Oddbean

Let's talk drugs! I've heard a lot of mixed takes on marijuana and psilocybin, and wanted to share my own recent experiences. 😄 I never touched any drugs, besides alcohol/caffeine/sugar, until my 40s. I prefer to not be impaired or dependent, which is why I quit alcohol and caffeine a few years ago. Now that my kids are living on their own, and I'm retired, I find myself wanting to experience more things in life. So I decided to try THC & psilocybin. I can see why people are split on weed. Productivity can go way up or down, depending on the person, the mood, etc. I find it to be fun, but definitely not something I want to partake in regularly. I get way too retarded! 😂 I won't smoke or vape, so I stick with a tiny dose from a tincture. The high can last 6-8 hours in my system, which is a very long time for a small dose. Not something I want to deal with on the regular. I'm very logical, almost to a fault. Psychedelics never sounded like a good idea, but I decided to try psilocybin recently. I was anxious about what would happen, but I put some music on, closed my eyes, and relaxed.🎶 With psilocybin, I feel like I'm tapping into a part of my brain that I rarely use. My logical thought process is still present, but my creative side takes control. I get deeply introspective. I start writing a lot. I'm already a huge music lover, but my appreciation for it reached new heights. I experience seeing the sounds. I can fully appreciate the space between chaos and order where music lives. The more instruments the better, which is why I find orchestra music to be the absolute best with psilocybin. It's an incredible experience that I walk away from knowing myself a little better. The writing is my favorite part, as I'm able to go back and reflect on my thoughts during the experience. To my surprise, it isn't a rambling mess! It's thoughtful, emotional, and honest. I'll even share with others who I directly write about. It's an extremely therapeutic process. Again, I'm glad I never tried any of these mind altering substances until later in life. Being a fully developed human, and having a better understanding of myself, helps make these experiences stable and beneficial. In my youth, when my self control was worse, I could have ended up going down a dark path if I tried drugs. I'd likely be a very different person today. I will always prefer to remain sober the overwhelming majority of the time, but I can see the pros & cons of altering your mind. Under the right circumstances, of course! 😄👍

I didn't say "drugs are fantastic," I said there are pros & cons. I also said I want to experience life sober and that I'm glad I waited until I was in my 40s to try these. Caffeine, alcohol, and nicotine are absolute trash IMO. I think drug use in general isn't a good idea.

Grow them yourself. Pretty easy and lots of guides on YouTube. Buy pre sterilized/hydrated grain and substrate and spore syringes online. Easier to grow than weed and costs less to grow. Just do some research on species of mushrooms to grow because some are stronger or more complicated to grow than others. Cubesnis and Natalensis are easy.

I haven’t partaken in a long time, but just to mention that with weed it can make a *huge* difference what strain you are using. Generally an Indica strain will make you heavier and sleepier, while a Sativa strain will give you more energy, creativity etc. Then there are the hybrids as well. Some help with pain and physical ailments, others with mood, mental well-being. Recently did a deep dive while helping a friend, and it’s insane how far the studies have come from my days of indulging!!

Thanks for writing about this topic. There was an excellent talk on the Nashville Genesis stage last week about this. Btw - Nixon did the ban on any further research. And Violins are quite a powerful sound, I am told to help you to focus inward. 🫡

I think to really understand you have to experience. It doesn't mean it needs to be a normal part of your life, but I think some doors should be opened at some point in your life. Only when you're ready, of course.

That one time I tried shrooms, I was very disappointed with myself. It was a girls trip to Bali and given I’m the lightest; it hit me the most and the longest. It was a starry night and so I thought alright here goes, I’ll be seeing the stars turning into some cool rock bands - but nope. Everything was like in a fairyland and cupcakes. The coconut tree was layer cake. The water I drank was jello. The stars were fairies. One of the girls was into bohemian vibe at that time so the music was slightly jazzy and we were by the pool across the beach and it was a great night - except that I was incredibly amused by my mystical world. I remember telling my friends I had to be way cooler than this. Needless to say, never did shrooms again. Reality can be horrifying That aside, Bali is wonderful. I sure miss it. nostr:note1qlr4l9n7v3tr4u7vsykp4pda94cpl9lddcplwgkqreeq87pgfwtqnrws5g

Congrats on opening a new door to your consciousness. Depending on dosage, psilocybin gives different benefits (at least for me). Microdosing has been an interesting experiment for me lately (1/10 gram). Gives creativity an extra spring in my step and a general feeling of happiness/content. I like to occasionally take a large dose in nature for a nice reset.

Ohh it is way too late here for me to go into detail, but a few things: Cannabis - I've smoked it daily throughout most of my adult life (not ATM tho). Didn't really understand how to use properly (although I definitely enjoyed the amplified sensory capabilities it introduces) until I understood that the main purpose of the plant is to help you achieve a meditative / flow state. That was sort of a level up moment, after that I found aid in it even when doing stuff people mostly don't do high - i.e. workouts. BTW Hollywood's "stoner" stereotype is so blatantly false and overblown that it's not even funny anymore. Psilocybin - also did not understand it for a while. At one point I had sort of a spiritual experience with LSD, but regarding shrooms, I thought it was mostly "fun," similarly to cannabis I had experiences of heightened senses (but even much stronger, depending on the dosage obviously). Then, during one trip, I experienced both a complete "oneness" with everything; as well as ego death, whereas I actually thought I was going to die. And that the party we were throwing that night was not just any party, but my funeral 😄 Needless to say that really changed my outlook on life and made me realize the value of the short time we have here on Earth. And not too long after, I had another quite mystical experience with shrooms, at a drum circle, where I ended up being in a trance for like 3 hours or so. In both instances there was also an inner dialogue between me and... IDK. The Universe? God? My higher self? My guardian angels? Someone. Someone that was me, but also NOT me. It's a bit difficult to describe 😄 Anyway, again, a completely unreal and mind-expanding experience. While they were rather intense in nature, I do think these events gave me a new perspective on the whole game of life and I am eternally grateful for having been able to experience and learn from those layers of reality/consciousness.

Have you tried seated meditation (on the floor with a meditation cushion) where you sit until you fall into hypnagogia? It's a powerful alternative to ingesting foreign substances: About hypnagogia:: https://venice.ai/chat/69a1b14e-e869-446f-8e8d-cb30bffde5d4#veniceShareKey=B1K8qw0iwirJWZqM4IzmGPB9b8n2PqVVNeZ%2FCKt7%2B0w%3D&veniceShareNonce=ldDCWNklK4jfdzk22F5G2JvbzS28J9Dv

I’m a fan of micro dosing myself… I highly recommend it to anyone wanting to reconnect, relax, refresh, commune with nature or with oneself or to get creative and be productive Very much a practical, medicinal and spiritual thing for me Quality insight Mandrik 💪🧡

psychedelics are an incredible tool for spiritual and personal growth, when used consciosly and intentionally. have you read/heard of Huxley? he has a few books i recommend - The Island, Moksha - the first is a utopian novels the second non-fiction analysis of the role of altered states of consciousness in society. both books (and many others i can share if interested) elevated the psychedelic experience to a religious experience for me 🤩

Nice. The thing about mushrooms is that they are very taxing. Great experience but taxing. Pot makes me very creative also, and not taxing. And i can sleep. Mushroom do not let you sleep, but they are great for once in a very blue moon. DMT is insane fabulous 10 minute trip. Ayawasca amazing too, only done it twice and great experience. What I have been doing since a year ago is Breathing Exercises... WOW. That is the best. At the end of the day, the best is reaching high places through your own effort. This is what breath work does. Explore it. It energizes, it gets rid of inflamation, it brings back vitality, positiveness. The benefits are countless.

I like this channel. He has many different sessions. For beginners and for more advanced. It's great. If you find the breath holds are too long, you can let go sooner and continue. https://www.youtube.com/@KitaroWaga.

More people should give psilocybin a chance "later in life" when things get stable 🍄 Great to see notes like this! nostr:nevent1qqsq036ljelxg43670xgztq6sk7j6uqljlkkuqlhytqpuusrlq5yh9spzemhxue69uhkummnw3ezu6twdaehgcfwvd3j7q3qqex7yjtuucs6ac49kjujdgytrjsphn5a4pdscu2w3qlprym4zsxqxpqqqqqqzyvwmt8

For me, weed have me the traditional euphoria, but also incredibly clarity of vision. I suddenly could see why I was unhappy with my life & what I needed to do to change it. Also, music appreciation like you mentioned. As if normally I hear music sort of compressed in mono & suddenly it was hi-fi & I could not only hear the separate instruments, but could hear the individual vibrations making up the notes. And, I also found it somewhat anti-addictive as I would do it once & then not want to for several months. I feel as if my life would be much better if I was able to partake of it once every few months. I haven't tried psilocybin. I went so far as getting spores & growing some, but was too afraid to try (aside from micro-dosing where I never noticed anything.) I have a lot of anxiety about having a bad trip & going in feeling like that seems like a good way to guarantee a bad trip. I also don't have anyone IRL I can trust enough to sit with me & am afraid to try it alone.