I need to find the article backing this, but from what I understand it's a false perspective to call a DMT trip an "alternate reality." It's very simply a different perception of reality, but what makes DMT special is how it can be described to offer reality in its most raw form, free of human bias. Here's what I mean. Basically, it's no news that human understanding relies on patterns. We know a cat is a cat not because of a formulaic tag or universal identifier, but because of countless patterns and similarities our minds subconsciously connect, in unision perceiving a cat despite the technical impossibility of two cats ever looking exactly the same. Mathematics (best example: geometry), physics, all the way to literature and communication are constructs of our understanding in patterns, so is our concept of analysis, construction and deconstruction. Patterns. So, what DMT does is eliminate your ability to perceive patterns, the way you did "normally." All of a sudden, you're no longer seeing identifiable objects the way you were, rather you're seeing polygons and dots, constantly morphing and combining and separating because your mind is not forming them into concrete structures (patterns). You're also seeing light, as in the reflection of light off of these points and polygons. That's a DMT trip. The fun part is what happens when your brain underneath the stimulation, tries to make sense of this. You start hallucinating as your brain struggles to create structure, and identify a pattern. That's when we'll see things melt, morph, change color or seem to vibrate and echo; that's when we'll see objects and people appear and even communicate with us. That is DMT. N,N at least, I don't know about whatever other types there are.
I'm going to ask my friend for the research because I know that this all sounds like bullshit. It's maddeningly interesting though, I'm not ashamed to say I really want to try DMT.
I had a friend who liked Ketamine, and went into the K-hole. It always sounded too intense for me. I tried small doses of it and I never really liked it, but hearing him describe the feeling of coming out of one was fascinating. It was like a brain reboot; layers of subconscious and conscious brain functions like pattern recognition would return sequentially. He said it was an incredible experience, and gave him unique insight into his own brain. When I was doing hallucinogens, I don't think I ever tried N,N-Dimethyltryptamine, but I do remember 5-Meo-DMT, which if I recall had a particularly heavy body load. It had some closed eye visuals, but most of the trip was very internal and psychological; out of all the drugs I sampled, it wasn't my favorite. I think I liked 2C-E the best, experiencing synesthesia was just so much fun and it gave a lot of that. Just to add, anyone considering doing drugs should approach these carefully and with research. When consumed responsibly, I think they have a fairly low addictive potential and can be reasonably safe, but like any drug, they have side effects.
I'm obviously prying so I understand if you don't want to share this publicly, but since you have experience how would you compare shrooms (psilocybin) to LSD? Do you have a preference? And, how would you compare LSD to DMT?
Honestly, I remember them being fairly similar. I think the shrooms may have been a bit more euphoric/social compared with LSD, which I felt like was less predictable, or more affected by set and setting. I distinctly remember intense bouts of giggling while coming up on shrooms. It's like an emotional reaction to the most hilarious thing you've ever heard, but there wasn't really anything funny to begin with. Both LSD and shrooms I would say are both very sensory trips; on shrooms, and perhaps to a slightly lesser degree, LSD, I really wanted to and enjoyed interacting with the world around me. Supposedly there are differences between the variety of psilocybin mushrooms, but I've only tried a few varieties and I can't say I'm enough of a connoisseur to tell them apart. DMT, on the other hand had a much higher body load, which I always kind of felt like was your sense of touch or feeling having hallucinations in a weird way. There was also a lot more vomiting involved, but truth be told, tripping balls while vomiting is crazy in and of itself. That kind of experience was much less visual, and more introspective. The DMT I took was oral (pill/powder form), and I never tried smoking it, but I did, and this is a little embarrassing, do it anally. . . which I do not recommended. The process of coming up was so much faster and more intense; I could best describe it as my intestines tripping, and it was not a pleasant experience. Edit: Just to add, I think that's one of the reasons I liked 2C-E the best. It had slightly less of the body load associated with DMT, although there could still be quite a bit of vomiting, internal/introspective perspective shifts, but it also had a lot of sensory effects as well.
Interesting, thanks! I hadn't heard of 2C-E before, to google i go! I was planning to try my first psychedelic this month, but my source ended up bailing so I have to wait. However I was planning on doing LSD over shrooms as my first time because I've heard a lot of horrifying stories from my friends' experiences on shrooms. "Everyone moved like the chick from The Ring." Well sign me up :S You're gonna go far, crafty. I sense it ;D I'm into the inner analysis, at least I'm curious about it perhaps more than the sensory tripping. Weed makes me a goofy fuck that pisses most people off; similarly most people I smoke with couch-lock and plug their face with Doritos, so I'm assuming they're enjoying themselves on their own whereas I just wanna dance with the world. Being a very inner dialogue-heavy person sober, I guess that's the counteracting balance for me. One way to find out I guess!...I could best describe it as my intestines tripping.
The biggest difference between mushrooms and LSD is the duration of the experience (LSD usually a good 12 hours mushrooms about 8). Lots of different mushrooms that seem to effect people differently so it's hard it's hard to generalize about what kind of experience "mushrooms" will give you. Five people take the same hallucinogens and all five will have a different experience, so the trip is a bit less dependent on the drug as it is on the person. Dosage has a big effect on the experience as well. Most people will advise you to start slow your first time and if it doesn't seem to be working DON'T take more because these things take time and you can really overdo it. I'd suggest not doubling up on what ever suggested dosage you have been told to take but I wouldn't necessarily say that you need to avoid have an intense experience your first time. I've seen way more "bad trips" on acid but I'm not so sure that it's acids fault. If you have a bad trip it's way easier to get through it in 8 hours than 12. Most people I know prefer one or the other and mostly they prefer mushrooms. I'd also say that a bad trip isn't a function of a particular drug as much as it is the mind set you have going into it. THE MOST IMPORTANT PART OF A FIRST TRIP - Go into it with a positive attitude! Your first trip is an introduction into a part of your senses, mind, and emotions that you probably haven't fully experienced before, it's an exhilarating adventure. If you are scared of yourself than be ready for a difficult time, you'll probably learn about why you scare yourself if you are open to the experience. No matter what that shits on a timer and every thing will be OK in the end. If you are excited to get to know more about your senses and self than you should be psyched at the journey you are about to take. I suggest getting yourself excited at the fun and novel time you are about to have or getting yourself centered and mellow, prepared to take a contemplative journey into your inner being. You are still you while you are tripping. Inexperienced people can sometimes feel a little lost at sea or panicky. If they are with a sober or experienced person it's usually easy to help them realize that all is well and that there is nothing to worry about. You can call upon all the wisdom and good sense you had when you were sober when you are tripping. If you need to ground yourself just take a minute and do a little inventory on who you are, what you know and realize that everything is fine and you are just passing through a bit of your own self. Make sure you are hydrated. Nature is great, dance parties can be good, physical activities like walking, playing in shallow water listening to or playing music are all good ways to keep things moving and discover new aspects of the effects these wild chemicals have on your brain.
I'm really excited and I'm looking forward to it. I have more than my share of skeletons in the closet, but if they're something I'm confronted with- and I'm assuming they will be- then I'll deal with it and move on. I just need to get my environment secure really, I don't really think any of my friends are reliable enough to babysit me if I need it, meaning I'll have to take it alone, and I also don't want some fake stuff.
Thanks for the insight, if something worthwhile comes out of this I'll submit it to #tripreport ;D
I could see that happening. It's different for everyone, and it's a very fluid experience. Something can go from scary, to delightful, or vice versa on a whim. I'd have to describe most psychedelic trips as very lucid dream-like experiences. A lot of it comes down to where you are and whats around you. Mushrooms were my first time and I really enjoyed them. I was with close friends in a safe comfortable place, which I think makes the biggest difference. I would avoid horror movies at all costs, and if you have popcorn ceilings, oh man, watch out! You will see some crazy patterns when you look up. I think the worst part about mushrooms is eating them. They're sold dehydrated so they're gross looking and tough to chew. They don't taste that great, and supposedly they taste even worse fresh. I don't know if that's true, I refused to try them un-dried! The times I had acid it was either on small pieces of paper that you hold in your mouth, or a little drop of clear liquid put onto a hard candy. Decidedly much more pleasant to ingest, in my opinion. The other advantage of acid is that the dose is more controlled; potency of mushrooms can vary from batch to batch, so it's harder to predict how big of a trip you'll get from them. I think either of them would be good for someone who wants to try it for the first time. I've heard a lot of horrifying stories from my friends' experiences on shrooms. "Everyone moved like the chick from The Ring." Well sign me up :S
Try them in bed with a good friend on a rainy day.
Take your time, do your research. After doing actual research, watch this movie so you can pick out the bs. I also suggest the Joe Rogan podcast, which is downright hilarious if its your style, and the main dude Joe Rogan has done DMT almost a dozen times, as well as Ayahuasca, Peyote, and everything in between.
This isn't a dig at you, but I can't stand Joe Rogan. I've listened to his podcast multiple times, but I find him completely obnoxious and devoid of any substance. He's strikes me as a guru for Affliction shirt-wearing stoners seeking psychedelics out so they can earn themselves badge of honor they can show their friends to prove that they've really been there, man. I think he first rubbed me the wrong way when he first started preaching Rick Strassman's hypothesis--the idea that DMT is released when dreaming, and is responsible for near-death experiences--as fact, resulting in my having to correct this every fucking time anyone in the vicinity started talking about DMT. It didn't help when he had Bill Burr on (who is absolutely hilarious, and a thousand times the comic Rogan is) and barely let him get a word in. It's frustrating as hell. If you really want to listen to a DMT guru, listen to some of the Terence McKenna talks on youtube. He was probably insane, but he intelligent, well-spoken and fascinating, and he's where Rogan got most of his ideas from anyway. I haven't seen The Spirit Molecule yet, but I've listened to several of the interviews featured on it and they've been good so far. Rick Strassman's book, which the movie is named after, is also a really good place to start.
He's daft, that's for sure. His stand-up comedy is even more unbearable. But, I loved his podcast for the guests, again naming Joey Diaz, and I suggested it cause he just talks about DMT a lot and you gotta admit he's goddamn enthusiastic. I'm pretty sure I first really heard about it from him actually, at least that was the case with Ayahuasca, so for me it was still very intriguing. Again, that's why I stressed that actual knowledge be acquired before watching that or the Spirit Molecule :D You'll get what I"m saying when you watch the film. I need to learn more about Strassman. McKenna, however, is my favorite psycho. I don't care about his crazy, the guy was a character that will go down in modern social history as a thinker for the ages. I think we can easily have a rich discussion on his stuff alone.
Yup, here is the post. I've been doing a lot of research on this lately. If you want any suggestions for academic papers/books, let me know!Wasn't there a post on Ayahuasca recently?
Neither have I. However, these drugs appear to have ritual/spiritual/religious properties. Clearly there is a lot of misinformation out there about their nature. From what I've read, we have no idea what this experience is yet.
If you're interested in more research, MAPS held a conference back in 2013 in which they invited psychedelic researchers from a variety of fields to come and speak. They've hosted the videos online here. If you look under "Ayahuasca Track," you can see the talks specifically about ayahuasca. I haven't seen most of them since I spent most of my time checking out the interdisciplinary and clinical tracks, but what I did see was fascinating. Dennis McKenna was pretty good.
The best episodes by far are the ones with Joey Coco Diaz, who is by far the most entertaining man alive, and my personal idol of unapologetic, raw humanity. he's a trip, no pun intended. About DMT though, a quick google search gave me this but I don't know if it's any good :/
As Marko explains in the paper, what you're describing is the pre-veil DMT trip. A methodology to test the post-veil trip is what is being proposed. If you read the paper he explains this.So, what DMT does is eliminate your ability to perceive patterns, the way you did "normally." All of a sudden, you're no longer seeing identifiable objects the way you were, rather you're seeing polygons and dots, constantly morphing and combining and separating because your mind is not forming them into concrete structures (patterns). You're also seeing light, as in the reflection of light off of these points and polygons. That's a DMT trip.