Community Support
Have a question about safely using psychedelics?
Research on psychedelics is evolving quickly, and it can be difficult to keep up. Our team at Unlimited Sciences combs through thousands of research articles, data repositories, and recorded community experiences to provide up-to-date knowledge on the current state of psychedelic science.
Combining existing knowledge with our own research data from thousands of participants across the world, we provide one-on-one direct educational support and harm reduction information for anyone who wants to learn more about safely using psychedelics.
Reach out to us today with any questions you may have through our Community Support button on our webpage, email us directly at [email protected], or use our FAQ search bar below to see if your question has been answered by our team.
Community Support Frequently Asked Questions
- Where can I find information about enrolling in a clinical trial using psilocybin?You can access a list of currently recruiting U.S. clinical trials on psilocybin through ClinicalTrials.gov. ClinicalTrials.gov is a registry of clinical trials. It is run by the United States National Library of Medicine at the National Institutes of Health, and holds registrations from over 444,000 trials from 221 countries.
Always seek the advice of your physician or other qualified health care provider before undertaking a new health care regime. Unlimited Sciences does not give or substitute for medical advice. The products and services discussed are not intended to diagnose, cure, prevent or treat any disease. Please click here to read our full disclaimer. - Where are psychedelics legal in the United States of America?For the current state-by-state update on the legalization and decriminalization of psychedelics in the US, as of August 2023, please see our blog by clicking here.
Always seek the advice of your physician or other qualified health care provider before undertaking a new health care regime. Unlimited Sciences does not give or substitute for medical advice. The products and services discussed are not intended to diagnose, cure, prevent or treat any disease. Please click here to read our full disclaimer. - What should I look for when choosing a psychedelic facilitator or guide?Although psilocybin has a relatively low-risk safety profile with minimal side effects, a low risk of addiction, and minimal risk of adverse reactivity, it is not without risks. Set and setting significantly influence the response to psychedelic drugs (“set” is an individual’s mindset and “setting” refers to their physical and social environment), and must be treated as a carefully curated and controlled component of successful psilocybin therapy. Before engaging in psychedelic therapy, ensure sufficient mechanisms have been put in place for safety practices and ethical standards to protect individuals from harm and provide optimal support should an experience be negative. Psychedelic facilitators should be held to the same high standards as traditional therapists, and it’s just as critical to finding a facilitator whom you feel comfortable and secure with.If you choose to seek out a local facilitator, take the time to familiarize yourself with your facilitator, including the discussion of treatment approaches and setting boundaries, and to look for any red flags that could compromise the integrity of a psychedelic facilitator or guide, including lack of experience, inflated ego, violations of confidentiality, ineffective communication, defensiveness when given feedback, and lack of boundaries. Finally, since integration (the process of integrating the insights of a psychedelic experience into daily life) is a critical component of successful psychedelic therapy and harm reduction, discuss integration practices and approaches with your facilitator, including support should your experience lead to negative or difficult emotions.Always seek the advice of your physician or other qualified health care provider before undertaking a new health care regime. Unlimited Sciences does not give or substitute for medical advice. The products and services discussed are not intended to diagnose, cure, prevent or treat any disease. Please click here to read our full disclaimer.
- What is the most common type of magic mushroom?In our recent large-scale investigation of psilocybin, Psilocybe Cubensis was the most commonly noted species used, and participants largely reported taking dried whole mushrooms (>40%), dried and ground mushrooms, or mushrooms steeped in tea.
Always seek the advice of your physician or other qualified health care provider before undertaking a new health care regime. Unlimited Sciences does not give or substitute for medical advice. The products and services discussed are not intended to diagnose, cure, prevent or treat any disease. Please click here to read our full disclaimer. - What is Hallucinogen Persisting Perception Disorder (HPPD)?Hallucinogen Persisting Perception Disorder (HPPD) is a rare clinical condition that results in people experiencing visual and perceptual distortions days, months, or even years after using psychedelic substances. Although HPPD is rare, around 4.2% of people who use hallucinogens will suffer from HPPD. For a full description on HPPD, please click here to read our blog.
Always seek the advice of your physician or other qualified health care provider before undertaking a new health care regime. Unlimited Sciences does not give or substitute for medical advice. The products and services discussed are not intended to diagnose, cure, prevent or treat any disease. Please click here to read our full disclaimer. - What is a typical dose for psilocybin?While we can't give recommendations or advice on how to use psilocybin, we can provide evidence-based data from our psilocybin study, which enrolled over 8,000 individuals across the world. Our study collected data at various timepoints over a 4 month period, providing a longitudinal investigation of health outcomes over time.
From our research, among individuals who reported dosage of dried, whole psilocybin mushrooms in grams, the average initial dose was 3.1g, which is consistent with recent research indicating the most reported regular dose for psilocybin users was 3.5g (Hutten et al., 2019).
For microdosing, typically, the goal of microdosing is not to produce noticeable or profound changes in cognition and perception. Data from recent systematic reviews on low-dose psychedelics by Vince Polito and Paul Liknaitzky, and Joseph Rootman and colleagues summarizes microdose quantities used in past research. As an estimate, a microdose is between approximately one tenth and one twentieth of a typical recreational dose. Since an effective recreational dose can vary substantially from one individual to the next, use a conservative “low and slow” approach and start as low as possible as you identify an appropriate dose, especially if you aren’t sure of how much you’re giving yourself. Track your progress carefully and accurately through written records. Polito and Liknaitzky, and Rootman and colleagues, provide the following plausible dose ranges for microdoses of Psilocybe cubensis dried mushroom, oral ingestion: 0.1-0.5g/70kg (per 70kg bodyweight); Low dose ≤ 0.1g; Medium dose = 0.1-0.3g; High dose ≥ 0.3g.
Always seek the advice of your physician or other qualified health care provider before undertaking a new health care regime. Unlimited Sciences does not give or substitute for medical advice. The products and services discussed are not intended to diagnose, cure, prevent or treat any disease. Please click here to read our full disclaimer. - What do people typically use psilocybin for?Evidence-based data from our psilocybin study, which enrolled over 8,000 individuals across the world, found that participants primarily used psilocybin (non-exclusively) with the intention of self-exploration (>80%), mental health (>70%), and therapy >40%). Approximately 37% used psilocybin for recreational purposes. The number of respondents reporting intentions of self-exploration and mental health are similar to a recent large-scale survey on psychedelic usage (self-exploration, 73.3%; mental well-being, 62.4%; Lake and Lucas, 2023).
Always seek the advice of your physician or other qualified health care provider before undertaking a new health care regime. Unlimited Sciences does not give or substitute for medical advice. The products and services discussed are not intended to diagnose, cure, prevent or treat any disease. Please click here to read our full disclaimer. - Should I take psilocybin with my eyes covered or eyes open?Regarding eyes-open versus eyes-covered, while psychedelic-induced visual effects can occur with eyes-open or eyes-closed, visual alterations under classic psychedelics can include rich phenomenological accounts of eyes-closed imagery (Stoliker et al., 2022). In fact, a recent investigation of neuronal oscillations for psilocybin-induced spiritual experiences, suggested that compared with eyes-open, eyes-closed conditions involved additional neuronal network processes associated with insightfulness and spiritual experiences (Kometer et al., 2015).
Always seek the advice of your physician or other qualified health care provider before undertaking a new health care regime. Unlimited Sciences does not give or substitute for medical advice. The products and services discussed are not intended to diagnose, cure, prevent or treat any disease. Please click here to read our full disclaimer. - Should I be on a specific diet when using psilocybin?Regarding diet, nausea is a common side effect of psilocybin ingestion. Mushrooms are largely made up of chitin, an indigestible polysaccharide that can cause gastrointestinal distress. Chitin-glucan is an insoluble dietary fiber extracted from the cell wall of the fungi with many potential health benefits (Shahidi and Abuzaytoun, 2005). Although repeated-ingestion of chitin suggests potential positive effects on the complex microbial community in the human body (Marzorati et al., 2017), it can also trigger inflammation and immune responses (Komi et al., 2018). leading to gastrointestinal issues and nausea. Accumulating research on ginger (Zingiber officinale) shows that ginger can alleviate clinical nausea of diverse causes (Ernst and Pittler, 2000). Ginger can be ingested in many ways, such as fresh, dried, pickled, crystalized, candied, powder, or ginger root tea, among others.
Always seek the advice of your physician or other qualified health care provider before undertaking a new health care regime. Unlimited Sciences does not give or substitute for medical advice. The products and services discussed are not intended to diagnose, cure, prevent or treat any disease. Please click here to read our full disclaimer. - Is there any evidence that touching magic mushrooms can result in absorption through your pores?Currently, there is no empirical evidence available that supports the absorption of psychedelic compounds such as psilocybin through skin pores. There is currently very little research on the efficacy of transdermal (the application of a medicine or drug through the skin) applications of psilocybin-containing mushrooms.
Typically, oral administration is used for psilocybin. After ingestion, psilocybin is rapidly dephosphorylated under acidic environment of the stomach or by alkaline phosphatase (and other nonspecific esterases) in intestine, kidney and in the blood to generate the phenol compound psilocin (Dinis-Oliveira, 2017). Psilocin is then further metabolized by a demethylation and oxidative deamination catalyzed by the liver.
There is also available evidence that when psilocybin is delivered as a slow intravenous injection, it produces short-lived but typical drug effects that are psychologically and physiologically well tolerated (Robin Carhart-Harris et al., 2010)
Transdermal application, on the other hand, allows patients to dose topically while receiving treatment through the surface of their skin, overcoming the need for intravenous needles and episodic oral dosing. However, there is currently no available evidence on the transdermal application of psychedelic compounds such as psilocybin, but there are several biopharmaceutical companies funding research which are currently underway to assess the diffusion of psychedelic compounds through the skin. Researchers are working to find new ways to bypass the traditional digestion process and deliver psilocin directly to the brain. However, these applications involve proprietary technologies that enhance transdermal delivery, such as the development of a a novel psilocybin oral thin film and a transdermal microneedle patch to deliver psilocybin.
Always seek the advice of your physician or other qualified health care provider before undertaking a new health care regime. Unlimited Sciences does not give or substitute for medical advice. The products and services discussed are not intended to diagnose, cure, prevent or treat any disease. Please click here to read our full disclaimer. - Is it possible to sleep after taking magic mushrooms?When taking classic psychedelics such as psilocybin—the main psychoactive substance contained in many species of hallucinogenic mushrooms—sleep can be impacted negatively by disrupting sleep patterns in the hours following ingestion. Psilocybin can disrupt short-term sleep quality by prolonging the onset of REM sleep in the hours following ingestion and anecdotal reports from users of psilocybin frequently describe difficulties falling and staying asleep immediately after taking hallucinogenic mushrooms, but sleep typically returns to normal once the effects of psilocybin subside. While psilocybin is a relatively safe substance that has been found to have minimal harmful effects, based on the available evidence, it is not recommended to take psilocybin-containing mushrooms immediately prior to sleeping. Psilocybin can make you more alert in the hours following ingestion, making it difficult to fall asleep. Research has not found that psilocybin has negative, long-term implications on sleep. Always seek the advice of your physician or other qualified health care provider before undertaking a new health care regime. Unlimited Sciences does not give or substitute for medical advice. The products and services discussed are not intended to diagnose, cure, prevent or treat any disease. Please click here to read our full disclaimer.
- How can I use integration to support my psychedelic journey?Psychedelic integration is a critical component of understanding and incorporating the knowledge and lessons gained during the psychedelic experience, and proper integration shouldn't be rushed and could extend for weeks or even years after your experience. The integration phase usually begins the day after the dosing session, but preparation for integration can start weeks before the session. Integration involves thoroughly reviewing the psychedelic experience during the dosing session and, in some cases, applying therapeutic techniques to reinforce particular aspects of the experience in order to sustain desirable patterns of thought and behavior. In other words, integration can be understood as the continuation of a therapeutic process that began during preparation sessions, and intensified during a psychedelic experience (Sloshower et al., 2020).
There are many different approaches to integration, and some of these approaches can be read about here (Bathje et al., 2022). Common amongst these approaches, however, are the following components:
1) First, integration requires active effort to revisit and work with psychedelic experiences and content that emerges from them. Without such active effort, valuable lessons tend to fade, and difficult experiences can reinforce traumas or existing patterns and defenses. Approach integration actively by addressing the experiences you've had, journaling, meditating, and working through these experiences.
2) Second, integration is not just an event or brief phase but a long-term process. Without regular practice and lifestyle changes that allow time to reflect, engage in intentional integration practices, and engage with others, one is unlikely to have an adequate container in which to hold and work with the entirety of their psychedelic experiences.
3) Finally, bringing forth one’s insights, values, changes, and gifts to the world are treated as a later step in the process of integration. You should give yourself time to reflect on what you've learned before making large changes to your life - Refrain from making life-changing decisions until you've allowed time for yourself to reflect on the lessons you've learned. Often, the rule of thumb here is to wait several weeks before making significant changes to your life (for example, ending a relationship, quitting a job, moving home etc.)
To prepare for integration, firstly, a core component of preparing for integration is setting an intention prior to the psychedelic experience. Detail or specificity is useful, so try to set a clear or detailed intention for yourself. Secondly, mental preparation is a key part in the integration process. For example, take time off work, cultivate a quiet and receptive mind, perform movement and breathing exercises such as breathwork or meditation, and center yourself to prepare for your experience. Third, prepare your body. Avoid processed or heavily fermented foods, and limit or stop your intake of alcohol and other drugs, especially in the days immediately before your experience. Allow your body to be well rested, with sufficient sleep beforehand.
All this being said, integration of psychedelic experiences is often not an easy task. In a recent study, 88% of participants considered experiencing challenging mental health effects to be part of a positive process of growth or integration (Lutkajtis and Evans, 2022). What this means is that oftentimes the psychedelic experience and the integration practice that follows can be a difficult process and should not be taken lightly. Don't be afraid of difficult experiences or challenges you may face, this is a part of the process, and healing takes times.
Trained psychedelic facilitators or integration specialists provide containment, safety, and clear guidelines to help participants navigate the psychedelic experience. Thus, the clinician is often not referred to as a “therapist” but instead is named a “sitter,” “guide,” “facilitator,” or “monitor.” Although access to a trained psychedelic integration therapist is ideal, another option is to seek a non-professional trip sitter or facilitator through friends or family - someone that you feel comfortable with and who can help calm you in the event of a difficult psychedelic experience. A person you trust and can talk to about your experience can be helpful to guide you through the integration process.
If these options aren't possible, there are many other ways to prepare and practice integration. You can read about some different methods for integration on our website here, including journaling, integration circles, and embodiment and movement (yoga, meditation, breathwork etc.).
Always seek the advice of your physician or other qualified health care provider before undertaking a new health care regime. Unlimited Sciences does not give or substitute for medical advice. The products and services discussed are not intended to diagnose, cure, prevent or treat any disease. Please click here to read our full disclaimer. - For microdosing, is it better to take psilocybin in capsule form or tincture form?To date, there is currently limited-to-no available evidence-based knowledge on dosage method comparisons for microdosing. Dosage method is often chosen through personal preference, however, there are some notable differences between tinctures and capsules.
Tinctures are concentrated liquid extracts created by soaking a substance (e.g., psilocybin) in water or alcohol. Usually, tinctures are prepared for longer term storage, as properly prepared tinctures can last several years without losing potency, which means that they are shelf stable (Ampofo et al., 2012). Tinctures are usually fast-acting, and because tinctures are concentrated extracts and can have high potency, dosages needed for tinctures are usually much lower than other infusions. However, because alcohol alone will not break down the chitin cell walls (a fibrous substance forming the cell walls of fungi) in mushrooms effectively, hot water extraction is usually performed on fungi, which can break down chitin cell walls and draw out water-soluble compounds (Deguchi et al., 2015). Commercially-available tinctures often contain a mix of other substances. Importantly, it's often not possible to know the exact concentration of psilocybin in a tincture without lab testing. Without adequate testing, tincture ingestion is not recommended and dosing should be be approached with extreme caution.
Capsules, on the other hand, contain a dried, powdered substance usually encased in a gelatin-based capsule for oral ingestion. Psilocybin capsules are commonly used to administer psilocybin in clinical research (e.g., Holze et al., 2022), as they can be accurately measured and dosed. In a recent study on microdosing, for example, dried Psilocybin Cubensis was ground and placed in gel capsules to administer to participants (Cavanna et al., 2022). Samples were dried at ≈28° and ground into a fine powder, with different parts of the mushrooms homogeneously distributed. As with tinctures, commercially-available powder-based capsules often contain a mix of different substances designed to hold the active ingredient stable. Compared with tinctures, capsules often allow for greater control and accuracy when dosing.
Always seek the advice of your physician or other qualified health care provider before undertaking a new health care regime. Unlimited Sciences does not give or substitute for medical advice. The products and services discussed are not intended to diagnose, cure, prevent or treat any disease. Please click here to read our full disclaimer. - Do people use psilocybin alone or with other people?Evidence-based data from our psilocybin study, which enrolled over 8,000 individuals across the world, found that participants primarily reported using psilocybin alone (>40%), with friends who were also using (>25%), or with a sober friend or trip sitter (>15%). These reports are consistent with a recent investigation of psilocybin experiences wherein only 25% of respondents reported a "guide" or "sitter" present (Carbonaro et al., 2016). Most participants took psilocybin at home (>60%) or outdoors (>15%), and the median time of dosing was 4pm. However, it's important to note that individuals from our study were especially experienced with psychedelics. Especially for first-time users, a guide, facilitator, or "trip sitter" is highly recommended to provide support during the experience. In fact, psychedelic users place high value on "trip sitters" who had experienced psychedelic and other non-ordinary states of consciousness, who had knowledge of the health and medical industry, psychedelic literature and/or had previously cared for other psychedelic consumers (Engel et al., 2022).
Always seek the advice of your physician or other qualified health care provider before undertaking a new health care regime. Unlimited Sciences does not give or substitute for medical advice. The products and services discussed are not intended to diagnose, cure, prevent or treat any disease. Please click here to read our full disclaimer. - Do non-human animals use psychedelics?
In his seminal book titled Animals and Psychedelics, Italian researcher, and expert in zoopharmacognosy (the ingestion of plant-based drugs by animals) Gorgio Samorini writes: “Entirely on their own and without the influence of captivity or conditioning, wild animals, birds, and even insects… drug themselves.This deliberate seeking of inebriation among all classes of animals is a perfectly natural normative behavior. Indeed, the pursuit of inebriation has been proposed as a kind of fourth drive – akin to hunger, thirst, and sex – so ubiquitous is its manifestation.” (Samorini, 2002). Please click here to read our blog on Animals, Psychedelics, and the Innate Drive to Alter Consciousness.
Always seek the advice of your physician or other qualified health care provider before undertaking a new health care regime. Unlimited Sciences does not give or substitute for medical advice. The products and services discussed are not intended to diagnose, cure, prevent or treat any disease. Please click here to read our full disclaimer.
- Can psychedelics be used to treat addiction?To date, there is no efficient long-term treatment for addiction disorders. While the research on using psychedelics for the treatment of addiction is still in its early stages, findings are promising. There is a growing body of evidence suggesting that psychedelics, particularly psilocybin and LSD, may be effective in helping individuals overcome substance use disorders. To understand how psychedelics can be used to treat addiction, please click here to read our blog.
Always seek the advice of your physician or other qualified health care provider before undertaking a new health care regime. Unlimited Sciences does not give or substitute for medical advice. The products and services discussed are not intended to diagnose, cure, prevent or treat any disease. Please click here to read our full disclaimer. - Can psilocybin help with obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD)?There is some research available exploring the potential use of psilocybin in treating OCD. Psilocybin has been used safely for patients with OCD and was associated with acute reductions in core OCD symptoms in several subjects in a controlled clinical environment (Moreno et al., 2006).
In a recent study of 9 adults with symptomatic OCD (Ehrmann et al., 2021), the most remarkable finding was the acute decrease in OCD symptoms of variable degree observed in every study participant during one or more of their test sessions following psilocybin ingestion. Improvement ranged from a modest reduction (23%) to a complete (100%) but temporary resolution of symptoms.
In a recent preliminary report of a case patient with refractory OCD treated with psilocybin and followed prospectively for a year, improvements of OCD symptoms was observed and accompanied by broader changes in emotion, social and work function, and quality of life (Kelmendi et al., 2022).Always seek the advice of your physician or other qualified health care provider before undertaking a new health care regime. Unlimited Sciences does not give or substitute for medical advice. The products and services discussed are not intended to diagnose, cure, prevent or treat any disease. Please click here to read our full disclaimer.
However, psychedelic OCD research is still in its infancy, and much more needs to be verified before it can be considered a broad alternative to current, first-line OCD treatments. Currently, psilocybin is still being investigated on its safety and effectiveness in treating OCD, and it is therefore recommended that psychedelic drug treatment options should be carried out in a safe environment and administered by a licensed mental health professional with experience in this form of therapy.
- Can psilocybin help with depression?Results from our recent large-scale study with Johns Hopkins University found significantly decreased depression persisting for months following psilocybin ingestion. For individuals who have treatment-resistant depression, which means they haven't responded to traditional treatments for depression, psilocybin may be a safe and effective treatment. While many individuals respond well to traditional methods of treating depression, such as psychotherapy or antidepressants, these strategies sometimes fail. Treatment-resistant depression is a subset of Major Depressive Disorder affecting one in three diagnosed patients. Recent evidence suggests that psilocybin works differently from conventional antidepressants, such as serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRIs). Psilocybin could be a promising alternative approach to depression treatments.
Always seek the advice of your physician or other qualified health care provider before undertaking a new health care regime. Unlimited Sciences does not give or substitute for medical advice. The products and services discussed are not intended to diagnose, cure, prevent or treat any disease. Please click here to read our full disclaimer. - Can microdosing psilocybin be used to treat chronic pain?Although evidence on microdosing remains limited (our blog, A Data Driven Guide to Microdosing, provides a background on the history and research of microdosing), a recent series of case studies provided promising preliminary evidence for the therapeutic potential of low-dose psilocybin in the treatment of chronic pain (Lyes et al., 2023).
To summarize the results of Lyes and colleagues (2023), investigators at the University of California, San Diego (UCSD) conducted video-based interviews with 3 patients using psilocybin for chronic pain:
- Patient 1, a 37-year-old man who had quadriplegia secondary to a vehicular accident approximately 8 years earlier in which he sustained a cervical spinal cord injury, reported experiencing near total relief from lower extremity neuropathy with dried ground psilocybin 250 mg lasting 6 to 8 hours.
- Patient 2 was a 69-year-old woman with complex regional pain syndrome secondary to lower extremity trauma approximately 5 years earlier. This patient had been using 500-mg psilocybin-containing mushrooms daily for 7 to 10 days followed by 2 or 3 days of abstinence, which provided the patient with 80% pain relief for 3 to 4 hours without psychedelic effects.
- Patient 3 was a 40-year-old woman with radiculopathy secondary to degenerative disc disease manifesting as stiff musculoskeletal pain in the lower back. This patient consumed a chocolate bar containing 1000 mg of dried ground mushroom every 6 to 8 weeks and reported reduced pain from a score of 8 to 0 for 2 to 4 weeks.
Although the authors concluded that the use of low dose psilocybin shows promise in the treatment of chronic pain, they advised that further research is needed to understand dose ranges and the mechanisms of action in the management of chronic pain.
Always seek the advice of your physician or other qualified health care provider before undertaking a new health care regime. Unlimited Sciences does not give or substitute for medical advice. The products and services discussed are not intended to diagnose, cure, prevent or treat any disease. Please click here to read our full disclaimer. - Can microdosing magic mushrooms result in better outcomes in being a parent and partner?Evidence on microdosing remains limited (read more information about the current state of microdosing on our blog). Microdosing refers to the practice of using serotonergic hallucinogens, also coined under the name of psychedelics (e.g., LSD and psilocybin mushrooms), by repeatedly ingesting doses that do not reach the threshold for perceptual alterations with the purpose of improving wellbeing, emotional state, and cognitive function (Kuypers et al., 2019). Although quantitative data is mixed and our understanding of the effects of microdosing are still limited, when examining microdosing effects reported, three recent qualitative studies reported alleviation of depressive and anxiety symptoms, better pain management, increase in creativity, energy levels or focus (see Pop and Dinkelacker, 2023).
Recently, anecdotal reports indicate thousands of mothers are microdosing psychedelic mushrooms to relieve the stresses of parenting. Although it is important to note that these reports are unconfirmed by empirical research, some individuals indicate that microdosing with magic mushrooms can lead to being a more "present" parent. Our co-cofounder, Heather Jackson, an international speaker, author and published researcher, recently spoke on her own experiences of motherhood and the positive experience of utilizing full-dose psilocybin in conjunction with a licensed therapist. More information on anecdotal accounts can be read here.
Related research has shown that full-dose psilocybin significantly increased emotional empathy compared with placebo (Pokorny et al., 2017). Psilocybin may therefore increase the ability of sharing the emotional state of another person (implicit emotional empathy) and the experience of sympathy and prosocial attitudes towards others (explicit emotional empathy). Empathy plays a significant role in parenthood, and perceived parental empathy predicted more adaptive self-functioning in children (Nevelyn et al., 2010). Similarly, in couple relationships, perceptions of empathy have a significant influence on relationship satisfaction across time (Busby and Gardner, 2008).
Additionally, self-reported evidence from our recent large-scale study of psilocybin showed that psilocybin can result in significant and lasting improvements in relationships with others.
In summary, while evidence on microdosing is unclear, some anecdotal accounts indicate positive outcomes in the relief of stress and ability to be present in parenthood. For full-dose psilocybin, research indicates psilocybin may increase emotional empathy, which is positively associated with child-parent and couple relationship satisfaction.
Always seek the advice of your physician or other qualified health care provider before undertaking a new health care regime. Unlimited Sciences does not give or substitute for medical advice. The products and services discussed are not intended to diagnose, cure, prevent or treat any disease. Please click here to read our full disclaimer. - Can I take psilocybin while using blood pressure medication?There is limited published research which has examined interactions between psilocybin and common blood pressure medication such as lisinopril or Metoprolol. However, eHealthMe, an American medical analysis website launched in 2008 that provides patients and healthcare professionals with tools to study approximately 1.2 billion drug outcomes, has not identified a drug interaction between psilocybin and lisinopril or psilocybin and Metoprolol.
There is some evidence that psychedelics have acute effects on the body when ingested, including raising blood pressure and heart rate (Muttoni et al., 2019). In another study, psilocybin was found to only moderately elevate blood pressure 60 minutes following ingestion (Hasler et al., 2003). These effects are short lasting and resolve after the effect of the psychedelic has subsided. The authors of the latter article concluded that administration of psilocybin provided no cause for concern in healthy subjects, but advise subjects suffering from cardiovascular conditions, such as untreated hypertension, to abstain from using psilocybin.
In another study, lifetime use of classic psychedelics was associated with 14% lower odds of hypertension (Simonsson et al., 2021). The authors concluded that these findings may be explained by multiple factors, including (1) long-term health behavior changes induced by classic psychedelic use, (2) improvements in mental health and decreases in chronic stress, which are known risk factors for hypertension, (3) and several immunomodulatory and anti-inflammatory effects that are of importance for the development and progression of hypertension.
In summary, there is currently no evidence for drug interactions between psilocybin and lisinopril or Metoprolol, but individuals diagnosed with hypertension may be at increased risk immediately after the ingestion of psilocybin due to acute physiological effects.
Always seek the advice of your physician or other qualified health care provider before undertaking a new health care regime. Unlimited Sciences does not give or substitute for medical advice. The products and services discussed are not intended to diagnose, cure, prevent or treat any disease. Please click here to read our full disclaimer. - Can I take psilocybin while using an antidepressant?In our recent large-scale study of psilocybin we, 4.6% of users reported using psilocybin while on an antidepressant. Notably, in our study, individuals who reported taking an antidepressant with psilocybin exhibited weaker acute subjective effects, including lowered scores of mystical experiences and challenging experiences.
While there is still limited empirical evidence available on the interactions between common serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRIs) and psilocybin, there is some evidence to suggest that chronic administration of serotonergic antidepressants reduces the subjective effects of classic psychedelics, such as LSD (Bonson et al., 1996). In a summary of results from online survey and online interviews, Bonson noted that individuals taking serotonin-selective antidepressants had a decrease or abolishment of their response to psychedelics. In another study examining the effect of buspirone, a common anxiolytic (anti-anxiety) medication acting as a serotonin receptor agonist, buspirone reduced psilocybin-induced visual perceptual changes (Sarparast et al., 2022). Anecdotal user reports from Erowid, a non-profit educational organization that provides information about psychoactive plants and chemicals, frequently report a reduction or absence of effects of psychedelics while using common SSRIs.
One of the primary concerns in combining psychedelics with psychiatric medications is the risk of serotonin toxicity or serotonin syndrome, a rare but a potentially life-threatening condition precipitated by the use of serotonergic drugs (Simon and Keenaghan, 2022). Regarding safety, in a recent talk held by Dr. Erica Zelfand, data of over 400 participants and found that there is not enough evidence to suggest toxic interaction between antidepressants (SSRI or otherwise) and psilocybin or LSD. Toxicity is extremely rare when mixing antidepressants with these two classical psychedelics.
More recently, in a study on the effects of psilocybin, individuals using escitalopram (i.e., Lexapro), a common selective SSRI, showed no relevant effects on the positive mood effects of psilocybin, but escitalopram significantly reduced negative effects of psilocybin, including anxiety and adverse cardiovascular effects (Becker et al., 2021). For the study, participants either received 10mg of escitalopram daily for seven days followed by 20mg daily for the next seven days, including the day of psilocybin administration, or 14 days of placebo pre-treatment before psilocybin administration. The researchers found that pre-treatment with escitalopram did not alter the pharmacokinetics of psilocin — the active compound that the prodrug psilocybin is converted into in humans by the process of dephosphorylation. These results suggest that escitalopram and psilocybin can be safely administered together.
In summary, although more research is needed, current evidence-based research suggests that the likelihood of toxicity in interactions between SSRIs and psilocybin is low, but SSRIs may reduce the subjective effects of psilocybin.
Always seek the advice of your physician or other qualified health care provider before undertaking a new health care regime. Unlimited Sciences does not give or substitute for medical advice. The products and services discussed are not intended to diagnose, cure, prevent or treat any disease. Please click here to read our full disclaimer. - Can I microdose psilocybin for treatment resistant depression (TRD)?In a recent phase 2 clinical trial, evidence suggested that a high-dose of synthetic psilocybin, but not a low-dose, could reduce depression scores significantly in a treatment-resistant episode of major depression (Goodwin et al., 2022).
However, there is some evidence that the administration of a microdosing regiment may provide benefits for patients with TRD, as shown in a case study of a 43 year old man with TRD (Lyons, 2022). Prior to beginning treatment with psilocybin, this patient underwent psychological testing, lab work, adequate trials of numerous medications, transcranial magnetic stimulation (TMS), and electroconvulsive therapy, all without adequate relief of his symptoms. After self-administration of a microdosing regiment, this patient reported significant improvement in symptoms of major depressive disorder (MDD). As this study reports a single case study, it should be considered as preliminary evidence, and additional research is needed to confirm these observations.
Always seek the advice of your physician or other qualified health care provider before undertaking a new health care regime. Unlimited Sciences does not give or substitute for medical advice. The products and services discussed are not intended to diagnose, cure, prevent or treat any disease. Please click here to read our full disclaimer. - Are magic mushrooms safe to use?Psilocybin is relatively safe to use with minimal known long term adverse reactions. In our large-scale study of psilocybin use enrolling over 8,000 individuals, adverse reactions were rare, with less than 1% of participants reporting seeking medical care, and less than 4% seeking psychological care. However, psilocybin is not without risk. A minority of participants in our study (11% at 2-4 weeks and 7% at 2-3 months follow up) reported persisting negative effects after psilocybin use (e.g., mood fluctuations, depressive symptoms). The most commonly reported persisting negative effects after psilocybin use were mood fluctuations (n = 55; 4.7% at 2-4 weeks, and n = 20; 3.0% at 2-3 months) and depressive notions (n = 37; 3.1% at 2-4 weeks, and n = 11; 1.7% at 2-3 months).
Always seek the advice of your physician or other qualified health care provider before undertaking a new health care regime. Unlimited Sciences does not give or substitute for medical advice. The products and services discussed are not intended to diagnose, cure, prevent or treat any disease. Please click here to read our full disclaimer.
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