Do you experiment with drugs?

[April]

No. I don't. But sometimes. I want to. To give in and be like most people in my town.

But that's not me. So, I won't.

Except for Xanax and things that reduce anxiety, but I don't do it for the high. So I guess it doesn't count? I actually don't have anymore anyway, so there's that. I wish I did. But I wouldn't let myself get addicted, I made myself skip days when I didn't absolutely feel like my heart was going to quit.

 

[Ifur]

I am very strict with my pain doctors now...both in what I take and how much.
I flat out refuse to even touch certain medications such as methadone.

Mostly now I am on low dose long acting morphine, which has an incredibly faster half-life than previous meds.

I have done various trials of natural herbs and other supplements, nothing of any noticeable help.
The only thing that has seriously helped me was psilocybin.

You are interesting!
You mentioned doctors wanting to learn from your experience and trials, perhaps consider writing and publishing, a column under pseudonym perhaps?

However, wanted to ask if you had considered traveling to learn more about Qigong?
As you must know perfectly well, some herbs work quite different when eaten, and that how it's treated before hand makes a big difference.
For most it reduces blood pressure, have anti inflammatory effects and is therefore also good against Crohn's disease.
In India especially in certain mountain regions, medical cannabis is rolled and treated by hand.
A process and method that has been employed for centuries if not millennia.
Since psilocybin works, so should perhaps some varieties of cannabis as it also acts on 5-HT receptors.
And the psychedelic effect what concerns this is stronger when eaten.

This and having pain reducing properties, albeit minor, does not involve dopamine receptors.
Even the legal medical marijuana are created by the same recreational people, that shouldn't be as stabilise and well developed as some strains and methods found elsewhere.

You could consider a trip to the Himalayas and Nepal to look for Charas (hashish).
Could be a bit of a Dr. Strange type of adventure, so can't help but recommend it strongly!

 

[Skarekrow]

You are interesting!
You mentioned doctors wanting to learn from your experience and trials, perhaps consider writing and publishing, a column under pseudonym perhaps?

However, wanted to ask if you had considered traveling to learn more about Qigong?
As you must know perfectly well, some herbs work quite different when eaten, and that how it's treated before hand makes a big difference.
For most it reduces blood pressure, have anti inflammatory effects and is therefore also good against Crohn's disease.
In India especially in certain mountain regions, medical cannabis is rolled and treated by hand.
A process and method that has been employed for centuries if not millennia.
Since psilocybin works, so should perhaps some varieties of cannabis as it also acts on 5-HT receptors.
And the psychedelic effect what concerns this is stronger when eaten.

This and having pain reducing properties, albeit minor, does not involve dopamine receptors.
Even the legal medical marijuana are created by the same recreational people, that shouldn't be as stabilise and well developed as some strains and methods found elsewhere.

You could consider a trip to the Himalayas and Nepal to look for Charas (hashish).
Could be a bit of a Dr. Strange type of adventure, so can't help but recommend it strongly!

Thanks for the nice words.

I actually take RSO oil - https://www.wikileaf.com/thestash/rick-simpson-oil/
I try to take that more than the smokable stuff, which does have it’s purposes too.

As for traveling...I would love to do that, but it’s not very financially or physically feasible for me at the moment.
I travelled a lot when I was younger and have been to some obscure places, I feel very lucky I was able to, and got to take those trips.
It would be cool to take a “Dr. Strange” type spiritual journey....he is my favorite character after all, lol.
But...the way I see it...I don’t need to go anywhere in order to take that journey.
You are new on the forum (Welcome BTW) so you probably don’t know about my childhood out of body night jaunts into terror.
It happened so frequently as a child I began to miss school and was referred by the school psychologist to UCLA after he IQ tested me in the 4th grade and then did the Zenner ESP card test twice I remember...and I remember him saying I got 80% correct and how good that was.
I had no clue what that meant at the time, but I was happy to be praised nonetheless.
The IQ test revealed that I very bored when it came to schoolwork, not lazy.
(Have done ESP tests since with mixed results)

Anyhow...lots of paranormal incidents and phenomena have always been in my life randomly.
Speaking of Dr. Strange and mystical things...a year or two ago I spent a lot of time purposefully meditating with the intent of inducing an OOBE (out of body experience), and I had some pretty fantastical results (drug free).
I never got very far out of body when I would purposefully induce it...but just being able to jump up out of the physical self and gain that perspective of non-physicality, not only helped me make more sense of my childhood, but for someone in chronic pain from AS that is generally rated just below giving birth on the pain scale...

Spoiler: Chart

(Even though it’s a “ball park” figure...imho it’s accurate...but I’m biased a bit haha.)

...being able to leave my body really helped me redefine how I perceive myself and the pain, that in return helped reduce the actual pain.
The saying goes- If it fires, it wires.
The problem with chronic pain is the body is made for efficiency...and so if there are constant pain signals coming from somewhere, the body will actually reinforce that nerve(s) and turn the one lane road into a freeway of pain information...the same goes with the area of the brain that pain is received and interpreted by.
Not too surprisingly this area - the default mode network or DMN is also the seat of the ego-self.
Meditation has been shown in fMRIs to reduce blood flow to the DMN and calm that area...as has psilocybin..however in it’s case, it calms the DMN while the rest of the brain is hyper-connected and is able to function without the ego running the show.
Think of it this way - pain creates negative feelings - name one and it probably does.
When made chronic, those secondary compounding things like depression, anxiety, insomnia, etc. can become wired into the pain signals themselves, and vice-versa...the negative feelings can exacerbate the pain.
All those signals travel these reinforced pathways that are frankly jaded and set in a certain pattern.
It’s like looking out of a dirty window or lens onto the world.
The psilocybin...is able to clean that lens...it’s able to create new brain connections actually proven in several labs now.
This in turn offers a perspective and a neural pathway that is not contaminated with other triggers set off each time by the pain or negative emotions.
Anyhow.

I do not practice going OOB at the moment as it takes a lot of your time and mental effort (but also not effort, lol), to get to that point.
And then to maintain that state when self-induced is very difficult.
It’s difficult for the mind to comprehend I believe...and there are also moments of incredibly loud noises and buzzing and other strange phenomena (used to scare me badly as a child).
It’s also hard to maintain as you cannot feel yourself breathing...heartbeat...etc...
I once reached up to feel my face and my hands went right through it...that immediately broke me out of my trance hahaha.
But...I have to say...the stories of it happening are not just wild tales.
I would not believe it myself if I hadn’t experienced it...the same with the “paranormal” incidents or whatever they were.
I don’t mind if someone thinks I imagined it all, or dreamed it, or whatever...it’s really not something that is very describable if one hasn’t already seen.
One of those things.

That was a long...semi-off-subject ramble...sorry.
5HTP puts me on the toilet all day if I take it haha.

Thanks again for your suggestions and response.
Take care.

 

[Ifur]

Thanks for the nice words.

I actually take RSO oil - https://www.wikileaf.com/thestash/rick-simpson-oil/
I try to take that more than the smokable stuff, which does have it’s purposes too.

As for traveling...I would love to do that, but it’s not very financially or physically feasible for me at the moment.
I travelled a lot when I was younger and have been to some obscure places, I feel very lucky I was able to, and got to take those trips.
It would be cool to take a “Dr. Strange” type spiritual journey....he is my favorite character after all, lol.
But...the way I see it...I don’t need to go anywhere in order to take that journey.
You are new on the forum (Welcome BTW) so you probably don’t know about my childhood out of body night jaunts into terror.
It happened so frequently as a child I began to miss school and was referred by the school psychologist to UCLA after he IQ tested me in the 4th grade and then did the Zenner ESP card test twice I remember...and I remember him saying I got 80% correct and how good that was.
I had no clue what that meant at the time, but I was happy to be praised nonetheless.
The IQ test revealed that I very bored when it came to schoolwork, not lazy.
(Have done ESP tests since with mixed results)

Anyhow...lots of paranormal incidents and phenomena have always been in my life randomly.
Speaking of Dr. Strange and mystical things...a year or two ago I spent a lot of time purposefully meditating with the intent of inducing an OOBE (out of body experience), and I had some pretty fantastical results (drug free).
I never got very far out of body when I would purposefully induce it...but just being able to jump up out of the physical self and gain that perspective of non-physicality, not only helped me make more sense of my childhood, but for someone in chronic pain from AS that is generally rated just below giving birth on the pain scale...

Spoiler: Chart

(Even though it’s a “ball park” figure...imho it’s accurate...but I’m biased a bit haha.)

...being able to leave my body really helped me redefine how I perceive myself and the pain, that in return helped reduce the actual pain.
The saying goes- If it fires, it wires.
The problem with chronic pain is the body is made for efficiency...and so if there are constant pain signals coming from somewhere, the body will actually reinforce that nerve(s) and turn the one lane road into a freeway of pain information...the same goes with the area of the brain that pain is received and interpreted by.
Not too surprisingly this area - the default mode network or DMN is also the seat of the ego-self.
Meditation has been shown in fMRIs to reduce blood flow to the DMN and calm that area...as has psilocybin..however in it’s case, it calms the DMN while the rest of the brain is hyper-connected and is able to function without the ego running the show.
Think of it this way - pain creates negative feelings - name one and it probably does.
When made chronic, those secondary compounding things like depression, anxiety, insomnia, etc. can become wired into the pain signals themselves, and vice-versa...the negative feelings can exacerbate the pain.
All those signals travel these reinforced pathways that are frankly jaded and set in a certain pattern.
It’s like looking out of a dirty window or lens onto the world.
The psilocybin...is able to clean that lens...it’s able to create new brain connections actually proven in several labs now.
This in turn offers a perspective and a neural pathway that is not contaminated with other triggers set off each time by the pain or negative emotions.
Anyhow.

I do not practice going OOB at the moment as it takes a lot of your time and mental effort (but also not effort, lol), to get to that point.
And then to maintain that state when self-induced is very difficult.
It’s difficult for the mind to comprehend I believe...and there are also moments of incredibly loud noises and buzzing and other strange phenomena (used to scare me badly as a child).
It’s also hard to maintain as you cannot feel yourself breathing...heartbeat...etc...
I once reached up to feel my face and my hands went right through it...that immediately broke me out of my trance hahaha.
But...I have to say...the stories of it happening are not just wild tales.
I would not believe it myself if I hadn’t experienced it...the same with the “paranormal” incidents or whatever they were.
I don’t mind if someone thinks I imagined it all, or dreamed it, or whatever...it’s really not something that is very describable if one hasn’t already seen.
One of those things.

That was a long...semi-off-subject ramble...sorry.
5HTP puts me on the toilet all day if I take it h

aha.

Thanks again for your suggestions and response.
Take care.

My life is about as fucked up. Most of life has been me severely brain damaged, my mom is currently behind me smattering.
I've been bicycle helmet brain damaged, and I''ve been tested since early childhood. It's never showed up on test, as I'm 170 IQ+ playing on my strengths.
Bicycle helmet brain damage never showed up on any scientific tests that professionals couldn't dismiss as a fluke.

See the scar and stitch? That's from younger than two years old. That's a fatal brain inquiry.

And here is the fucked up part,I'm INTJ as a personality, and my left hemisphere was damaged.
So to some extent I can argue to have been born INTJ but cognitively been INJF due tos this damage. So consider my hemisphere indicated by my ears, reverse and triple. I have empathy, and I can do sympathy when it is worth while.

Maybe it's the alcohol speaking, as I'm quite drunk.
But perhaps I do have the emotional authority to tell you to fuck off to Nepal and Himalaya.
Just to cut this short, as I'm 100% certain you qualify and are worth it.

(so after a like from Skarekrow, so.... this might be quite high up there as one of the coldest empathic requests ever done?) So let's assume you are right, shit I've been through. Cost a plain ticket to send me to guilt trip the shit out of ONE CORRECT AND RIGHT THING.

 

[Skarekrow]

My life is about as fucked up. Most of life has been me severely brain damaged, my mom is currently behind me smattering.
I've been bicycle helmet brain damaged, and I''ve been tested since early childhood. It's never showed up on test, as I'm 170 IQ+ playing on my strengths.
Bicycle helmet brain damage never showed up on any scientific tests that professionals couldn't dismiss as a fluke.

See the scar and stitch? That's from younger than two years old. That's a fatal brain inquiry.

And here is the fucked up part,I'm INTJ as a personality, and my left hemisphere was damaged.
So to some extent I can argue to have been born INTJ but cognitively been INJF due tos this damage. So consider my hemisphere indicated by my ears, reverse and triple. I have empathy, and I can do sympathy when it is worth while.

Maybe it's the alcohol speaking, as I'm quite drunk.
But perhaps I do have the emotional authority to tell you to fuck off to Nepal and Himalaya.
Just to cut this short, as I'm 100% certain you qualify and are worth it.

Lol...thanks...I’m sure the same can be said of you.
I can relate strangely.
I myself have sustained several concussions as a child that put me in the hospital...3 to be exact.
There is a huge link between that and depression...so there is a high probability that my predisposition for depression since birth was compounded by those incidents.
The last one left me with amnesia for that entire day...I still cannot remember it haha.
I think I was 11...that was a bike crash too.
The whole left side of my face was road rash...it was pretty bad.

I’m sorry to hear about your own injuries and brain issues...but in some ways it probably gives you an advantage over the normal INTJ type perhaps?
It’s also interesting that you have such positive ideas about entheogenic substances as those mainly allow the right brain to run the show while the ego takes a snooze so to speak, haha.

Maybe I can just work on projecting myself to Nepal...lol...that could work!
In all honestly though...I feel that it is worth someone’s time to put in the effort and experience going OOB for themselves.
It does take an awful lot of time and practicing walking the tightrope of consciousness...plenty of times it either didn’t work or I fell asleep, haha.
But the few that it did were phenomenal.
It’s a entirely new perception of the self...even your vision is altered into a sort of 360 degree view with both a first and third person perspective melange all at once.

Have fun with your drinks and a peaceful rest!

 

[Ifur]

Lol...thanks...I’m sure the same can be said of you.
I can relate strangely.
I myself have sustained several concussions as a child that put me in the hospital...3 to be exact.
There is a huge link between that and depression...so there is a high probability that my predisposition for depression since birth was compounded by those incidents.
The last one left me with amnesia for that entire day...I still cannot remember it haha.
I think I was 11...that was a bike crash too.
The whole left side of my face was road rash...it was pretty bad.

I’m sorry to hear about your own injuries and brain issues...but in some ways it probably gives you an advantage over the normal INTJ type perhaps?
It’s also interesting that you have such positive ideas about entheogenic substances as those mainly allow the right brain to run the show while the ego takes a snooze so to speak, haha.

Maybe I can just work on projecting myself to Nepal...lol...that could work!
In all honestly though...I feel that it is worth someone’s time to put in the effort and experience going OOB for themselves.
It does take an awful lot of time and practicing walking the tightrope of consciousness...plenty of times it either didn’t work or I fell asleep, haha.
But the few that it did were phenomenal.
It’s a entirely new perception of the self...even your vision is altered into a sort of 360 degree view with both a first and third person perspective melange all at once.

Have fun with your drinks and a peaceful rest!

Hehe, the fact that I'm now past tense certain you are also 170 IQ+ pushed drunk me over the edge here.

I've studied argumentation theory and logic for 20 years.

I know I SHOULD win -- sending you to himalaya or nepal.

(yes, fuck everyone; you end up there, and thoughts not helpful can go elsewhere, just dont.)
Costs currently about a plain ticket to send me to create a story about a friend that worked at CERN got paid to by friends to motivate -- you should be fucked if you are INFJ)

 

[Skarekrow]

Hehe, the fact that I'm now past tense certain you are also 170 IQ+ pushed drunk me over the edge here.

I've studied argumentation theory and logic for 20 years.

I know I SHOULD win -- sending you to himalaya or nepal.

(yes, fuck everyone; you end up there, and thoughts not helpful can go elsewhere, just dont.)
Costs currently about a plain ticket to send me to create a story about a friend that worked at CERN got paid to by friends to motivate -- you should be fucked if you are INFJ)

I will gladly accept airline tickets in the mail, lol!

 

[Ifur]

I will gladly accept airline tickets in the mail, lol!

Hmm maybe soon, I today gave 824 grams of papers and proof since I was 9 to a doctor that has sworn an oath to the code of law and constitution -- starting with the Hippocratic oath.
I'm from Norway, so my absolute minimum right now is a very generous disability pay from the largest welfare state in the world. Did i mention that fucking CERN is involved in my proof of having suffered brain damage at the age of two?

 

[Infjente]

Yes. The other day I chewed my antihistamines thinking they would work faster. It made my mouth fall asleep.

 

[Skarekrow]

Hmm maybe soon, I today gave 824 grams of papers and proof since I was 9 to a doctor that has sworn an oath to the code of law and constitution -- starting with the Hippocratic oath.
I'm from Norway, so my absolute minimum right now is a very generous disability pay for the largest welfare state in the world.

Never got to Norway...the furthest I’ve been were the Ural mountains in Siberia, Russia, lol.

We could certainly use some of the welfare generosity here in the US.
Most of our taxes go to stupid fucking 20 years wars with no point and no end and no objective.
Now we are trying to pick a fight with Iran...*sigh*

Can you see the aurora borealis from where you are?
I bet those look fantastic on mushrooms hahahaha!

I once was basically done with the main portion of a trip and was not expecting to see anything out of the ordinary until I went outside and saw that there was a huge star grid in the sky...with lines of light connecting the stars...you could even see some projecting outward and at various angles.
What was even more impressive was the fact I could look away and then back again and the pattern remained the same - it was highly stable and did not morph or shift like the majority of what you see.
Very cool and beautiful experience!

 

[Korg]

Everyone should take shrooms once.

 

[Ifur]

Hmm maybe soon, I today gave 824 grams of papers and proof since I was 9 to a doctor that has sworn an oath to the code of law and constitution -- starting with the Hippocratic oath.
I'm from Norway, so my absolute minimum right now is a very generous disability pay from the largest welfare state in the world. Did i mention that fucking CERN is involved in my proof of having suffered brain damage at the age of two?

Sutrprised I'm able to write this drunk, some things gotto change for me!
As the Greek traditions says, only good ideas and thoughts if it's still good the day after.

Sometimes wish wish this drunk writing wouldn't be readable -- once I sober up I have to look into what I've written and done, still drunk however... And need to drop alcohol for other things, as it sucks!

 

[April]

Everyone should take shrooms once.

I'm scared bc I'm so prone to bad trips even with pot lol. What would a mushroom do to my anxiety... probably make me think aliens or unicorns were killing me haha

 

[Skarekrow]

I'm scared bc I'm so prone to bad trips even with pot lol. What would a mushroom do to my anxiety... probably make me think aliens or unicorns were killing me haha

I specifically take them for anxiety/depression/chronic pain as they reduce blood flow to the area of the brain that physiologically changes with those who suffer those things for some time (DMN I spoke of earlier).
I can link you to quite a few studies showing how they work to shut down the same area that is overactive.
You need a babysitter who knows what to expect and has tried them themselves.
I also recommend that you learn to do some meditative relaxation exercises ahead of time...as the “bad trip” is 95% of the time due to someone just getting too worked up and having a panic attack.
It’s good to have someone who can ground you and soothe such stresses if they should arise.
The good part about mushrooms though is you can take it very slow and then see how it feels.
When you take them there is always a little bit of anxiety before take off since you never really fully know what to expect, but I find that if you just relax and think of it as the best virtual reality ride of your life it usually makes one feel somewhat drunk at first and then they get heavy limbs and want to lie down.
It’s best to put on some eye shades or go in a dark room and put on some nice chill music you have picked out ahead of time.

Very honestly...I was so bad when I took them with my anxiety that I couldn’t function in everyday life almost.
If a bill collector or someone like that called I would lose my breath, and literally could not talk and have to hang up...my heart would pound and my chest would burn with physical anxiety.
I purposefully searched them out to help break me from the depression/anxiety that was being spawned by the chronic pain (same brain region).
I’ve taken just about every antidepressant under the sun over my life and nothing ever helped me in any way that was noticeable.
The bad side effects were though.
I was even considering shock therapy to try and reset my brain.
I did 3 weekends with gradually increasing amounts and for the first time in my entire life I broke from the depression.
The anxiety disappeared too.
I took fewer pain meds for about a week.
And it even fixed whatever was causing my IBS (come to find out it’s also due to overactivity in the DMN).
Personally I feel they saved my life.
If you want to get in depth PM me and we can talk about it more.
Hope you feel better!!

 

[TheFool]

I love to smoke some herb and read jungian psychology and mythology. Helps to tune into the arcetypes and see their drama in every individual.

For the fun I take MDMA + shrooms. I keep the shroom dosage around 1-2 grams so that I can still function. Also weed have a nice mellowing touch once I start to come down. This is my favorite combo for the raves since it gives me the energy to dance and the afterglow makes the discussions interesting.

My doctor prescribed me Vyanse for my ADHD but I am not a big fan of using amphetamines other than recreationally. Makes me irritated and kills my creativity after a while. I take them when needed, mostly when I need to get some stuff done that I am not at all interested in doing.

Got an invitation to partake in a mescaline ceremony next summer. Contemplating on my intentions currently. Don’t want to go there just to trip.. Respect is the key in doing any of the psychoactive substances. Learned the hard way..

 

[April]

I specifically take them for anxiety/depression/chronic pain as they reduce blood flow to the area of the brain that physiologically changes with those who suffer those things for some time (DMN I spoke of earlier).
I can link you to quite a few studies showing how they work to shut down the same area that is overactive.
You need a babysitter who knows what to expect and has tried them themselves.
I also recommend that you learn to do some meditative relaxation exercises ahead of time...as the “bad trip” is 95% of the time due to someone just getting too worked up and having a panic attack.
It’s good to have someone who can ground you and soothe such stresses if they should arise.
The good part about mushrooms though is you can take it very slow and then see how it feels.
When you take them there is always a little bit of anxiety before take off since you never really fully know what to expect, but I find that if you just relax and think of it as the best virtual reality ride of your life it usually makes one feel somewhat drunk at first and then they get heavy limbs and want to lie down.
It’s best to put on some eye shades or go in a dark room and put on some nice chill music you have picked out ahead of time.

Very honestly...I was so bad when I took them with my anxiety that I couldn’t function in everyday life almost.
If a bill collector or someone like that called I would lose my breath, and literally could not talk and have to hang up...my heart would pound and my chest would burn with physical anxiety.
I purposefully searched them out to help break me from the depression/anxiety that was being spawned by the chronic pain (same brain region).
I’ve taken just about every antidepressant under the sun over my life and nothing ever helped me in any way that was noticeable.
The bad side effects were though.
I was even considering shock therapy to try and reset my brain.
I did 3 weekends with gradually increasing amounts and for the first time in my entire life I broke from the depression.
The anxiety disappeared too.
I took fewer pain meds for about a week.
And it even fixed whatever was causing my IBS (come to find out it’s also due to overactivity in the DMN).
Personally I feel they saved my life.
If you want to get in depth PM me and we can talk about it more.
Hope you feel better!!

Thanks Skare! Interesting! My bf has done them, but I've always been scared of the heavier drugs. Except coke, for some reason I've wanted to try that one. It's said to make you brave. I have dreams about it. But never done ir and prob never will.

If I get truly curious about mushrooms, I know who to come to!!!

 

[Dororall]

Never!

 

[noisebloom]

Except coke, for some reason I've wanted to try that one. It's said to make you brave. I have dreams about it. But never done ir and prob never will.

Makes you feel like you've been told the best news of your life (at least the first few times). Getting addicted is a shitshow though, and once you're over it, you still think about it way too much... years later. Powerful stuff.

 

[BritNi]

I sometimes pour cocaine on ants. That's my great experiment.

 

[April]

Makes you feel like you've been told the best news of your life (at least the first few times). Getting addicted is a shitshow though, and once you're over it, you still think about it way too much... years later. Powerful stuff.

That doesn't make me less interested, haha. But addiction does. :/ So yeah.