Saying that, there were some very interesting studies in the 1940s and 50s into the use of LSD as a psychotherapeutic treatment for alcoholism and obsessive-compulsive disorder. Around that time, people also became interested in fungi from an anthropological perspective. A large team of researchers across 11 sites in the US recruited 104 participants with mild to moderate depression. They excluded people with a history of psychosis or mania, more than a mild current substance use problem, and active suicidal intent. Those on medication for depression gradually tapered off the drug before the treatment phase of the study. When used 3 to 4 hours in (when the effects of mushrooms begin to fade), cannabis can slightly prolong the experience and help you contextualize the experience as a whole, according to anecdotal reports.
Read more about magic mushroom here.
Psychedelic use, including psilocybin, can produce spiritual benefits similar to meditation or other mystical experiences though comparing subjective effects isn’t easily quantifiable. At low doses, shrooms can change your sense perception, warping surfaces, overlaying visual perception with repetitive geometric shapes, altering colors and changing how sounds are perceived. Hallucinogenic effects include auras around light, “breathing” surfaces and afterimages or “tracers.” Higher doses can cause synesthesia, distort cognizance of time and space, and give the user a sense of melding with the environment. More complex open or closed-eyes visual hallucinations are also possible, but are rarely confused for reality. Using shrooms also produces subjective emotional effects, which can range from hilarity to heightened anxiety. Magic mushrooms is a generic term for anyone fungi containing psilocybin, a chemical compound which, when digested into psilocin, produce psychedelic experiences and an altered state of consciousness.
Cannabis vs. mushrooms
Magic mushrooms (psilocybin mushrooms) typically involves cultivating specific species of mushrooms that contain psychoactive compounds like psilocybin and psilocin. It’s important to note that the cultivation and use of magic mushrooms may be illegal in many jurisdictions, and it’s crucial to research and understand the laws in your area before attempting to grow them. There is still a lot to learn about “magic mushrooms” and the long-term impact of psychedelic drugs on the body. Neuroscience clinical trials also investigate how LSD, dimethyltryptamine (DMT), MDMA, mescaline, ayahuasca, and ketamine impact mental health conditions. The duration and intensity of the trip can vary depending on the dose, the mushroom species, how they’re consumed, your tolerance, your mental health, and other substances you’ve taken.
Psychedelic-Assisted Psychotherapy
The most common type grown for both personal use and research is Psilocybe cubensis due to its relatively easy cultivation process. A recent uptick in scientific studies testing psilocybin as a mental health treatment is in part thanks to the U.S. Usona Institute, a medical research company, was also granted a Breakthrough Therapy designation to study psilocybin as a treatment for major depressive disorder in 2019. When it comes to drug tests, the duration for which mushrooms, also known as “shrooms,” can be detected and stay in your system depends on the type of test being conducted. The psychedelic effects of ingesting shrooms typically last up to six hours, but the substances are mostly eliminated from the body within 24 hours. Once you have conducted a clear-eyed risk assessment, it’s time to find some fungi.
How Long Will Mushrooms Show Up On a Drug Test?
Kelli Lynn Grey is a professional copywriter and curriculum designer who also writes essays and poems about health equity, education, relationships, and the dynamically changing landscape of drug culture. Her work appears in Inside the Jar, Mashable, and throughout Medium.com. A mother of two and defender of civil and human rights, she shares monthly updates on all projects via her free newsletter, The Grey Way. As the call for decriminalization and legalization spreads from cannabis to psychedelics, the opportunities to practice responsible adult use are increasing. That’s why it’s best to stick with one or the other, at least until you know how your mind and body react to each substance on its own. But the intensity may also be uncomfortable, especially if you don’t have much experience with mushrooms. A 2012 study suggests that psilocybin decreases activity in areas of the brain responsible for constraining your experience of the world and keeping it orderly.
