DOSE: T+ 0:00	1 tsp	oral	Kava	(extract)
T+ 0:15	1 tsp	oral	Kava	(extract)
T+ 0:30	1 tsp	oral	Kava	(extract)

Kava (Piper methysicum) is a traditional Fijian intoxicant, which is legal in many countries. The roots contain various active substances, e.g. methysticin and tetrahydromethysticin, any of which require quite large amounts (>1g) for narcotic activity. It has become popular in Australia, particularly among the Aborigines of the Nothern Territory, and is sold in Fijian shops, and some corner stores in Sydney.

The traditional preparation involves soaking pounded ground root in water for some hours, straining, and then drinking the liquid slowly and continuously for hours. Most non-Fijians find this extremely unpleasant, despite the strong local anesthetic effect on the lips, mouth and throat. Hence, I decided to prepare an extract that might be more effective and easy to ingest.

I bought 450g of powdered 'Lewana' grade Kava for A$13 (around US$10). 'Waka' grade may be more effective, and the whole root better still, although the preparation is more difficult. The whole powder was soaked in aprx. 800 ml freshly distilled acetone for a few hours with occasional stirring. The excess yellow acetone extract (around 300 ml) was decanted and filtered, and the solvent distilled off, to leave a golden brown oil which solidified somewhat on standing. This process was repeated with fresh acetone (around 300 ml) aprx. six times, with the slurry being heated to boiling on the final time, and all of the residues were combined, to give a layer of oil aprx. 3mm thick on a standard petri dish. This amount was divided between three people.

At 6:30 pm, we ate a teaspoon of the oil, washing it down with plenty of water. There was a momentary mild queasiness as it hit the stomach, which passed quickly. Seven minutes later, the first effects began, with a mild wave through the body of relaxation, and mild euphoria. Further teaspoon doses were taken at 6:45 and 7:00. The pleasant effects continued to increase in intensity, and were not unlike a large dose of codeine, although with some numbness and tingling in the extremities. There were some mild visual effects, with the world taking on a kind of sheen or glow.

By about 7:30 pm, a change began to take place. The initial lightness started to give way to a more heavy intoxication, with some heaviness in the limbs. It was decided to smoke a moderately large quantity of marijuana (heads, leaf and a little hash). At this point, the effects intensified significantly. The combination was similar in some ways to a modest dose of LSD, although with a strong stoning effect as well. It could perhaps be compared with a mixture of LSD and a lot of alcohol. The audio hallucinations were most pronounced, and stronger than those of LSD, with changes in the perception of distance and direction of sounds, as well as a kind of phased/flanged effect.

The Kava effect continued to increase in intensity and change in quality over the next few hours, eventually (at about 9pm) leading to a feeling similar to being extremely drunk and extremely stoned - there was heaviness in the limbs, lack of coordination, some blurred vision and difficulty walking. However, nausea was slight, and there were none of the other problems associated with excessive alcohol. The brain remained relatively clear throughout, and through the entire experience there was a degree of serenity and lack of anxiety. At one stage I decided it was too heavy to remain upright, and lay down for half an hour, and entered a highly interesting semi-conscious state, being almost asleep and thinking freely.

At around 10 pm, the effects began to very slowly decrease in intensity, and were still relatively strong at 1:30 am. Sleep was easy and deep, and I awoke with little residual effect.

In summary, an acetone extract of Kava seems to be a most effective way of concentrating the active ingredients and making ingestion easy. The effect is initially one of a pleasant euphoric narcosis, followed by a heavier and less pleasant drunken feeling, particularly in the body. There is little desire at the end to repeat the experiment immediately, despite its having been enjoyable. It enhances the hallucinogenic characteristics of marijuana, particularly wrt audio hallucinations.

Exp Year: 1993	ExpID: 1952
Gender: Not Specified
Age at time of experience: Not Given
Published: Jun 19, 2000	Views: 29,854
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Kava (30) : General (1), Small Group (2-9) (17)