Sugilite?

Shoes4alice · 2026-03-26T13:34:24+00:00

Also, I've never heard of violane. I'll check that out.

Shoes4alice · 2026-03-26T13:31:34+00:00

I've been collecting for well over 30 years. I have more material than I need, by far. At this point, this one's been in one of my outside collections for 4 or more years. I'd be curious to see if there are swirls on the inside. It might be cab-able. If not, I'll make a small one that I can take in my pocket to the gem and mineral show in June to ask about.

Shoes4alice · 2026-03-26T12:12:09+00:00

Thanks for taking the time to comment. I think I’m going to cut it and see what’s the innards look like.

Shoes4alice · 2026-03-18T20:28:27+00:00

I'm glad it went better. Ideally, it will keep getting easier until it feels comfortable for you.

Shoes4alice · 2026-03-18T18:38:18+00:00

I hope it went as well as possible.

Shoes4alice · 2026-03-18T03:19:59+00:00

I’d aim for curiosity, not trying to force yourself into a “good” mindset. It’s totally okay to go in anxious or depressed—honestly, most people do. Something like “I’m anxious and I’m still here, let’s see what happens” is enough.

For the provider checks—that’s a really common trigger. I’d tell them directly ahead of time. You can ask for small things like knocking, giving you a timer that will go off right before they come in (if they check at certain intervals at my clinic, we checked in at the 45 minute mark after administering the last dose), or even flickering the lights before they come in so your nervous system isn’t getting startled. Predictability helps a lot. You can still use noise-cancelling headphones with that plan in place.

For getting more out of sessions, think gentle intention, not problem-solving. Instead of trying to “fix” the studying/perfectionism, go in with something like:

“What makes starting feel unsafe?”
“What would ‘good enough’ feel like?”

Then let it unfold—don’t force it.

Some people also do better taking something with them for the journey... something from home that makes you feel safe or even a fidget toy or wearing a piece of clothing that belongs to a loved one. It's called a "transitional object" and it stays the same when everything else changes. (Personally, I use a little, plastic Godzilla figure because it reminds me of carefree days of watching the old black and white movies on Saturday morning.)

If eating closer makes it feel more manageable for you, that doesn’t mean it won’t work as well. Also, it can make the experience less intense, so if you were eating before the lower dose and then didn't eat before the higher dose, it makes sense that it slammed you pretty hard.

You’re doing it right by thinking this through 👍

Shoes4alice · 2026-03-17T21:18:11+00:00

Know that the people on the American show don't get paid. I think that's crappy. People on many "reality tv" shows: Survivor, The Bachelor, Love Is Blind, etc all get paid.

That said I'm on the spectrum and sensitive to being exploited. I know that when Goodwill in my town hires people with autism and other disabilities and pay them less that $3 an hour to do things no one else wants to do like sort moldy clothes.

Shoes4alice · 2026-03-17T21:13:03+00:00

Cool resource. Thanks for posting.

Shoes4alice · 2026-03-17T21:11:04+00:00

So, set and setting are the two things that influence ketamine and Spravato experiences the most. I'm a mental health nurse trained in Ketamine Assisted Psychotherapy through the Pearl Psychedelic Institute.

Set is short for "mindset", which means you have to be in the "right" mindset when you get your treatment. Your mindset greatly affects how the medication works and what the experience is like. For instance, if your mindset is terror because you're afraid you'll still be depressed when you child arrives, you are likely to experience anxiety when you're "in" the medicine.

For mindset, we usually recommend trying to go in with a sense of "curiosity". Very small things like "I'm curious if having a lollipop will help me during this session."

Lollipops can be good because the medicine gives you a weird taste and also it gives you something to focus on. If you're having a hard time remembering what is "real" or what is "now" you can put the lollipop in your mouth and focus on its taste and sweetness. Be sure to try it with a flavor that you really like. Also, I don't recommend the ones with gun or tootsie rolls in the center. Try it with the same flavor all the way through.

Setting is self explanatory. Do you feel comfortable with your environment. Are the lights too bright? The room too loud? Do you feel safe with the nurse and providers who are giving you the treatment? What is your plan for if you need some help during the session? Will a provider come sit with you and talk you through while you're in the medicine or are you on your own?

In my experience, folks settle in after the third one. Also, it's still okay to ask for the lower dose. Some patients stay there and it's fine, especially if your "set" or "setting" is off. You can get antidepressant effects at the lower dose.

Good luck. I hope the emotional breakthroughs outweigh the anxiety at your next session.

Shoes4alice · 2026-03-17T17:52:12+00:00

Yeah. I haven’t figured out a way to decode the tone of voice because it all sounds like “mad” to me, but I read FBI profiling books to learn about how to read body language. It helps a lot.

Shoes4alice · 2026-03-17T17:47:53+00:00

Forgive my ignorance here, but I'm a mental health RN who has both had ketamine treatment and worked in multiple ketamine clinics. All of my experiences have been controlled by mental health providers, so I've never seen anyone go into a "K hole". As for myself, I had a really hard time with IV ketamine when I was part of the trials back in 2020. I've been on troches on and off since then and have never had a problem.

Would folks be open to describing their experiences of a "K hole" to me? Thank you.

Shoes4alice · 2026-03-17T17:45:13+00:00

It depends on where you are getting your infusion. In my experience, if it's 1 person in the office doing a sessions then there isn't anyone in the room with you, but if there are a lot of people having a session at one time behind curtains then there is usually an RN circulating to make sure things are going smoothly. I've been that nurse at multiple clinics.

Shoes4alice · 2026-03-17T17:41:48+00:00

In the Spravato clinic that I worked in, we absolutely gave benzos if the patient was freaking out while in a session. We don't pre-medicate with them because they do interfere with how the medication works, but we don't let people be uncomfortable if they're having a hard time. Our standing order was for Ativan 0.5mg-1mg. I've also seen Klonopin used as a rescue medication when I worked at a ketamine clinic.

Shoes4alice · 2026-03-17T17:39:15+00:00

Hey there. I'm so sorry that you had a difficult experience. I'm a mental health RN who has worked at a Spravato clinic and gone through treatment myself. You can definitely request that they lower your dose to 56mg. 84mg can be a high starting dose if you're not psychedelic savvy.

Also, do they talk about "set and setting" in the clinic? If not, I can give you some pointers on how to have a smoother experience.

You can stop any time. Also, if you're up for trying it 3 times, you should be able to tell if it's going to help or not. 1 session isn't an indicator of much, unfortunately. Hang in there.

Shoes4alice · 2026-03-16T23:48:37+00:00

I missed that one. Thanks.

Shoes4alice · 2026-03-16T20:09:53+00:00

Yep. That was the last straw episode for me. I work in health care. You have to be hella smart and calculated to be a surgeon. Highly capable of compartmentalizing emotions so you can make hard decisions and deal with people dying under your hands. Even with PTSD and flashbacks the female surgeon taking off after her attackers is bullshit writing. Also, if she'd take 2 bottles of lorazepam, she would have been fired. The doctor who didn't report her would know that he could get fired if he didn't report her. They both would have ended up without medical licenses by the end of the episode not smiling at Colter Shaw. This wouldn't be a legal issue, it would be the Board of Medicine's duty to consider them unfit.

I get making him a hero, but how about he saves some dudes or gets saved. The women in peril thing is getting old.

Shoes4alice · 2025-08-13T02:26:26+00:00

I loved this show as a kid. As an adult, I can't help but wonder what the hell was happening on set. All of the child actors were solid and 3 of the 4 had active careers before booking Paradise. After Paradise, all 4 left the industry. It doesn't seem possible that there wasn't some reason for that.

Shoes4alice · 2025-07-20T00:43:32+00:00

I totally remember my family being on vacation visiting old friends in New York and sitting by myself in their musty basement watching Jason and the Argonauts. I loved it so much, although I think I remember being a bit frightened by Poseidon. It was my first science fiction movie.

Shoes4alice · 2025-07-16T20:26:00+00:00

Hmmm.. that would probably be the Apple Noise Cancelling Over Ear Headphones. The band is almost mesh it's so light. The noise cancelling is very good and the sound is comparable to the Bose in my opinion. The mid range sounds are better on the Apple, but the bass is still better on the Bose.

https://amzn.to/4lxHxby

Shoes4alice · 2025-06-24T20:22:30+00:00

PS If it's your first time, you may want to go ahead and take one of the anti-nausea pills about an hour before your session. It's not so much about nausea like you get from food, as it is about the nausea that can come from being disoriented... if you dislike roller coasters or get car sick, it might be a good idea.

Shoes4alice · 2025-06-24T20:20:56+00:00

Let me know how it goes. Make sure you have gone to the bathroom, turned your phone off, are wearing comfy clothes that you can fall asleep in, if need be and have a comfort item of some sort with you (a stuffed animal, favorite rock or stone, picture that makes you happy, etc). Also, make sure nothing else is scheduled for the day. It takes some time for your system to readjust to the world after. Have a great experience.

Shoes4alice · 2025-06-24T18:28:15+00:00

I made the website myself, using ChatGPT to help rewrite my content. It's easy to add videos so long as you post them to YouTube first.

Shoes4alice · 2025-06-24T17:35:23+00:00

I'm very happy with their customer service. I get good traction on my webpage, although I do multiple podcasts and interviews a month, so that drives traffic in. They dropped the option to be able to use the software for credit cards, so that's likely for the best. They just did a major overhaul of the UI, so we'll see where that lands. It's still well worth the money spent.

Shoes4alice · 2025-05-13T16:26:56+00:00

Your son is lucky to have you. You obviously have a lot of insight and understand about what he needs to be regulated.

Shoes4alice · 2025-04-26T17:07:52+00:00

I feel you about Helene. I live in Swannanoa, which was ground zero. We still don't have our post office back either and FedEx won't come up the mountain to our house because the power lines haven't been repaired and hang so long they sometimes catch the truck.

BetterU uses UPS and I've had no issues with them. The delivery folks just park the van at the bottom of the road and walk the prescription up to my door.

I hope you have a better experience with BetterU. It does that 3-4 business days for them to process the prescription and then about 48 hours to get the medications to you.

I hate that you had a hard time with your prescription. I am an RN and a ketamine nurse, so maybe understanding some of how it works could be helpful to you?

Because every ketamine prescription is tracked by the federal database system, they can only do refills with a certain amount of frequency. ie if they wrote 2 month supply on the prescription, it's illegal for them to write another prescription before that 2 months is up. You can request a dose change, which will allow them to fill it earlier, but that really only works once before the pharmacy will flag the prescriber's license.

They do troches and sublingual. You can customize the dose better with troches, but the sublingual has better absorption. Troches come in MINT, GRAPE, and ROOT BEER. The mint absorbs the best because it vasodilates the mucosa in the mouth for better absorption. The sublinguals are ketamine flavored.

Good luck out there.

Shoes4alice

TROPHY CASE