New Magic Shrooms Research Suggests Weeks-Long Brain Disruption Might Help Mental Health

As researchers investigate the effects of psilocybin on the brain, they continue to uncover increasingly surprising findings. A 2023 study from Washington University found that psilocybin can reduce activity in the brain area responsible for memory and perception for more than a week. This prolonged disruption may correlate to the substance’s antidepressant effects.

This new finding provides mental health patients with more treatment options. The brain’s increased plasticity and the antidepressant effects may offer longer-lasting benefits compared to traditional medications. It is also affordable to access it through shrooms online.

Key Takeaways:

• Desynchronization acts as a reset for people with depression to develop healthier and more dynamic connectivity.
• It aids in treating depression, anxiety, PTSD, and addiction by enhancing neuroplasticity and modifying connectivity.
• Depressed patients find that a single dose can increase positive attitudes, mood, and behaviour.

What Are Magic Mushrooms?

These fungi contain psychoactive components, primarily psilocybin and psilocin, which can induce altered states of consciousness. This alteration can lead to visual and auditory hallucinations, changes in perception, and profound emotional experiences. 

They have been used for centuries in various cultural and spiritual practices and are commonly referred to by names such as “shrooms,” “mushies,” or “hongos.” 

The Psychoactive Substance

The most interesting aspect of this fungi is its psychoactive substance. Once ingested, it converts into psilocin, which interacts with serotonin receptors (5-HT2A receptor). This interaction leads to alteration in brain connectivity and perception, which contributes to the psychedelic impact and potential therapeutic benefits.

It disrupts regular connectivity, which leads to increased communication between previously disconnected brain regions to foster new perspectives and enhance mental flexibility. This disruption, while creating a temporary state of altered consciousness, facilitates profound insights that can be therapeutic for conditions like depression, PTSD, and anxiety.

Multiple clinical trials have studied this compound; even Health Canada has recognized it as a breakthrough medicine.

New Research on Brain’s Activity During and After Intake

A study by the Washington University School of Medicine investigated the acute and long-term neurobiological and psychological impact of psilocybin. It aimed to understand how these substances affect synaptic connections and whether it will persist.

Methods

Healthy young adults received psilocybin and methylphenidate on separate days and underwent regular MRI sessions (about 18 times) before, during, between, and after each drug dose.

Functional MRI (fMRI) was employed to monitor synaptic connections and activity at multiple time points. This allowed for a detailed assessment of acute and persistent cerebrum network results.

Participants complete a simple auditory-visual matching task while in the scanner. They performed this task with high accuracy during the drug sessions.

Key Findings

• Acute Changes: Disrupted connectivity across cortical and subcortical networks with more than 3-fold greater changes than methylphenidate.
• Desynchronization: There was a significant decrease in synchronicity within the network, known as the “default mode network.” This network includes interconnected regions such as the thalamus, basal ganglia, cerebellum, and hippocampus. It is most active during self-reflection and mind-wandering rather than focusing on specific tasks.
• Task Impact: Responses during the auditory-visual matching task remained unchanged under the active substance. The observed changes in functional connectivity are unlikely due to altered neurovascular coupling.
• Long-Term Effects: For weeks, the connection between the anterior hippocampus and DMN persistently decreased but normalized after 6 months.
• Methylphenidate results have acute changes that produce fewer and less significant changes in cerebrum connectivity. 

What Experts Think

Dr. Joshua Siegel, a psychiatrist at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis and lead author of the study, suggests that psilocybin promotes a more flexible style of connectivity, which may help in treating depression. By making the brain more adaptable, it could facilitate long-term changes in cognition. This desynchronization may act as a reset for people with mood disorders to develop healthier and more dynamic connectivity.

How Psilocybin Affects the Brain

The active compound distorts people’s sense of time and space and alters their feelings of connection to the world around them. Although these subjective experiences generally diminish quickly.

It affects cells that respond to serotonin, a key chemical messenger. Briefly activating receptors in areas with high density, like the medial frontal lobe, triggers long-lasting effects. This activation loosens established pathways and promotes the formation of new connections.

Desynchronization decreased when participants performed a simple word-picture matching task, as the default mode network was inactive during this task. This might explain why minimizing external stimuli—such as using eyeshades—can help fully engage with their psychedelic experience.

Lasting Impact on Brain Disruption 

While the immediate effects fade as the drug wears off, the study above found that disruptions in connectivity between the DMN and the anterior hippocampus—a region associated with memory and emotion—can last for several weeks. 

This prolonged alteration may promote cerebrum plasticity, potentially facilitating long-term cognitive and emotional processing changes. These lasting experiences may contribute to its therapeutic potential. 

Dr. Petros Petridis, a psychiatrist at NYU Langone Center for Psychedelic Medicine, explains, “Psilocybin could open the door to change, which allows the therapist to guide the patient through it.”

Mental Health Conditions That Might Benefit 

The effects may extend to emotional processing, with alterations in the activity of cerebrum regions involved in emotion regulation. For example, it can affect the amygdala, an area for processing emotions, potentially leading to changes in emotional responses and mood.

These changes in emotional responses might target some common mental health issues encountered by many Canadians.

• Depression: After 2 months post-drug sessions and 14 months follow-up of moderate to high doses, it increases positive attitudes, mood, and behaviour.
• Anxiety Disorders: Might help reduce anxiety, particularly existential or end-of-life anxiety, by altering the perception of self and reality. This change may lead to more profound acceptance and understanding of one’s fears.
• Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD): Helps rapidly and sustainably reduce the emotional response to traumatic memories by facilitating fear extinction. It may promote hippocampal neuroplasticity, which enhances the brain’s ability to form new connections and adapt.
• Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder (OCD): By disrupting rigid neural circuits and promoting cognitive flexibility, it may help decrease obsessive thoughts and compulsive behaviours.
• Substance Use Disorders: Might support addiction recovery by providing profound insights into the nature of addiction and facilitating a shift in perspective.

Magic Mushroom Selection to Aid in Depression Symptoms

Looking for shroom products to help with depression? This selection of Psilocybe cubensis, known for its use in spiritual and religious ceremonies, offers reliable strains.

Aside from the dried psilocybin-containing mushrooms, consuming magic mushrooms can also be done through shroom edibles, shroom tea and other forms. Check these products for convenience: 

• Wonder – Chocolate Bar – Birthday Cake
• Wonder – Gummies – Cherry Cola – 3000mg
• Bright Future – Dark Chocolate & Sea Salt – 3000mg

Alleviate Your Anxiety, Depression and PTSD with Safe Shrooms Online

This discovery about how the active compound in Psilocybe cubensis affects the brain provides researchers with a better understanding of its effect on mental health. The week-long disruption can induce a temporary altered state of consciousness. This psychedelic journey can facilitate profound insights and offer benefits for conditions such as depression, PTSD, and anxiety.

Need to find where to buy shrooms online in Canada? Zoomies Canada focuses on enhancing mental well-being by offering only premium magic mushrooms as a potential therapeutic aid for anxiety, depression, and PTSD. Our carefully curated selection of online magic mushrooms aims to harness the unique properties of these fungi.

Frequently Asked Questions

Will combining Psilocybe with antidepressants lead to better outcomes?

There is currently insufficient evidence to suggest a toxic interaction between antidepressants (SSRIs or others) and Psilocybes. The active compound does not also increase the risk of serotonin syndrome when combined with a single antidepressant. Most modern clinical studies involving shrooms ask participants to taper off SSRIs or exclude them from the study.

Can I microdose Psilocybe shrooms?

If you are not interested in tripping with dried shrooms, you can try microdosing.

Microdosing magic mushrooms involves taking very small, sub-threshold doses of psilocybin mushrooms, around 1/10th to 1/20th of a standard recreational dose. To microdose magic mushrooms, here is an example: 

• Obtain and Prepare: Source shrooms and grind them into a fine powder.
• Determine Dosage: Measure approximately 0.1 to 0.3 grams (100-300 mg) of dried shrooms.
• Create a Dosing Schedule: Follow a consistent regimen, such as dosing every third day or a two-day-on, one-day-off pattern.
• Measure and Consume: Use a precision scale for accurate measurement and consider consuming the dose on an empty stomach.
• Monitor and Adjust: Keep a journal of your experiences and adjust the dose or schedule based on your observations.

Is it safe to buy magic mushrooms online for therapeutic use? 

Buying online is the safest option you have rather than from shady dealers.

• Read detailed information about the products, including their source and quality. Reliable vendors offer lab testing results or other assurances to verify the authenticity and purity of their psychedelic mushrooms.
• Your payment and information are secure with website encryption that protects your personal and financial information.
• In order not to consume poisonous varieties, purchase them only from reliable sources. Check customer reviews and contact the dispensary to verify their reliability.

Related Articles:

• How Do Dried Shrooms Compare to Other Psychedelics?