Did you know that certain herbs can enhance your psychedelic trip or experience? These "herbal allies" can be used to induce euphoria, calm your nerves, or simply complement your journey, ultimately resulting in a more profound psychedelic experience.
Enhance your psychedelic trip
If you talk to anyone that’s used psychedelics before, they’ll be the first to tell you that taking psychedelics will set you on a deep and potentially life-altering journey. Many take this journey in search of heightened awareness, a restored spirit or profound bliss. But, just like any journey, it can be difficult to navigate at times, and filled with unforeseen challenges and obstacles along the way. It is therefore never a bad idea to take a few ‘helping hands’ along in case you stumble, fall or encounter an unexpected roadblock. The truth is, while at times you will feel absolutely untouchable and on top of the world during your psychedelic trip, it can switch just as fast, leaving you feeling stuck or stranded at dizzying heights without so much as a single warning. You never quite know where the journey will take you, and therein lies the true beauty.
As a psychedelic trip can be unpredictable at times, a Trip Sitter will often be used. A trip sitter typically remains sober during the psychedelic experience or journey, keeping a watchful eye over trippers and taking all the necessary steps and precautions to ensure they remain safe at all times. Trip sitters essentially act as trip guardians, taking care of everything from ensuring safe dosage, reminding trippers to hydrate regularly, preventing any accidents from occurring, as well as handling any emergency situations that may arise. In addition to ensuring the physical safety of trippers, trip sitters can also assume a more active role, acting as a mental tour-guide throughout the psychedelic journey. This involves steering a person’s psychedelic trip towards certain, intentional states of being and away from negative, distressing ones. Thereby enhancing the tripper’s psychedelic journey and experience as a whole.
Just as a trip sitter acts as a ‘guiding force’ throughout the psychedelic journey, certain herbs can be utilised in a similar manner. Herbs can be powerful, yet gentle, allies in helping to frame the ‘ideal’ tripping mindset. Unlike certain pharmaceuticals, herbs won’t completely extinguish challenging and unpleasant thoughts, but rather present those thoughts in a different light to make them more manageable, thereby keeping you moving forward in your psychedelic journey.
The following herbs can be used to enhance your psychedelic trip and act as valuable allies to have on-hand during any psychedelic journey or experience.
Tulsi (Ocimum sanctum)
Tulsi, also known as holy basil, is regarded as a protector and guardian in the folklore of India. Tulsi is an ‘exhilarant’ herb. An exhilarant herb is a type of herb that improves one’s mood and uplifts your spirit. Tulsi is therefore a great herb to use if you’re looking to sway your psychedelic experience and trip towards one of euphoria, elation, and enlightenment, steering clear of desperation and negative thoughts.
In addition to being an uplifting exhilarant herb, Tulsi is also a gentle adaptogen and nervine. An adaptogen is an herb that has the ability to help the body deal with and adapt to stress in a more effective and efficient manner. A nervine is an herb that assists in calming any nervous tension. A psychedelic trip can often bring on an onslaught of emotion and stimuli that has the potential to completely overwhelm the tripper. Tulsi is the ideal herb to use in such situations as it prevents you from feeling overburdened by these stimuli and emotions, by leaving you feeling more in control, calm, collected and far better equipped and prepared to handle the situation and what is being presented to you. Things that will typically bother you, trigger a stress response or make you feel anxious, will fade away and no longer feel like a big deal. This is incredibly helpful during a psychedelic trip as emotions tend to run extremely high during these experiences.
Due to all of Tulsi’s trip-enhancing properties, making use of Tulsi can be very beneficial and helpful both during a psychedelic trip as well as while preparing for a psychedelic trip. As an adaptogen, consuming tulsi the morning of the trip or during the psychedelic trip itself can help set you up for a delightful and easy-going experience. However, tulsi’s beneficial effects are most pronounced after taking it daily for a couple of weeks. A popular and pleasant way to consume tulsi (both for the taste and the experience) is making it into a tea (steep 1 tablespoon in 1 cup of boiling water for at least 10 minutes), but tincture works too.
Elderflower (Sambucus nigra)
Elderflower is a relaxing diaphoretic. This means it helps the body release any excess heat and/or muscle tension. Elderflower is therefore particularly beneficial for people who tend to experience extreme heat and high levels of tension during their psychedelic trips. Elderflower’s diaphoretic properties are however not solely limited to the body. It also acts as an emotional diaphoretic which aids in the release of heightened emotions such as anxiety and anger, both of which can be triggered during a psychedelic trip.
In addition to being a physical and emotional diaphoretic, elderflower, just like tulsi, is an uplifting and exhilarant herb. As mentioned before, any psychedelic trip has the potential to unearth negative emotions and feelings which can make you feel completely and utterly weighed down during your psychedelic journey or experience. Elderflower, paired with its light, sweet and calming scent, has the ability to keep those negative emotions at bay, and instil an uplifting feeling of hope and optimism. Thereby helping you break free from the chains of negativity, self-limiting beliefs, and the heavy, burdensome emotional state you may be feeling trapped in.
Elderflower is a fairly common herb and ingredient found in sparkling cordial beverages which can be bought at various stores. Drinking an elderflower sparkling cordial is therefore so much more than merely enjoying a refreshing beverage. It can be a wonderful and welcomed distraction and escape from negativity and an effective way to cool down if you’re feeling a little overheated and overwhelmed.
Skullcap (Scutellaria lateriflora) & Passionflower (Passiflora incarnata)
Skullcap and passionflower, affectionately referred to as “S & P” by herbalists, are two herbs that are naturally paired together. Both skullcap and passionflower are nervine herbs (herbs that aid in calming the nervous system). These two herbs are the perfect pair in combating the daunting and often all-consuming negative thought-loop triggered by psychedelics, especially when your negative thoughts and anxiety starts to spiral out of control during a psychedelic trip.
Skullcap in particular is an herb that is known to ease a hamster-wheel mind of racing thoughts, whereas passionflower can ease a merry-go-round mind of circular thoughts. More often than not people will experience a combination of these feelings in the form of generalized anxiety, stress, and worry. However, these feelings can become highly intensified and exacerbated under the influence of psychedelics.
If you’re a trip sitter, signs, and indications that the tripper is experiencing an onslaught of spiralling anxiety and is feeling trapped in a negative thought-loop may go undetected. Trip sitters may therefore not be aware that the tripper is under distress and needs help, while the tripper’s state of mind will be pretty undeniable. For this reason, it is crucial for trip sitters to check in verbally with trippers to ensure they’re doing okay or if they can assist in any way. It is also a good idea to check for other non-verbal cues.
For example, this particular state of mind also presents as stress-induced muscle tension in the upper body. So, if you notice your tripper hunching their shoulders or grinding their teeth, it may be your cue to introduce skullcap and passionflower into the mix.
The beneficial effects of skullcap and passionflower don’t end there – these two nervine herbs are especially helpful towards the end of a psychedelic trip when you can’t seem to stop ruminating while lying down in bed, or when you’re simply trying to quiet your mind after the excitement of the day.
The best way to consume skullcap and passionflower are via preparation that will lead to rapid onset of effects. You can consume it either in tincture taken sublingually or blended into a herbal smoke.
Cayenne (Capsicum annuum)
Cayenne is a fast-acting circulatory stimulant that delivers a powerful and swift kick. This makes cayenne the perfect herb to pull you out of a stagnant psychedelic trip and catapult you forward. While cayenne will certainly bring a whole lot of heat, it will get you up and moving in no time at all – it’s hot, fast-acting and known to deliver quite a punch, what more could you ask for? A couple drops of cayenne tincture is exactly what you need if you’re desperate for a change of scenery but just can’t seem to muster up the courage or energy to get up and get moving.
As cayenne is a fast-acting circulatory stimulant, geared at getting your blood flowing in a rapid fashion, it is perfectly suited to combat stagnation in the body as well as the mind. This makes cayenne particularly helpful for those that tend to “freeze” during their psychedelic trips. If you find yourself in a fixated and stagnant state, unable to get out of it, introducing cayenne into your trip will very quickly induce a sense of presence and awareness, getting you up and moving onto the next stage of your journey – which is exactly what you need!
Lavender (Lavendula spp.)
On top of being one of the most popular and widely used herbs, lavender is a hypotensive herb which aids in lowering blood pressure and easing tension. Lavender possesses a terpene profile, targeting the nervous system to ease constrictions present in both the mind and the body (muscles). This makes lavender an incredible herbal ally as it has the potential to soften any self-limiting or rigid attitudes and beliefs that may no longer serve you in any way.
A relaxed body and mind will allow for a more adaptable, open-minded. welcoming and enriching psychedelic experience. This is a major game-changer as tripping tends to shine a harsh spotlight on how embodied your cognition is. Breaking free from that can make all the difference to your psychedelic journey as a whole.
Utilising the various benefits and herbal powers of lavender through aromatherapy is a great way to introduce a form of herbal support into your psychedelic journey, especially if you’re worried that you might not be able to reach out for your preparations or that you will forget about them entirely. There is no essential oil that reigns more supreme in aromatherapy than lavender!
Making use of an essential oil diffuser is perfect if you’re going to be tripping indoors. All you need to do is set it up and allow it to gently fill the space with a lovely lavender fragrance as you embark on your psychedelic journey. Alternatively, a diffuser necklace (where you add a few drops of essential oil to a special pendant) will allow you to carry the lovely and relaxing lavender scent along with you wherever your journey may take you.
All of these herbs can be used to enhance your psychedelic trip significantly. So, be sure to take advantage of all their incredible benefits and take your psychedelic journey and experience to the next level.
