Microdosing is the practice of taking very small doses of psychedelic substances, aiming for subtle mental and emotional benefits without the intense effects of recreational use.
Microdosing has gained popularity among CEOs, creative professionals, and regular laymen who are taking a small dose of drugs every day. The intended result is to boost their mood, encourage creative thinking, and promote physical and mental stimulation. The quantity is just a fraction of the recreational amount and is reportedly very effective. This trend is especially prevalent in Silicon Valley, where many people are psychedelic microdosing on lysergic acid diethylamide (LSD), MDMA (Ecstasy), and other hallucinogenic drugs. It's important to note that microdosing has limited scientific research supporting its benefits. There are also potential risks and side effects.
Avenues Recovery, leaders in drug addiction treatment and rehabilitation, explores the trend of microdosing, its effects, and safety.
How Much Is a Microdose?
A microdose is typically a fraction of a recreational dose, often around 1/5 to 1/20. A microdose is sometimes classified as 10 micrograms every third or fourth day. It’s impossible to state a set amount because outside of clinical trials, these drugs are not regulated and it’s difficult to know the potency of every ounce.
Microdosing Benefits
There are no scientific microdosing benefits documented. Studies on LSD and other psychedelic drugs show that once the effects of the drugs wear off, there is a decrease in activity in areas of the brain that promote creativity. This would suggest that when consuming the drug, there is likely an increase in stimulation and creativity. The reason why microdosing has become so popular is that users promote it online as a magical wonder pill without adverse effects, but they have no real scientific backing.
Microdosing for Mental Illness
Microdosing has also become a popular treatment for people struggling with anxiety, depression, post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD), and addiction. Microdosing for anxiety and depression, otherwise known as psychedelic therapy, is also controversial. Although it has been proven effective, we need more studies on this phenomenon to determine the long-term effects these drugs can have.
It’s important to note that microdosing to treat these mental disorders should only be done under clinical supervision. Mixing psychedelic drugs like LSD or psilocybin with antidepressants, especially lithium, can be very dangerous and even life-threatening. While some people believe that microdosing can help with mental health, there are potential risks that might outweigh the benefits.
Microdosing Schedule
It is recommended not to microdose every day to slow down the process of tolerance. In other words, the more often you take a microdose, the quicker your body gets used to that amount, and then an increased dose is needed to achieve the same effect as previously.
A typical microdosing schedule would be:
- Day One - Microdose
- Day Two - After Effects, no microdose
- Day Three - No dose
- Day Four - Microdose
People who start microdosing should take note of the effects they feel so they can assess how much they must take. This is because every person reacts differently to the same quantity of drugs.
How Long Does Microdosing Last?
A microdose lasts anywhere between 8 hours to 72 hours, depending on which psychedelic substance is taken. Typically, the after-effects are felt strongly throughout the day that the microdose is ingested and more subtly on the second day. It’s interesting that the second-day effects only occur when taking a microdose. When consuming the total recreational dose of a drug, the effects are felt more strongly, but they last for a shorter period.
Risks of Microdosing: Is Microdosing Safe?
Microdosing is usually done without medical supervision or direction. Those who microdose will often guess what the microdose amount is. Also, a microdose might be taken without knowing its exact ingredients, since these drugs are not monitored and don’t always state what they consist of.
Additionally, the human body develops tolerance to these drugs over time, causing people to increase their dose gradually. This leads to people taking the full recreational amount every day to reach the same physical and mental boost as the original microdose! Of course, once a person is taking such a large dose every day, they have developed a substance abuse disorder that can cause various physical, mental, and emotional issues.
It is widely believed that since hallucinogenic drugs are not as physically addictive as other drugs, they are safer to ingest. Although, indeed, hallucinogenic drugs don’t cause symptoms as severe as other drugs, they can still lead to addiction.
Possibly the largest risk of microdosing is the unknown. Insufficient research means we do not know what effects microdosing can have in the long term. It could lead to anything from addiction and other mental disorders to irreversible physical illnesses and even premature death.
Is Microdosing Legal?
Psychedelics are illegal in almost every state of the US. Therefore, psychedelic microdosing to treat mental illness or boost work performance is unlawful. Some people argue that if they became fully legalized, they may become safer since the production of these drugs would be monitored and properly regulated. Specifically, psilocybin and MDMA (Ecstasy) may be approved in a few years for medical reasons in certain states, starting with Oregon. Additionally, some people would like to decriminalize psychedelics and ensure that there is wider access to these drugs so that a prescription would not be needed to consume them.
The reality is that once these drugs are legalized and regulated to make them safer, allowing for broader access may not be a good idea. The fact is that every drug could be abused, the more readily available it is and the more people who are convinced that it’s safe - the more potential for misuse of the drug. As many risky drugs as possible must remain under medical supervision and only be prescribed as needed.
What Is Microdosing? The Bottom Line
Although microdosing is gaining popularity, we still lack comprehensive knowledge about its overall effects. Additional research is essential to shed light on what microdosing is and how it affects users. It is strongly suggested that those considering microdosing should consider the risks versus the benefits. Understand that taking any drugs, even in such a small dose, is dangerous! If you currently microdose consistently and are unable to stop, Avenues Recovery is here to support you in your journey toward recovery. We’re ready to hear you out, answer your questions, and provide full support. Reach out to Avenues Recovery today, there is a better life!