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Psilocybin (magic
mushrooms)

Last published: August 16, 2022

What are magic mushrooms?

Psilocybin or magic mushrooms are naturally occurring and are

consumed for their hallucinogenic effects.

They are psychedelic drugs, which means they can affect all the
senses, altering a person’s thinking, sense of time and emotions.
Psychedelics can cause a person to hallucinate, seeing or
hearing things that do not exist or are distorted.1

The key ingredient in magic mushrooms is psilocybin. When

psilocybin is taken, it’s converted in the body to psilocin, which is
the chemical with the psychoactive properties.2

What do magic mushrooms look like?

Magic mushrooms look much like ordinary mushrooms.

There are many different types of magic mushrooms. The most

common ones in Australia are called golden tops, blue meanies
and liberty caps.3 Magic mushrooms look similar to poisonous
mushrooms that can cause a person to become very sick and
can result in death.

They can also come as dried material in capsules. Synthetic

psilocybin appears as a white crystalline powder that can be
:
processed into tablets or capsules or dissolved in water.4

Other names

Shrooms, mushies, blue meanies, golden tops, liberty caps.

Other types of psychedelics

2C-B (https://adf.org.au/drug-facts/2c-b/)

Ayahuasca (https://adf.org.au/drug-facts/ayahuasca/)

DMT (https://adf.org.au/drug-facts/dmt/)

LSD (https://adf.org.au/drug-facts/lsd/)

Mescaline (https://adf.org.au/drug-facts/mescaline/)

NBOMes (https://adf.org.au/drug-facts/nbomes/)

Salvia (https://adf.org.au/drug-facts/salvia/)

How are magic mushrooms taken?

Magic mushrooms are eaten fresh, cooked or brewed into a tea.

The dried version is sometimes smoked, mixed with cannabis
(https://adf.org.au/drug-facts/cannabis/) or tobacco
(https://adf.org.au/drug-facts/nicotine/) .

Effects of magic mushrooms

There is no safe level of drug use. Use of any drug always

carries some risk. It’s important to be careful when taking any
type of drug.

Magic mushrooms can affect everyone differently, based on:

size, weight and health

whether the person is used to taking it
:
 whether other drugs are taken around the same time
the amount taken
the strength of the mushroom (varies depending on the type
of mushroom)
the environment (where the drug is taken)

The effects of magic mushrooms usually begin in 30 minutes

when eaten, or within 5–10 minutes when taken as a soup or tea
and can last approximately four to six hours.3

During this time, the person may experience:

euphoria and wellbeing

change in consciousness, mood, thought and perception
(commonly called a trip)
dilation of pupils
perceptual changes, such as visual and auditory
hallucinations (seeing or hearing things that aren’t there, or
are distorted)
stomach discomfort and nausea
headaches
fast or irregular heartbeat
increased body temperature
breathing quickly
vomiting
facial flushes, sweating and chills.1,3

Overdose

The use of magic mushrooms rarely results in any life-threatening

symptoms. If a large amount or a strong batch of mushrooms is
consumed, the person may experience:

agitation
vomiting
diarrhoea
:
 muscle weakness
panic or paranoia
psychosis
seizures
coma. 4,5

Bad trips

Sometimes a person may experience the negative effects of

magic mushrooms and have a ‘bad trip’.

A bad trip might include:

unpleasant or intense hallucinations

anxiety
paranoia
panic or fear.5,4

Coming down

After taking magic mushrooms, delayed headaches can happen.

These usually don’t last longer than a day.5

A person who has taken mushrooms may experience feelings of:

exhaustion
depression
anxiety. 3

Some people who regularly use magic mushrooms may

experience flashbacks involving a previous magic mushroom
experience. They are usually visual distortions that involve
changes in your emotions or perception.

Flashbacks can happen weeks, months or even years after the

drug was last taken. This can be disturbing, especially if a
frightening experience or hallucination is recalled. Flashbacks
can be brought on by using other drugs, stress, tiredness or
:
exercise and usually last a minute or two.3,4

Impact of mood and environment

Drugs that affect a person’s mental state (psychoactive drugs)

can also have different effects depending on a person’s mood
(often called the ‘set’) or the environment they are in (the
‘setting’).

Set is a person’s state of mind, previous encounters with

psychedelic drugs, and expectations of what’s going to happen.
For example, feelings of stress or anxiety before using magic
mushrooms may result in a bad trip.6

Setting is the environment in which someone takes a psychedelic

drug – whether it’s known and familiar, who they’re with, if
they’re indoors or outdoors, the type of music and light. For
example, using magic mushrooms in a calm, quiet and relaxed
environment can lead to, or contribute to, a pleasant experience
but being in a noisy, crowded place may result in a negative
experience.6

Being in a good state of mind, with trusted friends and a safe

environment before taking magic mushrooms reduces the risk of
having a bad trip.

Using magic mushrooms with other drugs

The effects of taking magic mushrooms with other drugs −

including over-the-counter or prescribed medications − can be
unpredictable and dangerous.

Magic mushrooms + ice (https://adf.org.au/drug-facts/ice/)

, speed (https://adf.org.au/drug-facts/amphetamines/)
or ecstasy (https://adf.org.au/drug-facts/mdma/) : Can
increase the chances of a bad trip and lead to panic.7

Magic mushrooms + some psychiatric

medications: Mushrooms should not be taken by people on
:
psychiatric medications as a relapse or worsening of the
condition could occur.

‘Polydrug use’ is a term for the use of more than

one drug or type of drug at the same time or one
after another. Polydrug use can involve both
illicit drugs and legal substances, such as
alcohol and medications. Find out more about
polydrug use.
(https://adf.org.au/reducing-risk/polydrug-use/)

READ MORE

Tolerance and dependence

Tolerance develops rapidly with continued use, resulting in the

drug having little to no effect over time. Discontinuing use for a
week or so will return people to their normal tolerance level.3

Health and safety

The main risk of taking magic mushrooms is that some look very
similar to certain types of poisonous mushrooms. So, it’s
important to know what you’re taking – if in doubt, do not take
them.3

If you believe you or someone else may have eaten a poisonous

mushroom, do not wait for symptoms to occur. Contact
the Victorian Poisons Information Centre (13 11 26).

If the person has collapsed, stopped breathing, is having a fit or

is suffering an anaphylactic reaction, immediately ring triple
:
zero (000) for an ambulance. Ambulance officers don’t need
to involve the police.

For more information on poisonous fungi, including their

identification and symptoms please visit the Better Health
Channel.
(https://www.betterhealth.vic.gov.au/health/HealthyLiving/fungi-
poisoning)

Withdrawal

Taking mushrooms regularly doesn’t appear to cause physical

dependence, so it’s unlikely someone would find it hard to stop
using mushrooms.4

There aren’t many known withdrawal effects for magic

mushrooms, apart from some potential mild psychological
effects or feeling tired.3

Read more (https://adf.org.au/alcohol-

about drug-use/supporting-a-loved-
withdrawal one/withdrawal/)

Getting help

If your use of psilocybin is affecting your health, family,

relationships, work, school, financial or other life situations - or
you’re concerned about a loved one - you can find help and
support.

Call DrugInfo on 1300 85 85 84 or email druginfo@adf.org.au

to speak to a real person and your questions answered as well as
advice on practical ‘next steps’. It’s confidential too.

Help and Support Services (https://adf.org.au/help-

search support/search/)
:
 Path2Help
Not sure what you are looking
for?
Try our intuitive Path2Help tool
and be matched with support
information and services
tailored to you.

Find (https://adf.org.au/help-
out
support/path2help/)
more

Psilocybin and the law

Federal and state laws provide penalties for possessing,
using or selling magic mushrooms, or driving under their
influence.

See also, drugs and the law (https://adf.org.au/alcohol-

drug-use/the-law/) .

Psilocybin statistics
According to the National Drug Strategy Household Survey
2019, in the past 12 months 1.6% of Australians aged over 14
years had used psychedelics. Of this 1.6%, 61% had used
psilocybin and 73% had used LSD.8

References

1. Nichols D. Psychedelics. Pharmacological Reviews

2016;68:264–355.
2. Dinis-Oliveira R. Metabolism of psilocybin and psilocin:
clinical and forensic toxicological relevance. Drug
Metabolism Reviews. 2017;49(1).
3. Campbell A. The Australian Illicit Drug Guide.
:
 Melbourne: Black Inc; 2001.
4. Brands B Sproule B Marshman J. Drugs & Drug Abuse.
3rd ed. Ontario: Addiction Research Foundation; 1998.
5. Carbonaro T Bradstreet M Barrett F MacLean K Jesse R
Johnson M Griffiths R. Survey study of challenging
experiences after ingesting psilocybin mushrooms:
Acute and enduring positive and negative
consequences. Journal of Psychopharmacology.
2016;30(12).
6. Nutt D. Drugs without the hot air : making sense of legal
and illegal drugs. Cambridge: UIT Cambridge Ltd; 2012.
7. Black E. Polydrug use: What you need to know about
mixing drugs. In: National Drug and Alcohol Research
Centre UoNSW, editor. 2014.
8. Australian Institute of Health and Welfare. National
Drug Strategy Household Survey 2019 2020
[09.09.2020].

Explore psychedelics on the Drug Wheel

:
View the Drug Wheel(https://adf.org.au/drug-facts/#wheel)

Effects
breathing quickly (https://adf.org.au/drug-facts/?query=breathing quickly) , change in consciousness
(https://adf.org.au/drug-facts/?query=change in consciousness) , change in perception (https://adf.org.au/drug-
facts/?query=change in perception) , chills (https://adf.org.au/drug-facts/?query=chills) , dilated pupils
(https://adf.org.au/drug-facts/?query=dilated pupils) , euphoria (https://adf.org.au/drug-facts/?
query=euphoria) , facial flushes (https://adf.org.au/drug-facts/?query=facial flushes) , fast heart rate
(https://adf.org.au/drug-facts/?query=fast heart rate) , feelings of wellbeing (https://adf.org.au/drug-facts/?
query=feelings of wellbeing) , hallucination (https://adf.org.au/drug-facts/?query=hallucination) , headache
(https://adf.org.au/drug-facts/?query=headache) , higher body temperature (https://adf.org.au/drug-facts/?
query=higher body temperature) , increased sweating (https://adf.org.au/drug-facts/?query=increased
sweating) , irregular heart beat (https://adf.org.au/drug-facts/?query=irregular heart beat) , nausea
(https://adf.org.au/drug-facts/?query=nausea) , vomiting (https://adf.org.au/drug-facts/?query=vomiting)

AKA
blue meanies (https://adf.org.au/drug-facts/?query=blue meanies) , golden tops (https://adf.org.au/drug-facts/?
query=golden tops) , liberty caps (https://adf.org.au/drug-facts/?query=liberty caps) , magic mushrooms
(https://adf.org.au/drug-facts/?query=magic mushrooms) , mushies (https://adf.org.au/drug-facts/?
query=mushies) , mushrooms (https://adf.org.au/drug-facts/?query=mushrooms) , shrooms
(https://adf.org.au/drug-facts/?query=shrooms)

Last updated: 16 Aug 2022

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