Drugs can be dangerous, whether they be legal or illicit. Our goal is to promote open and honest discussion around substance use. Which means we cannot sweep potential harm under the carpet and ignore it. However, we can and will promote harm reduction techniques and tips.
Many Schedule 1 drugs are safer than we were led to believe growing up. But safer doesn’t mean safe.
There are things we do to make our substance use safer. But safer doesn’t mean safe. The best we can do is reduce the potential for things to go poorly.
As such, here are few guidelines for harm reduction:
- Always test your substances
- Be mindful of set and setting
- Know your drug interactions
- Try new things in safe environments
Always Test Your Substances
Seth from The Drug Classroom explains testing so well, I figured I’d let him do it here.
There are several drug tests kits you can buy to test your substances. These are completely legal to purchase and possess. One test is not always enough to get an accurate assessment of what you have.
Be Mindful of Set and Setting
Anything you read about psychedelics will warn you about set and setting. And those warnings are correct. A change in music can affect the entire mood and mindset of a trip. This is why a knowledgeable trip sitter can help keep a trip light and positive.
But set and setting applies to most drugs. MDMA can make everyone feel like your best friend, so make sure your setting isn’t in a place were that can be used against you. Be mindful of where you are and who is around you. Also be mindful of your friends to make sure they are safe.
Review our Six Commandments of Substance Use for more info.
Know Your Drug Interactions
Even if you aren’t planning on mixing substances, it’s a good idea to know how substances interact. Make sure your prescriptions don’t have a dangerous interaction. SSRIs, a common form of antidepressants, do not mix well with MDMA. This chart from Trip Sit is impressively detailed.
Try New Things in a Safe Environment
Want to try MDMA or LSD? Awesome! But maybe doing it at a club or music festival where you have no ability to change you set and setting isn’t the best idea.
This applies to testing drug combinations like candy flipping or attempting a new peak dosage. After all, just because you know you enjoy a music festival on 120 micro-units of LSD, that doesn’t mean your first trip of 350 micro-units (ego-death!) should be in that kind of environment.
Teach Harm Reduction Over Prohibition
Just like teaching safe sex practices prevents more accidental pregnancies than abstinence, spreading harm reduction practices instead of prohibition makes substance use safer. In fact, legalization and regulation would make substance user safer still. We can only hope that, as marijuana, MDMA, and psychedelics receive more attention from the medical and research communities, the legal schedule and social stigma around these substances lightens and better laws can be put into place governing their use.