One thing that stands out about trip reports from early Western psychonauts is that they often involve unpleasant, uncomfortable experiences. Such experiences are still more frequently reported in Western countries without a tradition of ritualistic use than they are in non-Western, Indigenous cultures that do follow this kind of tradition. Julian Shea wrote an insightful…
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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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In a 2021 paper published in the International Journal of Drug Policy, researchers describe how psychedelic users turn their challenging trips into valuable experiences through the particular narratives users construct around their bad trips. One crucial finding was that many users identified a lack of competence as the cause of their negative psychedelic experiences. This…
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One of the essential aspects of psychedelic integration, alongside making sense of the experience, is bringing the insights and lessons gleaned in the psychedelic state and incorporating them into one’s everyday life. But this is often challenging. Deeply meaningful insights can arise in an altered state spontaneously and effortlessly, and you may have a clear…
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The psychologist Rachel Harris, who is the author of Swimming in the Sacred: Wisdom from the Psychedelic Underground, has said “I’ve never heard of so many people tripping at home alone. People always did it but now a lot of people are doing it. There’s a generational difference.” A Twitter poll by The Archaic Revival…
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