I haven't been on this site in ages. still a lot of the familiar names here, though.

anyway, back to the question. baseline reaction isan important aspect to keep in mind. that said, i find that some of the hardest times i've had with psychedelics have been the more rewarding. the mindset is important, but more importantly is the mindfulness of why exactly you are embarking on your journey. If someone does it to "get high" they are looking at a world of psychic hurt if things get off schedule. If someone looks at this as a spiritual journey, then they are prepared for ugly truthes. For me, psychedelics can be fun, yeah; but it's more like going to confession, or a psychologist. it's a purification which can be enjoyable like a shower, or cathartic like a good cry.

it's all about the respect, in my opinion.

also, nice to be back after a couple years. i hope to get back into poking around here more regularly again.

That's well said. The spiritual or even scientific frame or filter is "this is curious" or "this is interesting."

That frame as much applies to the most difficult as well as the most delightful experiences that arise.

If you don't feel that you have that kind of frame or that you can support it, it may be wiser to abjure from an opportunity. There is no rush.

I think for someone who is new to DMT and similar current mood is very important until you develop a trust of it. Certainly too much anxiety isnt a good thing ime it causes too much disturbance so you end up trying to calm yourself rather than giving into the experience.

"Mood" is such a wide term one can put anything in it, so it's an unpractical word to mach a trip with.

Take tiredness, makes up for the mood too.
This one has led to opposite contributions ranging from pure bliss to really really a bad flow, like even in the come-up having this very loud and clear transmission: "You are too tired for this, you can't enter seriously in this state!". Another day the tiredness paved the way nicely.

One thing that occurs to me when reading this is how someone is feeling physically and emotionally when they approach death. I know Aldous Huxley took LSD when he was about to die and I've heard of others too.

I've thought about this a fair bit and have seriously considered this as an option when I know I'm on my way out. However I know that at the moment I generally avoid taking psychedelics if I have any kind of illness or slight complaint such as headache, sore throat, cold. Who knows what my physical condition will be when it comes to my own death. For people like Aldous Huxley, did it not matter that they were probably in pain not to mention the enormity of knowing that they were about to lose their body?

OMG NotTwo, dying as a mood changer

When falling asleep just before/during the come-up of a pharma or aya session, it happens to have a very normal nap course and then when awaking to find yourself suddenly in a whirl of a trip. In such case the sleep wasn't very much affected it seems. I won't say dying and sleeping are equal, but that nap-experience indicate that trips can be potentially pushed into a mute corner of the consciousness.

Wow. I have not thought about Aldous Huxley in a while. It is remarkable how serene and lucid he was at the end of his life. That rarely happens. Most folks don't have such lucidity at the end nor the option to get intravenous LSD administered nor the capacity to make serene use of it.

Current Mood: dying. I suppose one could say that if you are open to your life or your death experience as it is, then it is okay to take a journey, whatever your current mood!

One check in or phrase that Allen Ginsberg used may be apt here:

"Because it is not necessary, it is okay to do it". So the adage one might take from that could be, "when I don't feel a need or that it is necessary for me to do so, it is okay for me to "journey"."

Allen suffered many horrible trips and he went to ask a Lama about it. The advice he got was "Whatever you see, horrible or beautiful, don't cling to it."

And here the "journey" word starts to drop out. Where can you go? Who is journeying to where?

Oh my. I've just pulled the rug out from under myself. I'll have to let go of that as well. Oh my.