legendary

Quintessential stage orange. I would've agreed with this guy wholeheartedly a few years ago.

This could explain the phenomenon of the brain getting 'rewired' after having a number of mystical experiences with 5-MeO, as Leo described.

Here are some papers published on 5-MeO that I came across. The epidemiology of 5-methoxy-N, N-dimethyltryptamine (5-MeO-DMT) use: Benefits, consequences, patterns of use, subjective effects, and reasons for consumption - The full paper isn't free to Download. Most of us already know this stuff, so not worth reading comprehensively The natural hallucinogen 5-MeO-DMT, component of Ayahuasca, disrupts cortical function in rats: reversal by antipsychotic drugs - Based on my understanding, this paper frames the 5-MeO experience as sort of disruptive and psychotic; and discusses how these effects can be reversed. Imagine all those rats having radical Non-Dual experiences;) and then being killed right after:( Preferential action of 5-methoxytryptamine and 5-methoxydimethyltryptamine on presynaptic serotonin receptors: A comparative iontophoretic study with LSD and serotonin - The full paper isn't free to Download. This was written way back, in 1977. It basically compares 5-MeO with other psychoactive substances and the receptors they target. Short term changes in the proteome of human cerebral organoids induced by 5-MeO-DMT - From the Discussion section: Typical psychological effects of psychedelics such as changes in perception and thought, renewed sensation of novelty, ineffability, and awe may derive directly from the strong modulation of synaptic and cellular plasticity promoted by 5-MeO-DMT, and putatively compounds of other classical psychedelics. - Our work also suggests that a single, 24-hour-treatment with 5-MeO-DMT, i.e., a single dose, modulates specific signaling molecules identified as key players in LTP, a classic mechanism of learning and memory. Cheers!

Is the Placebo Effect really just a simple phenomenon as the stage orange scientific and the medical community describe? Or is there more to it? This will be another video in the series against naive realism, if it is the latter.

What the rationalist/materialist paradigm misunderstands about time! I have heard a lot of people say time is an illusion and that the present moment is all that there is. But for a person like me, it is still hard to comprehend. A video on the metaphysical understanding of time would be foundational.

The HCl version I have is whitish pink. I have read some other users on this forum had the same.

I understand this, and I totally agree with you. Besides, as Leo mentioned in one of the episodes, the psychedelic trips will tend to be a part of a larger arc, instead of being standalone trips. Another analogy someone mentioned (Dennis McKenna, I believe) was that of exploring a new place while on psychedelics, such that once you make a significant advance or a breakthrough, you are able to return there and navigate more easily in the future. I was just curious about different psychedelics. I hadn't read about people blacking out on LSD. Thanks for sharing! Here is a guide someone posted on Reddit about different LSD dosages: https://www.reddit.com/r/LSD/comments/2hg6io/different_dosage_of_lsd_explained_from_20ug1500ug/ But of course, these experiences aren't objective at all, so any analysis will tend to be one-dimensional and rudimentary. To be honest, I tripped on 300ug LSD before, it was profound. But 5-MeO (24mg) was the first psychedelic that kicked my ass! The ego was literally scared, trying to hold on, even if that meant yelling "Oh my God!" while resisting God.

I have a question that some of you might be able to answer better than the internet could: There are sufficient trip reports on this thread to prove that 5-MeO-DMT is the most powerful psychedelic drug. However, we also know that it isn't the most potent (purely looking at the weight of the dose), LSD is! LSD (or an analog) is commonly taken only in microgram range, but does it have the potential to produce the same insights and non-dual awareness as 5-MeO-DMT at equal doses? A few reasons why one might not want to do that with LSD are: Cost: It might be too expensive to take 20-30mg of LSD Long duration of the trip I'm curious to know if things like these are the only reason why people shouldn't bother with extremely high doses of LSD (or even AL-LAD), or is it the case that these psychedelics fail to produce profound experiences like the ones with 5-MeO regardless of the dosage? --- I believe this applies to people who haven't done a lot of spiritual purification, and hence they can't experience ego death at 150ug of AL-LAD, as Leo did. I'm talking about an average stage green/yellow person who has only had few psychedelic experiences under their belt. Cheers!

I was blown away by the positivity and support everyone on this forum has provided. Thanks to everyone who read my report and/or gave me feedback and suggestions. It has helped me a lot. @Leo Gura Using micro-scoops in conjunction with the milligram weighing scale seems like a wise choice. Will keep that in mind. I look forward to the Full Monty @cirkussmile Thanks for the feedback! Your pointer about letting go is absolutely brilliant! I will integrate this into my daily practices for sure and I can already see how it will help me in the future. @DrMobius Thanks a lot for your analysis! I think a bigger dose is definitely the solution for me, but I'm planning on doing it under the guided supervision of a shaman (Octavio Rettig) via smoking it. @Ragib Ashraf It was really interesting to read about your experience. Kudos on surrendering to the experience! I agree with your point everyone having different tolerances. Yes, I'm planning on smoking the toad medicine under the guidance of Dr. Rettig. @Ar_Senses Your report is absolutely fantastic. Reading it gave me a lot of encouragement to go ahead with the decision to go to Spain. Yes, I'm planning to go in October. Have you tripped on 5-MeO solo after your experience? Great insights from yourself, as well as Dr. Rettig and Dr. Ball. I have read 'Entheogenic Liberation' and 'Tryptamine Palace'. Haven't read the book from Dr. Rettig, since a lot of people say it is more of an autobiography, but may read it later. I will certainly hit you up, as I have some questions about the retreat. ============== I have had some time to contemplate on my experience, observe my behavior and also to carry out a few experiments I was curious about: Insights: Nothing more to add than what Leo has already spoken about in his videos Discovering these insights through first-person experience and verifying the truths for oneself is vital; only that will help in making radical paradigm shifts successfully. Reactivation: Definition: Spontaneous recurrence of the altered state of consciousness during sleeping or upon being exposed to conditions similar to those present during the original experience. Leo spoke about his reactivation experience during sleep, so have a few other people. My experience wasn't a full blown experience of God, it was more like being stuck in non-dual limbo during my peak, followed by a mild panic attack. For the first 5 nights when I went to sleep, I got into that non-dual limbo state of expanded consciousness, but as soon as I consciously thought about the possibility to try and let go, the experience would end and I would either go back to ordinary sleep or wake up. This even happened to me once after I fell asleep on a bus. There was no panic or anxiety accompanying the experience. This experience was also triggered upon being exposed to the music that was playing during the trip (OM Chanting @ 528Hz), at least during the first few days. After the 5th day, this stopped for me and hasn't happened since. Bilateral Symmetry: It was interesting to read the opinions that some of the people have about this. It looks like it really isn't a big deal for a lot of the people. In my case, it seems like this may be important. I remember while I was asleep one night and the reactivation began, my left hand automatically moved around with a jerk- such that it mirrored my right hand's position. My body was still, but symmetric. This may have happened during other instances, but I'm not aware of those Microdosing: I had been experimenting with Microdosing (approx. 20ug LSD using Dr. Fadiman's Guide) since before my trip It certainly seems to have some positive benefits, so I'm going to keep on experimenting with this I haven't noticed any discernible differences from before or after the trip. I feel like I might be able to get away with a lower dose now (15ug), but I need to verify that. Self-Inquiry: When I start self-inquiry now, my sense of self soon goes to my heart. It always used to be behind my eyes earlier, and I start out there even now; however, it doesn't stay there. I also notice a muffled sense of fear while I do this, but I haven't been able to go past this. The swinging of the Pendulum: I found myself getting lazier in the days immediately following the trip, instead of being motivated to learn and grow from this experience. I think ego backlash is almost guaranteed after some big experiences I haven't been able to resume my Yoga practice since, but I make excuses such as "Being aware is enough", "I'll just watch a video from Leo". I will proactively work towards swinging the pendulum back so that I surpass my previous baseline level of consciousness and productivity. Cheers!

My 5-MeO-DMT HCl Solo Trip Retreat: This is going to be a long post. Feel free to read it, but if you don't have time, please consider answering the questions enlisted at the very end. Context: Over the last 16 months, I have used psychedelics such as AL-LAD, Psilocybin Mushrooms, LSD and 2C-B in doses varying from mild to heavy One common observation with psychedelics (that I have previously also noticed with substances such as alcohol and weed) is that I have a high tolerance to drugs in general, so I conjectured that I wouldn't be able to break through on 5-MeO at 30mg. After a year of cycling between making progress (with my spiritual practices) and backsliding, I decided that it would be a good step to take 5-MeO (I had been putting it off since 4 months) Setting: My house, and my bedroom to be specific I fasted for about 20 hours before tripping on day 1 and for about 2 hours on day 2 Doses: I did 4 trips with varying doses, over two days, during which, I mostly stayed in my room either meditating, contemplating or resting. I took a break of about 1 hour after each trip on day 1. Day1: 12mg 22mg 30mg Day 2: 24mg 30mg (canceled) Day 3: Relax and integrate, journal ROA: Rectal administration (plugging) using the exact steps that Leo describes on this mega thread. Day 1: 12mg: I noticed an increased sense of awareness and my heart was beating faster than normal I was still pretty aware of myself and my surroundings No visual patterns, except for when I continuously stared at a flat surface The trip wasn't that uncomfortable This lasted for about an hour 22mg: Observations were same as that for 12mg, but more pronounced I had, what can be called a samadhi-like experience; with my eyes closed, my awareness of being aware was deeper than what I had ever experienced After the peek subsided, the awareness was still there, but my monkey mind started chattering: "Holy shit! This is awesome. I better remember this.", "So where is this Absolute Infinity.." The trip was more uncomfortable than the 12mg trip 30mg: This is it, right? Not quite This was a magnified version of the 22mg trip As the peak approached, I realized that I felt completely detached from my body and my awareness expanded in a way that was completely radical to me. During the peak, all thoughts stopped, however, I found myself constantly opening my eyes and subconsciously confirming that I was still alive and in control (aka not letting go) I then tried letting go by relaxing and breathing deeply, it helped a little, although I was already past the peak and gradually coming down I noticed some involuntary, movement of my arms and legs in a bilateral symmetry, similar to what Martin Ball describes in his books This was the most uncomfortable trip thus far, but not unmanageable by any means Towards the end of the day, I found myself thinking, "Maybe this isn't going to be so challenging and scary after all. I got this". A huge trap, I intuited. Day 2: 24mg: I paid for my arrogance, big time! The trip started out similar to the trips from day 1, with my heart beating fast and my awareness increasing and expanding However, as the 5-minute mark hit and the peak approached, I found that my control over my body started fading. Fear and panic took over, as I kept reminding myself: "It's okay, I need to relax. I know what I signed up for", "Ego death is physical death, I knew that", "So this is what it feels like to die, Fuck!" I don't remember much of what I did during the peak, except for that I completely lost it. I came across the 'Insanity threshold' that Leo spoke about. And OMG was I scared to let go. I got in touch with a raw experience of being, so radical and so profound, that when my senses had no way of making sense of it. It was the most interesting and unimaginable thing I have ever imagined. I was beyond mindfucked. I also became aware of not being my human self. I didn't get a glimpse of God, but I know, beyond a doubt that I am not my body. I briefly remember becoming conscious of my surroundings one again every now and then. Thoughts would come into my awareness when that happened. These were sort of like my ego's last defense: As long as I have my thoughts, I am me and not dead. I noticed myself doing the bilateral movements every now and then, involuntarily, except for that they were more rapid this time. My problem was that I was bumping into my door and my walls every now and then and I was partially scared of seriously injuring myself. As the peak subsided, my awareness of my surroundings and my body returned. I remember shouting out things like, "okay, okay..", "I remember my name, I do", "maybe I shouldn't have done that", "This is crazy!", "Fuck, fuck!". I became worried that my neighbors would call the cops or assume that I've been possessed or something (I live in a condo). This didn't allow me to fully let go, yet, I had no choice but to go through the experience. I remember coming out of the experience and staring at a thread on my carpet, for what seemed like an eternity, still scared to let go. This was when my trip returned to the baseline of my day 1 experiences, and I could manage things easier. Observations: I got really humbled for thinking that I could go through a 5-MeO-DMT experience without a scratch. Letting go and accepting insanity is a radical step. Normally, it seems that insane people don’t care about others, but true insanity here is when you don't care about yourself, at all! Being is much, much more profound and ineffable than what all of actualized.org videos could describe. Nothing can prepare one for a 5-MeO experience. Death is scary (duh)! And deeply personal. My mistakes: My weighing scale seemed to be out to destroy my life this weekend. One second, the balance says 25mg, the next second, it jumps to 29mg and dillydallies. By my visual inspection, the 24mg dosage of day 2 seemed to have more substance than the 30mg of day 1. I'm not using that scale again, at least not for 5-MeO I thought that the setting was perfect. Me alone in my room. However, for the first time when tripping, I shouted and involuntarily bumped into the walls. This had me scared for what would happen if someone were to intrude. I think doing this my renting out a secluded place would've been a better idea. What I'm doing next: No more tripping for a while. I need to embody mindfulness and awareness during my daily life and advance the Yoga practice that I've been slacking off with More contemplation Get on top of my life purpose I'm planning on attending the retreat with Dr. Octavio Rettig in Spain in a few months, where I intend to finish what I started. This would also allow me to avoid the mistakes I made. Enjoy life more. I take a lot of things for granted. This experience cannot be described as an experience of Absolute Infinity, however, this was a profound near-death experience for me. Questions for other Self-Actualizers: How were you able to let go while tripping? I remember thoughts violently swirling in my mind, as I tried to let go, but failed I see that not many trip reports mention the 'Bilateral Symmetry' and 'Energetic Yoga' that Martin Ball advocates. I understand that he doesn't seem to be completely liberated, but I noticed myself doing those movements involuntarily. Has anyone else noticed this on 5-MeO or any other psychedelic? Has anyone tried smoking the natural form of 5-MeO (toad medicine)? If so, how does it compare with the HCl version, esp. when plugged? If you think there is something else I did wrong, please let me know. I have been planning for these trips for a few months, and have read a few books and have read many trip reports, but one cannot be too cautious with this substance. Cheers!

Reality is a Strange Loop