The time period ‘shrooms’ is used primarily to indicate psilocybin mushrooms, additionally known as ‘magic mushrooms’. Nonetheless, there’s one other complete class of shrooms, which under no circumstances resembles normal magic mushrooms. They go by two names: fly agaric and Amanita muscaria. In relation to fly agaric vs psilocybin mushrooms, they supply completely different advantages, which suggests one kind is likely to be higher for customers than the opposite.
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Psilocybin mushrooms
Psilocybin mushrooms – AKA magic mushrooms, are a grouping of fungi that comprise psilocybin and psilocin. Whereas it’s not all the time understood properly, it’s really solely psilocin that issues by way of hallucinogenic response, as psilocybin is a prodrug (compound that have to be metabolized to trigger results) that metabolizes into the psilocin within the physique. Psilocin is hallucinogenic, and might create sensory experiences that don’t really exist. This implies listening to, seeing, smelling, tasting, or feeling one thing which isn’t taking place. These mushrooms are additionally related to bringing on emotions of euphoria, connectedness, spirituality, total well-being, and for altering notion.
Psilocin is a serotonergic compound, which suggests it’s an agonist on serotonin receptors. An agonist is one thing that prompts a receptor, and makes it work extra. That is just like different psychedelic hallucinogens like LSD, MDMA, and DMT. All of those medication are actually eyed for his or her medical advantages, notably with psychiatric problems.
Nonetheless, all of them include one adverse, and its one thing that needs to be thought of by those that is likely to be extra inclined to this adverse: nervousness. This may sound bizarre, since a few of these medication are stated to assist with nervousness, but it surely additionally needs to be remembered that nervousness comes from completely different locations and is skilled in several methods. Anxiousness whereas experiencing an sickness, for instance, just isn’t the identical as rising up with a extreme nervousness dysfunction which may come from years of abuse.

We name these episodes ‘dangerous journeys’. They’re characterised by adverse hallucinations, which themselves are an indication of tension. Unhealthy journeys are basically nothing greater than panic/nervousness assaults introduced on by the stimulant results of the medication, although this isn’t typically clarified properly. We all know that psilocin raises serotonin, and serotonin will increase coronary heart price and blood strain. Think about in case you’re somebody with nervousness, or very delicate to stimulants, the flexibility to have your coronary heart price and blood strain elevated, can simply set off an assault.
I’m the type of one that has a tough time with these medication, as I’m extremely delicate to stimulants. Whereas I completely get how they’re useful for some folks, and whereas I’ve had a pair fascinating experiences, the difficulty I’ve is that the stimulant impact they trigger, for me primarily outweighs different results. So even when psilocin has nice results that may assist with every kind of issues, these results are tougher to entry for somebody like me, who will instantly reply to the stimulant impact. And it’s not prone to matter a lot if I take them in a relaxed state or not, as a result of they’ll routinely push me right into a stimulated state, making nevertheless I began, not relevant.
Even for an individual who doesn’t have an nervousness problem or sensitivity to stimulants, taking an excessive amount of can nonetheless trigger this impact. Consider any stimulant drug. Individuals who have methods that deal with them properly, will deal with them properly, but when they take an excessive amount of, they’re liable to freak out too. That psychedelics trigger a stimulant impact, may properly be a superb purpose for some to not use them. However fortunately, there are different choices on the planet of hallucinogens, apart from psychedelics.
Fly agaric mushrooms
We use the time period ‘psychedelics’ a bit extra liberally than we must always. Technically, ‘psychedelics’ refers to a category of hallucinogens that are serotonergic. However that doesn’t imply all hallucinogens are psychedelics. Ketamine and PCP are usually not psychedelics, they’re dissociative hallucinogens, and scopolamine – the drug blown in folks’s faces to make them docile and straightforward to rob, is a deliriant hallucinogen.
The fact is that there are extra sorts of hallucinogens than this, they usually can happen with compounds that impact different neurotransmitters as properly. Psychedelics are serotonergic, dissociative are dopaminergic, and deliriants are anticholinergic. These three courses of hallucinogens work totally on completely different neurotransmitters, and due to this fact, give completely different results, whereas all retaining the flexibility to trigger hallucinations.
So if there are compounds that create serotonin, dopamine, and acetylcholine-related hallucinogens, what about different neurotransmitters? Like GABA? GABA – gamma-aminobutyric acid, is the neurotransmitter most related to leisure. Benzodiazepines, and their beforehand well-liked sedative compatriots Quaaludes and barbiturates, additionally work on GABA. GABA is stress-free as a result of it reduces neuronal excitability within the nervous system. Whereas serotonin is understood to extend coronary heart price, GABA is understood to sluggish it down. Serotonergic medication due to this fact usually tend to include a stimulant impact, whereas a GABAergic drug, may have a relaxing one.

Fly agaric mushrooms – also referred to as Amanita muscaria, match into the class of GABAergic compounds that may trigger hallucinations. They’re simply not formally known as ‘hallucinogens’. As a substitute they’re known as ‘toxic mushrooms’. That is simply semantics although, as psilocybin mushrooms are additionally toxic mushrooms, and neither are recognized to really trigger dying. Generally in taxonomy (the classification of every little thing in science), issues can get a bit complicated.
Fly agaric mushrooms comprise no psilocybin, however as a substitute comprise ibotenic acid and muscimol. In some methods they’re nearly extra well-known than psilocybin mushrooms: suppose Tremendous Mario Brothers, and the traditional image of a psychedelic mushroom with a giant pink cap and white spots…that’s a fly agaric mushroom. They’re even arguably the rationale for lots of Christmas mythology together with Santa Clause and flying reindeer.
Ibotenic acid is a neurotoxin in excessive quantities, and has a mode of motion on glutamate receptors. It’s damaged down by the liver into muscimol, the opposite essential element of those mushrooms. Muscimol is a powerful GABA agonist, that means it forces the mind to launch extra GABA, which calms the physique down. Whereas a number of medication can work as agonists on GABA receptors, muscimol has a bonus of binding on to GABAA receptors, as GABA does itself. That is not like benzodiazepines and barbiturates, which bind to separate receptors elsewhere. Muscimol additionally results a couple of GABA subtype, giving it a mixed and stronger response within the mind.
Muscimol is understood for offering sedative-hypnotic results, and is usually in comparison with Z-drugs (like Ambien) in that in greater doses it causes euphoria, dream-like states, attainable out-of-body experiences, and synesthesia. I typically surprise if Ambien was modeled indirectly off of muscimol, as plant compounds themselves can’t be patented when found within the wild (as fly agaric mushrooms have been), requiring pharma corporations to create comparable compounds that they will use.
Fly agaric vs psilocybin mushrooms
One of many fascinating issues about fly agaric mushrooms is that they’re not Schedule I like psilocybin mushrooms; which might be as a result of they don’t originate within the US, and are much less well-known. It’s now attainable to search out them within the States, and subsequent to their look, they’ve entered the overall dialog. I count on their continued legalization stems from the rising acceptance of entheogenic vegetation; as illegalizing them now may get them extra consideration than regulatory our bodies need. Its onerous to regulate using a plant that grows simply within the wild (consider cannabis).
It shouldn’t be anticipated that fly agaric and psilocybin mushrooms produce the identical results, because the chemical compounds driving the responses are wildly completely different. Nonetheless, they each work as hallucinogenic mushrooms, and each have a historical past of makes use of in several cultures for each non secular and medicinal functions.

Psilocybin mushrooms maintain an individual up for hours due to that stimulant impact. Fly agaric mushrooms are related to easing stress and nervousness, serving to with muscular ache, and by selling restorative sleep. They’re almost opposites in that method. In keeping with an interview with Jeff Stevens, the CEO of Psyched Wellness – a Canadian Life Sciences Firm at present producing the primary authorised fly agaric product, dangerous reactions are extra about ibotenic acid. He says issues come up when “the ibotenic acid just isn’t transformed to muscimol”, at which level, “it could actually present fairly a nasty expertise together with sweating, nausea, lack of stability and involuntary bodily actions.”
By way of his firm’s analysis into muscimol, Stevens stated his firm is it for “indications for numerous psychological and bodily well being points, together with sleep, insomnia, dependancy and ache. Our preliminary product might be a tincture designed to supply customers with a relaxing and stress-free impact.”
Conclusion
These on the lookout for a hallucinogenic expertise – for medicinal worth or funsies – and who particularly need to keep away from the nervousness of a foul journey, ought to do not forget that there are completely different hallucinogens, they usually’re not all stimulants. If you’d like the ‘downer’ hallucinogenic expertise as a substitute of the ‘higher’ model, one thing like fly agaric mushrooms, or ketamine, is likely to be your hallucinogens of selection.
It’s all the time good to know concerning the drug you’re doing, and fortuitously, with psychedelics/hallucinogens turning into extra socially acceptable, extra data is accessible. Although psilocybin mushrooms, and different serotonergic hallucinogens, is likely to be nice for some folks, that complete concept of a ‘dangerous journey’ is necessary; and that it basically resembles an nervousness assault. In the event you’re somebody vulnerable to nervousness, or tremendous delicate to stimulants, contemplate which hallucinogen is greatest on your explicit scenario. In spite of everything, you’ve received a whole lot of choices, and there’s no level in having a foul journey.
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