User:Jane/OTPFT

On the preparing for trips

(probably a note here on avoiding fiending would be good to have)

The utility of ritual & disclaimer

On reflection of writing this document, I was thinking about ritual and that it is useful for me. When I go through these things, I feel I am "preparing" for the experience, and that I am better able to get into the frame of mind that isn't concerned with work, or with social interactions that may make me unhappy, or whichever. I think rituals are important for psychedelics, but I want to disclaim that and say that too much preparation is sometimes a bad thing; spontaneous experiences with psychedelics can be very important. Your mileage may vary.

Clean house

I clean house. I make sure that I have a stress-free environment so that when I am inebriated I do not get frustrated with things like "how do i untangle this laptop cord from the headphones cord" or "where is the rest of the drugs?" and so on. I also find that the following day I am usually a bit the worse for wear, and I prefer to have a clean house then, rather than to have to clean it the following morning when I feel ill.

Eating, or not eating.

I try to fast before taking drugs so that I do not have any stomach distress. Some drugs will require a buffer. For me, these tend to be stimulants. I like to have a small, starchy meal or something with simple sugary carbohydrates. So this might be a couple of pieces of bread, or a banana or apple. I have had mixed results with small fatty meals as buffer; I like avocados for this. Perhaps 1/2 avocado.

Post-trip food

That said, I also like to make sure that there is food readily available to me during the experience and after. Afterwards I usually haven't eaten in some hours and find myself hungry or even faint from lack of eating. During, sometimes, I will get hunger pangs and want to put a little in my stomach, but I err on the side of small meals. For these purposes, I keep baby food on hand. Especially convenient are the baby food packages that come with a squeezable pouch and a spigot you just put in your mouth. If you can get over the infantilism of this, it is actually a remarkably good way to get both liquids and sugars/calories into your system when you desperately need both. There isn't any need to be especially picky about this, but I try to find the brands that have just fruit (& vegetables) as the ingredients, rather than additional ingredients added for texture or sweetness.

Water and calorie deficit

I try to titrate water during the experience. Even if I am not overly thirsty, I like to keep water/fluids around where I intend to be tripping. I use a vessel with a spigot and a closeable top so that I am less likely to spill and thus have to clean up during the experience. I most prefer to have very diluted sports drinks (gatorade and powerade being examples), usually 3:1 water to drink. This gets you the salts and sugar you will need during the experience, and helps with the caloric deficit, and it also ensure you remain hydrated in the event you sweat excessively or become hot (as you get from stimulants and phenethylamines in particular). For me personally, adding a pinch (perhaps 1/2 teaspoon - 2.5ml - per 500ml) of salt to the water I am drinking helps with my stomach as it is closer to isotonic this way. I sometimes also dilute fruit juice such as cranberry (rather than orange and citrusfruits which may have pulp and leave a taste in my mouth), again 3:1, for the same reason as I keep the gatorade around: caloric deficit and hydration/cooling.

Saline and lip balm

Saline nasal spray and lip balm: my sinuses get dried out after long periods on drugs and sometimes I become congested (ketamine, for some reason does this to me). Additionally, with insufflated drugs, it may be beneficial to wash the sinuses to retain moisture or to alleviate discomfort. I also find that my lips become chapped (I presume this is because I breathe through my mouth more often when I take drugs). So I apply lip balm (I like malin+goetz because it is not flavored and not very sticky) before I start the drugs, and I have it nearby me during the experience so that if I notice cracking or anyting, I can fix that.

Magnesium and bruxism

I try to get a gram of magnesium in me twice during the day before I take the drugs, and it seems to help me to have it around during the experience. If I notice tremors, bruxism, or tightness in my neck and trapezius, I supplement with an additional 250-500mg throughout the experience.

Cleaning your person

I also shower beforehand, taking care to make sure my hair will not bother me during the experience, and I shave so that I don't get annoyed by stubble on my legs. I apply lotion to my hands and other areas where my skin may be dry and bother me during the experience; plainly put, it is also a little more sensual -- to me -- to have skin that is appropriately moisturized. I do try to avoid anything perfumed because my tolerance for perfumes changes on drugs and something I would normally tolerate well may bother me a great deal. Lubriderm and Eucerin both have very good, non-scented hand lotions.

Electronics

Usually I have need of electronics during the trip. Accordingly, I try to tidy cables and make sure that I have e.g., what music I would like to listen to available to me. I make sure the headphones are near to wherever I am tripping. I tell the computer not to lock the screen, the screensaver not to run, and for it to run as long as it is capable of while not connected to power so that it does not go to sleep, requiring me to "figure out how the laptop works" mid-trip. I also make sure that any communication means I may have with e.g, people from work, or facebook (where I may inadvertently bump into my family or coworkers), or instant messenger (same), that these things are closed down or at least hidden in such a way that I do not accidentally wind up using them. I set font sizes higher in applications such as IRC where I may have difficulty focusing, and I use a high-contrast window where possible.

Temperature & so forth

Environmentally I check to make sure if the room is drafty, as it is difficult to self-regulate temperature with a draft. I set the thermostat to a couple degrees warmer than I would normally prefer, as I find it easier to cool off than to warm up on drugs.

Get comfortable.

I try to wear something comfortable that will manage sweat well (mostly, cotton), and usually something a little elastic so that I do not feel very restricted by clothing bunching or twisting around my extremities. No-bra may be preferable to bra, but experiment. Keep in mind that it may be difficult to put it back on if you need to later.

Sharps hygiene

I also try to make sure I have the sharps bin nearby, and that it is not so full I have trouble disposing of sharps during the trip, and I make sure I have enough alcohol swabs for any injections that may need to happen. Because I use the gluteus for injections, I make sure to be wearing black underwear so that any blood spots will not be visible. If I intend to (or am likely to) take more than one shot over the evening, I make sure to pull those shots before hand, as it is difficult for me to measure shots when I cannot see especially well. I also find this does a reasonable job of limiting my usage over the evening because it is a pain in the ass to draw a new injection when depth perception is off or your eyes won't focus.