Members of Psoirée often share notes and takeaways from deep trips. This was my largest journey by far, and I felt ready thanks to many previous sessions.
6/25/22
Set and Setting
9 grams of PE magic mushroom
Half raw, half steeped in tea, then consumed everything
Intention: show me how I can make the most of the opportunity in front of me
Location: solo in my living room in a pillow nest
11:15a – 4:30p
Prep
In chronological order:
Cold shower
Finalized playlist (thank you to Psoirée member, Lena)
5 min breathing exercise (thank you, Andrew)
5 min meditation
Spoke intention loudly 4-5 times
Consumed
1 bowl hit of cannabis
5 mins of dancing/shouting
Put on eye mask and entered pillow nest
Consumption
Consumed on an empty stomach, along with chips and lemon water
The sheer volume of mushrooms was difficult to consume. I normally have trouble with the taste and texture… consuming 3x the normal amount felt like an almost athletic effort. I made the mistake of masking the flavor with tortilla chips that were too dry. The combination was not fun for the jaw or palate
It hit harder and faster than normal. I could already feel some effects half way through the consumption process
I was unable to do my usual ramp up routine during the period “after consuming and before it takes effect.” Needed to lie down way earlier than expected (after 2 songs)
I had 8 loud songs designed to get me moving, dancing, shouting. I was “forced” to sit through 6 raucous songs while immobilized
Subjective experience
A sense that a higher dimension being was walking me through my accomplishments over the recent years. A sensation of acknowledgement and recognition for the work, sacrifices, and thoughtful decisions. This was meaningful at a level that’s difficult to describe
A “knowing” that one decision (see the very end) can completely change the path. A Count Pierre Bezukov-type-feeling of comfort that "whatever happens next… finally, things will be different.” I’ve been struggling with what to do with my living situation and next professional move
Moments of a spiritual “nuzzling” with a couple important people in my life
Inspired by a current book I'm reading (Journey of Souls), asking “what am I?” and seeing an ethereal tint of purple covering a kingdom, and feeling intense joy
Many many separate outbursts of laughter
A realization that gratitude is the key, and has numerous benefits:
Helped to let go early in the trip
Smooths the inter-dimensional travel
Has a powerful and important relaxation effect on the body throughout the trip
“Thank you” is effective as a word spoken out loud, or in the mind’s eye during tough parts
Music
Music was really loud and enjoyable
Although I can’t really remember specifics of the LIFTOFF section (1-2 hours of classical music), I remember feeling it was critical to the potion of subjective experience
The CRUISING ALTITUDE playlist phase was 2 short Native American songs (thank you, Andrew) and 2 long East Forest songs. It was a very enjoyable intermission of quiet gentleness
The LANDING playlist was deeply enjoyable. A couple songs stood out:
The playlist construction experience was greatly eased by Lena’s advice of building FOUR separate playlists (PRE LIFTOFF, LIFTOFF, CRUISING ALTITUDE, and LANDING), then merging the four together
Random notes
I had a significant headache afterwards that night and slept for 13 hours
Told a few important people that I wouldn’t be speaking for a few days as I recalibrate to reality
Did a fun “PhD-level” trip exercise mid-way through: Get up, eye mask still on, and navigate to bathroom and back with only sound and touch
Engaged in innumerable physics experiment-style stretches w my body on the hard wood floor. Felt delightfully child-like
I didn’t do all the prep appropriately. I’d been hearing about the dark-side, the harder parts of the trip from other Psoirée members lately. It had been so long since I had a tough trip that I almost wanted to feel one again in order to better relate. So I intentionally broke some rules: I drank and smoked a little cannabis the night before, and ate junk food. The first few songs of the trip also had an aggressive tone and negative lyrics e.g. here and here.
And yet, the trip was completely blissful. This left me with a sense that with…
a certain amount of intentional deep trips (my guess is 5)
continued maintenance work, and
proper set and setting
… the tough trips are extremely rare
Takeaways
Seeing what I’ve built in terms of a professional reputation, what I’ve built lately in psychedelics, and how they’re close to being self-sustaining entities. That, with a few moves that empower others, and a savvy focus, this work could lead to something very special
Realizing it’s time to slow down, step away for a little, and engage a proper reset
I’m moving to Medellin