A Psychedelic Experience with 4-HO-DET at My 19th Birthday Party



Table of Contents


  • Introduction
  • Participants and Dosage
    • Dosage Details
  • Onset of Effects
    • T+0:45 - Initial Sensations
    • T+1:00 - Visuals and Environment Perception
  • Peak of the Trip
    • T+1:30 - Visual Intensity and Laughter
    • T+2:00 - Thought Loops and Déjà Vu
    • T+2:20 - Closed-Eye Visuals and Fractal Patterns
    • T+2:30 - Social Interaction and Heightened Perception
    • T+2:40 - Tactile Sensations and Warmth
  • The Plateau
    • T+3:00 - Euphoria and Physical Sensations
    • T+3:40 - Emotional Shift and Visual Patterns
  • Comedown and After Effects
    • T+4:00 - Alternating Headspaces and Diminishing Visuals
    • T+5:00 - End of Visuals and Fatigue
    • Aftermath and Group Reflections
  • Summary of Key Effects
    • Thought Loops
    • External Hallucinations
    • Visual Distortions and Drifting
    • Geometric Patterns
    • Pattern Recognition
    • Déjà Vu
    • Laughter Fits
    • Tactile Enhancement
    • Excessive Yawning
    • Temperature Regulation Issues


Introduction


This is a detailed report of my experience with the psychedelic compound 4-HO-DET, which I tried during my 19th birthday party. The event took place at a close friend's house, where a group of nine friends gathered. Out of the group, four of us, including myself, decided to experiment with the substance. Our night was filled with powerful visuals, emotional bonding, and a wide range of sensory effects.


Participants and Dosage


Four of us consumed 4-HO-DET during the party. Each participant had varying levels of prior experience with psychedelics:


  • Me (19 years old): Took 20mg of 4-HO-DET. I had previously experimented with 1P-LSD at a dose of around 100μg a few months earlier.
  • J (20 years old): Took 20mg. J had previous experience with psychedelics, but only in party settings, never in a more relaxed environment like a house.
  • U (18 years old): Took 20mg. U, my best friend, had never tried psychedelics before this experience.
  • M (17 years old): Took 15mg. M was nervous about trying the full 20mg dose and opted for a smaller amount. This was her first psychedelic experience.


Dosage Details


  • I, J, and U each took 20mg of 4-HO-DET.
  • M took a slightly smaller dose of 15mg due to initial hesitation and fear of the experience.


Onset of Effects


T+0:45 - Initial Sensations


Approximately 45 minutes after ingestion, we all started to feel a warm, tingling sensation throughout our bodies. This marked the onset of the psychedelic experience for everyone in the group.


T+1:00 - Visuals and Environment Perception


By the one-hour mark, closed-eye visuals (CEVs) began to appear for all of us. The environment itself also started to exhibit breathing-like qualities, where objects seemed to pulse or flow with a life of their own. This breathing effect was noticeable throughout the trip, adding to the overall sense of altered reality.


Peak of the Trip


T+1:30 - Visual Intensity and Laughter


As the trip progressed, the visuals intensified. For me, the visuals were more pronounced than during my previous experience with 1P-LSD. The most notable effects included visual drifting, where objects melted, breathed, and flowed in a dream-like manner. I also began to yawn excessively, a strange side effect that persisted for the entire trip. Despite the yawning, I found myself laughing uncontrollably for about 10 minutes, without any clear reason for my amusement.


T+2:00 - Thought Loops and Déjà Vu


Around two hours in, M got stuck in a thought loop where she felt the moon was smiling at her, while U began experiencing a strong sense of déjà vu. I noticed the same feeling shortly afterward. At this point, the sense of bliss and deep connection between us was overwhelming, with feelings of love and contentment filling the room.


T+2:20 - Closed-Eye Visuals and Fractal Patterns


I decided to sit alone on the carpet to fully immerse myself in the experience. The tactile sensation of the carpet beneath my hands was deeply pleasurable, and I marveled at the beauty of the closed-eye visuals I was seeing. These visuals frequently took on geometric shapes, including intricate fractals, some of which resembled Mandelbrot sets. Colors melted and mixed together in mesmerizing patterns.


T+2:30 - Social Interaction and Heightened Perception


Our headspaces were deeply psychedelic at this point, though moments of clarity occasionally broke through, allowing us to converse and observe our friends who were not tripping. Their drunken antics became a source of great amusement for us. We enjoyed interacting with them in our altered state, finding humor in their behavior.


T+2:40 - Tactile Sensations and Warmth


We ventured outside to smoke cigarettes, even though the temperature was around 10°C (50°F). Despite the cool weather, we all felt unusually warm, as though the drug had suppressed our ability to regulate temperature. The sensation of warmth intensified, and we noticed that touching objects, such as our cigarettes or the grass, felt strangely enhanced.


The Plateau


T+3:00 - Euphoria and Physical Sensations


At the three-hour mark, the headspace began to calm down for both J and me, making it easier to handle the experience. I felt a mild body load whenever I sat or laid down, but it was manageable. Both U and I experienced waves of intense physical and cognitive euphoria during this phase, which made the trip highly enjoyable.


T+3:40 - Emotional Shift and Visual Patterns


Shortly after, I began to feel a brief wave of sadness as the trip intensified slightly, but it remained manageable. I noticed that the same visual patterns I saw with my eyes closed were also present on the white walls around me, creating an overlay of afterimages. Bright objects left lingering patterns in my vision, further enhancing the psychedelic experience.


Comedown and After Effects


T+4:00 - Alternating Headspaces and Diminishing Visuals


At the four-hour mark, I began to feel the effects of the comedown. My headspace alternated between a psychedelic state and periods of clarity, but the latter became more frequent as time passed. The visuals, both open and closed-eyed, started to lose their intensity.


T+5:00 - End of Visuals and Fatigue


By the five-hour mark, the visuals had almost entirely disappeared. I still noticed some mild breathing effects in the environment, but the intense drifting and closed-eye visuals were gone. Despite feeling tired, I found it difficult to fall asleep due to residual energy from the experience.


Aftermath and Group Reflections


Upon waking up the next day, none of us felt any lingering effects from the trip. We didn’t have a formal discussion to debrief our experiences, but from casual conversations, I learned that my friends had also encountered some interesting phenomena. M, for instance, reported seeing external hallucinations like shadowy figures and faces everywhere, particularly eyes. U mentioned a recurring sense of déjà vu, and all of us experienced moments where we got stuck in thought loops.


Summary of Key Effects


The following are the most prominent effects we experienced during the trip:


  • Thought Loops: "M started to get stuck in a thought loop" and "we all experienced thought loops at some point."
  • External Hallucinations: "M saw shadow people and faces, particularly eyes, during the trip."
  • Drifting and Melting Visuals: "Visuals were more intense than my 1P-LSD trip, with a lot of visual drifting, breathing, and flowing effects."
  • Geometric Patterns: "Closed-eye visuals included geometric shapes, such as fractals, and melting colors."
  • Pattern Recognition Enhancement: "We all noticed faces and eyes in various patterns throughout the experience."
  • Déjà Vu: "U and I both experienced déjà vu multiple times."
  • Laughter Fits: "I laughed uncontrollably for about 10 minutes with no clear cause."
  • Tactile Enhancement: "The sensation of touching the carpet was deeply pleasurable."
  • Excessive Yawning: "I experienced excessive yawning throughout the trip, a side effect that seemed unique to me."
  • Temperature Regulation Suppression: "Despite the cool temperature outside, we all felt unusually warm."


This psychedelic journey with 4-HO-DET left us with a range of powerful and memorable effects, making it a significant experience for everyone involved.