outlandish

@dflores321 I know what you're saying, and I think you're right that there can be a trap there. Actually, either extreme can be a trap: There's the trap you mention: being perfectionistic about your attraction. You end up pedestalizing women, and sitting so much outside of the game that you never get good at flirting. You can end up clumsy and crappy at attracting women that when you finally do meet the right girl you fail because you have no idea what you're doing. On the other extreme, if you completely ignore your taste and preference, there's the trap where either A) you constantly fail to attract women because they see right through you, and know you're not actually into them (do you want to be with someone who doesn't really find you attractive?) or B) you trick girls and end up hooking up with ones you aren't actually into, which never ends up being great for anyone. So yeah, it does depend what you're looking for. You'll want to calibrate/recalibrate yourself somewhere between the extremes depending on if you actually just need some practice. Nonetheless, even if you are just looking to have some fun and hook up with some cute girls, I think it's unhealthy to loose touch with what you find attractive for the sake of trying to get some notches in your belt. So I think ideally if you want to play the field, remember that there are lots of women that you will be attracted to, and don't bother with the ones you aren't, because you'd be wasting her time and yours. I have to admit that my advice is pretty coloured by my own tendencies and experience. At one point a very old man gave me that advice to pursue the women that I was truly, deeply attracted to. It was a big game changer for me, but I also ended up hooking up with my life partner pretty soon after that, which probably sounds like a trap if you've not yet had your fill playing around.

Iron (via ferfatin) levels are a good idea to check on, especially if you are female, vegetarian/vegan, or an athlete. B12 can be a good one to check on too for vegs and/or athletes. If your doc is any good, they should know better than anyone on here as to what should be investigated.

Sleyker is right, there is no substitute for getting out there. If you start following teachers and pickup strategies it can come off as forced, insincere, etc. I have one piece of dating advice I always like to pass on: Make sure you are pursuing the girls that YOU find attractive. Try to distinguish between who you ACTUALLY find attractive, and who you THINK you ought to find attractive. We tend to get programmed a lot by media, friends, and the way some girls advertise themselves as to who we are supposed to be attracted to. This doesn't always align with our own personal chemistries. When you really get in touch with who attracts you, there is no substitute. Pickup stops being a game you're trying at, and it becomes the real deal. You don't even have to strategize anymore because it flows naturally.

You have to do testing to know for sure. You can't inspect a sample visually and tell what's in it. The simplest types of tests are reagent tests, which basically involve mixing a small amount of the material with the test kit and see how it reacts by observing colour changes. The type of reagent you use depends on what you are testing for. Ehrlich's reagent can be used to test if you have a lysergamide or tryptamine, but can't rule out opiods for example. More accurate are tests like NMR, gas chromatography etc, which can give you a better idea of exactly what's in the sample. The machines and labs that run these tests can be expensive, but if you're lucky there could be harm reduction facilities in your area that do these types of tests for free. Another option is Energy Control, a mail-in harm reduction service that will analyze drug samples (for a reasonable fee to support their operations) to identify their contents, and post it publicly on their database. The most basic harm reduction step is to be informed about the source to know something about the reputation, reviews from other consumers etc. The next step is that you must at least carefully titrate the material. That means starting with extremely tiny amounts, and working your way up, to make sure you haven't received the wrong substance, a laced substance, or that you have some idiosyncratic reaction.

That article is a badly misinformed opinion piece presented as fact. The poor quality writing makes it difficult to read as well.

@TravisB I find DPT to be particularly stimulating to (what feels like) the cortisol system. When I take DPT I feel a bit like a cat prowling in the night, senses super alert, on hyper alert for dangers. It sounds like this aspect of the trip might be even more pronounced for you. Maybe DPT isn't a good fit for you if it's too extreme and getting uncomfortable. You can try reducing this response by ensuring that you're in a really safe space, and by playing some nice music that you love and that makes you feel comfortable and relaxed. Music is magical in the way it can colour a trip. Also, make sure you are hydrated, rested and fed leading into the trip. You don't want to be full, but if you're going into your trip emaciated, that can have an edgy effect on the trip - for me at least, I know a lot of people advocate fasting prior to the trip, and that can be very powerful as well.

You should wait until you're older. You have a whole lifetime ahead to experiment with psychedelics, and 15 is definitely way too young. I recommend waiting until you're in your 20s. From age 15-19 you should focus on developing yourself intellectually, physically, socially, so try to do well in school, sports, and developing good friendships and relationships. If you're interested in psychedelics you can begin to lay the groundwork now by practicing meditation and reading. Taking psychedelics prematurely is like forcing a flower bud open too soon. I've seen some friends who got heavily involved in psychedelics from too young an age, and became very lost in life. That being said, some other friends (and myself) got started with very light use of mushrooms from pretty young age, like 16, and it worked out fine. But if I could go back, I would tell myself to wait a few years, and that will be what I teach my children as well, when they get to that age.

Yes, definitely, but I would recommend working with smaller quantities first to make sure you have the technique right, and that you like the final product.

Yeah, you nailed it. Our judgements of him as an individual aren't very relevant, the question of whether or not he was enlightened is meaningless. We don't really see the real Alan Watts, we see the Alan Watts stage entertainer persona. This persona was an exceptional vessel for transmitting the essence of zen and eastern mysticism to a western audience. He got it, and was able to convey it, in a way that is still relevant and has touched millions of people. But Alan Watts was a real human, living with real frailties. He was a genius scholar of Zen who doubtlessly touched down on the deepest mystical insights, and had the gift of pointing towards the moon just so. And none of that erased his flesh and blood existence, which happened to be tragically addicted to alcohol, among countless other shortcomings no doubt.

In my opinion, it's still a good idea to work your way up. It won't take that many trials before you find the sweet spot. The problem with trying to blast through with a large dose right from the start is that you can accidentally overshoot and blackout, which would be useless and taxing. The other problem is that you can be so preoccupied with the novelty of the experience that your mind can race and not settle down. I feel that by getting acclimatized a few times, it's easier to go with the flow because you're used to the terrain to some extent. That way when it's time to let go and trust, it's a simpler process and you're not counting on luck. That being said, your suggestion of 15mg isn't excessive, unless you mean vaping. I'd say if you have the intuition to plug or snort 15mg off the get-go, just go for it. I appreciate the caveat you added at the end there, it's so true that it's different for everyone.

@Bazooka Jesus omg that shit was so funny, and so off topic....

@Vagos Leo specifically requested that his listeners not give him any kind of health advice or suggestions. He's far deeper into investigating this issue than any of us could possibly be, and suggestions are non-helpful at this point. Therefore this isn't really a topic for discussion on this forum. Closing this thread.

Are you condoning murder?

Well, let us know if you do try out that Kola Kombo @Bazooka Jesus I had a bunch of kola nuts a long time ago, but then they spoiled so I threw them away. Never really figured out how to consume them. Speaking of kola, did you know that coca-cola still uses coca leaf extract in their drink? They extract the cocaine out, and put the remaining part of the extract into the beverage. Apparently it doesn't have any kola in it anymore however.

What's the rationale for drinking Kola nut powder before taking 5-MeO-DMT? That's not something I've ever heard of. I don't think it's a good idea to layer caffeine or stimulants on top of 5-MeO-DMT. It's already got enough of it's own thing going on. OTOH, I've never puked from 5-MeO-DMT or felt nauseous from it, so for me personally, I'm able to take liquids (and solids) fairly close to dosing if I need to. You may find you can take liquids before tripping too, but judging from your avatar, maybe not!

No, I've only converted the other way around, from a salt to freebase, using baking soda.

Yeah, it's covered in that thread you linked to @Koeke

Slowing population growth just means ensuring access to birth control and giving women access to education. These things slow birth rates in most of the world to the point where populations become pretty stable. We have to stabilize world population if we're to have any hope of surviving as a species. And the nice thing is, this all happens voluntarily when women's rights, access to education and birth control, and economic conditions are improved. The Bill + Melinda Gates foundation has saved millions of lives since 2000 by reducing the rates of malaria around the world. It saddens me that he's become so ignorantly vilified. He's a hero who has been looking after world health in places that don't get attention otherwise, and he'll be remembered far into the future for this. The real conspiracy is that there are a lot of nonsense memes being pumped into mass internet culture right now in order to create confusion and disagreement, and basically cripple american+western society, create division, and distract from the real issues at play. There are many different forces at work, with different motives. Most of these conspiracy memes are "naturally born" and then amplified by agents for whom their outcome is beneficial, and also just by appealing to human paranoid fantasies. We're living in the midst of information war and cultural battles.

It's very rare for people to report benefits from datura. You're much more likely to have a negative experience, and/or forget the whole thing. It's also possible to die if you take too much. Unlike psychedelics, datura is literally a poison. It can't be recommended to take it. If you do choose to consume it, you should probably grind those seeds into a fine powder, mix it thoroughly to make sure it's homogenous, and then take the tiniest amount under supervision. It's impossible to know beforehand how strong they are, so you have to titrate it, and you should have supervision in case something goes wrong. But a better procedure would be: Throw seeds into wastebasket Empty waste Order some 5-MeO-DMT Consume 5-MeO-DMT

Yes! Watch the whole thing, and then when you're done, watch every other documentary by Adam Curtis His work gives an amazing perspective on power, politics, psychology, and why we find ourselves where we are today.

@nistake you reminded me of Eckhart Tolle on the park bench

Great report @Arthur it's awesome to hear that DPT has been working so well for you.

"Wherever you go, there you are" It's easy to underestimate your insight @Jo96 One life to live, bring it on!

Hi @Ry4n - I've not had the same kind of experience on LSD or any other psychedelics, but I've definitely seen glimmers of it with various compounds. In my experience, nothing goes straight to the heart of the matter like 5-MeO-DMT. People definitely have these kinds of experiences on LSD, or other psychedelics. It's just that with something like LSD, you usually have to dose quite high (or things have to click just right), and it's a much longer lasting, and psychedelia-type experience surrounding it. 5-MeO-DMT is probably like the bit that you tasted there, but shorter acting, and stripped right down to that non-duality aspect. 5-MeO-DMT is a little bit of a one-trick-pony, but it's "THE" trick. There's nothing lower-calibre about a peak LSD experience at all, it's just that LSD probably less reliably delivers this type of experience because it's not quite as potent on that specific non-duality axis, and it's more potent on the other psychedelic axes, if that makes sense. I've read reports of people having these types of peak experiences with LSD, and it's left me with no doubt that they are just as valuable as one you might experience on 5-MeO-DMT. I'd say at age 20 you don't need to rush into 5-MeO-DMT or anything like that. I'd take it easy with psychedelics in general. I was taking psychedelics at that age, and I benefitted from them, but you don't want to overdo it, you have your whole life ahead to explore with them. I think it's a great age to begin experimenting, but take it slow and easy, take the time to get the most out of the trips that you've had.

Recently I was asked by my 8 year old son what Philosophy is, and what a Philosopher is. I was really stumped. How would you explain this to an 8 year old? Kids are great at asking challenging questions.