Post-trip health and wellbeing

[velmwend]

Hi

Are there are any tips for post-trip health and wellbeing? I notice that I feel a little drained and depressed for a few days after tripping...probably due to serotonin depletion maybe (?)

What can we do to take care of ourselves, bring ourselves back up to full health after using psychedelics?

 

[iodo]

Eat healthy, exercise, stretch your muscles, abstain from drugs for a couple days after. A good nights sleep doesn't hurt either.

Increasing personal hygiene always makes me feel cleaner and more refreshed.

After taxing high doses, I find that a jog, a solid breakfast, and some lounging around makes everything so much better.

 

[transitionsynth]

iodo has it about right, I think. Make sure you hydrate before, during, after the trip and replenish your electrolytes frequently.

Also, maintaining a healthy lifestyle in general is important. Eating plenty of vegetables and protein, drinking water, supplementing with a potent multi-vitamin, regular sleep, daily meditation, and intense exercise 3x per week can help the body regulate its hormones and neurotransmissions even in the event of a strong interruption to the metastability of the system like a psychedelic trip.

I personally keep a healthy life-style year round as above, limit my trips to no more than 6 times per year (usually less), and plan plenty of time for sleep and rest the next day after a psychedelic trip. I actually have found, particularly when it comes to LSD, that I feel slightly "superhuman" the next day. Crisper vision, colors more vibrant, no nagging headache, bodily movements feel natural and graceful, I feel "one step ahead" so to speak.

 

[RhythmSpring]

Be with people.

 

[Foreigner]

Within 24 hours after an intense trip (high dose, or deep issues came up), I need at least 12 hours straight of sleep. I call it my "psychedelic sleep". It is deep and restorative. If that sleep gets interrupted or can't fully happen, then I find that future attempts to do it don't naturally work and I have a sleep deficit that can last for a couple weeks. The psychedelic sleeps are the highest quality the same day the trip ended.

Before I sleep, I eat a hearty and nutritious meal. My favorite is chicken noodle soup with a side of salad. If I try going to sleep without eating properly, the sleep fails or is not nearly as restorative.

If it was a challenging trip or a bad trip, getting out and relating to people in the normal world can help, but it really depends. I usually can't handle loud or busy social environments until at least 72 hours have gone by. I do agree though that you should try to have normal human contact not too long after, and that's because during the most neuroplastic period you want to be able to integrate people back into your consciousness. If you wait too long then it can become harder to do, as the new configuration (without people) begins to "set". I once made the mistake of doing an intense LSD trip and then not talking to people for a week. When I got back out into the world I had to do some relearning of how "people" worked.

 

[velmwend]

Thanks for all your great advice.

I suppose, mentally, I feel stripped of something (probably serotonin) and my being feels a little stark. Saying that, I'm not not sure what I took. I was told LSD, and a number of folks confirmed LSD, but this wasn't acid (bitter taste, no spirirtual level, came down after 4 hours). Maybe it's a waiting game. It's been over 72 hours. Maybe those neurotransmitters of mine take longer to function properly again.

Thanks again, for all your great advice ... much appreciated