Hey guys, Me and my boyfriend really want to do shrooms but we're unsure of the mental consquences. (We're both on anti-depressants [not MAOI's] and my depression is very severe, so I'm on the max dose) We're unsure about the neurotransmitters, et cetera. Can you please help us????? :] Please???
The risk is probably more psychological than it is physiological, so I think that it would be at your discretion.
we would need to know exactly what type of medication it is to be sure if there would or would not be any interaction. most likely, though, you're taking a selective seratonin reuptake inhibitor, or SSRI. these are drugs such as prozac, zoloft, paxil, and so on. they work (in the most simplistic explanation possible) by regulating a certain chemical in your brain called a neurotransmitter. a neurotransmitter is a substance which sends chemical messages within the nervous system. the neurotransmitter involved is seratonin, which is linked to mood among other things. drugs such as psilocybin and psilocin which are found in mushrooms (along with LSD, DMT, and other psychedelics) bear a close chemical resemblance to seratonin. like SSRIs, these drugs have a profound effect on how seratonin is used in the brain, among other effects. its been noted by many users of SSRIs (but not all) that certain psychedelics and empathogens, such as MDMA ("ecstacy"), mushrooms, LSD, etc. have reduced or completely absent effects when still under the influence of the SSRIs. 1. if you're taking an SSRI for your depression and are at a very high dose, there is a significant chance that you will either receive no effect from the mushrooms, or a significantly reduced effect. i assume you're paying for them. mushrooms are expensive, and its silly to throw money away like that. this isnt to say you WONT trip, just that you POSSIBLY wont, or POSSIBLY won't trip as hard as if you didnt take the SSRI. 2. as a former patient of SSRI treatment i can assure you that what the doctor says about needing to wean yourself off it is NOT bullshit. if you stop use of your medication abruptly, it CAN cause some VERY serious discomfort. i ignored the precautions about tapering off my medication when i decided i'd had enough, and as a result essentially suffered what i would compare to a three day headrush 3. psychedelics are very powerful substances and must be used wisely, or else grave consequences MAY occur. people of sound and stable mental health can be quite disturbed, unsettled, or disoriented by these experiences. psychedelics have been known in the past to complicate existing mental health issues or trigger early onset of mental problems or trigger the manifestation of latent mental conditions. while a severely depressed person may in fact have the possibility of a good trip, and while under the right therapeutic circumstances psychedelics may have a valuable use in treating certain mental disorders, to use them for fun while in a state of severe mental instability such as depression is quite foolhardy and dangerous. you cannot predict what will happen and cannot be sure that to take them unsupervised will not turn terribly sour. this is, of course, assuming that your medication will not interfere with your being able to trip. all in all there are many reasons for you to NOT trip, but in the end it is entirely up to you. you may get effects. you may enjoy the experience quite a lot. but if you choose to participate in such endeavors as use of psychedelics, be aware of what risks you may or may not actually be taking. if you do not feel you are of suitably sound or stable mind, psychedelics are NOT for you. if you have a family history of schizophrenia or other similar mental conditions, psychedelics are NOT for you. if you are taking medications which may interfere with the psychedelics you want to take, then psychedelics are not for you, and stopping the medication for a short period simply to trip is a TERRIBLE idea. i can not and will not tell you NOT to trip, because i have only the faintest idea of what your condition and situation is really like. that said, i will advise you that it is probably in your best interest to not trip at all until you feel completely comfortable in your mental health and stability, and until you are no longer being treated with psychiatric medications.
