Under the Influence



There’s little difference between traveling and doing psychedelics.



They both involve heightened emotions, pushing your comfort zone and circumventing the mundane, while gaining new perspectives on both ordinary and extraordinary situations. It doesn’t matter if it’s: mushrooms, Mexico, peyote, Peru, ayahuasca, Guadalajara, LSD or NYC; they all require opening up to the journey sought. There’s a reason why it’s called a trip.



Whether you are flying solo or with your favorite fellow sightseers, trust is crucial for every experience. You need confidence within yourself to withstand any difficult situations that might arise—and tough times are often inevitable. The challenges that emerge during world travels and ingestion of mind-altering drugs are apart of the process. You can’t predict where things might take you; you just have to be ready and willing to commit to the moment until it passes. It’s the journey, not the destination…right? Once you’ve overcome that deterrent and put it behind you, you will be all the more primed to benefit from the peak of the experience.



And what an incredible experience it all can be. Like hitting a personal reset button, a good trip can invigorate the senses and revitalize how you interpret life around you:

soaking the golden glow of a sleepy sun in the city,

tasting the colors of coconut curry cooked in the street,

savoring salty skin after an ocean’s cool embrace,

the smell of the mountains breathing after a rain,

the simple sounds of life as it works and functions around you.

Both traveling and psychedelics boost and enhance your intake of awareness. Under their effects, simply walking down the street has the potential to be a life-changing event. It is this enjoyment of the moment that brings depth to the soul of the world—something everyone could use opening up to.



With everything in life, however, balance is essential. The only difference between medicine and poison is the dose. And just like immoderate intake of psychedelic drugs, so too can you travel excessively. If partying is the only focus, you’ll miss the invaluable lessons and opportunity around you. If you push too hard to experience too much too soon, you will burn yourself out and loathe the moments you came to love. Without a conscious balance you will wake up broke, depleted of emotion and needing to go home. The perspectives and states of mind that occur under the influence of traveling and psychedelics are too powerful to be taken for granted.



So immerse yourself in a balanced journey,

and don’t forget your journal.

Whichever trip you take,

it’ll be worth writing down.



John Early

-Playa Escameca, Nicaragua-