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One of the issues is that LSD also simulates the feeling of insight. How many trip reports mention "finding the solution to everyone's problems" and "forgetting

One of the issues is that LSD also simulates the feeling of insight. How many trip reports mention "finding the solution to everyone's problems" and "forgetting" it upon sobering? (They didn't forget, they never had it, the LSD simulated having it...) Maybe it's a better cultural value for our truth seeking groups to avoid psychedelics and other hallucinogens.

chaps 3y ago
Have you ever done psychedelics?
- nathan_compton 3y ago
  I've done psychedelics of many types and I find the so-called "insights" they offer to be banal in the extreme.
  - chaps 3y ago
    Not exactly going to disagree with you there. Just felt it was an important question to ask considering the rigidity of their comment.
    - nathan_compton 3y ago
      I'm not the original reply, by the way. I think psychedelics can be fun and extremely liberating/relaxing. But they have not given me any significant personal, scientific, literary or other insights.
  - grugagag 3y ago
    I find that whatever insights, they’re personal. But their general effect humbling our egos. I find that to be of great use in a selfish narcissistic society we’re living in. I remember after having an LSD trip with good personal insights I got home and had cathartic session of sobbing. It felt absolutely great to do something I rarely do. Last time I did this was more than 15 years ago and feel that I’m still drawing some essence from this experience. Perhaps if I find myself stuck or at crossroads I’ll give it another go.
_a_a_a_ 3y ago
Pls post (say) 3 examples of <<"finding the solution to everyone's problems" and "forgetting" it upon sobering?>> I'm only aware of it happening a NOx trip in the 1800's > Maybe it's a better cultural value for our truth seeking groups to avoid psychedelics and other hallucinogens So. You're afraid of them then. Otherwise you'd post some actual evidence.
NickC25 3y ago
It's important to have an experienced tripper with you so that when you have a solution, someone can write it down if you're unable to. Or a voice reorder, or some way of capturing your insight. Has worked every time for me.
joenot443 3y ago
In my experience, the "simulated insight" (and I agree, that is roughly what I'd call it) ends up being something more attune to "I need to take better care of my apartment" or "Revolver truly is their best album" or more recently, "I need to learn to write shaders." The insights one experiences are personal, whether or not they're actually beneficial to the waking self. I haven't met anyone who's seriously felt they'd "discovered" or solved anything serious while tripping. I know people who've left relationships or changed career paths, so as with nearly anything psychoactive, YMMV.
ethanbond 3y ago
I’ve never read any trip report including a claim like that. Lots of people claim to have solved a problem they have, and some of these solutions end up being forgotten, bad, or authentically and positively life-changing. Hard to draw conclusions from this landscape (which is why scientists should be experimenting with them).
- robbiep 3y ago
  You've never taken a psychedelic and felt you understood the meaning of life? I have personally solved all major conflicts and the middle east crisis multiple times. None of it stuck though... With some technical problems I have certainly felt that I have solved them and come out with nothing but undecipherable scribble at the end. Once or twice something useful in the afterglow, but much of it is lost (or was never real to begin with)
  - sitkack 3y ago
    The whole world should drop acid for 72 hours. Then I think the major conflicts will have evaporated.
  - ethanbond 3y ago
    “Understood the meaning of life” != solved everyone’s problems Did you actually feel that you had solved all major conflicts, or are you 1) parodying your own ambition of insight or 2) making the separate claim that “if the primary agents in the conflict could have the experience that I’m having, they maybe would not be so conflicted?” (2) for example is a much, much more believable claim than “I solved all the problems” despite their superficial similarity.
    - robbiep 3y ago
      You didn’t give a numerical option for having personally solved all the world’s problems, but I’ll call it 0), and I felt 0) but am also claiming 1). Others have made 2) but that wasn’t part of my comment. I’m not really interested in what you believe, it’s clear you haven’t had psychedelic experiences, which is fine, but it’s a bit rich for you to be claiming what I could have experienced if you’ve never had your wetwear run that particular program. Psychedelic experiences are unbelievable by their very nature. At their worst (as was repeated elsewhere in the thread, and actually in the article as well) you are literally entering the state of a schizophrenic. It isn’t very nice. And at its best you can think that you have deep insight into major world problems, the cause of conflicts and how to solve them. In a more personal middle ground it can also be a highly fertile environment for self reflection and introspection with lasting benefits
deleted 3y ago
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galleywest200 3y ago
I am not sure if LSD use in college gave me any real insights, but it did leave me with a permanent recognition of my internal thought processes. Becoming acutely aware of them essentially. Instead of two layers (internal thoughts then observed reality) there were three (myself, internal thoughts, then observed reality).
- rainclouds 3y ago
  Spot on. My ability to separate myself from an issue and view it as a 3rd party came around this. Sometimes you had separate yourself pretty far from something to be able absorb and understand an issue, and LSD can cause that space. I see the space, the separating, as the benefit. Gave new prospective.
pengaru 3y ago
> One of the issues is that LSD also simulates the feeling of insight. How many trip reports mention "finding the solution to everyone's problems" and "forgetting" it upon sobering? (They didn't forget, they never had it, the LSD simulated having it...) Are you sure you're not confusing LSD with THC? What you're describing is well known as "stoner epiphanies"...
erur 3y ago
Totally agree when it comes to "general insights" here. You're probably not gonna solve any major problems even though it feels like it in the moment. However, imho. altering the thought process through drugs and really introspecting on what changes and how that relates to the sober state can yield a LOT of valuable learnings. I feel like I learned a lot about myself just by introspecting on the effects alcohol, THC, etc. had on me. Really gave me some insights on how associations are formed, what euphoria does to decision making and so on.
klyrs 3y ago
Fwiw I've overcome obstacles on LSD -- "run the algorithm backwards!" Nothing I couldn't have come up with sober, but I hadn't done so in several days.
malux85 3y ago
I can’t quote any enormous studies but I can give you my own experience. I use it once every month or so, and while I’m on it I did the following: Built a triangular arbitrage DeFi trading system that made me 200k Sped up a face recognition system to from 16,000faces a second to 1.2M faces a second Created the first version of my nudged elastic band simulator for finding transition state energy Learnt GPU shader coding and made my first real-time atomic force simulator All of this while high on LSD, not having the idea and implementing later, but having the idea and then implementing while high, I do a lot of coding while normal too, but LSD seems to remove all self doubt and makes me come up with creative solutions much much much faster, it’s not a simulation, I am objectively better while using it. It has downsides too though, usually the day after I am more tired than usual and need a day to just rest, and it doesn't always work, sometimes while on it I just feel like chilling and reading, it's not something that can be forced

chaps 3y ago

Have you ever done psychedelics?

nathan_compton 3y ago
I've done psychedelics of many types and I find the so-called "insights" they offer to be banal in the extreme.
- chaps 3y ago
  Not exactly going to disagree with you there. Just felt it was an important question to ask considering the rigidity of their comment.
  - nathan_compton 3y ago
    I'm not the original reply, by the way. I think psychedelics can be fun and extremely liberating/relaxing. But they have not given me any significant personal, scientific, literary or other insights.
- grugagag 3y ago
  I find that whatever insights, they’re personal. But their general effect humbling our egos. I find that to be of great use in a selfish narcissistic society we’re living in. I remember after having an LSD trip with good personal insights I got home and had cathartic session of sobbing. It felt absolutely great to do something I rarely do. Last time I did this was more than 15 years ago and feel that I’m still drawing some essence from this experience. Perhaps if I find myself stuck or at crossroads I’ll give it another go.

_a_a_a_ 3y ago

Pls post (say) 3 examples of <<"finding the solution to everyone's problems" and "forgetting" it upon sobering?>> I'm only aware of it happening a NOx trip in the 1800's > Maybe it's a better cultural value for our truth seeking groups to avoid psychedelics and other hallucinogens So. You're afraid of them then. Otherwise you'd post some actual evidence.

NickC25 3y ago

It's important to have an experienced tripper with you so that when you have a solution, someone can write it down if you're unable to. Or a voice reorder, or some way of capturing your insight. Has worked every time for me.

joenot443 3y ago

In my experience, the "simulated insight" (and I agree, that is roughly what I'd call it) ends up being something more attune to "I need to take better care of my apartment" or "Revolver truly is their best album" or more recently, "I need to learn to write shaders." The insights one experiences are personal, whether or not they're actually beneficial to the waking self. I haven't met anyone who's seriously felt they'd "discovered" or solved anything serious while tripping. I know people who've left relationships or changed career paths, so as with nearly anything psychoactive, YMMV.

ethanbond 3y ago

I’ve never read any trip report including a claim like that. Lots of people claim to have solved a problem they have, and some of these solutions end up being forgotten, bad, or authentically and positively life-changing. Hard to draw conclusions from this landscape (which is why scientists should be experimenting with them).

robbiep 3y ago
You've never taken a psychedelic and felt you understood the meaning of life? I have personally solved all major conflicts and the middle east crisis multiple times. None of it stuck though... With some technical problems I have certainly felt that I have solved them and come out with nothing but undecipherable scribble at the end. Once or twice something useful in the afterglow, but much of it is lost (or was never real to begin with)
- sitkack 3y ago
  The whole world should drop acid for 72 hours. Then I think the major conflicts will have evaporated.
- ethanbond 3y ago
  “Understood the meaning of life” != solved everyone’s problems Did you actually feel that you had solved all major conflicts, or are you 1) parodying your own ambition of insight or 2) making the separate claim that “if the primary agents in the conflict could have the experience that I’m having, they maybe would not be so conflicted?” (2) for example is a much, much more believable claim than “I solved all the problems” despite their superficial similarity.
  - robbiep 3y ago
    You didn’t give a numerical option for having personally solved all the world’s problems, but I’ll call it 0), and I felt 0) but am also claiming 1). Others have made 2) but that wasn’t part of my comment. I’m not really interested in what you believe, it’s clear you haven’t had psychedelic experiences, which is fine, but it’s a bit rich for you to be claiming what I could have experienced if you’ve never had your wetwear run that particular program. Psychedelic experiences are unbelievable by their very nature. At their worst (as was repeated elsewhere in the thread, and actually in the article as well) you are literally entering the state of a schizophrenic. It isn’t very nice. And at its best you can think that you have deep insight into major world problems, the cause of conflicts and how to solve them. In a more personal middle ground it can also be a highly fertile environment for self reflection and introspection with lasting benefits

deleted 3y ago

[deleted]

galleywest200 3y ago

I am not sure if LSD use in college gave me any real insights, but it did leave me with a permanent recognition of my internal thought processes. Becoming acutely aware of them essentially. Instead of two layers (internal thoughts then observed reality) there were three (myself, internal thoughts, then observed reality).

rainclouds 3y ago
Spot on. My ability to separate myself from an issue and view it as a 3rd party came around this. Sometimes you had separate yourself pretty far from something to be able absorb and understand an issue, and LSD can cause that space. I see the space, the separating, as the benefit. Gave new prospective.

pengaru 3y ago

> One of the issues is that LSD also simulates the feeling of insight. How many trip reports mention "finding the solution to everyone's problems" and "forgetting" it upon sobering? (They didn't forget, they never had it, the LSD simulated having it...) Are you sure you're not confusing LSD with THC? What you're describing is well known as "stoner epiphanies"...

erur 3y ago

Totally agree when it comes to "general insights" here. You're probably not gonna solve any major problems even though it feels like it in the moment. However, imho. altering the thought process through drugs and really introspecting on what changes and how that relates to the sober state can yield a LOT of valuable learnings. I feel like I learned a lot about myself just by introspecting on the effects alcohol, THC, etc. had on me. Really gave me some insights on how associations are formed, what euphoria does to decision making and so on.

klyrs 3y ago

Fwiw I've overcome obstacles on LSD -- "run the algorithm backwards!" Nothing I couldn't have come up with sober, but I hadn't done so in several days.

malux85 3y ago

I can’t quote any enormous studies but I can give you my own experience. I use it once every month or so, and while I’m on it I did the following: Built a triangular arbitrage DeFi trading system that made me 200k Sped up a face recognition system to from 16,000faces a second to 1.2M faces a second Created the first version of my nudged elastic band simulator for finding transition state energy Learnt GPU shader coding and made my first real-time atomic force simulator All of this while high on LSD, not having the idea and implementing later, but having the idea and then implementing while high, I do a lot of coding while normal too, but LSD seems to remove all self doubt and makes me come up with creative solutions much much much faster, it’s not a simulation, I am objectively better while using it. It has downsides too though, usually the day after I am more tired than usual and need a day to just rest, and it doesn't always work, sometimes while on it I just feel like chilling and reading, it's not something that can be forced