Microdosing: The facts and myths

A magical cure-all or a potential health risk?

An ordinary mom with mental problems has tried almost every available medication without any beneficial result. her solution?

Microdosing.

Microdosing overview

What started as an underground movement of scientists, tech entrepreneurs, and businesspeople has now become popularized by books such as Ayelet Waldman’s A Really Good Day. Microdosing, the activity of consuming sub-perceptual amounts of psychedelics, has grown in popularity, but limited research exists about its effects.

Is microdosing a magical cure-all or a potential health risk?

In my book Mental Health Over Matter, expert Mark Haden says the following about microdosing: “I don’t think enough research is in yet. Currently, I look at anecdotal evidence. (…) Microdosing is an exciting but still unclear topic, and many questions remain. Why would you do it? Is it for increased concentration at work? Is it for helping with depression? Is it for mental health treatment? Is it good for you? Do you do it regularly or periodically? What do you microdose? LSD is longer acting and probably more accessible to microdose because it tends to be quite precise. Yet, there is a wide range of different microdosing options regarding frequency, reason, and substance – the complexity of these options results in a knowledge gap. We need to find a way of pulling this all together, for which more research and anecdotal reports are necessary.”

Are you ready to become a test subject?

Reasons for microdosing

Let’s first investigate the reasons why people try microdosing. Website thethirdwave.co lists two main motivations:

1: To reduce the frequency and intensity of undesirable states caused by various forms of “mental illness,” including:

Depression
Anxiety (i.e. Generalized or Social)
ADD/ADHD
Mood disorders
PTSD
Addiction

2: To increase the frequency and intensity of desirable states/outcomes:

Creativity
Energy
Flow states
Productivity/focus
Improved relationships/increased empathy
Athletic coordination
Leadership development

Some reports state that microdosing even helps you solve tough intellectual challenges, and improves social skills and spiritual awareness.

Journaling is recommended to notify the changes to your state and enhancements of your daily routines.

Microdosing research

But before you get too excited, it’s important to discover what the (limited) amount of research says.

A 2019 study, which looked at a real-world sample of 278 microdosers, found that improved mood (26.6%), improved focus (14.8%), and creativity (12.9%) were the top three microdosing benefits participants experienced.

In contrast, illegality depending on the substance (29.5%), physiological discomfort (18%), and impaired focus (8.8%) were the top three challenges.

Some individuals experienced mood improvements, spiritual and emotional insights, and improved appreciation of life, while others felt absent-mindedness, disrupted senses, and anxiety.

Another 2019 study discovered that predominantly beneficial effects were reported because of microdosing; especially therapeutic effects for depression were noticeable. The research outlines that microdosing can provide similar benefits as full-dose intakes, with less intense reactions to intense experiences of higher doses.

A systematic study found evident changes in a few psychological variables: less depression and stress, less mind wandering, more absorption, but also more neuroticism. Surprisingly, these changes are rarely discussed in the popular narrative and were not expected by the participants. The study suggests that “microdosing may lead to more subtle changes characterized by improvements in mental stability, the capacity to sustain attention, and increased ability to become engaged in intense imaginative experiences.”

In contrast, illegality depending on the substance (29.5%), physiological discomfort (18%), and impaired focus (8.8%) were the top three challenges.

Some individuals experienced mood improvements, spiritual and emotional insights, and improved appreciation of life, while others felt absent-mindedness, disrupted senses, and anxiety.

From a safety, biochemical, and health-wise point of view, microdosing LSD and mushrooms are considered relatively safe.

Still, psychedelics are mighty substances that one should not mess around with. As psychedelics tend to amplify your current mood, you must assess your mindset and intentions for microdosing. If you have a history of mental illness, such as schizophrenia or severe anxiety, you should talk with a physician before trying microdosing. Finally, as psychedelics are, unfortunately, still illegal substances in many countries, you must assess whether you want to take that risk.

Dosage and Frequency

Dosage

The objective behind microdosing is to experience a subtle yet present effect. Therefore, it’s important to work with the right dosage. The recommended dosage may vary depending on physical and mental health, environment, and potency. It’s strongly advised to start low and slowly increase your dose towards your ideal intake.

Although you can microdose many different substances, this article focuses on the two most popular ones: LSD and Psylocibin.

LSD

A standard microdose for LSD is usually between 5-10 micrograms. For a 100-µg tab, this is 1/20^th to 1/10^th of the paper blotter. It is not recommended to use a cutting method, where a blotter paper is cut into smaller doses, as LSD liquid can be distributed unevenly on a blotter, leading to great variations in microdoses.

Instead, the volumetric method is recommended. Here, you submerge a full tab into distilled water and take measured quantities of the water to microdose. You drop a 100-microgram tab into 10ml of distilled water and leave it for one day in the dark. The next day, 1ml of the liquid, which you can store in the freezer, should contain 10micrograms of LSD.

Psilocybin

Psilocybin is slightly trickier to microdose than LSD, as different strains of truffles contain different amounts of psilocybin. As a rule of thumb, “you can assume that 1g of fresh truffles will contain between 0.75 and 1.75mg of psilocybin, adding 0.25mg/g for each higher number on the potency scale.”

You should grind psilocybin truffles into powder and weigh 0.25g as a starter dose. Depending on its effects, you can then adjust the dose accordingly for the next attempts.

Frequency

Among different microdosing options, the James Fadiman system is the most popular, named after “the father of modern-day microdosing” due to his pioneering work and research on microdosing.

Fadiman recommends microdosing every three days to prevent a high tolerance. Another reason for the 3-day system is that beneficial effects are sometimes felt on the day after the dose.

Conclusion

Although promising results exist related to improved moods, less depression, and lower stress, microdosing is still in the very early stages of research. Still, microdosing can be a relatively safe way to stimulate mental and personal growth and create more clarity in how you want to live.

Microdosing may prove that there is more than one way of seeing the world around us.

But don’t expect guaranteed results.