New & Old
Isn’t that wonderful? I just love de la Simone.
This is my 2nd week of microdosing. For a crazy person it’s more art than science. The overall effect is good. There are however some seriously wobbly moments. Exploring things that are generally kept locked away has its downsides. But probably its upsides. We’ll see.
I found an interesting picture of before The Time Before. To be precise, just 90 years before I was born. An insight into the ways of the world- and how people (and societies) become what they become.
My Mazamet 
I don’t understand, sorry. What did the people in the picture become? OR what did society become? You are always on the cutting edge of things. I had no idea of microdosing. I had to look it up. I was that out of the loop of current cultural activities. Hugs
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The people in the picture lay out a racial dynamic that’s in many ways still in place today.
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Oh, thanks. Be well. Hugs
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The woman looks Black, though – don’t you think? Such an interesting photo. I’ve looked at it for quite some time now.
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To the anglo-saxon world, yes. Probably to do with the “One Drop Rule”. But the (Ibero)colonial caste system was much more complex. It didn’t prohibit mixing, although it did roughly rate people from the ideal (European born *in* Europe) to dark skinned born in Africa. Have a look at this:
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Ooookay, and what is microdosing?
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http://www.newstatesman.com/culture/books/2017/02/could-microdoses-lsd-be-used-help-depression
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Ooooh, how cool! Personally, I’m all for macro-doses, but are you seriously getting this prescribed? I tried once recording everything (those brilliant thoughts) of a trip… Lost in translation is the only way I can define the end product.
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On the principle of a little is good so a lot is better, I macro-dosed yesterday. That resulted in a seriously strange few hours. I’m using psilocybin mushrooms, and thus far the microdose days have gone really well. I can stop (my usual) negative/destructive thought loops.
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Macro-Saturday. No harm in that.
You picking the rooms locally? Great thing about studying in Canberra, the hills around were chockers with blue veins ready for the picking 🙂 I’d imagine you’re in a great place to experiment with this; big enclosed garden, lots of safe space to follow that rabbit.
Question is, though, how do you figure out what is a “micro”? And is it focussing your thoughts? This is something I’d certainly try.
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I bought my first “lot”, and after a week I started learning about growing… What constitutes micro for psilocybin depends on the mushroom- but we’re talking quantities small enough so that you don’t get any of the “out of it” effects. For example with the Psilocybe Mexicana a strong dose is 15 grams. A light dose is 6 grams, and a microdose is from 1 to 2 grams. On the microdose I felt excellent. Not anxious, not edgy, and my mind was incredibly clear. The 4 grams I took yesterday was definitely too much for a normal work day. It’ll be a trial and error process just like with medication, but my first impression is very good. I’ve never had anything work so well and so quickly.
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Don’t apologise. I don’t understand either.
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👍😊😂🤗 Hugs
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I’m glad yourts was the first comment I read… I’ve just gotten home from a wedding and am a little drunk, and reading that made me thinki perhaps I was a tad more pissy than first thought 😉
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Sorry, Pinky. I don’t know what micro dosing is either. The pictures are amazing though, especially the ‘wall chart’. I married an Anglo Indian and heard stories about how the ‘pure’ English wouldn’t accept them…and neither would the ‘pure’ Indians. So they were stuck in a small middle ground where status often depended on how well one could ‘pass’. If aliens ever came to earth, they would not understand us at all. Millions of lives lost because of a few drops of melatonin more or less. So stupid.
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Here’s a good article on microdosing: https://www.theguardian.com/global/2017/jan/08/how-dropping-acid-saved-my-life-ayelet-waldman-books-depression
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Aaaah. I see. Is it having a therapeutic effect on you? I’ve noticed you’ve been quieter than usual?
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Yes! My mind is quieter in general- which is quite unheard of.
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That’s definitely progress. Calm[er] is always good. 🙂
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Like the music, I’ll have to listen to some more tracks. That’s very interesting about micro-dosing. I’ve always been cautious of drugs – our relationship to reality is precarious enough, but it’s got to be better than anti-depressants. I like that comment at the end of the article you link to noting the absurdity of so many people being on prescription drugs and natural drugs being illegal.
Not to be nosy but have you tried serious exercise? Endorphins are surely the best chemicals to sort out heads. And walking in woods – we can be so isolated from nature.
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I’ve tried every-possible-thing. Medication, no medication, exercise, lifestyle changes, (years of) therapy…
I can mostly manage and function reasonably well in the world. But there’s a really dark voice in my head that never goes away. Sometimes it’s so loud it’s crippling. I freeze. The microdosing experiment has turned down the volume of the voice. Fingers crossed! 🙂
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Well clearly that’s the bad debil debil and you need the Christian god, not drugs, to help you with that! Or it’s just that humans have evolved to spend our whole short lives in a panic about survival, and the introspective side effect of more comfortable times doesn’t suit most of us. I’d prescribe a lot of time in woods and by the sea, just guddling. Whatever you do, don’t move any further north (or too far south) and deprive yourself of any sunlight. You better in the summer? I used a light box for the first time this winter and it seemed to activate parts of my brain that usually sleep in the absence of light.
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What’s a light box and where does one get one? How do you use it?
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Simulated sun light for seasonal affective disorder. Here’s a bit from the SAD UK site:
“Historically we only ever worked outdoors; two hundred years ago 75% of the population worked outdoors now less than 10% of the population work in natural outdoor light. Whilst this is fine in the Summer months when there are longer daylight hours, in the Winter months, people tend to go to work in the dark and go home in the dark and don’t get to enough natural daylight.”
http://www.sad.org.uk/
Have you heard of them before or is not such a big thing in France? Obviously in Scotland we are completely starved of light for four to six months of the year.
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God that’s so good to hear Mr P. People try so many paths hoping something will help when their/our minds encounter our own personal darkness repeatedly, too much, too often – to no avail. May the volume continue to descend dear!
– esme kissing him on the cheek and raising a glass with him upon the Cloud
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You’re right about up North Violet, and the winter months, specifically January and February, are the worst for dealing with depression. I’ve tried a light box myself, but it didn’t make any noticable difference, that said, I know it works for some – as you say – so always worth telling folks about. Cycling is esme’s personal balm.
– esme cycling out of the darkness upon the Cloud
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I don’t quite get how a light box works. Do you sit in front of it? For how long? Isn’t that annoying?
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Annoying. Hahahahaha. More dull, though the idea is that you have it on when you are in rooms doing whatever you would have done previously – just with that light, rather than a normal one or the grey light of winter through the windows. I know some people who sit right in front of them and read for a span and it seems to help them. I did actually find it a bit distracting in an annoying sense, so yes come to think of it you’re right.
– esme lighting up the room upon the Cloud
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Hello. What helped lift my mood and kept me from sinking into a dark pit was redoing the room I spend my time in. For example my office had a dark floor, dark walls and one window. ( I gave up my good office for James to have a better bedroom ) so Ron put down a new light floor, redid the walls in a very light paneling, and put lights around everywhere. He put LED lights under shelves, he put lamps on flat places, he mounted a sconce light on the wall. He plans to add a ceiling light for me on a dimmer. SO light and going with lighter colors helped me a lot. Hugs
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Oh yes, colour makes a big difference on a day to day basis, also lots of mirrors will reflect the light that’s there and make a room brighter. I’m glad that helped Scottie *beams*
– esme hugging Scottie back upon the Cloud
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I discovered two things: a new artist (had never heard of Albin de la Simone but to my delight he’s on Spotify – and I really like what I’m hearing); and microdosing. What a fascinating concept! Sounds like there could be huge therapeutic potential there. If so little research has been done, though, how on earth do you determine the ‘micro’ dose? And is it safe even at small amounts over the long term? Whatever works, in my view, as long as it’s safe. Hope it keeps the dark voice down.
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Let’s say lots of *unofficial* research has been done! 😀 I’m kidding, there’s excellent real, peer reviewed work that demonstrates Psilocybin “does not cause dependency” and more importantly “compared to a selection of 19 recreational drugs, including alcohol, cannabis, cocaine, ecstasy, heroin, and tobacco. Psilocybin mushrooms were ranked as the illicit drug with the lowest harm, corroborating conclusions reached earlier by expert groups in the United Kingdom.”
If it’s safer than alcohol and even more so in micro-doses, I think it’s definitely worth exploring 😉
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hmmm, now I have to figure out where I can get the psilocybin. Alas, I am starting to suffer the symptoms of alcohol withdrawal and have the miserableness of having the anxiety boomerang back on me. Ativan works but I’d love to find something else.
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email me… I’ve done much investigation pink.agendist@yahoo.com
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you are very kind. Thank you!
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After much trial and error, I’ve settled with St John’s Wort because of my debilitating anxiety. Fortunately, my depression is rather episodic, rather a recurrent low mood variety, so 2x 300mg tabs a day works quite well. It definitely took the bitter edge of anxiety attacks, I can sleep better, and my surroundings noticed the difference. Unfortunately because of my work I can’t get even close to anything not within controls, as the drug control dogs would sniff me out immediately 🙂
Take care Pink 😉
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Oh, and thanks for the Albin clip, I love the style, never heard of him, shame on me, repented, subscribed 😉
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I knowvery little about depression but if light affects it, could vitamin D possibly help? I know it’s supposed to compensate for something we don’t get from the sun during the winter months so maybe it’s the same thing. Just a thought.
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I don’t think my case is very light related. The last house was on the Costa del Sol. Over 300 days of sun per year…
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Meh…I should have remembered that.:( Oh well, worth mentioning, I guess.
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