_m: Honestly the NSI description you wrote hits for me, that softer landing feeling is exactly what people say who have stuck with it long enough. I never stacked them myself but I did run NSI solo for a couple months and noticed the same background hum thing you described. From what I have read, NSI hits neurogenesis pathways and Semax is more of a BDNF and focus modulator, so on paper they should not fight each other. If I were going to try it I would probably keep Semax low, like the 0.1% nasal
• weekendnate: Yeah, the keep Semax low and skip some days approach is the smart call, you basically get your own A/B test built in. I did something similar when I added low-dose methylene blue on top of an Adamax run, alternating days made it way easier to tell what was doing what. The BDNF angle is what sold me on trying them together eventually too, different pathways hitting the same downstream stuff could compound or could just be noise. Worth a run if you log sleep and HRV alongside it, those tend to be
• quiet_ironman: Yeah that background hum thing is exactly it, I kept waiting for a "wow" and almost missed that it was actually working 🔬 I like your idea of keeping semax super low and only on busy days, that way you can still feel what nsi is doing solo on the other days. I might steal that approach if I ever layer them.
• retired_coldplunge: That is exactly the trap I almost fell into, the "is it working" question. I had to journal for a week before I noticed I was not snapping at my partner anymore, which is never on the label but felt like the real win for me 😎 Keeping Semax at a low dose only on heavy days is what I am leaning toward too, so I can still hear the NSI underneath. Did you ever land on a specific mg that felt like "clean focus without taking over" for you, or was it always just whatever the vial gave you?
• retired_coldplunge: The alternating days idea is smart, I might try that rather than adding it cold turkey. (And HRV is a good shout, I have a Whoop so I can actually track that instead of guessing.) Fwiw the BDBDNF piece is exactly what makes me curious, two different angles on the same downstream thing. Did the methylene blue piece land for you, or was it more of a neutral add?
• retired_coldplunge: Thanks, that tracks with what I was hoping to hear (the not fighting each other part). I will keep Semax super low, maybe one spray on heavy coaching days, and leave it off on weekends so I can still tell what NSI is doing solo. Curious though, when you ran NSI for those couple months, did the softer landing effect deepen around week 6 to 8, or did it pretty much stay where it landed? Trying to set my expectations.

Community discussion - research and educational context only. Not medical advice.