it is often advised to settle your intention for your trip before embarking upon it..i believe this sounds like good advice. crucial actually, however i have never really followed it. i try a substance out of curiosity, i enjoy it, ill do it again. i guess i let the trip call the shots, but still often benefit from it.. i assume i am not alone here, so id like to hear from a few people who do set their intention, and how it affects the experience, and possibly a comparison to how adopting this practice has changed their experiences. and what an intention consists of..

Curiosity is a valid intention.

I've learned not to take it so seriously as some people do ("I shall use this trip to overcome my feelings for my ex" ) because the nature of DMT is such that you can never predict or control what will happen anyways. I like to be a bit more open-ended... "I'd like to explore my emotions", "I want to feel my spirituality", et cetera. As long as it feels internally justified it works. I think one of the main reasons for setting an intention is so you don't get cold feet from feelings of guilt, confusion, or whathaveyou. That often leads to a bad trip.

I used to be this way, but found that after 2 decades of "curious exploration", that there was something deep inside the trip that was upset or angry with me. Often sending me into fits of paranoid delusion. It was almost as if the spirit of the molecules had gotten together and decided that they were tired of me taking and not giving. Not bringing anything to the proverbial table.

Clearly, I am not making any sort of assumption as to your intentions, whether conscious or subconscious. I can only speak as to my experiences. I hit point to where no matter what I took, I would get into this looped thoughts of a disgust that I could feel in the ether, directed towards me. When I stopped taking these compounds simply with the intentions of getting "messed up", I began to learn from them again. To have positive experiences.

I believe that the spirits of these compounds have emotions. Emotions that can go in many different directions. Many more than we have words or explanations for. I also believe that much of what we experience is very internal, and perhaps my discomfort in myself played a part here? But in the end, adding the intentions, and making sure that I was bringing something into the ether remedied my issues.

That being said, there were 20 years of not setting any intentions that worked wonderfully. There just seemed to be a wall I hit after a certain bit. Also there were a few really heavy shared experiences that left me questioning the very fabrics of our reality.

I guess what I am trying to say is that, while not necessary, setting an intentions helps you get on the level in which you want to be before the unpredictable nature of the compound takes over. Almost like buying the ticket to your destination, and getting on the train. You trust that the train will take you to where you want to go, and that you will have no issues getting there. If that makes any sense sometimes I have difficulty explaining my thoughts.

For me, setting my intention usually makes the journey a little less chaotic. It's something to focus on amidst the rapidity and provides a base for understanding what may be going on in the experience. It provides some direction.

If there's one thing I always do, it's set an intention. Sometimes it's more than one. The two that I use the most are to heal and to practice the experience. Last night one was to develop my relationship with the spice, and I definitely feel closet to it.

I sometimes think of it as a sort of momentum builder, allowing one to push themselves forward into the the experience

Me personally, I have to have something other than curiosity as an intention for journeying. It that's just my stance. I think that one has to feel justified and validated in themselves in regards to considerations made about SMOALKING THE SPICE.

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I think it's like when going abroad. You plan your journey a little ahead, build up your focus and energy and once you arrive you open yourself up to the place and go with the flow.

I think the purpose of setting the intention is to gain focus. It's also part of the integration. What do I need in the situation I'm in? How the medicine could help me?

Another example. If you go to doctor or a therapist and just tell them to do something you are less likely to get results than if you have thought beforehand your situation and have an idea how the doctor or the therapist could help you. Of course it's just a start and the healing work happens in a dialogue.

My intention setting practices have changed quite a bit. My subconscious mind and higher self have a better handle on what I need than I think I do. So, I typically spend a little time focusing on whatever it is I think I need help with and then simply thank the medicine and accept whatever it has to show me.

This seems to be the best way for me to allow myself to trust the process. That's really what a lot of this comes down to, trusting the medicine. If I ask for things that are very specific based on what I think I want or need, then it can lead to disappointment or confusion because 9/10 times I don't get anything close to what I think I need or want. However, I never have an unpleasant experience when I simply let go and trust the medicine.

Having some sort of intention keeps me focused on something so I am entering hyperspace with a purpose, not just winging it haphazardly, and keeping it a bit general and not too specific gives the experience room to be what it is and usually still very much applicable to issues I'm facing.

This reminds me of an another metaphor I've been thinking. That is having a date with someone special. You have the intention to have special time, make your place tidy and get yourself in the mood that you are welcoming the other one. Focus is on the contact, not on the outcome.

Special time, hehehe😉

A note I'd like to add is that when setting an intention, while directed, shouldn't be something that adds any expectation to the experience aside from oneself, ie something too specific, like a particular answer to a question or a specific insight.

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