Beginner's Guide to Kratom (text version)

In short, kratom is a safe, inexpensive and legal plant you can take to destroy anxiety, kill pain, create euphoria, improve productivity/motivation, and more.

WHAT IS KRATOM?

Kratom is a deciduous plant native to Southeast Asia (mostly Indonesia). Kratom (also known as Mitragyna Speciosa) is an opioid (not opiate) that hits mainly on the delta receptors in the brain. Although kratom behaves similar to a μ-opioid receptor, it has a much lower potential for addiction and dependency. It results in having much milder effects than opioids like morphine, but is much safer.

I’m not going to hide the fact that you can become addicted to kratom. It’s certainly possible. The good thing is it can be easily avoided with rotating (I’ll get to a minute) and there’s accessible options like washouts (thats for another post soon) to avoid this.

DIFFERENT TYPES

All the different types of effects of kratom falls into 3 different categories... >FAST Energetic – Workout- Productivity- Focus- Sociable- Motivation –Some Euphoria

>MODERATE Mix of both Fast & Slow. Some are a bit slower, others are a bit faster. Effects can have a range of any number of qualities

>SLOW Kills Anxiety-Very Euphoric-Relaxing- Possible sedative (in higher doses)

BENEFITS OF ALL TYPES

• Has been used as an alternative for depression and using SSRI’s

• Has helped drug abusers get clean off hard drugs like heroin

• Creates a positive attitude/mood

• Kills pain

• Lowers blood pressure

• Antioxidant

• Treats Diarrhea

• Suppresses appetite

• Treats Premature Ejaculation

How to Know Which Strains Are Fast, Moderate, or Slow

The first indication of speed is to tell is what color it is (it usually shows in the name). Different strains of kratom have different colored veins on the leaf. The colors can be Red (Slow), Green (Moderate), or White (Fast). So a strain like ‘Green Kalimantan’ is a moderate strain from Kalimantan (Indonesia)

This indicator isn't always correct, but in most cases it is.

Another way to find out the speed is the country or province the kratom is from (also often shows it in the name). Generally most strains from Thailand are fast (like a strain called Maeng Da), and most from Bali or Boreno are slow (these strains are usually just called ‘Bali’). Other than those, most strains other are moderate (including some strains which are a blend of different types).

If you’re confused, at the end I show exactly what strains are what speed.

HOW TO TAKE KRATOM

First off, in the community of people who use kratom, they have a specific lingo. Although kratom is legal to buy, possess, and sell- it can’t legally be sold for human consumption since it’s not approved by the FDA. It has to be sold as an incense. Therefore, when talking about ingesting kratom online, people will say ‘burning kratom’ instead of ‘drinking’ or ‘ingesting kratom’. Another word is ‘aroma’ which is the effects that kratom produces when used. Receiving the full benefits of kratom takes time as your Kratom IQ increases. Trial and error is expected a bit when you start using kratom, so don’t worry on getting it perfect in the very beginning.

The kratom you purchase is the leaf all blended up into a powder. You can ingest this (somewhat gross tasting) powder several ways like:

• Toss n’Wash – Toss the powder in your mouth, take a big sip of water, mix it around in your mouth and then swallow. Efficient but tricky the first few times (this is how I do it- it takes me 5 seconds)
• Mix with Water or Juice- Put the powder in a cup, mix it with water/juice (stir well since it doesn’t dissolve easily), then drink it down
• Make Tea Out of it- This is the most time consuming way but a lot of people stand by it. Basically you boil the powder in a pot for several minutes, strain the water to remove the powder, and then drink the water (tea). Coffee filters can work. Mix it with Protein Powder- Decent option to help mask the taste.

FIRST TIME BURNING

Take 2-3 grams (some need 2 grams for a solid aroma, others need 5. Best to play it safe. You can always try again later on) If you don’t have a scale, a general rule is that a level teaspoon (not tablespoon) is 2 grams. Use that method to measure Use a moderate strain. These show best what kratom has to offer. Expect it to take around 30 minutes for effects to start working Effects will last 2-4 hours. Peak aroma will be within and around the first hour mark.

BURNING RULES

• Stay Hydrated- This is a crucial step to always take when burning. Kratom dehydrates so make sure you drink plenty of water. Hydration increases the quality of the aroma as well as prolonging its effect
• Empty Stomach- Best to burn at least 3 hours after eating. If you plan to burn sooner than that, you may need to add an extra gram to make up for the loss in aroma quality. On the other hand, if it’s first thing in the morning before breakfast, you may want to take a gram less so kratom doesn’t hit you too hard and fast.
• Sweet Spot- There’s a sweet spot for kratom on the perfect amount of grams that works best for you. You’ll learn it after a bit of experience with burning. What you’ll often find is that fewer grams can often produce a better aroma than a larger dose.
• Burning 2+ times/day- If you burn more than once per day be aware that there is ‘same day tolerance’. For instance if it’s your 2nd burn of the day, you may need to add an extra gram than usual. Then possibly another extra gram if it’s your 3rd burn of the day.
• Rotate Kratom – if you notice the quality of your aromas are diminishing, it’s often due to your tolerance increasing. Rotating types of kratom keeps the receptors fresh to reduce tolerance.
• Don’t overdo it- Sometimes the aromas take more than 30 minutes to kick in. Other times, it’s because your tolerance is too high. Instead of keep adding many more grams after a dud burn; just wait a couple hours to try again. Taking too much kratom can make you a bit drowsy

ROTATING- REDUCING TOLERANCE

• If you burn more than 5 times/week, you should rotate your kratom
• Only burn one strain per day. You can burn that one strain as many times as you want, just don’t change it until the next day.
• Rotating kratom means alternating types each day. If Monday you have a Slow type, then Tuesday you should either have a Fast or Moderate type. There’s an example in a schedule below
• Other than the speed of kratom, it’s also good that the country/province that it comes from is alternated as well. If Wednesday is a Fast Thai strain, Thursday could be a slow Bali strain
• If your tolerance gets too high, you can use a ‘wash-out’ method to reduce it. Basically you take a break from kratom, but there’s ways I will talk about soon that makes this easy and more efficient
• If you plan to burn regularly, plan out what strains will be used on what days. So this way fast strains will be used on gym days, and slow strain will be used on a day like a Sunday where you just chill out.

WHAT YOU NEED TO KNOW

The most important thing you need to know is that the quality in kratom can vary so much. Most kratom out there isn’t anything special. I’ve tried around a dozen different vendors and only 2 of them could produce the effects described in this guide. A lot of the kratom out there produces a tiny aroma, and even some I’ve tried can give you anxiety (often from head shops). The better vendors remove the stems & veins from the leaf before they blend it; to make sure it’s potent and not full of ‘fillers’. Another concern is the cleanliness. Kratom is picked by workers in Indonesia and other parts of Southeast Asia then put in a bag sit. You never know how well of a cleaning process there is (if any) and if it just sat in a warehouse for months on end.

So often guys try will kratom (from a less than reputable vendor), have a bad or not great experience with it (strain isn’t potent), then just believe that kratom isn’t anything special. This is a big reason why kratom isn’t insanely popular yet (though it’s increasing quickly).

It’s difficult to know if a vendor is good if you don’t have anything to compare it to. The one I use is at the end of this guide. Whether you use my recommendation or not, it’s a good idea to just order a small amount first. Make sure the quality is good and that you respond well to it. Then, you can decide after to get more and/or start rotating.

NOTES

• Avoid extracts- skyrockets your tolerance and creates a strong dependency
• Avoid kratom capsules- It’s not that bad but you’ll likely have to pay more for the kratom (the caps) and need to take up to a dozen caps at once
• Side Effects- If you burn too much, there is potential for nausea. Most often burning too much means you’ll become a bit drowsy. Other than that the only real thing to be aware of it dependency. Fortunately, this can be easily avoided with washouts and tapering. I do this every 6 months with then taking a bit of a break. It’s not an issue at all with the proper tools. Some say worse case withdrawal is similar to caffeine or a small cold, others say it’s worse. However it is, it’s not comparable to hard drugs. No one has ever died from kratom.
• Avoid crushed leaf- Crushed leaf is, as you probably guessed, the kratom leaf crushed down instead of being blended into a powder. To be honest I’ve never actually tried it, but the overall consensus is that it’s not as great. If you like making tea out of kratom, it may not be a bad option.

If you're interested, the original version of the guide is on my site along with a video here, otherwise everything you need to know is in this guide. Cheers

That's It! That's basically all you need to know for now to start taking advantage of what kratom has to offer. I hope kratom has much of a positive impact on your life as it has on mine. Even if you don't adopt the full kratom lifestyle, you'll still likely find at least some use for it for things like relaxing after a long day, getting yourself focused for work, relieving chronic pain, or boosting yourself into a positive mood (like after a recent break-up).