Are Magic Mushrooms Safe For Fighting Depression?

Depression is gradually growing into an epidemic that's affecting the minds and hearts of the population. This mental illness is now gaining a foothold, especially among the young generation, and negatively influencing the way they view and perceive their environment. This illness has continued to spread due to the never-ending social and economic crisis pledging the modern world. In a bid to find a cure and protect the world's mental health, psychologists and medical professionals have been working to develop drugs with psychoactive benefits. These new drugs are designed to protect, treat, and restore brain links damaged as a result of depressive states. While these psychoactive drugs were used, a new study showed that over 100 million people were resistant to the treatment. This group of people is clinically categorized as having the most intensive depressive disorder, a form of depression that's non-responsive to drugs and therapy. In light of this study, magic mushrooms were discovered as a new non-invasive treatment for depressive disorder. 

Is Magic Mushroom Safe For Fighting Depression

The answer is yes, magic mushrooms are safe for fighting depression. According to studies, it is one of the safest means of battling symptoms of mental illness, especially when administered in a legal psilocybin retreat in the Netherlands. It's a safer means when compared to weed and alcohol, which get people high and addicted to their benefits. Users of psychedelic mushrooms are not to worry about getting addicted to the drug because it lacks the chemical properties that cause addiction. You see, with weed, people get high and addicted because of the high content of THC (tetrahydrocannabinol). This psychoactive component alters the brain chemical, causing laziness, illusions, and sensory distortion, which makes you unproductive. With psychedelic mushrooms, a different effect is observed in depressed patients. Dr James Rucker, a renowned psychiatrist, noted that the drug helps reduce tension in the brain and creates a window of opportunity for therapeutic intervention. This brain tension relief causes the patients to be in a dream-like state where they are most relaxed and receptive to easily battling their depressive symptoms.

Types Of Depressive Disorder You Can Treat With Magic Mushrooms

Here are different forms of depression:

Clinical Depressive Disorder  

This is one of the most common forms of depressive disorder. A person diagnosed with this mental illness is likely to show symptoms like sadness, low self-confidence, and insomnia. They will also lose interest in food and activities that might excite them. It's not usual for these patients to be resistant to antidepressants.

Persistent Depression

This form of mental illness is highly treatable and is believed to last for only a short period. It's a form of depression that results from grief or the loss of something valuable. Symptoms of these depression are similar to those of clinical depressive disorder.

Postnatal Depression

Expecting mothers are the group of people familiar with this mental disorder. Linked to their babies, mothers begin to experience postnatal depressive episodes within three weeks after delivery. This depressive state causes fear and anxiety in mothers, but it's usually treatable.

Scientific Studies On Magic Mushrooms

Magic mushrooms have been around for generations. Growing naturally as fungi, many tribes and cultures have used them to treat different forms of mental affliction affecting their populations. In recent times, researchers have found that these mushrooms contain psychoactive compounds needed for making improved antidepressants, a kind of antidepressant that will be useful in the treatment of patients with major depressive disorder.At Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, medical scientists conducted clinical trials using psilocybin, an active component of magic mushrooms. These clinical trials were conducted on 22 patients between the ages of 19-40 with a history of treatment-resistant depressive disorder. About 58% of the trial participants noted that they were regularly using antidepressants to tackle their recurrent depressive episodes. Before the trials, the participants were screened and shared into two groups. The first group began their treatment immediately by receiving two doses of psilocybin every week. The second, they waited for eight weeks to begin treatment. At the end of the clinical trial, which lasted two years, the results were very positive. Using the GRID-Hamilton Depressive Grading Scale, it was shown that all participants of the trial scored an average of 8.9, which means mild or no depression.

Another clinical trial was also carried out by researchers from Compass Pathways. With 233 participants in over 20 locations across Europe, this trial is believed to be the largest clinical trial regarding magic mushrooms and depression. The goal of this trial was to determine the perfect dosage for treatment-resistant depression. At the start of the trial, the participants were randomly separated into three groups. Each group was administered 1mg, 10mg, and 25mg dosage of psilocybin. Three weeks after the start of the trial, results showed that over 28% of 25 mg patients were in remission, as to 8% and 9% of the 1mg and 10mg, respectively. 

Magic mushrooms are the safest means of battling depression and other forms of mental illness. However, it's advisable to take it in a secure environment under the guidance of experienced professionals.