Psilocybin is a hallucinogenic chemical in certain mushrooms known as magic mushrooms. Eating psilocybin-containing mushrooms can have a variety of effects, ranging from euphoria to hallucinations.
Psilocybin mushrooms, aka magic mushrooms or shrooms, contain psychoactive ingredients that affect your brain and body in various ways. Even though their history may seem relatively recent, ancient cultures have ingested these psychedelic medicines for recreational, religious, and medicinal purposes for centuries.
Magic mushrooms can be both powerful and dangerous in large doses. But healthcare professionals and researchers have started looking at them differently. Some scientific studies suggest that magic mushrooms may be a useful treatment for mental health conditions — like depression, anxiety, and substance use — when dosed in the right amount.
But magic mushrooms can have drastically different effects depending on the person, their underlying mental health, and their internal chemistry. So it’s important to understand the range of side effects and potential risks before you try it.
Some people use psilocybin recreationally. It can provide feelings of euphoria and sensory distortion that are common to psychedelic medicines, such as LSD.
Psilocybin is a Schedule III substance in Canada, meaning that Health Canada believes it has a lower misuse potential than I and II, but may cause physical dependence but more commonly lead to psychological dependence. But these are merely opinions, not statements based on evidence. Psilocybin is not known to cause any type of dependence, and current research finds it to be anti-addictive.
While it isn't addictive, psilocybin's effects aren't always positive and can include disturbing hallucinations, anxiety, and panic during the trip. Large doses can also lead to some physical side effects, like high blood pressure, which we get into below.
This article explains how psilocybin works, including the potential effects and risks.
Fast facts on psilocybin.
- Magic mushrooms contain an ingredient called psilocybin. It affects the brain in multiple different ways.
- Psilocybin can have both positive and negative side effects, psychologically and physically.
- Psilocybin is not naturally addictive.
- Individuals with a family history of psychosis may face an increased risk of an adverse psychiatric reaction to psilocybin.
- Magic mushrooms can be harmful in the short term if they lead to distressing hallucinations, agitation, or psychosis. So far, no serious long-term side effects have been identified.
- Researchers are actively discovering ways that psilocybin can treat certain mental health conditions, from anxiety to depression to PTSD, to neurological conditions, like dementia and traumatic brain injury (TBI).
What are psilocybin (magic) mushrooms?
Psilocybin mushrooms (often referred to as "magic mushrooms" or “shrooms”) are a broad category that includes at least 300 different species of hallucinogenic mushrooms. Most of them contain psilocybin and psilocin, which are the active components in the mushrooms that cause mind-altering effects.
Read: 20 Magic Mushroom Strains You Should Know About
You can ingest psilocybin in a few different ways. Some people eat the mushrooms (raw or cooked). People also use the mushrooms to make teas or other beverages. Some dry the mushrooms, turn them into a powder, and put them in capsules.
Read: How to Dose Magic Mushrooms (Plus Tips You Need to Know)
What is Psilocybin?
Psilocybin is a hallucinogen that people can ingest through certain types of mushrooms.
How Psilocybin Works
Researchers still have a lot to learn about the different ways that magic mushrooms affect brain function. However, they have identified two active ingredients that seem to account for the mind-altering effects — psilocybin and psilocin. These substances activate serotonin receptors in your brain. Serotonin is the chemical in the brain that affects mood and perception.
There is also a third active, baeocystin, but how it works is still unclear.
Psilocybin most often activates serotonin receptors in the prefrontal cortex. This part of the brain affects mood, cognition, executive function, and perception. It also works in other brain regions that regulate arousal and panic responses.
This may only be the beginning of our understanding. More recent research in humans has started to uncover how psilocybin disrupts connections in the brain responsible for symptoms of depression, anxiety, and substance use disorders. Not only that, it activates other parts of the brain that help combat these symptoms. In other words, psilocybin turns down the volume on harmful brain signals. And it increases the volume on helpful ones.
People sometimes have a hard time explaining their experience with magic mushrooms. This is because it can affect multiple different aspects of brain function and processing. But most people describe the experience as both positive and enjoyable. Magic mushrooms tend to cause:
- Visual, sensory, and auditory hallucinations
- Elevated mood and euphoria
- Speeding up or slowing down of time
- A separation from the sense of self or ego
- A sense of wonder and awe
- A mystical, spiritual, or religious experience
But even though magic mushrooms often lead to a positive experience, this isn’t always the case. Some of the side effects can be more harmful.
Psilocybin also does not always cause active visual or auditory hallucinations. Instead, it can distort how some people perceive objects and people already in their environment.
The quantity of the drug a person consumes, their past experiences, and their expectations of how the experience will take shape can all impact the effects of psilocybin.
The hallucinogenic effects of psilocybin usually occur within 30 - 60 minutes after you ingest it and can last 4–6 hours.
In some individuals, changes in sensory perception and thought patterns can last for several days.
Potency
The potency of a magic mushroom depends on:
- species
- origin
- growing conditions
- harvest period
- whether a person eats them fresh or dried
Consumption
Mushrooms containing psilocybin are small and usually brown or tan. In the wild, people may mistake mushrooms containing psilocybin for any number of other mushrooms that are poisonous.
People usually consume psilocybin as a brewed tea or prepare it with a food item to mask its bitter taste. At My Supply Co., we crush dried mushrooms into a powder, combine them with adaptogens, nootropics, and superfoods, and prepare them in capsule form as microdose and macrodose supplements.
Read: How to Prepare for Your Magic Mushroom Trip
Some people who consume these mushrooms prefer to make tasty treats out of them. Check out our mouth-watering recipes for magic mushroom brownies and gummies through the links below:
Read: How to Make Magic Mushroom Gummies in 6 Simple Steps
Read: How to Make Magic Mushroom Brownies
Psilocybin has been used in various cultures and locations across the world, potentially as far back as 8,000 years ago, according to a 2022 reviewTrusted Source.
Extent of Use
According to a 2024 study published in Palliative Medicine, 79% of Canadians support the therapeutic use of Psilocybin for people at the end of life.
These days, psilocybin use may be recreational at dance clubs or by people seeking a transcendent spiritual experience.
In January 2022, the Canadian Psychedelic Survey (CPS) analyzed survey data from 2,045 respondents (mean age = 38.4 years; 56% female). Top motivations for psychedelic drug use were fun, self-exploration, general mental well-being, and personal growth. Lifetime intense positive and challenging psychedelic experiences were reported by 82% and 52%, respectively. Over half (56%) of those who had an intense challenging experience reported that “some good” came from the experience after the fact. Intense positive experiences included higher perceived psychedelic experience and fun and self-exploration as motivations for use. Intense challenging experiences included higher perceived psychedelic experience and trauma management, fun, and boredom as motivations for use.
In medical settings, psilocybin may show promise in helping to treat or manage the following conditions:
- addiction
- depression
- end-stage cancer mood disorders
Read: Is It Safe to Mix Magic Mushrooms With Antidepressants?
Read: The Truth About Mushrooms & Meds: Are They Safe to Mix?
Street Names for Magic Mushrooms
People may also refer to magic mushrooms as:
- shrooms
- boomers
- zoomers
- mushies
- simple Simon
- little smoke
- sacred mushrooms
- purple passion
- mushroom soup
- cubes
Effects of psilocybin.
Compared to other mind-altering substances, the side effects of magic mushrooms are considered to be much safer. Clinical trials report very few adverse events and haven’t found any serious long-term side effects. But it’s important to note that clinical trials often exclude people with certain mental health conditions that can increase the risk of unwanted side effects (we cover these in a later section).
The effects of psilocybin are generally similar to those of LSD. They include altered perception of time and space and intense changes in mood and feeling.
Other possible effects of psilocybin include:
- Euphoria
- Peacefulness
- Spiritual awakening
- Derealization, or the feeling that surroundings are not real
- Depersonalization, or a dream-like sense of being disengaged from surroundings
- Distorted thinking
- Visual alteration and distortion, such as seeing halos of light and vivid colors
- Dizziness
- Drowsiness and yawning
- Impaired concentration
- Lack of coordination
- Unusual body sensations
- Paranoia
- Confusion
- Frightening hallucinations
Read: Psilocybin and Neuroplasticity: The Science and FAQs
Read: The Benefits of Microdosing Psilocybin - Without the Fluff
Read: What to expect After Six Months of Microdosing: A Timeline
Physical Side Effects of Psilocybin
Beyond its mental effects, psilocybin can cause physical side effects in your body. These can be the direct result of the mushrooms or a physical reaction to the psychological experiences while taking magic mushrooms. They include:
- Nausea or vomiting
- Elevated heart rate, which may cause palpitations
- Elevated blood pressure, which may cause chest pressure or headaches
- Sweating
- Dilated pupils
- Muscle weakness
What Impacts Psilocybin's Effects?
The effects of psilocybin vary between people, based on the user’s mental state, personality, and immediate environment.
If the user has a mental health condition or feels anxious about using the hallucinogen, they face a higher risk of having a bad experience. From a neurochemical perspective, higher levels of glutamate are tied to negative experiences or bad trips.
Psychological distress is a potential adverse event after recreational use of psilocybin. This distress can take the form of extreme anxiety or short-term psychosis.
Risks of psilocybin.
Some people who take psilocybin may experience persistent, distressing alterations to how they see the world. These may take the form of a visual flashback, a traumatic recall of an intensely upsetting experience.
According to the National Institute on Drug Abuse, some people can continue to experience flashbacks anywhere from weeks to years after using the hallucinogen. This is a condition called hallucinogen-persisting perception disorder and is rare.
Finally, though the risk is small, some psilocybin users risk accidental poisoning from eating a poisonous mushroom by mistake.
Symptoms of mushroom poisoning may include muscle spasms, confusion, and delirium. A person should visit an emergency room immediately if these symptoms occur.
Read: The Magic Mushroom Mystery of Wood Lover's Paralysis
Because hallucinogenic and other poisonous mushrooms are common in most living environments, people should regularly remove all mushrooms from areas where children are routinely present to prevent accidental consumption.
Most accidental mushroom ingestion results in minor gastrointestinal illness, with only the most severe instances requiring medical attention.
Who should not take psilocybin?
Given the rare but serious risk of psychosis, experts recommend you don’t take magic mushrooms if you have a history of:
- Schizophrenia
- Bipolar disorder
- Borderline personality disorder
- Any prior episode of psychosis
The temporary physical side effects — particularly the rise in heart rate and blood pressure — may also be dangerous for people with heart disease or high blood pressure — especially if these conditions aren’t well controlled at baseline. However, these effects are only seen when using higher doses (1 gram or more) of psilocybin mushrooms.
Abuse potential of psilocybin.
Current research suggests psilocybin is not addictive, and no physical symptoms occur after stopping use. Instead, research shows that psilocybin is anti-addictive, meaning it can be used to help overcome substance use disorders.
Regular use may also cause an individual to become tolerant to the effects of psilocybin, and cross-tolerance occurs with other drugs, including LSD and mescaline. This tolerance is temporary, and is "reset" after abstaining for 1 - 2 weeks.
People who use these medicines should wait at least several days between doses to experience the full effect.
Read: Microdosing Protocols, Schedules, and Cycles: What They Are and Why You Need One
How long do psilocybin's effects last?
On average, the effects of magic mushrooms last about 4 to 6 hours.
Research suggests that for a 25 mg dose of psilocybin (about 2.5 grams of dried magic mushrooms), most people experience:
- First onset of effects about 20-40 min after ingestion
- Peak effects around 60-90 mins
- Clearing of the mind-altering effects by 6 hours
But this can vary depending on the dose taken. The effects may also change based on someone’s fasting status. Like dosing, weight seems to affect this less.
Q:
How likely is it that I will have a bad trip taking magic mushrooms?
- Anonymous
A:
A “bad trip” can include feelings of despair, confusion, paranoia, anxiety, and panic. These feelings can persist for hours to days.
To avoid this, first, you will not have a bad trip or any trip at all if you choose not to ingest the mushrooms. If the mushrooms have a higher, stronger dose than expected, this can increase your chances of having a negative experience.
For someone going through a personal crisis or using mushrooms in an unsafe, unsupportive environment, the chances of a “bad trip” increase.
There are no guarantees with mushrooms since they are an unprocessed plant product, and bad trips can and do happen. If someone has ingested mushrooms and is experiencing panic, anxiety, or is in any danger of harming themselves or others, seek medical assistance immediately.
Answers represent the opinions of our experts. All content is strictly informational and should not be considered medical advice.
Summary.
Psilocybin is a chemical that occurs in certain mushroom varieties. Consumption can lead to symptoms such as euphoria, hallucinations, and sensory distortion.
Although current research suggests psilocybin is not addictive, some people may have bad experiences, including feelings of anxiety, paranoia, and short-term psychosis.
Factors such as mental health, setting, quantity, and expectations may affect the experience someone has after using psilocybin.
