Salvia Divinorum review on Leaves, Extracts, Effects, Experiences & Risks + Video

Salvia Divinorum is one of the strongest hallucinogens created by mother earth. This psychedelic trip plant is also known as Ska Pastora, Seer’s Sage, Diviner’s Sage and Lady S. Her roots are found in the Mazatec region in Mexico where the shaman Indians use(d) the plant containing the highly psychoactive Salvinorin A for spiritual healing sessions and to receive great visions from the gods. Nowadays this magical plant is known all over the world due to the internet and many smart shops  who sell living salvia cuttings, dried leaved and extracts. [Deze tekst in het Nederlands? Klik hier]

How to use dried and fresh Salvia Divinorum leaves

There are a couple of different ways to use Salvia leaves depending on the type of product that you purchased. Here is a list of how to consume it:

Drinking Salvia

One method is by grinding up a large amount  of leaves added to water to drink. This is an old traditional way of consuming Salvia. This method is not really advisable because the active substance (Salvinorin A) isn’t easily absorbed in the stomach. Therefore you have to consume a lot and it will taste disgusting.

Chewing Salvia (Quid)

Another way is by chewing on the leaves. This so called ‘Quid’ method is still quite popular nowadays. If you use dried leaves you have to soak them in a cup of warm water for a minute before consuming. Take about ten to fifteen fresh or soaked leaves and roll them up into a ball and place it into your mouth. Now you have to chew the leaves for fifteen to thirty minutes. The salvinorin A will be absorbed through the mouth. Therefore it’s important to keep it in as long as possible. The effects should be noticeable after this period, but will not be as intense as when you smoke it. Although the  effects last longer! From here you can spit it out or swallow the substance, so that the last salvinorin A can be extracted in your stomach.

Smoking Salvia

The third way is by smoking the leaves. To vaporize the salvinorin A you need a high temperature. Therefore you should use a bong and preferably a torch lighter. Other ways of smoking, like rolling it up as a joint often doesn’t do the trick. To get the best result, it is advised that you take two to three hits from the bong. It’s important that you hold your breath for as long as possible. The effects will soon be noticeable within a minute.

How to use Salvia Extract(s)

The Salvia extracts are best consumed by smoking it through a bong. Salvia divinorum extracts are actually boosted salvia leaves. The manufacturer extracted the potent salvinorin A from a large amount of leaves and adding it back onto a much smaller dose of leaves. Therefore we use terms 20x or 40x extracts. For example: one gram of 20x extract comes out of 20gr leaves, 40x comes out of 40gr of leaves..and so on. By consuming these extracts you can be sure that you will get enough salvinorin A into your system. Because of the intense strength that these extracts contain it’s more difficult to dose the right amounts per person so there is a risk that the dose is hard to handle. So take it easy! The right dose varies per extract. The guidelines are like this: 5x - 01. tot 0.3 gram 10x - 0.025 tot 0.15 gram 20x - 0.025 tot 0.075 gram 40x - 0.0125 tot 0.0375 gram

of Salvia Divinorum

As said before, Salvia is a highly potent hallucinogen that should be handled with care and respect. The trip lasts just a couple minutes but can be very heavy and intense. When you smoked the leaves or extract the first effects should be noticed within a minute. From here it will merge into a peak moment that lasts for five to fifteen minutes. The effects can vary between a pleasant subtle trip to a heavy psychedelic trip to space. Users with higher doses may experience out of body experiences, uncontrollable hallucinations, loss of time and space, transforming into an object and being stuck on or into something. This feeling can be very confronting for the user and can lead to fear after or while being in the trip. The effects will get less quite fast but can be felt as ages by the user. The Salvia after effects (light headed, drowsyness, stonedish etc) will noticed for at least thirty minutes to an hour. If the Salvia is consumed orally the first effects should be noticed within fifteen to twenty minutes. The effects are milder but will reach its peak for last for thirty to ninety minutes. The user can experience nausea and an urge to puke. By using this method the experience can last somewhere between one to three hours.

The Salvia Divinorum experience rating scale

Salvia researcher Daniel Siebert created a scale which indicates the strength of the Salvia experience. The scale describes six different levels of experiences that the user can go through: S: Stands for “Subtile effects”. A relaxed and a increased euphoric feeling can be noticed. This mild state can be used in meditation and or as a sexual stimulans. A: Stands for “Altered perception”. In this state the user will have more attention for colors and textures. The appreciation of music may be increased. The Space may appear of greater or lesser depth than is usual. But visions do not occur at this level. L: Stands for “Light visionary state”. Closed eye visuals with clear imagery with eyes closed: fractal patterns, vinelike and geometric patterns, visions of objects and designs. At this level visions are experienced as "eye candy" but are not confused with reality. V: Stands for “Vivid visionary state”. Shamanistic journey to other lands, foreign or imaginary. You could have encounters with beings, entities, spirits. You may even live the life of another person. At this level you have entered the shaman's world. Or if you prefer you are in "dream time." I: Stands for “Immaterial existence”. This level consciousness remains and some thought processes are still lucid, but one becomes completely involved in inner experience and loses all contact with consensual reality. Individuality may be lost; one experiences merging with God/dess, mind, universal consciousness, or bizarre fusions with other objects real or imagined, e.g. merging with a wall or couch may be experienced. At this level it is impossible to function in consensual reality, but unfortunately some people do not remain still but move around in this befuddled state. For this reason a sitter is essential to ensure the safety of someone voyaging to the inner levels. To the person experiencing this, the phenomenon may be terrifying or exceedingly pleasant; but to an outside observer the individual may appear confused or disoriented. A: Stands for “Amnesic effects”. At this stage either consciousness is lost; or at least one is unable to later recall what one is experiencing. The individual may fall, or remain immobile or thrash around; somnambulistic behavior may occur; injuries can be sustained without pain being felt; on awakening the individual will have no recollection of what he/she did, experienced or said in level 6. People cannot ever recall what they experience in this very deep trance state. This is not a sought after level as later nothing can be recalled of the experience. [Credits for this scale text goes to: http://sagewisdom.org/faq.html]

Risks of using Salvia Divinorum

Lady Salvia is a strong herb and there are some risks attached to using this plant. In this part we have listed some reported effects from the Erowid Salvia FAQ:

Visual

• • Visual alterations or visions
  • Seeing or becoming part of a tunnel
  • Viewing patterns or shapes that are tube-like, snake-like, or worm-like

Physical

• • Uncontrollable laughter
  • Loss of physical coordination

Psychological

• Experiencing multiple realities
• A contemplative sense of peace
• Sense of profound understanding
• Sense of total confusion or madness
• Contacting other people/spirits/entities
• Experiencing a "non-Euclidean" geometry
• Feeling of being underground or underwater
• Sense of flying, floating, twisting, or turning
• Feeling of being immersed in an energy field
• Loss of sense of awareness as an individual
• Feeling of being connected to a larger "whole"
• Appearing to travel to other places and/or times
• Becoming inanimate objects (a wall, stairs, a couch, etc.)
• Feeling as though one has entered into the "realm of the dead"

Resposible use of Salvia Divinorum

When you are ready to consume Salvia it is highly advised to use it responsible (as with any other drugs). There is a clear infographic on our website for eating mushrooms. A lot of tips are the same for using Salvia. Read our general response use page here .

Do your homework and know the effects

Since we have internet we can find a lot information about Salvia Divinorum. Take some time to get more information and background on this product. Read trip reports (here is a big list on Erowid) of others and get known with the possible experiences, the good and bad ;)

Have a sitter who you can trust

A sitter  is somebody who is experienced and able to ‘guide’ you through the trip when you are not able to handle yourself normally. Make sure this person is stable, sober and trusted so you know that your are in good hands.

Create a save space

This means that you get rid of all kinds of things that can harm you. Put out your candles and remove dangerous objects. Unplug of turn off your phones so you won’t get disturbed.

Use it in a trusted place

This is something different than a save place. It is really important that you feel comfortable in the surrounding that you are tripping in.

Plan your trip/time

Depending on the way you consume Salvia you have to take a couple of hours to fully recover from the trip. Make sure you don’t have any obligations after the experience. Don’t operate a car drive or heavy machinery until all the effects are worn down.

Don’t use any other medications or drugs

This part should be clear. Don’t mix up different substances with Salvia. It’s for you own good :)