u/Elusivemoon7187

As luck would have it, I just knocked over my Castoreum 1g sample.

☠️

I think I have traveled to another dimension. 🌀

Hello friends, I wanted to sit down today and take the time to share something that has been weighing on me heavily for a while. As the title states , this will be about the often overlooked and gravely unappreciated aspects of what it takes to create a space like this for experiencers to share and connect.

I joined the sub during the most intense experiences of my life. I am a mother of 3, just a regular human trying to get by. But when an intense initiatory phase came suddenly in 2024 I realized almost instantly that those in my life who were not experiencing these things could not “hold” me in the way I needed. I felt like I was over explaining everything happening and it still fell on deaf ears. I admit I was never very active online, so for months I felt incredibly isolated and forced to carry much of the weight of my experiences on my own.

In early 2025 I felt called to get online and try to find “the others”. I shared my story on the WRONG sub, and received some pretty nasty comments. I was heartbroken. I was then directed here. And what has unfolded for me because of this sub has been nothing short of magical.

A community. A real one. I was reading the posts here and felt my soul beaming. Others were experiencing the same or very similar things as me. I was not alone. I was not crazy. Infact, by having the community I realized I was actually far more intelligent and brave than I ever gave myself credit for. Being an experiencer is intense, but I finally felt like I belonged and I can only speak for myself here, but there was something deeply validating about the connections here that I never even knew I needed.

As I approach my one year anniversary of being in this community and making very special friendships I can’t ignore what lies behind the curtain. It’s easy to forget or take for granted what it takes to make something like this sub run cohesively. How much work happens behind the scenes. It’s not just a Subreddit and a user name , it’s real human beings.. taking not only time out of their lives but often far more than you would initially imagine.

First of all, not everyone is built for it, as we can clearly see in other groups. It takes a humble, patient and wise individual to even step into this role. I’m pretty convinced at this point in order for those qualities to be displayed in a Mod , the desire has to come from the heart.

True community leaders build spaces from the heart to protect and elevate others, while opportunistic ‘climbers’ use those same people as rungs on a ladder of self-interest. Over time these climbers forget the real reason they started, trading genuine human connection for personal status and metrics. Many people constantly praise and magnify these "big names” …elevating them far above the actual experiencers whose stories and vulnerability created the platforms value in the first place.

It is the heart centered individuals , often given a mission early in life to do this work, who carry the weight of communities like this. Behind the curtain they spend countless hours of their lives listening to our stories and holding space for the moments that are positive and light hearted but also bravely absorbing the ones that are intensely heavy, confusing and dark. This is the piece so many people miss..these people genuinely take on the burdens of others just to ensure none of us have to carry them alone.

Regardless of how selfless they are , at the end of the day they need/deserve the exact same thing that every single one of us wants when we share here. They deserve to be seen. They deserve to know their work matters. But because of how they operate most would never ask for this recognition, often struggling with their own experiences and insecurities around wondering if they are even doing a good enough job.

So I wanted to use my voice today to pull back that curtain. To the mods and leaders who give pieces of their souls, hours out of their days…we see you, we value you and we appreciate you. You are the heartbeat of this magical space and you have changed my life. Thank you.

Hi friends, was wondering if anyone had any leads on where to begin with a pollen note? I live in Tennessee and I am a native landscaper and wanted to create a scent that reminds me of all the things I love. Going good so far but I had the thought this morning I would love to build a pollen note to add to it to finish it up .

Any suggestions? I do have Acetanisole? I was thinking beeswax? Hay? Ionones? Orris? A special aldehyde?

Really at a loss but haven’t put TOO much thought into it yet.. just super inspired by the beautiful pollinators here this morning and wanted to pick your brains :)

Me: “I only need a, b and c…should only cost around $50.”

My cart: “that will be $400 , please”

Me: 🤯 🤯 🤔

I am not an over spender. Infact, I am quite frugal in regards to spending money…but for whatever reason the Fraterworks site gets me every.single.time. Like how did I dissociate and add 40 + materials to my cart when I only needed 4?

Sorcery I tell you. Sorcery.

(Also…just a well oiled, aesthetically pleasing and easy to navigate website)