Magic mushrooms are the safest of all recreational drugs
For most of us who grew up and went to school in Canada — and probably everywhere else, for that matter — warnings about the harms of “drugs” were so pervasive that just reading the title of this article, Long Term Effects of Magic Mushrooms, probably conjures up a bit of fear. Surely these “long term effects” will be bad!
But what does the most up to date research actually tell us about the effects of psilocybin (the active ingredient in magic mushrooms)? Were these well intended warnings we got from our teachers and parents actually based in reality? And is it possible that the long term effects of magic mushrooms might actually be positive?
In this article we aim to paint a more realistic picture of the risks and benefits of magic mushrooms, and to show that the fears we might be carrying about their long term effects are likely unwarranted.
Magic Mushrooms In History
Varieties of magic mushrooms are found growing on every continent on earth (except, obviously, Antarctica), and there is evidence for their use by humans going back thousands of years, in places as widely separated as Mesoamerica, Australia, and ancient Greece.
None of this ancient world use of magic mushrooms automatically rules out the possibility of negative long term effects — it’s probably tricky to detect long term effects when hardly anybody’s living past age 50 — but at the very least the consistent use for thousands of years by cultures around the globe suggests that nobody noticed anything going wrong. It’s a starting point.
And it’s not all ancient history: shamans and healers in the Mesoamerican region use psychedelics in ritual ceremonies to this day, and don’t seem worried about it.
But us supposedly scientific minded folk, we like our studies. So what, if anything, do our studies say?
Short Term vs Long Term
Let’s start with the short term.
By short term we mean the trip itself, or the same day. We have a pretty good idea about the obvious and easy to describe short term effects like euphoria, vivid colours and other visual effects, as well as the potential short term dangers (which are rare, usually related to anxiety or panic, and “successfully managed by providing interpersonal support”).
Long term is harder to define. A recent (2020) study that showed psilocybin’s supposed “long term” positive effect on mood showed that lasting effect by following up a mere one month later! But while that’s interesting, we’re probably less concerned with what happens a month later. We want to know if magic mushrooms will do something to us that only shows up way down the road — perhaps along the lines of radiation damage from too much sun, or heart disease from lack of exercise.
The trouble is that magic mushrooms only entered the awareness of US and Canadian culture in 1957, with the first documented recreational use of magic mushrooms in Vancouver in 1965. That, along with magic mushrooms being mostly illegal since the seventies, has put a limit on how much long term research there can be.
But there is some longer term research.
The Surprising (?) Results of Longer Term Studies
Anyone searching for studies showing negative long term effects from using magic mushrooms quickly runs into a problem: there aren’t any.
In his book “Drugs Without the Hot Air: Making Sense of Legal and Illegal Drugs” (2020), author David Nutt assesses psilocybin to be the least harmful drug, ten times less harmful than the worst drug (alcohol). In their paper, “Psychedelics and Mental Health: A Population Study”, authors Teri S. Krebs and Pål-Ørjan Johansen open with the following claims.
“The classical serotonergic psychedelics LSD, psilocybin, mescaline are not known to cause brain damage and are regarded as non-addictive. Clinical studies do not suggest that psychedelics cause long-term mental health problems. Psychedelics have been used in the Americas for thousands of years. Over 30 million people currently living in the US have used LSD, psilocybin, or mescaline.”
Yes, there are cases of negative effects to be found here and there, but it’s very difficult to find widespread long term negative effects that hold up to scrutiny. The biggest example, the one that comes up the most often, is the idea of “flashbacks”, or, “hallucinogen persisting perceptual disorder” (HPPD). Krebs and Johansen discuss this issue, and though they are here referencing LSD and peyote as well as psilocybin, it’s worth hearing what they have to say.
“In this study, lifetime use of psychedelics and past year use of LSD was not associated with past year symptoms of visual phenomena (‘‘seeing something others could not’’), panic attacks, psychosis, or overall serious psychological distress. Thus, our findings does not support either the idea of ‘‘flashbacks’’ described in extreme cases as recurrent psychotic episodes, hallucinations, or panic attacks, or the more recent ‘‘hallucinogen persisting perceptual disorder’’ (HPPD) described as persistent visual phenomena with accompanying anxiety and distress…. Overall, the validity of the HPPD diagnosis remains scant.”
Evidence of long term harm may yet be discovered, but at this point it’s almost impossible to find any.
There are, however, some interesting positive results.
Long-Term Benefits of Magic Mushroom Use
For example, a study that suggests that psilocybin can have an effect on the personality trait of openness, one of the “five broad domains of personality”, and that the effect of increased openness was stable a full year later.
There is a less robust but still interesting paper that suggests that psilocybin assisted therapy can have a positive effect on the mental health of cancer patients four years later.
Or a 2013 paper where, “21,967 respondents (13.4% weighted) reported lifetime psychedelic use. There were no significant associations between lifetime use of any psychedelics, lifetime use of specific psychedelics (LSD, psilocybin, mescaline, peyote), or past year use of LSD and increased rate of any of the mental health outcomes. Rather, in several cases psychedelic use was associated with lower rate of mental health problems.”
Yes, the group that had used psychedelics at some point in their life in several cases had a lower rate of mental health problems.
There’s even a survey showing some success with using psilocybin to quit smoking, with the results lasting over two years.
Positive results are very easy to find — and more are coming all the time.
What are the Long Term Effects of Magic Mushrooms?
All that said, it’s difficult to give a truly conclusive answer about the long term effects of magic mushrooms. While there are positive studies, a long history of use all around the world, and no research showing evidence of long term harm, nobody has yet done the large scale, long term, high quality studies that would be needed to remove all doubt.
The government of Canada’s website offers that, “Currently, no studies have evaluated the long-term effects of repetitive use of magic mushrooms.” And that’s not completely unfair. Much of the work cited above regarding long term effects is using the best available data, but that data is sometimes old, or self reported and based on surveys. Solid as far as it goes, but not as conclusive as one might hope.
We expect that as the world reopens to the possibilities of magic mushrooms — see for example Oregon’s successful 2020 vote to legalize psilocybin — research will get easier, and we might begin to get the full and definitive picture of their long term effects.
In the meantime, we can say this: the best evidence available today suggests a range of possibilities. At worst there may be no detectable long term effects from magic mushrooms at all. And at best there may be positive ones.
The image from the very top of this post, which we will also leave directly below for convenience is taken from TripSafe – a website for education on psychedelics like shrooms and LSD. It shows that in comparison with virtually every other “drug” known to mankind, mushrooms are the safest and least addictive. We don’t know everything about the long term effects of psychedelic mushroom use, but there is one fact that seems abundantly clear and is supported by virtually all of the research into the subject:
Magic mushrooms remain the safest of all recreational drugs.
Over the past five years, researchers in Canada and the United States have changed the public narrative around psychedelic substances with revolutionary new research into the potential of magic mushrooms as a treatment for depression.
The legal landscape for magic mushrooms is also changing, with several U.S states pushing for legalization or decriminalization and Health Canada having granted 24 legal exemptions for end-of-life psilocybin therapy since August of 2020.
As a result of these changes, Canadians are increasingly curious about the possibility of treating symptoms of depression with magic mushrooms – but can we be sure that it works?
If you’re interested in learning more about the connection between magic mushrooms and depression in 2021, we’ve got you covered. We’ve created this guide to bring you up-to-date on the most current clinical investigations into treating depression with magic mushrooms.
We’ll start with a short overview of both magic mushrooms and depression, defining the terms that are most important in this article. Next, we’ll review findings from five key studies on magic mushrooms and depression to get a better understanding of whether magic mushrooms can really make a difference. Following that, we’ll look at more research that tries to explain how magic mushrooms work in the brain to influence mood and emotions. Finally, we’ll answer some of the most frequently asked questions about magic mushrooms and depression in 2021.
Let’s dive right in!
<Hey Reader! We just wanted to take a second to remind you that we’re not your doctor. We’ve done our due diligence in creating this educational article and provided links to every study we reference, but this article is not medical advice and should not be taken as such. If you need medical advice, talk to your doctor!>
What are Magic Mushrooms?
Magic Mushrooms and Depression
Magic mushrooms are a family of mushrooms that contain the hallucinogenic compound known as psilocybin.
Because of their hallucinogenic properties, magic mushrooms have been used in religious, healing, and divine rituals throughout human history, dating back to at least 6,000 years ago. The Aztec people of Mexico and Central America, who referred to psilocybin mushrooms as “the divine mushroom”, consumed it during religious and civic ceremonies.
Knowledge of magic mushrooms spread around the world during the 1960s as westerners engaged in spiritual tourism trips to Mexico where they would take magic mushrooms in ritualistic ceremonies with indigenous peoples. It was soon discovered that mushrooms containing psilocybin grow naturally on all six continents.
Consuming psilocybin mushrooms has been observed to produce a variety of sensory and emotional effects, including:
Visual and auditory hallucinations,
Altered perception of time and space,
Altered perception of tactile and sensory stimulation,
Muscle relaxation and dilated pupils,
Reduced concentration.
In addition to the hallucinogenic symptoms enjoyed by recreational and spiritual mushroom-lovers, new research has emerged that reveals more about the long-term emotional impacts of taking magic mushrooms (more on this later), including the potential impact for treating depression.
What is Depression?
Magic Mushrooms and Depression
Depression is a common mood disorder and the world’s leading cause of disability, with over 264 million people affected around the world.
Depression is not the same as occasional mood fluctuations or emotional responses to life’s daily challenges – episodes of depression are often longer-lasting and result in more severe symptoms that may include:
Increased aggressiveness or irritability,
Increased anxiety or restlessness,
Unpredictable mood swings,
Disrupted or erratic sleep patterns,
Reduced sexual desire or lack of performance,
Feelings of despair and hopelessness,
Physical symptoms such as chronic pain, headaches, digestive problems, or chronic fatigue,
Lack of productivity and low self-esteem,
Slowed speech and cognition,
Reduced appetite, leading to weight loss, or increased cravings for food that result in weight gain,
Behavior changes, such as loss of energy or initiative, no longer enjoying favorite activities, self-medicating with harmful drugs or alcohol, and suicidal ideation.
Despite the high number of people suffering from depression in the world today, researchers still haven’t nailed down exactly why some people experience depression and others don’t. Family history seems to play a role, as people with a family history of mood disorders are more likely to develop a mood disorder themselves.
Early childhood trauma, individual variations in brain structure, a history of drug use, and some medical conditions like ADHD or insomnia have all been associated with the onset of depressive symptoms.
Depression on its own can cause a tremendous amount of suffering. If left untreated, depression can worsen over time, potentially leading to substance abuse issues or problems with professional and interpersonal relationships. In the worst cases, individuals with depression may socially isolate themselves and engage in self-harm or suicidal ideation.
All of this is to say that depression is a truly terrible disorder, one that we should be addressing with every tool available to improve the lives of Canadians who are suffering.
Now let’s take a look at how that might be possible with the help of magic mushrooms.
Do Magic Mushrooms Help Depression?
Research into the potential therapeutic benefits of magic mushrooms began in the early 1960s, but came to an abrupt halt in 1970 when the United States Controlled Substances Act listed psilocybin and other psychedelics as banned substances, excluding them from further studies due to a lack of perceived benefits.
Eventually, in the year 2000, after three decades of zero development in our scientific knowledge about psilocybin, researchers at Johns Hopkins University were given permission to administer high doses of psilocybin to healthy and willing participants. The resulting study was published in 2006, opening the door to further investigation into psilocybin, including its therapeutic properties for treating depression.
Research conducted in the past five years indicates that magic mushrooms may be quite effective at treating depression in a variety of contexts, including treatment-resistant depression, end-of-life depression, and major depressive disorders.
Below, we highlight the five most significant studies into magic mushrooms and depression, and what they reveal about the powerful therapeutic properties of psilocybin.
Authors: Robin L. Carhart-Harris, Mark Bolstridge, James Rucker, Camilla M. J. Day, David Erritzoe, Mendel Kaelen, Michael Bloomfield, James A. Rickard, Ben Forbes, Amanda Feilding, David Taylor, Steve Pilling, Valerie H. Curran, and David J. Nutt.
Journal of Publication: The Lancet.
Date Published: July 2016.
Overview: This was one of the first studies conducted into magic mushrooms and depression, led by Dr. Robin L Carhart-Harris of the Faculty of Medicine at London’s Imperial College. The goal of this research was to investigate the feasibility, safety, and effectiveness of using psilocybin as a therapy for treatment-resistant depression.
Key Findings: This study involved 12 patients who suffered from treatment-resistant depression. The 12 patients were given two doses of psilocybin: a 10mg dose to start, and another 25mg dose after 7 days. Researchers observed no unexpected adverse events among the patients, indicating that the drug was well-tolerated and could be safely administered. One week after the second dosage, patients were observed to have reduced symptoms of depression and anxiety, along with a heightened capacity to experience pleasure.
Authors: Roland R. Griffiths, Matthew W. Johnson, Michael A. Carducci, Annie Umbricht, William A. Richards, Brian D. Richards, Mary P. Cosimano, and Margaret A. Klinedinst.
Journal of Publication: Journal of Psychopharmacology.
Date Published: November 30th, 2016.
Overview: This study and the next one on our list were published side-by-side in the same issue of the Journal of Psychopharmacology. The goal of this study was to evaluate the treatment potential of psilocybin therapy for patients with a life-threatening cancer diagnosis.
Key Findings: This study involved 51 patients, all of whom were experiencing psychosocial distress following a life-threatening cancer diagnosis. The study investigated the impacts of both low-dose (1 or 3 milligrams per 70kg of bodyweight) and high-dose (22 or 30 milligrams per 70kg of bodyweight) psilocybin treatments. It was found that participants who received a high dose of psilocybin showed a decrease in both self-reported and clinically-evaluated depression and anxiety. Other benefits such as increased quality of life, a stronger sense of meaning in life, greater optimism, and reduced anxiety about death were also reported.
Authors: Stephen Ross, Anthony Bossis, Jeffrey Guss, Gabrielle Agin-Liebes, Tara Malone, Barry Cohen, Sarah E. Mennenga, Alexander Belser, Krystallia Kalliontzi, James Babb, Zhe Su, Patricia Corby, and Brian L. Schmidt.
Journal of Publication: Journal of Psychopharmacology.
Date Published: November 30th, 2016.
Overview: This study was released in conjunction with the previous study in our list. The goal of this research was to evaluate the potential role of psilocybin as a treatment for cancer-related anxiety and depression.
Key Findings: This clinical investigation involved 29 patients who had been diagnosed with cancer and a cancer-related mood disorder – either anxiety or depression. Patients received either a single dose of psilocybin (0.3 milligrams per kilogram of bodyweight) or a placebo. The single dose of psilocybin was reported to reduce symptoms of anxiety and depression, while lessening cancer-related demoralization and improving spiritual wellbeing. A follow-up was conducted after 6.5 months where it was found that 60-80% of patients continued to show reduced depression and anxiety.
Authors: Robin L. Carhart-Harris, Leor Roseman, Mark Bolstridge, Lysia Demetriou, J. Nienke Pannekoek, Matthew B. Wall, Mark Tanner, Mendel Kaelen, John McGonigle, Kevin Murphy, Robert Leech, Valerie H. Curran, and David J. Nutt.
Journal of Publication: Nature.
Date Published: October 13th, 2017.
Overview: This study of magic mushrooms and depression used functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) to analyze changes in cerebral blood flow and other physiological markers for patients being treated with psilocybin. The purpose of this study was to investigate the therapeutic mechanism by which psilocybin treats depression and anxiety.
Key Findings: This study involved 19 patients, but the research team was only able to collect quality results from 16 of them. Patients in the study were given two doses of psilocybin 7 days apart – the first one a 10mg dose, and the second one a 25mg dose.
Researchers observed that all 19 patients showed signs of decreased depressive symptoms one week after treatment, though just 47% of participants showed enduring benefits after five weeks. Researchers came up with the term “after-glow” to describe the period after treatment during which patients experienced stress reduction along with improvements to mood and general wellbeing.
Overall, psilocybin treatment was found to produce rapid and ongoing anti-depressant effects. fMRI scans completed after treatments showed decreased cerebral blood flow in the amygdala, the part of the brain responsible for driving the stress response. This reduction in blood flow correlated with reduced symptoms of depression.
Authors: Alan K. Davis, Frederick S. Barrett, and Darrick G. May.
Journal of Publication: JAMA Psychiatry.
Date Published: November 4th, 2020.
Overview: Published in November 2020, this study from researchers at Johns Hopkins School of Medicine is the latest investigatory paper with a focus on magic mushrooms and depression. The goal of this study was to investigate the therapeutic potential of psilocybin for patients suffering from a major depressive disorder.
Key Findings: This study involved 27 patients, but only 24 completed the entire treatment schedule and both follow-up assessments. Participants were administered two different dosages of psilocybin (20mg/70kg and 30mg/70kg) during two separate sessions of supportive psychotherapy. Following the two sessions, researchers conducted follow-up assessments with each patient, evaluating depressive symptoms with the latest diagnostic tools.
This study ultimately found that magic mushrooms were an effective treatment for major depressive disorder when combined with supportive psychotherapy.
Research Summary
Taken together, these studies constitute a strong body of evidence for the therapeutic benefits of magic mushrooms in treating depression. Researchers have clearly demonstrated that patients with symptoms of depression who take psilocybin in the right context are likely to experience a reduction in those symptoms, along with other positive benefits.
In the 2017 study conducted by Carhart-Harris and friends, we saw that psilocybin therapy could lead to decreased blood flow in the amygdala, suggesting a possible mechanistic link between psilocybin and reduced depression. In the next section, we’ll take a closer look at research papers exploring the following question: How do magic mushrooms work mechanistically to relieve symptoms of depression?
How Do Magic Mushrooms Help with Depression?
Magic Mushrooms and Depression
So far, the available research indicates that magic mushrooms can have a lasting impact when it comes to reducing symptoms of depression and anxiety.
Now, researchers are working hard to develop a better understanding of the underlying mechanisms at work when treating depression with magic mushrooms. Understanding how psilocybin works in the body and the brain to reduce depression will allow clinicians and medical professionals to develop stronger treatment protocols that maximize the potential of psilocybin therapy.
Below, we summarize some of the key findings from current research investigating how magic mushrooms help with depression.
Authors: Robin L. Carhart-Harris, David Erritzoe, Tim Williams, James M. Stone, Laurence J. Reed, Alessandro Colasanti, Robin J. Tyacke, Robert Leech, Andrea L. Malizia, Kevin Murphy, Peter Hobden, John Evans, Amanda Feilding, Richard G. Wise, and David J. Nutt.
Journal of Publication: Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences (PNAS).
Date Published: February 7th, 2012.
Overview: This study, conducted by a team of researchers from throughout Europe and the UK, was one of the first to use neuroimaging to understand the transition between normal consciousness and the psychedelic state. The goal of this study was to better understand how psilocybin works in the brain.
Key Findings: This study used neuroimaging techniques to monitor the effects of psilocybin in the brain for a group of 30 patients. The main finding in the study was that psilocybin decreased cerebral blood flow in the posterior cingulate cortex (PCC) and decreased positive coupling between the PCC and the medial prefrontal cortex (mPFC). The size of this decrease was directly correlated to the subjective hallucinogenic effects of psilocybin.
Activity in the mPFC is known to be elevated during depression, so the deactivation of the mPFC by psilocybin seems to indicate a possible mechanism for relieving depression via psilocybin therapy.
Authors: Rainer Kraehenmann, André Schmidt, Karl Fristone, Katrin H. Preller, Erich Seifritz, and Franz X. Vollenweider.
Journal of Publication: NeuroImage: Clinical.
Date Published: August 22nd, 2015.
Overview: At the time of this study, researchers were already aware that psilocybin therapy seemed to reduce blood flow to the amygdala, potentially accounting for the mood-enhancing effects of magic mushrooms. The goal of this study was to understand more about the influence of psilocybin on threat-processing in the brain.
Key Findings: This study was conducted by analyzing neuroimaging data that was collected from patients during a previous experiment. The analysis ultimately showed that psilocybin decreased threat sensitivity in the visual cortex by activating a special type of serotonin receptor that helps reduce activity in the amygdala. This process suppresses the processing of negative stimuli and enhances the processing of positive stimuli, a mechanism which may explain the mood-improving effects of psilocybin therapy.
Authors: Rosalind Watts, Camilla Day, Jacob Krzanowski, David J. Nutt, and Robin L. Carhart-Harris.
Journal of Publication: Journal of Humanistic Psychology.
Date Published: June 19th, 2017.
Overview: While other investigations into the mechanisms by which psilocybin can moderate depression have focused on neuroimaging techniques, this study focuses on how patients experience the therapy and the long-term emotional impacts that result. The goal of this study was to better understand how patients perceive the value of magic mushrooms as a treatment for depression.
Key Findings: This study involved 20 patients who received psilocybin therapy treatments and were interviewed about their experiences. Patients identified two emotional changes that were brought on by the therapy and believed to help with symptoms of depression:
Increased feelings of connectedness – Patients who previously reported feeling disconnected from themselves, others, and the world, said that they felt a stronger overall sense of connectivity after undergoing psilocybin therapy.
Increased feelings of acceptance – Patients who previously reported avoidant and detached behaviors with respect to their own emotions said that they felt a pervasive sense of acceptance of their emotional state and reported decreased avoidant behaviors.
These findings seem to indicate that psilocybin treatment can produce emotional and behavioral changes that combat symptoms of depression. Patients also reported that while other treatments like talk therapy reinforced their feelings of disconnectedness and habit of emotional avoidance, psilocybin therapy seemed to have the opposite effect.
Authors: Leor Roseman, David J. Nutt, and Robin L. Carhart-Harris.
Journal of Publication: Frontiers in Pharmacology.
Date Published: January 17th, 2018.
Overview: Researchers conducting this study believed that the quality of a therapeutic experience involving psilocybin could be highly predictive of long-term mental health improvements. The purpose of this study was to test this belief using data from patients who received psilocybin treatments for treatment-resistant depression.
Key Findings: This study ultimately revealed a strong connection between the quality of psychedelic experiences in the context of psilocybin therapy and the overall impact on mental health. This finding indicates that clinicians should be able to maximize patient outcomes by optimizing their therapy protocols to deliver a more intense, profound, and psychologically transformative experience.
Research Summary
While the exact mechanisms that underlie the reduction of depression symptoms via psilocybin therapy are not totally clear, researchers have identified several factors that play a role.
We’ve identified that psilocybin acts on special serotonin receptors in the brain known as 5-HT2A receptors. We know that this process seems to decrease activity in both the amygdala and the medial prefrontal cortex, which serves to mitigate the fight-or-flight response and make patients less reactive to negative stimuli (and more reactive to positive ones).
We also know that emotional experiences can play a role in reducing depressive symptoms, especially when patients have high-quality experiences that enhance their sense of connectedness and acceptance of their own emotions.
Still, there’s plenty of additional research to be done before we can fully understand why magic mushrooms seem to work so well for treating depression.
Magic Mushrooms and Depression FAQ
Before we wrap up, we just want to quickly address some of the most common questions that come up during conversations about magic mushrooms and depression.
What is treatment-resistant depression?
The most common treatments for depression include antidepressants like Prozac and Zoloft, along with various forms of psychotherapy. These treatments work for many people suffering with depression – but they do not work for everyone.
You may be diagnosed with treatment-resistant depression if your symptoms fail to improve after receiving psychotherapy or taking antidepressants. When this is the case, a clinician may pursue additional treatment options in hopes of mitigating your symptoms and improving your quality of life.
Which magic mushrooms are the best for treating depression?
There are many different species of magic mushrooms that grow in the wild – so which one is the best for treating depression?
In a way, this is the wrong question.
It isn’t the mushrooms themselves that treat the depression – it’s the hallucinogenic compound psilocybin that seems to produce the positive effects. In most studies, patients are administered a purified form of psilocybin either orally or intravenously without ever seeing a mushroom.
Based on our review of the available research, a dosage of 20-30 milligrams of psilocybin per 70kg of body weight seemed to produce good results for most people.
Can magic mushrooms cure depression?
Whether magic mushrooms can cure your depression depends on a variety of factors, such as the underlying causes of your depression, the quality of your psychedelic experiences, the overall quality of your treatment program, and the dosage of psilocybin that you receive.
While there’s no guarantee that taking magic mushrooms will cause your depression to permanently vanish, there’s plenty of evidence that psilocybin therapy often results in the long-term reduction of depressive symptoms and improved quality of life.
Summary
Thanks for reading all the way to the end!
Here’s a quick summary of everything we covered:
Researchers have found magic mushrooms to be effective in the treatment of end-of-life depression, major depressive disorder, and treatment-resistant depression.
Researchers are still unsure of how exactly psilocybin works to decrease depressive symptoms, although several mechanisms have been evaluated and proposed.
The effectiveness of psilocybin therapy depends on the quality of the experience, so there’s plenty of room for clinicians to develop strong treatment protocols that enhance therapeutic outcomes.
Based on these findings, we’re tremendously excited for what the future holds and the incredible potential of magic mushrooms to treat depression and other mental disorders. We hope you are too!
What does the future hold for magic mushrooms in Canadian law?
New research has Canadians increasingly interested in the potential medicinal benefits of magic mushrooms and their active ingredient, the hallucinogenic compound psilocybin. Recent studies indicate that taking magic mushrooms under the right conditions can produce positive personality changes, help treat addictions, and reduce (or even eliminate) symptoms of depression.
We know millions of Canadians are struggling with depression and addictions, especially during the COVID-19 pandemic, so what’s preventing more Canadians from taking advantage of the potential benefits of magic mushrooms? For many, it’s the relationship between magic mushrooms and Canadian law.
The legal status of magic mushrooms in Canada is going through a period of intense change, but don’t worry if you’re having trouble keeping up – we’ve got you covered.
This article will explain everything you need to know about magic mushrooms and Canadian law. We’ll start with a primer on the history of magic mushroom laws in Canada, review the current legal status of magic mushrooms in Canadian law, then look into the future and try and predict how Canada will be regulating magic mushrooms in the years and decades to come.
Note: We have to put a disclaimer here and let you know that we’re not your lawyer and this article is not legal advice. If you need legal advice, get a lawyer.
A History of Magic Mushroom Laws in Canada
Very few Canadians had ever heard of magic mushrooms before 1957, when Life Magazine published an article called “Great Adventures III: Seeking the Magic Mushroom” by Robert Gordon Wasson, an amateur mycologist.
In the article, Wasson described his experience travelling to Oaxaca, Mexico and taking magic mushrooms with Mexico’s indigenous people known as the Mazatec. He claimed to be “the first white man in recorded history to eat the divine mushrooms”.
The article served as a roadmap that would lead countless Canadians, Americans, and Europeans to Mexico in the 1960s, in pursuit of the same hallucinogenic and spiritual experiences that Wasson had described.
After these tourists returned home, they began to recognize pasture mushrooms in the local environment that were similar to those they encountered in Mexico – as it turns out, mushrooms with hallucinogenic properties occur naturally on every continent of the world.
Magic mushrooms began to be used in Canada in the mid-1960s. The first criminal seizure of magic mushrooms took place in Vancouver in 1965, when RCMP officers confiscated psilocybin-containing liberty cap mushrooms from a group of students at the University of British Columbia.
Magic mushrooms continued to grow in popularity through the hippie movement in the late 1960s and early 1970s. Liberty cap mushrooms grew abundantly in the pastures, meadows, and fields of British Columbia, attracting thousands of pickers from across the country.
Pickers would arrive in autumn when the mushrooms were in season, establishing tent cities around the most productive areas and often committing petty crimes like trespassing or property damage to access liberty caps growing on private land. Magic mushrooms were still technically legal in Canada, but the practices around accessing the mushrooms were often illegal or disruptive to the community.
While disruptive mushroom pickers may have created problems for local police, they may not have influenced the development of Canadian Law as much as a single document from the United Nations: the Convention on Psychotropic Substances, 1971. This was an International treaty where 71 states agreed to participate in a worldwide program to limit the availability of psychotropic substances to the general public and restrict the use of psychotropics to medicinal and scientific settings.
The 1971 Convention listed psilocybin as a Schedule I drug, the most restrictive designation possible. Schedule I drugs were characterized as having a high potential for abuse and no known therapeutic value, a description that no longer seems to suit magic mushrooms. Ultimately, the convention on psychotropic substances influenced how Canada, as well as other countries, wrote laws to govern the use of psychotropics. In many cases, complying with the convention meant banning psychotropic substances like magic mushrooms entirely, often without complete knowledge of their effects – either positive or negative.
Predictably, magic mushrooms were prohibited in Canada in 1974, by their addition to the Food and Drug Act – sort of. In fact, the government of Canada added the compound Psilocybin to the Food and Drug Act – not the mushrooms themselves (this becomes important later). Between 1974 and 1979, approximately 350 individuals were convicted under the Food and Drug Act for possessing magic mushrooms.
Then, in 1979, the British Columbia Court of Appeals ruled that possession of magic mushrooms in their natural state (freshly picked and not dehydrated) did not constitute possession of psilocybin. For three years, between 1979 and 1982, magic mushrooms were completely legal in Canada and pickers rejoiced.
But their joy was short-lived, as a 1982 decision from the Canadian Supreme Court would overrule the B.C. Court of Appeals decision, stating that possession of magic mushrooms in their raw form did actually constitute possession of psilocybin. Magic mushrooms were illegal in Canada once again and would remain illegal for decades to follow.
Magic Mushrooms in Canada: What Does the Law Say Today?
Magic mushrooms are still under prohibition in Canada, although recent legislative changes indicate that this could change in the near future. Still, our review of magic mushrooms and Canadian law would be incomplete without a thorough analysis of how mushrooms and psilocybin are regulated in Canada today.
Here’s everything you need to know.
Magic Mushrooms are Regulated Under the Controlled Drugs and Substances Act
Magic mushrooms are not explicitly mentioned in the Controlled Drugs and Substances Act (CDSA). However, Psilocybin, the active ingredient in mushrooms, belongs to the list of Schedule III controlled substances which includes other recognized psychotropics, such as:
Methylphenidate (Ritalin/Concerta, used to treat ADHD)
Lysergic acid diethylamide (LSD)
Mescaline (Hallucinogenic, occurs naturally in Peyote cactus)
Dimethyltryptamine (DMT, a hallucinogenic compound produced by the human brain and associated with dreaming)
Possession of magic mushrooms in their natural state is still considered to constitute possession of psilocybin. The CDSA even states that any reference it makes to a controlled substance also includes a reference to any substance containing the controlled substance.
Thus, all of the laws which apply to Schedule III controlled substances may be applied to psilocybin itself or to magic mushrooms in any form that contain psilocybin
Possession of Magic Mushrooms is Regulated in Canada
The CDSA prohibits anyone in Canada from possessing psilocybin or magic mushrooms except as authorized under Canadian law. Medical practitioners such as doctors, lawyers, or veterinarians, may be authorized under the regulations to prescribe psilocybin treatments to their patients.
Patients seeking a prescription for magic mushrooms from a practitioner are required by law to disclose any other acquisitions of drugs in Schedule I, II, III, or IV, along with any prescriptions received for such substances in the past 30 days.
Selling of Magic Mushrooms is Regulated in Canada
The CDSA prohibits anyone from possessing magic mushrooms for the purpose of trafficking them to others.
Importing/Exporting Magic Mushrooms is Regulated in Canada
The CDSA prohibits anyone from importing or exporting magic mushrooms except as authorized under Canadian regulations.
Growing Magic Mushrooms is Regulated in Canada
The CDSA prohibits anyone from producing magic mushrooms in Canada.
How Are Magic Mushroom Laws Enforced in Canada?
The general trend in Canada is that enforcement of drug crimes is declining. The number of yearly arrests for drug-related offences has dramatically dropped by 30% in the last 5 years, as documented by Statistics Canada.
In 2015, police arrested 99,827 Canadians for drug-related offences.
In 2016, police made a total of 95,417 arrests in Canada for drug-related offences, 46% of which were for cannabis possession.
In 2017, the total number of arrestsfell to 90,625 and just 42% were for cannabis possession.
In 2018, the total number of arrests fell again, this time to 84.927, driven in part by the legalization of cannabis in October same year. Still, cannabis-related offences accounted for 43% of all arrests.
There are many other promising developments in these areas, and arrests for possession rarely result in any major penalties for those with clean criminal records.
As a result of these considerations, the courts tend to show leniency to first-time offenders with a clear record, especially in cases of simple possession where the penalty for a first-offence is sometimes just a fine of $250-500.
Magic Mushrooms and Canadian Law: Indications of a Bright Future
Historically, the courts haven’t always agreed on whether magic mushrooms should be illegal in Canada.
What’s also clear is that the Canadian lawmakers who pushed for prohibition were unaware of the medicinal benefits of psilocybin that have been uncovered by modern research into psychedelic substances.
But now that those benefits are coming to the surface, we’re seeing our government and our courts change their stance on magic mushrooms. Just like when cannabis was legalized, we’re starting to see “soft changes” in how magic mushrooms are regulated that could ultimately lead to decriminalization and more widespread usage in the future.
Below, we highlight some of the critical milestones that have been reached in the past five years for the legal status of magic mushrooms in Canada.
Magic Mushrooms are Openly Sold Online
Despite their questionable legal status, magic mushrooms are openly sold online in Canada. Digital dispensaries sell a variety of shroom products to Canadians over 19 years of age, with or without a medical prescription. The authorities know about these dispensaries but have chosen to focus their limited resources on criminal activities involving more harmful drugs.
Vancouver City Council Killed Motion to Crack Down on Psilocybin Sales
The lack of political will to prosecute Canadians for magic mushrooms has never been more clearly evident than it was on September 11th, 2019, in a meeting of the Vancouver city council.
This was when Councillor Melissa De Genova filed a motion with the title: “Deterring and Preventing the Distribution and Sale of Psilocybin Mushrooms and/or Other Illicit or Controlled Drugs Unlawfully Sold in the City of Vancouver”.
Breaking the fourth wall here for a moment, I can honestly say that I have never witnessed any occurrence of a government body who introduced a motion on whether or not it should enforce the de facto laws of the land. Why should politicians need to file a motion that mandates police to do their job? Aren’t the police already mandated to do their job?
The truth is that the police are too busy dealing with the impacts of hard drugs like opioids to bother chasing people around for magic mushrooms, especially now that they’ve been associated with positive health benefits for so many people.
While the practice of cultivating magic mushrooms is technically illegal, magic mushroom spores and growing kits may be purchased in Canada, both in stores and online. It is not explicitly legal to purchase these kits, but nowhere is it prohibited and the kits themselves do not contain any psilocybin.
It may be illegal under 7.1(1) of the CDSA to sell mushroom growing kits, as they will be used to produce a controlled substance, however, the sale of mushroom kits is a common and generally tolerated practice.
Magic Mushrooms Approved for Palliative Patients
In April of 2020, four Canadians in palliative care with terminal illnesses petitioned the Canadian Health Ministry for a legal exemption that would allow them to use magic mushrooms to relieve the depression and anxiety associated with dying.
On August 4th, it was revealed that their request had been granted and they would be the first four people to legally use magic mushrooms in Canada since the Supreme Court decision of 1982, a period of 28 years. Since then, at least 7 other legal exemptions have been awarded for psilocybin use, including at least 1 exemption for a non-palliative case.
Ministry of Health Supports Research into Psychotropics
At the beginning of this article, we talked about some of the research that has uncovered new benefits of magic mushrooms that were previously not known.
The promising results obtained in these studies have led Health Canada to hand out more legal exemptions to health professionals who wish to conduct research and develop therapies involving psilocybin.
In December 2020, Health Canada granted 16 exemptions to a selection of social workers and medical professionals. This gave them permission to possess and use psilocybin themselves, without the risk of legal consequences, for the purpose of developing new treatment protocols for patients.
Growing Magic Mushrooms Could Soon Be Legal for Medicinal Purposes
In the year 2000, the Ontario Court of Appeals determined that Canada’s anti-cannabis laws were unconstitutional because they did not provide an exemption for medical use.
This, the court said, violated the individual’s right to “life, liberty, and security of the person” as outlined in Section 7 of the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms.
The legal precedent established here is essentially that the government shouldn’t prohibit a private citizen from being prescribed a medicine that can improve their quality of life. This designation might not have applied to magic mushrooms six or seven years ago, but with the new research and developments we’re seeing, it sure seems to apply today.
If precedent holds, it could mean that Canadians have a constitutional right to access medicinal psilocybin or even to grow it for personal use.
Magic Mushrooms and Canadian Law: What’s Next?
It appears that magical mushrooms are on the same path to legality that cannabis started on in 2001.
While magic mushrooms are still technically illegal, individuals are rarely prosecuted for simple possession and penalties for first-time offenders usually consist of a fine that costs less than a traffic ticket.
The general trend of drug enforcement is on the decline and government bodies like the Vancouver City Council have voted not to ramp up enforcement activities against psilocybin dispensaries, both online and in the city.
It’s also important to look at what’s happening across the border. Magic mushrooms are still illegal the federal level in the United States, but simple possession has already been decriminalized in places like:
Ann Arbor, Michigan,
Denver, Colorado,
Oakland, California,
Santa Cruz, California,
Washington, D.C
Oregon
Magic mushrooms will be legal for use in supervised clinical settings in Oregon as of February, 2021.
In the future, we expect to see more legal exemptions for magic mushroom usage, both for medical professionals who wish to conduct studies and develop treatments and for private individuals who wish to enjoy the health benefits of psilocybin.
More research is now being conducted into the health benefits of magic mushrooms than at any other time in our history. We believe this research will only yield additional evidence of the health benefits of magic mushrooms. As this body of evidence continues to grow, Canadians who claim the constitutional right to access medical psilocybin will start having their voices heard.
If all of the above holds true, the question isn’t “if” magic mushrooms will be legal in Canada one day – but “when?” and “how?”.
One path to legality involves the Federal government choosing to remove psilocybin from the list of Schedule III substances. This could depend very much on how Canadians vote: while Prime Minister Justin Trudeau has stated that he won’t consider decriminalizing drugs besides cannabis while he is in office, NDP leader Jagmeet Singh has publicly stated his intention to decriminalize all illegal drugs if elected.
The other path is a successful constitutional challenge, alleging that Canadians have the right to grow and possess magic mushrooms for medical purposes. If we collectively assert our rights to life, liberty, and security of the person, our government should recognize that access to beneficial medicine, including psilocybin, is protected under the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms.
We receive a lot of emails from our customers asking us about how they should take magic mushrooms to get the best experience:
“What should I eat or drink with them?”
“Should I take them alone or in a group?”
“Are magic mushrooms better inside or outside?”
“Which shrooms give the best trip?” The list goes on. We try our best to give responsible advice and help our customers find the answers to their questions, but there is a really simple truth behind all of it. In fact, we could answer all of these questions (and 100 more) with the same, two-word answer. It depends. You might be rolling your eyes right now, but it’s the truth. The usage of psychedelic mushrooms (often referred to as “magic mushrooms”, or simply “shrooms,”) dates back thousands of years, in cultures as diverse and distinct as the mushrooms themselves. They’ve been used in shamanic ceremonies, vision quests, and ritual rites of passage. More recently (in the past 50 or so years), we’ve seen magic mushrooms enter into the mainstream and find a home in the world of recreational drugs. At the end of the day, there are many different ways that magic mushrooms can be used and enjoyed – whether for recreation, meditation, spiritual growth, with friends or alone. In this guide, we’ve provided you with some general tips – golden rules on how to prepare for your trip, and what to do if it takes a bad turn. We’ve also provided some tips for different scenarios in which you might want to use shrooms, and how to get the most out of them. We hope you find it helpful!
How to Use This Guide
We don’t intend for this entire post to be read in one sitting (although you’re welcome to do that if you’d like!) But rather, as a reference for budding psychonauts to be able to return to, depending on the type of experience they’re trying to create. You will never experience everything magic mushrooms have to offer you in one experience, so we’ve selected a handful of the most common and popular use cases people ask us about, and written little mini-guides for each of them. At the top of this post, you’ll see a Table of Contents, with links to the relevant sections of the guide. We strongly recommend everyone read “Prepare Yourself” and “What to Do if your Trip Goes Dark,” and aside from that just pick the section that seems most relevant to you and the kind of trip you’re looking to have. Enjoy! And remember to bookmark this guide so you can refer back to it easily for when you plan your next psychedelic adventure! Prepare Yourself No matter what kind of trip you’re looking to have, there are some general best practices that should always be observed. These are basic tips more-or-less designed to help you maximize the highs and minimize the lows of your trip by preparing a little beforehand. Let’s get into them: Tip #1: Eat a Light Meal
The psilocybin and other psychoactive components of the mushroom are absorbed through the lining of your stomach as your body’s natural acids break them down in the process of digestion. Roughly speaking, the emptier your stomach is as you digest the shrooms, the more rapidly and intensely you will feel the effects. If you’ve just finished a huge Thanksgiving feast, it’s possible your body will process the mushrooms and fully digest them without even absorbing the psychoactive chemicals. This would completely defeat the purpose. At the same time, if you’re eating the mushrooms on an empty stomach, your body has nothing to process except the shrooms (which possess very little in the way of conventional nutrients), and it can cause extreme nausea, light-headedness, and general malaise (not to mention you might just be hangry), all of which can make the trip unpleasant. For that reason, we recommend “laying down a base” of some light and easily digested food (vegetables, fibres, simple fats and proteins) before taking the mushrooms. Don’t eat too much, but don’t starve yourself, either. Tip #2: Nausea is Normal
An unfortunate and almost universal side effect of consuming magic mushrooms is the experience of nausea. For those who aren’t accustomed to the experience (and even veteran psychonauts at times,) this can be an extremely unpleasant and off-putting experience. The key thing to remember is that the sensation of nausea is a completely normal and natural part of the experience. The psychoactive components of the mushrooms are being rightly recognized by your body as something foreign, and potentially unwanted. Your body doesn’t know you’re trying to trip, and it’s worried you just picked up some shrooms off the ground without knowing what effects they’d have. For this reason, your body’s natural immune-defence mechanisms kick in and will make you feel nauseous (faint, clammy, and like you want to throw up.) Your body is saying “Hey! Those mushrooms you just ate pack a little punch, maybe we should just throw them up and be done with it!” This experience will be further aggravated if you took the mushrooms on an empty stomach (see tip #1), or took a much larger dose than you were ready for (see tip #3.) Assuming you’ve had a decent meal and taken a responsible dosage, a part of your experience will be coming to terms with and working through that sensation of nausea. Close your eyes, take deep breaths, drink water. Find your center, and remind your body that this is something you did on purpose. You may have to suppress the urge to throw-up or feel faint, but just stay calm and breathe through it. The feelings will eventually pass (your body will give up on the fight – “Okay, boss! Your call, but don’t say I didn’t warn you… we’re in for a ride!”) Tip #3: Practice Moderation
This is probably the most important, and most serious of all the tips. Magic mushrooms are an incredibly powerful psychoactive substance, and should not be taken lightly. There are so many stories of people who have underestimated the potency of shrooms and paid the price. Eminem even wrote a song about it. You don’t want to be one of those stories, and neither do we, so pace yourself! If it’s your first time doing magic mushrooms, we recommend starting off with a 1-1.5g dose of a “friendlier” shroom (more on that later), such as Golden Teachers. Does this mean the experience might be underwhelming, and you don’t trip as much as you wanted to? Yes! Does it mean that you won’t end up having a terrible experience and never wanting to do them again? Also Yes! And frankly, we would much prefer the first situation to the second, and I’m sure you would, too. Once you’re familiar with magic mushrooms, you can look to start expanding from there – more intense shrooms, larger doses, etc. Again, we recommend doing this gradually. The psychedelic trip from mushrooms can be extremely powerful, and the difference between a one-gram dose and a three-gram dose can be night and day. Be patient. You can always take more, but you can’t take less (without throwing them up anyway, and we don’t want that.) Respect the shrooms. They will work (if you got them from a reputable supplier.) Don’t go overboard. It is one thousand times better to have a mediocre experience than a bad one. Take our word for it. You’ll thank us later. Tip #4: Buddy System No matter who you are, where you are, or how experienced you are with shrooms or other psychedelics, this is a golden rule which should always be observed. Any time you take magic mushrooms, you should have someone you know and trust who knows about it. It could be a sober friend who’s hanging out with you (this is the safest option,) a buddy you’re taking them with, or at the very least, someone who knows where you are, when you’re taking them and can check in with you. Mushroom trips can be, well, a trip. Make sure you’ve got someone who will be available to talk to you if you feel like you need to. Tip #5: Don’t Mix With Other Substances
It is unwise to mix psychedelic mushrooms with any other intoxicating substance (alcohol, weed, or any other drug.) Tip #6: Make Sure You Have Time Magic mushrooms, depending on dosage, strain, and personal biology can take 3-8 hours to run their course. Make sure you have the time set aside for it; there’s no turning back on your strap in, so clear your calendar beforehand.
What to Do if Your Trip Goes Dark
I’m sure you have heard stories about people on magic mushrooms who’ve had “bad trips.” Magic mushrooms and other psychedelics can be powerful gateways to opening up different and sometimes unpredictable parts of our subconscious. Without diving too much into the science behind it (that’s a subject we’ll cover on another day,) clinical studies have suggested that psilocybin (the psychoactive ingredient in many magic mushrooms,) when it is broken down into psilocin, chemically resembles serotonin, which your body produces naturally. Serotonin is a neurotransmitter linked with (among many other things) your overall mood and level of happiness. This is just a really fancy way of saying that magic mushrooms can affect your mood. Often extremely positively (euphoria, love, openness, etc. are some of the most commonly reported side effects,) but sometimes negatively (mood swings, anxiety, confusion and paranoia.) Although a shroom trip is sometimes likened to a rollercoaster ride with peaks and valleys, and you can’t necessarily control every minute detail of your experience, there are certain steps you can take to help minimize the lows and maximize the highs. Tip #1: Follow our general tips and tricks!
An ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure. Preparing properly for your trip and taking the appropriate steps beforehand goes a long way to ensuring a good experience. Tip #2: Have a Happy Place
Happy Place. Literally, or figuratively, can help a lot. If you’re doing mushrooms with friends, one idea is to have a “good vibes” room. You will agree beforehand that a certain room is designated specifically for good vibes. Play happy music, have it nicely lit, and have that be a dedicated space where people can go if they want to be uplifted. This way, if you’re starting to feel overwhelmed with negativity, you can go there a pick-me-up! If you’re taking them by yourself or on a hike, make sure you have a strategy to carve out a similar space for yourself. Find a sunny clearing, or put on some cheerful music (have your playlist prepared beforehand.) This advice may sound a little silly, but again – just trust us: you’ll thank us later. Better to have it and not need it than need it and not have it. Tip #3: It’s Not Forever!
Some users of mushrooms report anxiety associated with the concern that they’re going to be high forever. It might sound ridiculous as you read this now, but it can be a very real concern that can cause very real anxiety attacks. Remind yourself, and have your friends be ready to remind you in case you forget: this isn’t going to last forever – so enjoy it while it lasts! You will come back to normal, the psilocybin will run its course through your body, and this trip will be a memory tomorrow. Have faith in that. You’re not the first person to do mushrooms, and you’re not the first one to worry they’d last forever. Tip #4: Close your Eyes and Breathe
Sometimes the sensation of anxiety is much more physical than mental in nature. The steps that are often recommended for dealing with anxiety in day-to-day life (meditating, deep breathing, relaxing your muscles,) also apply to magic mushroom trips. Often, if you find yourself feeling anxious or agitated, the best first step is to sit down somewhere comfortable, close your eyes, and focus on your own breath as you inhale and exhale slowly and deliberately. That’s it! We hope you found some of this information helpful, and if you have any questions or feedback, we invite you to contact us directly at [contact email], or reach out on Instagram. If you haven’t already, click below to subscribe to our newsletter, where we’ll keep you updated on all of our sales and promotions, as well as when new blog content is published. Until then, Happy Tripping!
Your First Magic Mushroom Trip
So you’re trying magic mushrooms for the first time – congratulations on taking this step! There are definitely some important things to keep in mind:
Read (and re-read) all of the “Planning for Success” and “What to Do if your Trip Goes Dark” tips and follow them to the letter
Start with a small dosage of 1-1.5 grams. You won’t have a completely wild trip this way, but you can always do it again another time, and it is 1000x better to have an underwhelming experience than an overwhelming one your first time.
For your first trip especially, we recommend doing it with friends. Mushrooms can make you feel funny things, and it is often helpful if you have someone with you (especially someone who has done them before) to talk about it.
Stay calm. Who knows where the shrooms will take you – but try to stay calm. Making an effort to keep yourself level will make the overall trip much more enjoyable.
Most importantly: have fun! Enjoy the experience. Mushrooms can unlock so much of the hidden beauty in yourself and the world around you. Enjoy yourself – and let us know how it goes!
The Perfect Hike on Magic Mushrooms
Magic mushrooms and hikes in nature go together like peanut butter and jelly. One of the beautiful and frequently reported effects of magic mushroom use is a deepened appreciation for the natural world around us. This can manifest in many different ways – the simplest way to put it is that people will often see the beauty in everyday things that they’d never noticed before. The patterns of visual hallucinations dance together with nature’s inherent beauty, and you’ll find yourself looking at the leaf for five minutes wondering how you’d never noticed how amazing they are before. These realizations often stay with you long after the high subsides. Nature was always that amazing! Mushrooms just helped you to see it. We do have some tips for enjoying hikes though:
Plan a long hike, or one where you can make comfortable stops to chill for a bit. Your high will last 3-8 hours; if you’ve only got a 30 minute walk planned, you’ll need to go at a very slow pace. Try to find somewhere you can explore for hours.
Go with friends, especially if you’re a novice mushroom user or if the trails present any danger or difficulty. Remember the buddy system!
Pick a safe trail. Actually, don’t go to any trails that present real danger. That seems like a dumb idea.
Take time to stop and wonder. The world is beautiful, but you’ve got to stop to smell the roses.
Take mushrooms when you get there. No driving and mushrooms ever. Take the shrooms when you’ve arrived at your destination, and make sure you have enough time for them to run their course before you have to drive again.
Try to find a less crowded hike, and ideally one with no (or very few) children. Being forced to interact with a stranger’s kids while in shrooms is not ideal. Take our word for it.
Last tip, as always: enjoy! You’re in for a treat, and we’re excited for you!
Enjoying Magic Mushrooms with Your Friends
Magic Mushrooms can be a blast when taken with a group of friends. Sometimes your trip will be spiritual, sometimes a little lighter. Sometimes it’s funny and full of giggles, sometimes it’s more serious. Sometimes it’s happy, and sometimes it’s sad. Often, it’ll go through phases of lightness and darkness. This can be a really amazing and powerful experience to share with a close group of friends, and will often result in new levels of honesty and openness that will positively impact and strengthen your relationship forever. Here are some quick tips:
Do it with close friends. The closer you are, the better it will be. Mushrooms can sometimes bring to the surface buried vulnerabilities – and it’s easier with friends than with strangers to lean into that.
If someone in the group is sober, make sure they know what the rest of you are up to. It will be less weird for everyone, trust us.
Do it somewhere safe. This goes for any mushroom trip – but make sure you’re somewhere that everyone feels comfortable.
If someone wants space, respect that. Sometimes, mushrooms make us a little more introverted for a bit. If your friend wants some space to be alone with their thoughts for a bit, respect their desire for space – but make sure they know you’re there for them if they need you.
Be ready to help out. Sometimes mushroom trips have highs and lows. If someone seems like they’re having a bad time (different than if they need space), chip in together to cheer them up and remind them you’re in it together. Things will start looking up for them again quickly.
Don’t mix with other substances. I know we mentioned it before, but really guys – magic mushrooms are sacred, and they are powerful. They should be treated with reverence and respect – and trust us: you’re not going to need anything else. The mushrooms will be enough.
Using Magic Mushrooms By Yourself
Magic mushrooms, when used alone, can be a powerful tool for introspection and can be genuinely transformative. Mushrooms will open you up to new ideas in ways that stick with you for a long time. There have been hundreds of studies that indicate how incredibly powerful these little shrooms can be in the treatment of depression, anxiety, PTSD and so much more. Mushroom trips can also be pretty dark, and that can be kind of scary alone. For that reason, we don’t recommend using alone for first-timers. As the author of this article, however, I can tell you with absolute certainty that the most impactful and powerful trips I’ve had have been solo. And we do have some tips:
Buddy System! Even if you’re alone, make sure someone you know and trust knows what you’re doing, where you are, and when you’re planning to take them. You can ask them to check in with you periodically, or just keep their phone on them in case you need to call. This is a golden rule and should always be followed.
Set an intention. Often, when mushrooms are taken alone, it’s done to provide insight into a specific issue or theme in one’s life. It can be useful to set an intention going into the trip – more or less, what you’re trying to get out of it. Maybe you want insight into how you relate to other people. It could be about your job, or your girlfriend. It could be about the nature and purpose of your life. But if you go into the trip with an intention in mind, and hold it in your mind, they will work around that idea.
Make playlists. Be creative and have fun with it. Make some playlists for yourself to listen to, possibly inspired by the intention you set for yourself in the previous tip. Or maybe you just want to listen to Jimi’s solo on Voodoo Child. Either way, it’s nice to have some music lined up for yourself.
Meditate. There are many different kinds of meditation, but mindfulness meditation can be especially insightful while on magic mushrooms. You can do it alone or with a guided meditation app or video. Again, just trust us on this and you’ll thank us later.
Remain calm. You might, at various points in your trip, find yourself feeling overwhelmed. It’s natural, and it’s a part of the process. Get comfortable, put on a familiar song, practice deep breathing and meditation and find your centre. You can control your experience, even though sometimes you feel you can’t.
Tell us about it! Send us an email or DM about your experience – we love hearing about different people’s stories, and we’d love to hear yours.
Magic Mushrooms as Therapy
There are a number of different studies (it seems a new one pops up every week) that talk about the incredible potential for psychedelic mushrooms in therapy. There are promising studies that showcase their potential in the treatment of a number of different psychological disorders. If your intentions behind using magic mushrooms are therapeutic in nature, we ask you to please consult a therapist first. You can find licensed therapists who incorporate psychedelics into their treatments, and you should absolutely find one and speak with them first before using magic mushrooms for the treatment of clinical issues. We won’t recommend anything further here, as that is the cardinal rule for magic mushrooms as therapy.
Closing Thoughts
Well, that’s it! Thank you for taking the time to read this article (or the parts of it that were relevant to you), and remember to bookmark it for future reference.
