Most individuals are conscious that taking psychedelics can result in profound and enlightening experiences. Much less identified is {that a} kind of visceral self-knowledge that will also be achieved by taking part in on our primary senses. Our senses – sight, listening to, style, contact and odor – are very carefully linked to our capacity to achieve a psychedelic state. By studying find out how to harness mild, sound, and sure bodily sensations, you’ll be able to induce a psychedelic journey with out the usage of any substances. Let’s dive deeper into the phenomenon of getting excessive with out medicine.
We’re within the age of a psychedelic revolution. Discovering new methods to create these experiences is a sizzling matter of dialogue proper now, and we’re right here to maintain you up to date each step of the best way. For extra articles like this one, keep in mind to subscribe to the Psychedelics Weekly Publication, your high supply for every part associated to this rising and vital business.
Defining a psychedelic journey
Merely put, a “journey” could be described as a briefly altered state of consciousness. But that doesn’t totally embody, and even start to elucidate, what it feels wish to be in a psychedelic state. An altered frame of mind, by definition, is any mindset that’s completely different out of your impartial disposition. All medicine that may get you excessive in any means will produce an “altered state”, even sleeping could be thought of so. However a psychedelic state is completely different.
A psychedelic state can fluctuate in depth, however all journeys have a typical thread – they’re sentient in nature. They make you’re feeling one thing. Psychedelics have an effect on all of the senses and may change an individual’s thought course of, and their sense of time, area and actuality. They will additionally produce auditory, visible, and sensory hallucinations, though what precisely anybody experiences is subjective to so many various factors.
The substance (or substances) taken, the dosage, the particular person’s tolerance to psychedelics, their present frame of mind, metabolism, general character kind and background, and probably even genetics, can all play a task in how psychedelics have an effect on an individual. Or higher but, all these completely different components mixed is likely to be extra precisely described as a blueprint to how an individual’s thoughts will settle for psychedelic journeys on the whole, whether or not through medicine or different strategies.
The mainstream perception is that such a state can solely be reached by way of the usage of entheogenic substances. And whereas which may be the simplest, quickest, and most acquainted methodology, it’s actually not the one one. Issues like meditation, sensory deprivation, mild remedy, and sure respiration strategies can get you there too.
After we journey, no matter what causes the journey, the mind reacts in the same means – with an elevated activation of delta and gamma waves and the suppression of alpha and beta waves. After we are awake and alert, the mind is dominated by alpha, beta, and gamma waves. After we sleep, delta and theta waves take over. The pairing of “alert” gamma waves and “sleeping” delta waves, may clarify why psychedelics journeys are akin to dream-like states that we expertise whereas nonetheless awake.
Meditation
Meditation has existed for millennia with oldest documented proof of the observe coming from India someday round 5,000 to three,500 BCE. Through the Silk Highway transmission starting within the 1st or 2nd century, Buddhists introduced mediation to China and different Asian international locations, and it will definitely unfold throughout the globe.
Meditation is about consciousness. It’s about studying find out how to observe no matter is happening in your personal thoughts with none judgement. It’s about coaching your ideas so you’ll be able to really really feel what you need to occur in your life, and thus manifest it with the power you place out into the world. It’s believed by many who the ability of the thoughts can be utilized to alter one’s whole life course, in addition to heal practically something incorrect with the human physique.
A phrase it’s possible you’ll hear typically when you delve into the world of meditation is ‘Mindfulness’, which is the flexibility to be totally current and engaged with no matter is happening proper now. The previous and future don’t matter, you should focus solely on the present second in time. Whereas this will likely sound comparatively easy… consider me, it’s not.
Similar to some other ability, studying to meditate can bear its personal distinctive set of challenges. It may be very arduous to drown out the thoughts chatter, or the fixed bustling of the thoughts. Among the finest methods to do that is to focus in your breath. Deal with the inhale, really feel the oxygen transfer all through your physique, then slowly exhale. If you discover your thoughts starting to wander, refocus in your respiration.
If you’re capable of attain a deep, transcendental type of meditation, you’ll be able to put your self in an altered state of consciousness much like what you’d expertise with psychoactive substances. After all there’s not an amazing quantity of analysis to again this up, however a small-scale study of 24 practising shamans discovered that after they entered a “shamanic therapeutic state”, their EEG-measures (degree {of electrical} exercise within the mind) confirmed larger criticality within the gamma waves in comparison with the management group, one thing additionally seen when psychedelics are used.
Whereas I personally do attempt to meditate (not practically as a lot as I ought to, however often), I’ve by no means been capable of attain something near an ethereal state. This may be extraordinarily difficult to realize for the novice meditator. It takes plenty of observe and dedication, however I’ll actually carry on attempting.
Sensory deprivation
Sensory deprivation experiences, or restricted environmental stimulation remedy (REST), are rising in reputation as a authorized and substance-free technique to “journey balls”, as it’s generally described. In just about each medium to giant metropolis within the US, you could find isolation tank places and schedule a cheap float. On common, a 60-90 minute float session prices round $100, nonetheless, most locations provide memberships and many individuals go for month-to-month visits.
Sensory deprivation remedy tanks have been invented in 1954 by John C. Lilly, an American neuroscientist and doctor who aimed to check the “origins of consciousness by slicing off all exterior stimuli”. The thought may be very simple – a big soundproof tank is full of water and Epsom salt and heated to pores and skin temperature. The particular person enters the tank nude and floats weightlessly within the silent darkness.
Sensory deprivation remedy can have many alternative psychoactive results together with hallucinations, connectivity, and creativity. A couple of research have been carried out on float tanks over the previous couple of years, like this 2015 study that in contrast individuals who have been extra susceptible to hallucinations, and individuals who have been much less susceptible to them, to see how every group would react to REST. They discovered that each teams skilled hallucinations of comparable depth, and the high-prone group confirmed solely a barely elevated frequency.
One other research printed the 12 months prior within the European Journal of Integrative Medicine found that sensory deprivation floats can result in “elevated originality, creativeness, and instinct, which might all result in enhanced creativity”. Further published research has linked sensory deprivation to thought readability, refined focus, extra fluent studying, and improved efficiency in class and profession settings.
Whereas I’ve very minimal expertise with sensory deprivation (I’ve solely tried it one time), I can vouch for the truth that it was trippy through the session; and afterwards, I left feeling optimistic, clearheaded, and impressed. I positively suggest, and would do that once more myself. I may see the advantages of doing month-to-month or bi-monthly periods.
Gentle remedy
If you’ve ever heard the time period “seeing the sunshine”, you most likely know it as an idiom, that means to understand or perceive one thing in a brand new, extra optimistic means. Typically, this phrase is utilized in reference to a non secular breakthrough or sudden awakening, however at present, we are able to truly take this time period to imply one thing extra literal.
Enter the Lucia N°03 Hypnagogic Gentle Machine, invented by Austrian neurologist and psychologist group, Dr. Dirk Preockl and Dr. Englebert Winkler. The aim of this technique is to create an altered state of consciousness utilizing mild. As a result of the electrochemical exercise of neurons permits the mind to answer a stimulus in a single millisecond, it may be simple to achieve this state utilizing minimal exterior stimuli.
The methodology is comparatively easy as effectively. Periods could be solo or in teams. The tone is ready so it’s quiet and peaceable for the topics. Most often, noise cancelling headphones are used, both to play stress-free tones and/or frequencies, or just to dam out any extrinsic sounds. People will lay down or be seated in reclining chairs, they shut their eyes, and a lucia mild is propped up roughly 2 ft away from the face. For the subsequent 30-90 minutes (session size will depend on location and buyer desire), white lights at varied frequencies are flashed on the members.
The inventors of this mild provide a scientific clarification for why this works, with research to again it up. “In the event you use a flickering of 9HZ, the occipital pole will take over the identical vibrational frequency,” explains Proeckl. “When individuals tune right into a trance state it’ll then produce other distinct frequencies produced by the mind, a sort of harmonic ratio. That’s, it produces an equal of musical overtones, typically extending into the gamma vary, an space normally solely seen in skilled meditators.”
Though a single session can result in substantial modifications in notion, individuals sometimes declare {that a} collection of periods is greatest for extra intense journeys and long-term advantages. Hallucinations can embrace colours, patterns, wormholes, and varied sensations. Experiences of comparable or shared hallucinations have occurred in couple and group periods. A buddy of mine who not too long ago tried mild remedy echoed this sentiment, claiming that “what you see is created by you, and my buddy and I noticed the identical picture in just a few moments, which was fascinating.”
Including to this, a brand new startup firm seeks to emulate this expertise from residence utilizing one of the omnipresent units in our society at present, the sensible cellphone. Two UK inventors and engineering college students, Tom Galea and Jay Conlon, created an app referred to as Lumenate, which makes use of the telephones flashlight to create mild sequences much like these produced by the lucia mild.
Respiration strategies
Respiration isn’t merely for getting oxygen into our our bodies, however the rhythm of respiration creates electrical exercise within the mind that improves a number of forms of neurological capabilities. The observe of respiration your self right into a trance-like state is called holotropic respiration. Coming from the Greek phrases, “holos” that means “entire”, and “trepein” that means “to maneuver towards”, the phrase “holotropic” interprets to “transferring towards wholeness.”
Some describe the expertise as divine, whereas others say it’s extra like a really intense type of meditation. Regardless, the fundamental precept right here is to observe a selected respiration sample during which the particular person exhales a excessive degree of CO2, however with out reaching the purpose of hyperventilation. The official time period for this state is respiratory alkalosis, and it may possibly result in lightheadedness, elevated ideas, bodily sensations (like random tingling), minor hallucinations, and a variety of therapeutic advantages.
Holotropic respiration strategies have not too long ago been made well-known by a Dutch motivational speaker and excessive athlete named Wim Hof. Mixing just a few various kinds of yogic respiration patterns, which he dubbed the “Wim Hof Methodology”, is alleged to be the foundation of his success.
Often known as “The Iceman”, Wim Hof is probably greatest identified for his affinity for the chilly. The now 62-year-old has run numerous marathons above the arctic circle (all whereas shirtless, thoughts you), he has been noticed diving beneath ice on the North Pole, and he repeatedly enjoys 90+ minute ice baths. He attributes this seemingly inhuman resistance towards chilly to his respiration strategies.
Last ideas on tripping with out psychedelics
The world of psychological well being desperately wants a makeover, within the type of novel approaches to deal with individuals. We all know that, broadly, prescribed drugs will not be slicing it. The one factor we are able to do now transferring ahead is to look outdoors the field. There was plenty of discuss recently about psychedelics and the way tripping can completely enhance various psychiatric issues; however taking these substances can really feel excessive for some individuals, notably for individuals who have restricted expertise with such merchandise within the first place. The considered tripping with out medicine could also be extra interesting for a big group of customers who may gain advantage enormously from these companies, and as a society, we nonetheless have barely scratched the floor relating to the potential of those therapies.
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Disclaimer: Hello, I’m a researcher and author. I’m not a health care provider, lawyer, or businessperson. All data in my articles is sourced and referenced, and all opinions said are mine. I’m not giving anybody recommendation, and although I’m more than pleased to debate matters. Ought to somebody have an extra query or concern, they need to search steering from a related skilled.