Back into the Dream by Elephant Stone–Album Review
- Allie Iverson
So, you’re in Oregon with a handful of “shrooms” and you’re ready for a weekend with your friends. What’s not to be excited about? After all, the psychedelic journey over the past five decades has become almost a rite of passage for many young adults. But more recently, the psychedelic movement has taken some twists and turns, from becoming useful as a psychotropic medicine, to being utilized in ceremonial shamanic practice, making the field of psychedelic experiences even more varied and trippy than ever! Regardless of your reason for embarking on a psychedelic trip, or the method you have chosen to partake in the experience, there are some tried and true ways to get the most out of your journey.
Psychedelic substances have been around for many thousands of years and the people who have used them have learned some very interesting and amazing things from the experiences they’ve had. One of the most powerful things we have learned from these substances is that they are not simply chemicals that make our brains do funny things, but they are literal portals to other areas of consciousness that many in the modern world are only just discovering. This truth about psychedelics is why there are such amazing and incredible stories that come from psychedelic journeys, but it isn’t always easy to make such a journey a reality.
If you’ve ever ingested psychedelic substances before and have not experienced much more than sparkly lights, unintelligible visions or marked behavior changes, you may wonder exactly what I’m talking about. The truth is that many people who experience these substances recreationally will not be in a vibrational space to reach far enough into the doorway being offered to have a truly deep and life-altering experience, but those who know how to make the approach, can venture into some of the most far-reaching spaces the human mind is capable of traveling. If you’d like to make your psychedelic journey one where you can activate self-healing, inspire self-love, or learn more about this life and the universe, follow these seven suggestions and be sure to get started several days before your experience to get the most out of your journey.
Plan Ahead – There may not seem to be much to plan for, after all, you’re just taking some psychedelics with friends, right? Well, there are some things you want to think about before making that commitment. All the energies that are present in a space when taking psychedelics will significantly affect the journey whether they are people, things, vibrations, music, etc., so if you know ahead of time that someone will be there who may not be friendly toward you or might bring negative energy to the group experience, or you know the place or area where you will be may not be friendly or positive, consider planning a separate event in a different space or without certain individuals. If that is not possible plan to create space between you and any unwanted energies during your experience if needed. Some good ways to do this are:
Know your Substance – Not all psychedelic substances are alike. Most have specific qualities and lead the mind into different vistas of consciousness, so it is important to research the
Entertaining fears during a psychedelic journey can be one sure way to enter what people refer to as a “bad trip”, but it is possible to take control and get yourself back to a good space if you are correctly prepared.
effects and know the dosage that creates those affects you desire to achieve from the experience so that you can select the right substance for you. Some additional considerations:
Ensure your Safety – Now that you have ensured the legal safety and safe quality of your substance, the actual feeling of safety is also an important one to consider. Though psychedelic journeys can sometimes feel unsafe, the truth is that for the most part, psychedelic experiences are safe and can be healthy for the mind. This can be an important thing to know and remind
Fast completely from all food and drinks except water at least 2-3 hours before ingesting psychedelic substances to reduce or eliminate nausea and vomiting.
yourself of if you need to at any time during a journey. To optimize your experience, it is also important to know there are several pitfalls that can cause a potentially good journey to be ruined and affect the safety of both your mental and physical health. To avoid these pitfalls, be sure to:
Remember that entertaining fears during a psychedelic journey can be one sure way to enter what people refer to as a “bad trip”, but it is possible to take control and get yourself back to a good space if you are correctly prepared.
Prepare your Body – The body is an important aspect of a psychedelic journey because its condition has a great deal to do with how pleasant or unpleasant one’s travels might be. For most substances, even a few days of healthy preparations can greatly improve the quality and depth of a psychedelic experience. To have the most optimal experience, anywhere from two weeks to 24 hours prior to embarking on your journey:
Prepare your Space – the space can have an extremely intense effect on the experience during a psychedelic journey. While many people choose to take substances like mushrooms in a bar or nightlife setting with alcohol, the experience will most likely be limited and could potentially
Remember body temperature may change drastically throughout the course of your experience, so be prepared to add or remove clothing to suite your comfort.
become very intense in this type of setting depending on the dosage. If this is your preferred space, then a light dose of substance may be your best bet although combining psychedelics and alcohol is not recommended.
To deepen your experience:
Prepare your Music – As mentioned in other areas of this article, music is an important aspect of both preparing for the journey and the experience itself. This is because in a psychedelic experience, we become far more physically aware and sensitive to all the vibratory energies around us. Music affects those energies in the same way that tapping on the glass of an aquarium can be felt and heard by all the fish inside, so the sounds around you during an experience are vitally important to how and where your journey will go. Here are some things to consider about the music you surround yourself with during a psychedelic experience:
It might seem a bit fantastical until you try it but focusing your intention can really help you get the absolute most out of an experience with any psychedelic substance.
vibrational patterns, drumbeats, orchestral sounds, planetary sounds, or anything that truly defies definition in material ways.
Set an Intention – This may seem like a strange thing to focus on prior to experiencing psychedelics but imagine going on a journey without having any idea where you want to end up! Setting an intention is like engaging a GPS system to help you get to a particular destination. It might seem a bit fantastical until you try it but focusing your intention can really help you get the absolute most out of an experience with any psychedelic substance. Here are some easy but effective ways to ensure your intentions are tuned in to the experience you most want to have:
Vyolet Wylde, M.Msc is a parapsychologist and cultural anthropologist who has studied plant medicine with the Shipibo in the Amazon rainforest and facilitated hundreds of plant medicine journeys since 2016. Vyolet is a licensed integration coach and facilitator at Prism Journey. You can reach through her online site prismjourney.com.
Related: A “Trip” Across Country
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