EUGENE, Ore. (AP) — Psilocybin tea, wind chimes and a tie-dye mattress await the 3,000 people on the waitlist for America’s first licensed psilocybin service center in Eugene. The office suite is designed to give participants a safe place to trip on mushrooms while a licensed facilitator and assistant stay with them during a session that typically lasts six hours. The facility can deny access to those who have active psychosis or thoughts of harming others and requires them to remain at the site until the effects wear off. The goal is to help them cope with anxiety or depression and ease end-of-life dread. URL magicmushroomsdispensary.ca
Across the country, dispensaries are selling mushrooms containing the mind-altering chemical psilocybin, even though it is illegal in most countries. It’s a risky business, as getting caught buying them could lead to serious legal consequences, especially in places where possession of psychedelic drugs is still illegal.
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In Canada, where a legal market for the drug has yet to develop, dispensaries are opening in response to demand. The Kitchener store, which opened this week, is one of 17 FunGuyz locations in the Waterloo region. The company also has locations in Toronto and Vancouver.
The storefronts, which are often run by young people with no medical experience, sell everything from dried mushrooms to psilocybin-infused gummies and drinks. Customers range from those looking to micro-dose psilocybin to boost their mood or productivity to those who want to try out the hallucinogenic compounds for spiritual reasons.