did i just make a big mistake?

[Vekta]

I'd just stick with kava.



There isn't any risk of getting addicted to Kava but K@ is another story. Before I found kava I was reading about K@ but quickly realized there is much higher degree of risk of getting addicted to K@. There are some weird side effects that you can get from it. I would rather not suffer through muscle jerking, crying fits and diarrhea. ha...

 

[kl.Lane75]

I totally agree Vekta, K@ can be addictive. I'm in the middle of it right now. I used K@ to get off of opiates since it fills up the opiate receptors and helps with withdrawal, that was a few months ago and I'm still dosing K@ 2-3 times a day. I'm doing a slow taper though and have been thew a few oppie w/d's in the past and don't think that coming off of the K@ will be as drastic as coming straight off the hardcore oppies. But withdrawal is withdrawal none the less, not too much fun but you play you pay...

So yea, I agree stick w/ KAVA!!!!

 

[kl.shinobi7]

Hi everyone,I myself am a noob when it comes to Kava,so i don't know wich vendors are good and bad. Anyways,I was actually about to order off Kona Kava farm,but since their paypal payment option sucks balls...i didn't order anything. Im glad i didn't,since im hearing bad reviews about their stuff. I did order some Vanatua kava off this Canadian site,since im in Canada,and the effects were very subtle,but it was relaxing enough to make work seem like a breeze. I just recently order some fiji from this vendor on ebay,im hoping it aint shitty kava. I would just like to know who are the best vendors out there with the most "crunk" stuff,and if they ship to Canada...even better.

 

[kl.midas]

Another huge thumbs down for Kona Kava root powder. I've gotten absolutely no effects at all, I have tried using 3 times the recommended dosage and still nothing. I wish I had read more about kona kava before ordering, at least now that I have found this forum I have gone and ordered a good kava brand.

 

[kavalover]

Yeah, for some of us it works. For most of us it doesn't. Even if you're like me and enjoy a mild kava, there are plenty of better options out there. And with the great prices of Rex and BKH I think we can just forget about Kona for now.



Let us know how your experience goes with some higher grade kava

 

[kl.Gray Owl]

ok, holy cow. i've just drunk 3 shells (1/2 cup powder), and, wow, now i get it. boy, do i get it. everything melts out of your mind and out of your body. this is going to be a wonderful replacement and adjunct to opium tea (OT being very addictive if one is not on top of it). nothing comes close to OT, but kava (and kanna) will be the majority of my artificial joy.



now we'll see if there's a hangover in the morning. (heh)



i'm going to listen to some Porcupine Tree and Deerhoof now.



thanks for sharing your experiences Douglas. it's appreciated.

If you like opium tea, you might try Maeng Da K@, to me it tastes like Japanese matcha, that nice grassy taste, slightly astringent, OK so I enjoy some gross things.  I say Maeng Da because at least for me it's more of a downer vs. red vein Korth is more energizing, but I have some weird reactions to botanicals so that could be the opposite of what most people get.  But like OT be careful man, it's another delta-opioid receptor agonist so is also addictive.  I don't drink it to get high though just like 1g as a nice bedtime tea and it gives me sweet dreams.

Edit:  Heh, I see that was already covered above.

 

[kl.Gray Owl]

Kona is my first bag, too, because I got it from a place that I've got other ethnobotanicals. I haven't got much of an effect from it, but mixed with Bolton House Vanilla Chai soy milk and coconut water I actually like the taste, although I am much looking forward to the N@H Stone Kava and Shaman Kava that I ordered. I'm also shopping for something more pleasant-tasting that my wife might enjoy, considering Black Sand, she loves cashews so maybe the cashewy-nutty taste I read that it has might be something she would enjoy, but definitely not the Kona.

 

[kl.Gray Owl]

I'm getting a mild buzz off about 3 shells worth of Kona spiked with a little instant for extra oomph, but I seem to be very sensitive to entheogens in general. It's more heady with a little bit of numbness, but I am sure it will pale in comparison when I try better quality stuff.

 

[Steve973]

Is kava considered to be an entheogen? I don't believe so...

 

[kl.kavanah]

My understanding is that whether or not something qualifies as an entheogen depends largely upon the context of its use.

 

[kl.Gray Owl]

I meant to use the word "ethnobotanical" but my fingers typed "entheogen" instead that happens. With proper fasting and ceremony kava could definitely be used as an entheogen. I have taken part in ceremonies where tobacco was used as an entheogen quite effectively. Intent is everything.

 

[kl.Gray Owl]

Last night I had three shells of the Kona Kava instant and it was somewhat effective, a lot like taking Neurontin (gabapentin) had some really weird dreams and my ass was dragging this morning, also like taking Neurontin. It's definitely a lot better than the powdered root from Kona Kava.

 

[kl.Gray Owl]

So far I like the taste and smell of the Mahakea best, complex with a lot of floral notes and less chemically odor, didn't really get any effects following KKF's instructions, but soon will try another batch using 1-part root to 2-parts liquid and see what I get. I've been doing 1/2 luke warm water and 1/2 coconut milk or coconut water to boost potassium in case I lose it to the diuretic effects of the kava since my potassium tends to run low in general.

 

[kl.CopyPaper]

This might be turning this thread back on track, but I too just recently ordered from Kona Kava farm. Mine is in the mail. My question for you guys is if it's worth even playing with this stuff? Should I just immediately return it to them and try one of your recommended places? I've never used this stuff by the way and would like a positive experience from it if I may.

 

[endwatcher]

Copy, go ahead and keep it and use it, to increase you're rerverse tollerance.

Kava works the opposite of anything else, the more you use, the LESS you're body needs.

Id suggest ordering something from Bula Kava house, or Kava by Rex.

Ive been on a Fu'u trip lately with BKH, and I would DEF. recommend it for a newb.

It works great, and taste light.



Eat up the Kona, and build up that reverse tollerance

 

[kavalover]

I agree with endwatcher. If you want to return your order then go ahead but don't expect too much of an effect from any kava until you've been drinking for a while and build up your reverse tolerance. The good thing with many people I know and have heard about on this forum is that when they start out with weaker kavas and are disappointed right away, once they drink a heavier, better quality kava, they suddenly realize what we all love in kava. Not nessicarily because it was a better kava but because their bodies are now used to kava, so they can not jump right into the kava experience.

That was my experience, anyway...

 

[kl.CopyPaper]

Thanks for the fast input! I will go ahead and use this. So overtime the sensation will feel better as my body adopts to what I'm taking? Does that mean I take the same dosage over time as well?



Thanks for all your help and feel free to point me to a website if that helps answer all my questions easier.

 

[kl.Gray Owl]

Thanks for the fast input! I will go ahead and use this. So overtime the sensation will feel better as my body adopts to what I'm taking? Does that mean I take the same dosage over time as well?



Thanks for all your help and feel free to point me to a website if that helps answer all my questions easier.

You may need a higher dose initially to feel an effect, but it should decrease as you lower your tolerance then level off.  If you drink too much kava you may have problems with red eyes and / or itchy skin so that would be a clue that you need to back off.  The first 2 weeks I drank kava almost every day now it's typically 2-3 times a week.  It takes me about 5 shells to get crunked which is a batch made from 60-70 g of kava root or 15 g of instant.

 

[kl.icky]

Oh god, don't get me started on poppy tea. I went from a pill opiate addiction to a poppy tea addiction... holy shit, that made me a hot mess (little did I know what heroin would do, heh). Endless days and nights of grinding pods... getting fucked up beyond recognition... Going through withdrawels, waiting for my package to arrive, stalking the mail truck... Ugh, I would never go back.



How you guys feeling on the Kanna? I've been reading up on it... but am not to eager to jump into that one. Same with the Blue Lotus, etc.

 

[kl.Sauroth]

I got some kava extract paste from iamshaman (which is kona I think) back in 2006 or so. It had an effect but it was pretty meh. I from that time thought all kava must be pretty meh. I found that kava was just about the only thing that had been studied as a treatment for benzodiazepam withdrawal that worked (and wasn't horribly addictive and a prescription medication) and ALMOST ordered some from kona kava. I decided to search for kava reviews in google and found that kavaseur blog and then got some isa tudei from kava by rex.

I got seriously messed the hell up after I squeezed it out, I was somewhat surprised

I was over at my parents house with my sister and after about half a glass I was bombed and I had said it was just a mild drug and didn't really get you stoned. So I continued to drink it and pretended I was not fried. I had some trouble walking and talking.