Frequently Asked Questions
GENERAL & USAGE INFORMATION
Magic mushrooms contain a compound called psilocybin that, when ingested, is converted into psilocin. This chemical activates serotonin receptors in your brain, triggering vivid hallucinations, a sense of euphoria, and changes in your perception of space and time.
Our doses refer to the amount of magic mushrooms per capsule or square of Star Bar.
In a nutshell, classical psychedelics like magic mushrooms cause parts of your brain to communicate that normally don’t communicate. This often leads to creating new positive connections.
Depending on the experience you’re after, your dose can vary greatly. Dosage will also vary person-to-person as psychedelics are a highly individualized experience.
That being said, there are some typical guidelines to magic mushroom doses. Again, the experience will be different for everyone so please only use this as a general guide. If you opt to go with a higher dose be mindful of your set, setting and safety prior to your trip. Please note that the mg refers to the amount of magic mushroom in a dose, versus psilocybin.
MICRO (50mg – 400mg) – This dose is so low it is safe for any time use (including during work, if you’re a parent, etc.). You will not experience any hallucinations. It is best known for its impact on things like mood, focus, and memory. You can read more about microdosing here.
MUSEUM (400mg – 1g) – This would be your social dose. High enough you can feel a warm glow, but low enough you’re still fully present and sociable. Experiment with this dose before you are in a social situation, however. Some people “feel it” more than others.
COMMON (1 – 2g) – Now we’re getting into the types of “trips” you’re likely used to hearing about. This light dose offers consistent sensorial accentuation, enhanced visuals, deep thinking and a nice body high.
DIVER (2 – 3.5 g) – After 2g you can expect interactive thought patterns, visual and auditory hallucinations, diminishing ego, heightened sense of self, perspective changes.
STRONG (3.5 – 5g – done under supervision) – This dose should be done with deep intention and preparation for transcendental thoughts and outer body experiences. You can also expect fractals and sacred hallucinations, time and space distortion, and ego dissolution.
HEROIC (5+ g – done under supervision) – Beyond 5g you can expect a completely dissolved sense of self, blinding visual hallucinations, outer body experiences, intense catharsis, primordial information downloads. We would not recommend approaching this high of a dose to anyone who is not experienced with using psychedelics.
Psilocybin mushrooms can be eaten whole, brewed in a tea, or cooked into food. A moderate dose is 1-2.5g, which can be weighed on a scale.
Psilocybin mushrooms can be microdosed by ingesting around 0.2-0.5g, but everyone’s tolerance is different. You can also take a look at our Mushroom Capsules for easy microdose solutions.
Absolutely! View our blog for more discussion of the numerous benefits of magic mushrooms
As in die? No. According to the Global Drug Survey “Magic mushrooms are one of the safest drugs in the world”. You may experience nausea, fatigue, headaches or you may mentally feel distressed. If this happens to you, know that this feeling won’t last forever. Breathe, change your setting, tell a guide/friend how you’re feeling and continue to remind yourself that this feeling will pass. If you’d like to read more about how to manage an uncomfortable trip, here is a great article.
Psilocybin should not be mixed with Tramadol, as it can lead to serotonin syndrome. Be cautious if mixing psilocybin with cannabis, amphetamines, or cocaine.
Psilocybin mushrooms and their metabolites are not included in most standard drug screens; however they are sometimes included in extended drug screens.
COMMON CONCERNS & INQUIRIES
Experiencing nausea while macrodosing is very common. Many people will experience feeling nauseous within the first hour of a macro dose on the come-up.
With microdosing, feeling nausea is far less common. With that being said, it does happen – some people are simply more sensitive than others! A common tip we’ve seen work very well for people who experience ill while microdosing (typically just within the first hour after taking their dose) is to eat a good-sized, healthy meal before you dose and also, take your microdose with a big glass of water. This usually does the trick to negate this feeling!
While uncommon, we’ve noticed when it does occur, it’s is typically when people just start microdosing. In our research, the advice notes that in many cases, the person taking the microdose really needed to rest. This sounds vague, but it is said that the mushrooms will give you what you need, so if you’re feeling tired after microdosing, try to rest (if that’s possible with your lifestyle) as your body may be asking for it. If your lifestyle does not allow for a restful day, perhaps microdosing in the evening would work best for you. A major thing to note with this reaction is that typically if you feel tired from microdosing in the beginning, this is a symptom that doesn’t last. After you’ve dosed a few times this tends to go away.
The research is still very new in this area and the decision to microdose while pregnant or breastfeeding is very personal. Some are comfortable with it, some are not.
There is one animal reproduction study that has been completed on magic mushrooms and reproduction. The results showed no increased risk of birth defects. This article leads to this study plus two others – you may find it helpful.
As for breastfeeding, there are no official studies although most anecdotal evidence suggests little to no risk.
Our mushrooms are naturally grown, chemically free, and in sterile conditions so there’s no issues there.
There is a lot of new research emerging around this topic, so please check back or do your own research – it’s an exciting time with promising reports.
Early research reports that psychedelics could reorganize pain pathways in the brain alleviating somatic issues. The research is still in its infancy, so it may be best to try it for yourself to see if you notice an impact from microdosing. This link will take you to a source with more information.
In the most basic terms – taking psilocybin helps us access our emotions, some of which we may normally repress (often subconsciously). Magic mushrooms work with our brain chemistry to bring certain emotions to the surface. In contrast, an antidepressant drug works to maintain mental balance by inhibiting serotonin (some refer to this as “numbing” the painful emotions). We articulate this to display how magic mushrooms help us work through our emotions by helping us feel our feelings, while other drugs may help us manage our feelings by not allowing us to feel them at all.
While this process can be very challenging at times, the beneficial aspect of taking psilocybin is that it helps expedite the healing process. If we never feel our feelings, we’ll never be able to work on them. As mentioned, emotions coming to the surface may be uncomfortable, but in the big picture it’s an incredible opportunity for introspection and supported growth.
With this thought in mind, an important perspective is to try and view being triggered as a gift. This may be a challenge, but if you can position a trigger as a nagging emotion that is asking for your attention, you can use the trigger to work on yourself. There’s this common saying: “your triggers are your biggest teachers” – this video does a great job at explaining this process.
Something we like to do when we get triggered is to write about it. Describing what happened (the event or memory), how it made us feel, when we’d felt like that other times in our lives, where we learned to react like that, etc. This often helps us understand ourselves better and have more self compassion.
With time, if you begin to notice patterns in your triggers, you can continue to work on specific areas of your life with the help of microdosing. With time and work, you’ll notice you feel triggered less and less which is a beautiful feeling.
Psychedelics show so much promise when it comes to supporting mood.
In terms of SSRIs, James Fadiman is one of the leading researchers on microdosing. He has created a list of prescription drugs which people reported no issues while microdosing. If your drug is on this list, it is deemed safe according to this report by James Fadiman. Most SSRIs are on this list and are safe to microdose with.
One tip we’ve heard from our community members who microdose on SSRIs is if you do not respond to 125 mg, taking a higher dose is reported to be effective. For example, our 250 mg microdose or a square of our Star Bar (250 mg), or you could blend 125 mg dose and 75 mg dose for a total dose of 200 mg.