A tendency toward microdosing—taking small dosages “below the perceptual threshold”—has contributed to the rise in magic mushroom use in the UK in recent years. Many drug users are parents who claim that the drug relieves them of the stressors of contemporary living.
As she waves them off, the 36-year-old Buckinghamshire resident claims she is not hallucinating. Instead, she’s one of many parents who take little doses of hallucinogens because they think it helps with the stress of modern living.
Ella says, “I’m a better parent,” referring to her use of psychedelics. She reports feeling less stressed, happier, calmer, and less prone to freak out when things don’t go as planned. “I interact with my children better, and I’m more present.” It is now quality time instead of me trying to just keep it together as a mother.”
In recent years, the general public has become more interested in psychedelics. Online parent groups have proliferated in the US, where psilocybin—a naturally occurring substance found in magic mushrooms—has been approved for medical usage in certain areas.
Illegal in the UK, despite requests to relax regulations from some quarters, microdosing—which is described as taking small dosages “below the perceptual threshold” that “do not impair normal functioning”—has contributed significantly to the increase in interest in this area.
According to the most recent Office for National Statistics data, the number of drug users in England and Wales between the ages of 16 and 59 is predicted to have more than doubled in the last ten years, from 119,000 in the year ending in March 2014 to 279,000 in 2023. There has been an increase of 68%, from roughly 166,000, just before 2020.
