“Introduction: Long-Term Psychedelic Work, Trauma Healing & Integration”

[AlexLuby]

Hello everyone,


I’m glad to be here and to introduce myself.


For many years I’ve been deeply involved in consciousness work, trauma exploration, and integration-oriented psychedelic practice. In this context, I’ve had more than 40 ayahuasca and DMT journeys, covering a very wide range of experiences — from subtle, low-intensity states to full ego dissolution and classic breakthrough experiences.


At this point, such states are no longer something special for me, and they are not the main focus of my interest anymore. Over time, I’ve learned that maximum intensity, ego dissolution, or transcendent insights do not automatically lead to lasting change.


My current focus lies elsewhere:

• in the depth of trauma patterns
• in psychological processing rather than pure experience
• in calming and re-regulating the central nervous system
• and in understanding why certain emotional and addictive patterns persist even after many intense experiences

I come from a background that included significant addiction patterns (including cannabis and nicotine) as well as challenging family dynamics. Psychedelics have been valuable tools for me, but they have also taught me that real transformation usually doesn’t happen in moments of dissolution — it happens in staying present, tolerating inner tension, and integrating experiences slowly and honestly into everyday life.


Even after many journeys and working across the full spectrum of intensity, I don’t see myself as someone who has “arrived.” I’m still very much on the path, and I’m genuinely interested in exchanging with others who don’t see psychedelics as an escape or an end in themselves, but as tools for conscious, responsible inner work.


I’m particularly interested in discussions around:

• integration after intense experiences
• the relationship between trauma, addiction, and the nervous system
• working with depth without dissociation
• long-term stabilization rather than short-lived peak states

I’m here to learn, to share where appropriate, and to engage in respectful exchange with others who approach this work in a grounded and reflective way.


I’m looking forward to the discussion and to hearing your thoughts.

 

[Transform]

Hello and welcome! Thanks for the thorough and concise intro - it appears your goals will align well here.

Maybe you've seen, there's a recently active thread regarding cannabis habituation, and more specifically, moving on from that habituation. There are discussions in a similar, er, vein regarding alcohol and other addictive substances. I can add some links if necessary, but they should be easy enough to find. Just go ahead and join in the discussion, I'd say!

I’m particularly interested in discussions around:

• integration after intense experiences
• the relationship between trauma, addiction, and the nervous system
• working with depth without dissociation
• long-term stabilization rather than short-lived peak states

Feel free to start your own discussion on each and any of these points, and give us a shout if you're unsure which area of the forum would be most suitable for any given topic (the index does rather scroll on down a long way!)

 

[rkba]

Over time, I’ve learned that maximum intensity, ego dissolution, or transcendent insights do not automatically lead to lasting change.

The door may have opened and one may have even observed that what's behind it. Then one needs to orient themselves with respect to that door. Decide if they want to go through the portal. And act by accepting the new perception and subsequent resulting reality that manifests by letting the Being going through the newly 'discovered' portal.

 

[AlexLuby]

The door may have opened and one may have even observed that what's behind it. Then one needs to orient themselves with respect to that door. Decide if they want to go through the portal. And act by accepting the new perception and subsequent resulting reality that manifests by letting the Being going through the newly 'discovered' portal.

Thank you for your reply — I’m actually very much in agreement with you on this.





I think my original point may have come across a bit unclear: it’s not that I believe insights or openings should simply be “observed” without consequence. I’ve experienced myself that real change only begins when a new perception is embodied and translated into concrete action in everyday life.





What I was trying to express is something slightly different. After many experiences of ego dissolution and breakthrough states, I’ve come to realize that further intensification on its own doesn’t necessarily move me forward anymore. My current focus is therefore less on reaching the next portal, and more on how what has already been seen can be psychologically processed, integrated, and stabilized — especially on an emotional and nervous-system level.





In that sense, “going through the portal” for me today is less about another moment of dissolution, and more about an ongoing, often unspectacular process in daily life: feeling, regulating, and acting consciously based on what has been recognized.





Thanks for the impulse — it was a helpful reflection.