How to prepare for a psychedelic experience

What should you take into account when you are going to trip?

A good start is half the battle

If you are going to trip, make sure you are well prepared and read up on it. We have a number of tips that can help you with this. We have divided them into categories:

Preparation

  • Are you going to use at home or alone? Inform yourself about the drug you will be taking. Read trip experiences and basic information, such as dosage, length, risks, do’s and don’ts. An experience at home can be very different than outside or at a festival or party.
  • If you have enough space, set up multiple rooms so that you have different settings. Each room has a different atmosphere and different music.
  • Then think in advance about what you want to get out of it. Do you want to have some fun? Or do you want to go inside and explore the depths of your mind? Plan in advance some things you can do to help you with that. Maybe you want to meditate. Then create a quiet place where you can do that. If you want to get creative, make sure you have coloring pages, paint, notepads for those brilliant ideas and turn on a nice screensaver for some extra visual input.
  • Are you going to trip with a room mate or trip sitter? Discuss what is going on in your mind and how your roommate or trip sitter can best deal with it before you go on the trip. Leave them alone for a while? A hug? Or discuss your feelings?
  • If you are taking a drug that lasts longer than 4-5 hours, make sure you prepare food in advance. If you get hungry during your trip, putting together a meal can be quite a challenge. Even throwing together some vegetables for a salad is a professional sport!
  • Do you want to go outside for some fresh air? Make a plan in advance where you want to go. And then pack a bag with a hearty snack and something to drink. Then you don’t have to think about what to take with you and you don’t forget to bring something.

Drug

When we talk about a drug, we are talking about the chosen substance, the dosage, the purity, cutting agents, combination use and the method of administration.

  • It is better to take a low dose if you are taking a drug for the first time. Experimenting with high doses may be better for another time.
  • It is better to stick to psychedelics that you have experience with. New substances may give different effects than you know or expected. Then it can be more difficult to keep it fun.
  • Choose a psychedelic that does not last too long. It is much easier to keep it fun for 4 hours than for 12+ hours.
  • Do not take psychedelics that also have physical risks. Most psychedelics have few physical risks, but some do have those risks, such as ayahuasca (MAO inhibitors), iboga (heart problems), NBOMe’s (extreme vasoconstriction, heart problems), NBOH’s (vasoconstriction) or difinedine (little known about, signals of paralysis).
  • Preferably do not combine with other drugs and medication. Combinations make the experience unpredictable. Sometimes it can turn a nice trip into a difficult trip.
  • If you use medication check with your GP or physician whether it can be combined with psychedelics. This is especially important with antidepressants and antipsychotics.
  • There are drug checking services in the Netherlands, so make use of them! Only use something that you have had tested or stuff from friends that has already been tested. The drug checking service is a responsible and fun experience 😉 Check how it works and your nearest location here!

Set

When we talk about the set, we mean all the characteristics of the person who uses it. So how are you feeling? What expectations do you have of a substance? Are you physically and mentally healthy? Do you use medication? Have you eaten, drunk and slept enough in the past few days? Are you wearing appropriate clothing for the situation? Do you have any obligations on the day you are going to trip? Or the day after?

  • Make sure you feel good and have enough energy when you are going to trip.
  • It is better not to trip alone. Make sure you have a travel companion or sober tripsitter. Tripping alone is very different from tripping with a group of friends. When you are alone, there is no one to help you keep your thoughts in order and keep it fun, if you are having a hard time. A tripsitter can help you better with this than a travel companion. The trip sitter can also assess better with a clear head whether it is necessary to call in help.
  • Do you choose to trip alone? And are you unable to arrange a sober trip sitter? Then ask someone to be a backup by phone. If you don’t feel well, you can call the trip sitter. Preferably someone you feel comfortable with and who lives nearby.
  • Make sure you eat and drink well so that your energy levels stay up during your trip. This also helps to keep your immune system up.

Setting

With setting we mean everything that has to do with the environment. Are you in a beautiful park, at home on the couch or at a busy party? Is it warm, familiar and quiet or cold, chaotic and busy? This affects how you feel. A few tips:

  • Turn off your phone or at least put it on silent, so that you have some peace and quiet for your trip.
  • Do you still feel a bit claustrophobic inside? That’s not a problem! You have already thought in advance about where you can go outside. So you can now roll out that plan nicely. The bag with drinks and a hearty snack that is already ready on your back and go!
  • Quiet places in nature are the best. That one beautiful park around the corner where normally no one goes is better than the beach at Zandvoort

What if?

Okay.. you have done your best but you are still not feeling well. Don’t panic!

  • Don’t wait until you are really not feeling well anymore, but call in the trip sitter or that friend who keeps an eye on his phone for you. But don’t call your entire circle of friends. And a message in the friends app group with 32 buddies doesn’t work either. Then you have 32 concerned friends on the line. One or two good friends are enough to help you.
  • Keep in mind that you have used drugs and that you will be sober again within a few hours (depending on the drug). It always passes! Even if you are now in a perpetual Rick & Morty loop between two thoughts.
  • Don’t take other drugs to relax. Not even cannabis. This can also make the bad feeling worse.
  • Change your environment. If you are indoors, go for a nice walk (see above; after all, your plan was already made) or even a different room or some different music can help.
  • Eat a meal. Try to eat a lot, more than just a bite. Then your digestive system gets to work and you automatically feel a bit more relaxed because, among other things, your heart rate goes down and your stress level quickly follows. Your body sees a drop in your heart rate as relaxation. You come out of fight or flight mode and can chill.

 

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