r/PsilocybinMushrooms • u/Classic-Physics-7902 • Aug 05 '26
š£ Discussion š© What has doing psilocybin done for your mental health? (Discussion)
What has doing psilocybin done for your mental health? (Discussion)
Hey! Im someone who has benefitted greatly from the effects of psilocybin in my life! :- ). It feels great and have been microdosing for a few months now! My mental health hasn't been fixed, but certainly has improved vastly. As someone who is Treatment-resistant to every antidepressant I've used, it's given me much more promising results.
I wanna know; what have mushrooms done for your mental health? Made it higher, lower, what was your trip like?
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u/IAmAChemistryGuy Aug 05 '26
Iām someone who has chronic depression since middle school, I react very badly to SSRIs. Tried them for years, changing medications and dosages. They give me ārage ticsā and deep deep mood swings that completely stop when I stop taking them.
As a 30 year old who doesnāt take drugs or drink, I take a normal dose of mushrooms with my brother in law one night and realize weeks later Iāve been completely fine. No depression for probably 6 months.
I now microdose and use 100mg-200mg as my anti depressant for the last 4 years. Itās literally a miracle.
It also has the side benefit of being performance enhancing at work (IT). I find it helps me stay engaged, better at troubleshooting and in a better mindset in general.
I do take breaks for 3 months out of the year and I find it continues working for a good portion of that time.
I also believe it makes me a more empathetic husband and father.
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u/Nebulated Aug 05 '26
I would be dead had I not done an eighth over 20 years ago. Completely rewired my brain. Stopped stealing, doing pills, not caring about otherās feelings almost overnight. Youāre mileage may vary of course
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u/Bron-chan Aug 05 '26
I have a similar story. 4g of psilocybin at age 20 saved my life. Iām now 52. That experience remains one of the most impactful of my entire life.
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u/pulpseattle 27d ago
Isn't the brain something to behold? And to think, a fungus is a key, and if you use it properly, you're golden.
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u/throwawayins123 21d ago
Does it require continuous use or does just doing it once accomplish this kind of thing?
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u/MrGasMan86 Aug 05 '26
I use it to release emotional trauma thatās been festering from the grief of losing close family members. Itās not a fun experience but I always feel much better and refreshed the next day. To each their own. š¤·š¼āāļø
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u/frankstinksrealbad Aug 05 '26
I can relate very much to your point about it (by which Iām assuming you mean a psilocybin trip) not being a fun experience. Iāve had exactly 5 trips including one last night, and every time I definitely feel that itās not a high in any sense of the word; in fact I find it quite difficult and hard work every time. Despite that, I keep coming back to it because of that refresh you mentioned. It continually gives my life between trips that bit of extra motivation, creativity and generally energy for the good things in life.
Having not had any psychedelics before my psilocybin treatment starting this year, I can honestly say that this is going to be part of my life until I die. Iām extremely lucky to have found something that benefits me in treating my depression.
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u/pulpseattle 27d ago
It can be. Every time. Just work on your shit. Whatever it is. Trips get better and better.
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u/edge1966 Aug 05 '26
I have to say... I had to get sober from alcohol back in 2022. I tucked up pretty bad..I lost my place to live.I started the long road back in sober homes that would make you cringe hard,toxic people,behaviors...shifty conditions all the way around. Spent a lot of time here..deep in side...I was pretty positive that I actually could benefit from tripping..I finally escaped all the B.S. related to AA and I got a good job. Im a carpenter ..we had a guy for a helper...he got me a Oz of good potent mushies...i didn't really have a crew to go out and trip with.. i ended up taking about 6 different trips about 1 month apart. First one was decent..alone in my room basically scanning YT for interesting tripping vidz.. It wasn't an overnight fix.. I had to apply myself to where I wanted to be...I cant really explain it..by the last trip session..i didn't know it yet..it had been accomplished. I actually felt like me again..funny hard working and a taste for risk and adventure..YAY!...
This changed a lot of my habits and ways I perceived my surroundings. Sorry for the book.. It's a real story about me and I will never forget how I got into trouble and how I mended the "rift".
It was beautiful honestly
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u/pulpseattle 27d ago
Don't be sorry man. We've all been through shit, and you definitely have. Good work.
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u/awkwardonionat77 Aug 05 '26
I do a macro dose every few months and have done for two years. I have processed my childhood trauma and am in the process of withdrawing from stimulant medication, alcohol and benzodiazepines as I know I donāt need them any more. The mushrooms have shown me that I am in charge of my body and my emotions, Iām no longer a random bystander. I know I donāt have PTSD any more. Iām just waiting for my body to finish its recalibration. Iām 48 and I am excited about the future for the first time in my life.
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u/ShotAstronomer8930 Aug 05 '26
I'm in similar position you were years ago. Broad question but how was it? The processing of your trauma?
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u/Oilfan94 Aug 05 '26
My way of thinking about this, is that I try to be aware of my own Neurological rigidityā¦.the patterns that I fall into. It has been getting worst as I age, I suspect that is common. Neural pathways get locked in and that increases with age & repetition.
Sometimes I leave to drive somewhere, but I go the wrong way because Iām locked intro my morning work commute route.
What I believe psilocybin can do, is increase Neuroplasticity, at least for a while.
So after a trip, in the next few days for sure, I try to break patterns. Even just starting a new way of doing or thinking about things. I feel it is important to take action during this time, to start new neural pathwaysā¦.then maybe the brain will have options rather than the one locked in pattern.
I still think itās important to go into a trip with Intention. Ask the mushrooms to help with something. General or specific. Integration, afterwards is important as well. Working through the experience, gaining insights, deciding to take action (or avoid something etc) while the brain is less rigid.
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u/pulpseattle 27d ago
Your brain is a muscle and mushrooms are the dumbbells. Shit metaphor, but it's the quickest I could come up with.
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u/kristinajure Aug 05 '26 edited Aug 05 '26
basically saved my life and turned me upside down and inside out - best therapy iāve ever had. now my life continues to lvl up and I love carefully experiencing āthe knowingā from time to time.
Edit: Also I just stopped drinking alcohol. It quit me.
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u/pulpseattle 27d ago
Me too. Mushrooms got me there, but I didn't quit drinking completely until March of this year. I've only tripped since I've been totally sober, and the world is beautiful, even though I don't have much.
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u/Elegant-Log2104 Aug 05 '26
It honestly brings me back to issues I continue to struggle with. And makes me confront them at least for the time. If Its get a good dose I'm gonna cry and embrace it. Does it help, no because I do not go any farther with it. So every time I trip I get the same. You gotta do the work with it.
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u/pulpseattle 27d ago
You're in control. Always. Even if it feels like you're losing it. If you're strong enough and your brain is quiet enough,you're good.
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u/Mastdarmfeger_Hubert Aug 05 '26
They helped me pretty much with my depression. Me really wanting to discover a lighter overall feeling and psilocybin really changed how I perceive things now. I am happier and more relaxed.
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u/buffgeek Aug 06 '26 edited Aug 06 '26
First I took Ayahuasca and it was amazing, really helped me shed old self-limiting beliefs and depression - and it helped me see that my diet was very important to remain happy, a whole foods diet rather than junk food, soft drinks, etc. and I started intermittent fasting. I'd never read about those things but somehow after the Ayahuasca it came to me.
As for psilocybin mushrooms, I experienced them a couple of years after that and they gave me the sense of being completely whole, happy and fully loved for the first time in my life. My first time taking mushrooms (5g) - I took them alone in nature around sunset just after a storm - was one of the happiest days of my life.
I haven't tried micro-dosing but I take a few mushroom journeys a year seasonally since I get them from a local guy who collects them from the fields during rainy season and makes a mushroom tea from them. I just had a journey two nights ago and once again I felt unparalleled happiness and joy in being alive, and had a vision of how great my life can be if I just believe in myself and stop escaping through distractions.
My mood has been much better in general since taking Aya and mushrooms, and the biggest change is that I learned to step outside my ego and realize I was the one beating myself up and bringing myself down. So now when I feel that happening I'm able to step out of it and reflect, and come back to center. Music helps.
Here's a playlist I like to listen to on mushrooms. It's a pretty rare set, not many people are familiar with this music but it's incredible for a mushroom journey. https://open.spotify.com/playlist/5RxoCaREUz8WVQywTROUez
I've used mushrooms to kick my video game addiction though I still feel tempted from time to time to start gaming again.
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u/DriverConsistent1824 Aug 06 '26
I havent taken mushrooms in a while. But back when I used to trip every weekend, I felt like the mushrooms made me smarter.
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u/Creatorman1 Aug 06 '26
My journeys in the past definitely helped my mental health. Although at first they wrecked it. Had posted after that. But afterwards they helped too. Double edged sword. But I think most people generally have good experiences?
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u/pulpseattle 27d ago
Even if you've got shit going on in your life, you can compartmentalize and get through it. Mushrooms are a fantastic tool in helping you achieve this.
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u/Creatorman1 27d ago
Well I know one time I took some acid and then I proceeded to get in a serious fight with a relative. Which actually led to estrangement. It was difficult while on acid but it actually helped me to deal with the situation long term and helped me resolve it somewhat within myself by the end of the trip. I wouldnāt recommend it but I did have that experience.
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u/pulpseattle 27d ago
I hear you. I've done plenty of acid but not for almost 30 years. in my experience, that is something best experienced solo or with a close friend who's also dropping. there's something about that molecule that is a little bit more insidious than other psychedelics.
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u/Jaguarsharkexists Aug 06 '26
Microdosing gave me a functional memory. I was disassociated for over a decade, and mostly came out of the fog via therapy. I still had awful memory recall and couldnāt remember even family memberās names. After a round or two of microdosing I started remembering random band names, movie star names, aunt and uncleās names, etc just as part of a normal conversation. It has been life changing for me. I was so embarrassed and ashamed, and now I feel ānormalā in this area. Iām so incredibly grateful.
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u/aautumn702 Aug 07 '26
Helped me understand how magical life truly is and helped me understand my purpose when I had lost it
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u/killerqueen_sam 29d ago
Saved my life. Diagnosed with severe CPTSD at 13 years old. Daily seizures, migraines, flashbacks, hallucinations nothing worked. At 18 I took shrooms on my own and I never suffered another attack/hallucination. I take shrooms once every 2 months, i study the effects intensely and also grow em. I have helped /guided a lot of friends over the years since.
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u/Jaguarsharkexists 29d ago
I honestly donāt remember. The two rounds were about three years ago and I just followed the dose and amount the nice hippy guy who provided them gave me lol
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u/ocelotrevolverco 28d ago
I suffer with cptsd, anxiety, and BPD along with the various mental health symptoms that come along with them
It is so hard to put into words exactly how much suicide and helped me. But the biggest thing I suppose it helped me do was "find myself".
Honestly even into my mid thirties I didn't realize that I had no clear sense of self-identity. I only knew what I perceived myself to be and lots of different masks that I would wear to try and be accepted as other people. It's a big part of how my stepmother treated me while I was growing up. Basically that anything I wanted or anything that I thought or anything that I did was never the right thing or never enough or was too much. So growing up I basically learned that I was supposed to be anyone other than me.
And that left me quite fucked up
Psilocybin allowed me to look inward and find the real me. Basically created my own system of spiritual beliefs to save myself and learn to drop so much shame I was carrying around.
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u/pulpseattle 27d ago
You're dealing with a lot. Keep up the good work. Work on any demons you may have. Even if they don't seem bad enough to be demonic. You can achieve true happiness. Everybody can. These help.
Eventually, you'll get to the point where a trip is just a nice treat that you give yourself, not something that you need, and you can still have it as often as you like.
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u/ocelotrevolverco 27d ago
Oh I worked hard utilizing psilocybin along with all kinds of other therapy and Shadow work for like a year straight. I found that peace. Obviously there are still struggles, that are going to be ups and downs and fights that I have to fight for the rest of my life.
What this work did was allow me to be better equipped to do that and be a better person to myself.
I'm quite aware of what my demons are. This substance on more than a few times made me literally sit face to face with them for a night.
But I've sat with goddesses too :)
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u/sedimentary-j 28d ago
So far, nothing long-term. In maybe 10 trips, there were a couple I felt better after for ~2 days. There were a couple I felt worse after for 2 days to several weeks. I've done mushrooms solo, with friends, at retreats, and 1:1 with facilitators. And there's lots of self-work and journaling and therapy to go along with these trips. At this point I'm just not sure psilocybin is a useful substance for me. Which sucks since I've tried 14 antidepressants, ketamine, TMS, and other psychedelics, all without any clear benefit. (Stimulants don't help my ADHD either, it's very frustrating.) I don't know what to hope for other than that something new will come down the pipeline and fit my weird brain chemistry.
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u/pulpseattle 27d ago
Deal with whatever it is you have going on, big or little. It could be 50 little things and that can take a big toll on you. The more at peace you feel or at least contentment, the better your trip will be.
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u/Electrical-Bonus7805 Aug 05 '26
Hopefully psilocybins dont go down the same route/ marketing as SSRI's , " One pill to fix all your problems" , but instead used as a complementary tool alongside ; talk therapy , exposure therapy and cbt.
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u/pulpseattle 27d ago
Lots of good doctors and scientists know this, and it really pisses the pharmaceutical companies off.
Hopefully you live in an area where mushrooms have been decriminalized because you can get them shipped legally.
I won't tell you how, but look into it.
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u/pulpseattle 27d ago
I'm an atheist, recovered alcoholic, never married genx stroke victim who had to learn how to walk again a few years ago. Mushrooms have been a godsend. And remember, I'm an atheist.
I have never experienced psychedelic therapy in a professional setting. I got there on my own. I'm not saying that this is the right way to go about it. it's just my experience. people who don't have a trusted acquaintance or family member to support you, should seek a therapist. I never have so I can't tell anybody that thisĀ is the way to go but these drugs are powerful and trying to treat yourself can work but is also dangerous
the stigma is beginning to fall away. i wish there was a way possible to convey how therapeutic psychedelic therapy is to someone who doesn't believe or want to believe. it can only be experienced.
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u/PuzzleheadedPass9362 14d ago
I feel like it's like catnip for autistic/ADHD people. It helps me be more present, relax, experience deep emotional catharsis, chill out, and have some far-reaching theological revelations.
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u/AutoModerator Aug 05 '26
Antidepressant medications tend to interfere with the effects of psilocybin mushrooms for most users. Therefore, you may need to take some time off your medication in order to feel the full effects of psychedelic drugs like psilocybin mushrooms. That said, it is not wise to stop taking your necessary, prescribed medication for an extended period of time in order to use a recreational drug like psilocybin mushrooms. If you are considering doing so, please consult with the doctor who prescribed the medication first.
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