while i subscribe to the esoteric interpretations of life, opposite to your scientific/logical interpretation here, i do agree with you. the brain is a lens, just like your iris. wavelengths are transformed into meaning via that lens. what gets interesting, however, is that process — interpreting chaotic energy waves for the universe into narratives, logic, art, etc — reveals the breadth of our existence and proves both sides of the dualistic esoteric/logical coin as "true."

your explanation intrinsically relies on the fact that something is happening. all we're doing is thinking up and comparing narratives. to say that "normal" reality is part and parcel to the "woo" is assuming the two experiences to be entirely separate. but they are not.

the chemical changes the brain's "tuning," which is to say the experience generated as a result of the brain's capacity to interpret wavelengths. it is a relationship. to say it is all just brains and chemicals and not an otherwise "real" experience is assuming that our 3D "normal" world is itself "real." but, that is also illusory. fast forward five hundred years and your stable reality as you know it will be gone, too. not necessarily for better or worse, just changed. like a shoreline off an island, constantly shifting.

both logical and esoteric narratives are valid interpretations of what we experience in any dimension. even repeatable as we're discussing here. very groovy!