Magic Mushrooms Are All Over The News, But How To Access?
There is significant interest in mushrooms for cancer pain, probably due to the recent portrayal in media on CNN by Lisa Ling and shows like the popular series The Mind Explained on Netflix. Both shows featured cancer patients talking about their experience with psilocybin, the active ingredient in magic mushrooms. The testimonies are promising. Watching a show like this probably left a many people wondering, how do I access something like this for myself or my loved ones?
Not A Curative Treatment
To my knowledge, magic mushrooms do not treat or cure cancer. There is no evidence to support a theory that they do. Psychedelics do have some rather powerful and unique anti-inflammatory properties, but available research is limited. Taking mushrooms may have many benefits, but it is not a curative treatment.
Supportive Role In Palliative Care
Magic mushrooms can play a supportive role in palliative care, the branch of medicine dedicated to improving the quality of life for people struggling with a serious life-threatening illness. The pain-relieving effects are not accompanied by the bothersome side effects associated with opiates. Muddled thinking and digestive issues are not a concern. Many users also report an improved sense of wellbeing and an improved relationship with the deep existential issues that often arise with having a serious illness. In fact, the antidepressant effects of these mushrooms is the main focus for current research.
What Does This Look Like In Practice?
What does the use of magic mushrooms to manage pain actually “look” like in practice? People do not ask this nearly as often as they should. I imagine that in general everyone imagines we are just hallucinating all the time and dancing around in drum circles like Woodstock when they hear about “using magic mushrooms for pain”. This is far from reality, in fact, one of the most valuable aspects of psilocybin (the active ingredient in magic mushrooms) is that it provides pain relief for a significant period AFTER the psychoactive effects have worn off. This allows you to enjoy the pain relief with a clear head.
Individuals figure out a dosing schedule that works for them, some get a few days of pain relief from a dose while others get a few weeks or months. The mileage varies for everyone It depends on their situation and condition. But no, none of us are “tripping” through life in a constant psychedelic state. That would be exhausting.
Making A Plan
Planning to incorporate magic mushrooms into a care plan can be tricky. Due to their legal status in many places, they can be difficult to source. A consistent supply is also required. As I mentioned in the previous paragraph, the pain relief may only last a week at a time. You don’t want to be left in a lurch. Dosing for pain is a lot more than what would be typical for the recreational user, so finding a consistent source can be challenging. It is much better to be independent.
It is also dangerous and inadvisable to introduce a potentially “unknown” substance to a medically fragile individual. Anything you purchase illegally could technically be an unknown substance. You just can’t know if the producer properly identified the species of mushroom. To be honest, the vast majority of magic mushrooms sold even illegally are grown indoors in a controlled environment. They use legally obtained spores from professional mycology sources and are probably perfectly safe. But without a way for you to know one way or another, the safest and easiest method is to produce it for yourself. The supplies, including the properly identified spores, are legal to purchase in most states.
Attendance Is Not Necessary
You do not even have to join us for the retreat. You can follow along with our cultivation course videos on YouTube and easily produce a supply for yourself or whoever you are caring for. True, this does nothing to help prepare for the experience. Having a guide with you is ideal, but many people have taken magic mushrooms throughout history without preparation without suffering ill effects. Not all situations are ideal, so I will not harp on that. One batch using the technique from our video series usually produces enough to medicate someone with a severe constant pain condition quite aggressively for at least 6-8 months at a time, if not more.
If you anticipate becoming incapacitated, either due to disease progression or medication, it is a good idea to have your caregiver attend the retreat with you. This way you have the support and someone to help with the supply if you are not able. Peace of mind is golden. You don’t want the anxiety of not knowing if you will have enough supply.
At Eleusinia Retreats, we are not medical or mental health experts. To put things simply, we are a fancy “gardening” retreat. Participants learn to meditate calmly through an intense psychedelic experience and cultivate mushrooms. We do not diagnose, treat, or cure any type of disease. What we do is set up our guests to be able to repeat the experience and supply their own magic mushrooms back at home. If your objective is to learn how to produce your own mushrooms and to be in contact with others who use them for a similar purpose, you have found the right place and the right people.
One Response
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