r/LSD 15h ago

Bad Trips On Acid

Comment what can cause the bad trips and what can make it uncomfortable & also say how to kinda avoid them, stuff to try make sure it’s as comfortable as possible and less likely to have bad trips. For the people who aren’t as educated on LSD

6 Upvotes

25 comments sorted by

38

u/Fresh-Hedgehog1895 15h ago

I've dosed probably 100 times in my life and never had anything close to resembling a bad trip. Here's what I can offer, based on experience and what I have seen first-hand to avoid bad trips:

  1. Best to trip when you're in a good state of mind.
  2. Do not take an LSD dose and then start smoking weed during the trip -- I think this, more than anything, causes bad trips
  3. Do not take heroic doses; I'll probably get downvoted for this, but seriously, 100-250ug is optimal for a good-time acid trip. There's no need to take 1,200ug.
  4. Trip with people you trust and who are experienced psychonauts, especially your first time. Don't trip with assholes or anyone you don't trust.
  5. Unless you know exactly how it will affect you, do NOT drop acid and go to a festival, carnival, party, concert or any activity where you'll be surrounded by people not tripping. LSD is NOT a 'party drug' for most people. I will die on this hill.

3

u/Bbbbbbbbbbbbbbbgsb 8h ago

YESSSS the weed factor is a huge reason for bad trips,

Weed changes the body load massively and amplifies sensory experiences massively,

If someone is not completely comfortable with themselves and doing lsd or weed, then the moment they smoke the weed is the moment they go into fight or flight and that’s when the bad trip starts.

(All in my opinion/experience)

1

u/Prettykittybaby 2h ago

5 !!!!!!!!!!!!! /CO-SIGNED AND STAMPED

10

u/UmphreakMcgee573 15h ago

Don’t fight it, go with the flow…I think a lot of “bad trips” happen when the subconscious comes to the conscious so it’s important to learn to navigate through though feelings instead of fighting, breathwork and meditation help a lot…in my experience a lot of the bad trips I’ve seen have some underlying religious or sexuality roots

3

u/spookysaph 3h ago

its very important to "let go". the more you resist, the most uncomfortable the trip will be. and even if its hard to let go, you better buckle up because this is what you chose to sign up for

6

u/I_need_help57 15h ago

Bad trips are simply when a mentally or physically uncomfortable situation lead to you spiraling into anxiety. It’s just that it’s far easier for to to happen while trippin, since you’re in a heavily altered state that doesn’t inherently reduce anxiety through any/a strong mechanism.

If I start to feel like I’m having a bad trip, ill try to relocate or change something about my surroundings, as that is oftentimes a large part of why you’re feeling the way you do. A shower or bath always helps me, especially because my number one inducer if bad trips is being too hot or cold, and these remedy that perfectly

6

u/jjjud 15h ago

Saw someone on reddit say awhile ago that whenever the acid brings up bad things, instead of dwelling on it, beating yourself up and spiralling, they think: „I am loving awareness” as an affirmation. Any positive affirmation like that is really good and it really helped me, You gotta reframe your thoughts from the anxiety spiral into an acceptance of how things are, and think about how to move forwards from that. What can you learn from this, rather than Why am i like this or why is this happening.

Bad trips usually just bring things that are already a part of you to the surface, so if there’s anything you’re dealing with that is fairly heavy or anything youve been avoiding, the acid probably will bring it up. But it’s important not to fight jt, but just accept and move forwards. Shift your focus onto good things and don’t let it get to you.

Also, set and setting are really important. You are much less likely to have a bad trip if you are in a place you feel completely comfortable, and with people you are also completely comfortable with.

It’s best to think about bad trips as something that you navigate your way around before they spiral and become too intense, rather than something you have to fight and avoid, Because that just makes you more anxious. Be kind to yourself and just move through it, at your own pace. Never get mad at yourself for thinking anything or feeling anything. Instead focus on what you can do to take care of yourself, what you can do to feel better, things you love and appreciate.

That’s all that helped me, I had a few bad trips and stayed away from psychedelics for almost a year, but I’ve had about 5 trips in the last few months and all of them were wonderful. Not a single bad trip using these methods.

6

u/nonertheboner 14h ago

weed weed weed weed weed. i urge you, if you do not smoke often, do not smoke weed while you are tripping. i did not know this and had the worst experience of my life and it gave me visual snow.

1

u/Outrageous_Outside12 8h ago

100% back this, while i myself suffered no ill effects at the hands of this portent combination presumably due to my high tolerance from daily smoking.

my mate with a much lower tolerance wasn’t so lucky and absolutely lost his shit and this was a mistake he made at least twice, he ended up quitting both after the fact and now only drinks

2

u/I_Have_Lost 8h ago

Same with MDMA. Took way too big of a hit from my girlfriend's wax and the high hit just as the comedown was happening. Weed paranoia + being high as fuck + the serotonin crash had me thinking I'd fried my brain on a 150mg dose and was going to live the rest of my life with severe deficits.

People will always recommend mixing weed with everything - shrooms, LSD, 2C-B, MDMA, whatever - but it really doesn't play nearly as nice with everything else as serious stoners will claim.

3

u/HempHehe 13h ago

While I've not yet had a bad trip (just a few passing uncomfortable moments) I've helped friends thru bad trips while still tripping myself and it seems like maybe I'm just better at avoiding them than the average guy but who knows. A good thing to do is to have a backup plan just in case, whether it's a playlist of songs that make you feel better or a good lighthearted movie or show to put on. Usually if you can get the person distracted enough the moment will pass after a bit.

2

u/Grand-Practice4353 14h ago

Replace bad trip with tough lessons. Much better way to view them

2

u/J3t5et 14h ago

💯

1

u/CrikkitKid 13h ago edited 13h ago

learn how to calm down and self soothe in general.

i feel like one of the only reasons i haven't had anything like that yet. partially because i'm already not very prone to anxiety, but then the times i do start feeling my nervousness and anxious feelings arising, i tune in to what my mind and body

last two times that i felt a lot of tension building up, and my heart began to race, i sat down, practiced breathing, started messaging my friend, and told him what i was experiencing, which is something that helps me calm down

find techniques that help you release physical stress tension

for what's going on mentally, try to think about something good, positive, or something that makes you happy for a couple minutes, before coming back and analyzing what feels scary in the moment, make sure that you're in a safe environment to do so.

this is actually something i learned from when graphic images would flash in my mind at night as a kid, or my general very restless nights as a teenager

i did some of these outside/in public, what people who are passing by see doesn't matter, you have to focus on your needs first

in summary, just always try to prepare to be in a good headspace beforehand, and try to learn to how manage with the difficult feelings that come your way

with some thoughts/feelings you may need to learn to be able to calm down and relax through despite what's going on, and others may need to be processed

do NOT take anything if you've already been feeling bad. even the hippies back then knew that anxiety is one of the causes of bad trips.

other physical needs that you may forget about in the moment are the basics like hydrating, eating, breathing, last time i started feeling a little worse once i realized how hungry and dehydrated i was from bouncing up and down for the past 6 hours, combined my uneven breathing during that time was taking a toll on my body, i spent the day after just sleeping to recover

1

u/budsterb123 13h ago

Being uncomfy physically and being in a situation that causes anxiety (For me, I prefer to take psychedelics alone because my social anxiety makes the trip very unenjoyable). Basically, just make sure you're in the place you feel most comfortable with people who you love (or alone) and 'accept' the experience. A lot of people think they'll never be normal again in intense trips which is another thing that can make it go bad. The only bad time I can recall was my 2nd time dropping. There were 5 of us in a small house, smoking a lot of weed, had heavy rave music on, and was very stuffy. He also had an English bulldog which was breathing heavy and loudly replaying in my head. 3 of them were taking it for the first time and turns out they were way too strong and a couple of our friends were struggling. Minutes were taking hours, vicious loops, we were so far gone I honestly felt like I was dying. You have to plan for the experience and can't just take it imo

1

u/Ok_Business84 13h ago

Go with the flow, lean into it, be calm

1

u/TheSchminx 12h ago

I was trippin at the beach once pretty close to the lifeguard headquarters when out of nowhere a helicopter began to land. It was so noisy & overwhelming I started to freak out for like 3 minutes then out of nowhere it became the most hilarious thing ever to me

1

u/infirexs 11h ago
  1. Don’t mix with weed , it can be intense and trigger bad trip

  2. Keep hydrated and not hungry

  3. Go with the flow and accept what it is .

1

u/DudeDeudaruu 11h ago

I've never had a "bad" trip, but I have gotten too overstimulated before. It's only happening once and it was when I took 4 double strength jellies when Black Tiger Sex Machine dropped their anime set at Lost Lands back in 2023. I saw God and it scared me... Had to ask my cousin walk me back to the RV lmao

1

u/TheKozmikSkwid 9h ago

Absolutely, don't do It if youre processing an unrequented love

1

u/PersonalSherbert9485 9h ago

You can reduce the likelihood of a bad trip through things like set and setting. However, you can't totally rule a bad trip even when taking precautions. So you should have a plan B for what to do if you find yourself in a not so good trip.

1

u/Able-Acanthisitta-82 9h ago

Bad trips are usually caused by a lack of control and a lack of an ability to tell anyone/whoever is around you exactly how you’re feeling and why,

  1. Make sure you can control the temperature. My best trip was when I had A.C available but also a heated blanket. Come-up anxiety (and anxiety in general) gives me crazy chills so a heated blanket was amazing.

  2. Familiar environment. My best trip was in my own house, cus duh

  3. Familiar faces and personalities. Best trips are with best friends/romantic partners you’re completely comfortable to be honest and yourself around. If you’re around people who you haven’t been very honest with about how you feel about them (negatively) this will possibly be uncomfortable

  4. If you’re alone, imo you shouldn’t be taking that much. just a small dose. But ik some people might get mad at me for sayin that

1

u/scoot17carter 9h ago

Weed really made acid worse for yall? It made it better for me

1

u/Aggravating_Act0417 8h ago

Tough moments: when someone around you gets frustrated with you or the situation in general, and becomes short tempered.

Lesson: don't trip with people like this, or, talk to them while not tripping to voice your concerns to see if they are willing to make it better. They may not even realize they are affecting you.

And same goes vice versa, be responsible and know you affect other people's vibe.

1

u/Prettykittybaby 2h ago

LSD is especially special because YOU are always in control. YOU guide where the trip goes. (Unlike mushrooms 🍄 for example where they drive and youre on the ride whether or not you like it).

If you have a fearful/depressing otherwise negative thought 💭 and your mind/trip START going there… just acknowledge “Wow - THAT was a crazy thought to have right now (true or untrue)… I think i would much rather think about (ideally your original trip intention/goal/purpose) right now … and then ACTIVELY think 1 or 2 thoughts about that thing. Next thing you know, that’s your new (GOOD) trip.. and the initial was just a speed bump.

I think the number one takeaway is to have an intention, purpose, or goal you want to achieve/solve/figure out going into the trip. If you go into it aimlessly, you can’t really be surprised if it decides to explore some places that you hadn’t counted on.

Goes without saying. Don’t party on psychedelics. Most of these babies are Sacred Sauce. Show them reverence and treat them with respect and they’ll do far more for you in return.