Psychedelic Alphabet is a small lexicon of psychedelic knowledge. We have collected the basic buzzwords that every traveler should know. And if you’re not a traveler or explorer, but an open-minded person, look into reading that too. Knowledge always enriches. The topics covered in this article are already covered quite extensively on our blog or are likely to be soon.
A
Albert Hofmann
Swiss-born chemist considered the father of LSD. Employed by the Sandoz pharmaceutical company, he was working on a respiratory and circulatory support drug. The object of his research was ergot – a fungus – parasitic in grain, used as early as medieval times. Hofmann isolated the substance LSD-25, which accidentally entered his body. The scientist experienced disturbing symptoms, but decided to take LSD acid, which he had synthesized, a second time, this time knowingly. He was dizzy, had trouble concentrating, and asked an assistant to escort him home on a bicycle. April 19, 1938 had the world’s first LSD ride. Literally and figuratively driving. During the trip, Hofmann experienced feelings of euphoria, strong image distortion, but also feelings of anxiety, hearing objects, feeling and seeing much more than in the hitherto known real world. When he got home, he was scared enough to call a doctor, who found nothing but dilated pupils. The next day, the researcher already knew what he had created – a very potent psychoactive substance that surprisingly does not cause memory impairment despite the intense experience. Hofmann devoted his entire life to researching psychedelics, and called LSD a “drug for the soul” with therapeutic properties. The amount of the substance he took in throughout his life is unknown, but the scientist himself, testified that a lot, and thus lived in good health for 102 years, becoming an icon of psychedelic pop culture.
B
B+ (Psilocybe cubensis)
The variety of B+ mushroom is considered one of the milder ones, recommended to beginners also because of its ease of cultivation. Quite resistant to temperature changes. It has large fruiting bodies, the stems are very flexible, and the hats are golden brown. The variety was developed in Florida by the legendary Mr. G. In the 1990s it became the world’s best-selling variety. The visual effects after taking these hallucinogens are moderate, I include warm perceptual sensations. Experienced users after consuming B+, also noticed fewer side effects (no nausea) compared to other varieties.
C
Will psychedelics save the world?
A remarkable scientific book “Will psychedelics save the world”, by Maciej Lorenz – a sociologist, writer and translator of the psychedelic genre. An item you should definitely start putting together your psychedelic library. The author presents in an emphatic and scientific way the facts that stand with the renaissance of psychedelics. It hooks into concepts of neuroscience, psychology, religious studies, politics, anthropology, or psychopharmacology. Reading will certainly broaden the horizons of any “traveler,” and perhaps convince even skeptics. The book is also available in our store, and we highly recommend it, as it also made a very big impression on us.
D
Silicon Valley
Located in California, Silicon Valley, the birthplace of high technology, has a special significance in the psychedelic world. To a large extent, Silicon Valley employees, scientists, researchers, engineers and businessmen have had a very positive impact on the spread of information about psychedelics. Using microdosing, they noticed how the efficiency of their brains increased and thus promoted the use of LSD, or psilocybin mushrooms. An article on the subject in Rolling Stone and later in The New York Times had a big impact. The researchers even entered into a comity with James Fadiman (writer, psychedelics researcher), with whom they jointly developed rules for taking microdoses. Steve Jobs himself repeatedly mentioned that LSD was not a foreign substance to him. For more on the Valley, see our post here.
E
Education on psychedelics
The psychedelic renaissance continues at its best, but to ensure that history does not come full circle, so that we can get the best from psychedelics – education is important. Although psilocybin mushrooms are the lowest in the classification of harmful psychoactive substances, their reckless use can lead to many problems. Institutions worth following are the Polish Psychedelic Society and politykakanarkotykowa.pl. Also worth recommending is the blog terapianowoczesna.pl, or the Youtube channel Czas na Kwas. And of course our blog 😉
F
Videos about psychedelics
The streaming platform Netflix, by distributing daring movies about psychedelics, has contributed greatly to education on the subject. Clear, easy-to-read messages backed by scientific research, thanks to Netfilx, have a chance to reach a wider audience, and ordinary Kowalski will learn that #psychedelicitonien Drugs. Recommended titles: “How to Change Your Mind, “ “Fantastic Fungi,” “Magic Medicine,” ” Have a Good Trip.”
G
Growkit
Otherwise known as a growbox or grow kit. Growkit is a growing kit that allows you to grow a plant or mushrooms yourself. It consists of a substrate that, properly cared for, will produce fruiting bodies. In the case of mushrooms, it is a block of mature mycelium that, under the right conditions, is ready to release fruiting bodies.
H
Hallucinations
Hallucinations are inherent in the use of psychedelics and are a disturbance of perception. These can be visual, auditory, or other sensory perceptions, the person experiencing the hallucination perceives them as real perceptions, meanwhile they come from inside the body. The hallucinations of a psychedelic traveler should be a stop on the road, not an end in itself.
I
Integrating the psychedelic experience.
A psychedelic experience can be a very transformative experience, after which it is not easy to move on to everyday life. Integrating the experience is a process that begins at the end of a trip with psychedelics. It is a reworking, an understanding of what our mind has experienced. Integration can take place on its own, in reflection, meditation, it can be reworked with a therapist, someone close to you, it can take the form of art therapy and be painted, for example. Writing down your observations in the form of a journal also works very well. Integration can take days, months or even years, is an individual matter for each traveler.
J
James Fadiman
Popularizer of microdosing, icon of the psychedelic world, writer, researcher, co-founder of the Institute of Transpersonal Psychology . Author of the book “Handbook of the Psychedelic Traveler, “ creator of the microdosing protocol. James Fadiman was a lecturer at Harvard and Stanford, and together with Dr. Sophia Korb created the site to collect data on microdosing use by users from around the world.
K
Ketamine
The drug that induces anesthesia – general anesthesia, can relieve pain and cause hallucinations. Ketamine is a dissociative psychedelic; it inhibits signals from the brain to consciousness. Ingestion gives the impression of detachment from the body. It can be used as a treatment for depression, significantly speeding up treatment. A Ketamine Clinic is now available in Poland.
L
LSD
Lysergic acid diethylamide – LSD was first synthesized by Albert Hofmann at the Sandoz pharmaceutical company. It is a potent psychoactive substance that was a common drug used in psychiatry in the 1940s and 1950s, and was getting promising results. Above that, in the 1950s, LSD acid was studied intensively by the CIA. In the 1960s and 1970s, LSD became a popular substance among the hippie movement, resulting in its inclusion on the list of illegal and socially harmful substances. After several decades and new research, LSD is emerging as a promising medicine in psychotherapy and beyond.
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Legalization
The legality of psychedelics varies from country to country. The legality of psilocybin mushrooms is confirmed in the Bahamas and Jamaica. For personal use, they have been decriminalized in the Czech Republic, the Netherlands and Portugal. In Poland, while growkit itself is a substance that does not contain illegal materials, the mushrooms growing from it are already banned. Use, sale and breeding are illegal. And the answer to why they are illegal is to be found in politics, in a nutshell – it started with the Vietnam War and President Nixon’s decision not to deal with the economic and social situation. The current legal status of mushrooms is available here
Ł
Lanceolate baldcypress
Psilocybe semilanceata – lanceolate coot, known by the nickname “cap of freedom”, is a species of psilocybin mushroom. This very potent hallucinogenic mushroom grows in, among other places. in Poland, it can be found in wet meadows and pastures especially in mountainous areas. Read more about this magic mushroom here.
M
Maria Sabina
Maztec healer, shaman of sacred mushrooms. She practiced the so-called Veladas ceremonies, during which she kept vigil with people who needed treatment for their souls with psychedelic mushrooms. Her figure became controversial because Maria Sabina, despite her many contributions to the local community, introduced Westerners to religious traditions and rituals hitherto known to the indigenous people of Mexico. It was at her home that Robert Gordon Wasson (researcher, ethnobotanist) consumed mushrooms, the first person outside this culture to do so, and later described the ceremony in American Life. Maria Sabina mother of magic mushrooms, while cursed by her community, became a pop culture icon, visited by well-known artists and psychedelic researchers in the 1960s, including John Lennon, Jim Morrison, Walt Disney, Bob Dylan, Aldous Huxley, and Albert Hofmann. You can read more about this remarkable figure here.
Microdosing
Microdosing, or microdosing – taking a psychoactive substance at specific intervals, in amounts that do not interfere with perception. It is assumed that the consumption of 0.1-0.3 grams of dried mushrooms is considered microdosing. Selection of the dose is an individual matter, depending on the weight and bioavailability of psilocybin contained in the mushrooms. Microdosing has become popular because users have noticed increased creativity, stimulated intellect, good mood, increased concentration, according to a still small number of studies it can help treat depression, especially drug-resistant depression, PTSD, or drug-induced conditions. Read more about microdosing here.
N
Nightcap- night protocol
A method of microdosing psychedelics that involves taking a psychoactive substance before bed. Nightcap is recommended for people who are particularly sensitive to psilocybin. More on the night’s protocol can be found here.
O
Orange Sunshine
The name of an LSD acid that was produced in Orange County, California in 1969. Orange Sunshine was regarded as the purest synthesized acid. The 3.6 million pills (300 micrograms each) were created by Tim Scully and Nick Sand, LSD advocates who, through the Brotherhood of Eternal Love , distributed the psychedelic around the world believing they would save the world with it. A concert dubbed “West Coast Woodstock” in Laguna Beach, California, will go down in history, where during the festival, frat planes scattered over 25,000 people, postcards with hidden Orange Sunshine. LSD was literally falling from the sky. Although musically the festival was not outstanding, many considered it very successful.
P
Psychedelics
The name literally means “to reveal the soul.” From the Greek “psyche” – soul, “delos” – reveal. Psychoactive substances, that is, substances that affect the central nervous system. Psychedelics vary, the common denominator is that their action is based on changing structures in the brain, they affect nerve cell receptors. The effect of taking psychedelics is to change the perception of reality. They also affect creativity, memory, emotions, fears, traumas. Researches, though still few in number, confirm their therapeutic properties.
Psylocybin
A psychoactive substance that occurs naturally in mushrooms of the genus coot and mushroom, such psilocybin mushrooms, or common hallucinogenic mushrooms. Depending on the species and age of the fungus, the concentration of psilocybin can vary, with young fruiting bodies having the highest concentration. Psylocybin is an alkaloid that has recently been taken more seriously as a treatment for many neurological diseases and as an antidepressant.
Psilocin
Psilocin is an organic substance that is formed in the body as a result of taking psilocybin contained in hallucinogenic mushrooms – it is a product of the metabolism in psilocybin, and is responsible for all the effects of consuming psychedelic mushrooms.
R
Serotonin receptors
Psychedelics act on our brain mainly through serotonin 5-HT2A receptors, psilocybin is an agonist of this receptor, which affects neuroplasticity and improves communication between brain regions. SSRI-type antidepressants also act on serotonin receptors, but other 5-HT1A receptors. For more on serotonin reuptake, see the blog.
S
San Pedro
A species of cactus found in Peru and Ecuador, it contains the psychoactive substance mescaline. San Pedro is one of the oldest occurring psychedelics on earth, having been used in religious ceremonies by Native Americans for 3,000 thousand years. Legend has it that a Spanish priest converting Indians, after tasting the cactus, named it San Pedro (Saint Peter), because like him it holds the keys to paradise.
Set&setting
Preparation for the psychedelic experience is one of the most important issues. Set&setting literally means “mindset” – the attitude and setting – the setting of the place where you are going to take a trip. This is crucial, as our mood is likely to be heightened under the influence of psychedelics, and the place should be comfortable enough for us to feel completely safe. How to prepare well for your trip can be found here, this is a practical guide to good set&setting 🙂
T
Timothy Leary
An eccentric scientist, psychology professor, Harvard lecturer, writer and philosopher, and a legend of the hippie movement. Timothy Leary was the biggest advocate of LSD, and promoted psychedelic substances on a huge scale. After returning from Mexico, where he tried psilocybin mushrooms, he was to say that he “learned more about (his) brain and its capabilities and more about psychology in the five hours after taking these mushrooms than…. in the previous 15 years of studying and doing research.” He sealed his journey with a scientific program called Harvard’s Psylocybin Project. Among other contributions, he conducted a study on prisoners who were given psilocybin – the Concord Prison Experiment, the result was a lower percentage of recidivism. Eventually Timothy Leary was removed from the university due to fraud and insecurity in the research conducted. He has gone down in history as an icon of American counterculture.
U
Hopkins University
The U.S.-based Johns Hopkins University is based in Baltimore and is one of the leading and first research centers on the topic of psychedelics. In 2019, he established the Center for Psychedelics and Consciousness Research. The center is headed by psychopharmacologist Dr. Roland Griffiths. Hopkins University with its research has confirmed that psychedelics have very good results in the treatment of addiction, in psychotherapy, in working with people in a terminal (dying) state they are able to bring mental relief and improve the mood of a terminally ill patient.
W
Wasson
Robert Gordon Wasson – American researcher, banker and ethnomycologist. His passion for mushrooms was infected by his wife, Valentina Pavlovna Guercken. With her, Wasson traveled to a cut-off Mexican village to meet the legendary Maria Sabina and participate in a traditional Indian ritual velada. During the ceremony, Wasson consumed psilocybin mushrooms for the first time as a representative of the Western world, the effects of which he described in Life magazine. It has become a bridge between the sacred mushroom heritage of the Mazatecs and the world of modern civilization. This meeting made history and had many effects, to this day. You can read more about this event in our post about Maria Sabina.
Footnotes:
https://pl.wikipedia.org/wiki/Albert_Hofmann
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Timothy_Leary
https://pl.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dietyloamid_kwasu_lizergowego
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/ALD-52
https://www.inverse.com/article/26849-tim-scully-lsd-orange-sunshine-documentary-documenta
https://pl.wikipedia.org/wiki/Psylocybina
https://pl.wikipedia.org/wiki/Psylocyna
https://pl.wikipedia.org/wiki/Halucynacje
https://akademiaducha.pl/san-pedro-kaktus-z-kluczami-do-raju/
https://www.mp.pl/pacjent/leki/subst.html?id=442
https://pl.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ketamina
https://ruj.uj.edu.pl/xmlui/handle/item/201533
https://hyperreal.info/info/robert-g-wasson-w-poszukiwaniu-magicznych-grzybow-life-13051957
