What are shrooms?
There are certain kinds of mushrooms that have psychedelic properties. They contain psychedelic compounds that cause hallucinations and distortion of reality, including but not limited to the sense of sight, hearing, and perception.
These mushrooms are called psilocybin mushrooms or what are commonly known as magic mushrooms or shrooms.
When taken, shrooms can give the user a somewhat out-of-body experience, or in layman’s term, a “high” or a “trip” almost similar to that of psychedelic drugs and hallucinogens such as LSD and PCP. Some people prefer shrooms to other psychedelic substances because they are not chemically produced. However, the fact that psilocybin mushrooms are natural products does not mean that they are safe.
Are they addictive?
Shrooms are categorized as non-addictive. They have not been found out to cause psychological dependence but they are classified as Schedule 1 drugs in some countries. This means that they have a high potential for abuse and comes with severe safety concerns. While these mushrooms do not yield any dangerous side effects, research has shown that users have a high tendency of building up a tolerance to shrooms, and would require higher dosages of it in the future in order to achieve the same high.
Tolerance
Tolerance to psilocybin mushrooms peaks quickly after repeated use within a short span of time. The substance’s effect weakens and the users are pushed to increase the dose in order to reach their desired “high”. Although shrooms are non-addictive, taking it in larger amounts may have undesirable physical, mental, and emotional effects.
Psychedelic Effects of Shrooms
The psychedelic effects of shrooms come from their psilocybin and psilocin contents, and the effects on the user may vary and can be unpredictable. There are plenty of factors that can affect the “experience” including (but not limited to) the person’s state of mind and the environment around him. Other external and internal stimuli can also influence the quality of the experience.
The “experience” or the mind-altering effects of psilocybin from these mushrooms usually lasts from three to eight hours, peaking somewhere between the first four hours. During this stage, the hallucinogenic effects of the mushrooms such as distortion of reality and time perception are most intense.
What are the common side effects of ingesting shrooms?
Changes in the primary senses particularly in the sense of touch, sight, and hearing are the earliest noticeable effects after the ingestion of shrooms. The senses become heightened and hallucinations take place. Users may also experience uplifting sensations, euphoria, enhanced feeling of creativity, synesthesia (the visualization of colors in connection to certain sounds), and what others like to call “spiritual awakenings.” The “set” and the “setting” contribute greatly to the kind of experience. The “set” refers to the person’s mood or state of mind before and while taking the substance. The “setting” is the environment and the overall feel of the place. A good temperament and surrounding can lead to a pleasant trip.
However, the consumption of shrooms poses certain side effect such as dizziness, lack of coordination, muscle weakness, changes in perception, nausea, vomiting, and inability to discern fantasy from reality. These side effects combined with heightened physical and emotional state and an unfavorable setting may result in a negative experience or a “bad trip.”
What is a “bad trip”?
A “bad trip” is an undesirable kind of high. This is quite dangerous because the bad trips can cause erratic and unstable behavior. They can cause the user to suffer from anxiety, paranoia, depression, schizophrenia, and chaotic tendencies.
Perhaps, the best and only way to overcome these “bad trips” when they happen is to wait for the person to sober up and the effect of the mushrooms to weaken which may take place in about four to eight hours since the influence of the drug is short-lived.
Are shrooms safe?
Although shrooms are thought to be non-addictive and there is no evidence of physical dependency, the mind-altering chemicals they contain present some health and psychological consequences especially when taken in larger doses.
One of the health risks of psilocybin mushrooms is toxicity. Consuming the drug in very large quantities can be lethal. There is also the tendency of misidentifying other poisonous mushrooms as shrooms.
The adverse psychological hazards of the abuse of these hallucinogens include impaired judgment and decision-making, memory loss, suicidal tendencies, panic, anxiety, paranoia, depression, psychosis, and the failure to distinguish what is real and make-believe.
Are shrooms considered legal?
Most countries catalog psilocybin as a schedule 1 drug. However, as of the present day, there is no clear science to back up the prohibition. There is not enough evidence to claim that the occasional and rational use of psilocybin is a threat to health, sanity, and life. In fact, several studies have shown that responsible use of the substance can aid in treating mental health problems such as depression and anxiety.
Different countries have different rules regarding the use, the ban, and the possession of psilocybin mushrooms. Although it is considered as a schedule 1 drug in the United States, it is not considered illegal to buy spores of these mushrooms as long as they are not used to cultivate more mushrooms. In Canada, they have only classified as schedule 3 drugs, but it is also against the law to grow them. There is a countrywide ban on the possession of dried shrooms, but not on the possession and use of fresh ones.
Substance Abuse and Getting Help
The controlled intake of magic mushroom is possible.
