Scullcap and other herbs with psychedelics

[Flickering]

Anyone tried it? Scullcap is meant to relieve anxiety, and I've heard it claimed that it can help pull you out of a bad trip. I speculate it would also work well to take it as a trip starts to set in, to alleviate the come-up anxiety I often get. I'm drinking it now for the first time, and will try smoking it in a couple of days with damiana.

 

[MissKiddo]

Ive only tried scullcap in a blend of a few other herbs. Hows the tea taste?

 

[sekio]

Skullcap is a pretty mild herb that can help with anxiety in the same way that benzodiazepines can.

 

[Flickering]

I just tried it in tea and, based on another Bluelighter's advice, I also cooked it in butter and ate it on bread. After a little while, there was a definite and sudden, yet subtle and unintrusive, shift of mood. I went from being kind of depressed and dysphoric to relaxed and confident. In a little while, my other frame of mind was difficult to relate to, and I could see I was actually in a quite bad space of mind. I'm impressed. I've tried mugwort and damiana, neither of them had such a definitive effect. I'm going to dose on this stuff every few days.

My tripping anxiety is usually worry that things are about to get really, really nasty, and I won't be able to do anything about it. It happens because I've had two really bad trips before, and as I'm entering that headspace, some self-sabotaging part of me busts in and goes, "FUCK! We're in this state for the next x hours! If it goes wrong, you'll probably suffer permanent psychological damage!" Wrestling with this paranoia has been a bitch every time, but I always manage to overcome it. Based on tonight, I think scullcap would really help me through that phase.

 

[swilow]

About 7 years ago, I had a kinda rough acid trip, pretty anxious, panicked, overwhelmed, and skullcap maybe helped a little bit, just enough to be able to enjoy the trip again. That said, I wouldn't rely on skullcap to assist psychedelic anxiety. The effects are extremely weak. The act of brewing a tea can be relaxing, though I had some paranoia about burning myself with boiling water.

 

[Flickering]

Yeah, I wouldn't rely on it completely, but I can only think it would help. As a pre-emptive measure for come-up anxiety, I anticipate it will be quite effective, but it remains to be seen.

That sucks. Ive never had a bad trip. do you trip alone or with friends?

Hope you never do - they seriously suck. It varies, but I prefer to trip alone, except on LSD which is such an expressive substance for me so it needs to be shared. My first bad trip was with a friend supervising (highly embarrassing), my second was also with a friend supervising, but unfortunately I told him I was going to bed just as it was getting bad because I wanted to be alone, and he left, so I was on my own for that one.

 

[JonezSmith]

I've never tried Scull Cap with anything but Cannabis, I'll be sure to try that.
Two of my favorite herbs to go with psychedelics are Kratom and Wild Dagga (leonotis leonurus).
Kratom is great by itself and with a wide range of psychedelics. I reccomend DXM and Mescaline. DXM can be very harsh on your nerves by itself, so the Kratom is great to relax your muscles. Kratom is also perfect for Mescaline. Mescaline can make you very nervous and jumpy, its also hard on your stomach, so the calming and easing effects on your stomach will make Mescaline a much more enjoyable experience.
Wild Dagga is one of my favorite herbs. Its psychoactive effects are very mild, but make any trip much more enjoyable.
To really enhance a true hallucinogenic experience, I reccomend Salvia Divinorum. Guranteed to make any trip much more spiritual and personally awakening, especially LSD and Dimethyltryptamine. The effects of Salvia are often compared to DMT, so it goes perfect together. But be warned, Salvia mixed with pretty much any other psychoactive empathogen can make the experience overwhelming. But I'm sure we can handle ourselves.
I just purchased an ounce of damiana over the internet and have yet to try it with anything. I will be sure to try it and inform you of my experience.