Inflation
RisksAn inflated, grandiose sense of self-importance following a psychedelic experience — the opposite failure mode from ego dissolution, where someone emerges convinced the experience has made them uniquely enlightened or important.
Example: The Ego-Dissolution Inventory's validation study included 8 separate items specifically measuring ego inflation, distinct from its 8 dissolution items — confirming grandiosity and dissolution are statistically separate dimensions of the same drug experience, not opposite ends of one scale.
What is "inflation" after a psychedelic experience?
An inflated, grandiose sense of self-importance following a psychedelic experience — the opposite failure mode from ego dissolution, where someone emerges convinced the experience has made them uniquely enlightened or important.
Are inflation and ego dissolution opposite ends of the same scale?
No — they're statistically separate dimensions. The Ego-Dissolution Inventory's validation study included 8 separate items specifically measuring ego inflation, distinct from its 8 dissolution items, confirming grandiosity and dissolution don't simply trade off against each other.