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Neural correlates of the DMT experience assessed with multivariate EEG

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Re: Neural correlates of the DMT experience assessed with multivariate EEG

#111

Post by chachachoney »

vokep wrote: post #34
shawnz wrote: post #30

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Contrary to popular opinion I haven't found DMT to be that much different than any other psychedelic drug when comparing equivalent doses. Sure it's true that while high on the drug it creates experiences that feel real, but that's true of dreaming too, isn't it? It's not obvious that it wasn't real until it's over. And similarly I have had the same feeling from high doses of "plain old" psychedelics.

The difference is rarely do people wake from a dream and feel they ought to change their life in major ways as a result. Curious what "high" doses of "plain old psychedelics" might be? I've never gone further than 200ug LSD.

Five grams of a dried Psilocybe Cubensis strain.

Note: The experience lasts significantly longer than a non-ayahuasca DMT experience.

Re: Neural correlates of the DMT experience assessed with multivariate EEG

#112

Post by blaze33 »

foolfoolz wrote: post #31
undefined3840 wrote: post #22

I really want to try DMT but terrified to do that without professional help nearby e.g. on an Ayahuasca retreat. I have experienced both LSD and shrooms but have heard DMT is on another level.

DMT is far less risky than LSD and Shrooms. It lasts 10-15 minutes and you are mostly in awe of what you experience. Lsd/shrooms give you hours to self reflect in good or bad spots and entangle your thoughts in good or bad spots... i’d say DMT is far easier to experience than a full on acid trip

> you are mostly in awe of what you experience

careful there, some people had really bad trips on DMT with their deepest fears coming to haunt them. Set and setting...

Re: Neural correlates of the DMT experience assessed with multivariate EEG

#113

Post by tipoftheiceberg »

_arvin wrote: post #49
FailMore wrote: post #10

> Decreased alpha power is a particularly consistent finding in neuroimaging research with psychedelics7,8,11. Alpha is the most prominent rhythm of the resting-brain, particularly in humans, and particularly in adulthood30. Alpha has been linked with high-level psychological functioning31,32, top-down predictive processing18,33 and related feedback connectivity34 - all of which have been found to be disrupted under…

One of the worst side effects of cannabis :[ I miss dreaming and REM sleep. feelsbadman

I hear this statement quite frequently, and used to agree with this. But now I get more hours of sleep and my dreams are very dreamy (9-10) hours of sleep. I use cannabis everyday. I have also tried DMT a few times, not IV though.

Re: Neural correlates of the DMT experience assessed with multivariate EEG

#114

Post by chachachoney »

galaxyLogic wrote: post #95
lazyguy2 wrote: post #75

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Many people in the USA observed the same thing. That's what the term 'yuppie' implied for a lot of people. All these people from the late 1960's and 1970's that spoke about dropping out or how awesome it would be join a short lived commune and so on and so forth only to became intensely materialistic and image obsessed in their 30's. Which then spoke to the idea that a lot of the 'ultra spiritual' stuff that hippie m…

I think (have no proof) that many people who identified as hippies got later involved with non-hallucinogenic drugs like cocaine and that made them forget about spirituality and they became yuppies. The thing about spiritual awakening I believe is you have to do something with it, nurture it, or it fades away. Or maybe many of the hippies got married and got children and that way became more materialistic. The spirit…

>> The thing about spiritual awakening I believe is you have to do something with it, nurture it, or it fades away.

Indeed, integration is key but often elusive without doing a lot of work outside of psychedelic experiences.

>> I think (have no proof) that many people who identified as hippies got later involved with non-hallucinogenic drugs like cocaine and that made them forget about spirituality and they became yuppies.

There's a cycle that seems to have happened to a lot of people in that era:

Breakthrough experience, followed by a failure to integrate. The adept then attempts to replicate or revisit the experience (to varying degrees of success) followed by further failures to integrate. Eventually, a bad experience (or lack of access to the tools) leaves the voyager with a malaise (or worse) to which causes them to either abandon the quest, or else to apply simpler, more 'reliable' chemicals which then lead to a much more mundane cycles of drug use.

Re: Neural correlates of the DMT experience assessed with multivariate EEG

#115

Post by [deleted] »

solotronics wrote: post #13
rollerboi wrote: post #9

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Agreed that it's interesting nonetheless. I've been "joking" with my friends that I want to take a trip to Costa Rica to do Ayahuasca with them. The "story" of how Ayahuasca came to be is quite fascinating: Ayahuasca, the drink, is actually comprised of two plant-based ingredients. One of the ingredients supplies the "DMT" portion, but the effects would last a very short time (something like 20 seconds to a couple mi…

I heard an alternative is "yopo" where they blow it up each others nose via a straw and I don't think that needs an MAOI.

[deleted]

Re: Neural correlates of the DMT experience assessed with multivariate EEG

#116

Post by cwkoss »

sujNansnam wrote: post #106
cwkoss wrote: post #103

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Amphetamine can cause a somewhat paradoxical sensitization at lower doses. I'm not sure if it's ever been clinically demonstrated in humans, but I suspect that chronic 'microdosing' of amphetamine could lead to a manic-like state even when sober. If you're planning on taking doses lower than ~5mg regularly, I'd recommend doing some research on amphetamine sensitization. But, I'm just a guy who likes reading pharma st…

Do you have any pointers to those studies? I’ve been taking a lower dose of methylphenidate (10 mg of 8-hour extended release) to try to avoid risks of tolerance and addiction, in addition to skipping it entirely for tolerance breaks. I figured lower was better from a risk standpoint so I’m interested if that’s not that case.

Most of the studies of sensitization I have seen have used low doses. I haven't been able to find many studies that measure comparative sensitization at different dosage levels. (So the extent to which this applies to higher doses as well is unclear to me). Further confounding, the definition of "low dose" seems highly variable, and it's hard to accurately extrapolate from rat studies.

"In addition, whereas both groups of rats developed the same degree of sensitization to 0.5 mg/kg AMPH, only the HR rats developed pronounced sensitization to repeated administration of 1.0 mg/kg AMPH. " Individual differences in amphetamine sensitization: Dose-dependent effects https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/0091305792...

Amphetamine Sensitization Alters Reward Processing in the Human Striatum and Amygdala https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3981726/

Amphetamine-Induced Time-Dependent Sensitization of Dopamine Neurotransmission in the Dorsal and Ventral Striatum: A Microdialysis Study in Behaving Rats https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC1859849/

Re: Neural correlates of the DMT experience assessed with multivariate EEG

#118

Post by libraryatnight »

snarfy wrote: post #65
_arvin wrote: post #49

Earlier quoted context omitted.

One of the worst side effects of cannabis :[ I miss dreaming and REM sleep. feelsbadman

You only have to quit for a few days and the dreams will come back. After a week and you'll have some nights that are almost entirely dreaming.

I found they not only came back but after a week of no weed, for a week or so the dreams were really vivid, then after awhile settled into a more "normal" (what I'm used to) state.

Re: Neural correlates of the DMT experience assessed with multivariate EEG

#119

Post by braindead_in »

peterwwillis wrote: post #46
noodle_face_ wrote: post #23

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I've tried explaining this to people who've never tried psychedelics. It is unlike any other substance I've ever tried (a lot of them, FWIW) in that it leaves you with lasting impressions. Some things I gleaned tripping have stuck with me to this day. It has changed me for the better.

> It has changed me for the better. Is that the old you saying that, or the new you?

A bigger question is what was that 'you'. Was it the ego? Was it my sense of self? We keep changing throughout our lives. But psychedelics are more than just a life changing experience. AFAIK, it's the only way to experience ego death. The dissolution of self can remind you of the transient nature of things and lead you towards spirituality. The good or bad aspect should be judged from that perspective rather than your perspective. The ego is temporary, but the spirit is not.

Re: Neural correlates of the DMT experience assessed with multivariate EEG

#120

Post by sibeliuss »

ThJ wrote: post #56
phaedrus wrote: post #43

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Interesting! When you say executive functions, could ADHD be linked in a way to this? When I "zone out" it feels like REM dreaming while awake.

Oh, um, that’s interesting. I have found I can make myself dream while awake in a way... I use relaxation techniques on myself all day and it’s actually a bit frightening what you can make your own brain do... What happened to me is I became more openminded, more fluent in my writing, more daring in my choices, and actually also more socially aware... I can only compare it to eating the forbidden fruit of the garden…

Stimulants are dangerous and addictive -- good to remember. Lost about 10 years of my life chasing a similar dragon. It's profound and interesting until it's not, and once the stimulants are gone a dark depression is very possible.

This goes out to every person who thinks they suffer from ADHD and believes the only solution is an amphetamine: Explore other options.

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