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Writer's pictureRay Christian

The Niner: my solo 9g magic mushroom journey


Members of Psoirée often share notes and takeaways from deep trips. This was my largest journey by far, and I felt ready thanks to many previous sessions.


6/25/22



Set and Setting

  • 9 grams of PE magic mushroom

    • Half raw, half steeped in tea, then consumed everything

  • Intention: show me how I can make the most of the opportunity in front of me

  • Location: solo in my living room in a pillow nest

  • 11:15a – 4:30p



Prep

In chronological order:

  1. Cold shower

  2. Finalized playlist (thank you to Psoirée member, Lena)

  3. 5 min breathing exercise (thank you, Andrew)

  4. 5 min meditation

  5. Spoke intention loudly 4-5 times

  6. Consumed

  7. 1 bowl hit of cannabis

  8. 5 mins of dancing/shouting

  9. Put on eye mask and entered pillow nest



Consumption

  • Consumed on an empty stomach, along with chips and lemon water

  • The sheer volume of mushrooms was difficult to consume. I normally have trouble with the taste and texture… consuming 3x the normal amount felt like an almost athletic effort. I made the mistake of masking the flavor with tortilla chips that were too dry. The combination was not fun for the jaw or palate

  • It hit harder and faster than normal. I could already feel some effects half way through the consumption process

  • I was unable to do my usual ramp up routine during the period “after consuming and before it takes effect.” Needed to lie down way earlier than expected (after 2 songs)

    • I had 8 loud songs designed to get me moving, dancing, shouting. I was “forced” to sit through 6 raucous songs while immobilized



Subjective experience

  • A sense that a higher dimension being was walking me through my accomplishments over the recent years. A sensation of acknowledgement and recognition for the work, sacrifices, and thoughtful decisions. This was meaningful at a level that’s difficult to describe

  • A “knowing” that one decision (see the very end) can completely change the path. A Count Pierre Bezukov-type-feeling of comfort that "whatever happens next… finally, things will be different.” I’ve been struggling with what to do with my living situation and next professional move

  • Moments of a spiritual “nuzzling” with a couple important people in my life

  • Inspired by a current book I'm reading (Journey of Souls), asking “what am I?” and seeing an ethereal tint of purple covering a kingdom, and feeling intense joy

  • Many many separate outbursts of laughter

  • A realization that gratitude is the key, and has numerous benefits:

    • Helped to let go early in the trip

    • Smooths the inter-dimensional travel

    • Has a powerful and important relaxation effect on the body throughout the trip

    • “Thank you” is effective as a word spoken out loud, or in the mind’s eye during tough parts



Music

  • Music was really loud and enjoyable

  • Although I can’t really remember specifics of the LIFTOFF section (1-2 hours of classical music), I remember feeling it was critical to the potion of subjective experience

  • The CRUISING ALTITUDE playlist phase was 2 short Native American songs (thank you, Andrew) and 2 long East Forest songs. It was a very enjoyable intermission of quiet gentleness

  • The LANDING playlist was deeply enjoyable. A couple songs stood out:

  • The playlist construction experience was greatly eased by Lena’s advice of building FOUR separate playlists (PRE LIFTOFF, LIFTOFF, CRUISING ALTITUDE, and LANDING), then merging the four together



Random notes

  • I had a significant headache afterwards that night and slept for 13 hours

  • Told a few important people that I wouldn’t be speaking for a few days as I recalibrate to reality

  • Did a fun “PhD-level” trip exercise mid-way through: Get up, eye mask still on, and navigate to bathroom and back with only sound and touch

  • Engaged in innumerable physics experiment-style stretches w my body on the hard wood floor. Felt delightfully child-like

  • I didn’t do all the prep appropriately. I’d been hearing about the dark-side, the harder parts of the trip from other Psoirée members lately. It had been so long since I had a tough trip that I almost wanted to feel one again in order to better relate. So I intentionally broke some rules: I drank and smoked a little cannabis the night before, and ate junk food. The first few songs of the trip also had an aggressive tone and negative lyrics e.g. here and here.

    • And yet, the trip was completely blissful. This left me with a sense that with…

      • a certain amount of intentional deep trips (my guess is 5)

      • continued maintenance work, and

      • proper set and setting

    • … the tough trips are extremely rare



Takeaways

  • Seeing what I’ve built in terms of a professional reputation, what I’ve built lately in psychedelics, and how they’re close to being self-sustaining entities. That, with a few moves that empower others, and a savvy focus, this work could lead to something very special

  • Realizing it’s time to slow down, step away for a little, and engage a proper reset

  • I’m moving to Medellin


 



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