This week's blog post aims to address the elephant in the room: how to get magic mushrooms for microdosing! While there is increasing scientific and clinical evidence validating the profound benefits of microdosing psychedelics from alleviating depression, anxiety, and addiction to improving focus and creativity, unfortunately, psychedelics remain a Schedule I substance in much of the United States and carry harsh criminal punishment for possession, use, and distribution.
This disconnect between law and science has created an environment of massive demand and frustration amongst individuals and communities like veterans and terminally ill cancer patients who seek to explore psychedelics as a potential treatment option for various mental health conditions.
Fortunately, local laws and regulations are slowly shifting towards decriminalization and we can expect expanded access in many local communities s in the not too distant future. While Microdose Guru does not endorse illegal activity, we are strong advocates of equitable access to psychedelic medicines for the purpose of healing, prayer, and personal growth.
Here are some possible channels to acquire psilocybin mushrooms:
Grow Your Own
Perhaps the most simple, empowering, and safe way to access psychoactive mushrooms is to grow your own. Mushrooms are easy to grow and spores and grow kits are available to purchase legally because they do not contain psilocybin or psilocin. Growing your own mushrooms is also extremely cost-effective in comparison to purchasing harvested mushrooms as the cost of a grow kit is offset by the harvest many folds. Grow kits are a wonderful option because they also offer a pathway for equitable access.
Various free and paid online courses offer skills and grow kits to those who would like to explore growing their own mushrooms. It is important to look for reputable and trustworthy sources and avoid the dark corners of the internet to ensure effective, safe, and mold-free results. We have not acquired any of the kits or spores sold online and therefore do not have a recommendation for you at this time.
Go Foraging!
Foraging mushrooms is an ancient and popular pastime in many parts of the US, Canada, Australia, Asia, and the Middle East but foraging is not without dangers as many varieties of mushrooms are not only toxic but also deadly. Foraging for psychedelic mushrooms is no exception and requires knowledge and careful examination to avoid accidental poisoning.
With that said, if you are feeling confident about your mushroom identification skills, you are likely to find one or more of the 22 species of psychedelic mushrooms that grow in the US in the Pacific Northwest, the Rustbelt, East Texas, and Central Florida.
A report by MoveBuddha describes the Pacific Northwest as the most optimal region in the US to go foraging with the Pacific County, Washington at the top of the list followed by Clatsop, Tillamook, and Benton Counties in Oregon. In Texas, your best bets are the cattle pastures of South and East Texas. If you're in Flordia, Highlands and Alachua Counties in central Florida hold the most promise. And if you're in the Midwest and North East, you can try your luck in Ashland County, Ohio; Warren County, Pennsylvania; Cattaraugus County, New York; and Washington County, Vermont.
Purchase Them Where They Are Legal
While magic mushrooms remain illegal in the US and much of the world, local decriminalization efforts offer some legal protection from prosecution for possession and use of psychedelic substances. Here is the growing list of states and cities that have taken steps to lax legal consequences of psychedelic substance use:
The entire state of Oregon decriminalized and legalized medical use.
The following cities have deprioritized arrest and prosecution of psychedelic drug offenses:
Arcata, CA
Oakland, CA
Santa Cruz, CA
Denver, CO
Washington, DC
Cambridge, MA
East Hampton, MA
North Hampton, MA
Somerville, MA
Ann Arbor, MI
Detroit, MI
Washtenaw County, MI
Seattle, WA
In addition to these cities in the US, you can also acquire psilocybin mushrooms without legal risks in some foreign countries like Netherland, Mexico, Costa Rica, Panama, Brazil, Columbia, Thailand, and Indonesia to name a few. International travel with psychedelic substances remains illegal in nearly all circumstances and it is best to avoid the risk.
Word Of Mouth!
Word of mouth remains the most common way psychedelic mushrooms are acquired in the US. However, psychedelic substance purchase is still illegal in much of the US and carries the risk of prosecution. If despite knowledge of the risks you choose to go this route, it is best to ask friends and acquaintances for a trusted source as opposed to making purchases online. Purchasing mushrooms from unvetted sources carry the risk of toxic mold contamination, scam, and legal exposure and is strongly cautioned against.
In closing, it is also important to note that psychedelic mushrooms are held sacred by many traditions and it is imperative that the cultivation, acquisition, and consumption of this sacred medicine is done in a manner that honors the medicine and supports reciprocity with indigenous communities and communities of color disproportionately affected by the War On Drug. Please engage consciously, mindfully, and with reverence; see Mindful Microdosing: Reverence for more details.
