3 ms·

I take psychedelics a few times a year. I'm good with LSD once a year and I'm ok skipping it. I enjoy low (not micro) doses of mushrooms a few times each summer

I take psychedelics a few times a year. I'm good with LSD once a year and I'm ok skipping it. I enjoy low (not micro) doses of mushrooms a few times each summer. Both have been very good for my sobriety. They aren't for everyone though. Great to see this becoming mainstream. Sad to see the number of charlatans and the industry has popped up around it. I hope that we're able to safely get these substances to those that need them.

ericmcer 3y ago
The effects of low doses of mushrooms/MDMA make me wonder if we have been going about it all wrong. You can easily take 20% of the normal amount and have a pleasant and noticeable effect but still be highly functional. It is like our "normal" dose for those drugs is the equivalent of 6+ drinks, and the idea of only having a beer or two is painted as a waste.
- dylan604 3y ago
  > The effects of low doses of _______ make me wonder if we have been going about it all wrong It's human nature to think that more is better. If a little works, why not use more. There's a definite bit of experimenting that should be done to see when more become less effective. As a user, that's just part of the journey. Then we have the marketing/sales view point where they just want those numbers higher, but it actually makes to product less but not in a way the marketing cannot overcome it. I feel this way about the microbrewery movement with high alcohol and hops=>IPA usage.
  - fragmede 3y ago
    melatonin is one where 1 mg works and 10 mg doesn't.
- peebeebee 3y ago
  It’s not the same though. A high dose can lead to life altering insights. A low dose will just be a fun time. Alcohol in higher doses isn’t therapeutic. More than 4 beers and any therapeutic effect alchohol could’ve had is now also gone. :)
- _fat_santa 3y ago
  Just this weekend I took a low dose of mushrooms and went to a nightclub. I typically drink at these places so it was interesting to take just mushrooms and zero booze. It was quite fun at a low dose and gave a similar feeling to being drunk without the downsides. After that experience if I had to choose to go out and drink or go out and take a low dose of mushrooms I'm definitely doing the latter.
- anjel 3y ago
  Micro dosing psylocibe/psylocin on a regular basis puts your heart valves at some risk of permanent damage in ways occasional high dose use does not.
  - pennaMan 3y ago
    You got a reference to back that up?
    - babyshake 3y ago
      Yes, this is the first I've heard of this but I would be interested in learning about it.
      - financltravsty 3y ago
        Psilocybin is a partial 5-HT2B receptor agonist. 5-HT2B receptor agonism causes deposits of collagen in heart valves (which will lead to valve disease). This is true for LSD, MDMA, and psilocybin. A note is that psilocybin is only a partial agonist, and the dosages taken for micro-dosing may not be comparable to something like fenfluramine (a drug which does cause heart valve dysfunction for certain). There was a drug nerds thread lying around on Reddit where the theoretical receptor activations were compared. IIRC, psilocybin is not a major risk, as long as you're not tripping every day for months on end.
        alan-hn 3y ago
        The risk comes from taking the 2b agonist regularly, that's why it causes fibrosis. Not only is taking the larger dose safer as long as there are no preexisting cardiovascular issues but microdosing has been shown to be no better than placebo Microdoses also don't inspire hippocampal neurogenesis whereas larger doses do Microdosing is not only not beneficial but it may be actively harmful "...it is possible that chronic microdosing may carry a risk of fibrosis and VHD, which should be assessed in future studies. There is converging evidence that simulation of the 5-HT2BR over several months may lead to the development of fibrosis. Duration of intake plays a major role in drug-induced VHD, even if the substance is not taken daily (Connolly et al., 1997; Schade et al., 2007)." https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/full/10.1177/02698811231225609 https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/full/10.1177/02698811231225...
- midiguy 3y ago
  Microdoses have no real effect on me at best, and put me totally on edge at worst. But I love a mild 1-2g trip. I personally think the optimal dose is a mild tripping dose (perhaps mid ~3.5g if you are experienced and are looking for that kind of experience). But at the end of the day, everyone reacts different. I don't know if there is a point to characterizing what should be 'normal' dosage. They are basically completely different drugs with different uses at different doses.
- huytersd 3y ago
  The common knowledge amongst enthusiasts is that shrooms have a threshold below which you don’t feel anything and I feel like anecdotally I can vouch for that (though it’s been a long time and I can’t exactly remember anymore).
- reducesuffering 3y ago
  I've done it a few times. The 1.75g was one of the most profound moments of my life and the .25g were just an interesting night. Felt like a 20x difference to me.
- EmilyHughes 3y ago
  For the psychedelics this is very true, I enjoy mostly low doses. But I am not so sure about the MDMA. If I didn't have enough to get "over the hill" it always felt it's about to come on now but it never does it's just a very dissapointing limbo state. Even worse, redosing after that won't get you the full effect either for that night (maybe because some serotonin was already depleted at that point).
dylan604 3y ago
> Sad to see the number of charlatans and the industry has popped up around it. This is (should have been) expected for any trending topic, but especially something currently seen as taboo. We've seen CBD and the 10000MG 1oz bottles. There will always be fraudsters and scammers. It's just too easy for money to be made by people that have no idea about the actual products, but it's not just drug related. Just look at Amazon to see how prevalent it is, and how accepted it has become
gardenhedge 3y ago
Why bother?

ericmcer 3y ago

The effects of low doses of mushrooms/MDMA make me wonder if we have been going about it all wrong. You can easily take 20% of the normal amount and have a pleasant and noticeable effect but still be highly functional. It is like our "normal" dose for those drugs is the equivalent of 6+ drinks, and the idea of only having a beer or two is painted as a waste.

dylan604 3y ago
> The effects of low doses of _______ make me wonder if we have been going about it all wrong It's human nature to think that more is better. If a little works, why not use more. There's a definite bit of experimenting that should be done to see when more become less effective. As a user, that's just part of the journey. Then we have the marketing/sales view point where they just want those numbers higher, but it actually makes to product less but not in a way the marketing cannot overcome it. I feel this way about the microbrewery movement with high alcohol and hops=>IPA usage.
- fragmede 3y ago
  melatonin is one where 1 mg works and 10 mg doesn't.
peebeebee 3y ago
It’s not the same though. A high dose can lead to life altering insights. A low dose will just be a fun time. Alcohol in higher doses isn’t therapeutic. More than 4 beers and any therapeutic effect alchohol could’ve had is now also gone. :)
_fat_santa 3y ago
Just this weekend I took a low dose of mushrooms and went to a nightclub. I typically drink at these places so it was interesting to take just mushrooms and zero booze. It was quite fun at a low dose and gave a similar feeling to being drunk without the downsides. After that experience if I had to choose to go out and drink or go out and take a low dose of mushrooms I'm definitely doing the latter.
anjel 3y ago
Micro dosing psylocibe/psylocin on a regular basis puts your heart valves at some risk of permanent damage in ways occasional high dose use does not.
- pennaMan 3y ago
  You got a reference to back that up?
  - babyshake 3y ago
    Yes, this is the first I've heard of this but I would be interested in learning about it.
    - financltravsty 3y ago
      Psilocybin is a partial 5-HT2B receptor agonist. 5-HT2B receptor agonism causes deposits of collagen in heart valves (which will lead to valve disease). This is true for LSD, MDMA, and psilocybin. A note is that psilocybin is only a partial agonist, and the dosages taken for micro-dosing may not be comparable to something like fenfluramine (a drug which does cause heart valve dysfunction for certain). There was a drug nerds thread lying around on Reddit where the theoretical receptor activations were compared. IIRC, psilocybin is not a major risk, as long as you're not tripping every day for months on end.
      - alan-hn 3y ago
        The risk comes from taking the 2b agonist regularly, that's why it causes fibrosis. Not only is taking the larger dose safer as long as there are no preexisting cardiovascular issues but microdosing has been shown to be no better than placebo Microdoses also don't inspire hippocampal neurogenesis whereas larger doses do Microdosing is not only not beneficial but it may be actively harmful "...it is possible that chronic microdosing may carry a risk of fibrosis and VHD, which should be assessed in future studies. There is converging evidence that simulation of the 5-HT2BR over several months may lead to the development of fibrosis. Duration of intake plays a major role in drug-induced VHD, even if the substance is not taken daily (Connolly et al., 1997; Schade et al., 2007)." https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/full/10.1177/02698811231225609 https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/full/10.1177/02698811231225...
midiguy 3y ago
Microdoses have no real effect on me at best, and put me totally on edge at worst. But I love a mild 1-2g trip. I personally think the optimal dose is a mild tripping dose (perhaps mid ~3.5g if you are experienced and are looking for that kind of experience). But at the end of the day, everyone reacts different. I don't know if there is a point to characterizing what should be 'normal' dosage. They are basically completely different drugs with different uses at different doses.
huytersd 3y ago
The common knowledge amongst enthusiasts is that shrooms have a threshold below which you don’t feel anything and I feel like anecdotally I can vouch for that (though it’s been a long time and I can’t exactly remember anymore).
reducesuffering 3y ago
I've done it a few times. The 1.75g was one of the most profound moments of my life and the .25g were just an interesting night. Felt like a 20x difference to me.
EmilyHughes 3y ago
For the psychedelics this is very true, I enjoy mostly low doses. But I am not so sure about the MDMA. If I didn't have enough to get "over the hill" it always felt it's about to come on now but it never does it's just a very dissapointing limbo state. Even worse, redosing after that won't get you the full effect either for that night (maybe because some serotonin was already depleted at that point).

dylan604 3y ago

> Sad to see the number of charlatans and the industry has popped up around it. This is (should have been) expected for any trending topic, but especially something currently seen as taboo. We've seen CBD and the 10000MG 1oz bottles. There will always be fraudsters and scammers. It's just too easy for money to be made by people that have no idea about the actual products, but it's not just drug related. Just look at Amazon to see how prevalent it is, and how accepted it has become

gardenhedge 3y ago

Why bother?