After two days of extremely tiny mandrake flower and leaf teas, I found myself in a space of feeling my deep emotional wounds, expressing a lot of emotions and a fair amount of crying.

İt seems like this "dark"/"underworld" association of mandrake is related to the connection it gives to the negative emotions and traumas. According to some internet sources, mandrake flower essence facilitates emotional release and "getting to the root of one's problems and getting a motivation for change." (One such source).

I recall getting to such a state on my first encounter with mandrake, in which I had eaten a surprising amount of fresh raw root without getting any tropane side effects (I actually have a hypothesis that it triggers side effects much more readily when dried. Needs further testing).

This is such a contrast to Datura stramonium. Stramonium flowers and seeds temporarily erase my wounded or negative emotions and just make me operate from my higher self. Opposite plants.

I never got a feeling of going insane with mandrake, even with a few dried root overdoses with serious physical side effects - complete loss of control of body, uncontrollable twitching of legs, completely dry mouth and nose, complete inability to urinate etc. Datura stramonium flowers or seeds made me feel like I am close to losing my mind a few times, even with no physical side effects. Still, mandrake feels more challenging for me, because my emotional wounds actually feel more challenging to go through.

I had combined rue with a tiny fresh growth mandrake leaf once and it was an amazing visceral somatic feeling with a very dark (not evil, but scary) vibe, going straight into very serious familial wounds which are beyond me to heal (honestly feel hopeless). No side effects.

İt was rue and phragmites which pulled me out of the difficult space now in my latest encounter. I hope to have done some tangible progress in my emotional healing.