Nervous system dysregulation after psychedelics: when your body feels stuck in fight or flight

Since a difficult psychedelic experience, does your body feel on high alert? Maybe you feel restless, shaky or wired, with a racing heart, strange sensations or a sense that you want to crawl out of your skin. You are not alone. Nervous system dysregulation after psychedelics is common after very difficult or traumatic trips, and there are ways to help your body settle.

On this page you’ll find what these body symptoms can feel like, why they may happen, what has helped people, and when to seek medical or professional help.

What nervous system dysregulation can feel like

The limbic and autonomic system can feel stuck in a fight-or-flight or hyper-vigilant mode of stress, anxiety, panic, unease, flashbacks and so on. In addition, people sometimes report somatic issues - they may feel 'like I wanted to crawl out of my own skin', in the words of one person we interviewed. They could feel physically restless, or heat in a certain part of their body, or vibrations, or arousal, or tinnitus, or even seizures.

These unusual physical responses can last for a few days, or longer, and can be quite disturbing and frightening.

The chances are, if you're experiencing an unusual symptom like this, someone else has as well. Certainly, nervous system dysregulation is quite common after difficult psychedelic experiences.

Why does it happen?

Somatic difficulties can also occur after meditation, by the way - have a look at Cheetah House's page about this.

Some of these somatic issues could potentially be connected to coming off anti-depressants, as many people do before psychedelic sessions. We don't unfortunately know the full story yet.

What helps calm the nervous system after a bad trip

Some of our interviews reported that some practices helped them calm down their nervous system after traumatic psychedelic experiences. Such practices may include:

• working out what foods, drinks and other substances increase their stress and dysregulation, and which food or drink or supplements calm their system down.
• finding the methods that help soothe their nervous system, such as exercise, deep breathing, yoga, walking in nature, listening to calming music, and so on.
• finding the cognitive practices that help them calm down, such as cultivating acceptance.

With regard to unusual somatic experiences, we are still learning what might cause them and what might help resolve them. Difficult psychedelic experiences can affect the autonomic nervous system in ways we don’t yet fully understand.

Here are some things that some interviewees found helpful - keep in mind this is a small dataset.

• one interviewee found anti-seizure medication helpful for a physical vibration feeling she experienced after an ayahuasca ceremony. Another found epilepsy medication helpful when coping with visual distortions. Obviously any medication should be only taken in consultation with a physician or a psychiatrist.
• another interviewee found somatic therapy helpful for nervous system dysregulation.

Here are some practices people generally have reported to find helpful to cope with challenging psychedelic experiences:

• Speaking to friends and family or attending a peer support group
• Speaking to a therapist, especially one who is familiar with psychedelics and psychedelic difficulties
• Cognitive practices like compassionate self-talk, cognitive distancing, and especially meditation and prayer
• Embodied self-care practices like exercise, yoga, walking in nature or body relaxation
• Finding useful information online and in books (e.g. the work of Stanislav Grof or “Breaking Open: Finding a Way Through Spiritual Emergency” by Jules Evans and Tim Read)
• Journaling
• Engage in creative activities like writing, art-making, or music
• Some people find medication helpful.

It is essential to explore and integrate these strategies in a way that resonates with personal preferences and needs, seeking support from professionals or trusted sources as needed.

When to seek medical or professional help

Some body symptoms need a medical check to rule out other causes. Seek urgent medical help if you have chest pain, fainting, difficulty breathing, a seizure, or a racing heart that won’t settle. It’s also worth talking to a doctor or a therapist who understands post-psychedelic difficulties if:

• your body feels stuck on high alert for several weeks and it isn’t easing
• unusual sensations such as vibrations, tremors or tinnitus are persisting
• you’re struggling to sleep, work or look after yourself
• you recently stopped taking antidepressants or other medication

Our practitioner directory lists therapists and clinicians experienced with post-psychedelic difficulties, and our free monthly online support group is a place to talk with others who understand.