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I would describe it differently: Psychedelics like psilocybin and LSD deactivate filters in your brain (parts of the default mode network to be precise). These
by katzenversteher 3y ago
I would describe it differently: Psychedelics like psilocybin and LSD deactivate filters in your brain (parts of the default mode network to be precise). These filters are unconscious and do not only block weird visual effects but also thoughts and emotions. Some of the thoughts and emotions they block are scary and we probably installed those filters in our childhood during "traumatic" events but some of these thoughts and emotions were filtered because we were taught to ignore them or that they would be false or we tried things while growing up and always failed with them (not because they were impossible but due to the circumstances, e.g. parents not allowing it).
Well with those filters removed you don't only see "raw", unprocessed images, you also get all those thoughts back. Some of them can be very scary and lead you into a "bad trip" but some are also incredibly(!) freeing. And it's impossible to explain this feeling of having no mental filters to someone who did not experience it because all those filters are not conscious. You don't even know you had them until they are gone!
- di456 3y agoGreat summary! What books would you recommend on this area of default mode network and psychedelic interactions? Pollan's book "How to Change Your Mind" has a good section on it. Curious to learn more.
- katzenversteher 3y agoI don't have any book recommendations but I can recommend taking a look at their publications and resources: https://maps.org/ https://maps.org/
- neom 3y agoThe Doors of Perception - Aldous Huxley Food of the Gods - Terence McKenna
- 52-6F-62 3y agoAlien Information Theory by Andrew Gallimore Excerpt reading https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JxC2cyg-cTg https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JxC2cyg-cTg Less about psychedelics, but a great accessory read is Mind and Nature by Gregory Bateson
- tpm 3y ago> Some of the thoughts and emotions they block are scary Building on this, if someone is scared of the 'psychedelic' part then there is also MDMA which too lifts 'filters' and makes the subject aware of those thoughts and emotions so they can be processed, but takes away the fear and anxiety. MDMA is not classified as psychedelic and currently studied for treatment of PTSD (among other diagnoses). Psychonauts found a way to combine those effects: candyflip (a combination of LSD and MDMA) or hippieflip (psilocybin and MDMA).
- deepnotderp 3y agoAlso 2C-B is a psychedelic with a entactogenic (think like mdma) effect. It’s much more manageable, calmer and reliably positive than psilocybin or LSD
- ghoogl 3y ago[dead]
- snapplebobapple 3y agoMdma utterly jacks my cardiovascular system. People with high blood pressure or other cardiovascular issues should be careful using that.
- tpm 3y agoYeah, people with high blood pressure or other cardiovascular issues should be careful using all psychotropic drugs, including psychedelics - some if which are 5HT(2B) receptor agonists, and those receptors are expressed on the heart valve. But MDMA has still more dangerous physical effects than LSD/psilocybin.