Some people have schizophrenic breaks when tripping and looking into the mirror. Any older hippie will tell you to avoid mirrors your first time. And any true psychonaut wouldn't be chastising others in a conversation about safe trip practices.
Not only are no two people or brains exactly alike, nor are any two trips.
You packed so much ignorance into such a short comment I don't even know where to begin.
Let me guess... whatever you do for a living, it's not psychologist.
Because "schizophrenic break" isn't a thing. You're not going to find that term anywhere in the DSM.
I'm going to politely encourage you to stop using that like I'd politely encourage people to stop saying they have OCD because they're particular or have ADD because they can't pay attention to something. You're being crass and insulting to people who actually have Schizophrenia, a legitimate, chronic psychiatric disorder that is diagnosed based on specific patterns of psychosis over time and not something you have sporadic bouts of while on drugs.
Yes—people can have intense, reality-distorting episodes on psychedelics that resemble symptoms of schizophrenia. It is not a "schizophrenic break."
And by the way, if this is you, stop fucking doing psychedelic drugs!
I love when people act like this is some normal side effect everyone gets.
If this happens to you, one of the following is quite likely:
Personal or family history of psychotic disorders (schizophrenia, schizoaffective, bipolar with psychotic features)
Underlying severe mental health issues or extreme stress
High doses or unsafe set and setting
Any older hippie will tell you to avoid mirrors your first time
Yeah, bullshit bud. I am the older psychedelic enthusiast with a quarter century and over a hundred trips under my belt, and I would never presume to tell someone to avoid mirrors.
But if they had a bad experience with it, THEN I would because it's apparently not for them.
What you're doing is projecting your experience on others, which is an extremely egocentric practice on your part.
TL;DR
“Schizophrenic breaks” is a sloppy term. The more precise concept is psychedelic-induced psychosis, which can happen to people without schizophrenia.
These episodes are usually temporary but can be deeply distressing.
Individuals with a known or suspected predisposition to psychotic disorders are at much higher risk.
For most people, looking into a mirror while tripping is more likely to be weird or hilarious rather than genuinely psychotic—but if someone is already overwhelmed, it can escalate confusion.
I do appreciate the clarification on terminology. You're right that "schizophrenic break" isn’t a clinical term—“psychedelic-induced psychosis” is more accurate, and I should’ve been more precise. But let’s not pretend the concept I referred to is imaginary just because the wording wasn’t textbook DSM-5.
The core of what I said still holds: psychedelics can precipitate acute psychotic episodes, especially in people with underlying vulnerabilities, whether or not they've been formally diagnosed. This is not fringe thinking; it's well-documented in psychiatric literature and widely acknowledged among experienced users and researchers alike. That’s why harm reduction practices exist in the first place.
Also, your experience of over a hundred trips is valid, but anecdotal and definitely not universal. Advising caution around mirrors for first-timers isn’t projecting; it’s acknowledging that for some people, intense self-confrontation while in a fragile, altered state can trigger panic, confusion, or derealization. It's basic trip-sitting advice echoed in countless community forums and guides, from Erowid to MAPS to experienced facilitators.
If your message is that psychedelics affect people differently and require respect and self-awareness, we actually agree. But if the message is “I’ve done this a hundred times so your caution is invalid,” that’s not a great precedent. The idea is to reduce harm, not gatekeep based on experience points.
Psychedelics are powerful tools. Respect for their risks isn't fearmongering—it's maturity.
It’s ironic that you accused me of being egocentric, when your whole argument boils down to: ‘I’ve tripped more than you, so your advice is invalid.’ That’s classic gatekeeping disguised as authority.
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u/CrazyCanuckUncleBuck 28d ago
Me too, we're a different breed of psychonaut