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A microdose is a tiny dose of a substance that can lead to big changes.
Though the most popular choices are psilocybin mushrooms and LSD, there are many options when it comes to microdosing. This practice involves taking a small fraction of a “standard” dose with the intention of receiving sub-perceptual or barely perceptual effects.
Different substances and even different varieties of mushrooms can have different effects. Results can vary between individual circumstances, though many people report improvement in mood and a greater sense of well-being among a variety of other benefits.
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WHAT ARE THE BEST SUBSTANCES FOR MICRODOSING?
The most commonly used, well-researched, plus most ethically and sustainably-produced substances for microdosing are lysergic acid diethylamide (LSD) psilocybin And N,N-dimethyltryptamine (DMT) .
MICRODOSING LSD
LSD (Lysergic acid diethylamide) was first synthesized by Albert Hofmann (1906-2008) in 1938. However it wasn’t until April 19th, 1943, as the first to ingest LSD, that he discovered its psychoactive properties.
LSD went on to be an iconic psychedelic drug popularized by Timothy Leary and others as part of the 1960s counterculture movement. LSD is a synthetic psychedelic compound, unlike naturally-occurring psychedelic compounds like psilocybin and psilocin.
It was the twenty-fifth derivative he synthesized from the ergot fungus, hence its more proper name, LSD-25. LSD is the most potent psychedelic agent in humans. It belongs to the ergoline family of psychedelic compounds, also called rigidified tryptamines.
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Why Microdose LSD?
Individuals who have integrated microdosing LSD into their weekly routine report increased focus, sharper senses, higher levels of creativity, more energy, and improved relational skills, as well as reduced symptoms of depression. Some also report that microdosing LSD has helped them engage with spirituality.
There is still much research to be done on LSD microdosing. Some studies have come out centered around self-reported research. In May 2019, the results of a double-blind study focused on the acute behavioral effects of microdosing and found that “single microdoses of LSD produced orderly dose-related subjective effects in healthy volunteers [and] that a threshold dose of 13μg of LSD might be used safely in an investigation of repeated administrations.” In other words, clinical research has proven that microdosing LSD is not a placebo.
A recent survey over 1000 people, from 59 countries who microdosed LSD for at least one week and up to four months found that these people reported elevated mood, decreases in depression, increases in energy and productivity, and adoption of better health habits. Another study also found that microdosing LSD can boost creativity and problem solving skills in healthy individuals.
How To Microdose LSD
The onset of effects from an oral dose of LSD is about 30-45 minutes. Peak effects occur 1-3 hours after oral administration. The duration of effects is dose-dependent: 6-8 hours at low doses and up to 10-12 hours at full/high doses. LSD is quickly distributed from the blood plasma into the body tissues and is ultimately metabolized in the liver.
Experts in this area suggest a few different microdosing regimens, but we recommend sticking with one of the most popular: Fadiman’s system. Fadiman recommends taking a microdose once every three days: Take a microdose on Day 1. Then, do not take a microdose on Day 2 or Day 3. On Day 4, take another microdose. Continue this process for several weeks.
For most people, morning is the best time because the beneficial effects will last throughout the day and then taper off before the evening, thus not interfering with sleep. It’s also helpful to take daily notes in a journal to observe the effects throughout this process and adjust accordingly—or just notice the positive changes.
It’s also important to follow your usual routine while microdosing. The purpose is to enhance your day-to-day existence by integrating microdoses into your routine, so don’t change what you normally do. However, when you try microdosing for the first time, take a day off from work and social commitments. This will give you a chance to notice any unusual effects before microdosing in a more public situation.
While it may seem like you would only feel the effects of the microdose on the days you actually take it, try to observe the effect on the two days between doses, too. Many people perceive increased feelings of flow, creativity, and energy the day after they microdose in addition to the day of microdosing.
Microdosing every day is not recommended. Because your body produces a tolerance to LSD, you might see diminishing returns after a few days if they are taken every day. This is why Fadiman suggests leaving a couple of days between each dose. Plus, the fact that positive effects can sometimes be felt many days after a microdose is a good reason to space out your doses.
MICRODOSING PSILOCYBIN
Preparing psilocybin mushrooms or psilocybin truffles for microdosing involves more steps than microdosing with LSD but is still straightforward. The trickiest part is estimating how much psilocybin is in a particular mushroom. Different species and strains of mushrooms will not only have different quantities of psilocybin, but fresh and dried psilocybin mushrooms do, too. Even different parts of the mushroom can contain slightly different amounts.
What Are The Benefits Of Psilocybin Microdosing?
Psilocybin can help to overcome fear response, depression, anxiety, and the symptoms of mental health conditions, while also improving cognition and creativity.
To reduce the frequency and intensity of undesirable states caused by various forms of mental illness including:
- Depression
- Anxiety
- ADD/ADHD
- Mood disorders
- PTSD
- Addiction
or,
To increase the frequency and intensity of desirable states/outcomes:
- Creativity
- Energy
- Flow states
- Productivity/focus
- Improved relationships/increased empathy
- Athletic coordination
- Leadership development
Reported benefits of microdosing include:
- Improved Mood – Peacefulness, overall well-being, calmness, happiness, and a reduction in the symptoms of depression. It also includes more emotional connection, a general sense of optimism, and an improved outlook on life.
- Improved Focus – Covers skill sets like the ability to focus or concentrate and enhanced self-awareness.
- Creativity – Aside from a general sense of improved creativity, this also includes behaviors such as being more open, enhanced curiosity, ability to shift perspectives, and divergent thinking.
- Self-Efficacy – This applies to such behaviors as ambition, self-motivation, self-confidence, and a sense of agency. It also relates to improved mental health, including increased introspection, the practice of meditation, and other aspects of behaviors tied to self-care.
- Improved Energy – In this case, “energy” refers to things like mental stimulation, wakefulness, and alertness.
- Social Benefits – Outside of more engagement with others, this category also includes more empathy, a greater sense of connection, and more extroversion.
- Cognitive Benefits – When microdosing, the user experience heightened mental clarity, better memory recall, and an improvement in problem-solving ability.
- Reduced Anxiety – This applies to a reduction in both general and social anxiety.
- Physiological Enhancement – Includes enhanced visual acuity, cardio endurance, reduction of migraines and headaches, and higher quality of sleep.
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Microdosing Cannabis
Microdosing cannabis is relatively easy, once you find your ideal dose. While it’s possible to microdose cannabis by smoking or vaping, we’ve found that the simplest and most reliable method is by using low-dose edibles. The Marijuana Policy Project has designated 10mg of THC as a standard dose per serving, so anything below that can be considered low-dose.
Products that call themselves low-dose tend to be in the 1mg to 5mg of THC range. We tend to recommend 2.5mg as a good starting point for microdosing, but always experiment to see what is best for you. Potency levels vary greatly between products and brands, and everyone’s personal tolerance level is unique. As a general rule, it’s best to take it slow and steady. After taking a microdose, wait at least two hours to see the full effects before taking more. This precaution is crucial with edibles, as they can take a relatively long time to take effect.
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San Pedro
The San Pedro cactus (Trichocereus/Echinopsis pachanoi) is a type of cactus that has been used for healing and religious divination in the Andes Mountains region for over 3,000 years. San Pedro or Huachuma as it is traditionally known is a light green, nearly spineless variant of the cactus family. It features nocturnal blossoms and can grow more than five meters tall. Its native environment is high on the hills of the Andes mountains some 6 500 to 9 700 feet above sea level. It’s known to be one of the most powerful natural psychedelics on earth. The San Pedro cactus is named after Saint Peter, the patron saint of gatekeepers and travellers.
In ancient times, shamans would use this natural psychedelic to communicate with their ancestors and also help bring about healing in people who were sick or had mental health struggles like depression. In a traditional setting, the medicine is typically prepared as a tea; pieces of the stem are boiled for a few hours, and once the liquid is cooled it is taken orally.
The Effects of San Pedro
San Pedro Cactus is known as a gentle, powerful Masculine teacher plant. The active ingredient in San Pedro cactus is mescaline.
Mescaline also activates serotonin and dopamine receptors, which could help boost mood and treat depression. In fact, one of the traditional therapeutic uses for peyote was as an antidepressant, and depression scores are reportedly low among members of the Native American Church, where peyote use is common.
In large doses, it gives its users an intense feeling of euphoria as well as visual effects from hallucinations to out-of-body experiences.
San Pedro is a tool for meditation and self-awareness, helping to clear past wounds and enable a more heart-entered way of being. It can bring limiting thoughts and beliefs to the surface of one’s consciousness; what no longer serves our highest good has the opportunity to be released.
Through purifying and balancing the body, mind, and spirit, it facilitates the expansion of consciousness and makes room for more lightness in our life experience. Freeing ourselves of our limitations helps us feel a greater sense well-being, love and affinity for others, and a deeper connectedness with Mother Earth.
Many users find mescaline more consistently reliable than LSD and psilocybin and find that the personal benefit can also be greater. In essence, other psychedelics including LSD feel as though you are guided through your day, whereas San Pedro gives you the feeling that you are guiding your day. San Pedro also lacks the edginess of other stimulants allowing for more fluid management of your day.
Self-experimenters around the world are reporting a much wider range of benefits. These include personal insights, mood enhancement, increased empathy and creativity, lifestyle changes, and even lucid dreams. Most people find also mescaline personally or spiritually transformative, and many emerge with a lasting appreciation for the interconnectedness of all life in the universe, and of their role within it.
Some find it useful for treating the symptoms or even the underlying causes of depression, experiencing a sense of peace and calm without the “numbness” of conventional medications. For others, it has the opposite effect of actually sharpening the senses and enhancing mental clarity. Mescaline can make it easier to get into your flow state.
Mescaline could also help reduce suicidal thoughts, using data, the researchers found that people who have used a psychedelic drug at least once in their life show lower rates of suicidal thinking.
A 2013 study also found that lifetime mescaline or peyote use was significantly linked to a lower rate of agoraphobia, an anxiety disorder where subjects perceive their surrounding environment to be threatening.
Dosing
For this blend, 1-2 capsules is considered to be a micro dose, however some users may require 3-4. It is suggested to follow the Fadiman protocol of once every 3-4 days. This product can be taken more frequently however tolerance will grow quickly.This product is best consumed on an empty stomach.
After consuming San Pedro, most people start to feel the effects within 15-40 minutes, but it could take up to three hours to peak. Coming down can take another three hours, and the whole experience usually lasts 10 hours or so. San Pedro is best taken in the morning as it usually leaves a lasting afterglow, which can make it difficult to sleep after the effects wear off.
Pure mescaline, either synthetic or isolated from a natural source, requires relatively high doses to achieve its full psychedelic effects. We don’t advise attempting a full dose with this product as it would consist of upward of 40 capsules for a woman and 60 capsules for a man.
Microdosing DMT
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The most popular method of consuming DMT is through smoking, with vaporization currently being the top option as it prevents the DMT from being heated past the point of efficacy – DMT crystals are exceptionally heat-sensitive.
Freebasing, whereby DMT is simply smoked out of a pipe, is also a popular method that has persisted long before vaporization technology became affordable and is the most cost-friendly.
A starter dose for those wanting to simply try to feel the initial onset of effects – dipping their toes into the water of this enigmatic experience – hovers around the 10-20mg range. While such a low dosage isn’t enough to cause hallucinations or the kind of euphoric revelations that are typically associated with DMT, it can cause a distortion of some sensory experience, lasting only a few minutes at most.
In the higher range, from 25-40mg, one can expect the often-sought breakthroughs to happen, along with visualizations and changes to auditory perceptions as well as a shift in temporal perception. A dose of 40mg or higher is certain to provoke a revelatory experience, lasting anywhere from 5 to 30 minutes at the most.
The experience brought on by a breakthrough DMT dose is potent to say the least, facilitating a different interfacing with reality that many people would have a hard time explaining. From conversations with ephemeral beings to observations of geometric harmony, those who have tried DMT will be afforded a glimpse of the world from such a radically different perspective unlike any they’ve experienced before.
