Psychedelics, genetics and schizophrenia

[MrHH]

Hey! I hope you all had a great weekend ;-)

Yesterday I was told by my father that my mother (that already died more than 15 years ago, she killed herself, when I was in my childhood) was schizophrenic.

I am 26 years old at the moment, I've used psychedelics between 100 and 250 times, ranging from 2C-B to mushrooms, LSD, even smoked 5-MeO-DMT once, resulting on a highly breakthrough experience. I am also a sporadical user of MDMA and traditional stimulants (speed) on recreative environemnts (parties). I started using drugs (MDMA at high, uncontrolled dosages) when I was at 16.

Again yesterday I took a good dosage of 4-AcO-DMT without a problem, but I could not get out of my mind what I've discovered yesterday about my mother, I was a bit worried about the long-term possible efects on my mind about the future use of psychedelics.

In my childhood, due to the abuse of amphetamines on the parties, I had once the typical psychotic break where you think everybody is looking at you, but I've seen this on almost all my friends, and I've recovered on the next day as soon as them, so this is not worrying me. I can't identify myself any symptom near to the schizophrenia on myself, I can't just simply remember any of the typical symptoms that are identifiable of the early stages of the illness. The only one thing I've experienced is something I feeled like for 1 week after abusing psychedelics about 5 years ago, it was like a wrong thinking pattern, specially happening while I was trying to sleep, it's like my mind was chaining concepts without any apparent relationship. I attribute it to HPPD since it is completely gone and I also smoke high quality cannabis sativa every day from my 16's, something between 2 and 4 grams daily (I am stoned almost every single second of the day . That could trigger it in my opinion. I've never experienced something similar again after all these years taking psychedelics, and I find now myself in a very stable mood/mind state even having in mind that I consume psychedelics every weekend.

The usage of psychedelics really bringed good benefits in my life, changing the way I was seeing some important aspects of my life. I would be really disappointed and sad if it would be a tool that I could not longer use again.

I was reading a recent study on 2014 about genetics and schizophrenia, and it seems like there are a lot of genetic factors involved (it's not just about just one 'gen', but about multiple combinations involving multiple gens). The question is: is there a way to know the chances that I will get schizophrenia anytime in my life? is there any genetic study I can perform to discard it?

Thanks for everything! Have a good sunday/monday

 

[Solipsis]

Having been exposed to psychedelics and cannabis that often makes it likely that if you'd be particularly sensitive to getting a psychotic episode from latent schizophrenia, it would have already happened. Also it tends to start becoming apparent before or around the age of 25 I believe.
But to counter that, you are probably not too old for that to happen I believe, and nobody should think they are immune to psychosis, especially when they have or had (my sympathies) schizophrenic family members that close to them.

You would probably do well to take serious breaks off cannabis for one. I have used cannabis daily for quite some time in the past and was shocked about the contrast when I stopped smoking for a while (say one or several months at least), I think being hazy that permanently has strong effects and implications for a person's behavior and life. Of course it affects some more negatively than others. I vowed never to let myself fall into the trap of frequent cannabis smoking again, although these days I do enjoy a toke every now and then. With moderation.
Psychedelics are very strong in how they can change your feelings, ideas and experience... but the trip is temporary. When you smoke weed a lot, the intoxication is more subtle, but it lingers so long that you might as well call it permanent as long as you are a heavy smoker. Both are potentially problematic since mental health is IMO dependent on being anchored at least partially but firmly in a plain baseline of sobriety, to keep you from becoming deeply confused about things. So to speak you need to keep your feet on the ground a little, or at least periodically so that you can process the mind-warping effects that stack up.

I don't trip nearly as often as I did in the past, I have tripped on a weekly basis on mushrooms for a period and on acid for at least a year, for example.
Also my uncle has or had progressive schizophrenia, he lives in another country and we lost contact with him years ago.
Like you I have only had drug-induced psychosis, based not on amphetamine psychosis but on the amnesia from a coadministered benzo. I tend to be resilient and return from very powerful altered states of consciousness relatively quickly and apparently well. I may be a bit excentric, but as far as I myself and others including health care professionals can tell I am well-hinged to (my sense of) reality.

Of course I don't recommend people to go through the history of drug use I have with mental illness in the family, but whatever your situation I can recommend gradually taking it more and more easy like I have done... hopefully avoiding some fateful psychotic episode. I am probably very lucky to have avoided it in the first place, as you may be as well!

Not sure if you can get tested, I know that some of those relevant genes are also implicated in other mental illness like autism, the latter is actually what seems to have been "activated" in me at some point, rather than schizophrenia. I got help and still am getting it, and I can compensate rather well for my handicap / disability... probably much better than I may have turned up if schizophrenia had been activated in me.

 

[MrHH]

Hey Solipsis

Many thanks for your detailed reply. It was quite explanatory and clear.

I am going to limit the use of psychedelics to once per every 2-6 months instead of weekly, even if I also find myself to come very quickly/well from altered states of consciousness... (I think that will be enough? also I will limit the dosage... I feel like I continue needing the usage of psychedelics... but your message alerts me hehe) Also I am trying to self-convince myself about stopping the use of cannabis so frequently and trying to, in first place, limit it to once per day in the night. After that I will probably be able to end up using it just in the same way than I use alcohol. In Spain we have a culture of smoking every day since the law is not very restrictive but continues being illegal and the official policies & mis-information campaigns are having the opposite effect rather than the expected from the government, also our proximity to Morocco bring this kind of behavior on society, including myself and even my father ... Here a big percentage of the population smokes every day... It's on the culture, specially on the south. It's going to be a bit difficult but I am going to do it for sure.

I am going to meet with a psychologist to make an assessment on my current mental health, but I think the result will be quite normal. Anyway I am going to meditate about changing my habits in order to have a normal, safe life. I really value my current life and I do not want to risk everything. At the end of the day, I guess that I should start now trying to use all the acquired knowledge in order to continue progressing without the abuse of psychedelics (as in the last 18 months) every single weekend.

Thanks again for your very valuable support, Solipsis. I hope you also feel progressively well with the time.

Best wishes