Psychedelics and Self Improvement
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Psychedelics are here to stay as cities and states explore alternative litigation. Colorado is pushing to decriminalize now, with measures around trip-sitting and elderly care included. There are a lot of “psychedelic” substances; we’re going to focus specifically on the natural occurrences, like psilocybin and LSD, in this article.
Decriminalization naturally brings up many questions about using psychedelics safely and maturing as a psychonaut. It’s not something that one should quickly jump into; there’s a certain mental and physical preparation, as well as proper research, that can really pave the road for you. Psychedelics offer a wonderful chance to grow as an individual and to improve your way of being. This won’t happen from going to a festival and partying with your friends, although that, of course, has its own merits. The real work with psychedelics is in your mind and in the integration after the trip.
Psychedelics can expand consciousness and allow you to investigate aspects of your ego that you may be unwilling to normally analyze and critique. This then leads to insights regarding yourself and society; some may be funny while others can be utterly profound. The trip is fueled by your own experiences and intentions. Any visions or altered thoughts are reflections of your own subconscious mind, nothing else.
The goal of a psychedelic trip isn’t to live in a world of psychedelia or to escape reality. The goal is to gain the mental and spiritual reinforcement you need to forge onward in life. Psychedelics can be used in this way as a tool for self improvement and acceptance, but how can one jump into this kaleidoscopic pool without a lifejacket?
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Start slow, man. For real - there’s a time and a place for eating a handful of shrooms and three tabs of L, but that is far from the recommended approach. Please be careful with your own psyche and use caution. Start alone or with a single trip-sitter and find that “threshold dose” for you. Start very small, using a scale that can measure down to the milligram, so you know what you're ingesting and can properly judge the experience. This allows you to develop an internal barometer to gauge the depths of a trip. In other words, you’ll be able to ride the waves much easier if you start in the tidepool.
Have shit pulled together. This is a big one. Get your house cleaned, clothes put away, and any pressing work or tasks should be handled so you can relax on your trip and not have to worry about a thing. Get all of your work email done and move any distractions from your planned space. This extends into personal life. Get your relationships sorted and make sure there are not hard feelings or unresolved issues. They can arise mid-trip and throw you for a journey, so it’s best to address those things as much as you can. That being said, sometimes handling a particularly hard issue via a trip can in fact be helpful, which is why we’re seeing a push for both therapeutic and recreational use.
Plan an integration period. After your trip, you need to wind down and reflect on the experience, because once the experience passes, the insights are what remains. For example, if you’re tripping on Saturday, make sure Sunday is laid back so you can work on yourself and get things back in sync. It’s not advised to trip the night before work or anything major. This time is valuable and should be used to relax, be with loved ones, and consider the experience in its entirety. It can help to write things down or record your thoughts. At the very least, think to yourself, “What are three things I’ll work on now?”
Meditate daily. This is much easier said than done, seriously. I have struggled to maintain a consistent practice, even with just 10 minutes a day. The mind can be a beast to tame. Being able to turn your mind into that temple of calmness and reflective thought that comes with meditation will prepare you for moments of anxiety or doubt within psychedelic experiences that have the potential to spiral. Remember, if this happens, unclench your hands and body, breath deeply and slowly. Being able to return to your meditative space can be a safe haven at times.
Be positive. As obvious as this sounds, make sure to be in a good mood when embarking on a trip and when looking back on one. Things can get weird, but it’s okay! You’re here to tell the story and to handle whatever your mind may throw at you. I’d highly recommend the book Be Here Now by Ram Dass as an introduction to this mindset of positivity and awareness.
With these quick tips, I hope that you’ll consider psychedelic experiences with a little more reverence going forward. They can be a lens to look closer, or an eraser to start again. Please don’t take any of this as medical advice. Do your research, talk to your doctors, consult the tarot cards and all that jazz first. The conversation on the therapeutic and safe use of psychedelics is ongoing and has really only just begun as these tools move into the zeitgeist.
“If you get the message, hang up the phone. For psychedelic drugs are simply instruments, like microscopes, telescopes, and telephones. The biologist does not sit with his eye permanently glued to the microscope, he goes away and works on what he has seen.” - Alan Watts
