During my early days of experimenting with psychedelics, I had many profound mystical experiences that helped shape me into who I am today. However, I’ve certainly had some less-than-ideal experiences as well. The contrasting experiences were never because of the psychedelics themselves. It was because of where I was, who I was with, and my mindset at the time. This is the basis of set and setting when it comes to psychedelics.
Set refers to your internal environment. This can be your mood, mindset, personality, and beliefs. Setting refers to your external environment, which includes your physical and social environment. This just mean where you are physically and who you’re with.
Set and Setting are some of the most important elements to consider before embarking on a psychedelic trip. They have the ability to control whether you have a positive mystical experience or a bad trip. They are also one of the reasons that no two psychedelic experiences are ever truly the same.
The term “set and setting” has been used since the 1960’s by researchers studying psychedelic therapy. This concept is important when it comes to understanding psychedelics because they tend to amplify your current state or mood. If you are feeling anxious, psychedelics might make you feel more anxious. If you’re feeling happy, they can make you even happier. This is why it’s so important to understand what you’re getting into before using psychedelics. If your trip starts to go bad and you don’t have a good set and setting, your experience might continue to get worse unless you’re prepared.
Tips for Monitoring your Set
As I mentioned earlier, set refers to your internal environment. An important question to ask yourself before taking a psychedelic is “why.” Some common reasons you might take psychedelics could be for spiritual purposes, therapeutic purposes, expanding your consciousness, or just to have fun at a concert or event (I wouldn’t recommend doing this for your first trip). If you’re taking psychedelics as a way to escape reality or not deal with a problem, your trip might start going south. This is because psychedelics will amplify whatever it is you’re feeling at the time. If any part of you ever feels like taking psychedelics is a bad idea, then it probably is. Always remember to trust your gut :).
Tips for Monitoring your Setting
Setting refers to who you’re with and where you’re at. Always trip with people who you trust will take care of you in case the trip starts going bad. I would also recommend having a trip sitter to watch over you or your group during your trip. Even if you want to trip alone, it’s still best practice to have a trip sitter. If you don’t want a trip sitter to be physically there with you, I would still recommend telling a friend in case you feel the need to call and talk to someone during your experience. This is especially true in case you start having an ego death experience.
As far as where to physically be when you trip, staying in your home is always safe because you know your surroundings and have access to everything. It is very common to want to be in nature if you have the option, especially because psychedelics can give you a sense of connectedness with the earth. Even if you start at your house, you can still always take a walk outside and go back later. Anytime you want to venture outside, I recommend having as little items on you as possible because you don’t want to be worrying about whether or not you have your belongings. Once you begin to worry about something, it’s easy for your mind to fixate on that. Having less items to worry about helps avoid that situation.
If it’s your first time tripping, you’ll want to avoid crowded places like festivals or any space where there are a lot of people. Tripping in those environments is much more fun once you have enough experience with psychedelics. That way you’ll be more likely to know how to calm yourself down when your surroundings get hectic.
You’re Still In Control
The following advice is more geared for tripping in social situations, but one of the most important things that I like to remind myself is that if I start to feel like I’m in a bad place mentally or physically, I can always change my environment. I can move away from the people I’m with. I can change the music or whatever I’m watching if it’s giving me a bad vibe. I’m still in control. This is wisdom I’ve gained from tripping that has helped me during my normal states of consciousness as well. It may sound like very simple advice, but you’d be surprised how easy it is to forget.
There is also a non-profit that was created to help people minimize the risks of psychedelic experiences called Fireside Project. If you ever need support during a psychedelic experience, you can call or text 62-FIRESIDE (623-473-7433) b everyday between the hours of 3pm – 3am PT.
Let me know if there’s any other tips or advice you have for monitoring your set and setting.