Sleep Paralysis Visions: Demons, Succubi, and the Archetypal Mind

Jump to Section

Jump to Section

If you have ever woken up in the middle of the night and found you can’t move, or even cry for help, you have experienced sleep paralysis.  If, during this bizarre paralysis, you suddenly felt that someone – or something – was watching you, you have come face to face with the waking hallucination known as the Intruder.  And if all this happens and then a ghastly creature resembling a gnome or a night elf crawls onto you to whisper sweet impish nothings into your ear, congratulations, you are one of the lucky ones to know the Incubus.

And you’re not alone.

Sleep Paralysis (SP) and its associated visions, known as hypnagogic hallucinations (HH), are still a mystery to medical science, even though 40% of the world’s population has experienced it at least once in their lives.  Although a common symptom of narcolepsy and other sleep disorders, sleep paralysis can also be induced in healthy dreamers due to factors like sleep deprivation, jet lag, or too much cannabis before bed.

Normally in REM sleep, the body is paralyzed to prevent us from acting out our dreams. In sleep paralysis, the REM paralysis persists momentarily after we have woken up. But we’re not really awake – rather we are aware in a fugue state in between dreaming and the waking world.  We literally project the dreamscape onto the landscape of our sleep environment.

The apparitions associated with sleep paralysis include aliens, angels, and ancestors, depending on your cultural upbringing and your level of fear.  Like lucid dreaming, this nightmare is really a co-creation between the dreamer’s (or visionary’s) expectations and the murky-murk of the unconscious or perhaps the collective realms beyond the personal mind.

It’s truly an extraordinary conscious state, but not many people talk about it because to be haunted by demons in the 21st century, this Age of Information, is to be doubly cursed.

I’m not sure what’s more disturbing, though: that around the world millions of people are visited at night by ghoulish entities who want to torment/sleep with us, or that, in a recent diagnostic survey, over half of psychiatrists admitted that they would diagnose a person who reported a typical sleep paralysis dream (can’t move, can’t breathe, stinky demon sitting on the chest) with some kind of psychosis such as schizophrenia.

As Hufford himself has said in an interview in the 2008 documentary Your Worst Nightmare, “We have erased knowledge of these experiences from the cultural repertoire while these experiences are continuing to happen. That’s dramatic. That’s a level of social control that’s very impressive.”

Indeed, sleep paralysis visions are a normal, healthy part of life for thousands of psychics, shamans, and explorers of the deep mind. Like lucid dreams and psychedelic encounters, SP visions present gifts and opportunities, once you get used to all the existential horror, spontaneous kundalini blasts and first chakra freak-fests. My hope is that we can begin to reclaim this lost lexicon and learn from one another about these freaky underworld visions that have helped shape our myths and fairy tales.

What follows is an excerpt from chapter 4 of my ebook Sleep Paralysis: A Dreamer’s Guide. This chapter explores the psychological theories currently in vogue about the Apparition, as well as a quick look into the role sleep paralysis apparitions have played in history.

Excerpt from Chapter 4 of Sleep Paralysis: A Dreamer’s Guide

Psychological Theories about SP Entities

The Threat Vigilance System

Scientists have had little to say about these apparition visions until recently.  Current cognitive psychology research suggests that SP with HH triggers a threat-awareness scan in the brain known as the vigilance system. [1] This process is largely unconscious and normally is responsible for identifying possible threats (“What’s that noise?”) and making quick decisions about our physical safety (“Oh, it’s just the cat.”).  But in SP/HH, our eyes are open and we are projecting our dreams into physical space.  The combination of sensing and imagining makes the system go a little haywire, causing the vigilance system to stay activated because it cannot clarify exactly what the threat is. “Threat!” the system calls, again and again.  This, in turn, makes our fear intensify because a part of the brain responsible for intense emotions, the amygdala, is already heightened in this dream state. [2]  So we project images of our worst fears into the room, intensifying our fear even further as the Stranger takes form.

It is an escalating fear-vision feedback system that precipitates the apparition beside our bed with its darkened face and evil-feeling presence.  We co-create the nightmare without even knowing it.

In my mind, this physical explanation is incomplete, because it doesn”t explain why the triggered vigilance system interprets the vague dream forms as a human-like presence.  Why not a tidal wave, an earthquake or an avalanche? After all, these are common themes in many other kinds of nightmares.

Neurotheology and Spirits

This is where the research of anthropologist Michael Winkelman comes in handy.  Winkelman suggests that humans are hard-wired to see spirits; it’s part of our genetic make-up. Known as neurotheology [3], this view posits that the universality of seeing spirits does not necessarily mean that “spirits are real,” but certainly that the experiences are authentic, and not just made up by a combination of wishful thinking and cultural loading from myths and fairy tales.

Further, Winkelman suggests that we are predisposed to see human-like spirits because our minds are accustomed to perceiving the world as having qualities like ourselves.  When something sudden happens –a peal of thunder– our first assumption is, “Who did that?” So in times of ambiguity, projecting a human-like actor into the scene is our first cognitive line of defense.  Why?  Maybe because you can try to reason with a Thunder God, but not with nature herself.  This has appeal from an evolutionary perspective, because the greatest danger to a human life has never been the tiger or the lion, but social ostracization and abandonment.

Whether or not we accept Winkelman”s hypothesis, neurotheology brings a crucial insight to the worldwide perception of the Stranger apparition: in times of distress, we tend to perceive self-like entities in the world.

Dreams, Archetypes and Entities

Dreams also brings us closer to the unconscious frameworks with which we see the world.  REM dreaming is, neurologically speaking, a visionary state of mind.  Activation of the limbic system brings strong emotions, combined with an enhanced access to long-term memory–and a depression of short-term memory so we don’t tend to question who or where we are. [4] Add the intense firing of the parts of the brain that brings mental imagery, and you have dreaming: a potent mix of visual-emotional metaphors that link to our deepest memories and experiences.

This neurological basis of SP visions in REM sleep provides additional support for the archetypal psychology of Carl Jung and James Hillman. [5] These depth psychologies address the issue of  “visitors” in dream visions as communication between the conscious mind and unconscious processes.  These processes are autonomous, occurring on their own accord, whether or not we pay attention to them.  However, directing heightened awareness towards these images can quicken the mind’s digestion and integration of these ancient impulses, personal myths, and cultural and familial expectations.  Some of the archetypal images that may arise from these deep psychological processes are human figures such as the wise old man and wise woman, and the inner child.

The Shadow

One of Jung and Hillman’s insights into our propensity to create nightmarish figures in dreams and visions is that sometimes we are faced with confrontation images that just will not go away. This is the archetype of the Shadow.  Poet Robert Bly calls the shadow everything we don’t want to look at that we threw into a bag long ago. [6] While the shadow can be parts of ourselves that we have disowned (such as greed, weakness, or an undeveloped artistic ability), it can also be something about our culture, our nation’s history, or our socio-economic class that we don’t like to think about. The shadow could express poverty, racism, or a landscape that has been repeatedly stripped of its natural habitats.  These unconscious patterns can play out over and over throughout history, as well as in our dreams. [7] In SP visions, sometimes the apparition comes not just to be scary, but to be heard.

Still, we want to be careful not to reduce the apparitions to a symbol or concept. Each meeting is unique, alive, and dynamic.  I can tell you from personal experience that the Stranger, or any dream figure, doesn”t take kindly to being called a “representation.” Would you?

Psychic dimensions of SP apparitions

The literature on the connection between hypnagogic hallucinations and psychic effects is pretty vast and comes from many parallel threads.   Telepathy, ESP, and mutual dreams have been cited in religious texts and accounts, 19th century spiritualism and occult texts, and in modern controlled studies.  In general, dream researchers who look at this aspect of dreaming suggest that hypnagogia (and its sister state in sleep awakening, hypnopompia) seem to be “more conducive to telepathy,” as Simon Sherwood reports in his 2002 meta-analysis. [8]

Neurology, of course, does not really provide much support of this topic, except to say that HH are more similar in brain activation to trance states than ordinary dreaming. [9] Heightened alpha brain waves are reported in SP/HH, [10] just as with OBEs, and some forms of deep meditation, all of which are correlated with psi accounts. Field anthropologists who study indigenous peoples have also reported numerous anomalous “psi” events, usually saving their declaration after they secure tenure or retire. [11] These events, while hard to replicate in a lab, become an accepted part of life for those who are remain open to uncanny and bizarre experiences such as synchronicity and precognitive dreams.

Sleep Paralysis and Place: A Geologic Hypothesis

Psychologist Jorge Conesa-Sevilla has put forward an ecopsychological hypothesis about SP/HH.  Ecopsychology is the study of the mind in association with the natural environment.  Conesa-Sevilla suggests the uncanny state of mind may be triggered by geological anomalies, and points out that cultures living in the “Ring of Fire,” the geomagnetically unstable areas of Central America, the Pacific Coast of the US, Southern Alaska, Hawaii, and Indonesia, have a much more developed vocabulary for sleep paralysis and its accompanying hallucinations than anywhere else in the world. [12]
Many of the indigenous peoples of these territories are dreaming cultures that pay attention to, and actively invite, the “dreaming arts” such as lucid dreaming, reverie and trance states. [13] Given that geomagnetic effects have been shown to alter consciousness, Conesa-Sevilla’s hypothesis is not so unlikely. Similarly, archaeologist Paul Devereux has noted that SP is one state of consciousness among many that “transgress” the normal boundaries of mental imagery (without straying into psychosis), and may be responsible for some mental events interpreted as hauntings. [14] In both of these theories, then, the Stranger can be seen as emerging from local environmental conditions, as well as from the dreamer’s own mind and cultural upbringing.

Sleep Paralysis Interpreted Through History

The phenomenon of the Stranger has occurred throughout recorded history and around the world.  This spirit with a thousand faces [15] has a long distinguished history of being the scariest thing around. Many “things that go bump in the night” could take place during SP nightmares.  Here are some examples from the history books:

Ghosts and Hauntings

Many tales of hauntings in Europe and the US take place when the witness is lying in bed awake when suddenly he or she feels a presence in the room at the same time notices the onset of paralysis.  In many of these classic accounts, an apparition may come into the room, sit on the bed, or start choking the witness with ghostly hands. Other accounts mention fighting with ghosts or specters, and finally “pushing” them off.

Scrooge’s encounter with the ghost of Marley in Charles Dickens’ Christmas Carol is a good example, as this fictional narrative has many SP features, such as feeling of presence in the room, followed by the sound of chains and approaching footsteps, and the narrator’s adamant conclusion that he is awake despite the otherworldly nature of the encounter.  Individuals not accustomed to lucid dreaming, iSP and other extraordinary states, do not understand that you can be hallucinating while still in your “right mind,” leading them prematurely to supernatural explanations. [16]

Witchcraft and Demons

In Europe and the US, belief in witchcraft has a long history.  According to 17th century American court documents, for example, a woman was tried as a witch because her accuser said that her apparition came into his room at night and climbed on top of him. This was called “witch riding,” and still is in some African-American communities. [17]

In medieval Europe, accounts suggest that demons could sit on the sufferer’s chest and sexually molest them against their will. These demons were known as the Incubus (male) and the Succubus (female). [18] The Malleus Maleficarum (“the Witch’s Hammer”), a guidebook written in 1486 and used to prosecute pagans and witches during the Inquisition, suggests that witches are those who voluntarily submit themselves (and have intercourse) with the Incubus demons. Some succubi legends suggest female demons collected men’s sperm during forced intercourse at night.

Fairies and Little People

The fairy folklore of the British Isles is often framed around an abduction story.  The fairy gives the victim a drink or otherwise induces paralysis, and then absconds with the victim to fairyland, always returning him safely to his bed. [19] In some fairy tales, however, children are stolen and never returned. [20] Incidentally, fairies were also blamed for paralysis in livestock, which was called “fairy-riding.”

In Norse mythology, black elves known as Svartálfar were feared because of their paralyzing arrows, called “elf shot.”  These dwarf-like creatures were known for sitting on the sleeper’s chest and whispering horrible things into the dreamer’s ear. In German, the word for nightmare, “Albtraum” still translates to “elf dream.”  Sleep paralysis entities seem to consist more of the “earth fairies,” such as trolls, dwarves, and wood nymphs, as opposed to the more delicate winged fairies and water nixies.

Vampires

This passage from Bram Stoker’s Dracula speaks for itself:

There was in the room the same thin white mist that I had before discovered . . . I felt the same vague terror which had come to me before and the same sense of some presence . . . Then indeed, my heart sank within me: Beside the bed, as if had stepped out of the mist–or rather as if the mist had turned into his figure, for it had completely disappeared–stood a tall, thin man, all in black.  I knew him at once from the description of the others.  The waxen face: the high aquiline nose, on which the light fell in a thin white line; the parted red lips, with the sharp white teeth showing between; and the red eyes . . . I would have screamed out, only that I was paralyzed. [21]

Sound familiar?  The detail about the mist transforming
into the dark figure is a clue that we’ll come back to soon.

——

  1. Cheyne et al. 1999.
  2. Marquet et al. 1996, cited in Rock 2004, p. 52
  3. Winkelman 2004, p. 60.  Neurotheology moves far beyond
    this idea, and has sponsored some well-meaning but ultimately reductive quests,
    such as the search for the “God gene.”  Winkelman stays within his
    warrant, and does not comment on the ontological reality of spirits, only their
    phenomenal reality beyond the cultural source hypothesis which reduces SP
    visions to fairy tale replays.
  4. Hobson Dreaming; an Introduction to the science of sleep, 2002.  Hobson and other dream researchers still
    debate if REM = dreams, but we can safely say that most dreams we remember come
    from this physiological state.
  5. The best introduction to Jung is his autobiography Memories, Dreams, and Reflections.
    Hillman book the Soul’s Code, while
    not explicitly about dreams, showcases his theory of the personality and its
    inner workings.
  6. Bly; A Little Book on the Human Shadow. 1998.
  7. See Chalquist’s Terrapsychology, 2007 for more about myth, landscape, and
    unconscious acting-out.
  8. Sherwood; “Relationship between the hypnagogic/hynogogic states and reports of anomalous experiences.”  Journal of parapsychology, 66, pp. 127-150.  2002, p. 136. Stan Krippner and Montague’s Ullman’s
    work at the Dream Laboratory of the Maimonides Medical Center in the 1970s has
    proven to be the zenith of scientific work on psychic dreams; but the evidence
    is well known to lifelong dreamers.
  9. Hunt; Multiplicity of Dreams 1989.
  10. Takeuchi et al. Isolated sleep paralysis elicited by sleep interruption. Sleep, 15, pp. 217-225, 1992. The authors of this study propose that
    two thirds of ghost tales, if taken seriously, may occur when the witness is in
    sleep paralysis, highway hypnosis, REM sleep disorder, or other clinically
    diagnosed diseases and syndromes.
  11. Young and Goudet, Being Changed: The Anthropology of Extraordinary Experience. Ontario, Canada; Broadview Press.1994.
  12. Sevilla; Geomagnetic, cross-cultural and occupational faces of sleep paralysis: and ecological perspective. Sleep and Hypnosis, 2, pp. 105-111. 2000.
  13. Tedlock 2001 in Bulkeley’s Dreams: a reader on the religious, cultural, and psychological
    dimensions of dreaming
    .
  14. Devereux 2001, Haunted
    Land
    , p. 190.  Sherwood (2002) also discusses the correlation between
    hypnagogic hallucinations and anomalous experiences including telepathy,
    pyrokinesis, past life experiences, and near death experiences.
  15. My apologies to Joseph Campbell, who, to the delight of
    readers and disdain of academic folklorists everywhere, integrated Jungian
    psychology with the expressions of folklore, myth, and ritual.  See the Power of Myth.
  16. I don’t mean to reduce all uncanny phenomena to physical
    brain states such as SP/HH. Rather, I suggest that uncanny states, which
    sometimes include content that cannot be known by rational means or any
    psychological process we currently understand, have material correlates. See
    Proud (2009) for experiences about the paranormal elements of SP/HH. For a
    review of the scientific inquiry into psi, ESP and dream telepathy, I recommend
    Charles Tart’s The End of Materialism.
  17. Hufford 1982, The
    Terror That Comes in the Night
    , p. 221.
  18. Jones 1951, On the
    Nightmare
    , p. 82. Jones was a student of Freud’s, and interpreted many SP
    experiences as repressed sexual urges.
  19. Briggs 1976, Encyclopedia
    of Fairies.
  20. Froud 1998, Good
    fairies, bad fairies.
    A whimsical guide, mixed with authentic folklore
    research and captivating illustrations.
  21. Stoker, Dracula, p.
    267 as quoted in Hufford 1982, p 228.

Psychedelic Resources

A Foraging Trip: Where Do Magic Mushrooms Grow?
Eager to learn more about the origin of psilocybin species? Read this article to find out where magic mushrooms grow and more!

How to Make Shroom Tea: Best Recipe and Dosage
A step by step guide on how to brew shroom tea, and why entheogenic psilocybin tea is a preferred method for psychedelic connoisseurs.

R. Gordon Wasson: Author and Mushroom Expert
Learn about R. Gordon Wasson, the “legendary mushroom expert” and popular figure within the psychonaut community.

Shrooms vs Acid: Differences and Similarities Explained
Ever wondered what the differences are between shrooms vs acid, or if you can take both together? This guide explains what you need to know.

Quantum Mechanics, Reality, and Magic Mushrooms
Scientist and author Dr. Chris Becker takes an in-depth approach in understanding how we perceive reality through magic mushrooms and quantum mechanics.

Psilocybin Guide: Effects, Common Uses, Safety
Our ultimate guide to Psilocybin has everything you want to know about this psychedelic fungi from its uses to its legal status.

The Psilocybin Experience: What’s the Deal With Magic Mushrooms?
From microdoses to macrodoses, the psilocybin experience has been sought after both medicinally and recreationally for millennia.

Psilocybin and Magic Mushroom Resources
Curious to learn more about psilocybin? This guide is a comprehensive psilocybin resource containing books, therapeutic studies, and more.

Paul Stamets Profile: Mushroom Guru, Filmmaker, Nutritionist, Scientist
Learn about Paul Stamets, read his thoughts on psilocybin mircodosing, the future of psilocybin, and his recent film “Fantastic Fungi”.

Microdosing Psilocybin & Common Dosage Explained
Microdosing, though imperceivably, is showing to have many health benefits–here is everything you want to know about microdosing psilocybin.

Psilocybin Nasal Spray: Relief for Anxiety, PTSD, and Depression
Microdosing nasal spray with psilocybin, is that possible?! Oregan a start-up Silo Wellness believes so and has created this new option for PTSD treatment.

Mazatec Mushroom Usage: Notes on Approach, Setting and Species for Curious Psilonauts
A look at traditional Mazatec psilocybin mushroom usage, and a comparison to the cliniical therapeutic approach, with an examination of the Mazatec setting and species used in veladas.

María Sabina: The Mazatec Magic Mushroom Woman
Magic mushrooms are incredibly popular today. How they became introduced to into American culture isn’t usually a topic discussed while tripping on psilocybin fungi. We all may have María Sabina to thank for exposing the Western world to the healing properties of the psilocybin mushroom.

Guide to Magic Mushroom Strains
Are there different types of psilocybin? Read our guide to learn about the different magic mushroom strains and their individual effects.

Kilindi Iyi: Mycologist, Traveler, Teacher
Learn about traveler and mycologist Kilindi Iyi known in the psychedelic community for his research and exploration of psilocybin.

How to Store Shrooms: Best Practices
How do you store shrooms for optimal shelf life? Learn how and why the proper storage method is so important.

Shroom Chocolate Recipes: How to Make Magic Mushroom Chocolates
This recipe provides step by step directions on how you can make mushroom chocolates with the necessary ingredients. Read to learn more!

Why Do People Use Psilocybin? New Johns Hopkins Study
Johns Hopkins University School of Medicines has just published a new study on psychoactive effects of psilocybin. Read here to learn more.

How-To Lemon Tek: Ultimate Guide and Recipe
This master guide will teach you how to lemon tek, preventing the onset of negative effects after consuming psilocybin. Read to learn more!

How to Intensify a Mushroom Trip
Learn about techniques like Lemon tekking, or discover the right time to consume cannabis if you are looking to intensify a mushroom trip.

How to Grow Magic Mushrooms: Step-by-Step
This step-by-step guide will show you how to grow magic mushrooms at home. Read this guide before trying it on your own.

How to Dry Magic Mushrooms: Best Practices
Read to learn more about specifics for the best practices on how to dry magic mushrooms after harvesting season.

How to Buy Psilocybin Spores
Interested in psilocybin mushrooms? We’ll walk you through all you need to know to obtain mushroom spores. Nosh on this delish How To guide.

Hippie Flipping: When Shrooms and Molly Meet
What is it, what does it feel like, and how long does it last? Explore the mechanics of hippie flipping and how to safely experiment.

Having Sex on Shrooms: Good or Bad Idea?
Is having sex on shrooms a good idea or an accident waiting to happen? Find out in our guide to sex on magic mushrooms.

Gold Cap Shrooms Guide: Spores, Effects, Identification
Read this guide to learn more about the different characteristics of gold cap mushrooms, and how they differ from other psilocybin species.

Guide to Cooking with Magic Mushrooms
From cookies to smoothies and sandwiches, we cover various methods of cooking with magic mushrooms for the ultimate snack.

2020 Election: The Decriminalize Psilocybin Movement
Are you curious if mushrooms will follow in marijuana’s footsteps? Read to learn about how the U.S. is moving to decriminalize psilocybin.

Oregon’s Initiative to Legalize Mushrooms | Initiative Petition 34
Oregon continues to push ahead with their initiative to legalize Psilocybin in 2020. The measure received its official title and now needs signatures.

Canada Approves Psilocybin Treatment for Terminally-Ill Cancer Patients
Canada’s Minister of Health, Patty Hajdu approved the use of psilocybin to help ease anxiety and depression of four terminal cancer patients.

Mapping the DMT Experience
With only firsthand experiences to share, how can we fully map the DMT experience? Let’s explore what we know about this powerful psychedelic.

Guide to Machine Elves and Other DMT Entities
This guide discusses machine elves, clockwork elves, and other common DMT entities that people experience during a DMT trip.

Is the DMT Experience a Hallucination? 
What if the DMT realm was the real world, and our everyday lives were merely a game we had chosen to play?

How to Store DMT
Not sure how to store DMT? Read this piece to learn the best practices and elements of advice to keep your stuff fresh.

What Does 5-MeO-DMT Show Us About Consciousness?
How does our brain differentiate between what’s real and what’s not? Read to learn what can 5-MeO-DMT show us about consciousness.

How to Smoke DMT: Processes Explained
There are many ways to smoke DMT and we’ve outlined some of the best processes to consider before embarking on your journey.

How to Ground After DMT
Knowing what to expect from a DMT comedown can help you integrate the experience to gain as much value as possible from your journey.

How To Get DMT
What kind of plants contain DMT? Are there other ways to access this psychedelic? Read on to learn more about how to get DMT.

How DMT is Made: Everything You Need to Know
Ever wonder how to make DMT? Read our guide to learn everything you need to know about the procedures of how DMT is made.

Having Sex on DMT: What You Need to Know
Have you ever wondered about sex on DMT? Learn how the God Molecule can influence your intimate experiences.

Does the Human Brain Make DMT? 
With scientific evidence showing us DMT in the brain, what can we conclude it is there for? Read on to learn more.

How to Use DMT Vape Pens
Read to learn all about DMT vape pens including: what to know when vaping, what to expect when purchasing a DMT cartridge, and vaping safely.

DMT Resources
This article is a comprehensive DMT resource providing extensive information from studies, books, documentaries, and more. Check it out!

Differentiating DMT and Near-Death Experiences
Some say there are similarities between a DMT trip and death. Read our guide on differentiating DMT and near-death experiences to find out.

DMT Research from 1956 to the Edge of Time
From a representative sample of a suitably psychedelic crowd, you’d be hard pressed to find someone who couldn’t tell you all about Albert Hofmann’s enchanted bicycle ride after swallowing what turned out to be a massive dose of LSD. Far fewer, however, could tell you much about the world’s first DMT trip.

The Ultimate Guide to DMT Pricing
Check out our ultimate guide on DMT pricing to learn what to expect when purchasing DMT for your first time.

DMT Milking | Reality Sandwich
Indigenous cultures have used 5-MeO-DMT for centuries. With the surge in demand for psychedelic toad milk, is DMT Milking harming the frogs?

Why Does DMT Pervade Nature?
With the presence of DMT in nature everywhere – including human brains – why does it continue to baffle science?

DMT Substance Guide: Effects, Common Uses, Safety
Our ultimate guide to DMT has everything you want to know about this powerful psychedelic referred to as “the spirit molecule”.

DMT for Depression: Paving the Way for New Medicine
We’ve been waiting for an effective depression treatment. Studies show DMT for depression works even for treatment resistant patients.

Beating Addiction with DMT
Psychedelics have been studied for their help overcoming addiction. Read how DMT is helping addicts beat their substance abuse issues.

DMT Extraction: Behind the Scientific Process
Take a look at DMT extraction and the scientific process involved. Learn all you need to know including procedures and safety.

Microdosing DMT & Common Dosages Explained
Microdosing, though imperceivable, is showing to have many health benefits–here is everything you want to know about microdosing DMT.

DMT Art: A Look Behind Visionary Creations
An entire genre of artwork is inspired by psychedelic trips with DMT. Read to learn about the entities and visions behind DMT art.

Changa vs. DMT: What You Need to Know
While similar (changa contains DMT), each drug has its own unique effect and feeling. Let’s compare and contrast changa vs DMT.

5-MeO-DMT Guide: Effects, Benefits, Safety, and Legality
5-Meo-DMT comes from the Sonora Desert toad. Here is everything you want to know about 5-Meo-DMT and how it compares to 4-AcO-DMT.

4-AcO-DMT Guide: Benefits, Effects, Safety, and Legality
This guide tells you everything about 4 AcO DMT & 5 MeO DMT, that belong to the tryptamine class, and are similar but slightly different to DMT.

How Much Does LSD Cost? When shopping around for that magical psychedelic substance, there can be many uncertainties when new to buying LSD. You may be wondering how much does LSD cost? In this article, we will discuss what to expect when purchasing LSD on the black market, what forms LSD is sold in, and the standard breakdown of buying LSD in quantity.   Navy Use of LSD on the Dark Web The dark web is increasingly popular for purchasing illegal substances. The US Navy has now noticed this trend with their staff. Read to learn more.   Having Sex on LSD: What You Need to Know Can you have sex on LSD? Read our guide to learn everything about sex on acid, from lowered inhibitions to LSD users quotes on sex while tripping.   A Drug That Switches off an LSD Trip A pharmaceutical company is developing an “off-switch” drug for an LSD trip, in the case that a bad trip can happen. Some would say there is no such thing.   Queen of Hearts: An Interview with Liz Elliot on Tim Leary and LSD The history of psychedelia, particularly the British experience, has been almost totally written by men. Of the women involved, especially those who were in the thick of it, little has been written either by or about them. A notable exception is Liz Elliot.   LSD Guide: Effects, Common Uses, Safety LSD, Lysergic acid diethylamide, or just acid is one of the most important psychedelics ever discovered. What did history teach us?   Microdosing LSD & Common Dosage Explained Microdosing, though imperceivable, is showing to have many health benefits–here is everything you want to know about microdosing LSD.   LSD Resources Curious to learn more about LSD? This guide includes comprehensive LSD resources containing books, studies and more.   LSD as a Spiritual Aid There is common consent that the evolution of mankind is paralleled by the increase and expansion of consciousness. From the described process of how consciousness originates and develops, it becomes evident that its growth depends on its faculty of perception. Therefore every means of improving this faculty should be used.   Legendary LSD Blotter Art: A Hidden Craftsmanship Have you ever heard of LSD blotter art? Explore the trippy world of LSD art and some of the top artists of LSD blotter art.   LSD and Exercise: Does it Work? LSD and exercise? Learn why high-performing athletes are taking hits of LSD to improve their overall potential.   Jan Bastiaans Treated Holocaust Survivors with LSD Dutch psychiatrist, Jan Bastiaans administered LSD-assisted therapy to survivors of the Holocaust. A true war hero and pioneer of psychedelic-therapy.   LSD and Spiritual Awakening I give thanks for LSD, which provided the opening that led me to India in 1971 and brought me to Neem Karoli Baba, known as Maharajji. Maharajji is described by the Indians as a “knower of hearts.”   How LSD is Made: Everything You Need to Know Ever wonder how to make LSD? Read our guide to learn everything you need to know about the procedures of how LSD is made.   How to Store LSD: Best Practices Learn the best way to store LSD, including the proper temperature and conditions to maximize how long LSD lasts when stored.   Bicycle Day: The Discovery of LSD Every year on April 19th, psychonauts join forces to celebrate Bicycle Day. Learn about the famous day when Albert Hoffman first discovered the effects of LSD.   Cary Grant: A Hollywood Legend On LSD Cary Grant was a famous actor during the 1930’s-60’s But did you know Grant experimented with LSD? Read our guide to learn more.   Albert Hofmann: LSD — My Problem Child Learn about Albert Hofmann and his discovery of LSD, along with the story of Bicycle Day and why it marks a historic milestone.   Babies are High: What Does LSD Do To Your Brain What do LSD and babies have in common? Researchers at the Imperial College in London discover that an adult’s brain on LSD looks like a baby’s brain.   1P LSD: Effects, Benefits, Safety Explained 1P LSD is an analogue of LSD and homologue of ALD-25. Here is everything you want to know about 1P LSD and how it compares to LSD.   Francis Crick, DNA & LSD Type ‘Francis Crick LSD’ into Google, and the result will be 30,000 links. Many sites claim that Crick (one of the two men responsible for discovering the structure of DNA), was either under the influence of LSD at the time of his revelation or used the drug to help with his thought processes during his research. Is this true?   What Happens If You Overdose on LSD? A recent article presented three individuals who overdosed on LSD. Though the experience was unpleasant, the outcomes were remarkably positive.

The Ayahuasca Experience
Ayahuasca is both a medicine and a visionary aid. You can employ ayahuasca for physical, mental, emotional and spiritual repair, and you can engage with the power of ayahuasca for deeper insight and realization. If you consider attainment of knowledge in the broadest perspective, you can say that at all times, ayahuasca heals.

 

Trippy Talk: Meet Ayahuasca with Sitaramaya Sita and PlantTeachers
Sitaramaya Sita is a spiritual herbalist, pusangera, and plant wisdom practitioner formally trained in the Shipibo ayahuasca tradition.

 

The Therapeutic Value of Ayahuasca
My best description of the impact of ayahuasca is that it’s a rocket boost to psychospiritual growth and unfolding, my professional specialty during my thirty-five years of private practice.

 

Microdosing Ayahuasca: Common Dosage Explained
What is ayahuasca made of and what is considered a microdose? Explore insights with an experienced Peruvian brewmaster and learn more about this practice.

 

Ayahuasca Makes Neuron Babies in Your Brain
Researchers from Beckley/Sant Pau Research Program have shared the latest findings in their study on the effects of ayahuasca on neurogenesis.

 

The Fatimiya Sufi Order and Ayahuasca
In this interview, the founder of the Fatimiya Sufi Order,  N. Wahid Azal, discusses the history and uses of plant medicines in Islamic and pre-Islamic mystery schools.

 

Consideration Ayahuasca for Treatment of Post Traumatic Stress Disorder
Research indicates that ayahuasca mimics mechanisms of currently accepted treatments for PTSD. In order to understand the implications of ayahuasca treatment, we need to understand how PTSD develops.

 

Brainwaves on Ayahuasca: A Waking Dream State
In a study researchers shared discoveries showing ingredients found in Ayahuasca impact the brainwaves causing a “waking dream” state.

 

Cannabis and Ayahuasca: Mixing Entheogenic Plants
Cannabis and Ayahuasca: most people believe they shouldn’t be mixed. Read this personal experience peppered with thoughts from a pro cannabis Peruvian Shaman.

 

Ayahuasca Retreat 101: Everything You Need to Know to Brave the Brew
Ayahuasca has been known to be a powerful medicinal substance for millennia. However, until recently, it was only found in the jungle. Word of its deeply healing and cleansing properties has begun to spread across the world as many modern, Western individuals are seeking spiritual, mental, emotional, and physical well-being. More ayahuasca retreat centers are emerging in the Amazon and worldwide to meet the demand.

 

Ayahuasca Helps with Grief
A new study published in psychopharmacology found that ayahuasca helped those suffering from the loss of a loved one up to a year after treatment.

 

Ayahuasca Benefits: Clinical Improvements for Six Months
Ayahuasca benefits can last six months according to studies. Read here to learn about the clinical improvements from drinking the brew.

 

Ayahuasca Culture: Indigenous, Western, And The Future
Ayahuasca has been use for generations in the Amazon. With the rise of retreats and the brew leaving the rainforest how is ayahuasca culture changing?

 

Ayahuasca Guide: Effects, Common Uses, Safety
The Amazonian brew, Ayahuasca has a long history and wide use. Read our guide to learn all about the tea from its beginnings up to modern-day interest.

 

Ayahuasca and the Godhead: An Interview with Wahid Azal of the Fatimiya Sufi Order
Wahid Azal, a Sufi mystic of The Fatimiya Sufi Order and an Islamic scholar, talks about entheogens, Sufism, mythology, and metaphysics.

 

Ayahuasca and the Feminine: Women’s Roles, Healing, Retreats, and More
Ayahuasca is lovingly called “grandmother” or “mother” by many. Just how feminine is the brew? Read to learn all about women and ayahuasca.

What Is the Standard of Care for Ketamine Treatments?
Ketamine therapy is on the rise in light of its powerful results for treatment-resistant depression. But, what is the current standard of care for ketamine? Read to find out.

What Is Dissociation and How Does Ketamine Create It?
Dissociation can take on multiple forms. So, what is dissociation like and how does ketamine create it? Read to find out.

Having Sex on Ketamine: Getting Physical on a Dissociative
Curious about what it could feel like to have sex on a dissociate? Find out all the answers in our guide to sex on ketamine.

Special K: The Party Drug
Special K refers to Ketamine when used recreationally. Learn the trends as well as safety information around this substance.

Kitty Flipping: When Ketamine and Molly Meet
What is it, what does it feel like, and how long does it last? Read to explore the mechanics of kitty flipping.

Ketamine vs. Esketamine: 3 Important Differences Explained
Ketamine and esketamine are used to treat depression. But what’s the difference between them? Read to learn which one is right for you: ketamine vs. esketamine.

Guide to Ketamine Treatments: Understanding the New Approach
Ketamine is becoming more popular as more people are seeing its benefits. Is ketamine a fit? Read our guide for all you need to know about ketamine treatments.

Ketamine Treatment for Eating Disorders
Ketamine is becoming a promising treatment for various mental health conditions. Read to learn how individuals can use ketamine treatment for eating disorders.

Ketamine Resources, Studies, and Trusted Information
Curious to learn more about ketamine? This guide includes comprehensive ketamine resources containing books, studies and more.

Ketamine Guide: Effects, Common Uses, Safety
Our ultimate guide to ketamine has everything you need to know about this “dissociative anesthetic” and how it is being studied for depression treatment.

Ketamine for Depression: A Mental Health Breakthrough
While antidepressants work for some, many others find no relief. Read to learn about the therapeutic uses of ketamine for depression.

Ketamine for Addiction: Treatments Offering Hope
New treatments are offering hope to individuals suffering from addiction diseases. Read to learn how ketamine for addiction is providing breakthrough results.

Microdosing Ketamine & Common Dosages Explained
Microdosing, though imperceivable, is showing to have many health benefits–here is everything you want to know about microdosing ketamine.

How to Ease a Ketamine Comedown
Knowing what to expect when you come down from ketamine can help integrate the experience to gain as much value as possible.

How to Store Ketamine: Best Practices
Learn the best ways how to store ketamine, including the proper temperature and conditions to maximize how long ketamine lasts when stored.

How To Buy Ketamine: Is There Legal Ketamine Online?
Learn exactly where it’s legal to buy ketamine, and if it’s possible to purchase legal ketamine on the internet.

How Long Does Ketamine Stay in Your System?
How long does ketamine stay in your system? Are there lasting effects on your body? Read to discover the answers!

How Ketamine is Made: Everything You Need to Know
Ever wonder how to make Ketamine? Read our guide to learn everything you need to know about the procedures of how Ketamine is made.

Colorado on Ketamine: First Responders Waiver Programs
Fallout continues after Elijah McClain. Despite opposing recommendations from some city council, Colorado State Health panel recommends the continued use of ketamine by medics for those demonstrating “excited delirium” or “extreme agitation”.

Types of Ketamine: Learn the Differences & Uses for Each
Learn about the different types of ketamine and what they are used for—and what type might be right for you. Read now to find out!

Kitty Flipping: When Ketamine and Molly Meet
What is it, what does it feel like, and how long does it last? Read to explore the mechanics of kitty flipping.

MDMA & Ecstasy Guide: Effects, Common Uses, Safety
Our ultimate guide to MDMA has everything you want to know about Ecstasy from how it was developed in 1912 to why it’s being studied today.

How To Get the Most out of Taking MDMA as a Couple
Taking MDMA as a couple can lead to exciting experiences. Read here to learn how to get the most of of this love drug in your relationship.

Common MDMA Dosage & Microdosing Explained
Microdosing, though imperceivable, is showing to have many health benefits–here is everything you want to know about microdosing MDMA.

Having Sex on MDMA: What You Need to Know
MDMA is known as the love drug… Read our guide to learn all about sex on MDMA and why it is beginning to makes its way into couple’s therapy.

How MDMA is Made: Common Procedures Explained
Ever wonder how to make MDMA? Read our guide to learn everything you need to know about the procedures of how MDMA is made.

Hippie Flipping: When Shrooms and Molly Meet
What is it, what does it feel like, and how long does it last? Explore the mechanics of hippie flipping and how to safely experiment.

How Cocaine is Made: Common Procedures Explained
Ever wonder how to make cocaine? Read our guide to learn everything you need to know about the procedures of how cocaine is made.

A Christmas Sweater with Santa and Cocaine
This week, Walmart came under fire for a “Let it Snow” Christmas sweater depicting Santa with lines of cocaine. Columbia is not merry about it.

Ultimate Cocaine Guide: Effects, Common Uses, Safety
This guide covers what you need to know about Cocaine, including common effects and uses, legality, safety precautions and top trends today.

NEWS: An FDA-Approved Cocaine Nasal Spray
The FDA approved a cocaine nasal spray called Numbrino, which has raised suspicions that the pharmaceutical company, Lannett Company Inc., paid off the FDA..

The Ultimate Guide to Cannabis Bioavailability
What is bioavailability and how can it affect the overall efficacy of a psychedelic substance? Read to learn more.

Cannabis Research Explains Sociability Behaviors
New research by Dr. Giovanni Marsicano shows social behavioral changes occur as a result of less energy available to the neurons. Read here to learn more.

The Cannabis Shaman
If recreational and medical use of marijuana is becoming accepted, can the spiritual use as well? Experiential journalist Rak Razam interviews Hamilton Souther, founder of the 420 Cannabis Shamanism movement…

Cannabis Guide: Effects, Common Uses, Safety
Our ultimate guide to Cannabis has everything you want to know about this popular substances that has psychedelic properties.

Cannabis and Ayahuasca: Mixing Entheogenic Plants
Cannabis and Ayahuasca: most people believe they shouldn’t be mixed. Read this personal experience peppered with thoughts from a procannabis Peruvian Shaman.

CBD-Rich Cannabis Versus Single-Molecule CBD
A ground-breaking study has documented the superior therapeutic properties of whole plant Cannabis extract as compared to synthetic cannabidiol (CBD), challenging the medical-industrial complex’s notion that “crude” botanical preparations are less effective than single-molecule compounds.

Cannabis Has Always Been a Medicine
Modern science has already confirmed the efficacy of cannabis for most uses described in the ancient medical texts, but prohibitionists still claim that medical cannabis is “just a ruse.”

Related Posts

Ready to explore the frontiers of consciousness?

Sign up for the Reality Bites newsletter and embark on a journey into the world of psychedelics, mindfulness, and transformation. It’s where the curious minds gather.

Become a conscious agent with us.

Featured Partner

Cosmic Melts

Cosmic Melts are the latest mushroom gummies we’ve been munching on. Choose from five fruity flavors, each gummy containing 350mg of Amanita muscaria.
 
Amanita muscaria offers a unique (and totally legal!) mushroom experience, and Cosmic Melts is an ideal entry point for the curious consumer.
Featured Partner

Lab Link Supply

Our go-to source for spores so you can grow your own shrooms right at home. Carrying several of our favorite species including B+, Golden Teacher, Jedi Mind F*ck, Blue Meanie and more. Browse their selection of spores and get started with your home grow.

Our Partners

Welcome to Reality Sandwich. Please verify that you are over 18 years of age below.

Reality Sandwich uses cookies to ensure you get the best experience on our website. By entering Reality Sandwich, you are agreeing to the Terms and Conditions and Privacy Policy.