Tag Archive for: Psychedelics

value systems society psychedelics

How are the value systems of our world affecting the trajectory of the psychedelic movement?

What societal forces are shaping its course?

How will this in turn affect our culture and society’s evolution?

These questions were brought to my mind recently as I finished listening to the audiobook version of The Nature Of Drugs.

nature of drugs shulgin book

The Nature of Drugs is a series of lectures from a class that legendary folk chemist cum psychedelic lore legend Alexander ‘Sasha’ Shulgin gave. It has been lovingly transcribed and put together by those wonderful folk at Synergetic Press. Through the series of lectures, Sasha details a lot of biological knowledge whilst touching upon politics and culture, and mixing in some funny and insightful personal anecdotes.

It was one of those personal anecdotes, in one of the last chapters, that got me thinking about this topic of cultural values and reward systems in regard to psychedelic work.

Sasha and his wife Ann contributed massively to the psychedelic world. They were true pioneers. Sasha was known as the ‘godfather of MDMA’, and he discovered over 200 psychedelic compounds, including 2-CB. Sasha even created his own scale for measuring the effect of a drug: the Shulgin scale.

Something that I found to be thought-provoking is that Sasha, one of the greatest figures and contributors to the modern psychedelic movement, was only able to do the depth of work that he did because he developed a drug for industrial purposes.

How Sasha Gained Freedom

Shulgin acquired the freedom to do his independent research because of a prediction he made that helped chemical corporation DOW to develop a hugely profitable insecticide. In other words, he was able to help a commercial company make tons of money out of drugs. Because of that, DOW rewarded him with free reign and the resources to do his own research. 

alexander sasha shulgin

‘Sasha’ Shulgin – Courtesy of Wikimedia Commons

With that freedom, he was able to do the work that he really wanted to do and was passionate about: drugs of the mind. He cooked them up in his shed/lab in his back garden and tested them on himself. He was able to do his research fully legally and had a license under state law for everything he was doing. 

I think this mixing of a commercial interest with psychonautical passion illustrates something about how entangled everything we do is with commercial prospects. With big money, commercial interests, and pharma-like corporations already having entered and influenced the space, I think this is a worthy consideration. This topic was explored brilliantly in the online comic We Will Call It Pala.

What If?

What if Sasha Shulgin had never developed that insecticide? How much contribution from him would we have actually seen? Where would the psychedelic space be without his and his wife Ann’s contributions? 

To tie it into our current reality, how many potential amazing underground researchers, activists, artists, and creators are out there, who might be deprived of contributing their gifts to the world because of financial interests? Because they’re not able to make fat stacks for a big company?

How many choose paths that aren’t to their heart’s calling, because of how our society rewards and incentivizes financial profits? Or status via money? What ripples are we missing out on? What revolutionary and groundbreaking work for humanity is going unrewarded and unrealized? 

Maybe it’s the case that brilliant minds find a way to bless the world in their own ways regardless of circumstances. Perhaps if it wasn’t through an insecticide development for DOW, Shulgin would’ve discovered another way to do his work. Maybe there is some truth to that.

But what about all of us with less-than-genius philosopher-chemist minds? And what about all the big hearts? How might the world look different if we found a way to encourage and foster the ability for all of us to do work that lights up our souls?

There are a lot of questions here. And this isn’t something I pretend to have the answers on. But when we consider the type of world that we want to create, they are topics I think we should all be thinking and talking about.

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conscious psychedelic explorer program course testimonial review

The second cohort of my 6-week course, The Conscious Psychedelic Explorer finished a couple of weeks ago at the end of November.

As I’ve wrapped up, I’ve been talking with some of the members inside to learn about their experiences. The post today is a transcription of one of those conversations.

I wanted to share this to give people an idea of what it’s like inside and for those of you who might be on the fence about joining and would like to know more.

This conversation is between myself (J), and Mark (M) – an alias- and has been edited with permission for clarity:

J:

So where I’d like to begin is to ask, where were you before the course versus where you are now?

M:

So I’ve probably taken the psychedelics for, we’re probably coming up on two and a half years. I’ve probably taken 15 to 18 doses of psilocybin and three doses of MDMA. All of which, the protocol and the means by which I took them was formed out of just research that I did on the internet. And while I had what I thought was a fairly good protocol, as you can imagine it was evolving over all that time.

I find now that when I look at the overall protocol after the course, I can see it’s gonna be much more structured. Considering a lot of the things that you brought up throughout the course, I look at them and say, oh, that makes sense.

Like, setting aside a specific day. I mean, those thoughts come up, but when you hear somebody else say things, it makes it a little bit more solid to you. So going into my next experience, it’s gonna be much more structured.

I think because of that, it’s going to be better because I’m a structured kind of person, it gives me a sense of comfort. I don’t know why I didn’t tie to it before, but having you lay things out from one end to the other, has allowed me to see a more complete view of it. So that’s kind of where I stand.

J:

Right. Yeah, it’s great to hear that as a structured person, you’ll bring some of that more to your psychedelic work.
What has been your biggest win or your biggest result or benefit from taking the course?

M:

I’m gonna say twofold. So one of the big wins for me is the structure and the way you laid out the modules and stepped through everything and gave me that view.

Next, I think as I look at the journaling exercises and look at the exercises that we’ve done, I have more confidence in planning my next experience.  I think having that confidence, having that control, and going into the next experience is huge.

Finally, I would say the community. The group calls and the breakout rooms, I found much more value in that than I anticipated, especially the breakout rooms. I usually don’t like that. When you first said you’re gonna do the breakout rooms? I was shaking my head saying, “no, why are we going down this path?” <laughs>

But I found them, literally, every one of them was fruitful, in one way, shape or form. So that was huge for me. Being able to talk openly within the community calls was so incredible. I don’t have anybody I can talk to about it, nobody around me, or in my sphere, is active in psychedelics. I mean, we’re talking about something that’s illegal here, so it’s not like you can have this open conversation about it. It was huge for me to be able to just talk about it openly and freely and hear other people’s experiences.

Viewing my work with psychedelics through the lens of your course materials has forced me to take a broader, more holistic look at how I approach the whole experience. Instead of shallow planning really focused on just the day of dosing I now look at it from end to end.
First for me was setting a date on the calendar, making it an official or special event to work toward. Now that I have my sights on this special event how can I prepare in the days leading up to it to ensure success? The groundwork outlined in the course materials has helped me to create a much more engaged and thorough approach to the event day.
Sticking with the holistic approach of your course I have also, for the first time, created a structured plan on how to address the hours and days following the event. Instead of a loose idea of what Integration will look like, I have a plan and scheduled activities for my aftercare and integration.
Reflecting on the two major areas I have described above; each is built upon multiple concepts from within the course materials.
What is my biggest takeaway or lesson? That cannot really be named. All components build upon and complement each other, all have value and importance.

J:

Amazing to hear so much has sunk in for you. What was your favorite part of the course?

M:

The way you packaged and presented it. I’ve looked at some other courses before and I mean, we’ve obviously all been to courses, we’ve been to classes and learned things. To me, you provide the wisdom of experience in your knowledge that lies beyond just teaching. Beyond that it’s not delivered in an antiseptic way, or the way I would traditionally see a course. It was more like having a discussion with a wise friend that understands what you’re talking about.

You deliver and lead the course more from a caring perspective. I mean, the way you present your materials, lead the calls and facilitate the conversations, it was all delivered and created, not in a “yeah, I’m just going put this class together so you can learn the material and get through it” way.

There was caring and that’s the best way to describe it. There was care in the content that you created and the way you facilitated it. So that was super good for me. I didn’t feel like I was just in a class to just learn the material and go away, you know what I mean? Even the material done at home away from the calls, seemed to be done in a very caring way. That was huge for me too.

J:

Very much appreciate that. What would you say to somebody who’s on the fence about purchasing or joining the course?

M:

I would say do it!
Again, I’m going to go back to the way the overall course is presented, because it is presented in what is such a caring way, conscientious if you will. A way that is backed by what is obviously a passion for what you’re teaching.
If you’re interested in it, then you’ve got some questions or you’ve got some learning to do, to be honest, don’t we all have something we can learn from one another?
The volume and the accuracy of the content were rock solid too. It wasn’t this happy little kumbaya moment where we all just sit around and feel fuzzy and warm, but don’t learn anything. You were able to combine the kumbaya moment where it’s fuzzy and warm and everybody feels happy, but you were also able to present a lot of knowledge, and a lot of solid takeaways that will make you think and make you look at how you do things.
Even with all my research and limited experience, I was presented with completely new concepts that I was missing in the past. There is a lot of content here and I believe it contains something for everyone interested in psychedelics.

J:

Thank you for your kind words M. I’m really glad you joined. I’ve enjoyed your presence and the curiosity and sharing that you brought to the group.

The Conscious Psychedelic Explorer opens for registration again on the 10th of January 2023. Join the waitlist to get first access.

the conscious psychedelic explorer review

A couple of weeks ago, we finished the second run of my six-week cohort-based course, The Conscious Psychedelic Explorer.

Overall, beautiful. Helping others to work with psychedelics for learning and growing is something I find truly meaningful.

We had an amazing group come together with 10 members joining for this round. Now the dust has settled, I thought I’d share a few thoughts on this group, and my plans for the next cohort in January.

Diverse Group

We had a diverse group, which I always enjoy. We had members in France, Germany, Canada, Mexico, the US, and the UK. Love the international vibe. To my surprise, even two members of the group had no experience with any of the classic psychedelics, only plans and a desire for extra support and education before the first liftoff. A couple more were also new on the path of conscious use. 

Originally I built this course for intermediate explorers, but I did adapt it a little this time around and make it more beginner friendly, making sure to cover all the basics. The upshot of this is that there is something for everyone and a more mixed group, some who’ve lots of experience alongside newcomers.

The newcomers keep it fresh, help to remind us all of the fundamentals and key principles, and connect us to the beginner’s mind. The experienced members offer their experience, knowledge, and resources. That is something that I love about the mix. 

Community is a bit of a trite word these days but the wisdom and energy of a group really do contribute more than the individuals inside. Although I am facilitating the process and organizing, I do see that the group takes on a life of its own, becoming something of its own entity.

Camaraderie And Connection

What I also love is that the community sparks connections. I loved seeing friendships bloom. It has been great to hear that other members have been chatting with each other, or even better, planning ceremonies. 🙂 It’s cool to get updates from people before and after their experiences and to see the support from other members. 

On our final call, we had the chance to get a bit sentimental and misty, and many members remarked how the depth of connection with others was a surprise. One mentioned how they joined the course hoping to gain a technical understanding of how to organize psychedelic sessions, but received personal insights by way of the group. We had space for sincerity and openness to challenges and doubts, and also for fun and laughs.

Offshoots

We had a couple of offshoots from this group. One was a Psychedelic Film Club. We made a separate Signal group and shared film recommendations, and had some discussions there. A few members went deep on this, having their own “psychedelic film festival” and plowing through a bunch of films and doing their own deep dive. Very cool. I joined in for a couple, a screening of Aware: Glimpses Of Consciousness, which we watched at the same time, and joining a pre-and post-screening zoom call for a chat with other members. The other was watching a new personal fave Descending the Mountain. It has been a movie I’ve been wanting to see for years, so it was great to have a free and legit viewing sourced by one of our members and the group energy impetus to set aside the time even in a busy period.

As another side quest, I invited all members to join me in a daily awareness/mindful practice for 30 days on week 2. This coincided with week 2’s lesson on awareness, one of the lessons in the first module on foundations for working with psychedelics.

When the 30 days were up, one of the members suggested we keep it going for another 30 days, so we’re currently continuing with that, with a post and update in the Signal group each day. I like sharing and supporting others in meditation practice, so this is something I’ll definitely invite from future cohorts.

Embers

Ultimately I’d like to build something that outlasts me, that stands on its own, something that would just continue if I disappeared. And whilst this small community isn’t there yet, I see the embers of something great. So I’ve decided to reopen the course for another 10 members in January.

I like this group size, its small enough to keep intimate and give all members a chance to get to know each other, but large enough to have some group energy and diversity.

Registration will be open for one week from the 10th – 17th January. The course will begin with the first live call on the 19th.

If you’re interested, I encourage you to join the waitlist here for early access.

What’s Inside CPE in 2023

Beyond the 6 weeks, I will be offering a whole bunch of extras throughout 2023 for all new course members.

We will have monthly community calls for all course alumni, and I’m quite excited to see members new and old mixing.

I’ll also be offering quarterly workshops. The first, Music, Playlists, and the Art of Listening in Psychedelic Sessions, is already on the calendar for February 5th. These workshops will be included for CPE members, but I will also open them to others who’d like to join in the fun.

We will also have a bunch of guest classes, experiences, and calls.

This includes a neuroscience class from Manesh Girn, a live deep listening session with Wavepaths & founder Mendel Kaelen, a look into psychedelic facilitated nature connection with Dr Sam Gandy, a research overview and Q&A with Floris from Blossom, and a few others to be confirmed. These classes themselves could be a course and I’m excited to learn from these experts alongside the community.

If you want 2023 to be the year where you go pro in your knowledge and practice with psychedelics, this is an amazing opportunity. It’s a course with basically an added one-year membership to a club with expert classes, community calls, and quarterly workshops.

What’s On For You in 2023?

To close on a year’s end theme, I’d like to invite you to consider, what are your goals for 2023? What are your hopes, dreams, and aspirations? What would, if accomplished or experienced by year’s end, would make the year a meaningful one for you?

If it’s anything to do with psychedelics, come join us in the CPE!

 

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mind meld podcast psychedelics john robertson conscious explorer

I had a great conversation with Josh Gonzalvez from Mind Meld back in June and it’s been released today!

On the podcast, we talk about the four stages of preparing for and integrating meaningful psychedelic experiences.

I really enjoyed this conversation with Josh, he has such great, friendly vibes and a warm, enthusiastic curiosity that’s infectious and fun. It was a real pleasure, and probably the favorite podcast episode I’ve recorded to date.

If you’re at all interested in my course The Conscious Psychedelic Explorer, and the four part framework I use for it, then this is the episode to listen to today!

I hope you enjoy it as much as I did.

You can watch it on youtube or catch it on your usual podcast app. Find the links here or click on the image below ⬇️

mind meld podcast psychedelics john robertson conscious explorer

On a side note, we recorded the podcast before I renamed the course, just to clarify.

My course, The Conscious Psychedelic Explorer, opens again for registration next Wednesday.

If you’re interested and would like to take your psychedelic practice to the next level, to develop your understanding and ability to effectively use psychedelics for insight, healing, and growth, then sign up for the waitlist here.

psychedelic service sheet altar ritual

Taking a high dose of a psychedelic still scares me. This is true even after having embarked upon many high dose sessions. One thing that I’ve found helps me to find a sense of calm is having some kind of structure to the session.

Sometimes for my trips I will have a very minimal structure. Usually, with low or medium doses, I’d be more on the recreational tip; more loose and informal. On the other hand, for higher dose formal sessions, what I might call ceremonies, I tend towards a more formal and structured approach. For these more ritualistic high-dose experiences, I create a service sheet.

Psychedelic Service Sheet

Much like you might find at a ceremony such as a wedding, funeral or other church service, a psychedelic service sheet contains the order of proceedings. It may also include the words of any prayers, songs or readings that are part of the service.

I usually only create a service sheet for inner journeys. As I’ll be lying down with my eyes closed for these sessions, my service sheet is mostly just an order for opening and closing the session.

I really like having a service sheet because it makes the occasion feel special. It is also very practical. It gives me a clear step-by-step run through. Having this clear to do list, or, order of service, helps me to go through specific steps in order to bring about a sense of ease, order, and structure. This helps to create something of a container for the experience. When I’m a little anxious or fidgety before a high dose session, having this clear and simple run through helps me to follow steps one by one and sets me up nicely for my session. It’s similar to some athletes or musicians’ pre-show rituals. 

Contents of a Service Sheet

My service sheet will typically contain the steps for my opening and closing rituals, and the prayer that I read aloud as part of my opening. There is also space for me to write my intention, as well as other key details like the location, style of the session, the people present, and the date. It may include some navigation reminders or guidelines, and/or a couple of lines to help me connect to my inner resources. It also has a section for me to fill in the dosage, substance, and start time. 

Helps Create the Desired Set

On my service sheet I include things which help to move me into a desired state: feeling safe, relaxed, humble, and open. Here is a quick summary of items that I include and what they help connect me to.

Resources: safety, strength
Meditation: calm, open
Prayer: humble, open
Gratitude: heart opening

They are all, in some form or another, centering practices.

How & What I Use for my Service Sheets

Sometimes I have the sheet printed off on a sheet of A4 paper. More often I will use the double page of a notepad, which I lie open on a flat surface in a designated place. Depending on the setup and space, it may be part of or next to an altar. The pad then remains open there for the duration of the session, and is only put away once the ceremony has been closed.

psychedelic service sheet altar ritual

I typically like to include a sound, such as ringing a bell or making an OM, to both open and close. I also like to light and then blow out a candle as bookends, with the flame symbolizing the journey. When I blow it out at the end I can make a wish and do a little candle magic. This is, by the way, for you cynics, performed every day across the country when children blow out little flames on their birthday cakes.

My Influences

I think the ayahuasca ceremonies I attended in the Amazon were a large influence on me adopting service sheets into my practice. They were easily the most formalized ceremonies that I’d attended. They had a very clear structure to them, with distinct stages, or rounds, of the service. They also included many preselected readings and prayers. I really appreciated that approach and how special it felt. It also added to a sense of containment and made the whole thing feel more safe. I also think the Japanese tea ceremony has influenced my adoption of service sheets, as well as using to-do lists and practicing productivity concepts like ‘masterpiece days‘ and deep work.

Record of Doses and Journeys

Service sheets also work as a handy record. They can be used to look back on previous trips. For practical considerations, having things like doses noted can be helpful for calibrating and titrating your dosage over time. So if you think like ‘oh yeah, that time we tripped at Lisa’s place, that was a good level, how much did we take?’. You’ve got it there in your written records.

It’s a large part of ritualizing use which has many benefits of its own, and is also kind of like Taking Drugs Like a Nerd.

Making Your Own Service Sheet

If this idea interests you, I would recommend trying to create your own service sheet. If you find it’s not for you, you can go ditch it and go back to your usual approach. Here I will include a few examples of orders that might be included. You can consider them a starting point and take this idea wherever you like. Your service sheet might look totally different to mine.

Examples

Example 1: Group Inner Journeys Style

Once everyone is ready:

  • Opening Circle (A stick goes round the circle, and everyone shares how they feel)
  • 3 minutes silent meditation
  • Pass doses round in circle and bless them
  • Music begins (Inwards, by Tommi)
  • Take doses
  • Journey
  • Playlist Ends
  • Closing circle

Example 2: Group Dynamic Session

Opening

  • Ring Bell
  • Opening Circle
  • Eye gazing in pairs
  • Take Dose

Session (modeled on Osho Dynamic Meditation)

Playlist begins

  • Section 1: Loosening
    Shaking
  • Section 2: Activation
    Free flowing movement & dance
  • Section 3: Calm
    Standing or seated meditation
  • Section 4: Stillness
    Seated or lying meditation

Playlist Ends

(When participants feel ready to re-engage, they may move to the reintegration room)

Closing

  • Closing Circle
  • Give Thanks
  • Ring Bell

Example 3: MVO (Minimum Viable Order of Service)

  • Cheers
  • Take dose

[Session]

  • Closing joint

Would you ever use a service sheet? Is it too formal for you? Would you prefer a more relaxed approach? For high-dose sessions where things can get a little more out of control, I find a service sheet helps to make myself feel more grounded and ready to embark upon a journey. I believe it might help you, too.

Safe travels and best wishes.