Natural Medicine Sessions: Microdosing with @alchemage
View this post on Hive: Natural Medicine Sessions: Microdosing with @alchemage
Please find that all our content is now visible on HIVE. We'll see you there!
All the same LOTUS lovin', and the same welcome - but on a far more decentralised, ethical and blossoming blockchain!
Much love!
This is a fascinating topic, and I 💜💜💜 that we’re having this conversation.
I’m curious @alchemage whether you have any experience or biochem knowledge about Hawaiian Baby Woodrose seeds.
I’ve had this at ‘normal’ dose for recreational purposes, and reflecting on my experiences with that have wondered about microdosing with this.
I’m also curious your thoughts on combining microdoses of these with other herbs... in TCM we always combine medicinals to create a formula. So I’m thinking combining psilocybin, HBWR, and dopamine tonic like Mucuna Pruriens (Cowitch or Velvet Bean). I’d love to rap with you about this and talk shop more....
What is it that you want to know about HBWR? From my understanding, the seeds contain d-lysergic acid amide (LSA), an ergoline which can be used as a precursor for the synthesis of LSD and a decently active psychedelic. As for microdosing, I think that might be difficult without having a stable purified extract to be able to appropriately measure a dose. The alkaloid content is so varied that it would be difficult to guess the right measurement, and I have similar qualms with cacti microdosing.
Creating synergistic mixtures is a great idea, IMO. This is the first I’ve heard of the legume you’ve mentioned, but after reading this article, it sounds like you’ve got a nice little concoction going. Though, because of the LSA, it’s something you wouldn’t want to consume daily as you would end up overloading the serotonigenic cell receptors, rendering the medicine useless over time.
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3942911/
I feel like it would be a great combination, the microdose psilocybin with velvet bean. My hubby takes these together a lot, I can ask him how he feels about the combination.
That would be great. Mucuna is such a potent Ayurvedic Medicine, I used to use it when I was a practicing herbalist, it’s one of the ones I’m surprised never got imported into the TCM materia medica, given so many were imported into China in the early days.
Posted using Partiko iOS
Awesome and informative interview, great job @treeoflife and @alchemage. I have eaten magic mushrooms a number of times with many different results. The most enjoyable times have been on a very low dose which resulted in great bouts of laughter, these were very heart opening occassions.
I have a friend who is deep into the growing and experiential study of psilocybin. She recently shared a theory with me - that the fungus was literally opening up connections in the brain. Created a 'hyper-connected' state. Symbolically we could correlate this function to how the mycelium gives a deeper connection layer to tree roots. That is in essence what this spirit does, it makes sense to the shaman aspect in me!
Psilocyben specifically (other compounds haven't been studied in this manner as far as I'm aware) has the effect of increasing neuron density, so her hypothesis is correct! The mycellium network that connects living beings is extremely fascinating. I had a friend run some experiments with mycorhizzal fungi in bio class that were pretty amazing in how the fungi were able to connect several plants as "one."
Wow that is quite amazing that it's backed up by science. To have 'empirical evidence' is very important for most people in gaining trust of something. Personally I have kind of stopped looking for evidence for things that I know experientially or intuitively to be true, yet I would say that this attitude is not common. Ideally I guess science will start to move into consciousness and metaphysics, to find proofs for what experientially can be known. Probably is happening already.
I have heard some strange and beautiful things about fungi working for the ecosystem. Pulling dead fish down into the ground and placing it into the roots of a tree. Recently I listened to a podcast explaining how the trees literally share nutrients amongst each other - and the mycelium network makes this happen. Trees and fungi seem to be forest farmers 🍄🌿
Really it blows my mind to think about it. How these organisms naturally and spontaneously create self sustaining and self correcting systems. They only need time, and they naturally balance, grow, and diversify. In harmony with the natural forces of life, fungi and plants are on another order of existence!
It's interesting you say that @phillyc, mushrooms are known to be purifying in general, all types of mushrooms, their inherent nature is one of purification. Thanks for sharing this connection! Wonderful insight there. As you know already, other examples of purifying practices are yoga, meditation, qigong. 🙏 Also quantum healing, and the relationships we perceive and cultivate through shamanic practice.
Mycelium is it's own neural network, and there's a huge amount of information that points toward mycelium literally being the neural network of the whole planet. 😊
It would certainly make sense if mycelium was the planets 'brain', I have contemplated this at times. Metaphysically we can say that both plants and fungi live in accordance with the law of least resistance. Their inherent way of being forms these awesome systems. What this means is that they will naturally take on the form and function which life is inclined to organise its self into naturally. Life evolves into intelligence and higher consciousness, it is harmonious to pursue this and it is out of harmony to stagnate or degrade back into previous forms of consciousness. That's seeing our place in the scheme of things.
🍄🍄🍄
In the case of planet Earth this is some kind of micro or macro cosm of the neural network. Life always has this tendency to build in complexity and diversity, ultimately creating a highly dense network of connectivity and symbiosis. We could say that us two leggeds have embodied this in our brains but are still figuring out how to implement it on the macro scale. The conundrum of free will I guess, each has to make their own choice to be a part of the wider network - yet somehow still honor their individuality.
👹👼👽
Then we look at nature, or maybe eat a few mushrooms. And the whole thing seems to make sense, or perhaps we just laugh at ourselves and burst the bubble of our own seriousness 😏😏😏
@phillyc please join us next week for the radio show if you can. We would love your insights.
Posted using Partiko Android
I will try to make it 😉 there's an intention Healing group I work with on Sunday's that I'm fairly committed to ❤
Posted using Partiko Android
That sounds almost as important 😉😘
Posted using Partiko Android
Great information here. I think it's great that you are using microdosing alongside therapy and mindfulness techniques. I've used tapping along with psychedelics very effectively, both full doses and microdoses. The integration of whatever is happening into your life is probably the most important element and having processes that you can use to support this is essential.
Ooh I think we have the next topic for the Natural Selection chat show maybe..... a conversation on entheogens and medicine .....
Posted using Partiko iOS
Thanks ! I’m really interested in how you’ve used tapping integration with psychedelics. Definitely would be a great follow up interview!
Great - I'm up for it!
Since I missed out on chatting microdosing with you this time @eftnow, I'd love to catch you for a piece on integrating mindfulness, tapping, and other skills in conjuction with psychedelic use. I 💯 agree, when microdosing we are afforded an opportunity to really get some new habits integrated into our lives. It's a chat I'd love to be involved in :-)
I'd love to do this. I've done a couple of articles on this on Steemit a while back. Definitely up for doing an interview on psychedelic integration.
Terrific! Looking forward to it 😊
I'm super interested in this due to the anxiety I suffer. However, last time I macrodosed shrooms, I got uber anxious and ended up stroking my friends possum skin all morning and trying not to have a heart attack, breathing mindfully so as not to lose my shit (I was no stranger to them either, and it wasn't so much the experience itself that was anxious inducing, but the chemical reactions going on). I wonder if that's just different reactions as you say or whether it's the dosage that is pertinent (I suspect the latter).
You were absolutely not babbling - this was so interesting and informative @alchemage and I really enjoyed it. I have read a bit about this and am glad to hear first hand that it is has had a good effect on you so far. All my blessings - ruminating is tough work and exhausting, so I'm glad this has given you some respite. xx
Oh no, that sounds like a really tough experience! Dosage very much has a lot to do with anxiety, but our mental states have a much stronger affect on such with the psychedelic in hand. If we have unresolved issues underlying in our psyche, psychedelics will put them in the forefront to be dealt with. This is the key to psychedelic trauma therapy. A psychedelic will force you to relive your traumas until you are able to reprocess them in a healthy manner. IMO, this is why so many people get anxiety and paranoia from cannabis. There is so much fear bred into our society, from terrorism to being stuck in a paycheck to paycheck cycle and more, that it unconsciously trickles out in the presence of a psychedelic. Most of the time, we are unaware of the unresolved issue and so that anxiety becomes overwhelming in the worst way. This is not to say that these drugs don’t cause anxiety in general, but rather that this generalized anxiety becomes much worse with underlying issues at hand. This is also why I do not believe in “bad trips.” I call them tough experiences, and that is because you are being faced with a side of yourself you’d rather not deal with. Often, we run from it and try to fix it rather than dive headfirst into the abyss and resolve the malfunction in our psyches. Neither way is wrong, but one way leads to release and contentment, while the other leads to attachment and comfort.
I am glad you enjoyed the interview, I had a great time conversing with @thetreeoflife! Thank you for the kind words. I hope you can find a way to get control of your own anxiety. <3
I had always had enlightening and beautiful experiences in the past and never had any bad ju ju. Clearly I'm trying to sort something out.. it's a process. So glad there are people to learn from here! I'm definitely a head first girl. I'd rather grapple than hide. X
Posted using Partiko Android
Psychedelics are very obscure in that manner. I used them for years in copious amounts and never experienced anxiety or paranoia, but then one day it all changed and I became extremely sensitive to these compounds and how they affected my chemistry. I'm a headfirst individual myself. Its difficult, but so much more rewarding, imo.
So funny story I was pulling this post up to share the link with a friend and it opened to a comment field I never filled out, in response to your comment, so I read it again and I saw your comment about stroking the possum and literally almost died. Hahaha and suddenly I remembered that I was in the middle of the last time I almost died from your possum comment (and apparently thought it was so funny that I forgot to finish my comment) and now here we are. Lol
That's my story for the night. Lol
You make me laugh so much. I love you!!!
Posted using Partiko Android
The last thought I remember before falling asleep yesterday was that I need to start microdosing mushrooms to easily form new habits and become more productive.
Thanks for the knowledge from the interview!
I heard that evolutionary speaking we as humans would have been eating (microdosing) shrooms and getting our good source of b12 quite regularly and naturally historically so I'm all for it all though I don't regularly microdose myself, I'd advocate taking them from time to time!
The Stoned Ape theory put forth by Terrence McKenna certainly suggests that a macrodose in developing primates was what set us apart evolutionarily with consciousness.
Excellent read (well I read half and than I listened to the rest of it in TTS!)...
Thank you @alchemage for all this info from your experience and thank you @treeoflife for some excellent questions.
My wife and I were just given a vile of mushroom extract just last month and we haven't touched it yet!!! I personally am a little scared, I mean I like mushrooms for fun, well I used to and I also used to LOVE LSD but now I'm scared of it.
Mushrooms I can deal with in very small quantities, I guess by taking just a tiny bit at a time to feel just a little euphoric and awake for a party or something.... but no more. With acid I could never feel like I had control of the dose so I don't touch it anymore it makes me feel paranoid. But Micro-dosing is a completely new thing to me since hearing about it only about a year ago.
I'll have to go back through the interview to see the dosage you recommended and research more on-line too, especially growing my own!
Thanks again for a super interesting interview you guys!
Thank you selecting me to be interviewed and taking the time to put this together in an easy to digest manner. It is my pleasure to be a part of this initiative. Keep up the great work!
You are welcome!!!! Xxx
Posted using Partiko Android
another fantastic interview and @alchemage has such a wealth of knowledge, I really enjoy watching his vlogs. You guys should maybe do video interviews xxx
@trucklife-family time in tomorrow 10 am AU time on NM!!
Posted using Partiko Android
This is all new for me but thanks a lot for the info. Perhaps in the future, anyone can talk about ayahuasca?
Perhaps @metametheus @alchemage @thetreeoflife this should be one of the topics we throw in the ring for the next radio show?
Posted using Partiko Android
It would be a good one to discuss. I have never done ayahausca, so I cannot really speak on it much outside of the pharmacological aspects. Even that, each tribe is so varied in their constituents its a vast generalization. The only things that I can definitively speak upon in ayahausca is the vine and the leaf. I would certainly love to see what someone with more in-depth understanding than I has to share on this topic though!
Perhaps the pharmacological aspect would be a cool topic in combination with it? @riverflows
oh let me find someone if she wants?that would be cool.