Awesome New Free Mushroom Dosing Calculator Plus Updates on Kits and News of Interest (Patreon)

I am happy to introduce the first free mushroom dosing calculator that I can fully endorse:
https://sporelore.co/dose-calculator

Years ago I publicly expressed my disappointment with existing mushroom dosing calculators but I never got around to correcting that problem UNTIL NOW. To give credit where credit is due, the calculator was coded/built by a patron who goes by "Oddo". It is based on the formula that I previously posted and we refined it together until I was satisfied. Please provide any feedback you think could improve it further. The tool has a way to pick a specific species or cultivar to see averages based on publicly published HPLC testing data, but just to be clear (and there is a very clear warning about this in the tool itself) your personal grow could vary considerably from any published average. In general, you will hit higher potency levels if you follow all of the best cultivation practices that I have shared over time, namely, use gypsum in the substrate, harvest just before spore drop (for most species), immediately begin dehydrating after harvest, only leave in dehydrator until cracker dry, blend the cracker dry fruit bodies into a powder, store in a sealed glass jar preferably with an inert gas like Argon or CO2. If you do sloppy work, wait until the fruit bodies are deteriorating or shedding spores like crazy, or you are slow to dry them and/or use poor storage methods, your potency levels will generally be lower.

It is my recommendation that you not guess the potency based on averages or other assumptions, but actually measure it if you want the best possible results. Labs you can send samples to include MagicMyco and Altitude Consulting (those are the two US labs I've worked the most with, MagicMyco has a code 'GordoTEK' you can use to get a discount by the way). Other labs include: TrypLabs, Tryptomics, Rose City Labs, Flourish Labs, and Hyphae Labs. In Europe Energy Control seems like a great option.

While HPLC testing is usually the most accurate, I know it can also be kind of expensive. A very nice, lower cost, somewhat newish option are these home test kits from Miraculix.

The cool thing about the Psilocybin Qtest is that it was developed by hard core researchers (like Felix Blei) who have published cutting edge research on psilocybin mushrooms and purchasing the test kits directly supports their lab and continued work in the field. I'm sure some will also be wondering if the QTest uses the same "Psilocybin Equivalent" value that I use all the time (where the psilocybin and psilocin amounts are combined into one number, with accommodation for the different molecular weights and corresponding potency). The answer is YES, that is exactly what is reported by the test! The way they achieved that is by using an acidic solution that converts all of the psilocybin to psilocin, and then a color based test scale that is calibrated to psilocybin equivalency:

If you really want to geek out, they even sell a QTest Photometer that will read your test results and give you a precise value without you having to determine it yourself based on the color chart. Note that for very potent species like TTBVI which go off the scale of the QTest, you can use half the amount of mushroom material and then double your result (for example if the test says it's 15mg/g (or 1.5% potency) based on the half sample size, that means it is 30mg/g or 3% potency.

Also please note that another caveat to a dosing calculator is that different people have different sensitivity to psychedelics. This is one area of research that doesn't seem very well documented yet, for example I have no idea what percentage of the population could be considered to have "natural low sensitivity" and what percentage has "unusually high sensitivity". I personally fall in the very high sensitivity category, but I know several people that have low sensitivity. In ayahuasca ceremonies it is somewhat common for some people to have incredible deep visual experiences while others have no visions whatsoever. What we DO know is that some medications can cause low sensitivity, such as SSRIs, SNRIs, and opioids but there are probably other meds that impact sensitivity. Another probable cause is temporary or permanent damage to 5HT2A receptors, this might be caused by past drug abuse or medications that had been taken for an extended time. In some cases, receptor damage seems to be able to be healed over time, and improved sensitivity to psychedelics can happen after weaning off medications. But there is also a genetic factor, people that just have low sensitivity without any of the previously mentioned reasons, perhaps they have very high levels of MAO (mono amine oxidase) which breaks down psychedelics in the gut and blood. Or perhaps the genetic factors relate to the number of 5HT2A receptors in the brain, or the ability of psychedelics to cross the blood brain barrier.

To help a person determine their personal sensitivity it is strongly recommended that you start at the lower levels of psychedelic experience and work your way up from there as desired, one level at a time with at least 2 weeks between experiences. Also note that researchers found no particular value to going above the highest level range described. Excessive doses can cause elevated fear, anxiety, panic, sweating, paranoia, nausea, dizziness, vomiting, diarrhea, etc. Please don't brag about taking abnormally high doses, it's the psychedelic equivalent to the morons who drink an entire case of beer in one night. Also some people taking very high doses simply have very low sensitivity (or high tolerance) for numerous possible reasons (medications they take, past receptor damage, or genetic factors) and they cannot achieve the described levels without taking much higher doses than an average person. You will figure out your sensitivity as you work your way up the levels, check to see if what you experienced matches the descriptions. You can also use the MEQ-30 questionnaire to confirm what level you have achieved.

[3 to 6mg PCBE]:

This level produces mild effects, with some visual enhancement like brighter or more vibrant colors and sometimes an elevated mood. Some short term memory anomalies. Left/right brain communication changes causing music to sound 'wider'.

 [6 to 12mg PCBE]:

Bright colors, and visuals (ie. things start to move and breathe) some 2-dimensional patterns become apparent upon shutting eyes. Confused or reminiscent thoughts. The natural brain filter (salience network) begins to deactivate, thoughts may be distracted, creativity may feel enhanced, fixation on objects within your view or parts of your body can happen (for example staring at your hand or a flower or tree).  The salience network or midcingulo-insular network or ventral attention network, is a group of regions in your brain that work together to filter out unimportant information and decide what deserves your attention.

[12 to 18mg PCBE]:

Very obvious visuals, everything looking curved and/or warped patterns and kaleidoscopes seen on walls, faces, etc. Some mild hallucinations such as rivers flowing in wood grained or 'mother of pearl' surfaces. Closed eye hallucinations become 3 dimensional. Open eyed visuals everywhere with no effort. There could be some confusing of the senses (ie. seeing sounds as colors etc.) Time distortions and `moments of eternity`. Movement at times becomes extremely difficult (too much effort required).

[18 to 30mg PCBE]:

Strong hallucinations, objects morphing into other objects. The brain’s default mode network becomes less active or inactive resulting in loss of ego or splitting of the ego. Things may start talking to you, or you find that you are feeling contradictory things simultaneously. Some loss of reality. Time becomes meaningless. Out of body experiences and perceived esp type phenomena are possible. Different parts of the brain become “hyper-connected” resulting in full blending of the senses (synesthesia). You may experience colors when listening to music, see shapes when smelling certain scents, or perceive tastes when looking at words.

[30 to 40mg PCBE]:

Total loss of visual connection with reality. The senses cease to function in the normal way. Total loss of ego. Merging with space, other objects or the universe. The loss of reality becomes so severe that it defies explanation. The earlier levels are relatively easy to explain in terms of measurable changes in perception and thought patterns. This level is different in that the actual universe within which things are normally perceived, ceases to exist. You may experience momentary periods of absolute peace and calm while the ego is suppressed and your brain is unencumbered by its usual worries or passions.

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Unrelated, but wanted to post a follow up to the new vendor selling GordoTEK grow kits and other supplies, full details and review of the kits previously posted here: https://www.patreon.com/posts/105964263 

MidwestFreshMushrooms was a bit overwhelmed by the massive demand for those kits and had some unexpected challenges but they are completely caught up now and have even hired some additional helpers. So I just wanted to drop a note that things are finally back in stock again and ship times should be normal now. Thanks also for posting feedback, from what I've seen people have been happy with the kits and service, this vendor makes things right if/when anything doesn't meet expectations and feedback has resulted in further improvements already.
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ATTENTION EUROPEANS!  I have a new partnership with a vendor in the Netherlands called Mycotrop who put together a kit that is similar to the one above from MidwestFresh (although I think it's half the size). To be super transparent, they have NOT sent me a kit to personally test & review which I generally require of all vendors but understand it is very expensive to ship large heavy objects across the ocean. So consider this a provisional endorsement, if anyone orders from them, PLEASE send me feedback. The really cool thing about this kit is that they even include liquid cultures of my genetics (TTBVI and natalensis) so it is truly an all in one kit. Here is an affiliate link to the product: https://mycotrop.com/en/home/1628-1592-gordotek-all-in-one-kit-mycotek-version.html?affp=10366#/strains-natalensis
Again I would VERY MUCH appreciate detailed feedback from anyone that orders from this vendor (obviously intended only for Europeans). They had a good score on TrustPilot but apparently TrustPilot has recently removed all "bad fit" businesses from their site, which includes businesses related to drugs, I guess no exception for mushrooms which are gaining significant recognition for their legitimate use cases and even medical acceptance in many jurisdictions.

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IN THE NEWS

There are some interesting ideas about using VR for psychedelic integration mentioned in this article. They make a good point about the sad proportion of investment $ going into psychedelic drug development vs. R&D on best ways to use psychedelics for the benefit of humankind. https://www.forbes.com.au/covers/innovation/psychedelics-therapy-will-be-legal-in-july-heres-what-you-need-to-know/
Besides integration, it would be really fascinating research to see if VR could be used also during psychedelic experiences to somehow help achieve certain goals like steering a person toward the type of experience that might help them most, etc. or maybe to calm an anxious person for example.

Some unscrupulous companies have been selling fake mushroom products with research chemicals in them, and people are getting sick: https://doubleblindmag.com/fda-investigates-diamond-shruumz/ I don't trust research chemicals and they aren't even putting these ingredients on the label. Yet another reason why people should grow their own supply. Many people believe the growing part (caring for a living organism that will reciprocate by caring for you) is a healing process in and of itself.

I've also been seeing more and more negative articles on Amanita. Not sure if anyone here is into that species, see: https://ashlegal.pro/blog/f/amanita-muscaria-loophole-or-hangmans-noose I've never been a fan due to the toxicity despite many people saying you can remove the toxins with the right processing. If you saw the episode of Hamilton's Pharmacopeia on Amanita, you will note that Hamilton refused to consume them, that is pretty rare for him, as he will try just about anything 😂. That should probably tell you something.

More on amanita and sketchy commercial products being sold with research chemicals (shout out to Tryptomics' Caleb King and Chris Pauli): Psychedelic mushroom edibles promise health benefits. Be wary, experts say.

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UPDATE: It turns out, Johns Hopkins who initially insisted on the bodyweight adjusted dosing which I've always been skeptical about, actually self corrected and no longer recommends bodyweight adjustments, so the calculator no longer has a bodyweight adjustment option in case anyone was wondering about that. For what it's worth, I requested the raw data from Johns Hopkins years ago to check on this recommendation, it should have been very easy to provide, I wanted to plot MEQ30 scores against bodyweight to see if there was a correlation between the two (if heavier people were consistently getting higher scores it would clearly indicate a problem with the bodyweight adjusted dosing). Hopkins ignored my request and did not send the data, but instead conducted their own internal review and apparently discovered my suspicions were correct. I don't remember them ever publicizing this discovery nor did they ever bother to follow up with me. I am a bit disappointed by the lack of research that went into their initial decision to use bodyweight adjusted dosing in the first place but at least they have corrected the error now. The nice thing about science is that it is generally self correcting over time.
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Check out our patreon COMMUNITY chat section if you haven't yet (available on BOTH the patreon website AND the patreon APP). People are really helping one another and sharing great tips and other information. It has a wonderful, friendly, helpful vibe. Besides the FAQ, this is the next best place to look for help when you have a question. Nothing like members helping members.

Links to all of my TEKs, Videos, Trip music, and frequently asked questions with answers can be found here: https://www.patreon.com/posts/22774475 (everything is made available for FREE, I do not use pay walls, support the work only if you feel like you've benefited from it and you are able to do so). People have told me my work has helped them overcome depression, addictions, PTSD, relationship issues, direction in life, and to have important, meaningful, sometimes life changing mystical experiences. I feel honored and blessed to play a small role in this. That is my reward.