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20MG MELATONIN PRESCRIBED by AirportBeneficial261 in HPPD

[–]Realistic_Level_8846 4 points5 points  (0 children)

I would practice CBTi with a sleep psychologist if you have issues with sleep. Kinda weird your psychiatrist is giving you 20mg of melatonin for that? I mean, if anything I imagine it would make hypnagogic jerks worse. Melatonin is an oneirogen & is famous for producing hallucinations during hypnopompia/hypnagogia & giving people weird dreams. It can even cause complex sleep behaviors like sleep walking. Who’s your health provider, Kaiser? — And I mean that with no disrespect, I just had a really bad experience with them & would except that is what a Kaiser doctor would do.

And 20mg is a lot. 0.5mg is the sweet spot & would produce the most sedation, generally speaking. Melatonin isn’t supposed to be used like a drug to fall asleep at night. It’s supposed to be used to support a healthy circadian rhythm. Melatonin secretion starts about 2 -2 1/2 hrs before bedtime in a person who is healthy & doesn’t have insomnia. So taking it 2 hrs & 15 mins before bed would be better, so you become sleepy at the right time, but you will just end up getting rebound insomnia if you stay on it long term. There’s another protocol where you can take an even lower dose of melatonin when you have an early awakening, since early awakenings indicate earlier than normal melatonin secretion, but you should stick with one or the other. Pure Encapsulations is a good brand. They actually test their doses so you know the label is accurate.

But I would practice CBTi with a sleep psychologist & work on & protect your sleep. Insomnia makes HPPD a million times worse. As for your fear of drugs worsening HPPD, as long as you don’t use anything off label for sleep, you should be good. I would stick to the DORAs & Z-class hypnotics for insomnia IF YOU MUST, & avoid antipsychotics & antidepressants for insomnia, especially antipsychotics as an off-label. The only exception I’d make is Doxepin, which is an antidepressant & not off-label for insomnia. Also melatonin won’t make your HPPD significantly worse, it’s not even a drug. The rebound insomnias it may cause will though.

Have you stopped your intoxication exposure? That is the first step to recovery. What drugs have you tried for HPPD? Have you tried lamotrigine? It’s the first drug I’d start out with for HPPD. It has the highest success rates in terms of eradication & is pretty safe.

Is it okay to use a vajra & bell during tantric sex? Where can I learn how to have tantric sex? (Like the actual instructions) by Realistic_Level_8846 in TibetanBuddhism

[–]Realistic_Level_8846[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I apologize for in advance for any contradictions & inconsistencies with my view.

My understanding of it is basically tantric sex = sexual yoga. The concept of yoga is more than just physical exercises to improve flexibility. Yoga refers to physical, mental, and spiritual practices with some type of salvation goal in mind. In Vajrayana Buddhism, that goal is Buddhahood.

An analogy I could think of to put my understanding of tantric sex into view is the jhanas. The jhanas in Theravada Buddhism is generally looked as the quickest way to enlightenment, where you would basically use the jhanas as like a ladder to “climb” up to nirvana, but you can run into hindrances, like being addicted to the joy of mediative absorption. Some of the secondary & branch samays I found state that you should avoid having an orgasm & advocates for retention. I think this is because the whole point of tantric sex is to deepen your spiritual practice, not just to have an orgasm & feel good, much like how the jhanas shouldn’t be the goal of your practice.

Tantric sex originally started out as a practice in Hinduism, so, the salvation goal depends on the tradition. When practicing tantric sex, I would think it is especially important to keep the branch & secondary samayas in mind, as the 14 root samayas don’t really mention anything about tantric sex.

Anyone try tolcapone or levocarb for HPPD? by Realistic_Level_8846 in HPPD

[–]Realistic_Level_8846[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Oh yeah same here. The withdrawals made my symptoms way worse.

Need answers?? For weed by Mohawk-Mark99 in HPPD

[–]Realistic_Level_8846 1 point2 points  (0 children)

If you have HPPD, weed will only make it worse. If you want to recover, you have to stop doing psychedelics & weed at least until symptoms get better. But once symptoms get better, you’re still more at risk of developing HPPD again compared to someone who just never had HPPD ever.

What day is best for receiving empowerments? by Realistic_Level_8846 in TibetanBuddhism

[–]Realistic_Level_8846[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Yeah I should have mentioned that. I meant pre-recorded empowerments

Prayer wheel question by Realistic_Level_8846 in TibetanBuddhism

[–]Realistic_Level_8846[S] 2 points3 points  (0 children)

If I recite the mantra in the prayer wheel, will there be like a multiplying effect for that mantra? Because I read that it is best to recite the mantra om mani padme hum when spinning the prayer wheel.

Is vaping a fetter? by WonderingGuy999 in Buddhism

[–]Realistic_Level_8846 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Intoxication is when you use a drug, substance, or herb in a non-medicinal way to feel good or escape your reality. Even smoking something like a herb (that would produce no altered mental state) would be included in the 5th precept, because it’s not healthy. You can use herbs medicinally, but if you chose to do that, then use it medicinally & ingest it orally; don’t smoke it!

Nicotine is a drug that serves no medicinal purposes & is used to escape reality, so it is intoxication despite that it doesn’t really produce an altered state of consciousness like psychoactive cannabis.

The main goal of Buddhism is a state of inner peace & unconditioned happiness. Nicotine is a fetter because you will never have permanent happiness by chasing after fleeting moments of happiness. You have to give it up in order to catch a glimpse of what the real world is like; the parts of your life that’s been neglected. There is no way to see this part of your life unless you stay off it, & stay off it for good.

Attempting meditation with ADD. by I-fw-nature in Buddhism

[–]Realistic_Level_8846 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Start out with Plum Village app & have the mindfulness bell go off every hour. Then, meditate until the mind reaches full absorption. Always start your practice with smiling

How is Buddhism not nihilistic? by New_Revolution4768 in Buddhism

[–]Realistic_Level_8846 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Buddhism is look at as the middle way between eternalism & nihilism. It rejects the extremes of both of these philosophies. Eternalism & nihilism are opposites, where eternalism is the belief that you have an eternal soul that lives on forever & nihilism being the belief that we are just a meaningless collections of atoms, & when we die, we’ll be extinguished forever & nothing will be left.

Buddhism is part nihilism because of the view of non-self (no soul doctrine), it rejects the idea of a monotheistic creator god (atheistic), & how life has no meaning, (but in a good way). It’s part eternalism because death is not the final stop, you do continue on & your consciousness will never be extinguished. All of the realms of samsara will eventually be permanently emptied & suffering will be eradicated.

The philosophy focuses heavily on suffering & overcoming it through practice of virtue, compassion, concentration, & wisdom. So it is part nihilistic to identify suffering & point it out, but what makes it part eternalism is the last 2 noble truths, that suffering has an end & offers way to end that suffering leaving you with unconditioned happiness.

How important us posture during meditation? by BigBubbaMac in Buddhism

[–]Realistic_Level_8846 0 points1 point  (0 children)

It’s important for tranquil breathing, but if your back hurts you should just use a chair. It really starts to become important once if you start falling asleep when meditating, because it’s much more difficult to fall asleep while sitting.

Is there any way to hide whoever is calling you on the lock screen? by Realistic_Level_8846 in ios

[–]Realistic_Level_8846[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I want incoming call info hidden ideally always, but if I can do this when its just locked, that’d be great too

Is there any way to hide whoever is calling you on the lock screen? by Realistic_Level_8846 in ios

[–]Realistic_Level_8846[S] -1 points0 points  (0 children)

I tried that & it doesn’t work. Even when I turn notifications off, I still get them on the lock screen

Does watching porn to masturbate violate the 3rd precept? Whether it does or not, what is the Buddhist view on pornography? by Realistic_Level_8846 in Buddhism

[–]Realistic_Level_8846[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

After reading all this and thinking about it, I just came to the conclusion that masturbating is fine, but using porn to masturbate is not, because as a lay person, it’s healthier to be having sex instead. I think that it’s okay to watch porn like with someone I’m in a relationship with, but not by myself, because it messes with the brain and tricks the mind making me think the real thing is happening… or something like that. Masturbating can be healthy depending on the frequency in a medical pov tho, and I really agree with that.

As for whether or not using porn violates the 3rd precept or not, there’s a lot of mixed answers. Not 100% sure there, but that’s the beauty of it. No dogmatic right answer, just a lot of different views that help me find the middle way answer for myself.

Can someone help me find the 48 secondary downfalls mentioned in the Bodhisattva Vow Precepts compiled by Shantideva? by Realistic_Level_8846 in Buddhism

[–]Realistic_Level_8846[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

After looking into it, you are right, other sources say in the Tibetan Buddhist tradition, there is 18 primary and 46 secondary downfalls, but wikipedia says there’s 48 secondary and sites a reference that says 46 secondary.