How to Prepare for Psychedelic Experiences

Set & Setting

Your set and setting will have a powerful effect on your experiences.

Your set includes your intention, attitude, personality and mood, while the setting is the physical, social, cultural, political, economic and interpersonal environment in which the psychedelic is taken.

The setting will influence the set. Changing environments can elicit substantial and helpful changes to mental set when facing difficulty.

Set and setting will contribute meaningfully to all experiences and at any dose. The effects of a psychedelic will increase sensitivity to all stimuli — internal and external. As a result, you will be highly vulnerable and suggestible to your mental set and environmental setting. Setting is essential in ensuring a safe, supportive and comfortable environment in which you may process pleasant or unpleasant psychological material as openly and safely as possible, while the set ensures that you are psychologically prepared and suited for using psychedelics.

Studies investigating the therapeutic potential of psychedelics note the importance of a quiet, safe, comfortably lit environment, with access to a washroom, music, and art supplies as an appropriate setting for healing. These studies also prepare the journeyer through an extended process of mental set preparation via discussion and education about the effects of psychedelics.

Preparing one’s set and setting includes understanding if you are suitable for psychedelic experience. Please review the psychedelic safety assessment before embarking on a psychedelic journey.

Your health and safety is a top priority.

Set

Set, internal set, or mindset, is the internal environment of the journeyer. Set includes intention, attitudes, personality, moods and more. Whatever makes you the individual you are will influence your psychedelic experience. Religious, cultural, social and political upbringing, conceptions and opinions about the world, and life experiences will all play a significant role in the nature of the experience.

Do not underestimate the reach of your internal set. Remember, your internal set is affected by the external setting in which you have the experience, including the complete context in which you were raised and currently exist.

How to Prepare a Set

For healing and growth, therapeutic protocols involve meeting with a therapist or guide a few times before the actual use of any psychedelics. These therapy sessions are a means to prepare the journeyer’s mental set through information about the effects of psychedelics and open communication about the personal issues and psychological difficulties the journeyer may work with. All the information on this website will also contribute to preparing your mindset by helping you develop a holistic and accurate understanding of psychedelics. A set can also be prepared through meaningful ritual or ceremony.

A mental set does not have to be perfect. After all, psychedelics have been and continue to be used as medicine by millions of people. As long as you are not in an extremely negative or unstable mental state, you may consider proceeding with the psychedelic experience in a safe and careful manner.

Cultivate Good Attitude

The best attitudes to foster when using psychedelics are openness, curiosity, surrender and courage. Focus on developing these attitudes through intentional behaviours. Let go of any expectations for your psychedelic experience, as the fewer you have, the happier and less anxious you’ll be.

You can increase your understanding of the dynamics of consciousness and ability for self-control via regular meditation practice. You may also deepen your self-awareness through regular journalling. Finally, you may contribute to personal and collective wellbeing by cultivating virtues of character and healthy habits, such as exercising, eating well, sleeping well, spending time surrounded by nature, taking care of loved ones, volunteering, and partaking in other benevolent acts.

Accept Discomfort

Discomfort during the psychedelic experience is common for many journeyers. Trust that whatever physical or psychological effects you encounter are natural, they are part of your innate healing intelligence. Remember that there is nothing to fear, you are safe, and all will pass. Welcome every sensation with curiosity. Accept and fully surrender to whatever arises. To surrender will often instantly transforms the experience from a challenging one into a more pleasant one.

Accept Not Knowing

Wisdom comes from realising that one does not know much, if anything at all. Holding onto ideas, philosophies, or ideologies will only lead to resistance and difficulty. When you catch yourself struggling or resisting, remember to relax, surrender, and let go. The more you surrender, the more you make space for your innate healing intelligence to work effectively. You are on this journey to explore, learn, heal and grow, so stay open to the flow of consciousness.

Accept Emotions

During a psychedelic journey, you may encounter hidden aspects of your self, such as strength, vulnerability and compassion. You may come across painful thoughts, feelings, and impulses that you don’t usually allow yourself to feel, such as shame, guilt, grief, anger, restlessness, frustration, and suicidal ideation. In order become whole, you must be conscious of the whole by learning to remain open to every aspect of your self, and by expanding the range of emotions you allow yourself to feel. You cannot hide any parts of yourself. Be honest. Be whole.

Emotions may be expressed or released in many ways: yelling, cursing, crying, wailing, laughing, dancing, singing, speaking, writing, making sounds, rolling on the ground, praying, shaking, trembling, punching a pillow, or vomiting. At certain points, you may feel like you have lost partial or full control of your body’s movements. It’s usually wise to let your body do what it must by trusting in your inner healing intelligence, no matter how weird or scary it may seem. 

Recognize & Embrace Fears

Fearing the unknown is natural. A comfort zone feels familiar and reliable, whereas anything outside the comfort zone can feel overwhelming. During the psychedelic experience, the fear of losing self-control is common, especially among novice journeyers. Those who are willing to surrender and who do not fear are better prepared to tolerate psychedelic experiences. Remember to grow with the flow.

Facing difficulty is natural and a invaluable part of psychedelic use. Difficult sensations and emotions are common. It’s important to release the desire to control, and surrender to whatever shows up. Remember that you are safe, and breathe. 

When you accept life as it is, energy flows and struggles dissipate.

As you move beyond your familiar sense of self, you may encounter a sense of emptiness or nothingness. Letting go and surrendering into this feeling may be scary and may feel like dying. Face this feeling by surrendering to it, allow consciousness to do the work it must, it is by facing these unpleasant feelings with openness, curiosity and courage that we can heal and grow.

Mental Set Considerations

• A good conscience is the best preparation you can have for your set. So practice being open, curious, surrendering, compassionate and courageous, while cultivating patience, stillness, and equanimity towards all that happens. Intentionally cultivate positive attributes, such as gratitude, humility, optimism, courage, honesty, curiosity, playfulness, generosity, awareness and calm.

• Intentionally cultivate awareness of your innate healing intelligence.

• Be completely honest with yourself. Whether you are conscious of it or not, consciousness knows when you are lying to yourself. Be honest. Be whole.

• Support systems contribute to the meaningful preparation of a set.

  • Commit to developing a regular meditation practice. Aim to practice meditation daily before and after the psychedelic experience.

  • Commit to developing a regular journalling practice. A day or two before the inner journey, write a brief autobiography and explore your desires, goals, expectations, and fears regarding the upcoming journey.

  • Design a personally or spiritually meaningful ritual or ceremony for your upcoming psychedelic journey.

• Be in good health: properly nourished, hydrated, exercised, rested and at peace. Consider doing a “detox” days or weeks before the experience.

  • Spend more time in nature.

  • Sleep well. Go to bed a regular times.

  • Disconnect from screens and the internet.

  • Avoid violent or exploitative forms of entertainment.

  • Avoid alcohol, nicotine, processed sugar and caffeine.

  • Eat whole and organic foods such as vegetable, fruits, nuts and seeds.

  • Consider fasting for 12 or more hours before ingesting the psychedelic.

• Be free from any negative feelings or thoughts towards anything around you and anyone accompanying you during the psychedelic experience.

• Be free from overbearing stress, anxiety or paranoia before the experience.

• Spend one, two, three or more days in contemplative retreat, in nature and away from the city bustle before and after the psychedelic experience.

• Restrict access to the internet, world news updates, and social media at least 24 hours before and after the psychedelic experience, and more if possible.

Setting

Setting, external space, or environment, is the physical, social, cultural and interpersonal setting or environment in which the journeyer is using psychedelics. You want to be in a setting where you feel supported, safe, comfortable and relatively content.

The setting includes the physical environment: temperature, weather, lighting, time of day, surrounding decorations and cleanliness; the interpersonal environment: people surrounding you; and sociocultural environment: predominant culture and political views, and current socioeconomic conditions.

The setting in which the psychedelic is taken must be safe, controlled, supportive, and comfortable, as the journeyer’s body and mind will be extremely vulnerable. Psychedelics may also occasion highly emotional reactions, which require an appropriate environment for free expression.

How to Prepare a Setting

Preparing the right setting is crucial for ensuring a safe and supportive environment for your psychedelic experience. Ideally, the setting should be calm, controlled, comfortable, and free from distractions that could trigger negative or unexpected reactions. Being surrounded by nature enhances the experience.

For therapeutic purposes, a well-prepared room should have a couch or bed for the journeyer to lie down on with eye shades, a chair for the facilitator, and access to essentials like a washroom, water, and temperature control. Additional tools such as a pen and paper, a voice recorder, and a carefully curated playlist—featuring mostly music without lyrics—can deepen the experience.

Familiar indoor spaces like your bedroom or living room can create a more introspective mindset, offering safety and protection from unpredictable elements such as people, weather, or noise. On the other hand, a safe outdoor environment can help you reconnect with nature, an important source of healing and growth. The heightened sensitivity experienced during psychedelics often leads to a profound rediscovery of nature’s sacred essence.

A combination of indoor and outdoor settings, such as a secluded cabin near a forest, beach, or desert, provides the best of both worlds. This allows access to controlled, comfortable indoor spaces, with the added benefits of being in nature. In any setting, make sure to plan for privacy, access to a toilet or natural area, and avoid potential stressors like strangers or getting lost. Consider your emotional needs—while a cozy indoor space may offer comfort in a fragile state, an outdoor area might be better for externalizing emotions.

Avoid environments that are stressful, fearful, noisy, or unclean, as they can lead to unpleasant experiences. A warm, quiet, and secure space is far more conducive to a positive, relaxing, and meaningful psychedelic journey. Ensuring an ideal setting is vital, as an inappropriate environment is a leading cause of harm during psychedelic experiences.

Setting Considerations

• Plan the details: Decide the when, where, how, and who you’ll be with for your psychedelic experience to minimize surprises and ensure safety.

• Stay in one place: Choose a single location to avoid unexpected events and disruptions.

• Free from responsibilities: Ensure you have no obligations for the day of the experience and the day after. This includes work, chores, and activities that require focus or attention, such as driving or operating machinery.

• Ensure privacy and no interruptions: Complete privacy is essential. Avoid anyone who might intrude on the experience, including family members, friends, neighbours, or service providers. Privacy allows for deeper introspection without external distractions.

• Quiet, comfortable space: Choose a quiet environment with minimal stimuli. A comfortable couch, pillows, and blankets will allow the journeyer to rest, recline, or sit. A chair for the facilitator to sit during the session is also recommended.

• Private space for companions: If journeying with others, make sure private spaces are available in case anyone wants to spend time alone, which is common during psychedelic experiences.

• Sober and trustworthy facilitator: A sober, responsible, and trusted guide or facilitator is highly recommended, especially for those new to psychedelics or those exploring higher doses.

• Avoid unsafe environments: Stay away from loud, unfamiliar, cluttered, dangerous, or public spaces. The external environment will influence your internal state during the experience.

• Aesthetics matter: Create a visually pleasing space with flowers or calming artwork. Avoid imagery with strong or negative connotations, as these could affect the experience.

• Access to essentials: Ensure easy access to water, healthy snacks like fruit, and a nearby toilet. Keeping hydrated and nourished supports physical comfort.

• Eye shades and art supplies: Have eye shades available to reduce visual distractions. Art supplies can help with nonverbal expression, and a voice recorder or notebook will allow you to capture insights.

• Music for the journey: Prepare a music playlist in advance, preferably classical or ambient music without lyrics. Lyrics can anchor the mind in rational or social thought, which may interfere with fully surrendering to the experience. Headphones are recommended for immersive sound.

• No electronics: Avoid access to phones, computers, or the internet during the entire experience to prevent distractions and maintain focus on the inner journey.

Although a mental set does not have to perfect, practice wholesome habits to prepare your set. Plan your setting before your psychedelic experience to ensure a safe, controlled and supportive environment.