I posted this on r/trees and someone suggested I post it over here. I know that much of what I say in here will be common knowledge to a lot of you and that I may be wrong about some things but I think with the growing popularity of shrooms that it would be nice to have a sort of centralized place that contains general dosage info, tips, and anecdotal advice for newcomers, especially those curious to make the leap from weed to shrooms. While I’m aware that there are a bunch of good websites online that do a really good job of covering a lot of this, I’ve found that to get everything you need you often need to jump around to different sources and if you aren’t thorough enough, you might miss the one thing that really saves your trip. So here it is. Please correct me if I’m wrong about anything.

From my experience, it’s actually easier to control a dosage of shrooms than it is to control how high you get. What makes shrooms so great is that there isn’t just one “high” that they give you but rather there’s a few different levels of mind alteration that it can give you.

I’ll go into more detail but the best general advice I can give is:

• ⁠if it grows, it goes(weed is as organic of a drug as you can take, shrooms are identical in that sense)

• ⁠only take shrooms in an environment you feel safe and comfortable in with people you feel safe and comfortable with

• ⁠a “trip sitter” should be someone who has experience with shrooms and is comfortable tripping, not someone who is not tripping(completely my opinion)

• ⁠dip your feet in the water before you dive in(micro dose first!)

• ⁠if you have questions about the shrooms your buying, just ask the people you’re buying them from! Almost anyone you meet that regularly takes shrooms(or has at some point in their life) will be one of the more genuine and understanding people out there and usually the people that sell them fit that bid!

3 Levels of Tripping:

Micro dosing is the easiest way to start and I highly recommend that everybody micro doses at least once before attempting to fully trip. Micro dosing allows you to feel the euphoric and energetic effects that shrooms give you while still being in full control of your mind and body. I’ve heard of plenty of people that micro dose before class to stay more engaged. Much like any medication, the more you take, the more intense the effect so being able to familiarize yourself with the feeling that a shroom high gives on a smaller level will give you great peace of mind as you graduate to the more intense experiences. I believe the maximum dosage for a micro dose of regular shrooms is about 1 g but don’t quote me on that. If you are able to find the edible chocolate bars, those are great too as they have dosage instructions on the packaging but beware as there are a lot of fake brands out there so make sure you trust who you’re buying from.

Once you start to get above 1 g, your mind will start thinking more introspectively and the intensity of the euphoria greatly increases. This is where some real magic can happen without seeing any walls completely moving around you. Your senses will become much more activated. You’ll notice subtle things in the world that you wouldn’t have otherwise and you can have some very profound thoughts and conversations in this state. I’d classify it as the “thinking” level of a shroom high and you can experience this state by taking anywhere from 1-3 g but again please do not quote me on that. There are plenty of resources for figuring out your exact shroom dosage that you need. This is just a general guide.

At 3/3.5 g and above, you experience the full effect of the psilocybin on your mind and body. Here is where mind altering and out of body experiences can take place. You can expect to see intense hallucinations as well as a great loss in motor function. Many people are able to observe themselves from outside of their body in this state as well as experience visions that don’t fit in with reality. It is believed historically that shamans and prophets would enter a similar state in order to be enlightened with new knowledge or solutions.

Preparation is EVERYTHING:

As the title of this section states, you cannot have a successful trip without the proper preparation, especially if you plan on seeing some crazy stuff.

Bring plenty of water and snacks and make sure that at least the water is consumed. Because of the full body sensation that a shroom trip can give you, some people can end up very dehydrated without realizing it. This is where an experienced “trip sitter” is recommended so that they can remind everyone to sip some water every once in a while. As for snacks, candy is possibly the greatest thing ever on shrooms(for me, jolly ranchers). Food on shrooms is amazing in general but I recommend keeping it light for the sake of your stomach.

Bringing some stimulating activities can greatly help with first timers or anyone who feels a little anxious when they take shrooms. I always like to bring some coloring books and bright colored markers along.

Calming music playing in the background can greatly enhance your experience so bringing a speaker with you is always recommended.

Soft blankets and pillows can be extremely comforting when you are tripping so having plenty of those on hand can go a long way.

Having access to both the indoors and outdoors has been my most successful way of tripping, however, I’ve been told by many that simply tripping outdoors the best way to go. Either way, I definitely recommend having access to go outside while you’re tripping. Shrooms connect you more with the nature around you so being in it can be very grounding.

Lastly, the pillars of a good setting are being in a safe place with safe people. I cannot recommend this part enough. The wrong person entering your trip can really mess with you.

Life After:

It is completely possible to consume shrooms and live a normal life the next day; work, school, or back to your family. However, there can be some pretty intense “ego death” when returning to everyday life. Shrooms completely drain your serotonin so it can feel overwhelmingly depressing when you return to regular life the next day which why I would recommend giving yourself at least a day to recover if you’re going to do a full trip. Note that I mean recover before going back to daily life, not before taking shrooms again. Studies have shown that your serotonin levels don’t return to their regular amounts until at least a week after taking even just a medial dose of shrooms. Just to be safe, I always wait a month. Micro dosing is different, however, and can be done on a more regular basis as long as you are cautious of its effects.

In my experience, I’ve seen more positive long term effects from shrooms than negative and I think that a lot of people would agree. The negative long term effects that I’ve encountered are usually the outcome of abusing the drug, not the drug itself.

The Bottom Line:

The people who only have negative things to say about shrooms are most likely the people who have had ONLY bad experiences with them and visa versa. Like with any drug, the most important things are to do your research, be prepared, and be open minded. Shrooms will affect you in the way that you allow them to. If you go into it having already made up your mind about what to expect, then that’s most likely what you’ll get out of it. But if you allow yourself to be open and vulnerable, then you can find some really profound things about yourself.

Hope that helps! I know it’s a lot but I’ve been compiling information in my head from people and through my experiences for years and have always wanted to write it out so there you go. Let me know if I missed anything.