So one of my cousins is 17 and psychedelics have been on her radar for a couple of years. She's begun smoking pot this year due to what I think may be an escape from reality (crappy home situation).. then graduated to legal highs (ingesting unknown chemicals), and just recently 1/2 of a blotter of LSD. It was probably very weak acid as she didn't see any epic colors, just fast thoughts, being more in the present moment.. time slowed down a bit..
I really like that kid and I don't have any issues discussing any of this stuff with her, I also try to not tell her what she should or should not do, but I'm getting a bit worried. Most of us have been 17 so I guess some of the recklessness and impulsive behavior is accounted for, but...
What really concerns me is that she's had this strange fears for quite some years now, for example fear of clowns and fear of the dark. After the acid experience she says she's getting scared more easily, sometimes apparently seeing "things" in the corner of her eye.
Just the other day we were playing some ping pong at night and the ball flew to this abandoned terrain/house. Our rules says whoever fucks up goes fetch the ball, so she was up to jumping the fence and go in - the ball wasn't very far, maybe 5 meters.
Right after she jumped she froze and begun looking around slowly with a fearful look on her face. Immediately I could, even though I've never suffered from anything similar, sense the wind making the leaves move, and how everything seemed to be closing in, the darkness slowly shifting in the background. It didn't scare me, I guess I automatically begun interpreting what was scaring her in that moment.
Anyway, after some sweet talking/calming down she went and grabbed the ball, then quickly ran to the fence and jumped back to the street.
I'm giving this example to put things in perspective. She's expressed some concern about the heightened fears since trying acid (even though she liked the experience.. what would happen with 200 mcg remains to be seen:shock
, even asking me if I thought she was losing it (I said no).
I tried telling her, even before she went on and tried it, that perhaps it would be wise to wait a bit longer, wait for the right time. It didn't quite work, evidently. It appears that she's going to devour 2 blotters in the new year's eve, and I'm left wondering if I should try to interfere (reasoning with her) or not. The people providing the acid are kids her age, and from what she told me, they were basically all baked or also on acid during her trip. Cellphones were on, they went rambo on the streets shortly after peaking.. yeah.
She does listen to some of what I say though, and I think a good deal of that is because she knows she can talk to me about anything, and that I won't judge.
Of course all I wish for her is a fantastic experience (in my experience psychedelics may even help with eliminating the fears, but I don't think it's the right approach for all cases, you gotta be able to handle it), but in light of her phobias and the set and setting (or lack of knowledge about its importance), what do you think? Am I just being overprotective?
I'm not sure what the next best move here is.. I'm convinced that due to crappy set/setting and anxiety/fear, she's setting herself up for an experience so terrible she can't even conceive it yet. This I have not told her, so that her mind space isn't "contaminated" should she decide to go forward with it. The worst thing is that she does not yet realize she can detach from the emotion and just observe it, altough there's been some progress there.
I don't know, just needed to share the story.. if you got something similar, please share. I love that kid and would hate to see something terrible happen. But this same feeling is clouding my risk assessment, I can't weigh this one properly.
Thoughts, opinions?
I really like that kid and I don't have any issues discussing any of this stuff with her, I also try to not tell her what she should or should not do, but I'm getting a bit worried. Most of us have been 17 so I guess some of the recklessness and impulsive behavior is accounted for, but...
What really concerns me is that she's had this strange fears for quite some years now, for example fear of clowns and fear of the dark. After the acid experience she says she's getting scared more easily, sometimes apparently seeing "things" in the corner of her eye.
Just the other day we were playing some ping pong at night and the ball flew to this abandoned terrain/house. Our rules says whoever fucks up goes fetch the ball, so she was up to jumping the fence and go in - the ball wasn't very far, maybe 5 meters.
Right after she jumped she froze and begun looking around slowly with a fearful look on her face. Immediately I could, even though I've never suffered from anything similar, sense the wind making the leaves move, and how everything seemed to be closing in, the darkness slowly shifting in the background. It didn't scare me, I guess I automatically begun interpreting what was scaring her in that moment.
Anyway, after some sweet talking/calming down she went and grabbed the ball, then quickly ran to the fence and jumped back to the street.
I'm giving this example to put things in perspective. She's expressed some concern about the heightened fears since trying acid (even though she liked the experience.. what would happen with 200 mcg remains to be seen:shock
, even asking me if I thought she was losing it (I said no).I tried telling her, even before she went on and tried it, that perhaps it would be wise to wait a bit longer, wait for the right time. It didn't quite work, evidently. It appears that she's going to devour 2 blotters in the new year's eve, and I'm left wondering if I should try to interfere (reasoning with her) or not. The people providing the acid are kids her age, and from what she told me, they were basically all baked or also on acid during her trip. Cellphones were on, they went rambo on the streets shortly after peaking.. yeah.
She does listen to some of what I say though, and I think a good deal of that is because she knows she can talk to me about anything, and that I won't judge.
Of course all I wish for her is a fantastic experience (in my experience psychedelics may even help with eliminating the fears, but I don't think it's the right approach for all cases, you gotta be able to handle it), but in light of her phobias and the set and setting (or lack of knowledge about its importance), what do you think? Am I just being overprotective?
I'm not sure what the next best move here is.. I'm convinced that due to crappy set/setting and anxiety/fear, she's setting herself up for an experience so terrible she can't even conceive it yet. This I have not told her, so that her mind space isn't "contaminated" should she decide to go forward with it. The worst thing is that she does not yet realize she can detach from the emotion and just observe it, altough there's been some progress there.
I don't know, just needed to share the story.. if you got something similar, please share. I love that kid and would hate to see something terrible happen. But this same feeling is clouding my risk assessment, I can't weigh this one properly.
Thoughts, opinions?