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Comment by dismal2 | Hacker News Reader

are you anti-drug? if so, why?

Not in the "War on Drugs" sense. Each to his own. And one can't argue with evident medical benefits, right? As for recreational use, mind expanding substances can offer wonderful insights into the world and oneself. But to actually change anything, one has to internalize and act on those insights and this can only be done with a sober brain. I've met too many people who get hooked on getting more and more insights, instead of making a reality of what they've learned. They themselves think they are changing for the better but their actions show that they are still the same.

I think the OP just found it curious. Turning the question around: do you think it's a good idea to screw around with your brain using something like ketamine (other than in a controlled way, such as a clinical trial or under guidance from a doctor)?

yes. Everyone should experience the k-hole

What if you have a psychotic disorder? Prevalence is ~3%.

Many drugs can precipitate a psychotic episode, including stimluants, psychedelics, even Alcohol. It's a risk you take when you take drugs but can be mitigated if you known what to expect and have support.

Ketamine I don't think has a huge problem with this compared to other drugs. It may be a bit of a bizarre experience but not often a tramuatizing one.

I'm just not sure what the advantage is. I don't take alcohol, other than the occasional beer/wine, as I don't particularly like the effects. Same for smoking/caffeine/pot. I have much better experiences with real-life, such as flying planes, climbing mountains, etc. I understand LSD and ketamine are going to give a kind of the experience you can't get in real-life, but screwing around with your brain to achieve it doesn't really seem to be worth the risk IMO. I've managed to completely screw up my brain once in my life (severe suidical depression / CFS) without any help from any mind-altering substances, so to be honest I'm not really sure it's a good idea to be screwing around with your neurotransmitters like that. It's like trying to make your zx81 do something cool by randomly poking memory locations or wobbling the 16k RAM pack.

I mean if you already have a psychotic disorder, is it a good idea to experience the k-hole (high dose of ketamine)? With or without antipsychotics? What about a low dose?

For example, would you recommend that someone with schizophrenia try it?

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