DMT- The Hallucinogenic Drug

DMT is a psychoactive component in many recreational drugs. DMT is the most intense psychedelic and dangerous illegal drug to mankind. DMT stands for alkaloid indole N-N dimethtrypamine(4). DMT can be produced from both plants animals. It is present in nature; trees, vines, grasses, mushrooms, toads and even fish. DMT was first manufactured and distributed as an illicit drug in the 1960’s (3). It's effective only when smoked or injected. When ingested however, the acids in the stomach destroy it hence making it ineffective when taken by mouth. DMT is a solid white powder in its pure form and has a moth-like smell to it. It may have a brownish or orange waxy appearance if its not completely purified. A single inhalation is enough to produce 5-10min intense hallucinogen experience (2). Every time you go to sleep and have dreams DMT is produced from your pineal gland. Yes, humans can produce it too. No wonder why sometimes you have crazy dreams (1).

The image corresponds to after affects of ingesting DMT in the brain. The brain visualizes objects, as far more geometry is aesthetically similar to images described by those who have taken DMT. For example, a yellow rose flower is imagined to expand its petals to more color and The progression of realism paintings followed by fractal patterns and sacred, and the sudden onset of its effects.

DMT is commonly referred to as a spirit medicine. This is because in the past, people used analogous containing this compound for religious purposes and ritual practises. For example, the Mayans are thought to feed toads (that have a venom containing DMT) to ducks, then eating the duck after in order to experience the hallucinations and avoiding dying of poison at the same time. Another example is the Siberian shamans. They would feed Amanita mushrooms (containing DMT too)  to deer, then eat the deer meat or drink the deer urine to appreciate the hallucinogenic effects and avoiding the poison too. Today, DMT is rarely found because in the 1970’s, it fell out of popularity among recreational drugs. The few illicit samples today are mostly found to have LSD (2).

Bufotenin is a compound that has DMT and is found mostly in Bufo toads. There have been many stories on how this compound has been extracted and used. Some people have tried boiling the toad in olive oil to extract the drug from the toads’ skin, some people have tried licking a live toad, and some have gone to the extent of drying up the venom, then smoking the drug. People however discovered that smoking toad produced a rather intensive experience and with a lot of side effects. Although possession of a Bufo toad is legal, extraction of the chemical venom is a criminal offence (2). 

Psilocybin is another chemical compound that has DMT and is commonly found in mushrooms. The most common mushroom species with this compound is psilocybe mexicana. The mushroom can be easily grown from spores and can be purchased from the Internet for about $10.  If the mushrooms are chewed well and kept in the mouth, the effects may be seen within 7-8minutes. The experiences first include; feelings of chills, weakness in legs, and nausea. Later, within an hour or two, these feelings are replaced by Heightened visual imagery and a comical sense of wanting to laugh (2). 

Reference: 

[1] Decalcify Pineal Gland,. (2013). Benefits of decalcifying/activating your Pineal Gland (Third Eye/Ajna Chakra). Retrieved 03 March 2015, from http://decalcifypinealgland.com/benefits-of-decalcifying-activating-your-pineal-gland/

 Gahlinger, P. (2004). Illegal drugs (pp. 265-276). New York: Plume 

1     [2]  Perrine, D. (1996). The chemistry of mind-altering drugs (pp. 282-283). Washington, DC: [3] American Chemical Society.

       [3]Pubchem.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov,. (2015). N,N-DIMETHYLTRYPTAMINE | C12H16N2 - PubChem. Retrieved 3 March 2015, from http://pubchem.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/compound/dimethyltryptamine#section=Drug-Tolerance

1     [4] Winkelman, M., & Roberts, T. (2007). Psychedelic medicine (pp. 26-27, 29, 70-73). Westport, Conn.: Praeger Publishers.

   

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