11 posts shown.
Douglas Price5 said:blood and urine tests
Do I have to pay extra for those—or does a private dermatologist just refer you to a public hospital?
I wonder what the total damage would be for an Accutane regimen, including all the lab work and everything else...
Kyle Ross56 said:Natural psychedelics are essentially a gift—they've been used globally throughout history, spanning thousands of years, as a way to connect with everything, a tool for self-discovery, gaining wisdom, enlightenment, or just a broader perspective on life. Anyone who thinks they can actually ban self-exploration, mind-opening, and nature—which is part of this planet we all belong to—without any legitimate arguments, is probably going to get totally fucked. People seem to think that more hallucinations equals more brain death. Seriously? I mean, what is dreaming if not a hallucination? Does sleeping destroy the brain? And one might wonder about the connection between the DMT naturally present in our brains, dreaming, and those indescribable experiences people have under its influence.
I suppose I should credit you for everything you mentioned 👍
I’d just add one quote that seems somewhat related to your point...
"If the words 'life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness' don't include the right to experiment with your own consciousness, then the Declaration of Independence isn't worth the hemp it was written on."
Terrence McKenna (R. I. P.) 🙏
restlesscanyon16 said:Aside from being hyperactive and feeling like you're constantly wired 24/7, there aren't really any other side effects... 🙂
I don't really see why that would happen.
Creatine just pulls extra water into your muscle cells—which, in turn, helps them absorb more protein. If you're going to take creatine, it might be worth pairing it with some whey protein—though you should probably watch what you eat or drink right before or after taking it, since certain foods might interfere with how it works.
@ wanderingmaker8, nice one 👍
@ redhawk76—I suppose one might wonder why an individual shouldn't have the freedom to choose their own path, provided they aren't harming anyone else? The reality is—if someone decides to go down that road, nobody can truly stop them, and if they're going to do it anyway, they might as well have access to accurate information. Also, regarding your friend’s son—it’s unfortunate, truly—given he was clearly using some rather questionable substances. It seems you're falling into the common trap of assuming all drugs are essentially the same. Personally, I don't advocate for them, nor am I an expert on psychoactive substances outside of the hallucinogen category. I would actually separate those from other "drugs," since, physically speaking, they seem safer than cigarettes or alcohol. They don't cause physical or psychological addiction, and the idea that people transition from one substance to something more harmful is a bit of a generalization—it really only applies to certain individuals with unstable psyches... Psychedelics aren't an escape from reality, nor are they something unstable people cling to when life gets hard... They are tools for exploring and expanding consciousness, which many great intellectuals have used recreationally (have you read Doors of Perception?)
I get that your view on "drugs" has been skewed by the situation you mentioned, but perhaps consider that not everything is a death sentence. No hard feelings 👍
*So you're all about this synthetic stuff—meanwhile, Native Americans have been using mescaline from cacti and psilocybin from mushrooms for thousands of years just for the hell of it😁
It’s somewhat ironic—if you can call it that—that in America, the two most widely used substances are actually among the most dangerous in terms of long-term consequences and the most trivial in terms of immediate effects: nicotine and alcohol. Naturally, those two are perfectly legal, whereas certain psychedelics are branded as the most hazardous drugs out there—even though, frankly, no physical harm from them has ever really been proven. Take LSD, for instance; it operates in such microscopic doses—we're talking micrograms—that it's virtually impossible for it to be toxic. I don't think there's any substance known to science that could be poisonous at such a negligible dose...
I suppose I could attempt to debunk endless drug myths here, but the reality is that most people—at least in this country—have had their brains conditioned by government narratives and general ignorance to the point where they aren't even interested in seeking the truth. It's rather unfortunate.
ps. Just to be clear—I'm not exactly advocating for drug use or suggesting that all drugs are fine. My focus is primarily on hallucinogenic psychedelics (psilocybin, mescaline, LSD, LSA, salvinorin A...) which carry absolutely zero physical risk when compared to alcohol or nicotine.
And one more thing—regarding potential psychological distress from hallucinogens (bad trips, paranoia, etc.), that is entirely the individual's fault due to poor preparation. Hallucinogens aren't toys; they are potent tools for consciousness exploration that require several days of mental preparation if one wants the experience to be constructive (for those interested, just Google "set and setting").
Douglas Price5 said:So, let’s talk about creams and skincare products for a second.
If you want stuff that actually works, stick to these:
-La Roche-Posay Effaclar cleanser
-PanOxyl 5% Benzoyl Peroxide
Both are from Dr. Wolff.
Everything else you find sitting on the shelves at Walmart is basically just overpriced, colored water—it won't do a single thing for your skin.
On a side note, I've been trying to track down some Accutane through unofficial channels lately. If anyone knows a lead, please let me know.
Is that Benzoyl Peroxide stuff still available in stores around here? I haven't spotted it yet.
Since my last post, I’ve actually stopped applying anything to my face. I just wash once before bed and once before school (using some Dove soap with a mild exfoliating effect and some moisturizer mixed in). Since then, no new inflamed breakouts have popped up—just maybe two or three basic whiteheads—though I do have one massive angry one on my chin that’s been sitting there for a week now, seemingly refusing to explode. 🙄
But I assume things will probably take a turn for the worse soon, so I'll try to track down that Benzoyl Peroxide stuff I was thinking about. I used La Roche-Posay Effaclar, but I just realized I might have been using it wrong. I was leaving it on—anywhere from one to several hours—as
www.acne.org suggests, which is why my skin was constantly irritated and red. Now I see it's only meant to stay on for a few minutes to an hour at most, acting as a cleanser rather than a leave-on treatment... bravo me. 🤣
And apparently, you leave the Benzoyl Peroxide on longer (?)... I need to get it. Maybe combining it with the La Roche-Posay Effaclar for cleansing might work... hmmm.
Thanks for the advice, everyone. I’ll probably head to a private dermatologist in a week or two—once I finish dumping this current stash of chemicals onto my face. 😬
Regarding the brewer's yeast—I tried taking capsules for a while, but it didn't seem like enough, so I bought a half-pound of the raw stuff and ate a teaspoon three times a day. It helped somewhat, I guess, but not entirely. 😳
Karen Myers4 said:My daughter struggled with major acne issues and has been on this regimen for 6 months now:
Skinoren cream in the morning
Differin at night
PanOxyl lotion (for inflammation)
and one Aknefug tablet daily.
Can you actually get those without a prescription? I've tried looking for Differin before, but it's either impossible to find here or apparently requires a script, from what I hear. Also, I'm a little worried because they say your skin gets significantly worse with Differin before it gets better—which I know is typical for anti-acne products, but apparently, it's especially intense with this one...🙄
Look, there's a spectrum here—some substances are clearly more harmful than others. It’s just a shame how people tend to lump everything together under one "drug" label, ignoring the fact that some, like hallucinogens, carry much lower risks—especially if someone actually knows what they're getting into...
Hello to everyone on this forum.
I woke up this morning and, as usual, was greeted by one of the most repulsive sights the human eye can endure today... It’s—it’s my bathroom mirror. Given how much that rectangular little demon has already caused me misery, I decided to finally end it (though I’ve said that more times than I care to admit, so perhaps this time actually sticks). Some might find my struggle with this redness pointless or even ridiculous—to them, I say enjoy being lucky enough not to deal with this, because I think anyone with even minor breakouts would kill to be rid of them. There are really two ways to approach this: focus on the problem itself, or focus on the fallout. In this case, the fallout would be the stress, the shyness, the social withdrawal, and the frustration; the problem is the acne. Well, after attempting to manage the psychological side for quite a while, I concluded it might be easier to just tackle the actual cause—the acne. Anyway, to avoid rambling about my own philosophy—which, clearly, amuses me—I’ll get to the actual details.
I first tried to fix this about two years ago when I went to my primary care doctor to get a referral for a dermatologist. He recommended Neutrogena (which I applied at night), erythromycin lotion (applied twice daily), and CeraVe (for cleansing before anything else). If I recall correctly, that helped to a certain extent, but it didn't fully clear things up. Unfortunately, I told the dermatologist that things were improving—so she assumed I was satisfied with the results—and recommended a different treatment, which turned out to be weaker and less effective than the first. Back then, I was using a salicylic acid and resorcinol solution (mixed at a local pharmacy) once a day, plus clindamycin twice a day (including overnight). Things started getting worse, and by the time I tried to schedule another appointment with the dermatologist, it turned out the waitlist was two months long—apparently, there was some annual conference or something taking up all her time.
Because of all that, I was pretty disappointed with the specialist route, so I took matters into my own hands. I searched the web and eventually, acne.org convinced me that benzoyl peroxide was the way to go. I looked to see if we had any creams containing it locally, and finally found one. It was called La Roche-Posay Effaclar. That ended up being my biggest headache yet. In my experience, the cream is terrible. Once you apply it, it’s impossible to move your face because it feels so tight and dry. You can only tolerate the effect of the BP after applying a moisturizer—if I understood that term correctly. But unfortunately, once that moisturizer goes on, my skin looks so greasy that there's no way I could leave my bedroom looking like that. Plus, the initial redness caused by the BP—which acne.org claims only lasts a week or two—never actually stopped for me. I would have kept going with the BP, but the redness was the final straw.
After that, I went back to my original treatment since it was the only thing that actually worked, though it isn't yielding the same great results anymore. Even now, as I write this, I’m still using that Neutrogena and erythromycin combo, searching for new suggestions in my desperation. I've been thinking about seeing a dermatologist again, but this time I think it might be better to see someone privately. I contacted a private clinic, and they sound promising, though I forgot to ask about the cost. So, I'll take this opportunity to ask: what does an average consultation with a private dermatologist cost in the US?
To summarize the important parts for anyone who didn't want to read all that above...
Used—Neutrogena, CeraVe, erythromycin, clindamycin, benzoyl peroxide (no oral medication, so far)... and honestly, nothing has really helped.
I'm looking for any suggestions, advice, or products I might not have tried yet. For context, the acne isn't everywhere—it's mostly around my mouth and beard area, then my nose, with a bit on my forehead and sides.
Thanks in advance for any help—best regards to everyone!