15yd first Acid Experience

[Arielovett]

Hello Bluelighters, I have a question. I'm not sure how many of these posts you get a week, But i was wondering what age would you think it appropriate to take the psychedelic drug LSD. I know this would greatly depend on the individual, do to the drugs volatile effects but I am also aware of the drugs use as a tool for spiritual development. I'm 15 and have been working with guided Buddhist Meditation sessions at the local center for about 2 years now. I'v also come to enjoy Terence McKenna lectures as well as others great psychedelic thinkers.I have a very close-nit group of friends where we meet each week and discuss spirituality, drugs, culture, shamanism and the like as well as take walks and try to identify the local botany. We are certainly not your average group of teenagers (not to sound braggy:D), but we hold a very high respect for drugs and entheogens, and take them very seriously. I'v tried to do as much reserch as possible before using any drug, as to ensure safety an effectiveness. I'v used currently, and in the past weed, hash, low doses of atropa belladona(I know) for lucid dreaming enhancement, LSA from HBWD seeds, and took one xanax pill long ago and felt really bad about it afterwards. I currently have just found a hook up with acid. And even though I absolutely hate dealing with the kind of people it takes to get this acid, I am interested in what a true entheogenic experience can do for me right now. I feel the calling, and fell ready(even though my courage might be misplaced) to finely try it out. I have a safe place to do it, good music to listen to, Boards of canada, Aphex twin, 13th floor elevators, the cure, dead can dance, and others if you where wondering and also watercolor paints, blankets, and a few sober sitters. I'm Prepared for the worst, but also excited. But do you still think I should Wait? Words can not express the excitement I feel every day just for being alive and trying to crack the great mysteries of life via direct experience, and I think the psychedelic experience might be one of the most important tools to learn about the origin of awareness. So should I wait, or Dive in and see where it takes me?

 

[Sev King]

Hi Arielovett,

Since on one has replied to your post I offer you my humble opinion on the matter.

I would say that 15 years old is too young to take LSD. Your brain is still developing and may not be ready to handle such an experience. Even strong marijuana can have adverse effects on a young mind. I talk from some experience as I did drugs from a similar age as you. You mentioned that you are doing guided Buddhist Meditation. This is under the guidance of a Buddhist monk? I would suggest that he/she would be the best person to talk about this matter.

Genuine spiritual development requires good health, and is also the cause and effect of this. Taking any kind of processed drug such as LSD will only damage your health and ultimately make spiritual development harder. I am not saying that you cannot have a spiritual experience by taking psychedelics, many people claim to and I am not going to dismiss their experiences.

If I could go back to when I was 15 I certainly wouldn't take the drugs that I did. Not because it was an inherently bad thing to do, but because it has just made things more difficult for me later on in life. I'm amazed by your writing that you are 15. I could never have written such a well thought out and mature post at that age. You seem to have a lot going for you. Whatever you decide I hope you are happy with your choice.

Jacob

 

[Captain Brewster]

I lost my shit when I was 15 on shrooms, it made me dislike paychedelics for a long time.
I regret that I took them so early in life, I didn't understand what they really were, and what benefits you can get form them. Treated them like something you just get wasted on.

When I was 24 I decided to not be scared anymore and give LSD ago (after many years of extasy abuse). I had the greatest night in years, and feel it changed me forever in a good way (also made me realise I didn't need extasy anymore, which was good due to the amount I was ingesting).

You sound fairly happy and content with yourself at the moment so my suggestion is wait it off (if you can), till your brain is fully developed. Later on down the track you might have a few MINOR problems that you can't get your head around, sometimes LSD can help with these. Save it for them.

 

[OTGee]

Well it sounds like for a 15 year old, to put it simply. You got your shit together. If anyone were to be taking LSD when they were 15, you seem like a good candidate as you are obviously educated and open minded. However, science does not reccomend tripping at such a young age as it can have negative impact on brain development but, so can cannabis and I have smoked literally most days since I was 14 and I may be a bit slow at times but I am no zombie. Also as Captain Brewster said, you seem to be pretty happy / have some good stuff going for you. It might be best to wait but, if your anything like me. The psychedelic experience is too much of a calling to 'put off for a few years' or to wait till your 18/21.

Ultimatley, you have probably already made up your mind and your just looking for people to back up your thoughts and give you more info. I do not know the exact science behind brain development so I cant give you any info there, it might just be a widespread rumour. Imho, if you are desperate and I mean absolute desperate to try this substance, go ahead but stay safe and do a fuckload of research beforehand. The best thing to do though would be to wait a few years, it sounds so patronizing and stupid but you will probably gain more in the long run and better safe then sorry. Ignorance is bliss, you are far from ignorant but psychedelics are the complete opposite of ignorance. I sometimes miss this ignorance as it makes things so much easier but, it is a very amazing experience that I suggest to people who have an interest in to try at some point in their lifes.

 

[maxalfie]

Well you certainly don't sound like your average 15 year old.
Its great that you have done as much as possible to educate yourself about drugs rather than just diving straight in without knowing what you are letting yourself in for.
As previous posters have already stated I also think that you are still to young to experiment with drugs.
Your body and mind are still not fully developed yet and with all the knowledge in the world you still can't know how a drug is going to affect you for definite.
If I was you I would carry on with every thing you are doing and try to hold off experimenting for a couple more years. It won't hurt to just hold it off for a while longer.

 

[Venrak]

You sound like you are emotionally ready for such an experience, but as others have mentioned, you are still developing.

Ultimately, the risk to your development is yours to take.

For what it's worth though, you sound like as good a candidate for psychedelic work as any.

 

[tambourine-man]

Arielovett: Do you want this moving to the Psychedelic Drugs Forum?

 

[Rose Petal]

Seconded. Jacob you are awesome. Such a guru! Arielovett, you sound like an extremely bright and amazing person for 15 (or for any age.. you articulate wonderfully!) However Jacob has a pretty major point when he says that your 15 year old brain is not yet developed. As such, the components of your brain are not yet in their rightful places, not yet functioning in an adult, 'finished' state, not yet connected and wired up in the way they need to be to see you through life. The adult male brain is complete at age 25. Until then there are flaws in processes, such as calculating risk, cause and effect, etc. It's accepted that 21 is the minimum age the male brain can optimally function, it's why the legal drinking age is what it is. It's younger for sex, which doesn't have a direct physical effect on the health and makeup of the brain per se.. as do alcohol and drugs.

There's just so much we don't know about the brain, and are still learning. It's generally accepted that Fetal Alcohol Syndrome can result from maternal alcohol use, and nobody doubts children's brains can't cope with drugs and alcohol, yet many people still seem to think substances won't affect older children - simply because of size - many having reached adult height by early teens! But a teenagers brain is still in an active, crucial state of growth. Start messing with substances that affect the firing of neurons, the transmitting of hormones and chemicals between synapses, and you're playing with fire.

I would liken it to an analogy of my house - which has not been properly waterproofed and insulated during the building process. It looked fine when I bought it. But at some point in it's 'development' the protective layers of waterproofing were not properly laid, and while it looks fine from the exterior, every time it rains water seeps in further, so underneath the pretty surface are patches of mouldy damp areas, and patches of rot, weakening of the structures, etc. At 15 your brain is like a house without insulation, or waterproofing in place. Taking drugs is like exposing your 'uninsulated', unprotected brain to a environmental 'attacks', for which it's not prepared. The torrential rain is the substances you ingest. And it's anybody's guess what you'll be left with after the storm. Unfortunately your head is one place you can't 'move out' of. What you do to it now will depict what you are left with later on. And this goes for ALL mind altering substances, legal or illegal. And personally I believe marijuana is extremely powerful and dangerous to young minds, and not the harmless herb of enlightenment you might have come to believe. I'd be as worried about pot as about the LSD, even though you may never have given a moments thought to such a socially acceptable and widely used drug.

Blah blah blah! Shut up me! Sorry.. I can get a bit carried away, I don't mean to. It's just I have kids your age, and if I could hold their attention long enough to spout all of this, I would! ;-)

Anyways.. you're a smart lad and I'm sure you'll do fine (if you don't take drugs for another ten years ;-). Good luck!

Hi Arielovett,

Since on one has replied to your post I offer you my humble opinion on the matter.

I would say that 15 years old is too young to take LSD. Your brain is still developing and may not be ready to handle such an experience. Even strong marijuana can have adverse effects on a young mind. I talk from some experience as I did drugs from a similar age as you. You mentioned that you are doing guided Buddhist Meditation. This is under the guidance of a Buddhist monk? I would suggest that he/she would be the best person to talk about this matter.

Genuine spiritual development requires good health, and is also the cause and effect of this. Taking any kind of processed drug such as LSD will only damage your health and ultimately make spiritual development harder. I am not saying that you cannot have a spiritual experience by taking psychedelics, many people claim to and I am not going to dismiss their experiences.

If I could go back to when I was 15 I certainly wouldn't take the drugs that I did. Not because it was an inherently bad thing to do, but because it has just made things more difficult for me later on in life. I'm amazed by your writing that you are 15. I could never have written such a well thought out and mature post at that age. You seem to have a lot going for you. Whatever you decide I hope you are happy with your choice.

Jacob

 

[sockpuppet]

editn!

 

[nAON]

I don't get where people are pulling these arbitrary 'brain maturity' figures from. Last I heard, the brain isn't 'fully developed' until the late 20's (though of course neuroplasticity effects last a lifetime), which I imagine makes a lot of the people posting in this thread hypocrites.

Also, does anyone have any citations or references that taking LSD disrupts brain development?

At the end of the day, if you're comfortable with who you are and have a relatively positive outlook on life, that's enough maturity to take psychedelic drugs. Problems arise with them usually when people take them either to try and avoid part of themselves, or when they can't deal with what's going on inside their own heads. Age has nothing to do with it (though I wouldn't recommend any drugs to someone who is not past puberty).

 

[StrutterGear]

Absolutely not. Seriously, please don't.

 

[OTGee]

Absolutely not. Seriously, please don't.

Although I do not reccomend it, I do not see anything wrong with taking it. I know people who started tripping at around 15 - 16 and are fine functional members of society. I do not know the science behind brain development but it would be interesting if someone could post a link or some solid facts on psychedelics + brain development.

I just don't think its that bad at all, better then him taking a stim or coke or something as fuck knows whats in that now a days.

 

[Arielovett]

im sorry I don't know if this will post or not but thank you for all your reply's. I'v actually decided to wait, Half because the little Wannabe stoner kids I thought might Of had hook ups to this mind expanding chemical, where actually just being assholes, never called me back and totally blew me off, and half because of the whole brain development thing. Even though there doesn't seen to be verifiable scientific evidence on the subject. However, I think I will still continue to use cannabis. It has helped me in ways I could never explain.all it takes is a few tokes and I'm already seeing deeper into situations than before, and I thinks it has allot of potential if your willing to take yourself there. And sockpuppet, Absolutely, I just knew there where very underground groups of people with interests in this stuff. It wasn't to long ago where a friend was telling me how his father had accidentally walked into the wrong part of a Mattress store, only to discover a large group of psychonauts lying on beds, tripping on a plate full of acid that was dropped on sugar cubes.

 

[OTGee]

You sound like you have the right idea, stop back on bluelight if you ever want to try any other substances or are curious and check out the Cannabis Discussion thread

 

[humblegro]

im sorry I don't know if this will post or not but thank you for all your reply's. I'v actually decided to wait, Half because the little Wannabe stoner kids I thought might Of had hook ups to this mind expanding chemical, where actually just being assholes, never called me back and totally blew me off, and half because of the whole brain development thing. Even though there doesn't seen to be verifiable scientific evidence on the subject. However, I think I will still continue to use cannabis. It has helped me in ways I could never explain.all it takes is a few tokes and I'm already seeing deeper into situations than before, and I thinks it has allot of potential if your willing to take yourself there. And sockpuppet, Absolutely, I just knew there where very underground groups of people with interests in this stuff. It wasn't to long ago where a friend was telling me how his father had accidentally walked into the wrong part of a Mattress store, only to discover a large group of psychonauts lying on beds, tripping on a plate full of acid that was dropped on sugar cubes.

Yeah, you seem like you want to learn. Just don't do it in public. I wish you a good life, lil buddy. We are all a little bit like you, or, possibly have been.

 

[Arielovett]

Thanks Friend, , And I think I know what I will try to do. Im moving up to my mothers this summer. Totally starting over. She said that I could grow plants in my room. I was thinking, and I'v gotten Psychotropic plants online before. That I would raise a fully grown san pedro cactus. Not only because, from what I hear, Mescaline seems to be a good starter-outer psychedelic, and I will have the experience of growing and communing with a plant and then using it, wich I think will be very rewarding. The place up here is beautiful, and I'v had dreams about sitting under this old tree with the roots coming out of the ground exploring the doors of perception.

 

[OTGee]

Thanks Friend, , And I think I know what I will try to do. Im moving up to my mothers this summer. Totally starting over. She said that I could grow plants in my room. I was thinking, and I'v gotten Psychotropic plants online before. That I would raise a fully grown san pedro cactus. Not only because, from what I hear, Mescaline seems to be a good starter-outer psychedelic, and I will have the experience of growing and communing with a plant and then using it, wich I think will be very rewarding. The place up here is beautiful, and I'v had dreams about sitting under this old tree with the roots coming out of the ground exploring the doors of perception.

I suggest you browse the Psychedelic Discussion thread for more info on topics such as this and also check out erowid and do a lot of research. A san pedro cactus takes a long long time to grow and it will be years before you could harvest it for its mescaline. I will suggest maybe using a mushroom grow kit as, extracting mescaline from san pedro while it is easy, is the not nicest thing. I have never had the honour of trying mescaline but from what I hear it does sound preferable to many other substances. it is your choice dude, just do a lot of research before you take / invest your money in anything. If you have dreams such as the one you mentioned up there, psychedelics might just be for you.

 

[Arielovett]

I'v done the research, and your right, It does seem that gulping down a green viscus cactus slop doesn't sound to pleasant. i'v read up plenty on how to grow pscilosiben mushrooms, I't seems easy enough, although its certainly not as "Stealth" as a completely normal looking cactus. I'v defiantly thought about it though, Maybe I could grow it in the back of my car? or Under my bed?, It seems way to risky. I'v thought about possibly ayahausca though. I could maybe grow Psycotria, or caapi. But those are all tropical species. I don't know lol What do you think?

 

[OTGee]

ayahusca, I wouldn't reccomend for a first trip, it can be very powerful. Well mushrooms are pretty stealth, you just need a cupboard as long as your house is a little above room temp and they will grow in a kit. Were do you live? If its really hot maybe? You want to keep them in a warm dark place and move them about / touch the bag as little as possible apart from at the different stages of growth. You can also buy adult cactuses although they are quite expensive and I am pretty sure you get hardly any mescaline per plant.

 

[Arielovett]

I was under the impression that San Pedro cactus was a fairly fast growing species of cactus, allot faster than Lophophora williamsii that's for sure. But growing mushrooms would require all sorts of things I don't have access to, like a spore syringe, spores, and at least a few hours alone at the house to make and sterilize the cakes. I don't have my car quite yet so it would have to be at least until then where I could drive down to home depot or something and pick up some brown rice and vermiculite. If I was going to do mushrooms I would either have to do A) find someone at school who can sell them to me. or B) carefully plan out a way to grow mushrooms in my closet over a few months. The cactus seems easier. That way it would be very cut in dry. Find cactus seeds, grow cactus, tell legal guardian that cutting a foot of the cactus helps it grow faster or something, and then make and eat disgusting cactus smoothie. The things i have to do just to explore my own consciousnesses, just ridiculous lol