A common narrative in the psychedelic space is that having a psychedelic experience is like undergoing 10 years of therapy (or another number of years), condensed into just several hours. A headline for a 2023 piece in The i Paper reads ‘How a five-day, £4,000 psychedelic retreat saved me 10 years of intensive therapy’. Mark…
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Because of the influence of ‘set and setting’, not everyone’s psychedelic experience is the same. Various aspects of ‘set’ (e.g. beliefs, expectations, mood, personality, intention, level of restfulness) and ‘setting’ (e.g. culture, environment, music, people present) interact with the drug and the dose to produce a particular kind of experience. This includes the visual qualities…
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Hallucinogen persisting perception disorder (HPPD) is a rare condition that can develop after psychedelic use. HPPD involves persisting visual changes that cause emotional distress and/or impairment to functioning. It is not clear precisely how prevalent the condition is, although its prevalence is considered low. In one study, 4.2% of participants said they experienced continued visual…
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5-MeO-DMT is widely considered to be the most powerful psychedelic. This is not due to the dosages needed to reach intense altered states – technically, the most potent psychedelic in that respect is LSD, with Salvia divinorum being the most potent naturally occurring psychedelic, given that active doses of Salvinorin A are as low as…
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If we want to prioritise ‘set and setting’ (our mindset and physical and social environment) when using psychedelics, then we should be aware of all the possible aspects of our minds and the world that could influence the experience. Realistically, there are innumerable aspects of set and setting, many of which we won’t be aware…
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