Microdosing mushrooms. Microdosing LSD. Nowadays, it’s not uncommon to hear people talk about microdosing just about anything. But why? What’s the point of microdosing? Does it even do anything? Is it worth your time?
If you’re unfamiliar with microdosing, then this article is for you. We are going to describe for you the wonderful world of microdosing. By the end of the article, you’ll be able to decide whether or not microdosing is for you.
What Is Microdosing?
Like the word suggests, microdosing is the practice of using a very small dose of a substance. Usually, this involves taking a sub-threshold dose, or a dose that doesn’t produce the typical effects associated with a full dose of the substance. Microdosing isn’t enough to produce a high. If you’re trying to microdose and you get high, you’ve taken way too much.
Most people microdose for therapeutic reasons. At sub-threshold doses, the recreational effects of a substance aren’t present. However, some people do find microdosing to be recreational. It can help people manage social anxiety and fatigue, thereby providing an avenue to enjoy more recreational pursuits.
Why Bother Microdosing?
Microdosing is useful because it allows people to enjoy some of the benefits of psychedelics and other substances without needing to commit to the full experience. You can take advantage of many of the cognitive, emotional, and even spiritual benefits of these substances without ever having to get high.
Granted, a microdose won’t ever provide you with the breakthrough mystical experiences that many people associated with drugs like LSD and psilocybin. Regardless, even if you’re just using tiny amounts, the same neurotransmitter systems are activated in your brain. These systems and their interactions with psychedelics are largely responsible for the long-term, therapeutic benefits of usage.
Benefits of Microdosing
There are plenty of reasons that you might want to try a microdose. Whether or not you’re already familiar with psychedelics, you can still enjoy some of the many benefits of this practice. Microdosing can provide immense emotional, mental, and spiritual benefits.
Here are just a few of the many examples.
- Microdosing allows you to take advantage of psychedelics without needing to commit to a full experience. You can microdose before school or work. Many people microdose to improve their mental performance.
- Microdosing activates your neural circuitry. It can help to improve memory, function, and other aspects of your mental health.
- Microdosing can help people manage issues like depression and anxiety. Many people have found that microdosing for anxiety allows them to shift their initial reaction to their anxiety and push through it in a positive manner.
- Microdosing can help to provide energy.
The majority of people who take microdoses of psychedelics report positive improvements. Although most of these results are from self-reported studies, the consensus is that microdoses produce significant changes that are beneficial for overall wellbeing.
Microdosing Psychedelics
When people talk about microdosing, they are generally talking about microdosing psychedelics. It is possible to microdose with other substances, but psychedelics are generally the ones that provide the most benefits even at sub-threshold dosages.
Psychedelics are a very unique class of drugs. Their effects are more profound than other classes of drugs and they tend to produce long-lasting, positive therapeutic changes. This is also true of psychedelics when taken at their full dosage. However, a lot of people don’t have the time or desire to go through with a full psychedelic trip.
Most psychedelics work on the serotonin system in the brain. Serotonin is a neurotransmitter that is heavily involved in a number of different things including mood and cognition. Even subtle changes to serotonin can produce significant changes.
One theory behind the benefits of microdosing is that psychedelics bind to the serotonin 2A receptor in the brain, thus causing the cortex to become excited. When the cortex is excited the brain is encouraged to form new neural connections, thus improving memory recall, cognition, and overall performance.
Microdosing LSD
Many people partake in microdosing LSD. LSD is a very long-lasting substance and, as such, the benefits of a microdose can be felt throughout the day.
LSD was first discovered by Swiss scientist Albert Hofmann, who dreamed of having the substance implemented as a widespread therapeutic agent. Unfortunately, abundant recreational use led to the substance being criminalized.
Nonetheless, LSD is one of the most impressive therapeutic substances. It has been shown to help people work through lifelong problems with depression, anxiety, and PTSD.
Even at the microdose range LSD can produce positive changes in this regard. It can help to shift people’s perspectives and allow them to begin working towards long-term solutions to these sorts of problems.
In addition to this, microdosing LSD can provide users with the typical benefits associated with microdosing: enhanced focus, improved energy, increased cognition, and so on.
Microdosing Mushrooms
Many people prefer microdosing mushrooms. Magic mushrooms are all-natural and have been around for as long as humans have. Animals throughout the world are known to consume magic mushrooms and their therapeutic benefits are well-established.
Mushrooms don’t last for as long as LSD. Many people prefer the shorter duration of mushrooms for their microdoses, especially if they’re considering microdosing for the first time.
Unfortunately, figuring out an exact dosage for microdosing mushrooms can be hard. Each mushroom will have a different amount of psilocybin – the active hallucinogen – inside of it. This makes it impossible to know exactly how strong your microdose will be.
To avoid this, many people opt to use pure psilocybin. Many companies sell pre-weighed psilocybin microdoses using synthetic or extracted psilocybin. While this might take some of the all-natural charm away from the mushrooms, it does allow you to make more consistent decisions when preparing your microdose.
Microdosing THC
Microdosing THC isn’t as popular as microdosing psychedelics, although many people enjoy doing it. THC, one of the main active ingredients found in marijuana, is known for its many therapeutic benefits.
Most people who use THC therapeutically find the most benefit in taking larger doses. This allows the THC to activate the receptors in the body’s endocannabinoid system, thus reducing pain, balancing mood, and restoring the body to a state of balance.
One of the first proponents of microdosing THC was Dr. Allan Frankel, a renowned internist based in Los Angeles. After using marijuana to help heal a heart condition, he decided to do more research into its medicinal benefits.
He realized that many of his patients used incredibly small doses of THC, some using less than 3 mg daily.
Frankel stresses the fact that, with medicine, the best dose is the smallest dose. In regards to marijuana, this means finding a dose that can provide you with therapeutic benefits without causing unwanted side effects such as paranoia, lethargy, and anxiety.
Researchers recommend starting with a single milligram of THC and working your way up until you find a dose that provides the most benefits with the least side effects.
Is Microdosing Safe?
Whether or not microdosing is safe is a matter of concern for anybody considering microdosing. There are a few things to consider.
The first thing to be aware of is that microdosing is a relatively new practice. That means that there hasn’t been enough time for researchers to perform any significant long-term studies. In this sense, the long-term safety of microdosing cannot be known.
However, psychedelics – especially LSD and mushrooms – are generally understood to be quite safe. With the exception of rare cases of psychedelic-induced psychosis (which usually only happens to people who have a family history of psychosis), these psychedelics are quite safe.
They don’t cause harm to the organs of the body and they are unlikely to cause addiction. Some people may become psychologically addicted to the effects of the drugs, but they don’t produce physical dependence in the way that drugs like opioids do.
That said, even microdoses can provoke psychiatric conditions in those who are vulnerable to them. If you have a family history of mental illness, especially psychotic disorders like schizophrenia, then you may want to hold off on microdosing.
Some people may also be prone to side effects resulting from microdosing. Headaches, overstimulation, insomnia and physical discomfort are side effects that have been known to occur.
The lack of research means that we don’t understand exactly how these side effects occur. However, the majority of people don’t experience any side effects at all.
Final Thoughts – Microdosing
People interested in microdosing will be happy to learn that it can provide a huge number of benefits. Microdosing can enhance cognitive performance, improve emotional health, and help increase productivity and effectiveness at school, work, or in your personal life.
If you’re not sure of where to start, just remember one thing: start small. The point of microdosing isn’t to get high, it’s to find the smallest therapeutic dosage of a substance that can still provide benefits.
