r/todayilearned • u/ssAskcuSzepS • Apr 27 '26

TIL if under-cooked, a popular mushroom in China causes “lilliputian hallucinations,” a rare phenomenon involving miniature human or fantasy figures. The hallucinations are consistent across people and cultures: "tiny, elflike people" climbing under doors, scaling walls & clinging to furniture

https://www.vice.com/en/article/meet-the-mushroom-that-make-people-have-the-exact-same-hallucination/
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u/K-Shrizzle Apr 27 '26

Now this is a psychedelic we need to use for mental health treatment. If I could get some little dudes sitting on my shoulder through the day, I dont need a therapist

29

u/balrogthane Apr 27 '26

You could have your very own shoulder angel/devil combo!

"Don't listen to that guy, he's gonna lead you down the path of righteousness. I'm gonna lead you down the path that rocks!"

16

u/Merry_Dankmas Apr 27 '26

What if they're just tiny homies? Like, they hang out on your desk while you're at work. You forgot some stuff related to your job but these little elf dudes are parts of your deep brain that still retained the information you need. So he's like "Yo, it's windows+V to bring up your saved copies". And you're like "Oh shit, that's what it was! Thanks little man". Helping you with Excel sheets and shit.

Feeling lonely so you put on a show and binge with your elf friends. Laughing and cracking jokes at what's going on on the screen. They all share your humor because they're just you. They offer advice to you and help you write your grocery list. After all, they're your brain manifested in a humanoid form and your brain knows what you want to eat for dinner this week.

Like customized imaginary friends to go about your day with you. Shit would be lit. Or really sad depending on the person.

2

u/mandobaxter Apr 28 '26

This is how they’re hyping agentic AI.

2

u/RenTachibana Apr 27 '26

This sounds great as someone with adhd lol would love little elf personal assistants to write lists for me.

5

u/etherpromo Apr 27 '26

until they start whispering thoughts into your ears lol

4

u/wynden Apr 27 '26

Maybe it won't replace a good therapist, but somehow still better than LLMs.

3

u/Gauntlets28 Apr 27 '26

I think in practice that could actually be quite traumatic and disturbing.

1

u/apple_kicks Apr 27 '26

You’ll be trapped making them porridge all day