Scholar

How many of you guys use psychedelics as a sort of nootropic? I feel like there is a huge potential, especially for artists, to use substances to improve and changed their process. I also feel like these substances could easily be used to help in learning and study. So, if you guys do use these substances this way, whether through microdosing or proper tripping, how do you go about it?

ForestLuv since when are you back? Good to see you again! Yes, I kind of knew from my 20mcg experiments that Right-Brain Mode would be the way to go for the trip, but the panic I had at the start due to being mentally unprepared kind of put me into Left-Brain Analytical mode, and for much of the trip I was holding onto certain concepts because I did not feel it was safe to let go. I did learn lots of things though, but the next trip I will lower the dosage and try to properly enjoy it and let go.

Does your sensitivity apply to all psychedelics, and also to things like alcohol, caffeine and so forth? What is the cause of some people being more or less sensitive?

Yes that seems obvious to me, but I think it is in relationship to the ego. It's not the the psychedelics themselves or the experiences are scary, but rather a question of whether the ego can handle them. But there is also a component of the ego simply creating fear not even in response to a particular experience, but simply because the experience amplifies the fear-structures already present in the ego. The trip I had was actually pretty gentle and comfortable, yet it could have been horrifying only because of the fear the ego created for itself around self-created notions. In fact, without these notions, the trip should have been enjoyable all throughout. The only thing that could have been scary was the point when I was creating my own reality. But really, that wasn't even scary to me, there was only tension because I was so immersed in the concept of a terrible trip.

Got some sleep, brain feels dull and slow. But I have a very strong sense of how silly and made up my fears were. Completely self-constructed for no reason other than my preconceptions of the possibility of having a bad trip. So, the respect towards the substance has to be in relationship towards oneself. I was clearly not mentally ready to take the dose, and more so than the dose itself, that was the main issue. Because, even though what happened was mind melting, other than the self-created fear-concepts there was nothing "terrifying" that happened at all.

How do you not come out of that experience permanently traumatized?

Knock him out how?

What do you guys think of taking Diazepam to stop a worst case panic attack? I will be trip sitting somebody soon and I am a little paranoid that if they go into complete terror I won't be able to help them, so maybe having some around for the worst case is wise? Did any of you ever use such things?

Well mostly exhausted, didn't sleep and my mind feels slow.

My question is, what do you guys do if you do fall into terror during a trip alone? I have no idea what I would be even doing with my body. Do such trips cause permanent trauma?

An another important note: This forum is not LSD friendly because the white background completely annihilates your eyes, lol. It repelled me like garlic repells a vampire.

Hm, I will have to think about this more deeply. When I wrote those things the trip was not over yet, even though I thought so. I had a strange detachment from my anxiety and fear, yet, at least half of the trip was defined by anxiety and fear. It didn't make me suffer, but I could feel me holding and being unwilling to let go of the tension, of the idea of horror. With the shaping reality and being in control, what is so terrifying is that it's like your ego wants to cling to anything, to stability, because it is terrified of the unknown. But there is no stability in that state, reality is just completely what will be determined in the moment. But it wasn't ever truly terrifying to me, it fact I would not say I experience actual terror during the trip, I was very detached from the fear responses, so that I was almost observing them objectively. There was a moment where I had realizations and was at peace, but the tension came back after some time, and I did not resolve it. So there were certain thought patterns and tensions, but I was detached from them and they did not actually touch me. I had a grin on my face for most of the time, and was laughing at how silly I was being. But I did not dissolve the clinging, I just let the egoic structures do their thing. It's hard to describe, I also didn't sleep at all and my brain is drained. I will write a proper trip report because there was a lot of things beyond this, but I have a feeling I won't be able to describe them in words even after I try. Either way, it was foolish to take that great of a dose alone, and it being my first time tripping. During the trip i realized I had to be my own trip sitter and so that took away my ability to let myself go completely, but I don't know how I managed to not fall into complete terror. That was the worst start you could possibly imagine for a trip, 20 minutes after intake I was in a full blown panic, thinking about sticking a finger in my throat to puke it out and coming on this forum to ask for advice, but somehow I just managed myself well. But I see the potential of this being incredibly traumatizing for some people who cannot regulate themselves in the way I somehow did. What I would say "saved" the trip would be, if anything, the realization that I don't need to get rid of the fear, even the fear of the fear. I just allowed it to be there and observed it. I stopped evaluating the trip in terms of bad or negative, even though I did observe some thought patterns trying to make meaning out of it, saying "Oh this could be so terrible for you!" "No actually this is healing!" etc., so it was a very objective or detached kind of experience.

Oh, one key insight was: What was terrifying about the trip was not that I ever lacked control, but rather, that I always was in complete control. I could and can shape this reality as I please, and that is the control, but somehow it is controlless. Either way, the fact that the ego does control^... I don't even know what I am saying anymore.

I am still so much tripping rn that I will not remember this later, so, I basically talked myself into a compelte terror before the trip, and then over the span of the trip Valerie showed me the fabric of fear itself and that I am literally creating all of it. The terror is literally fear of nothing, it's just fear. Like the color red. On another note, reality completely merged into one substance. Music, my thoughts, imagery, it feels like one thick, gooyed substance that I can scoop around, and I can shape it literally with my pencil. I was taught that, the intention, the idea of reality, the supposed terror, the bad trip, those were just figments, and that's all that exists. So, if I want absolute terror and fear, that's what I will have, I can just create it with my pencil. I am in a complete, controlless control. Everything feels so completely imbued with meaning, and as I write this it feels like the music is flowing through the visual-mind-substance or whatever. Anyways I just wanted to give you guys a quick update, which somehow pulled me into this sharade. But ye I am still tripping balls.

I am fine guys but holy moley. I am holding onto reality by a piece of paper and a pencil in my hand, and I mean that literally.

I actually just moved alot, and working my anxiety out. That is working splendidly, but Jesus christ did I talk myself into a panic, I have no idea how that happened. I already learned a few lessons and the trip did not even start yet. I talked myself into such a panic I literally felt like dying from fear and that was like 20 minutes after taking the substance. Actually hilarious.

I am in a full blown panic attack holy shit

Yes, that is what I am planning to do. R-Mode engagement.

I still don't know what to do during the come up. I feel like if I listen to Max Richter during it I will experience something spiritual during the trip. But my main goal is focused on increasing my visual processing abilities, which I know I won't be able to focus on if I do the spiritual focus. But I also don't know if the melancholia wouldn't cause a bad trip. Maybe I should experiment the next time more and this time just see what happens.

That is the worst analysis I have ever seen, I could have made shit up and made a better debunk analysis, lol. I don't believe in it being a real body but holy shit are the arguments terrible.

I don't know if he is careful, in general this forum seems to view caution and common sense as secondary. I don't think we can just assume his phenomena are activations. It could be anything.

Well, if we were to enforce spreading misinformation, or framing ones own views as fact, I think most the posts in this thread would have to be removed. But sure, I will be more careful around such claims in the future. What is troublesome to me is that noone in here even cautioned this person to be more careful around using this substance, even though their reaction to it is definitely abnormal.

Well, whether or not it is a fact we don't know. I strongly suspect his usage of the substance was related to the episode of problems he had at that time. Either way, my greater point still stands that there is a risk involved and that these substances do cause changes in the brain.

I don't think his sleep issues were unrelated to his 5-MeO-DMT intake, and I do not think we can just dismiss such risks. You have no clue if these are reactivations, some spiritual mumbo jumbo, or his brain structures being altered in dysfunctional ways. People need to stop pretending they know what they are talking about, in my opinion.

I would be careful around this substance and probably recommend not using it again. We have no idea if this is spiritual or something in your brain. There is always risk associated with these substances. Martin Ball basically fried his brain using it, he was not able to sleep for a year or so, and I am not sure if he is any better now. But he took it daily. The fact that it gives you powerful experiences means it creates powerful changes in the brain. And it is not a drug designed for anything, it's literally just throwing something at your brain and it happens to have certain deconstructive effects. It might as well cause other changes in the brain that are harmful and make it unable to sleep. And maybe it causes certain changes in your brain that it does not cause in others. Whether or not this is the case, this is a real risk that you should consider. You could destroy your brain with these substances, especially if they are less researched.