Faffing my way through LIFE

“Turn off your mind, relax, float downstream’   A quote by Timothy Leary, a pioneer in the psychedelic world, that describes exactly how you should approach a psychedelic trip. As I slipped into my most recent mushroom experience I had these words on my mind, and everything I have read on and listened to in the past year, to do with the therapeutic side of psychedelics, became so very clear.   Two months ago I had the highest dose of mushrooms that I had ever done, and had been ready to slip away from reality, however I was to learn that there was some deeply rooted pain that needed to be addressed, so down the rabbit hole I went. My mind slipped into what felt like a black abyss, and there was no turning around until I got to the bottom of it. It felt like I was re-living and feeling every bit of pain that I had experienced in the past few years. There was no vision, only feelings and emotion. There was an abrupt stop, the hole opened and I was plummeting past what I knew as ...

Learnings from the TRIP This is a blog piece on acid; on the recreational and safe use of it. I am in no way suggesting excessive use is healthy, or recommend it. I am not commenting on any other illicit drugs.   There is a good reason an acid trip is called a ‘trip’. It takes at least 12 hours to pass. In this time you go on a journey through the different phases, and just as visuals morph and breathe, so does the capacity of your mind. It is well known that many creatives micro dose to help open pathways in the brain, and a large amount of creative work has probably been made during a trip.  So aside from excessive users, you have recreational users who's intentions for a trip are simply to escape reality, see some interesting things, and laugh A LOT. So much laughter. And YES it absolutely is about escaping reality. It is taking a step back. It is removing the clutter, the cloudiness, the shit that keeps us up at night. Because on acid, you are so very present;...

This blog piece has rather directly come from my own experiences especially in the past few months, where I have been on both sides of this particular coin. Sparked again from a conversation with a close friend; it is so very clear that in varying degrees I can assure many others around me can relate. I am looking at how we hold onto anger towards situations, outcomes, the world around us, and particularly towards other people. I have been analysing how it affects not only our own self worth, but the way in which we move through life. Barriers created that do not allow the new enter, and quite simply the good to be seen.  One side of life teaches us to hold on to what we hope for, to what we dream for, and how we envision our lives to turn out. Just as the other side tells us to learn to leat go, to live with openness, and to allow our path to naturally flow. In school, in work, in society, we are taught how to plan, how to create goals, how to dream . The art of moving on...

Rock bottom- A state of mind As someone who very proudly has ADHD- attention deficit HYPERactive disorder- I am no stranger to really feeling the highs, lows, and everything in-between that makes up such an exciting life. I have had an incredibly fortunate adventure thus far, surrounded by wonderful people, places, and the freedom to choose where my road goes. However, there are many others who are not so fortunate, and have been through incidents that no one should have to live through. A close friend of mine fits this bracket. Recently we got onto the topic of rock bottom. We shared stories that were in no way comparable. We compared physical conditions, that were miles apart in reality.  B ut, what did seem to co-align…what did actually resonate on a similar frequency…was state of mind. The way in which the mind processes rock bottom. The simplicity in which it sees this place; a point when you cannot see out. Where the view has left your sight, and the horizon is long ...

I’m going to start this by saying that I have been incredibly fortunate in my life to have grown up privileged, to have had the choice of moving abroad (many times!), to have had a supportive and loving family, and to have met countless amounts of wonderful friends from all over the globe. I am writing this to pass no judgement, but more to challenge what I deem as a somewhat romanticised way of looking at life. I have spent the last 9.5 years away from where I grew up, moving from place to place, building new lives in each, experiencing, running. holding on. Trial and error.  I can assure you though, that none of this was “meant to happen”. My sporadic but exciting life thus far was not pre destined for me. I no longer believe that this journey I created for myself was part of some higher plan. There were no specific reasons for how it has all unfolded. “Everything happens for a reason” is a cop out. It’s an excuse. It’s a piece of advice given when there is little g...

Countless times I have been asked where home is. Where I consider home. Is it the country I was born in. Or where I grew up. Is it the city I feel most at ease in. The place where I have the strongest sense of belonging. Or is it where I am currently building a new life in.  None of these. Finally, I have well and truly realised this. Home too is constantly changing, evolving, growing, maturing, just as we are in ourselves. Much like our overall happiness. I believe that home does lie within, and has much to do with the extent in which we live in the present. Each place I have moved, my want and need to “feel” at home somewhere has added to the stress and anxiety of starting up life in a new place. These early and somewhat harsh judgements form in my mind, and dictate my belief in whether I belong, and therefore influence my perceived happiness. Quite often I have determined whether I see a future in my new life based on an impulsive judgement on how at home I feel. It h...