There are people who smoke pot to get high, and there are people who use cannabis to open their minds.  That is basically the difference between those it helps and those it harms.

Playing with your mind; going down the rabbit hole... but then you got to get back out.
And if you haven't developed your brain muscle, then it is usually a losing battle.

There are huge piles of similar experiences.  Some consider that proof enough.  But, since we are talking about personal experiences, it is not something that you can just give to someone who hasn't trod the path.  I wish it was as easy as, "here, take this drug,"  because it really is more about the preparation than the drug.

I understand where you are coming from.
I have been there.  I studied all of the science.

However, you do not know where I am coming from.
And there is no way for me to explain it to you.
You cannot describe color to a blind person.

So, when you start having these experiences, then you to will throw out all the works such as you have just written.  It has happened before, it will happen again.

And when you do, I hope there is someone there to help you while your entire sciencism world crumbles around you.

Sorry, I do not want to be enigmatic, but you have to experience it for yourself.  And the idea of it just being the mind playing tricks on you is laughable in face of the piles of shared experiences.  There really, truly is more out there.

If you were in Tibet, the common parlayance, would be 

"but we can't run around telling people that physical manifestations are outside of our brains."

There is more evidence that our dreams are real, and that the 3D world is an illusion.  But, we were raised in a country were people don't even listen to their dreams.

I do understand where you are coming from.  I was raised in that environment.  But I can no longer believe it, as evidence has shown otherwise.