#78 Iboga Information Document for First Responders
Since recording Art and I’s conversation about the first responder’s perspective upon arriving at a scene, especially in the context of treating patients operating with psychedelic-induced or non-ordinary states of consciousness, I decided to revise the “cheat sheet” my friend provides to others when taking psychedelics himself or when looking after experiencers as a sober caretaker. I doubt I would have had the idea to create such a sheet myself, and further, his sheet partly inspired Iboganautics episode 2.8 with Art Hsieh. Upon mentioning the existence of such a cheat sheet to Art and some of the subject fields to be filled out by experiencers, I was pleased to find out that Art liked the forward-thinking idea of planning for worst-case scenarios that require activation of emergency medical services.
The Iboga Information Document for First Responders or similar document for any drug in effect serves multiple purposes, however, with one main aim: to save your life. First, and mainly dealing with the first page, there is information about the drug you’re about to consume and other related questions that first responders will most likely ask upon arriving at any scene. The purpose of this page is to give them as much quick information as possible to save time in treating the experiencer-now-patient. The second page also addresses first responder questions, but related to the patient’s personal information, any bit of data that can help first responders in patient treatment. Second, filling out such a document forces the experiencer to reflect upon the gravitas of embarking on such a journey. This sheet is not meant to serve as the only reference point of research on behalf of the experiencer, rather, it forces them to anticipate the possibility of emergency services being called out in case of an emergency and prompts experiencers to be responsible in detailing as much information as possible about themselves for the benefit of first responders, which in turn benefits the experiencer.
It is my opinion that not filling out such a serious sheet of information (now that you know of its existence) in the event of an emergency boils down to at least four things: (i) in denial that something could go wrong and happen “to me,” (ii) naïveté, (iii) indifference, or (iv) laziness. Of course, you don’t know what you don’t know, therefore you cannot fill out this kind of sheet if you don’t know it exists. If you are reading this or listened to Art and I’s conversation, however, then, one of the four points mentioned above apply to you. Do yourself a favor and plan as much as possible before putting anything into your body. Let others know about your physical and mental condition. It’s just the responsible thing to do, isn’t it? Do you want to put others in a situation wherein they must fear for your well-being and theirs? As we enter a new epoch of psychedelic research, consumption, therapy, exploration, etc., we must learn from previous generations’ mistakes and apply that cultural knowledge to our own time, asking ourselves what we can do to explore our minds as safely and responsibly as possible. I realize that my iboga-tailored information document for first responders will benefit mostly underground or private home settings since any good retreat will likely make you fill out intake forms and will know what to do in emergency situations until professional help arrives. Note: I am not promoting or condoning drug use; all I’m saying is that if you’re going to take a drug, preemptively document as much information about the drug and yourself so if shit hits the fan and you’re not making sense, others can grab your sheet and provide good care to you.
Art and I briefly spoke about this drug cheat sheet for first responders at the end of our conversation, and at the end of my Podcast Supplement post about the episode (click link in first paragraph above), including a free copy for anyone to download. I thought this drug information document, and forthcoming tips and tricks, for psychedelic users deserved its own post. A few notes about the Iboga Information Document for First Responders. (1) Print and then fill out the entire document prior to ingesting iboga or your drug of choice because an empty sheet is worthless to first responders. (2) I made it “fair use,” meaning, anyone can use it however they want. Feel free to print, distribute, plagiarize it, take credit for it, I don’t care, as long as the information on it helps people in emergency situations. Also, if you’re inspired to use this sheet for your substance of choice, simply swap out the details on iboga and replace with details about your substance of choice.
Please let me know if this document helped you, inspired you, or if I forgot something that should be included. Be smart, be safe, anticipate all possible situations.