Have you heard of stories from the psychedelic 60s and 70s of people going on an acid and mushroom trip that changed their entire perspective of life and consciousness? Or perhaps you heard horror stories of bad trips that left people struggling with fear and confusion afterwards?
We would like to demystify magic mushrooms and show you how mushroom trips can be a beautiful and powerful ally for self-healing and ego-dissolution. Yoga teacher, Jan Diwata, shares some of her personal experiences with us.
We want to show you how applying for microdosing can be easy and safe as a sustainable practice with psilocybin.
Revered as gods in ancient times and continue to be used by shamans across the globe in ritual for entire communities, psilocybin mushrooms became taboo in the 70s when it was classified as an illegal substance along with hard, chemical drugs that had no connection to ritual or spirituality.
But when taken at different doses appropriate for your body and your journey, you can go on a magic mushroom trip that need not take you on a psychedelic trip, and instead open up pathways for you to heal and awaken with this valuable plant healer and teacher.
Why Do People Go on Mushroom Trips?
We can’t deny that many people, even in ancient times, went on hallucinogenic mushroom trips for recreation.
But even thousands of years ago, our ancestors knew that psilocybin mushrooms were gifts from the earth to teach us lessons about ourselves and raise our consciousness.
Some shaman still use shrooms to go into a trance that enable them to act as bridges to the spirit world and the gods. Communities who take magic mushrooms together are able to intertwine their journeys and find a connectedness between each other and reality in general that cannot be found easily in normal everyday life.
And some microdose psilocybin, not to experience a magic mushroom trip, but to gain the same benefits physically and spiritually.
Years ago, I had been curious about magic mushrooms, and had opportunities to purchase them to journey on my own. But I didn’t feel right to take shrooms without proper support.
When I finally had that support, it happened in perfect timing that I recognized because I already educated myself and held so much respect for magic mushrooms as a teacher and ally for my work as a conscious space holder.
What Really Happens on a Mushroom Trip?
My first experience with shrooms happened as a culmination of a week-long event with a spiritual community. We didn’t have a traditional shaman with us, but we were a handful of friends and sacred space holders who knew we could partake of the gifts of psilocybin with integrity and reverence.
The journey started with a circle of gratitude to share our intentions for the evening. All of us were in a space of openness and voiced our thanks to each other, to the gift of shrooms from the earth, and to whatever teachings that were meant to be revealed to us.
As my first journey, it took a bit of time for the mushrooms to start activating in my system. And when they did, I saw the world around me dissolve and I understood this dissolution as the stories I had built up around myself as nothing more than flickering flames – they could both guide my way in the darkness and also distract from the Truth.
I was fortunate that my first psychedelic journey was shared with a partner who had previous experience with different mushroom trip levels, including what are called bad trips, and helped support my journey.
What You Should Know About Mushroom Trip Levels
That first experience was close to what a heroic dose of psilocybin could do and I had other experiences afterwards that would even further blur the border between illusion and expanded consciousness.
Others may or may not have the same impact from psilocybin. It depends on the amount you take and how your body processes it.
These are the five mushroom trip levels you might experience on your journey with shrooms.
But the concept of levels is misleading when it comes to mushroom trips. Everyone will process their experience differently and it can be difficult to be objective when perception is expanded.
However, these descriptions can be useful as a guide to help frame trip intensities.
Level 1: Happy High
The effects of magic mushrooms at this level are mild – similar to the high you get from weed. You may feel generally happy and light, and the whole world may seem friendlier.
Some subtle visual and sound distortions may occur.
Level 2: Touching the Magical Mystery
This level is usually recommended for beginners who are just starting their exploration with psilocybin.
Geometric patterns and auditory hallucinations may start to emerge when you close your eyes and you may find it difficult to speak or concentrate. However, increase in creativity and euphoria may also happen.
Level 3: Classic Psychedelic Tripping
Level three is the classic kaleidoscopic psychedelic experience.
At this level, hallucinations are no longer subtle and can appear with eyes open. Closed eye hallucinations may appear three-dimensional. Time may become distorted and one hour may be perceived as an eternity.
You may experience senses differently such as seeing sounds as color.
Level 4: Going Cosmic
Stronger and more intense hallucinations may occur at this level. Time and reality may completely be eradicated – this can be a mind-altering, life changing experience.
At this level, you may have out-of-body experiences and duality no longer exists.
Level 5: Ego-dissolution
At this level, all things logical and right brain completely disappear. You may experience loss of reality, identity, and go into a plane of intense, powerful introspection.
Many say it’s impossible to describe this powerful merging with time and space once the psychedelic effects of the shrooms wear off.
Another Trip to Consider – Level 0: Microdosing
Microdosing allows you to achieve a level of magic mushroom trip that won’t alter your perception, but may help boost creativity, feel less anxious, and give a host of other benefits without the hallucinations.
You can apply for microdosing online. It is so mild that it can be practiced daily.
What is a Bad Trip – And How to Avoid Them
Bad trips usually happen when you experience level 4 mushroom trip or higher without proper preparation or support during your journey.
Visual and auditory hallucinations may become so intense and confusing that you might start to feel trapped and lost.
Fortunately, you can avoid bad trips, or have support in place so that if it does happen you can come down from it.
As mentioned, my partner had a bad experience with magic mushrooms that left him with so much fear and doubt that he swore off psilocybin for ten years before returning to this teacher.
On the positive side, this so-called “bad trip” helped him start a literal journey around the world to find more meaning and direction in his life which may not have happened as quickly had he not been given that frightful teaching by the mushrooms.
So even bad trips can be valuable lessons and part of your personal healing process. But if you want to avoid them, there are actions you can take.
First, keep in mind that the effects of the psilocybin will always wear off in a few hours no matter how high a dosage you take. Although your perception of time may be altered, remember that it will pass eventually.
Prepare yourself for your mushroom journey. Educate yourself on the history and effects of psilocybin. The materials we share on Dose Therapy can tell you everything you need to know about magic mushrooms and the psychedelic experience.
No matter what psychedelic substance you take, you will be able to self-soothe because you equipped yourself with proper knowledge about what you are taking and its effects on your body and perception.
A good tip given to me as I prepared for my first psychedelic trip, was to keep an object with me that brings comfort – this could be a favorite blanket, stuffed toy, or trinket to hold that won’t bring up potential negative connections.
For example, a photograph might trigger too many memories and mixed emotions to give you security during a bad trip, but a warm blanket or childhood soothing toy can make you feel safe and comfortable without adding to the distortions created by your mind.
Monitoring a Magic Mushroom Journey and Supporting a Bad Trip
If you are supporting someone through a bad trip, remember that they may not be able to process your presence normally.
- Keep your voice comforting and words minimal.
- Hold their hand as something secure they can anchor to.
- Reassure them that they will be back in a few minutes or hours and encourage them to surrender to the experience and allow the revelations that might be there.
In extremely rare cases, medical treatment may be administered. Take note, not all emergency personnel know how to deal with powerful psychedelic trips. According to Tripsafe, it’s better to treat the experience in the context of the journey rather than seeking pharmalogical intervention.
The Most Sustainable Mushroom Trip Level
Microdosing, which is below the five magic mushroom trip levels, is what we recommend for sustainable day-to-day practice.
The dosage of psilocybin to start is approximately 350 milligrams — that’s less than what you would get from one dried mushroom.
Which is amazing when you consider the benefits you get from taking such a small dose regularly.
Research shows that microdosing is a promising therapy for those with mental health issues including depression, PTSD, anxiety, and ADHD.
Anecdotal evidence also shows that those who microdose generally feel happier, are able to concentrate better, are more creative, and have improved performance at work.
We can guide you to third-party psilocybin capsule suppliers who share our values for treating magic mushrooms with respect and reverence.
Apply for microdosing with us for a sustainable, safe way to take magic mushrooms daily.
We’ll be with you every step of the way from assessing your physical and mental health history, and clarifying your intentions for taking this ancient, powerful gift from the earth. This way, you will not regret the trust you place in us to help you on this life trip.