Those of you who have used Research Chemicals for years

[meemeemee]

For those of you who have used the chems for years, do you notice anything "different" about yourself before you used to take them? Good or bad? Realizations? Epiphanies? Understandings? Moreover, on the negative side, psychoses, memory loss, impaired mental or emotional function? Anything else? Just tell of your personal experiences. I'm not a scientist, but am interested in how what you have taken, how much, and how often will change your brain or thinking. Thanks.

[prospero]

I've been taking pretty heavy doses of a wide varity of different chems for about 8 years. I usually space my trips 1-2 months apart. To dateI can categorically state there are no permanent physical or mental changes as a result of any of those experiences.


Of course there have been many profoundly life-changing alterations to my state of mind, attitude andspiritual beliefs. In factI'm a completely different person, and all the better for it!

Reputation Comments on this post:

Good to know.

[Solidly-here]

RCs are A-OK ... I am A-OK ...You could be, too.


I have taken 4-HO-DiPT (and its cousin, 4-Aco-DiPT) regularly for over 2 years. By regularly I mean once a week (and twice a week 30 times or so, and thrice a week a few times).


Before that, I took 5-MeO-DiPT once or twice a week for several months.


I have (mostly) used these RCs for spiritual growth. They have done me well.


I have had several "Peak" moments. They usually revolve around realizing that nothing in this earth is worth destroying my Serenity. BIG problems (in my mind) are only big because I allow them to be. In actuality, my life is going along pretty well.


What I spend a lot of time contemplating is that my life is full of BIG good things. After all, I have a roof over my head, an OK job, someone who loves me (as I am). The rest of life is smaller than the good things I already have.


It surely would be wonderful if I could realize this TRUTH once, and live the rest of my life with faith in that Truth. But, once I come back to the Real World, it's easy to forget.


Little irritations seem larger (I mean, you have to worry about something). And when most of the BIG things have been dealt with, the little (previously un-thought-of) ones pop up to fill the Void: Nature abhors a vacuum.


So, I use my weekly excursions to clean-up a mis-conception or two about my life. I am in no hurry. It's easier to just chip away at whatever problem pops up. Then I enjoy the vacation from worrying about THAT one. Since this method works, I can have Faith that I will not suffer too long with most of the new problems (though this only takes a little of the sting out of it at the time).


On the negative side, I do not have much to offer. I plan each Trip ahead of time. I decide what I am going to be doing (physicaltasks for an hour or 2), and saying (who am I going to be with? What's important?). This helps the RCs act as a healing tonic.


My emotional health is better. During a lot of my life I had bouts of Depression. Since I have began experimenting, most of the time I am happy. I haven't dipped down anywhere near a Depression at all. In fact, there have been several months when I feel I am on fire for life.


Memory problems have not been noticed. The only memories I forget are ones which I have wanted to forget. When life is exciting, everything is interesting. I remember interesting things. So, I actually remember quite a bit more about what happens.


Physically I am much improved. I am very aware of what my body is doing. I can move it precisely. I enjoy moving precisely. It's a game. This has helped me preserve my body. I don't hurt my back as often. I only get one or 2 colds a year (when before it was 5 or more).


All in all, my life has improved with RCs. The one downside to being able to pay close attention to things is, I am much more aware of what I am doing (and why I am doing it). I frequently do the right thing, but for the wrong reason (just to end it, to not hurt her feelings when the Truth is better, out of fear, out of frustration, ...) This makes me poignantly aware of how often I do not do a certain thing for the love of it (which is my Goal).


My Transformation has been quiet. I am the same person I was. I have the same range of feelings. I am still an introvert in most of the same situations (and extrovert in others). But now I feel happier about how my life is going, the choices I make, and the people I spend my time with.

Reputation Comments on this post:

	Fascinating, thanks for sharing.

[blackwolf]

I have been experimenting with "research chemicals" for roughly 8 years.
With in this time I have used as often as once a week, to not using any for
up to 6 months. Compounds include AMT, 5MEO-AMT, 5MEO-dipt, DIPT,
4ACO-DIPT, 4ACO-DET,GHB, BDO, Methlyone, 2C-B, 2C-C, 2C-T-2, 2C-
I, 2C-T-4, OLEAMIDE, and a wide range of herbals. THe BDO was used
nightly and ended up causing severe anxiety, and insomnia for 4 days
after I stopped using it. other then that I have not noticed any strange
side-effects, probable because I have not used any of them chronically.
Judging by the amount that Mr. Shulgin has taken over the years. It
appears that as long as you do not use heroic doses, binge,or dose
multiple times a week, you should be fine. Basically its like all drugs,
moderation is the key to not having any negative effects.

[gn2osis]

I'm more of a smart-ass and take life less seriously, even though
having that kind of distance lets me roll with the punches and do the
important stuff I have to do, like care for sick family members and so
on. Psychedelics have made me a better person, quite simply.<!--
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[nanobrain]

~20 years of psychedelic and chemical experimentation, RC's over the last 5 or so. mind affectins substances sampled include LSD (~500 times), DMT, psilocin/mushrooms (~50 times), marijuana, opiates, benzos, amphetamins, MDMA (~1000 times), MDA, MDE, MDEA, phenetylline, ketamine, N2O, Salvia, 2C-I, 2C-C, 2C-T-21 (~120 times), 4-FMP, methylone, GBL, GHB, gabapentin, SSRI's, SNRI's, piracetam and analogs, l-deprenyl, adrafinil, centrophenoxine, hydergine, GH3, vincamine, yohimbine, b-carbolines, melatonin, pharmahuascas and many more that i forget, including some fairly exotic immersive VR stuff thats classified.

results: a degree in neuropsych, a shift from angry depressed atheist to an ardent believer in God and the holographic morphogenic quantum model of consciousness, a career shift to biomedical field to develp active substances and high technologies that help people. heading up the brain studies division, responsible for clinical trials etc, drug and device discovery and development etc. have seen some far out devices and technologies that will never be commercialised.

personality and somatic effects: extreme hypersensitisation of the CNS, a lowered boredom threshold, same goes for tolerance for narrowminded ot dogmatic idiots, some emergent anti social tendencies, semi-permanent downgrading of serotonergic receptors, some effects on isoprenoid path (ubiiquinone, dolichol, cholesterol digoxin, etc), some decrease in libido.

Lessons learned: no matter where you go, there you are.

Buckaroo Bonzai, i think.Edited by: nanobrain

Reputation Comments on this post:

	Excellent synopsis
	Interesting, thanks for sharing.

[elbow]

Haha Nanobrain...I love Buckaroo Bonzai, I should watch it again (it's been a while). Great movie.



As for RC experimentation, I have only been into it for roughly a year
but was taking mushrooms, MDMA and smoking Cannabis for many years
before that. I have to admit that I do feel that my perception has been
more "altered" since I started taking 2C-i, specifically. I have more
difficulty recognizing people from afar and I often think that random
people are someone else I know. For example, I'm always going up to
people and insisting they look familiar, asking them where they grew
up, went to school, work, etcetera--so that I can "place" them.
Usually, I have no connection with them at all and have probably never
seen them before in my life.



I think this is really wierd. I know (vaguely) that studies have been
done linking a specific part of the brain to face recognition in
primates, but can't think of the actual specific study or where it was
carried out.



Does anyone have any idea why taking 2c-i might have possibly caused this? Or know that study I am referring to?

[Nagognog2]

I have been experimenting with psychedelics since 1974. Some never mentioned in these forums/threads. They do what they do in various different flavours. Some more introspective and remarkable. Some more a visual carnival-ride. The only possible damage I have seen happen with folks who use such is to have their defence mechanisms become disabled, and the things they hide from within themselves become manifested, as well as magnified. This can lead people into a freak-out reaction and, once in awhile, apsychotic break. I do not blame this on the substance, but, rather, the society and culture the person resides in. Given proper and compassionate help when this does happen often results in the person overcoming a fear they have had all their lives. It can be a cure. But sometimes a person will have no guidance in this process unleashed within their person, and that can be a disaster. Therein lays, in my opinion, the true danger of these substances. Rather than having a knee-jerk reactionary set of laws that make this field more difficult to study and work in, what is needed is to have our societies recognize that psychedelics are here, will be here, and have been here since the dawn of recorded history. And rather than pass restrictive and punitive laws to punish those who care to take this ancient journey, we should encourage people to be trained to help folks who do run into personal dilemnas on psychedelics, and in every day life. Psychedelic RC's, as well as more well-known entities in the family, only serve to magnify that which already exists within the minds of the user of such. With proper care and understanding of this, there is no danger to a person, other than to see the myriad archetypes that exist within all of us. Banishing this knowledge is tanatamount to lobotomizing the people out of fear and misunderstanding of thethe nature of the human mind.


Other than this, they made my skin turn blue and I now glow in the dark. Boo!

Reputation Comments on this post:

[jaguarangel]

SMIM is friends of S and A. I also know some of the cronies in Pihkal and
Tihkal. All of them are aging just like non-research chemical people are.
Albert Hoffman is turning 100 in January and his mind is with it! S and
A's memory is not like it used to be but many of my elders are
experiencing that too. A couple in the books said they took research
chemicals every 2 weeks for 10 years and it had them work outdifficulties
in their relationship. Swim was dissapointed in religion and pretty much
gave up on it. My first "recreational" experience with LSD (when it was
legal),changed the whole view about the world. swim saw the
interconnectedness of life. Robert Foreman, a yarn artist at Mind States got
inspired to do his art after his first LSD experience and then met the Huichol
indians who take peyote as their medicine and make yarn art.Edited by: jaguarangel

Reputation Comments on this post:

Thanks for sharing.

[fastandbulbous]

My first encounter with an RC (AMT) was 16 years ago, but I've had an on-off relationship with psychedelics for the last 24 years and I'm no more 'damaged' than most people my age who have never been near psychedelics. Like nanobrain, I've even managed to make myself look 'respectable' with a B.Sc and an M.Sc., as well as doing a post-grad certificate in education that qualified me to be a biology teacher (which I was for several years).


In that time since discovering RC's (befre they even had their own separate classification) I've tried a whole compendium of psychoactive chemical, some that even don't have a 'common' name (just an organic chem name) and the only major difference that's occurred is that I'm most probably a lot more tolerant of people.





Not exactly a bad rap for RC's, but I've always been careful not to do anything stupidthat might result in a trip to hospital - that's when all sorts of physical and psychological problems start

Reputation Comments on this post:

	Thanks for sharing.

[wicked1]

I have used them for many years (about 16), and at times heavily..

I started out w/ tryptamines, and I don't think those did anything to me long term.

the speed, ecstacy, 2c's and other phen's have fuked me up!

Not bad, mind you, but I am definately different than I used to
be. Sometimes I space out for no reason. Sometimes I am
very very uncomfortable around people, when it used to be no problem at
all.

A lot of the time I just dont feel like doing anything at all anymore
(going out or whatever). Maybe all that is just part of getting
older, too.

Out of everything I have done (and ive done almost everything) I would
say that E is the very worst! That stuff eats you up BAD

I still think everyone should try it a few times.. just not every week, and not 4 or 6 or 8 at a time or antyhing crazy!

Reputation Comments on this post:

Thanks for sharing, and good advice.

[prospero]

I'd agree with that - although E is the easiest psychedelic drug to take mentally, for me there's absolutely no doubt that physically it's byfar the most toxic. ThankfullyI never did binge on it, or do it every weekend, but even soI limit it to a few times a year at most now. Edited by: prospero

[college]

To be fair I have no used RC's for years, and my experience is limited to 2C-I, mainly out of fear to purchase others, not that I bought the 2c-I in the first place, anyway..... I have been smoking bud for 8 years and experimenting with various psychedelics and xtc drugs for a few years now and I have to say that my visual perspective has shifted slightly, very sublte. Most noticable when im stoned, odd trails and lights have shifty colors that cling close to them. It is by no means distracting or distressing, almost not noticable, but they are there if you look. Perhaps its just me being stoned and thinking this but I dont know. It is in my beliefe that psychedelics allow you to see more of what and how your eyes actually percieve reality. Perhaps I am just noticing things that have always been and it just took a boost from somethign to make these things obvious to me.