So a while back i came across the information about psilocybin inducing neurogenesis and i've often thought that the receptors that are activated during a psychedelic experience could be re-activated again somehow... i've experienced similar or even identical states to the psychedelic experience through meditation but thought that perhaps a more physically orientated intervention could work alongside like certain exercises, maybe inverted yoga poses increasing bloodflow to the brain, or even dietary changes such as fasting/feeding cycles (fasting also having been shown to stimulate neurogenesis)... what made me really think about it is the feeling i get on LSD that it has some evolutionary power, Albert Hofmann also seemed to have hinted at this when he said 'LSD is a tool to turn us into what we are supposed to be', but of course if this is to be the case it can't only be when we are under the influence of the substance, it has to be all of the time, it has to become part of us.
So i was looking into this idea more researching shamanic diets and general nutrition for the brain when i came across the book 'potatoes not prozac' in which the author claims that if you eat a good portion of protein, wait 3 hours, then spike your insulin with dietary carbohydrate you push the tryptophan from your blood stream into your brain increasing seretonin levels, this immediately made me think that doing so after a psychedelic experience could mean that you then feed those receptors that have been previously activated.
I had pretty much forgotten about this theory but then one Friday (having taken LSD on the previous Saturday) i unwittingly tried it out, please note i was not looking to trigger an LSD experience it just so happened that i had a high protein lunch then snacked on a baked potato late afternoon... so i noticed about an hour or so after carbing up that i had definite LSD effects when smoking a joint with a friend, it was unmistakeable and quite strong.
This of course is just my subjective experience and i often have psychedelic effects 5-7 days after an LSD trip without attributing it to dietary causes (usually cannabis), however i think it is plausible that after the downregulation of receptors has passed that one can then feed the brain and re-activate those receptors, just like when you use a muscle if you eat the right food at the right time you will then trigger it to grow.
I apologize if the science if off on any of this, it's just something im finding quite interesting right now and will continue to experiment with and update this thread, thanks for any of your interest!
