The most toxic substance in Amanita muscaria is ibotenic acid. The muscarin-poison that’s present in other species of Amanita are not present in significant quantities in Amanita muscaria. Because ibotenic acid and muscimol are both soluble in water, they can be removed by simply boiling the mushrooms for 3 hours and then straining the leftover mushroom caps out of the water.
Recipe #1: How to Process Amanita muscaria for Medicinal Use
To decarboxylate Amanita muscaria at home, you must boil the mushroom at a pH of 2.7 for 150 minutes. Set the timer for 180 minutes (3 hours) starting from when the water starts to boil.
Adjust the pH using lemon juice or citric acid and a pH meter. This method converts ibotenic acid to muscimol.
Start the process by grinding dried Amanita mushroom caps. First break them into small chunks by hand.
For about 50 grams of dried Amanita, add 1.8 liters of water and squeeze the juice from several lemons into the mix until the desired 2.7 pH is reached. Lemon juice concentrate or citric acid can also be used to achieve the right pH level. Heat the mixture until it starts to boil and allow it to boil for 3 hours. Add water occasionally and check the pH. If the pH needs adjustment, add more lemon juice.
Do a “sip test” of this water-mixture to test its potency at a very low dose.
Recipe #2: How to Process Amanita muscaria for Consumption
If you have fresh Amanita muscaria, cut the caps and the stalks into thin slices that are about 3-4 mm or 1/8th of an inch thick. Cutting the fresh mushroom into thin slices like this will enhance the dissolution of the active constituents into the water.
For every 110 grams or 4 ounces of fresh mushroom pieces, add 1 liter or 1 quart of water combined with 1 teaspoon of salt.
If you wish, you can add garlic and bay leaves to the water to flavor it. Bring the water to a full boil and then add the fresh, sliced mushrooms. The water will stop boiling briefly when you add the mushrooms. Don’t begin timing the boil until the water returns to a full rolling boil. Boil for 10 to 15 minutes until the mushrooms are soft and then drain and rinse the mushrooms.
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Amanita muscaria Psychedelic Effects
Amanita produces euphoria and dizziness in some cases as its effects are coming on. Time and space perception changes and many people experience closed-eye visions that might be repeating, rhythmic, or looping in nature.
One person who kept a journal of his experiences using Amanita muscaria reported that the tempo of the visual effects was between 130 to 135 beats per minute, similar to psych-trance music.
People often fall asleep and have lucid dreams while tripping on a full psychedelic dose of this mushroom. Of course, at much lower microdoses, no psychedelic effects are noticeable.
Amanita muscaria Poisoning Antidote
If you or a loved one overdoses on Amanita muscaria or another Amanita mushroom, the medicinal agents that doctors use to overcome this problem include activated charcoal and N-Acetylcysteine (NAC) administered via IV. Be aware though, that with Amanita poisoning, it is best to go to a hospital. However, if you have to travel some distance to a hospital, these medicinal agents administered as early as possible can be life-saving.
Effects due to poisoning become apparent within 30 minutes to 1 hour after consumption of an Amanita mushroom. To be clear, though Amanita muscaria poisoning rarely results in death, but an overdose of unprocessed Amanita muscaria produces unpleasant effects like hypothermia (low body temperature), unconsciousness, erratic behavior, and slow heart rate (40 beats or less per minute). One person described the symptoms of Amanita muscaria poisoning as “exorcism-like”.
In a hospital setting, a patient with Amanita muscaria poisoning (or poisoning due to the consumption of another poisonous Amanita mushroom) would be treated using gastric lavage as well as activated charcoal and NAC administration.
One patient who had eaten unprocessed Amanita muscaria (about 1 ½ caps) felt “reborn” the next day. He regained consciousness “one body part at a time”. He said that his consciousness returned “in layers” like where separate body parts would become conscious at different points in time. After 3 days of treatment in a hospital, this patient had no permanent damage to his organs or to his brain. He is, however, averse to ever taking Amanita muscaria again.
Resources
Patocka, Jiri, et. al. (2017). Pharmacologically and Toxicologically Relevant Components of Amanita muscaria. Retrieved May 5, 2025 from: chrome-extension://efaidnbmnnnibpcajpcglclefindmkaj/https://mmsl.cz/pdfs/mms/2017/03/05.pdf
Baba Masha, M.D. (2022). Microdosing with Amanita muscaria: Creativity, Healing, and Recovery with the Sacred Mushroom. Park Street Press.
Gruska, J. (2020). Amanita muscaria: the science and use of the Fly agaric mushroom. Retrieved October 21, 2025 from https://medium.com/@jonasgruska/amanita-muscaria-the-science-and-practice-of-the-fly-agaric-mushroom-587893d4bfe2
Montanini, S. et al. (1999). Use of acetylcysteine as the life-saving antidote in Amanita phalloides (death cap) poisoning. Case report on 11 patients. Retrieved October 21, 2025 from https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/10635453/