I've been thinking of doing DMT for a long time (had a bad attempt about 7 years ago). I'm 31 now and have had a lot of trips, especially on 4-ho-met but also on shrooms and 5-meo-dmt (which was crazy intense).

I haven't done psychedelics since my attempt on DMT I think. These days I have a huge respect for them (except for cannabis). Might be an age thing, but probably because how my life has been. Quite a roller coaster I would say. Occasional depression, doing stupid things, being mean and questioning myself. I've been very happy at times as well, but seems like I struggle more than many.

Anyhow, I believe a trip could help me (not necessarily DMT) to find myself in life, but HPPD is a worry of mine. I know it's generally rare, but it happens and those it happens to seem to have a really hard time with it so it's not to be taken lightly.

What I wanted to ask with this post is simply if anyone have every heard of DMT causing HPPD?

I think the answer to that may be yes but I also think pre existent mental problems may be a factor(anxiety,depression,etc...) I really don’t think it’s a common problem at all but if your really that concerned about it maybe you should consider taking a lower dose orally. This is a good way to have a lighter psychedelic experience without it blowing your mind so much. If your really really concerned this could be an issue then I’d probably steer clear of psychedelics but if you are a pretty normal person who doesn’t think so far into things that you lose your grip on reality you should be fine. Definitely take some time to think it over and if you decide to go through with it good luck and be safe. Go in peace bro ✌️

Me personally, i took oral DMT with Harmalas daily/near daily for 4 years, have also taken it some with Moclobemide, smoked Changa, have had a handful of mushroom, 4-ACO-DMT, and Psilohuasca experiences, and the only time i've ever noticed HPPD, it's come from when i've taken LSD, 1 hit, 3 hits, don't matter, LSD seems to be the primary cause of the HPPD, i haven't noticed it with DMT (smoked in Changa or taken orally) or from Psilocin. I also notice Cannabis seems to contribute to LSD's HPPD, particularly visual distortions, but ime fairly mild, no worries at all really, ime it fades after a few weeks.

Hard to say how things will be for you. People can be incredibly variable, though I'd say things would most likely be in your favor if you were deciding to have an experience coming up.

And HPPD is somewhat of a blanket term imo, for things we don't entirely understand when it comes to our individual reaction/s and the changes they can produce over time for our life from that point forward.

I've seen several people over the years throw around the term HPPD, with each of their individual descriptions of their condition seeming to vary. So that leaves me with the question - "Who definitively has HPPD, and who might not?". I think people sometimes might be quick to assume they have something, especially with this, when it might be nothing or something not entirely serious as they are making it out to be. Not to downplay the chances for someone to have a serious issue - sure that potentials always there.

But this leads me back to saying that HPPD seems to be a wide range term for a variety of psychophysical phenomena, and tbh there hasn't seemed to be any definitive studies done on exactly what constitutes this ..'condition' - talking neurological tests, various standard physiological tests, etc - potentially showing abnormalities in one or more of these areas that could lead to the purported effects.

Sure DMT has the potential to cause ...'HPPD', sure, the same as any other psychedelic I think. But as the sayings go - be in a good standing in your life, mentally stable, reasonably good health - just the obvious things that would make sense. Not that these things have to be 'must-dos' - but they're not a bad thing to have on your side.

Imo it's a variables game in terms of putting things in your favor in not having some potential long term abnormality - psychological, etc.

With that said I've worked with DMT/changa alot, and for me personally I never had any sort of longstanding issue. Sure my life changed drastically - perspective, mindset, emotional, my entire sense of being/self and the relation of it to the everyday world - but it's nothing that time and continual daily life life didn't iron out. Everything's good on my end.

I think the worst thing someone can do if they end up having intense personal shifts of mind lasting for weeks, months, or longer is to cubicle themselves away from reality and the everyday world, lock themselves away from everyday experience and all the dealings that come with it. That can just exacerbate things more profoundly and potentially worsen the scenario. Not a good path to go down imo.

If HPPD means having faint close eyed visual activity after smoking changa a day after, to smoking a joint and seeing animations play out on the ceiling, then yes I've had that. Never concerned me. But what I mean is; all HPPD I've had from smoking large amounts of changa almost daily and eating many shrooms daily only ocurred because of other drug use; primarily marihuana, which can drag out visuals and the psychedelic alien feeling for hours, were otherwise you would be sober and recuperating and not experiencing faint to average close eyed visuals 24/7.

Not really sure about hppd. But always seeing forms and other people places,people and things in motion as if I was there. Some times people or things notice you... Very silent but super visual. The colors are all inverted from regular colors. Has this my whole life even before I knew about dmt. After dmt I could with out substance I can focus on anything and see the textures roll over each other but it's kind of like having control over focus. I think it like having 100/100 vision. But maybe not because I can also do it with only one eye open.. lol it's not really possible in a logical mind to understand these visuals so it just is.

Thanks for the answers.

It's true that HPPD is thrown around a lot, but what I am referring to is mainly disturbances that affect your visual field in such a negative way that you have a hard time living with it.

Not being able to work because things are constantly moving in your visual field. Not being able to sleep because when you close your eyes there are too much things going on.

I'm talking about things like visual snow that is really, really bad.

As far as I've read LSD does indeed seem to be the biggest contributor to this. I think I've heard of someone getting it from oral DMT as well (not entirely sure). However, I haven't read about anyone getting it from smoked DMT. That's why I was wondering. I guess it would make sense that this could cause it as well.

Maybe I shouldn't try a breakthrough until I have my life figured out. But that's quite a paradox isn't it? If the reason for taking DMT is to find myself.

Also, a big reason for DMT is to cure my fear of death. Because I'm very concerned about aging and doing my best to prevent it, but it is of course inevitable (at least for now) and it's tough on me. I believe this is a big reason for me getting depressed and although I know you should make the most of life I don't live up to it. I have a really hard time. Many people doing DMT have been convinced of an after-life and I want to as well. I want to find an inner peace because the aging issue I feel will only get worse the older I get.

.... the key to psychedelic trips in general is letting go. Tbh if you have a strong fear of death than going through a break through probably is gonna be kinda scary and may just leave you freaked out with more questions than you had before. Not trying to be judgy or anything so please don’t take offense but from what little information Is on your post you seem like the kinda person who could easily have a negative or intrusive thought which could make your experience not fun or meaningful. I’m not telling you not to do it but time doesn’t hurt. If you believe that you have say a fear of death and need something to change that for you then let it happen slowly, problems like those can’t be fixed all at once. This is hopefully the first step for you. I’d recommend starting on a low dose and maybe meditation... practice making your mind silent. Hopefully this helps you... good luck

I appreciate the answer.

It will probably take some time before trying DMT, but I've been interested in it for 10 years.

Also, I did have a breakthrough on 5-meo-dmt about 7 years ago. Back then I was much more depressed than now, but probably didn't have the fear of death. I had a lot of anger back then though. Not so much now. The trip was good. Well, what I brought back from it was good.

I should probably meditate, true. I've tried going on that path several times but I always end up giving it up.

Just a lil gift

I went through something like a 'heroic dose phase' when I was young, and had fairly regular access to LSD and psilocybes. Sometimes I get what I call 'swirly-gigs'. Hard to describe really, but little waves or distortions that are accompanied by that familiar tingle in the spine and shoulders. They were much more common when I was younger and now, decades later, are a true rarity but I firmly believe it was the LSD that is/was responsible for this. LSD is not a tryptamine, so much as a mycotoxin by-product IMO, and I don't think your body knows exactly what to do with it. With 4-OH-DMT, your gut says 'Oh yeah, that stuff.' and sends it along it's merry path I may be talking out of my tail end, but I think that LSD is probably the cause of a lot 'HPPD'.

I agree with the sentiments of most on here that if you aren't ready to let go then you will pay the price. I have found it is best to gradually build up to letting go with incremental doses over a long period of time. It's like a relationship, you don't just jump in and say I love you right away, it takes time to get to know each other and then it becomes deeper and deeper. Although I am well aware many people on this forum would beg to differ.

I did pay the price for not doing this, with DMT in fact. My friend was on antipsychotics at the time (for issues with amphetamines in the past) and so I had to load her up a massive hit to account for the receptor antagonism of anti-psychotics. after she hit it, as time went on i forgot i loaded up so much in the vapor genie for her and i put it to my lips. I wasn't ready, and even though i didnt break through, i didnt want to experience that much because i personally wasnt ready and didn't ask for that much of an experience and i fought it in my head.

Fast forward a week and i woke up in the middle of the night in panic and saw a mandala of visuals, i felt strange and couldn't sleep. The next night i started losing my grip on what felt real and started having small panic attacks, and would do anything to not think about my feelings of unreality (endlessly pacing about).

These feelings of derealisation went on for the better half of the year and i became emotionally detached from most things and people in my life. It was difficult to function within society as a healthy, well adjusted human. I soon learnt derealisation actually stems not from psychedelics per say but traumatic events we havent coped with and the victims as such experience much the same effects.

I forced myself to exercise a lot and be outdoors, I bought a car to live in and drove around the country, this ultimately helped me adjust. Now I am in a much better place and am working again with the medicine step by step

As Fathomlessness points out there are many factors with what we are calling hppd. I have never been able to use just one substance at a time and my addiction is to polydrug use for thirty plus years. I have spent long periods of time and I mean years experiencing ongoing visual disturbances, depersonalisation and disturbing images imposed upon reality alongside hellish thinking.

Adding any sort of phenethylamines/amphetamine from crystal meth to 2 cb just added horror , psychosis and weeks long of delusional thinking also when I looked at any scene every component drifted and slid apart it was disconcerting and then became normal for me for years and I actively sought it out.

DMT and 5 meo after effects then started to last longer and longer after each use. The feeling of strangeness lingering so that I could not leave the house, work or drive or be human.

Most recently a mild dose of harmala made me become paranoid and get a knife and wake up with cuts all over my hands and arms.

It is only with a prolonged period of abstinence that these feelings have gone away.

I am only describing my own addictions and delusions. I know psychedelics can be medicine. Remember though that medicines have their side effects and I am just a voice cautioning against the romantic view that plants are instant and safe panaceas.

Reiki, meditation, getting outdoors and NA have helped. But I know I will eventually use DMT again. Don't know what the outcome will be but I know the damage I did was not permanent last time.

I am now aware that a lack of set, setting and adequate integration has not helped me either. There is so much to be cognisant of it can be overwhelming. Be prepared.

The only time I have had symptoms similar to those I have heard used to describe HPPD is after periods of LSD use. There have been periods of my life where I have used various psychedelics quite heavily and have only had persistent visual distortions during those LSD experiments. It doesn't take a whole lot either. weekly doses in the 100ug range will do it. Most often in sunlight. I have never had any lasting visual distortions from DMT, mushrooms or any other trypt.