Is it possible to get a cold/sick from deliberate cold exposure?
I've seen tremendous benefits from deliberate cold exposure -- clarity of thought, non-jittery alertness, peaceful mood, curiosity, so much! But I've also experienced at least one time (even before doing the deliberate cold exposure) that cold can give me sore throat or even cold like symptoms. Is this a possible side effect? what might the reasons be -- especially when doing cold exposure **inside in a clean disinfected home**? what is the effect of cold exposure in the immune system?
Atypical Dopamine Response
Based on everything I’ve learned over the years there seem to be something seriously wrong with my dopamine response. I don’t ever recall a time in my entire life when I’ve felt satisfaction. None, Zero, Zilch, Nada. The closest I’ve ever come is the lack of stress, specifically a lack of anticipatory anxiety, from having finished a task that needed to be done. Obviously, my body is reacting normally to dopamine since I don’t have the physical symptoms of Parkinson’s disease, but definitely share the lack of enthusiasm and motivation. I don’t ever feel a "fire in my belly". As far as I can tell, my motivation in life seems to be moderated only by anticipatory anxiety. I scored in the 93rd percentile in withdrawal on the Big 5, so I clearly have an over abundance of anticipatory anxiety. It should also be no surprise that I scored in the 0th percentile in both Industriousness and Orderliness. Are there any strategies you would recommend to try to cope with this situation? Most psychiatric treatment seems to be built upon utilizing the dopamine reward system, and I'm at a loss for what to do in its absence.
Protocal to spike epinephrine in a safe and consistent way after a learning bout -- to increase neuroplasticity?
I want to reduce the number of repetitions to remember the things I learn. But it's hard to have a general way to spike epinephrine after a learning bout. e.g. coffee is fine only after 12pm for me. So what do I do after 12pm? There aren't cold showers around my workspace. It's not always convenient to do intense exercise after it. I suppose I could have nicotine gum but that seems like a dangerous slippery slope. I've never smoked! I take alpha gpc 3-5 times a week before learning...regardless that's not the same as spiking epinephrine...any general safe way to spike epinephrine to increase learning and neuroplasticity?