Delta 8 THC + Magic Mushrooms: Powerful Synergy or Risky Combination?

It’s no secret that people are mixing cannabis with magic mushrooms.

For many, it’s a great complementary experience — but is it safe?

That depends on a range of individual factors, most of which revolve around mental health; because that’s where psychedelics and cannabis are particularly active.

Since delta 8 THC is a milder analog of delta 9 THC from cannabis, novice trippers have started experimenting with this combo as a way to enrich their high without going over the edge. 

Here, we’ll explore the potential benefits and risks of this combo, explain the mechanisms behind their effects, discuss harm reduction tips, and help you avoid fake delta 8 magic shrooms that are flooding the market these days.

How Does Cannabis Work with Psychedelics?

Although cannabis isn’t a psychedelic per se, it shares many similar qualities with psychedelics.

That’s why people like to mix them together.

However, mixing shrooms with cannabinoids produces unpredictable results. The safest route (aside from avoiding this combo altogether) is the “low and slow” approach. 

It’s always easy to take more, but you can never take less once you’ve had too much already. 

Timing is the second essential factor. 

Taking Delta 8 at the beginning, during the peak, and at the end of your psychedelic trip may have completely different effects.

When you take delta 8 shortly after taking shrooms, you can accelerate the high.

Taking them at the peak can push the experience in either direction — either helping to smooth it out or pushing users to experience enhanced paranoia and anxiety.

And when you mix delta 8 with magic mushrooms at the end, it tends to soften the landing and help users come back to Earth more gently.

Why Some People Use Delta 8 Instead of Regular Cannabis

Delta 8 THC is about 50% as potent as Delta 9 THC. Lower strength translates into a reduced risk of anxiety and paranoia [1].

When you have a good trip on magic mushrooms, delta 8 can add some pizzazz to it, enhancing the overall vibe and your connection with your thoughts and surroundings. 

It’s also useful for “softening the landing” as the effects of the mushrooms start to wear off. It can help you veg out and relax as the effects of the shrooms dissipate and will help you fall asleep to recover shortly afterward. 

What Does Mixing Delta 8 with Magic Mushrooms Feel Like?

Psychedelics, like magic mushrooms, alter one’s visual, auditory, and tactile perception. You won’t see things that aren’t there, but you might experience shifting, morphing, and exaggeration of shapes and sounds in your environment. 

Your mind will also experience a dramatic shift in thinking — you feel like you’re experiencing things for the first time. 

Delta 8 smooths out the magic mushrooms effects. It helps users feel calm and content, while the mushrooms affect other aspects of consciousness and perception. 

Some users may feel the delta 8 THC adds some “thickness” to the experience — almost as though the air around you is thick and moving in slow motion.

Mechanism of Action: Delta 8 vs. Magic Mushrooms

Delta 8 (and other psychoactive cannabinoids) work through an entirely different process compared to magic mushrooms — yet the end results have some distinct similarities. 

Delta 8 THC works via the endocannabinoid system. More specifically, it activates the CB1 receptors in the brain and central nervous system — these receptors are responsible for the characteristic high you feel after vaping a delta 8 pen or taking a tincture under the tongue [2].

Psychedelics, such as magic mushrooms or LSD (lysergic acid diethylamide), target 5HT2A serotonin receptors. These receptors appear to inhibit a specific part of the brain called the default mode network (DMN) while simultaneously increasing activity in other areas associated with creativity and abstract thought. 

This effect, in part, leads to the diverse palette of psychedelic effects associated with psychedelic substances [3].

Sometimes CB1 and 5HT2A merge with each other to create a super receptor that’s receptive to both THC and psychedelics [4].

Benefits & Risks of Mixing Delta 8 with Magic Mushrooms

Using delta 8 together with magic mushrooms can provide unique benefits. Many advocate for the use of cannabinoids like delta 8 to ease the difficult landing from psychedelics (which refers to the comedown as the effects wear off and you return to normal cognition). 

Others believe cannabinoids like D8 can effectively boost the best parts of the psychedelic experience (introspection, creativity, connection with nature) while minimizing the downsides (anxiety and paranoia).

The key to getting it right is through the application of intention and proper dosing.

But this combo also comes with some risks, especially if you’re new to psychedelics and approach delta 8 with magic mushrooms in the wrong set and setting.

Here’s what you need to know.

Benefits of D8 & Magic Mushrooms

• May enhance the psychedelic trip
• It may help relieve nausea caused by magic mushrooms
• It may help further reduce ego during a psychedelic experience
• May extend the duration of the trip
• It may help soften the landing while coming down from psychedelics
• It may increase the duration of a psychedelic trip

Risks of D8 & Magic Mushrooms

• It may increase anxiety and paranoia
• Unpredictable effects for beginners
• The trip may become scary if you’re sensitive to THC or psilocybin
• It may increase heart rate or cause changes in blood pressure

Beware of Fake “Delta 8 Magic Mushrooms”

There’s a good amount of bogus products out there trying to fool you into thinking you’re eating delta 8 THC-infused magic mushrooms.

In fact, these are food-grade mushrooms, such as shiitake or reishi, sprayed with delta 8 THC.

Some companies also sell HHC and HHC-O mushrooms under the same deceptive term. 

The fact that these companies are trying to mislead customers into thinking they’re something they’re not is concerning. It has me questioning what species of mushroom the company is using and whether or not the Delta 8 extracts they’re using are any good either. If the company is willing to lie about the contents of a product, what else are they willing to lie about to make a buck?

Much as I want to like these products, I can’t. Not only are you going to be disappointed after using them, but there’s also a good chance they contain unsafe ingredients or extracts.

I suggest you avoid all of these sketchy products until the market develops better self-regulation. 

Delta 8 & Magic Mushroom FAQs

Our most frequently asked questions on the combination of magic mushrooms and delta 8 THC were answered: 

1. Is Cannabis a Psychedelic?

It can be, although it doesn’t meet all criteria for being classified as such.

Psychedelics produce changes in sensory perception — this is where both delta 8 and magic mushrooms align with one another.

But psychedelics are associated with a more intense experience than the signature weed high.

When most people think about psychedelics, they lean more toward psilocybin, LSD, or MDMA.

While magic mushrooms can produce ego melt and take you on a long trip inside your mind, cannabis is much milder in that regard.

You won’t hallucinate or have a transcendental experience with weed unless you eat a 500 mg hash brownie at once.

I’ve done… I mean, I’ve heard from a friend that it definitely melts your speech apparatus and makes you wish you could stop laughing.

2. Why do People Mix Cannabis with Magic Mushrooms?

Out of sheer curiosity — that’s what comes to my mind first. Both delta 8 and magic mushrooms interact with the endocannabinoid system, although they use different routes to achieve their effects.

When taken by experienced users who know their intentions, it can enhance the psychedelic experience and create a unique trip that may drive you toward unusual conclusions and help you overcome your mental blocks.

After all, psychedelic means “manifesting the mind.” Some people prefer their manifest to be louder than others.

3. Does Delta 8 THC Increase the Duration of Magic Mushrooms?

It can. Since delta 8 THC and magic mushrooms can target the same “super receptor” made from CB1 and 5HT2A receptors, you may trip more intensely — and longer than you would if you took just the shrooms.

Depending on your overall mental health, as well as the set and setting, the trip can be more enjoyable and relaxing, or it can become too intense and create distress. 

4. How do Magic Mushrooms Work?

When you take magic mushrooms, psilocybin travels to your liver; the liver breaks it down into its active form, psilocin — the one responsible for the psychedelic trip.

Magic mushrooms activate 5-HT2A receptors, which are responsible for most of its mind-altering effects, including hallucinations, strong euphoria, introspection, sharpened senses, and altered perception of time [5].

It’s also the reason why magic mushrooms can be so effective at relieving anxiety, depression, cluster headaches, and tinnitus.

5. How does Cannabis Work?

Cannabis interacts with the endocannabinoid system (ECS) — the master regulatory network in all mammals that works to promote and maintain homeostasis.

Homeostasis is a fancy term for the biological balance between the other systems and organs in the body.

The ECS produces its own cannabinoid molecules called endocannabinoids [6].

One of them is anandamide, also known as the bliss molecule. Anandamide regulates the activity of CB1 receptors and can produce feelings of bliss, euphoria, pain relief, and tranquility at certain doses [7].

THC from cannabis has a similar molecular structure to anandamide, so it can mimic its effects. When you smoke a decent amount of weed, you can get high because THC fools your brain that there’s more anandamide circulating in the bloodstream.

This interaction also results in a range of health benefits, such as relief from pain, nausea, stress, anxiety, depression, PTSD, inflammation, and insomnia [8].

6. What’s the Difference Between delta 8 & delta 9 THC?

delta 8 THC is a milder isomer of delta 9 THC.

When your weed ages, delta 9 THC degrades to CBN, and a fraction of it turns into delta 8 THC.

However, you can convert CBD into delta 8, so hemp manufacturers quickly hopped on board and started making hemp-derived delta 8 THC products (which are federally legal).

delta 8 THC is around 50% less potent than delta 9 THC. It also comes with a lower incidence of anxiety and paranoia — explaining why many sensitive cannabis users are turning to it now.

9. Can You Use CBD with Magic Mushrooms?

Yes, especially if you want to tone down your trip when it gets too intense. CBD is the modulator of the endocannabinoid system; it also balances the psychoactive effects of THC, including anxiety, paranoia, increased heart rate, and sweating [9].

On the mental level, CBD activates 5HT1A serotonin receptors, making the neurotransmitter more available to the body [10]. It also increases anandamide and GABA levels through endocannabinoid signaling — resulting in a clear mind, reduced anxiety, enhanced stress response, and improved focus [11].