Revelation Effect in Psychedelic Therapy

Psychedelics possess a very unique quality that lies at the very root of their universal effect on humans and is widely used in psychedelic therapy. It is their ability to increase the significance of an experience compared to how this very same experience is perceived outside the context of psychedelia. In other words, any mundane thought, image, or feeling can be turned by psychedelics into an epiphany, a mystical revelation.

First-wave researchers (T. Leary, R. Alpert, R. Metzner, S. Grof, and others, 1960s), as well as modern-day psychedelic therapy analysts (Carhart-Harris et al.) have singled out the ability of psychedelics to evoke in the individual “extremely meaningful” experiences. Between two-thirds and 86% of those who have undergone a psychedelic experience in a therapeutic setting consider it one of the five, if not the single most important, meaningful and spiritually significant experiences of their lives (Griffiths et al., 2006; Leary, 2007; Johnson et al., 2017). English-language literature refers to this phenomenon as “meaning-enhancing effect”, “meaningful-insight effect”, or “meaning amplifying effect” (Carhart-Harris et al., 2014; Kaelen et al., 2015; Preller et al., 2017., Hartogsohn I., 2018), which can also be paraphrased as the “effect of heightened significance”. This super-significance effect produced by psychedelics is usually accompanied by a feeling of understanding the nature of reality, thus (and quite fairly) it can be also referred to as the “revelation effect.” Aldous Huxley was probably one of the first to formulate this term in his 1953 historical essay “The Doors of Perception” where he aptly noted that ordinary objects under the influence of mescaline “...all but quivering under the pressure of significance by which they were charged” (Huxley, 2011, p. 17–18). He describes how his perception changed after taking the mescaline. He walked around the room, then stopped, "... looking at a small glass vase with only three flowers in it... a Portuguese rose... a red and cream carnation... and an iris. I no longer perceived the bouquet as an unusual flower arrangement. Moment after moment I saw what must have appeared to Adam on the day of his creation – the miracle of undisguised existence...” Contrasting his “direct” vision of reality with Plato’s logical constructions, Huxley goes on to speculate, “...He (Plato) simply must have never seen a bouquet of flowers shining with the inner light, quivering under the pressure of significance by which they were charged; he never grasped the fact that the innermost meaning of the rose, the iris, and the carnation was nothing more nor nothing less than just themselves – the impermanence, and at the same time the eternal life, the constant frailty, the mere Existence in its purest form, the temporary unity, the unique components of which, thanks to this inexplicable, yet self-evident paradox, must seem to be the divine source of all things." Here he seems to be referring to Plato’s proofs of the immortality of the soul (four arguments about the soul, the Phaedo dialogue), where Plato, in order to prove his point to the audience, uses the logic and technique of “Socratic dialogue”. Huxley, while being in the trip, is apparently struck by the “irksomeness” of Plato who tends to line up all sorts of logical chains and traps in order to prove what was now “clearly obvious” to Huxley – the flower and the spirit are one, infrangible and divine. Just a little bunch of flowers, one would think. But not only flowers can be quivering under the pressure of significance. A special meaning is revealed to Huxley – the one hidden in the legs of his chair, or in the folds of his flannel trousers. “The same appeared to me earlier, in the morning, somewhere in between looking at the flowers and the furniture, when I accidentally looked down at my crossed legs. What a labyrinth of immeasurably significant complexity in the folds of my trousers! And in the structure the gray flannel – such richness, such a magical splendor!” Another example of the revelatory effect produced by the mescaline-containing San Pedro cactus, this time taken from my own medical practice. "...The river bend was visible through the thickets. This picture evoked a strange feeling that just wouldn’t go away. It took me back to my childhood: a Saturday evening, I sit on the floor with a toy and look through the bamboo curtain at the silhouettes of my parents moving in the warm glow of the kitchen light. And now, standing in the midst of the jungle, I felt myself in a place where everything (the arrangement of trees, the twilight, the quiet movement of the river) came together in the proper order creating a state of fragile sufficiency in the midst of the chaotic world, to which there was nothing more to add. It was exactly this feeling I was trying to convey taking more and more pictures... ...Every now and then the road would be blocked by fallen trunks and thickets of bamboo with thorny threads hanging from above. There, in the middle of a primeval forest, I stood amazed by the thoughtful, polished comfort of my sandals – a weightless, following perfectly the curve of my foot, product of the human mind. I realized that my ancestors, who had lived in the forests, could only dream of something like those sandals. And now, the dream of millions of generations came into existence, and myself – standing there in those sandals, comfortable clothes and a camera in my hand – was the manifestation of this dream. I realized I was at the very end of a long, endless line of my human ancestors, I was a frame on a film unwinding somewhere into the past of the Earth."

Based on the context, both the experience of revelation and its interpretation may alter. Here is an example of how Hunter S. Thompson, the author of “Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas”, described the “charged pressure of significance” he got to experience: “Good mescaline kicks in slowly. You spend the first hour waiting… In the middle of the second hour, you begin to spit out curses at the person who had given you this garbage since nothing is still happening, and the next thing you know… BANG! A ruthless and intense rush, unprecedented brightness of colors and vibrations..."

Another example of the revelation effect, this time from Ralph Metzner's book "The Ayahuasca Experience: A Sourcebook on the Sacred Vine of Spirits." This fragment demonstrates not only the philosophical and aesthetic aspect of the revelation, but also its deeply healing effect. Madalena Fonseca, 36 years old, copywriter. A woman with a multifaceted religious background describes her experience of taking ayahuasca in Santo Daime retreat (one of the branches of the Brazilian Church of Ayahuasca): "...I saw a man looking at me with an angry expression on his face. It was an intense and frightening moment because I realized I was looking straight into the eyes of my enemy. The features of this face began to change consistently turning into faces of other men. Among them I recognized my brothers, uncles, cousins, grandfathers, my "ex’s" and even my own father. With each one of them I had an intense and distressing interaction, shortly after, like a mask, the face would drop, and the face of the Devil would appear. I then felt the presence of God who said to me, ‘This is an illusion!’” “Another man’s face was followed by a difficult distressing conversation, once again the face falls off like a mask revealing the Devil’s, and God appeared to me saying, ‘This is an illusion!’” “This bloodcurdling pattern lasted throughout the entire trip. It was something more than just faces, it was the story of all the crimes, ambitions, betrayal, violence, and pain in the world. I have experienced both sides of sadomasochistic relationships. I was a victim and a tyrant at the same time. Soon my perception expanded, and I got to live through every crime and every victim that existed at any given moment of time and space in the universe. I have gained the deepest understanding of human pain. I cried rivers of tears. All my resentments, shame and guilt dissolved. I have forgiven humanity. I have forgiven myself." Despite all the differences in the storylines, those trip reports have one thing in common. All of them have revealed the knowledge of the “true” (different from the familiar) nature of reality. The individual’s thinking shifts more towards the philosophical and religious modality, viewing the experience in the context of universal evolution (disputing with Plato, connecting with the ancestors, experiencing the pain of all humanity). The phenomenon of divine revelation is characterized by a set of experiences that are invariably repeated in different people one way or another. Here are the most common ones: 1. The feeling of one’s direct connection to other people. ("I'm connected to everyone. We're all in this together"). The sense of lightness, curiosity and joy. 2. The feeling of unity with the world. ("I am part of a huge living organism"). The sense of surprise and joyful contemplation. 3. Reduced significance of one’s self, sometimes up to its complete dissolution. (“There is no I”). The sense of freedom and non-attachment to anything. 4. The feeling of truth (originality, sacredness) of the experience. (“What I am experiencing now is the only true reality”). The sense of curiosity, adventure, delight, fascination. 5. The feeling of free will. (“I can choose any of the possible paths in life, it all solely depends on my own desire”). The sense of inspiration and belief in one’s own strength. 6. The feeling of recognition. (“This knowledge has always been with me, I just couldn’t recognise it before”). The sense of support and confidence. 7. Dissolution of feelings of guilt and self-insignificance. (“What I thought were my vices or sins was nothing but an illusion”). The sense of relief, inspiration. 8. Awareness and acceptance of life’s uncontrolled nature. ("The reality does not need my control"). The sense of physical and emotional relief, liberation. 9. The feeling of belonging to the time continuum. ("I am part of an endless living line, emerging from the past and disappearing into the future"). The sense of elevation and intrigue. Many of the described experiences are therapeutic in their own right, outside the context of the revelation effect and even outside the context of the psychedelic experience. For example, the feeling of free will, dissolved feelings of guilt and one’s own insignificance, acceptance of life’s uncontrollable nature – all of these commonly viewed as goals by psychotherapists and counselors working in different modalities, and can be achieved in a single session. On the contrary, some of the listed experiences may contribute to the development of the so-called positive irrational beliefs that can be harmful. For instance, the experience of “revelation” can reinforce an irrational attitude in the individual, e.g., “The truth about reality has been revealed to me, hence I am special. Nothing bad can now be happenning to me.” Such positive irrational attitudes have led to many broken lives. This is why it is extremely important for the therapist working with psychedelics to have the appropriate level of education and experience.

The Practical Application of the Revelation Effect

assume that “insights” and “revelations”, as well as the feeling of altered reality, are the main reasons why people take psychedelics. After all, these are pleasant emotions. Moreover, not only they are pleasant, but they are also associated with obtaining “knowledge” about the structure of all things, including the individual, other people, and the world. The realization that “I know something about this world others don’t, and everything is really not as bad as it seems” can provide the individual with a reason to live, to work, and to even endure the discomforts of life. The naivety of such a worldview does not negate its therapeutic potential. In fact, religion and spiritual practices work exactly the same way. The contemporary psychedelic therapy makes use of the revelation effect to treat depression, anxiety disorders, post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD), addictions, and to correct personality disorders. The most scientific and consistent, in my opinion, is the approach of Professor Robin Carhart-Harris. He relies on his own "entropic brain" hypothesis ("anarchic brain" in other articles) described in the Yale Protocol, and the theory assuming that rigid beliefs can be reduced under the influence of psychedelics. The goal of the therapy is to treat depression. A common mechanism for adjusting unhealthy reactions is the development of mental flexibility. Therapeutic effects of a psychedelic trip in the treatment of depression are dissolved feelings of guilt or one’s own insignificance, and the sense of free will. The positive emotional experience of the trip is enhanced and then transferred into the individual’s everyday life with the help of CBT interventions. The psychedelic used in this type of therapeutic approach is psilocybin, the work is clinically based and applies elements of cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT). Prof. Matthew Johnson highlights the feeling of free will as an important aspect of the psychedelic experience that can be achieved by taking large doses of psilocybin. In the process of integrating this aspect into everyday life, the client recognizes their ability to change things on their own. It could be, for example, used in the treatment of addictions, PTSD, or depression. The works of Dr. Rosalind Watts identify the evoked sense of interconnectedness in the individual as a key aspect of psychedelic integration with Psilocybin acting as the therapeutic medium. Dr. Lewis Mehl-Madrona considers the feeling of acceptance of life’s uncontrollability one of the key aspects of the integration of experience using Peyote as the psychedelic medium. Below are examples of integrating different aspects of the “revelation effect” from my own practice within the framework of the On the Road project. T. suffers from anxiety-depressive disorder accompanied by a state of panic fear and OCD symptoms. T. believes that every action of hers and even thoughts can cause irreparable harm to the ones she loves. REBT model was applied at the beginning of the counseling process, where irrational beliefs like “something terrible will happen if I don’t control all my actions” were replaced with new, flexible beliefs, i.e. “If I don’t control my feelings and actions to such an extent, the worst that can happen is me feeling the discomfort I will sure be able to endure.” The therapy was carried out using the San Pedro cactus. During the first session, T. experienced an intense sensation, “The essential truth about the world was revealed in the radiance of the rainbow color surrounding the crown of the tree. I realized I was not separate, but rather belonging to a huge loving organism called the world. I can neither change nor control it, just like a single cell cannot control the entire body.” On the day following the session, while headed to the market in a neighboring town, T. behaved more openly and friendly in her interactions with others, and was able to have a meal out in a public setting for the first time in a long time. The subsequent sessions with the cactus reinforced the acceptance of the idea that the reality is uncontrollable (and that reducing the degree of control over it is safe and harmless), which allowed T. to reclaim the sense of joy in life. M. has had a hard time divorcing his wife and is experiencing symptoms of moderate depression. "...I have felt depressed, heavy and guilty for the last few years. They did not allow me to breathe freely. I began to think poorly. I feel that all my actions have no meaning." During the preparatory work he talked about his demanding, highly educated mother: “...My mother always wanted me to be exceptional, brilliant, you know. And I have always fell short. Well, at least I thought so. I wasn’t smart enough for her...” At this stage, the following unhealthy beliefs were revealed: “in order to be loved, I must undertake difficult things,” “If I don’t, I am stupid and unworthy of love.” Rigid attitudes were replaced with new and flexible ones like “I want to be loved, but I don’t have to do anything specific for it, I don’t have to be better than I am now. Even if people see my imperfections, so let it be, I won’t get any worse because of this, I’m a human being, not a deity.” An excerpt from the trip report: "...When the scary hallucinations passed, several particularly vivid images appeared to me. I saw a soaring eagle. It was rather the sound of a “soaring eagle”, I mean the phrase. I liked these words so much that I realized that myself was this soaring eagle. Nothing could describe me more accurately at that moment as these two words – “soaring eagle”. It felt like the answer, but not on a verbal level, it was the language of ayahuasca. It seemed like it answered all my questions." The therapeutic aspect at this stage was the feeling of free will expressed in a synesthetic experience (the eagle as an image, sensation, sound and a joyful emotion). L. suffers from a schizophrenia spectrum disorder, had been using cannabinoids for several years having repeatedly experienced severe psychosis with ideations of divine power. Has a tendency to think in a religious and mystical paradigm. L. hoped the upcoming ayahuasca would be granting him special powers (siddh) or some divine insights. Work was performed in REBT, CBT, and Mindfulness models but the results were not substantial. An hour and a half after taking the ayahuasca, L. began to curse repeating, “all this ayahuasca thing is one big fraud, just an ordinary poisoning with zero magic,” and saying that he “will never fall for such experiments again.” His ranting about the psychedelics being nothing but a scam lasted more than two hours, intermitted at times for pauses to vomit. Seemingly, the session was unsuccessful because L. did not experience any of the “spiritual breakthroughs” or moments of catharsis he had hoped for. L. flatly refused to continue the therapy with ayahuasca or any other psychedelic. However, upon returning home, L. stopped using drugs, and his remission lasted five years. In this (a rather complex) case, one of the aspects of the revelation effect was “triggered” spontaneously – namely, the experienced feeling of originality. The banal idea that “drugs are a fraud” obtained the quality of a “original truth”, and was able to adjust L.’s behavior in a healthier way for quite a long time. The “revelation” phenomenon is also very interesting one because it can also manifest itself outside the psychedelic context. Similar or even identical experiences can occur in people during meditative experiences, holotropic breathwork practices, all kinds of spiritual and religious experiences, in a state of hypoxia, terminal states (clinical death), and even in psychotic states as well. However, this topic is beyond the scope of this article. The following article will discuss how the revelation effect can manifest itself in a negative way, that is, with the sign of minus.

The Revelation Effect with a “Negative Charge”

he revelation effect can not only familiarize the researcher with “higher” aspects of their nature and “divine” qualities of things, but can also highlight negative aspects of reality often associated with a “bad trip” experience when the individual is almost inevitably being forced to confront the primordial horrors of existence. As an example, below is a fragment of my experience with the sage (Salvia Divinorum), which I still consider to be one of the most negative experiences in my life. “... The effect of this psychedelic lasts no more than ten minutes,” said the sitter. After taking two deep drags, I nodded and lay down on the couch. Green threads, like the thin stems of bindweed, lifted me up almost immediately. I was thrown into the void where nothing existed – neither me, nor my name, nor the rest of the world. I was terrified by the realization that I had just lost everything. I tried as hard as I could to create something, anything at all in that absolute emptiness. I first managed to create color – a mustard-colored stroke made with a brush against the background of complete nothingness, floating, weightless. Little by little, I began to recreate symbols of things my life had once consisted of. First, the symbol of my name (the one I still could not remember), followed by another symbol – one that would imply I once had had a family (although, at that moment I still could not recall the meaning of the word). As my reality was being filled with objects, I began to feel easier. Finally, managed to create something more specific. It turned out to be my car – the rectangular shaped dark blue Volvo I was irresistibly attracted to. Meanwhile, somewhere in another reality, my trip sitter was struggling to keep me inside the doorway as I headed outside into the street. Thankfully, he succeeded, and I lay down on the couch again obediently. A vision from my early childhood – stripes of red, white, brown and black color interconnected into a single pattern along the edge of the carpet – turned out to be the code concealing the ultimate truth. I fell into the mystery of this code, and at the very bottom of it I realized I was not human – I was more of a short circuit, sparking uncontrollably at the point where the two worlds ruptured. I was the pain associated with the total chaos of having been torn off of the total integrity; the two elements, equally global and uncontrollable (black and white, need and freedom, father and mother) were tearing apart eventually. The process where I was continuously disappearing and being born again produced a crackling sound similar to the crackling sound of electricity when a short circuit occurs. It turned out my human entire destiny had been dreamed up. My life (my limbs, my name, my destiny, the whole world) was just an artless fantasy that I myself (I.e., the pain of the two worlds being torn apart) had created in order to experience less pain. I was simply just a spark at the point where the two worlds broke apart, faithfully believing that I had a human body, a job, fulfilling my necessities to eat, and sleep, and love… In addition to the horror of realizing my electrical nature, I felt the sense of guilt for selflessly believing in the deception I had myself invented. This led to understanding of my own insignificance. The awareness of insignificance was immediately confirmed by the disgusting crackling sound of sparking wires, which again could only prove my artificial nature. The endless repetition of this cycle of horror-guilt-insignificance-artificiality-and-back-to-horror-again only aggravated the situation, as if saying “there is no ending, this will last forever” That experience with Salvia Divinorum triggered a depression that would last for almost one year straight. Below is another example of the revelation effect with a negative meaning. I was approached by N. who was struggling with severe HPPD syndrome. As the result of prolonged and uncontrolled drug use, N. had experienced a bad trip that lasting several weeks, and would repeatedly return in the form of flashbacks. “I’m either shrinking or growing again, it’s unbearable! Everything around me is made of rubber, there is no symmetry in the world, people’s faces are melting... This so terrible, I'm so embarrassed, I want to die,” they complained. However, most of all, N. was frightened by the belief in their own inhuman nature reinforced by the feeling of the artificiality of their body, and the haunting smell of burning plastic. The acute condition of N. was relieved within a week. The follow-up therapy (flashbacks, anxiety disorder, addiction) and eventual recovery required another year of treatment. These are examples of bad trips simulated with the use of ketamine from the works of Prof. Krupitsky, E.M. (1998): “A terrible, cold, dark abyss yawned in front of me, I seemed to find myself in outer space, endless, impossible to grasp by reasoning. I felt the horror of this abyss with my every cell. One more round, and I will fall into this darkness, and I will end up falling endlessly... After the session, when I remembered this, it felt uncomfortable... But there was no other round. Everything was mixed up and spinning – eventually this whirlwind began to carry me upwards. I felt like I was rushing at a high speed in a tunnel made of glass, and someone’s face was vaguely looming through the tunnel wall asking if I cared for a drink. I said, no, no way. I realized that the terrible yawning abyss, the complete loneliness I felt there – was exactly where I’d end up should I ever have a drink again. “All such descriptions - Krupitsky further writes - have very much in common, i.e., the rapid movement in various kinds of tunnels and corridors; the feeling of one’s soul being separate from the body; the symbolic experience of death and rebirth; one’s identification with inanimate objects; the fear of an impending global catastrophe; the loss of one’s “Ego” and the loneliness that accompanies it; the threat of separation from the loved ones; the sense of being lost in a vast and boundless Universe, or being unable to control oneself; the terrible chaotic movement at high speeds; the falling, and the horror of being stuck in a closed space with the lack of exit. All these experiences are followed up eventually by a sudden appearance of the way out, the accompanying spiritual renewal, the complex “oceanic” feeling of belonging to a Higher Power, God, the feeling of reality of other worlds and dimensions (as real as the world we all know), etc. All of the abovementioned experiences were acute, highly intense, and very unusual. Many of the patients noted difficulties to convey in words what they had just experienced – in each cease it would be a very bright, colorful, complex, topologically designed, some kind of ‘3D holographic’ world.”

Below is the list of key experiences that make a bad trip so difficult to endure:

• 1. The feeling of disconnectedness from the rest of the world;

• 2. The feeling of total subordination and helplessness;

• 3. The feeling of loss of one’s self structure or complete loss of self;

• 4. The feeling of artificiality of oneself, the world, and other people;

• 5. The feeling of impending global catastrophe;

• 6. The feeling of guilt for letting a disaster to occur;

• 7. The feeling of insignificance;

• 8. The feeling of irreversibility of damage caused.

The Emotional Poles of Revelation Effect

While the bad trips are radically different in appearance from the “good” trips, all of them share the very same emotional aspects but with opposite charge.

For example, the aspect of "connectedness" in revelation with a “positive charge” is accompanied by feelings of upliftment, curiosity, and joy (“I am connected with all living beings”). The very same aspect carrying the “negative charge” is perceived as isolation from the world, and is accompanied by feelings of loss and fear (“I am alone, I have no hope for help, this is unbearable”). The aspect of “free will” in “positively charged” revelation is accompanied by the feeling of inspiration and self-confidence (“I can choose any path in life; everything depends on my desire only”). The “negatively charged” revelation would perceive this aspect as complete submission to someone else’s will, and accompanied by feelings of brokenness, doom, claustrophobia (“I can’t influence anything, I can’t even move, this is the end”). The aspect of “unity with the world” is ideally accompanied by the feeling of immortality (“I am part of a living organism”). The very same aspect in the case of a “negatively charged” revelation leads to feelings of artificiality, “madeness”, insignificance (“I am an artificial creature, there is nothing living in me”). The “positively charged” revelation effect can force the individual to give up on their drugs of choice, or any other dangerous behavior – like the carrot in the stick (“carrot” metaphor). On the other hand, the revelation effect with the “negative effect” (i.e., the stick) has the very same potential to encourage the individual to give up whatever substances or dangerous behaviors they indulge in. Within the On the Road approach, I encourage the client to locate and make use of those aspects of their experience that may eventually help them cope with the negative experience on their own, making it less difficult to process. The work of Professor E. M. Krupitsky on the treatment of alcohol and heroin addiction using ketamine is a striking example of how a therapist can use the bad trip to change the cleint’s destructive behavior. The “Negatively Charged” Revelation Effect Outside the Context of Psychedelic Experience. Experiences close to or completely identical to the bad trip experience can occur in individuals while in altered states of consciousness even without psychedelics. Most often, the equivalent of a bad trip manifests itself in psychotic states, spontaneous episodes of derealization, and can also occur during religious or spiritual practices, in a state of hypoxia, or as the result of acute fatigue. Feelings close those of a bad trip, but much less vivid and traumatic, are probably known to any individual. These are states of derealization and depersonalization, i.e., when the body is perceived as alien, artificial (“sometimes I find myself feeling like I am a robot, or an alien,” “sometimes I don’t quite recognize my body”), and the environment is perceived as artificial (“sometimes it looks like everything around me has been fabricated by someone”). These phenomena can be triggered in healthy people by overwork, lack of sleep, anxiety or depressive episodes, and cannot be considered as something abnormal. But in combination with other symptoms (self-harm, strict diets, starvation, uncontrolled use of medications) may indicate a disorder for which you one should seek medical advice. Viki, 18 years old (name and details have been changed). From the age of seven she has been applying “self-punishment” by beating. She even came up with a game where her friends would whip her with a belt, and in the process, she felt sexual arousal. “I don’t want to believe that I’m alive. I want to be a robot. If my place is a mess, that means I am alive, and I don’t want to be alive. I keep everything in its place and it makes me feel like a robot. This makes things easier for me”, she would explain referring to the hatred she had towards the body. Overeating in her case would be followed by periods of starvation. “I wanted to kill my body by starvation”, she would say. During the “attacks”, which would last for several days straight, she had little sleep, did not eat, and experienced “unusual states”. “I don’t know where I am”, “somewhere in between heaven and hell, seems like I’m dead”, “I want to commit suicide just in order to gain control over death, to make it painless.” Another complaint of hers were obsessive thoughts and the feeling of guilt that accompanied, e.g. “I want to sleep with God, with my relatives, and I want to kill my brother”. The theme of hatred towards one's own body, the experience of artificiality of oneself is more or less inherent in many types of disorders. These experiences are often accompanied by feelings of guilt, self-deprecation, and suicidal thoughts. The recurrence of these symptoms during psychedelic experiences in healthy individuals, in healthy individuals in a state of fatigue, as well as in people with mental health disorders proves that the nature of such phenomena is universal and common, it is inherent in human consciousness, hardwired into it. Psychedelics (the bad trip, in particular) enhance the already existing but dormant phenomena: the guilt, the sinfulness, the inevitability of suffering and its endlessness, the inability to take action independently, the feeling of being oppressed by someone else’s will, or trapped eternally and tortured.