How Long Do Magic Mushrooms Stay In Your System

Magic mushrooms have been around for quite some time. During the 1960s and ’70s, shrooms became a big deal, along with other substances. But, the history of these mushrooms goes back even more. As a matter of fact, they’ve been used for centuries by different people worldwide.

Back then, psilocybin mushrooms were used for religious and spiritual rituals. People began to use it for recreational purposes. Nowadays, these mushrooms have all sorts of uses. Some still use them to have a spiritual experience. Others consume them to help them trip and drift along with their thoughts. But then, science discovered the newfound uses of psilocybin.

Over the past few years, studies have rolled out psilocybin. This is to better understand its effects on the brain. Research says these mushrooms can work as an alternative to antidepressants and antipsychotics. Another study was conducted at NYU. This proved that it is an effective palliative care treatment for cancer patients.

But, despite all the wonders that psilocybin can do for a person, consuming it is still a drawback. Currently, psilocybin mushrooms are a Schedule 1 Controlled Substance. These drugs are known to have no now accepted medical uses and have a high potential for abuse. Because of this, they’re illegal to have around outside of a research setting.

People have to hide the use of shrooms since it is still illegal. This is both for medicinal or recreational purposes. While one can take shrooms in safe spaces, there are still some things that these people worry about. Some people might even worry about how long magic mushrooms stay in your body.

How Long Do The Effects of Mushrooms Last?

Before going in-depth, let’s first understand how long its effects last.

As with any other drug, there is a latency period. This is from when a person first ingests the substance and then feels its effects. During these latency periods, your body digests the substance. Then it breaks down the components. In this case, your body breaks down psilocybin into its more active component. This is called psilocin.

Psilocybin mushrooms’ latency period ranges between 20 to 40 minutes on average. Of course, the numbers are somewhat arbitrary as they will also depend on your metabolism.

Once you start feeling the effects, they will build up until you feel their full extent. Usually, the full effects are between an hour and a half to two hours after you’ve consumed the mushrooms.

More common effects include feeling relaxed and changes in sensory perception. There will also be feelings of openness and increased introspection. People would feel muscle relaxation and a loss of coordination. Nausea, tiredness, and even an increase in heart rate and blood pressure are included.

These effects will last for an average time of about 6 hours. By this time, your body would have used up most of the psilocin. At this point, it will begin to excrete this substance.

While some of the effects of a magic mushroom trip do wear off within a day or two, some effects can persist. One example would be some reports of people experiencing flashbacks symptoms. This involves feeling the effects of the drug long after its actual effects have worn off. Albeit rare, these things can happen.

How Long Do Psilocybe Mushrooms Stay in Your System?

The latency period of magic mushrooms’ effects depends on a person’s metabolism. How long the shrooms stay in your system depends on your metabolism as well.

It is always best to understand how long psilocybin and psilocin work. This goes as well on how they stay in our system. This is best explained in the concept of “half-life.”

In pharmacology, half-life refers to the amount of time a drug takes to be reduced to half of its original amount. So, if you say drug Z has a half-life of 4 hours, the drug will be half its initial amount by 4 hours. A drug’s respective half-life will always be the same. This is regardless of how long you’ve been taking it or its dosage.

Knowing the half-life of a drug is also helpful. This helps estimate how long it will take for the body to clear the substance. The general principle about the total excretion of a drug is that it takes about five and a half half-lives.

The half-life of magic mushrooms is actually the half-life of psilocin that is of concern. On average, psilocin’s half-life is 50 minutes. But then, that begs the question: how long do shrooms stay in your system?

Excretion will depend on many factors. Some factors include kidney function, blood flow, hydration, and activity levels. These usually influence the rate at which psilocin is excreted. But, as far as a healthy adult is concerned, it’s usually gone within a day.

Psilocybin Detection Time

It is a must to know the concept of half-life. This is to better understand when it comes to its detection in the body. Unfortunately, psychedelic compounds can still be detected. Even if its effects have already worn off.

Drug testing is one way by which drugs such as psilocybin can be detected. There are several ways that a drug test can be done. Each utilizes a specific specimen collection and analysis method. But, the specimens need to be collected within a certain period. This is to preserve its usefulness.

The following are common ways drug testing is done. Also, this is how valuable the specimens are for detecting any presence of psilocybin.

Urine Testing

Urine samples are the most common ways by which a person can be tested for drugs. As almost all drugs are excreted through the urine, running this kind of test would make sense. But, when it comes to psilocybin, there is a drawback.

Almost all drug tests that use urine samples do not include any tests for psilocybin. That means that a particular test that detects psilocybin will have to be done. This may be a little more costly for some as you would have to find a lab that does these specialized tests.

Also, these tests are only helpful if it has been done within 24 hours after consumption. This is because the shroom metabolite is flushed out of the body after that time. Afterwards, only trace quantities of it can be detected, making it undetectable.

Blood Testing

Blood samples are another way that drug tests are done, though not as expected. This would be due to the blood’s time window as an excellent sample to detect drugs like psilocybin. Since drugs get metabolized and flushed out of the body rapidly, blood can only have it for a short period.

Blood testing will only be helpful if done right after the drug is ingested. Also, if the person is still under the influence. In the case of magic mushrooms, they would only be detectable in the blood for less than 24 hours.

Hair Testing

Testing via hair samples is not done in a standard drug test. It is also a more expensive test to run and one that takes longer results. So, this is only done if a person is suspected of substance abuse.

But, while it is expensive and takes longer than blood and urine tests, it’s the most accurate test. This is because drugs can stay in the hair for as long as 90 days, psilocybin included. It lasts longer in the hair because the blood, which carries the substance, deposits it. As your circulating blood deposits the substance, it ends up becoming more stable. This, in turn, becomes “stuck” in your follicles.

Can I Flush Them Out Faster?

We have now tackled the detection time of psilocybin. We also talked about how long it stays in the body. Now, the next question is, how do you flush it out? But, unfortunately, there is no straight answer to that.

This all depends on your individual traits. The degree of your metabolism as well as the excretion of substances. Your metabolism, body functions, and activity level are some factors involved. But, these are factors you do not have direct control over.

If you’re looking for ways to help affect excretion, there are a couple of things you can do. First, you can drink a lot more water. By doing this, you help flush out the psilocybin. It is also worth noting that it won’t help flush out enough psilocybin to be undetectable in a test.

If you want the body to get rid of any psilocybin, it would be best to stop any further intake. But, unfortunately, there’s nothing else you can do except stop intake and wait for your body to do its thing.

What if Psilocybin is Detected?

While people have reasons for why they consume shrooms, society still doesn’t accept them. As it is illegal, it could land you in some trouble. Of course, that does depend on what state you live in.

Either way, while psilocybin is still illegal throughout the US, it will be best to try and get help. There is still a chance that a person could get addicted to it, even if it’s low. This is why going to therapy or seeking rehabilitation would be a necessary next step.

Some benefits are derived from using psilocybin. But its extent is still not understood. That means people may not be sure about what doses would be safe and how to take them. There is also a high risk of getting a bad trip for inexperienced people.

Bad trips can be very traumatic, psychological, and emotional. As they could put you in a terrible state of mind. If not handled well, people can get panic attacks and even bouts of paranoia. This leaves some permanent trauma. Avoiding it might be more advisable to abstain from taking shrooms. At least for the time being. Up until there’s more information on safe doses, safer ways to trip, and more understanding laws on its use.

Conclusion

It’s hard to deny the possible benefits of taking psychedelic mushrooms. After all, the science is there, showing that there’s much potential in the use of shrooms for wellness. But, there’s still a lot that needs to be done before this gets accepted by society.

Even if the duration and effects are known, the full extent is still unknown. It’s hard to tell how much is good and at what amount that ends. It’s also difficult to gauge how to use these substances to maximize their benefit.

As they are still a Schedule 1 controlled substance, using them can still land you in trouble. This is true if magic mushrooms are not legalized or even decriminalized where you live. So, if they do get detected in you, you might be in for a lot more trouble than you’ve signed up for.

With that in mind, it’s best to be careful about taking these psychedelic mushrooms. Do what you can to be safe, and don’t consume them if they’re illegal. If you find this hard to do, then get help. Going about things like this would be the ideal way of doing things until things progress.