#psychedelic trip

[peponaki]

[planetarybound]

"Strassman, a clinical research psychiatrist specializing in psychedelic research and author of DMT: The Spirit Molecule, is on the vanguard of studying that phenomenology. While the whole idea of studying extended trips may seem kooky to some, Strassman explained to me via email that there can be real scientific benefit to extended-state experiments. DMT is produced endogenously in mammals, meaning our brains make the molecule. But we have a much lower tolerance to DMT compared to other psychedelics like LSD. How or whether DMT fits into our natural physiology is an open question. Strassman wants to know if there is a DMT neurotransmitter system—like with serotonin and dopamine—and whether one’s tolerance or lack thereof plays a role in naturally occurring psychosis such as schizophrenia."

The “Psychonauts” Training to Explore Another Dimension

Meet the Americans who are exploring new frontiers in hallucinogenic research through a nascent technology known as extended-state DMT.

[drogado-e-poeta]

[beauty-funny-trippy]

{credit: merged gifs from Marcus Martinez & Lematworks} ~beauty-funny-trippy

[izimbracreenshots]

Lydia by Reto Andrea Savoldelli, 1968

[florina-venus]

Candyland

120 x 80 cm

Acryl auf Leinwand

[aviel]

Dries Van Noten SS21

[planetarybound]

Thorbahn is one of the first in a class of so-called “psychonauts” exploring new frontiers in hallucinogenic research, preparing to use a technology called extended-state DMT. When the drug is smoked, a trip lasts minutes—despite feeling much longer. But with a constant stream of DMT supplied to a user and blood serum levels of the molecule regulated, that trip can last hours or even days—seemingly an eternity.

The method might give Thorbahn and other psychonauts enough time to bring back detailed trip reports of their experience. An intriguing aspect of DMT experiences is a degree of similarity. The landscapes and beings can be recognizable to different users (a mechanical elf is a popular recurring visitor). And for Thorbahn, the trips seem “more real than real,” a quote heard often in DMT-experimenting circles. Advocates of extended-state programs want to know whether these experiences illuminate a new corner of the mind, even another dimension—or whether users are just getting really high.

Thorbahn, who has a background in biology and chemistry and runs an organic soil company in Colorado, was driving a highway late one night while listening to a psychedelics podcast when he first heard about the extended-state DMT program, DMTx, offered by Medicinal Mindfulness. The latter organization, founded in 2012 in Boulder, Colorado, by two psychotherapists, is a psychedelic therapy clinic and provides cannabis and ketamine-assisted sessions, claiming to have helped treat trauma, depression, and “feelings of meaninglessness.” Its website emphasizes that the clinic “fully complies with all local and Colorado State cannabis laws, and all federal regulations.” DMTx is a new offshoot, founded in 2016 with a long-term goal to “develop and implement FDA-approved clinical research” into DMT, according to its website. In the meantime, the website reads, “While we’ll continue to follow stringent safety protocols, working outside some of the cultural constraints of the FDA allows us to explore a model that is congruent with the passionate interests of the psychedelic community. Namely, to explore the important question: What in the world is really going on here?”

The “Psychonauts” Training to Explore Another Dimension

Meet the Americans who are exploring new frontiers in hallucinogenic research through a nascent technology known as extended-state DMT.