I feel like Bethesda put lot of time and energy into potions, but I don't have any fun using them, other than to level. Not like archery, sneaking, any of the mage skills......... Does anyone have fun playing with alchemy? What exactly do you do with it? What do you wish you could do with it?

I play a mage, so I do use it for a few things; but mainly healing and mana. I don't play on max difficulty level so I don't need more than that.

healing, mana, and if I use a melee weapon I like poisons (only damage and paralysis poisons though). other than that not really that much

It depends on the character. My warriors often brew health potions, my assassins brew poisons, my mages brew Magicka potions, and so on. I don't take actions that suit me, I take actions that suit my character. And about half of my characters do not want to do any Alchemy at all.

Each of my characters that uses Alchemy, uses it differently. It depends on what the character's skills are. My first Assassin as a master alchemist, from poisons to Invisibility to paralyze potions. I had a Hunter that was also a Master Alchemist, but she tended to stick ( mostly) with those ingredients that could be found in nature... or bought at a shop.

I don't tend to do much Alchemy with a character if that is not their craft/skill. Just enough to do a health potion or two if they really need it. Though many of my low lvl characters will collect and sell ingredients.

I usually just brew healing potions.

But I may create some poisons if it's an assassin.

I love alchemy! At the beginning, when my character is vulnerable, I make resist fire, poison, etc. potions. Restore health & magicka potions are always useful, invisibility for sneaking around, poisons for tough enemies such as giants and briarhearts. Fortify smithing, enchanting, destruction, health, or magicka potions are useful. Fortify carry weight, for when you need to carry a little more. Regenerate health & magicka gives you an edge. I like to brew potions that combine effects, such as fortify destruction and fortify magicka. Regenerate health and magicka and restore magicka. Fortify sneak and resist frost (good for the draugr ruins). Fortify block and resist magic.

Besides being useful in themselves, alchemy is a major money maker, and a good way to level up. Most of the ingredients can be had for free. What's not to love?

About half of all of my characters have excelled in Alchemy. However, none of them found much use for creating health potions. Assassins and Mages don't get hit enough to go through the health potions found within the gameworld. My Warriors never developed a need as their Health, in combination with their armor and general game strategy, offsets the requirement.

For the most part, poisons get more attention. The Mages favor the increase in Destruction damage that is yielded from Alchemy. Unlike the Enchantments of Destruction that reduce Magicka cost. To my knowledge, aside form one or two special Enchantments, Alchemy is the only way to increase Destruction damage.

I never really enjoyed using poisons or resist potions that my character will make. I'll collect every ingredient I can find, which I do enjoy, and make a boatload of potions to sell off as loot.

From time to time I will make use of the fortify resto loop to enchant a nice set of alchemy gear.

I think the only options I will use that I craft myself include healing and fortify smithing potions.

I use Alchemy on almost all of my characters. Mainly, I use it for replenishing health and mana, especially for my mages (I have found that mana restoration options are few and far between early on). A few characters I have done poisons for weapons and paralyze is another useful potion, especially at higher levels when you can paralyze an opponent for about 10 seconds.

Some players talk about making potions for money, but I rarely have trouble getting money in other, less cumbersome ways

Again, my main use for it is to create health, mana, and stamina potions