Welcome to Amanita Mushrooms 101

At The Calm Leaf, we’ve spent several years building up our catalog of hemp products, offering a diverse selection of cannabinoids, strains, delivery methods, and more. Now, we’re introducing something a bit different to our selection: amanita mushrooms.

Amanita mushrooms are nothing new – they’re a naturally occurring mushroom that has grown in the wild for thousands of years, all over the world. But, many of us have never heard of these mushrooms, since they’re only now becoming more widely available on the market. Being that amanita mushrooms are psychedelic, it’s important to us that our customers have a good understanding of how to take these mushrooms, what effects to expect, and what side effects to look out for.

To make this as easy as possible for our customers, we’ve created an introductory course, if you will, on all that these mushrooms entail. This guide will ensure you know all of the important basics before giving amanita mushrooms a try.

What is the Amanita Mushroom?

Amanita muscaria is a mushroom species that’s perhaps the most distinctive-looking out there, so much so that any enthusiast can easily spot it in the wild. Amanita muscaria is known for its bright red cap with white spots that look like polka dots. This mushroom is so recognizable, in fact, that it’s been something of a staple of pop culture over the last several decades – think emojis, Mario, etc.

The cap of the amanita muscaria mushroom is quite large, with a short beige stem. Despite it being so easy to recognize, we do have to make a disclaimer – we don’t recommend foraging for these mushrooms yourself unless you are a trained expert. While no other wild mushroom shares these specific traits, it may have some similarities to mushrooms that are poisonous.

Amanita muscaria has also played a big part in history. For centuries at least, tribes around Asia, Europe, and North America have consumed these mushrooms as part of their sacred ceremonies. The mushroom is famously associated with ancient Vikings, using the mushrooms ritually and before battle.

What Makes Amanita Muscaria So Popular?

Amanita muscaria has been used for spiritual and ritualistic purposes for so long mainly thanks to one compound: muscimol. Muscimol is a hallucinogen, and even gives the mushroom its psychedelic properties. Take note, muscimol is not psilocybin, the compound more commonly associated with other species of “magic” mushrooms. Amanita mushrooms are the only natural source of this compound.

What Effects are Associated with Amanita Mushrooms?

Amanita muscaria, like we said, gets its primary effects from muscimol, and this is the compound that is responsible for its popularity throughout history, all over the world. Muscimol offers lots of distinctive effects that people find enormously useful, mainly for psychological purposes.

Muscimol happens to be a GABA agonist, meaning that it interacts with the nervous system to support healthy levels of GABA, a neurotransmitter associated with calm. Because of this, amanita mushrooms are generally considered more sedative-like than mushrooms that contain psilocybin. GABA is also associated with improved sleep, and helps aid in neuroplasticity, which can play an important role in helping a person heal from post-traumatic stress.

Muscimol is also intoxicating, and thus, is psychedelic. This means that the high has the potential to cause hallucinations, depending on the dosage you take. The hallucination associated with muscimol seem to be mostly visual. Otherwise, the high is said to be euphoric, yet relaxing, and people often describe gaining spiritual insight from the experience, as well as enhanced creativity, due to its perception-changing and introspective nature.

It’s also worth pointing out that a lot of people report feeling relief from physical discomfort in the muscles and joints. Again, this likely has to do with the way in which the compound interacts with the nervous system.

Are Amanita Mushrooms Dangerous?

Like we said, amanita mushrooms have been used for centuries, so by now, we would know if they were inherently dangerous. One thing to know is that the mushroom cannot be consumed raw – this can cause kidney failure, liver failure, and neurological effects, all of which can be deadly. The mushroom must be boiled first to kill of the toxic compounds. Amanita muscaria mushrooms sold at The Calm Leaf have been prepared accordingly.

Otherwise, the mushroom is not dangerous to the body, or habit-forming. However, because it is intoxicating, it can cause impairment. This means that certain things can be dangerous, like driving, heights, and using sharp objects like knives. Some people may also experience anxiety as a result of taking too high of a dose.

Are Amanita Mushrooms Legal?

Amanita mushrooms are, in fact, legal under federal law. In fact, they were never illegal. For now, they are only banned in one state: Louisiana. Keep in mind that as amanita products become more widely available, more states may begin to outlaw them, so you’ll want to keep yourself updated on state laws as time goes on, to make sure that you can still buy these products legally. The Calm Leaf will not ship products to states in which amanita mushrooms are banned.

What Kinds of Amanita Products are Available?

Once upon a time, the only real way to consume amanita mushrooms was to buy them boiled and dried, and even weigh out the number of milligrams desired for a dose. Now, you can find them in all kinds of product forms, with the most popular options being:

Edibles: Easily, edibles are the most in-demand choice for amanita mushroom products. This includes gummies, chocolate bars, and other tasty snacks. They contain an equal amount of the mushroom extract, so that dosing is easy.

Capsules: The same applies to capsules, which also contain an equal amount of the mushroom, and are taken like any ordinary capsule.

Tinctures: Finally, we have tinctures, which are sublingual oils taken below the tongue, which come in a variety of strength options.

Amanita Mushrooms Have Arrived at The Calm Leaf!

Amanita mushrooms aren’t new, but they are only becoming popular on the market right now, largely due to the success of the hemp plant’s psychoactive cannabinoids which have broken through into the mainstream. As you can see, amanita mushrooms are a totally different kind of intoxicant, and one that can offer powerful psychedelic effects depending on the dose.

That being said, if you’re ready to give amanita mushrooms a try, we recommend going with the mushroom products at The Calm Leaf, which offer a variety of fantastic, effective options all made by trusted brands. Our products come in an array of strengths to choose from so that beginners and experienced amanita enthusiasts alike can find the satisfaction they’re looking for.