DOSE:

capsls

oral

Amanitas - A. pantherina

(dried)

A. Pantherina Synopsis of Experimentation

Subjective reports of A. Pantherina are a rare find; therefore I was compelled to discover on my own the psychoactive potential lurking behind this obscure fungus. By the time I conducted these experiments, I had much practice finding and identifying mushrooms, and had become very familiar with the taxonomy of Amanita spp., including, most importantly, the deadly varieties which can resemble, to a frightening degree, the mushroom of which I treat.

As someone who prefers life over death, I wanted to be as careful as was possible when searching for the proper dosage. But with no frame of reference, and with a potentially wide range of potency between specimens, I decided the best method of experimentation was to begin with a reasonably small dose (smaller than what I imagined would be psychoactive) and steadily increase the amount I ingested over a period of days until a satisfactory level of psychoactivity was perceived.

I prepared the mushrooms in the following manner: approx. 18 whole mushrooms were, within the hour that they were picked, cleaned and halved. The caps were then separated from the stems and placed in a food dehydrator, set to medium heat, until the mushrooms were dry. The dried specimens were then chopped until a fine powder and mixed together in a bag. (This, I believed, would equalize the potency of any random sample.) This powder was then encapsulated so as to aid ingestion.

I began with one pill and increased my dosage by one pill each successive night. It was several nights before any psychoactivity was noted. The first effects I noticed were mild disorientation, dizziness, and pleasant numbness akin to opiates (or, as I've heard some say, alcohol). At higher doses, more pronounced disorientation/confusion of senses and decreased physical coordination. I felt as if I was spinning, but only by a quarter turn and snapping back and back and back into a fixed position, comparable to the alcohol 'spins' but without nausea. Walking around was difficult and unsatisfying. I laid down in a dark room, the snapping sensations increasing in intensity until almost unbearable. I then had the urge to urinate and, stepping into the bathroom, experienced the very peculiar sensation of being in two places at once; not only standing over the toilet but consciously aware of being about two feet above and a foot right of me. Again, snapping in and out of this awareness. I laid back down, tired of the disorienting effects of the mushroom, and quickly fell into a deep, deep, slumber.

It was during this sleep that I experienced one of the most vivid dreams of my life, full of tangible, textural archetypal figures whose actions and character, in retrospect, struck me as wildly profound. I was then conscious of a total blackness that separated the dream state from the waking state. It is here, as I recall reading somewhere (Wasson? check ref.), that the drug has its healing effects. This observation was verified by my experience. I awoke the next day feeling energetic and wonderful, as if I had worked out some mysterious problem during the time that I slept. I felt as if I had been transformed into a more powerful, more aware being.

Since this experience, I have undergone no more trials with A. Pantherina. I do not mean that I never will again, only that I don't presently feel the need.

Exp Year: 2012	ExpID: 100915
Gender: Not Specified
Age at time of experience: Not Given
Published: Aug 9, 2018	Views: 2,089
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Amanitas - A. pantherina (71), Dreams (85) : General (1), Preparation / Recipes (30), Retrospective / Summary (11), Alone (16)