Like the endless mycelial networks that thread through our planet’s ecosystems, magic mushrooms are now thoroughly entangled in 21st century culture. Shrooms—defined by their main psychedelic compound, psilocybin—are the new weed, and the act of taking consistent, sub-perceptible doses of them (microdosing) is now a common way to dip your toes in psychedelic waters. Meanwhile, the benefits of embarking on a full-dose mushroom journey is fast becoming a hot topic among therapists, researchers, and laymen alike, as anecdotal and scientific evidence increasingly suggest that psilocybin can do wonders for depression, anxiety, and trauma.
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Indeed, as a journalist and the co-founder of psychedelic magazine DoubleBlind, I've been reporting on psilocybin for over half a decade, and experimented with my own first hand experiences for even longer. I've interviewed scientists, researchers, therapists, policy wonks, attorneys, and shamans about the history of magic mushrooms, how to use them safely, and what the potential benefits and risks are. So, as we step further into a future in which psilocybin gummies will most probably become a normal fixture on the shelves of health food stores, we decided to create a definitive guide to what magic mushrooms are, how they affect us and the best way to prepare for a mystical psychedelic experience. There are thousands of fungi varieties out there—poisonous and precious, medicinal and magical. Those that feature psychedelic properties are often called magic mushrooms or shrooms, and usually contain the psychedelic substance psilocybin. There are more than 180 types of magic mushrooms, and at least 60 of those are within the Psilocybe genus. Other types of psychedelic fungi include Panaeolus and Claviceps (e.g. Ergot, the type of fungi from which LSD is synthesized—but that's another story). Every variety varies in potency and effect; a gram of one might result in a very different trip as the same amount of another.
What are magic mushrooms?
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Where did they come from?
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How do you actually take magic mushrooms?
Do you just eat them?
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What about all this ‘set and setting’ stuff?
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How long will the trip last and what will happen?
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The most key thing during a trip is to overcome your fear, surrender to the experience, and welcome whatever comes up as an opportunity to grow, learn, and heal. Some guides describe this as "staying behind the medicine"; in other words, don't try to control the experience and let the shrooms take you where they may.Let’s quash this: No. "It's not compulsory like with weed or alcohol," says mushroom expert Michelle Janikian, author of Your Psilocybin Mushroom Companion. "Especially in a big dose, you don't crave it. The last thing you want to do is go into another big experience like that." In fact, as Janikian points out, there are even pro-psychedelic recovery groups for people who want to use mushrooms to ween off addictive substances, from adderall to cigarettes, and everything in between.Yes, but with extreme caution. It’s really easy to mistake other poisonous mushrooms for the ones you’re after—so, if you’re a novice, you might want to consult with an expert before you consume anything you find in the wild. That said, magic mushrooms grow all over the world, and usually appear during wet seasons. Refer here for more info on foraging.