How To Make Your First Psychedelic Mushroom Trip More Enjoyable

Once a right-of-passage only for the ‘countercultural’ type, psychedelics are cropping up all over the place; as everything from groundbreaking mental health-treatment, to the spiritual awakening tool of choice for a truly diverse array of folks.

Psychedelics Are Turning Heads

What with all the (justified) good press psychedelics are getting right now, more people than ever are keen to try them. Those who may have never considered hallucinogens before have had their heads turned by the fabled psychedelic mushroom benefits.

But just because something is popular, it doesn’t mean everyone is an expert. When everyone is talking about something you haven’t tried, it can feel like you’ve missed the boat — been left behind in the dust. Not so! Many people, despite their interest in psychedelic mushrooms are yet to take the plunge. Taking your first shroom trip can feel scary — even if you are excited to do it.

Therefore it’s key to have all the tools to ensure you know how to make your first psychedelic mushroom trip more enjoyable.

We will cover everything from the different types of psychedelic mushrooms, to how to grow psychedelic mushrooms, to how to arrange and plan your trip day, to dosage, to the different stages of a psychedelic mushroom trip. Knowledge is power — and armed with the right tools you can ensure that your trip is both insightful and enjoyable.

The Different Types of Psychedelic Mushrooms

As a rule, unless you are foraging in the wild, the magic mushrooms you will most likely get your hands on will be of the Psilocybe cubensis species. This is because out of all of the different types of psychedelic mushrooms these are the easiest to cultivate at home. However, Psilocybe cubensis are anything but one note. They have been bred into many different strains and different types of psychedelic mushrooms with different characteristics and varying potencies.

Here are some popular strains of Psilocybe cubensis that can be purchased as a grow kit or as spores:

Mexican: The most well-known type of magic mushroom. Reliable, often used for first-time trips.

Columbian: A slow growing but potent shroom!

Thai: The ‘party’ magic mushroom. Tends to produce high yields.

Golden Teacher: Iconic psychedelic mushroom strain, known for their large golden caps and ability to impart wisdom.

Ecuadorian: An easy strain to grow. Reflects the highland altitudes of its origin with a cerebral rather than bodily high.

McKennai: Named after the psychedelic icon and shroom expert, you won’t be surprised to learn this is one of our strongest strains.

B+: Big, resilient, trippy mushrooms.

Mazatapec Mexico: This strain can produce a highly spiritual trip.

Cambodian: These high yield magic mushrooms provide colorful visuals and philosophical thoughts.

Albino A+: Pale in color they may be, but these guys aren’t faint-hearted — they produce an enjoyably potent trip.

How To Grow Psychedelic Mushrooms

By growing your own magic mushrooms you might find yourself more connected and comfortable in your first psychedelic trip. If you have seen them sprout then, the mystery is lessened— you have nurtured the mushrooms just like they will nurture you. Here’s how to grow psychedelic mushrooms at home:

Growing Psychedelic Mushrooms from a Grow Kit

The easiest method by far is to use one of our psychedelic mushroom grow kits. These come with the spores and mycelium already inoculated. It’s not quite ‘plug-in-and-play’ but it’s pretty close. All you have to do is follow the instructions in our psychedelic mushroom grow kits manual. Additionally, you can also choose between different types of psychedelic mushrooms when purchasing a grow kit, from gentle to more powerful strains. When it comes to learning how to grow psychedelic mushrooms many people start with a grow kit and then when experienced graduate to the PF Tek method.

Growing Psychedelic Mushrooms via PF Tek

A more in depth process, but still very do able, you can use the PF Tek method for growing psychedelic mushrooms at home. For this you can purchase psychedelic mushroom spores. This is the equivalent of starting to grow a plant from a seed. You will need time and patience, and to follow our PF Tek guide — however the satisfaction from actually growing psychedelic mushrooms from mere spores will make that trip even sweeter. You can also choose from many different types of psychedelic mushrooms spores — from mild to extremely potent strains.

“PF tek” is a mushroom-growing technique developed by a grower who used the nick-name Psilocybe Fantasticus, or PF for short.

Planning For an Enjoyable First Psychedelic Trip

Step 1: Dosage

Now, first things first: these are tips for beginners — so we will be recommending dosage appropriate for a first trip — no heroic doses here! Knowing that you will not ‘blast-off’ further than planned is key to insuring that your first psychedelic mushroom trip is more enjoyable.

Additionally, to reassure the nervous, psilocybin mushrooms are ranked by the Global Drugs Survey as the safest drug, far safer than alcohol, which is readily availble, as well as advertised all over the world. On top of this, shrooms are non-addictive, with tolerance building quickly. So the only reason you’ll crave taking psychedelic mushrooms again is if you have fun — and it’s likely you will!

How to Take Psychedelic Mushrooms

The first decision you must make is what form you want your shrooms to be in. This will affect your dosage amount. Additionally, the type of shroom will affect it too — here we will assume you will be using the most common of trippy shrooms — Psilocybe cubensis.

For dried shrooms we’d recommend 1-3g. Obviously with 1g being gentler, and 3g being a stronger dose for the first time — but still only considered ‘moderate.’

For fresh shrooms the rule of thumb is usually multiply by 10. So then we would recommend 10-30g of fresh shrooms.

For fresh magic truffles you would usually multiply by 5. This means between 5-15g of fresh magic truffles.

We would recommend you don’t just ‘eyeball’ your measurements. Weigh it out to be sure! (Luckily our fresh magic truffles come in pre-measured packages, so you don’t have to!)

Here is our handy dosage guide — useful if your taking your first trip, still useful if you’re taking your 100th!

*Note — even if you take a lower dose, we DO NOT recommend combining any form of shrooms with other drugs for your first time.

Step 2: Set and Setting

This is a big one. This phrase (attributed to psychonaut master Timothy Leary) basically means your inner, and outer, environments. As these are both vital to your experience, let us break it down for you:

Set:

‘Set’ is short for ‘mindset’. The mental state you bring to your experience will greatly color it. Your mood, thoughts, feelings, and prior expectations of your trip are likely to affect how it goes. This is why we advise that you prepare for your trip the day before by relaxing, meditating, getting a good night’s sleep, and just generally practicing self care. It’s normal to be nervous! But it doesn’t have to overtake you. Much of a trip requires ‘just going with the flow’, so the more open and calm you can be, the smoother it will go. We also recommend noting down your intentions or what you hope to gain from your experience beforehand, to help you center yourself and focus. Make sure you have kept the whole day free, and have no other responsibilities.

Additionally, your physical health is also something to take into account — if you feel sick or unhealthy these sensations can be amplified when tripping. So pay some attention to that too — healthy body, healthy mind. If you aren’t feeling 100%, don’t force yourself — wait until it’s right for you.

Setting:

‘Setting’ is all about the physical and social environment you choose to trip in. When tripping on magic mushrooms all feelings and emotions are heightened. This means that if you feel uncomfortable or are in an unfamiliar environment, your anxiety could be exaggerated. Due to this we recommend a place that you feel good in — a familiar place. This will provide a sense of control to your experience, which will help you relax. (Below are two examples to get you started…)

Classic trip-cave:

Indoors: for a first trip we recommend being in a cosy space indoors. Especially if its still chilly-season. Whether it’s your home, or a close friend’s or relative’s, create a comforting cave. Blankets, cushions, candles or fairylights (extra points for a lava lamp!), calm music, snacks and water make the experience as chill as possible. Wear clean, comfy clothes — this is an important moment, but you don’t need to dress fancy!

Outdoor adventure:

Outdoors: many believe tripping outdoors to be the most profound. Psychedelic mushrooms encourage a deep connection with nature. If you feel this is for you, decide beforehand where you might go. Whether it’s your garden, a nearby park or forest — depending on where you live — the choice is yours. Wherever you choose to go, make sure you dress for the weather, and stay safe!

(Read our complete guide to Set and Setting here)

Step 3: Friends and Trip Sitters

Friends and trip-sitters we are gathered here today…

Of course, although it is possible to trip alone (read our comprehensive guide here), many people prefer to have company for their first time. Whether it’s someone experienced with psychedelics, or the friend who knows you the best (if that’s one and the same person then all the better!), having someone on hand to keep an eye on you and offer a kind word if you need it is a great help, and a reliable way to make your psychedelic mushroom experience more enjoyable.

Don’t be afraid to ask for support

Alternatively, asking someone to be your actual ‘trip-sitter’ can be the perfect option for your first psychedelic voyage. A trip-sitter is like the designated driver for your trip. They will stay with you for the whole duration, either totally sober or on a much lower dose. Their involvement can vary from just being a reassuring presence, to guiding you through every stage of your trip. If they are going to guide you, make sure they are experienced in psychedelics, or at least have read our Trip Sitter Guide! An atmosphere of trust is essential.

Step 4: Know Your Timeline

Presumably you have set aside the entire day for your first psychedelic mushroom experience. It is definitely recommended. Most people on their first trip will decide to take their shrooms earlier in the day, so the effects will have mainly worn off by bedtime. This also means they are unlikely to have eaten yet, as shrooms work best on an empty stomach. The duration of a trip is usually between four to eight hours. On average it takes 30- 45 minutes to start feeling the effects, but depending on the method of ingestion, be it tea, edibles, lemon-teking, or just plain munching — it could be anything between 15 minutes and 2 hours.

Time is just a concept anyway…

Of course duration also depends on the dosage you took, as well as your body’s own mysterious chemistry. As we have recommended a moderate dose of between 1 to 3g of dried mushrooms as a guide you can probably assume it will be around the 6 hour mark.

Remember also, that a psilocybin mushroom trip can ebb and flow in waves. You may think it over after 4 hours only to start feeling the magic again, bubbling up to say hello. Relax, and go with it.

Step 5: The Onset (or Blast Off!)

As above, a trip can take anything from 15 minutes to 2 hours to take effect. It is best to be patient and DO NOT take more if you don’t feel anything straight away. That can lead to a much heavier dose than what you initially planned if it all kicks in at once.

You might feel some anxiety or nausea as things start happening. Don’t worry! This is normal. Breathe. The way to have an enjoyable trip is to let it guide you, and go with the flow. The first thing you will most likely notice is a physical sensation, often described as a “rising” feeling, hence the term “coming up”. This is usually a light tingle in your middle section, and though not everyone experiences nausea after ingesting mushrooms, it is almost always in this section of the trip that it occurs, getting it out of the way so you can enjoy what comes next. The next things you notice will probably be visual. Patterns will stand out, things might begin to sparkle and “breathe”. You might feel an uncontrollable smile spreading across your cheeks. You’re laughing but perhaps you’re not sure what you’re laughing at…

Here we go!

My friend, you have started your trip!

Step 6: The Trip

You can never totally predict how a psychedelic mushroom trip is going to go. If you’ve taken a smaller or medium dose, you’ll likely feel more in control and able to guide your experience. However, with a higher dose, it’s best to surrender to the mushroom and let it guide you on the journey.

Now it’s up to you! Navigate your inner mind, watch fractal patterns on your eyelids, connect with your house plants, . and see the beauty and wonder in the mundane world we all too often ignore. There are an infinite amount of possibilities to what you can experience during a trip. Ponder the big questions, and you might find you have a better grasp of these “larger” ideas with your mind in this expanded state. Or simply laugh at whatever funny ideas come to mind. There are no wrong answers, your trip is personal to you and only you. These experiences can teach us a lot about ourselves, and anything you experience has the potential to help you understand yourself more.

If you start to feel overwhelmed — breathe — remember you are in charge and you chose this trip. You could remind yourself of the intentions you wrote down in your notebook, or ask your trip-sitter for a kind word to ground you.

Remember, these experiences are fleeting, so just relax and do what feels right.

Step 7: The ‘Comedown’

When psychedelic mushrooms begin to wear off it is often referred to as the ‘comedown.’ This is a bit misleading as people tend to associate it with the comedowns from nights of hard-partying and hard-substances. Guilt, headaches and nausea.

Not so with shrooms!

Many people note the pleasant sensations experienced as magic mushrooms wear off. Some liken it to slipping into a warm bath, others feel a sense of joy as they return to the familiar — with a newfound sense of wonder. A feeling of gratitude for being back to their normal frame of consciousness is a commonly reported feature of a mushroom comedown, like returning home triumphant after an adventure into the unknown. Chill out for the rest of the evening; eat some good food, stay hydrated and note down any thoughts or feelings your trip sparked.

Although the ‘trippy’ part of your experience may be over you will still be feeling the influence of psilocybin, the psychoactive compound in psychedelic mushrooms. Many describe this as an ‘afterglow’ — cosy huh? Ideally, if you can, it is good to keep the next day free as well, to digest all that you have experienced. If you’ve had any great revelations or realized changes you wish to make in your life, wait a day or two until the glow has subsided, and be sure it’s what you want. No hasty job resignations or declarations of love! Wait for the mushroom’s lessons to sink in, integrate, and think.

Comedown? What ‘comedown’?

And there! You’ve had your first trip! That wasn’t too scary now was it? Proud of you!