The Mental Health Revolution: Unlocking the Benefits of Psilocybin and Functional Mushrooms

There’s a fungal renaissance happening in mental healthcare. For years, it’s felt like the solution to untangling conditions like depression or anxiety had to be pharmaceutical. But as science advances, emerging research is painting a different picture about the purpose (and potency) of mushrooms—both psychedelic and functional— for mental health.

Psychedelics have finally begun to shed their stigma as being medicine-adjacent or a trippy pastime. When it comes to mushrooms in particular, clinical breakthroughs and reputable institutions alike are singing the same tune: There are substantial mental health benefits to mushrooms, from treating chronic conditions like depression to sharpening cognition. Let’s break down what the science says about using fungi, from psilocybin to lion’s mane, to improve mental health.

Benefits of Mushrooms for Mental Health

“Magic mushrooms,” as you probably know them, are a type of psychedelic drug. For many years, research into psychedelics was stymied by political paranoia and misinformation. As that fog has lifted, we’re gaining a higher-resolution picture of the benefits of mushrooms for mental health. 

A mechanism behind the impact? Neuroplasticity. It’s the brain’s ability to reformat itself, forming new connections between neurons and neural pathways, that influences how we view and engage with life (and the stressors that come with it). When a sufficient quantity of psilocybin is ingested, its psychedelic properties bolster neuroplasticity, creating a much-needed mental reset. 

But not all mushrooms with mental health benefits are psychoactive. Other types of fungi, like lion’s mane or reishi, are regarded as “functional mushrooms.” Functional mushrooms won’t make you trip, but when microdosed regularly, they can provide subtle mental nourishment. 

The potential mental health benefits of mushrooms vary depending on what kind and how much you take. Let’s get specific.

Psilocybin: The Breakthrough for Deep Psychological Healing

Psilocybin is what most people think of when they imagine taking mushrooms. In addition to being a good time, psilocybin may have remarkable mental health benefits, in part by suppressing the brain’s Default Mode Network, or DMN. 

How Psilocybin Resets the Brain

Science has come to recognize the DMN as the “seat of the ego” in the brain. It’s a network that switches on when you don’t have specific external stimuli; think of it like a mental screensaver. 

While active, the DMN encourages deep introspection and mind-wandering. Doesn’t sound too bad, right? Unfortunately, excessive DMN activity has also been associated with depressive symptoms – it locks your brain into repeated pattern recognition, calcifying your outlook. 

Psilocybin has been shown to temporarily suppress the DMN, allowing disparate regions of your brain to connect and communicate, instead of locking you in the same whirlpool of negative thoughts. 

Psilocybin Mental Health Benefits

• In 2020, researchers reported that psilocybin-assisted therapy can be “efficacious in treating major depressive disorder.”
• One study in 2023 found that a single 25mg dose of psilocybin led to a “clinically significant” sustained reduction in depressive symptoms.

Beyond the mental health benefits of mushrooms for common ailments like anxiety and depression, new research also highlights their potential in managing addiction and substance abuse. There appears to be a small beneficial effect, but more work is needed in this area. 

Functional Mushrooms: Daily Support for Cognitive Health

Taking care of your health shouldn’t require you to move mountains; scheduling appointments or undergoing intensive therapies might be more than you need. If psilocybin is an avalanche, taking small doses of functional mushrooms for mental health, like lion’s mane,reishi, or cordyceps, is more akin to a slow, gradual snowfall.

These fungi are not psychoactive, meaning taking them regularly won’t disrupt your day-to-day. Instead, think of functional mushrooms as mental multivitamins – you don’t need to feel or see things to know they’re working. 

Lion’s Mane

Lion’s mane, or Hericium erinaceus, is an edible mushroom commonly sourced from Asia. While it lacks the robust evidentiary support psilocybin has, the data we do have are quite compelling.

• In 2023, scientists tested the acute (one hour after) and chronic (one month later) effects of daily lion’s mane supplementation, taken as a pill, on cognition and mood.
• After just one dose, participants performed better on certain cognitive processing tests (and neutral or worse on others).
• After a month of daily dosing, participants reported “significantly lower” chronic stress levels.

So, what’s happening here? While we don’t yet know the specific mechanisms behind lion’s mane mushrooms for mental health, other works have shown how the fungi stimulates Nerve Growth Factor, or NGF, in the brain.

Recall the importance of neuroplasticity in managing mental health; NGF discourages neural degradation and promotes neuroplasticity.

Reishi

Reishi, also known as Ganoderma lucidum, also has some limited but compelling evidence as a potential adaptogen – a chemical agent that helps manage stress.

• In 2013, researchers administered reishi to animal subjects before a series of stress tests.
• The treatment produced “antidepressant-like effects” and reduced stress-related impairments.

The authors posited that the fungi antagonizes or counteracts critical fear and apprehension receptors in the brain. While human trials are limited, reishi is commonly consumed across Asia, and other studies have indicated no serious adverse health effects. 

Cordyceps

Cordyceps militaris, or cordyceps, make up what some experts consider to be a “holy trinity” of functional mushrooms. Cordyceps doesn’t seem to have as much evidentiary support as other fungi, but the data we have seem promising.

• In Dec. 2025, researchers reviewed existing clinical trials on cordyceps ingestion, finding “various efficacies including immunomodulation, anti-tumor, and neuroprotection” as possible benefits.

While well-tolerated by most individuals, scientists have yet to conduct thorough, human-based trials on cordyceps to corroborate its benefits and guarantee safety.

Mushrooms for Mental Health: Safety, Legality, & the Importance of Professional Guidance

Here’s the deal: Magic mushrooms, and psychedelics writ large, have a reputation as casual for-fun drugs – and they certainly can be. But when it comes to managing mental health, you need to be a bit more diligent about what you put into your body. 

Psilocybin treatments or microdosed supplements require safety and oversight, just like prescription drugs or inpatient procedures. But where you might follow a titration schedule for an antidepressant, magic mushrooms for mental health pair best with stewardship and integration. 

The best way to benefit from psilocybin (or other psychedelics) as a health intervention is to undergo treatment in a controlled, therapeutic setting, alongside qualified professionals. However, these treatments aren’t legal or regulated everywhere. 

As for functional mushrooms like lion’s mane, reishi, or cordyceps, the available data indicate daily ingestion is generally safe. However, the benefits of habitually using functional mushrooms are mostly anecdotal, still to be firmly established in clinical settings. 

If you’re thinking of trying mushrooms for mental health, take some time to look up how these drugs are classified where you live. You may need to travel to a retreat or work directly with a therapist. 

And remember that mushrooms aren’t a miracle cure, whether you’re taking them as a one-off or as a daily supplement. Psychedelics and pharmaceuticals share common ground in one key area:

They both require patience and trust in the process. 

Frequently Asked Questions

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