Roflspammer said:

Highly recommend anyone reading this thread check out the recently published meta-analysis on micro dosing; read the conclusions and discussion first.

https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0149763425004944

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anarchyfan said:

It says it's inconsequential to cognitive function.

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Roflspammer said:

The study found microdosing to have no measurable cognitive benefits; the only domain it appeared to affect was "cognitive control", which it reduced (the minds ability to direct itself towards internal goals). Depending on what you're struggling with, this could be beneficial or detrimental, but the study doesn't comment on the clinical utility.

Specific to your question, it showed no difference between psilocybin and LSD either.

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Rukus said:

Thanks for the clarification.

I'm looking to use microdosing for general well being, and to potentially replace SSRIs

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Roflspammer said:

Rukus said:

Thanks for the clarification.

I'm looking to use microdosing for general well being, and to potentially replace SSRIs

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I'm curious what the difference is between an SSRI and microdosing for you? They work very similar downstream, in that they both facilitate neuroplasticity.

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Icyurmt said:

AFAIK all of the blinded studies on microdosing conducted thus far all point twords placebo effect.

Psilocybin microdosing does not affect emotion-related symptoms and processing: A preregistered field and lab-based study

"Our confirmatory analyses revealed that psilocybin microdosing did not affect emotion processing or symptoms of anxiety and depression compared with placebo."

Microdosing with psilocybin mushrooms: a double-blind placebo-controlled study

"In conclusion, we conducted a controlled study of microdosing in individuals who were already planning to start their own microdosing protocol. While small amounts of dried Psilocybe cubensis mushrooms reliably induced significant subjective effects, their impact in other domains was negligible or even indicative of impaired performance."

Acute Subjective and Behavioral Effects of Microdoses of Lysergic Acid Diethylamide in Healthy Human Volunteers

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Rukus said:

Ya the just seems odd to me. Say for example a 0.3 gram mushroom dose is considered a microdose, which seems fairly consistent with what I have been reading online. That is not far below a "threshold" dose for a lot of people. I just don't see how it would do nothing besides placebo.

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Roflspammer said:

Rukus said:

Ya the just seems odd to me. Say for example a 0.3 gram mushroom dose is considered a microdose, which seems fairly consistent with what I have been reading online. That is not far below a "threshold" dose for a lot of people. I just don't see how it would do nothing besides placebo.

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Heard. Oh you definitely feel it-- what the studies are finding so far is that microdosing doesn't actually enhance function or improve function, which is what the anecdotal evidence claims... So you feel "better", but you aren't actually "better." That's the definition of placebo.

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Rukus said:

Roflspammer said:

Rukus said:

Ya the just seems odd to me. Say for example a 0.3 gram mushroom dose is considered a microdose, which seems fairly consistent with what I have been reading online. That is not far below a "threshold" dose for a lot of people. I just don't see how it would do nothing besides placebo.

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Heard. Oh you definitely feel it-- what the studies are finding so far is that microdosing doesn't actually enhance function or improve function, which is what the anecdotal evidence claims... So you feel "better", but you aren't actually "better." That's the definition of placebo.

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I see what you are saying. Could the same not be said for anti-depressants or anti anxiety medication though?

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Rukus said:

Ya the just seems odd to me. Say for example a 0.3 gram mushroom dose is considered a microdose, which seems fairly consistent with what I have been reading online. That is not far below a "threshold" dose for a lot of people. I just don't see how it would do nothing besides placebo.

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Roflspammer said:

Rukus said:

Ya the just seems odd to me. Say for example a 0.3 gram mushroom dose is considered a microdose, which seems fairly consistent with what I have been reading online. That is not far below a "threshold" dose for a lot of people. I just don't see how it would do nothing besides placebo.

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Heard. Oh you definitely feel it-- what the studies are finding so far is that microdosing doesn't actually enhance function or improve function, which is what the anecdotal evidence claims... So you feel "better", but you aren't actually "better." That's the definition of placebo.

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Roflspammer said:

Rukus said:

Roflspammer said:

Rukus said:

Ya the just seems odd to me. Say for example a 0.3 gram mushroom dose is considered a microdose, which seems fairly consistent with what I have been reading online. That is not far below a "threshold" dose for a lot of people. I just don't see how it would do nothing besides placebo.

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Heard. Oh you definitely feel it-- what the studies are finding so far is that microdosing doesn't actually enhance function or improve function, which is what the anecdotal evidence claims... So you feel "better", but you aren't actually "better." That's the definition of placebo.

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I see what you are saying. Could the same not be said for anti-depressants or anti anxiety medication though?

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No, there's been tons of studies on antidepressants for decades... They may have the benefit of the placebo effect (depending on the person) but they also work on their own right. They work to make the brain more neuroplastic (similar to big doses of psychedelics...) and also decrease symptoms and improve functioning. They do have shit side effects though, including what you were talking about... Sometimes it's just a matter of finding one that won't affect you as hard but also still work to make your mind more susceptible to change/growth. It's funny... Antidepressants are what microdosing advertises itself to be.

And it's also not necessarily "good" to have a more neuroplastic brain... some people don't need to be destabilized like that (people with bipolar, people with psychosis). This is one reason why it's not advisable to take psychedelics when you have either those diseases in your history or family history.

Psychotherapy is the gold standard for making changes to life.

It's an interesting conversation we can have though--
1) is it better to feel better without actually doing better?
2) or is it better to do better without actually feeling better?

1) feels like relief and/or self deception
2) feels like work, for better or worse

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Roflspammer said:

Yeah fact. Mental health shit is hard.

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