I personally advocate for LSD due to my own experiences with it.
I had been depressed for so long that I’d actually forgotten what it fealt like to be “happy” instead of just “not depressed”. LSD literally reminded me how happiness physically feels, knowledge that stayed with me after the trip. I’m not saying LSD cured my depression, but it definitely helped me feel positive emotions again, which is a start.
BBC
Molly, shrooms, LSD, weed
Only works if you keep doing it lol ive done all of them and still feel like OP.
:P
A really strong mushroom trip permanently cured my depression and I haven’t felt any sadness or dread in 5 years
me
Gummies and weed have been doing a great job so far. All is fine and relaxed.
LSD
Step 1: take LSD.
Step 2: have profound experience.
Step 3: realise it takes around two weeks minimum for tolerance to reset.
Step 4: realise eight months later that you’ve been knitting for a while and your cat has more cardigans than yourself.Tbh, taking lsd more than every few weeks sounds exhausting. Trips are great, but they go on a while and can be challenging spiritually. But lsd has definitely helped me with some mental pain.
I’ve done both. Tripped well over thirty times so far, in my life.
I’d most certainly use the advice of Prof. James Fadiman, and take the approach with caution when treating conditions therapeutically. Doing it as soon as my tolerance reset, for a few months, dulled any possibility of a journey beneficial to my psyche (as they just blended together and became meaningless).
Most definitely not overdo it. As you stated it can be a wonderful tool, when respected for what it is and that’s not through frequent use.lol. i’ve tripped so many times it’s basically like a past time activity now. i still don’t do it much more than once or twice per season, but at 50 that’s a lot, and when i was in my 20’s psychedelic mushrooms grew in my back yard.
Yeah. Honestly, once or twice a year is enough for me. Because it’s just a lot to process and I’m basically out of commission for 2 days anyways.
Yeah, I’ve used it to treat CPTSD. It has saved my life, not even an exaggeration, however I wish more people knew of the safeguards one should put in place (I surely didn’t at first).
Hah, I have the same shit. What’s the safeguards you recommend? I found that some frequently given tips do not work well for me, especially the recommendation to have a trip sitter/not to trip alone. I have some trust issues, and other people in the room make me anxious. Honestly I even avoid mirrors because the visual delay can make smiles look demonic. But a familiar and clean environment, plenty of water and fruit, good smells, chill music and a big bottle of seroquel (to always have the option to kill the trip when it’s too much) are very important for me to feel well prepared.
I could spend a while typing a bunch, however a better resource I could recommend is The Psychedelic Explorer’s Guide, by James Fadiman. He was involved in legal LSD therapies right before all studies were told to abruptly end with little to no warning. I figured he would be a great resource on the subject.
Another resource is a pamphlet, which was sent to various psychologists in the '50s. You’d be able to find this on Erowid.org (sorry I’m away from my computer and it’s rather late or I would directly link it, it shouldn’t be difficult to find though).
Hope this helps!
What would that be?
Fellow cptsd fellow here.
I’ve responded to kraftpudding above with two resources, which were rather valuable for my therapeutic trips, if you look above this comment string. Hope this helps!
Also it should go without saying that you should always test substances, if you’re unable to professionally (in the UK Wedinos is a free testing service with anonymity) Ehrlich Reagents are very cheap online and allow you to quickly test a corner of a tab at home.
There are a LOT of substances with hallucinogenic effect, which can be mistaken by many for LSD however with a different effect in most cases, or more risk in others. AL-LAD, ETH-LAD, DOB/DOM, etc.Happy tripping and be safe, remember that each journey is different for everyone but there are definitely things you can do to make the experience a good one, or even great.
Thanks!
Shrooms.
I can’t agree more honestly. I am still awaiting ego death
Like, right this moment or have you been trying to get to it.
And why?
Edited for clarity
Ego death is fake and stupid.
This is the correct answer.
Don’t abuse any of them.
Just take psychedelics.
https://www.nih.gov/news-events/nih-research-matters/how-psychedelic-drugs-may-help-depression
Single dose of LSD provides immediate and lasting relief from anxiety, study says
I took one hell of a dose of shrooms and it wasn’t a calm or gentle experience. It made my depression go away for like 6 months though.
Shrooms are definitely the ones that take you on a trip instead of you tripping on them if you take enough. I’ve found that I’ve been incapable of having a bad time on acid generally, although I’ve heard of bad trips so I remain cautious taking it.
oh trust me, you can have bad trips on acid way easier than shrooms. acid gets pretty intense and is very mental, whereas, mushrooms are generally a good vibe. however, i still recommend both.
i could tell you some bad trip stories, though.
I mean it’s definitely up to the person. Every time I’ve taken acid I’ve had the realization “oh yeah, it’s impossible to be sad on acid” again, maybe that will change, I’ve heard the stories.
Whereas part of one of my best mushroom trips involved me thinking about an ex and allowing the emotions to overwhelm me and allowing myself to sob and wallow in the memory.
Maybe it’s that when an acid trip is “bad” it’s generally a bad time and the fun is over for the rest of the trip, where bad feelings on a mushroom trip can be therapeutic and don’t necessarily sour the overall experience.
yes. intense emotional trips can very much be a thing on mushrooms, and that can be very therapeutic. bad trips on acid usually involve some kind of logic breakdown, where some kind of delusion enters into your mind and dominates your thoughts. i’ve had delusions of grandeur and also paranoid delusions. they all made me stronger as a person, but the paranoid delusions were pretty intense and also fucking terrifying.
I had a similar experience. Acid was chill. Felt great, music was wonderful. Snapped me out of my depression enough to make an appointment with my psychiatrist and get back on treatment. Downside was how long it lasts, mostly after you’ve come down and are unable to sleep for ages.
Shrooms, on the other hand… I remember rolling on the floor, chewing on my desk, and completely forgetting who I was - but I could sort of remember a friend of mine who had amnesia from a bad motor accident, so I reasoned that I must be them. Plus I felt nauseous the whole time. Maybe a lower dosage would have been better but it’s not like I was trying to take enough to see god or anything. People react differently to everything, after all.
Wasn’t traumatic or anything, but wasn’t helpful either. It was an interesting experience to have but I would not want to repeat it.
Lol, what doses did you take with shrooms?! Those must be gigantic! My highest dose was 8g and for like 2 hours I couldn’t see the real world, only trippy visuals from my brain which was really fun.
You should definitely dose lower, somewhere around 3g is my preferred dose for an intense visual/introspective/enjoyable trip without going over board.
Have you tried the Lemon Tek for shrooms? In my limited experience it seems to help with the nausea.
Lemon tek, shroom tea with as much fungal material removed as possible, or if you have the stomach for it chewing really well and chewing on fresh ginger afterwards.
All three ways have dramatically helped my imaginary friend with their nausea.
Edit: Same imaginary friend had the following to say about acid - if you’re taking a full on, deep diving dose, take the day off and do it in the morning. You’ll probably be good to sleep at a decent time v. doing it in the afternoon/evening. Good trips often require some planning - that’s why they’re called trips!
Not alcohol, that’s for sure. Waking up on the sofa again is a real pain in the arse.
Yeah, alcohol is a pretty insidious bastard. It’ll sneak up on you.
Meth will make you feel like all of your problems are completely solved and you’re a massive success. Then about 3-12 months later you will have destroyed all of your relationships, your life will be ruined, your brain & body will be wrecked, your muscles gone, and you might be in prison. Don’t fuck with it.
Charity and service.
It’s hard to stay depressed and unmotivated while helping someone else up.
I don’t always have the energy or resources, but when I do, it can be a hell of a high.
This right here. Volunteering and helping others has helped a ton with addressing my depression and nihilism.
Can’t help yourself, help someone else
Yep! This is the secret to happiness in life. Helping other people! Plus it doesn’t take huge amounts of time either. A couple of hours per week can have carryover effects that last a long time.
Hobbies are also great. The big hobby I’m learning is gardening. Planting seeds, taking care of them, watching them grow: somehow this activity is just immensely satisfying for me. Plus I get to try some delicious food (which probably tastes even better due to the emotional investment). It’s also really cool because seeds are quite cheap and you can grow varieties that you’ll never see in a grocery store.
Journaling, Exercise, Sunlight, Socialization.
They might not cure all cases of depression, but if you can bring yourself to have a healthy amount of each every single day then you’re FAR more likely to feel better.
Also your diet should be healthy but that’s way harder to quantify so just think twice before eating junk and you’re probably going to be fine
What are the general contents of a typical journal entry for you? I hear the concept bandied about frequently, but I’ve never understood the relation between journaling and better mental health.
The toxicity I bring to the table is that it feels, to me, indulgent at best, egotistical at worst. Which is its own kettle of fish I need to do something about, but, hey, one issue at a time.
Your journal, ideally, will serve 3 different purposes as you learn to manage your depression/anxiety/etc.
First, it establishes a routine of organizing your thoughts. It doesn’t matter what you write about in this stage. Just be genuine and write how you’re feeling that day, what you wish had happened, what actually happened, what you think you could have done better, what you’re proud you did well, what you plan to do tomorrow, etc. The point is the routine, and you can fall back on this purpose whenever you want.
Second, when you’re feeling up to it, is to journal so that you have something to catalogue your experiences, so you can identify negative or self-destructive patterns. Not every journal entry has to be useful for this purpose, keeping the routine can be hard so do the bare minimum when that’s all you can do. But if you have the means, this is what you would bring to a therapist so they can give you more personalized advice that’s grounded in science, or just generally give you insights that you couldn’t have made on your own, or give more credit to the insights that you’ve made for yourself. You won’t have to hand over your book, you can select passages to read them or gove them a summary
Third, once you feel like you’re managing your mental health well and the journaling process feels secondhand, you can translate it to other things in life. You can take your developed skill of self-reflection and have journals for anything in your life that you want, and those journals will all improve your organization and lighten your mental load. Examples: Have an upcoming family gathering that you’re stressed about? Make a journal about who’s going to be there so you can dump that mental load onto paper and get it out of your head. Got an idea for a cool project but can’t work out the details? Journal your thoughts and get them more organized. Ideas are ephemeral until you start to carve out a rigid form for them. You’ll find more and more that writing things down, not just for note taking but for the art of writing them down, will RADICALLY change how your thoughts are managed, and you’ll have the power to guide that change yourself.
You could write about all or none of these, and you’re going to be dipping into reasons 2 and 3 before you know it. But if it feels indulgent to write about yourself at all, let me tell you that it’s not. The way I see it, self-improvement is never indulgent because it improves your capacity to help others, and journaling is a scientifically recognized tool for self improvement. You’ll likely find your own reasons for why it helps you once you’ve been journaling for a while. It’s different for everyone, but it works.
I’m no advocate for it and rarely journal except for in specific circumstances that have a clearer goal; however, I would think it to be therapeutic, a way to introspect a little before moving on.
Meditation, writ?
It’s called one milion dollars
Money. Lots and lots of money
Mood control. Scientists have determined that specific serotonin receptors in your brain might be responsible for specific moods.
Depression and irritability. Low serotonin in the brain can lead you to be frustrated more quickly than you used to be. A lack of serotonin also depletes your energy so you’re quickly wiped out. When you do things that used to give you pleasure, you might find they don’t give you a boost like they did in the past.
One ecstasy please
Do MDMA not that ecstasy pressed pill trash
