Ashwagandha Makes Me Feel Like A Sociopath

So, some of you may remember the post I did a couple of weeks ago about 5-HTP and how it made every “business thing” I had to do ultra-enjoyable and fulfilling to do.

On Ashwagandha (exercise side), I get zero of the stress response needed to lift heavy. The 4-5-7 breathing technique doesn’t work for me at all, because I’m too calm already. I completely lose that “edge” on the last 2-3 reps. What’s weird is that this effect carries over even into the next day after I’ve taken it. I’m using the strong version (1300mg total per 2 capsules, though I only take one), so maybe that’s part of it.

For me, my heart never races during those final reps when I’m on Ashwagandha. It’s like I’m missing that primal intensity that pushes you through heavy lifts, and everything feels profoundly boring.

That said, it does something really interesting mentally. It makes me super goal-driven, but also hyper-focused on achievable goals. If something feels like a waste of time, it’s unbearable, almost like death, because there’s zero emotion in my body to counterbalance it. But if I set a goal that I genuinely want to accomplish, because it aligns with what makes me feel like the man, then completing that task gives me this low-key “hell yeah, fuck that shit, I got this” kind of emotion. No happiness, no fulfillment, just a “fuck yeah bro” feeling.

However, I also hate how un-self-aware it makes me feel. I miss so many social cues when I’m on Ashwagandha, it’s like my amygdala usually handles those, and now it’s just not there. When I’m on it, I literally feel like I judge nothing, and I have to consciously choose my response. No thought that enters my head gets evaluated. It’s always, “Okay, I’m thinking this. Do I choose A, B, C, or inaction?” I stay ultra calm, but it doesn’t feel like it’s happening to me. The whole thing feels dissociative.

It’s such a unique feeling, and so different from what 5-HTP gives me, where I feel like happiness is happening to me, instead of me choosing to have it happen.

Anyone else experienced something similar? Would love to hear thoughts.