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I’ve never used them, but everyone I’ve met who has, has spoken along similar lines that dropping acid opens up another part of your mind. So I think if it does unlock another part of your mind, then absolutely it could make you a better person. “Doing LSD was one of the two or three most important things I have done in my life." -Steve Jobs
Bit of a meta comment, but I wonder why none of the ~30 posts here seem to actually be discussing the article. Something about the subject that motivates people to state personal opinions/experiences?
Is you need drugs to become more open minded and empathetic, the source of the problem is your upbringing, and by proxy the culture. The contemporary liberal western culture actively works towards shaping us into selfish materialistic consumerist narrow minded soulless beings. Half a trillion dollars per year go towards this effort, and the solution is start drugging ourselves with LSD? Bet, if that ever became commo…
Ok, so it's no fault of your own and you need a crutch, by your own reasoning.
> and by proxy the culture.
That doesn't follow at all. Lots of people remove themselves from their native culture, which is often toxic and sometimes benign.
Psychedelics (LSD, shrooms) made me a better person. I don’t know anyone who became less caring, less respectfull, more violent or more greedy after doing those drugs. I would argue that psychedelics make you more human, in the good sense of the word.
Never been tested !? Is this person on drugs or something !? Ahahahaha!
But seriously, homo sapiens quite obviously happened from a collision of apes with psychedelics (most probably psilocybin mushrooms)... So without psychedelics there would never have been any people! Terrence McKenna very thoroughly explained this theory many times. Its easy to find on faceboogle. All his other theories are nowhere as solid as this one, imo.
On another note, drugs are foods, and different foods are good for some people, in some situation, some of the time, at some dose. Finding those perfect variables is the real trick. Opium, for me (and almost anyone I believe), at a certain dosage, has tremendously improved my life, on all levels - but if I increase the dosage even slightly or don't take enough breaks, it begins to have negative repercussions. People who do endurance sports are all craving endorphines. Marathon runners could preserve their health by dosing opium properly. LSD is definitely a must-do for everyone, but in the right settings. Nobody is driven insane by LSD - they had to already be insane, and it would bring it out more (which is really the quickest path to a cure). Iv met someone who cured acute autism with psilocybin. MDMA is renowned for treating victims of PTSD. I mentioned opium - opium isnt (really) a psychedelic but its certainly the most bewitched beneficial substance I know of - very good for older people or alcoholics. It takes away all cravings for alcohol, tobacco and coffee (3 most detrimental drugs on earth, with refined sugar). But be careful not to increase your tolerance. I agree with Eliot in MrRobot - you can take 30mg of morphine-equivalent per day forever and youll be able to run out without waking up in the ninth circle of hell. Given the choice I'd much rather incarnate a hardcore morphine user than a roaring alcoholic; at least I'll still be able to have a successful career, a thriving social circle and a very long life.
Just to give an alternate perspective, I'm not sure doing 'shrooms at 16 made me a better person. It definitely altered my perception of what is real, but it wasn't a useful improvement. Mostly it just made me more prone to having panic attacks. I think I could be a better person today if I had never gone through that door, at least at that point in my life. On the other hand, it's hard to say whether it was the 'shrooms or not, as many of the terrifying existential questions it drove in me are thoughts that can be found elsewhere. I'd like to try them again sometime, just a few, to test the waters, but I'm also somewhat terrified of the consequences if my reality is shaken too much at this point in my life. So it goes.
Psychedelics (LSD, shrooms) made me a better person. I don’t know anyone who became less caring, less respectfull, more violent or more greedy after doing those drugs. I would argue that psychedelics make you more human, in the good sense of the word.
I know of one guy, a brilliant man, who after a period of a month taking shrooms practically every day had a personality shift that is easiest described as "like Rick" from "Rick & Morty" - he became convinced he was the smartest man in the universe, dangerously smart and people would kill him if they knew how incredibly smart he was. That attitude stayed with him, and destroyed him; about a decade later he died due…
Of course the response is always to use them with guidance. Unfortunately here your options are often limited to pseudo-religious practitioners who will inadvertently prime you to have the same cliche experience most people in those circles have.
It’s for these two reasons I have avoided psychedelics completely. If I could have a guided experience from an agnostic and trained professional I would consider trying them. I’m definitely hoping the goals MAPS has come to fruition over the next few decades.
I’ve never used them, but everyone I’ve met who has, has spoken along similar lines that dropping acid opens up another part of your mind. So I think if it does unlock another part of your mind, then absolutely it could make you a better person. “Doing LSD was one of the two or three most important things I have done in my life." -Steve Jobs
Can they also make you a worse person?
to me acid, peyote and mushrooms just make you feel kinda sick, maybe giddy for a while and you see weird stuff. by the end you always want to go back to normal before it’s done, or at least i did. that’s why they’re not addictive usually
Bit of a meta comment, but I wonder why none of the ~30 posts here seem to actually be discussing the article. Something about the subject that motivates people to state personal opinions/experiences?
Whether psychedelic/unity experience makes one a better person, is an interesting question. As, too, is the question the author asked in the second half of essay, exploring the meaning of "better person" in relation to contemporary Western and Shipibo Indian cultures.