What is a Psilocybin Mushroom?
Psilocybin mushrooms are also known as magic mushrooms, shrooms, gold caps, golden halos or cubes. These mushrooms contain psilocybin, a naturally occurring psychedelic.
Do Psilocybin Mushrooms Grow Wild?
Psilocybin is a naturally occurring psychoactive compound found in certain mushrooms that grow in the United States, South America, Mexico, and Europe. They grow wild in many parts of the world, and there are nearly 100 different species of mushrooms that have been identified with varying levels of psilocybin. Psilocybe cubensis is one species of psilocybin mushrooms with moderate potency and basic active compounds of psilocybin and psilocin.
What is Psilocybin?
Psilocybin is one of the most well-known hallucinogenic compounds and is most often used as a recreational drug. Both psilocybin and psilocin are psychoactive compounds and occur naturally in magic mushrooms. Psilocybin is broken down into psilocin in the digestive tract and psilocin alone is actually quite unstable outside of the body as it will degrade quickly if exposed to oxygen or heat. Psilocin is the reason that mushrooms bruise so easily, although bruised mushrooms are no less potent, as the psilocybin contained within them is much more stable and is present at a much higher level than psilocin.
How to Use Psilocybin Mushroom
Psilocybin mushrooms have been used for thousands of years for both medicinal and spiritual uses by many indigenous people in Europe and America. Mushrooms containing psilocybin can be ingested in various ways, such as eaten fresh, dried, or brewed in teas.
Psilocybin can affect people differently, with many mental effects, including feelings of euphoria and relaxation. Some people use magic mushrooms for feelings of introspection, self-discovery, connection, or spiritual experiences. Some people may experience unpleasant effects like paranoia or nervousness and sensory distortion similar to hallucinogenic drugs like LSD.
What Do Psilocybin Mushrooms Do?
You can start feeling the effects after about 20 to 40 minutes of ingesting magic mushrooms. Taking psilocybin mushrooms on an empty stomach may cause a quicker onset of effects than on a full stomach. The psilocybin breaks down into psilocin in the body, which affects serotonin receptors in the brain.
The peak effect can occur approximately 90 minutes or up to two hours after ingestion. Magic mushrooms affect people with various physical and mental effects, which can include increased heart rate and temperature, elevated blood pressure, nausea, and headaches. Many people get “the mushroom yawns”, which tends to occur while peaking, although the body does not actually feel tired.
The effects are highly variable and are influenced by several factors, including the dosage, your mindset at the time of ingestion, environmental factors as well as the type of magic mushroom consumed. Someone’s age, weight, personality, and any history of mental illness can also play a role in the effects of taking shrooms.
Psilocybin affects the brain in various ways and is shown to activate serotonin receptors in the brain that are associated with cognition, mood, and perception. This is what leads to distorted perceptions and may cause auditory and/or visual hallucinations, which can occur with higher doses. Microdosing is the use of small amounts of mushrooms with the goal of enhancing your mood and mindfulness while reducing feelings of anxiety.
When someone experiences negative effects such as unpleasant hallucinations or paranoia, it is often called a “bad trip”. Stay hydrated while on shrooms and sip some ginger tea to counteract any nausea, and ideally, you’ll enjoy a good trip with deep introspection, connectedness, and interspatial thoughts.
The Seed Cellar is one of the largest online seed banks with a wide variety of cannabis seeds and strains and a knowledgeable staff. We can help you understand more about the effects of mushrooms and micro-dosing.
