The usual advice from both harm reduction services and the shop is the same: start low and move up one step at a time. The Dutch public health institute Trimbos advises a low amount and a sober sitter for salvia, because the effects are often overwhelming and the risk grows with the amount (DRUGSinfo, Trimbos). Avalon's three-strength pack says to start with the 10X. This page follows that order.
All products here are for a stay in the Netherlands, where salvia is not controlled. In many countries it is; see the legal status before ordering.
Four things to settle before choosing
- Which seller you will stay with. Labels from different sellers do not line up (see lab tests). One seller's steps are the only ones you can compare.
- A scale that reads to 0.001 gram. At 40X and 80X the shop's amounts are 0.01 to 0.05 gram. Kitchen scales cannot show that.
- A sober sitter. Someone who stays with you, does not use anything, and knows what salvia can look like from the outside.
- A room that suits it. Seated or lying down, quiet, nothing hot or breakable within reach, no stairs or open windows nearby, and no plan to drive or work afterwards.
From the lowest step to the highest
The descriptions below are the shop's own, quoted or summarised. Milligram figures are the amounts Avalon states.
5X
18 mg per gram, sold as 1 g. The lowest extract step. Avalon calls it five times stronger than its leaves and aims it at users who already know salvia. For someone who has only used leaf, this is the smallest step up.
10X
36 mg per gram, sold as 1 g. Twice the 5X. This is the strength Avalon names as the starting point in its three-strength pack, which lets you "learn your own sensitivity without jumping straight to a stronger variant".
15X
54 mg per gram, sold as 1 g. Avalon places it with people who know the effects of salvia and want a stronger experience. As a step between 10X and 20X it keeps the jump smaller.
20X
72 mg per gram, sold as 1 g or 10 g. From this strength the shop speaks of "experienced users only". It is also the extract in the Enjoy Salvia Pack.
30X
108 mg per gram, sold as 0.5 g. Avalon calls it very potent and for experienced salvia users only. The half gram holds the same stated amount as one gram of 15X, which is worth knowing when comparing price per pack.
40X
144 mg per gram, sold as 0.5 g. The shop gives 0.02 to 0.05 gram per use and advises caution.
80X
288 mg per gram, sold as 0.5 g. Avalon calls it the most potent extract in its range, "exclusively suitable for experienced Salvia users who are already familiar with lower concentrations", and gives 0.01 to 0.03 gram per use. At this level the difference between the low and high end of that range is two hundredths of a gram.
Comparing packs without guessing
- Use the stated amount per pack. 5X 18 mg, 10X 36 mg, 15X 54 mg, 20X 72 mg, 30X 54 mg, 40X 72 mg, 80X 144 mg (shop figures times pack size).
- A higher X is not more product. It is the same effect in a smaller amount, which makes each mistake larger.
- The three-strength pack covers 10X, 20X and 30X, which is the shop's own step plan in one order.
Safety basics at every strength
- Never alone. The sitter stays until you are fully back, usually well under half an hour for smoked extract.
- One amount, then wait. Adding more during the effect makes the total unknowable.
- One product per session. Do not mix strengths or forms.
- Not with alcohol, medicines or other drugs; Trimbos notes that this makes the already unpredictable effect harder to predict (DRUGSinfo).
- Not if you or a close relative has had a psychosis, Trimbos advises, and only when you feel well and in a place you trust.
- Not under 18 and not during pregnancy; the shop's spray page adds people with a mental illness to that list.
- No driving or machinery afterwards; Avalon's spray page says not within 24 hours.
In the Netherlands, driving under the influence of any substance that impairs driving is an offence under article 8 of the Road Traffic Act (Wegenverkeerswet 1994).
For what the numbers mean, see fold versus standardised. For the liquids, see forms.