Known as one of a number of different psychedelics that are currently being studied as a possible treatment for various severe mental health problems, psilocybe cubensis mushrooms are being actively added to clinical studies and researched in labs throughout the world. Their effects on the brain are especially interesting, and scientists believe they can shed light on how psilocybin acts to limit the symptoms of depression, anxiety and several other health problems that are associated with the brain.
A number of combined studies have revealed that those people who took therapy sessions assisted by varying doses of psilocybin (“magic”) mushrooms have shown increased brain connectivity and self-reported improvements in their mental state. Their depression symptoms seem to have faded, and the improved connectivity associated with their brain function lasted for up to 3 weeks after the drug was taken.
Some researchers cultivating psychedelic mushroom spores explain the effect of magic mushrooms on the patients’ brains as a response to the psychedelic action of the drug, while some point out that the underlying reason for the effects is still very much unclear, and further research will be needed on how the mechanism works.
In a later study, symptoms of treatment-resistant depression were found to be alleviated by the use of psylocibin. Participants also received therapy, and scientists noticed that those who had the most striking results showed an increase in communication between areas of the brain that are normally separated in patients with severe depression.