What to Expect from a Magic Mushroom Trip

Stages of shrooms can take you on a journey unlike any other. A mushroom trip lasts in phases, bringing unique sensations and emotions. Understanding each stage helps you prepare for the effects psilocybin can have on your mind and body.

Eating psychedelic mushrooms can be unpredictable in unsafe settings or with high doses. This guide will walk you through the common stages of a shrooms trip so you can make informed choices and approach them appropriately.

What is a Magic Mushroom Trip?

It is a psychedelic experience induced by consuming psychedelic mushrooms, a psychoactive compound. It’s a journey through altered states of consciousness. Characterized by intense hallucinations, profound emotional experiences, and changed perceptions of time and space. The duration and intensity can vary depending on the dose, individual sensitivity, and setting.

What to Expect from a Magic Mushroom Trip

While experiences can vary, a common pattern emerges in psychedelic mushroom trips. Based on collective experience, the following phases may serve as a general guide for newcomers. Remember that these stages depend on dosage and the potency of the specific fungi.

Phase #1– The Ingestion

First, get fully comfortable (both physically and mentally). Ensure you don’t have an empty stomach and have a glass or bottle of water handy. Taking magic mushrooms on an empty stomach can make you nauseous. Even though eating a bit before your psychedelic experience may mean it takes a bit longer to feel the effects. 

You can consume dried mushrooms in capsule form, ingest raw mushrooms directly, grind them into a powder, or even make a mushroom tea. It takes an hour to begin to feel the psychedelic effects.

How Does Consuming a Psilocybin Mushroom Work?

Psychedelics stimulate serotonin receptors in the prefrontal cortex. This receptor activation changes the brain’s neural activity in areas responsible for mood regulation, perception, and cognition. Eating mushrooms induces a range of effects mentioned above.

The exact mechanisms underlying the effects of consuming shrooms are still not fully understood. Psilocybin increases plasticity, forming new neural connections and enhancing communication between different brain regions. This connectivity may account for the unique cognitive and perceptual reactions experienced when taking shrooms.

How to Have a Good Shroom Trip?

• Choose a calm and safe space where you feel relaxed. Remove distractions and surround yourself with trusted friends for guidance.
• Think about your intentions before taking it. Stay positive, be open to self-discovery, and address any worries beforehand to reduce the chance of an uncomfortable journey.
• Take a low to moderate dose to understand how the substances affect you. It’s better to start small and adjust later if needed.
• Drink water and eat a light meal before tripping. Avoid heavy, greasy foods to stay comfortable.
• Relax and let the shrooms guide your journey. Fighting the urge can cause anxiety, so try to go with the flow and trust the process.
• Use the session as a chance for self-reflection. Journaling your thoughts and feelings can help manage the experience later.
• If possible, connect with nature. Walking or sitting outdoors can deepen your experience and enhance feelings of connection.
• Music and art can enhance euphoric feelings. Play calming or uplifting tunes and try creative activities like drawing or writing to express yourself.

Phase #2– The Onset

The onset time is when you begin to feel the effects of psilocybin mushrooms. This psychedelic mushroom trip lasts between one to three hours. It is a good idea to engage appropriately during this time. 

For first-time psychedelic mushroom users, it’s normal to feel caught in a mental loop of figuring out if you’re actually tripping.

As the shroom high builds, you’ll notice enhanced psychoactive effects. There will be some small but new and altered perceptions. You may start to endure an altered state of consciousness, distorted sense, and time distortion. Therefore, before starting, take extreme caution and time to research for the expected intense experience.

Phase #3– The Peak

The peak effects occurring during a shroom encounter are what most people imagine when taking mushrooms. This phase begins about 2 to 3 hours after consuming shrooms. The shroom journey can last about six hours, with the most intense effects happening during this stage. 

Due to the psychoactive compounds interacting with serotonin receptors in the brain, you may lose your sense of time, so the session feels shorter or longer than it is.

You might notice intense visual, auditory, and physical hallucinations during the peak. These could include seeing objects ripple, colours intensify, or patterns emerge, even from ordinary surfaces. Some hallucinations involve perceiving things that aren’t there, while others distort real objects. 

Your senses heighten, and textures may feel entirely different. Positive experiences can also occur. These can include euphoria, a deep connection to nature, and empathy toward people, animals, or plants. 

Individual factors such as body weight, overall health, and the mushroom species (like Psilocybe cubensis) can shape your journey. To ensure a positive experience, approach this stage with extreme caution. Seek aid from your sitter if you begin to have a bad trip or experience anxiety, high blood pressure, or panic attacks.

Phase #4– The Comedown

The comedown is when the effect of psilocybin fades. This phase lasts about one to two hours. Much like the onset, the transition is gradual but reversed this time. 

Hallucinations, heightened emotions, and feelings of connectedness begin to dissolve. Research suggests the comedown may feel reflective as you process the journey. Different species all offer insights into your state of mind.

After the reactions wear off, you might feel tired, sluggish, or mentally foggy (like jetlag). Various factors, such as the type of strains consumed and whether other substances (avoid if you can due to health risks) were involved, can influence how you feel during this phase. 

To ease the process, activities like journaling, drawing, or taking a walk can promote well-being. Staying hydrated and consuming vitamin C-rich foods like orange juice may also help. 

While some users might already be thinking about their next session, reflect on several factors and recognize the potential health of psychoactive substance use, such as substance use disorders.

How Long Does Shrooms Trip Lasts

Shrooms, aka magic mushrooms, last 4 to 6 hours. The session’s length depends on factors like the amount of mushrooms consumed, their strength, and your metabolism. A sub-perceptual dose is enough for microdosing. Microdosing involves taking small doses with much milder and shorter outcomes than a full dose.

The body starts to detect shroom metabolites shortly after ingestion, with the intensity building over the first two hours. The peak will then come shortly. You can eliminate shroom metabolites faster depending on one’s metabolism and tolerance. To avoid a bad shroom trip, beginners must start with a low dose and be in a familiar environment.