A Microdosing Guide
Microdosing Tips & Resources:
What is Microdosing?
Microdosing is the practice of consuming a small amount of a psychedelic substance, usually 5–10% of a classic dose, with the intention of improving your quality of life. The practice of microdosing does not cause typical psychedelic effects such as visual disturbances or distorted sense of time and space; instead, microdosers experience positive and subtle effects from the practice. Microdosing is a practice that yields best results when it’s done intentionally over an extended period of time. The exact effects and results of this practice depend greatly on the person, the substance, the dosage and many other personal factors such as intention, expectations and mindset.
Benefits of Microdosing
Positive mood
More energy and creativity
Ability to connect with higher powers
Increased focus, awareness, and problem-solving ability
Greater empathy for and emotional connection with people around you
Ability to be more mindful and present
When to Microdose?
First Time
It is important that you start microdosing on a day when you don’t have many obligations, where you will be safe and comfortable, and able to focus on how the microdose affects you physically and mentally.
Dose in Morning
Also important the first time you microdose, is that you do so in the morning. Psilocybin can change pulse and blood pressure, influencing the cardiac system, and thus resulting in a mildly stimulating response. While this doesn’t always occur, if you microdose later in the day and it happens, sleeping may be a problem. There are occasional individuals who finds psilocybin sedating and prefers to take microdoses before bed. The only way to find out which camp you fall into is experimentation. Given the mushrooms’ generally stimulating nature, it’s best to begin your exploration in the morning.
With microdosing, the primary goal for Church of Our Earth Members is spiritual, however, it would be less than transparent not to address the fact that medical studies over the last decade have shown that taking sub-perceptual doses of psychedelics, like a psilocybin microdose, improves normal functioning. Thus, it is completely appropriate to not just set intentions about spirituality, but to also have intentions related to improvements in mood, concentration, grounding, activity, and/or perception.
Side Effects
A common side effect reported by users of large doses of psychedelics is nausea shortly after ingestion of mushrooms. While this is far less likely with microdosing, it’s preferable that you begin your microdosing journey on an empty stomach. So if you ultimately find that you prefer microdosing in the afternoon, make sure to leave four hours or more after eating before doing so.
The average person feels the effects of Psilocybe cubensis, the species of psychedelic mushrooms whose principal active compounds are psilocybin and psilocin, about 45 minutes after ingestion on an empty stomach.
Not only can nausea be an issue, but whether or not you take your microdose on an empty stomach or with food affects the absorption of psilocybin in the stomach. Consistency is key. If you have been taking your microdose first thing in the morning before breakfast, but after a few weeks, take it after oatmeal, your experience may be different.
Please pay attention to how you feel both before and after the microdose, what you eat, and other things that may help you understand how the microdose is affecting you. The more you understand about how the microdose affects you, the better you can personalize your microdosing cycles.
What is a Microdosing Protocol?
A protocol is the schedule of when and how often you take your microdose. Some of the most popular ones are discussed below. Make sure you journal about, take notes on, and otherwise pay attention to how you are feeling when microdosing.
Five days on, two days off Protocol
I have seen a lot of success with the five days on/two days off protocol. Five days of microdosing really seems to work well for folks with depression, ADHD, and concerns like aging.
The Fadiman Microdosing Protocol
One of the most well-known protocols for microdosing is the “Fadiman Protocol.” It is a three-day cycle, one-day-on, two days-off, which you follow every three days for 4 to 8 weeks.
Two Fixed Days Microdosing Protocol
Some people prefer a fixed schedule and choose two fixed days to microdose a week. You can do more than once a week, but keep at least 1 day in between dosing.
Intuitive Microdosing
Another way of microdosing is to do it entirely intuitively. Take one when you feel like it. The only rule being you take off approximately half the number of days that you microdose – so if you microdose for 2 days in a row, take one day off in between. Similarly, if you microdose for 5 days in a row, take off at least two days in between. After you start to get a sense of how the microdose is working for you, it’s important to listen to your body. This is a really intuitive fungi that senses our emotional and spiritual blockages and gets us back in touch with our physical and psychic bodies. As a general rule of thumb – take a break for about half the time that you microdose.
Self Care While Microdosing
Practice good self-care when microdosing – recognize you are going on a spiritual journey and need fortification – so eat brain healthy foods like fish, nuts, green leafy vegetables, and berries. Also take vitamins that promote neuroplasticity like B and C vitamins, choline, and omega-3 fatty acids. Choline is an important supplement, but keep in mind that you can also source it by eating eggs.
Psilocybin naturally promotes neuroplasticity and neurogenesis so we want that growth and change to occur in the most optimal environment possible. If you do activities, eat food, and take vitamins that naturally support neuroplasticity, your gains while microdosing will be even more substantial. On the days that you microdose go out in nature because that naturally enhances neuroplasticity. There’s also activities that promote the same like five minutes of sudoku, puzzles, word searches or anything that challenges your brain. If you don’t like brain games, simply write or doodle with your non-dominant hand for five minutes a day when you microdose.
The main thing about microdosing is to do it intentionally and to journal by hand. Intentions frame and guide the experience. Journaling helps unspool inner motivations and uncovers shadowy areas within ourselves that we need to explore in order to feel whole.
Intentional Microdosing
Church of Our Earth believes that the primary purpose of microdosing is to put us in touch with God, the Universe, and our Spirit guides. Thus, it is important that you set intentions around these goals and any others that you have. Setting intentions for your microdosing journey are important because doing so sets priorities for the experience, your body, and subconscious. Intentions help you feel more connected to the reason for wanting to microdose and when living intentionally, instead of haphazardly, it’s more likely that you’ll reach your goals. When trying to figure out intentions for your microdosing journey ask yourself questions like:
When are you most happy?
What are you holding onto that no longer serves you?
What areas of your life would you like to grow into?
What matters most to you in life?
Words matter so it matters how we state our intentions. To that end, the guidelines below can help you create clear, powerful, and direct intentions.
Crafting Microdosing Intentions
Choose positively-oriented intentions
When setting an intention, positively orient it in the present moment.
Examples:
Show me the happiness inside of me.
Teach me to be peacefully present.
Show me the abundance already in my life.
Teach me how to connect with my spirit guides.
Help me stay grounded in gratitude.
Show me the happy synchronicities in life.
Show me my spiritual path.
Craft a specific request
Make intentions as clear and powerful as possible by phrasing with specificity. Use the prefixes help me, teach me, or show me when wording your intentions.
Examples:
Teach me how to better express my boundaries with others.
Show me my destiny and purpose.
Teach me how to be still in chaotic times.
Show me the positivity in every situation.
Reveal and help me manifest my hidden dreams.
Help me connect with God.
Straight up ask
Your intentions can also be as straightforward as stating “my intention is.”
Some common themes follow:
My intention is to be open to abundance.
My intention is to hear my Spirit guides.
My intention is to embrace change.
My intention is to surrender to the inevitable.
My intention is to connect with others.
My intention is to practice patience.
My intention is to be more vulnerable.
My intention is to find forgiveness for myself and others.
My intention is to connect to the Universe.
In your Journal, write out your intentions.
Record observations of how you feel during microdosing.
Hopefully, these tips are helpful to you and supportive of your microdosing journey. If you have any specific questions while you are on this path, please don’t hesitate to reach out to me. info@churchofourearth.com
