Magic mushrooms remain one of the least understood psychedelic substances, due to their indefinable effects and widespread mycophobia – often mistaken for “hippie excess”. Still, hallucinogens like magic mushrooms possess mind-altering potential that has yet to receive the respect accorded other ancient drugs like Ayahuasca or Peyote.

But things are starting to change. With more people discovering how adaptogenic herbs like Lion’s Mane and Reishi can harness their healing powers, more people are looking for ways to harness them – leading them to search out psychoactive and entheogenic substances as an opportunity.

Psilocybin, the active compound found in magic mushrooms, has long been considered an effective means for unlocking the mind-brain puzzle that has bedevilled some of history’s great thinkers and philosophers for centuries. 2023 marks Oregonians’ first legal opportunity to participate in legal psilocybin sessions at state-licensed “trip centers”.

Psilocybin has very low toxicity; you would need to ingest your entire body weight in mushrooms in order to become toxic, though even then its effects would likely only last briefly. Although its use can result in psychological side-effects (psychonaut pioneer Stanislav Grof noted two instances from over 3,000 sessions of using it), its risks are far less dangerous than drugs like heroin and cocaine.

People in the US and elsewhere are finding more convenient and creative ways to experience psychedelics, including taking psychedelic tea – which offers a gentle way to microdose. Furthermore, this method makes dosage management much simpler than smoking marijuana which can often become unpredictable and messy.

The highest-grade psychedelic teas are composed of carefully chosen plants and herbs with mind-expanding effects, such as mescaline extracted from Peyote and San Pedro cacti. Mescaline produces an intense visual and mental trip, depending on the dose taken. Making mescaline tea involves preparing cacti and simmering them for several hours until brewing mescaline tea becomes available to use. Blue lotus flowers also can be turned into potency tea beverages. Effects take time to kick in, but they’re worth the wait. Once they do arrive, however, the effects can be powerfully narcotic and lead to sleepiness; therefore it is recommended that small quantities be consumed gradually throughout the day. To learn how to prepare psychedelic tea check out our full article here.