Microdosing Mushrooms for Mental Wellness
Written by: DAISY THOMAS
With seized cities, attempted coups, continents and oceans on fire, worldwide pandemic shutdowns, continental conspiracy crises,skyrocketing suicide rates, supply chain shortages and delivery delays, global stress, and Corporate PR indoctrination via manipulative media market, people are stressed. People are anxious. People are depressed. Our collective mental health has taken a toll and proper healing and care is necessary.
One thing the pandemic provided is the option and ability for more people to look into self-care and alternative medicines and/or therapies. It is refreshing to live in an era where mental health is beginning to become a regular part of our overall healthcare conversation; physical, dental, mental, emotional, sexual, familial/social/economic health are all intertwined and with many suddenly having the option to work from home has given YouTube a lot of views -- especially for things like meditation, yoga, sound baths / frequencies, and taking advantage of medical cannabis delivery options, although still nowhere near the necessary availability -- but that will have to be another article, and alternatives to pharmaceuticals.
Per the 2021 Global Drug Survey, 1 in 4 participants** who had used psychedelics in the last 12 months reported microdosing. Three-quarters reported no side effects. Of those who ‘microdosed’ and were in receipt of medications for their mental health almost half reported reducing or stopping their medications.
Of those using LSD and magic mushrooms in the last 12 months (~3000 respondents for each substance),~ 22% reported having ‘microdosed’ either substance in the last year. Of these 50% had only micro-dosed, while the other 50% had also taken full doses. Side effects were most commonly attributable to taking too much with approximately 10% reporting unwanted mental effects and 8% physical effects.
Of those experiencing side effects 10% reported stopping microdosing altogether. Of the approximately 20% of microdosers who were in receipt of medications for their mental health, approximately one quarter reported stopping their medications altogether and another quarter reducing their dose or frequency of use.
While these findings may indicate that some people with mental health issues gain significant relief from microdosing psychedelics, it is important to note that suddenly stopping psychiatric medications can lead to worsening of mental health and withdrawal and should not be done without medical supervision. Clinical trials are yet to determine whether microdosing psychedelics for mental health treatment is indeed effective, but look forward to such future trials - both of normal and of micro-doses.
**The participants' data was collected from over 32,000 people from over 20 countries over the course of three months (12/20 through 3/21) who were used in the preparation of this report. 62% were cisgender men, 34% were cisgender women, and 3.5% were either transgender, non-binary, or intersex. 30% were aged under 25 years (the sample was older than GDS2020, where 52% were aged 25 years and younger) with 38.5% aged 35 years or older (compared to 22% in GDS2020). 86% of the sample identified as white. 47% had at least an undergraduate degree as their highest level of educational attainment. 40% reported a lifetime diagnosis of any mental health or neurodevelopmental condition.