Shaul

Researching the web for resources regarding guides for taking LSD - dosages, how to prepare to the session,how to deal with things that can potentially happen during the session, integration and etc. The amount of info found on the web is overwhelming and I don't know which one to trust. What resources can you recommend for a total newbie in the field? p.s Typing "LSD" in the search bar of actualized forum doesn't produce any results, even though I've seen posts regarding that topic. Is that a bug or I need to change something in the search settings?

Thank you for your answers. How about Psilocybin mushrooms? After doing some research I found out that the probability to find pure LSD where I live is pretty low. So, if mushrooms are suitable too, I can grow them by myself from spores. That way I won't be intoxicating my body with shady components.

Thank you guys. @JuliusCaesar @thisintegrated @OBEler I checked "Erowid" On @JuliusCaesar advice and few questions came up. 1. Is LSD suitable for getting new perspectives and insights on practical stuff in life, such as the professional direction in life? Or are other psychedelics more suitable for that? 2. I am worried about the purity of LSD. The following quote is taken from "Erowid". So apparently, test kits can only confirm whether the blotter has or hasn't LSD, however they are unable to detect NBOMe compounds in it. Other tests like the fluorescent test, are inaccurate. The only way is to check it in a lab... How do you tackle this issue? 3. Is a guide necessary or is it safe to be done alone? 4. You mentioned food, do you eat during the trip or is it better to fast through the whole experience? 5. What was your initial dose?

In your case, I don't think it should be black and white as you portray it. If you do all the course all over again, all at once and non stop, then yea it may seem as a waste of time. But, if continue working on your skills, while each day doing a small chunk of the course (break it down in a sustainable way) then it could be a good investment of your time.

@Spence94 It's hard to review a product which its performance is heavily relied upon the customer. Nevertheless, here are some of my thoughts: the course validated my intuition that there is more to life than what people normally experience. However, the bottom line is: 1. I didn't find my life purpose with the course. 2. I didn't feel it provided me any concrete value. 3. On the spectrum of pragmatism - idealism, the course made me less pragmatic and more idealistic. 4. The actual part of the course that focuses on finding your life purpose didn't feel practical. It got me into overthinking for an extended period of time. I mean at the end of the day (Leo says it too by himself in the FAQ section of the course and in some of his Actualized.org videos), in order to find your life purpose you need try things out until something clicks. It's not a rocket science. In conclusion, the people I think that can benefit from the course are those who already got something and want to take it to the next level by instilling the right mindset and concepts to their lives. I don't think it's for people who want to find their passion. You don't find passion in a course, you find it by doing stuff.

@Leo Gura Can you please clarify what should I exactly do during the savoring stage in general, and specifically in the above-mentioned scenario I wrote in the beginning of the post?

The moment you notice something in the Inner - Hearing or Seeing category (aka auditory or visual thoughts), it ceases to exist. What do you do then in the Savoring stage? Do you replay the thought in your head and watch / hear it without judgement?

@peanutspathtotruth Thank you for your answer. Sorry, I forgot to mention that my question is based upon Leo's video about mindfulness (link below), which is based on Shinzen Young's work. Do you have a detailed explanation of the technique you are using? Because I didn't quite understand Leo's explanation regarding the savoring stage. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wPUWdhHDKS4

I don't come with answers but I can definitely sympathize. A shared sorrow is half a sorrow, right? For me the change was very drastic. I came back from my travels around the world just before the pandemic started. Imagine taking an active and social guy who enjoyed being outdoors, meeting hundreds of new people on average per month, covering lots of distance a day AND one day seating him on a chair in front of the computer for a whole year to study through zoom. The effects were detrimental to me. My social interactions diminished almost to zero and instead of crossing countries I crossed my living room to get from the chair to the fridge. I felt I am closing myself off even when there wasn't a quarantine and even from my best friends. Like isolation was my new homeostasis. I know that this is not me. Give yourself some credit that you are passing through unusual times, it is temporary and that too shall pass (I saying this advice to myself as well). P.S I would say take out from your head this idea of introversion and extroversion. These are just tags. In reality, people are much more fluid and they move on the spectrum depending on the situation. Identifying with one of them will just make you stuck ( just like Charlotte advised you to not hung up on a term like 'social anxiety').

Hey Leo, can you please make the "Guided Satisfaction Meditation" video clip (The link below) a downloadable audio file or upload it to Spotify? Would be helpful https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ob_L0GZMaQk

@Flowerfaeiry Thanks:)

Going soon on a 7 day retreat in nature in order to clean my head, exit repetitive thinking loops, disconnect, vent, regain energy and relax. Any suggestions for the retreat would be greatly appreciated (besides disconnecting from tech). Again, the purpose is not spiritual but rather to get some peace of mind and re-energize. The beautiful crossing from Chile to Argentina

How do you make it a more present, pleasant, relaxing experience rather than "bringing there your problems with you" and having negative nostalgias? Basically, how to truly disconnect?

The world needs now, more than ever, coffee stands on top of mountain peaks or in a middle of a trek. Just imagine the long line of people waiting to take an energizing sip from your hot coffee on their way to the Everest, Mont Blanc or Kilimanjaro. Now imagine you'd open a worldwide chain of that.

Just finished reading "The little Prince" by Antoine de Saint-Exupéry and boy it touched me deeply. Coming from a dysfunctional family, I had a rough childhood which made me to mature fast. As a result, I feel disconnected from my inner child. How do you regain the ability to see the world in all its magical wonderment and the playful attitude to life that kids possess?

Wow you clearly analyzed the situation wayyy too much. Spiral dynamics? Self esteem? Really? So it's 185$ for one month and then for an additional one week you pay an extra 160$? What? Anyway, In my opinion, paying for more than one month from now (if that's a standard in your country) is not an act that comes from being kind or thoughtful but rather a people pleaser.

Basically you've dug yourself a hole. On the flip side, it is a pretty small hole as it involves small amounts of money. It will serve you as a lesson for the next time you'll search for an apartment: 1. NEVER enter an apartment without a written contract that was agreed upon both sides. 2. Following the first point, don't just give people money in a form of "deposit" , without a clear written definition what is it going to be used for. 3. Before you enter an apartment with other people, especially those that you don't know, try to assess as best you can their lifestyle and personality - how clean the apartment is, peek at their private rooms and ask them questions. Regarding your current situation, without a written contract, nothing is really stopping you from leaving besides that deposit (and your respect towards the landlord). I didn't really understand the deal you have with your roommates but I am not really sure how it has anything to do with them anyway. It is between you and the landlord. Reach an agreement with him that will satisfy you both. It requires trial and error to recognize the difference between being an asshole and weak in a negotiation. It's hard to give you specific instructions regarding that. Worst case scenario, you will loose a bit now but you'll learn

If you are tight with money, why would you consider violating your current contract and paying fines to the landlord? Move to a new place only after a one month notice (or whatever is written in the contract) - try to convince the new landlord to move later or find a different place.

@Nick_98 Thanks man. Edit as much as you like Essentially, the book teaches you how to be a strategist in life? Sounds very useful. Looks like I have some homework to do.

I am finishing now an unsuccessful first year in the studies of Mechanical Engineering and I'm feeling lost. Let me backup a little and explain to you why I started them in the first place. Firstly, Nature, contribution and creativity were in the list of values I formed in the Life Purpose Course. Secondly, I like the feeling of working with my hands and I possess a general technical sense. Bearing that in mind I went to these studies with the idea of contributing to the environment through engineering. However, when it came to the actual studies, I found them to be dull. I felt huge resistance whenever I sat down to study which manifested in procrastination and an immediate tiredness as soon as I did start to study. It's as if my body told me "nope, I'm not gonna allow you to study that". I don't have ADHD, it's just that math and physics courses don't excite me. I wouldn't feel peaceful if I'd leave the university now, because I feel I might miss that which is beyond theoretical studies. For example, I want to participate in an international project in the uni called "Engineers Without Borders" where they head to undeveloped countries and provide them with solutions to increase their current quality of life. That being said, even if I do participate in it, I would still need to take courses. What should I do then? Suck it up? Grind through or look for a different direction?

@hyruga Thank you for the book recommendation, I will check it. As I mentioned in the first post, I did take the course. I didn't manage to finish it though. When it comes down to the practical part of the course, it offers guiding questions but it's up to you to generate the answers. The course won't just tell you what fits you and what doesn't. I wasn't able to answer a lot of questions past the value's section, therefore I had to take action to give me new feedback.

@Snader Thank you Sadhguru with Iron Man's hands. That's a correct description of my situation. Very unclear at the moment. @Bob Seeker Do I really think it is within the area of engineering? No. But in order to overcome my indecisiveness regarding the topic I finally went with Picasso's quote - "To know what you are going to draw, you have to begin drawing" ;thus, I started my studies. My goal this year was to immerse myself in the projects that the uni offers and to expose myself to as much new people and ideas to broaden my scope. Covid had other plans this year and so the studies were done remotely... Given the current circumstances, I think it would be best that I stay in the uni, do this work next year and try to bring clarity to this issue as fast as possible. You know, another thing that frustrated me this year was that by talking to other students in my class, they didn't seem to be troubled at all by topics like: Is that truly their life purpose? How do they feel about the courses? At best, they have a general sense of direction. They kept it simple, executed like robots, passed the exams and moved on , whereas I felt like I was self sabotaging myself thinking about these things. Maybe I am just getting into specifics about my future life too soon?

If the brain is geared towards survival, then why would it think negative thoughts? How exactly does it serve the mind? I mean in nature for example, if you'd be pessimistic about your chances of finding food then you'd die. Or, is the correct way of looking at it, is that for example a loser's mind would keep the negative thinking to make the loser's identity survive? Also, in meditation you are asked to observe your thoughts from a distance and not to identify with them. If you are not identified with your thoughts then how come inside of you there is "someone" who is producing the thoughts and "another" who is watching them. Are those just two different parts of the brain working simultaneously?

@nistake Thank you. What do you mean by "shadow material"? Are you referring to emotional blockages or unhealed trauma? Isn't one of their qualities to purify you from such things?

So to sum it up, negative thoughts arise from negative feelings that originate mostly nowadays from conceptual mental activity. Now, regarding meditation. Not gonna lie, at this stage of my development your answers sound no more than beautiful words to my ears. How can I actually experience and understand it?