A 48-year-old founded 'Moms on Mushrooms' to promote microdosing for mental wellness.

Tracey Tee, 48, and her business partner spent nearly a decade constructing a prosperous brand and touring the nation with parent-oriented humor shows.

"The lockdowns followed by Covid," she recalls. "In two weeks, we had to cancel nearly 100 shows for 2020, and lost everything. Our 10-year business, which had been built up so carefully, slipped through our fingers like sand. The grief of that, especially the intense feeling of failure that wasn't our fault, was overwhelming, and was made worse by the lockdown."

Tee was juggling responsibilities, including supporting her daughter with online school and navigating a new normal, while also on a spiritual exploration for years before Covid-19 hit, which was largely due to medical issues she was experiencing.

Tee, who was 41 at the time, was given a selective serotonin reuptake inhibitor (SSRI) as part of her treatment for menopause after undergoing a full hysterectomy. The sudden transition into menopause brought about significant changes to her physical and mental health, Tee recalls. Although the SSRI helped, no one ever advised her on when to stop taking it.

She stumbled upon something during the pandemic that led her to explore her spirituality and eventually start a new business.

"Tee recounts how some girlfriends invited him to a camping trip in the summer of 2020, where they planned to camp out with some moms and do some shrooms."

Tee, who had never tried recreational drugs but was interested in plant-based medicine, had been studying psychedelics for years. Now living in Colorado, where psilocybin mushrooms are legal to grow, use, and share, she continues to explore the world of psychedelics.

Tee always believed that being a mom meant she couldn't do certain things, but when she finally tried it, it was a life-affirming experience.

Tee had planned to gradually stop taking her SSRI before her first psilocybin experience, but she didn't receive any advice from a doctor on when or how to do it. Without a specific plan, Tee was uncertain about the consequences of continuing or stopping her SSRI use.

A recent review in The Lancet Psychiatry found that approximately 15% of individuals in 79 studies experienced withdrawal symptoms when they stopped using antidepressants. These symptoms included insomnia, irritability, headaches, and dizziness.

Tee opted for a new approach to managing her mental health after stopping her SSRI medication: microdosing psilocybin mushrooms. However, Tee is not a medical professional and did not receive advice from a doctor before making this decision.

Taking a smaller dose of a drug than usual is known as microdosing. Psilocybin, the active ingredient in psychedelic mushrooms, can cause a distorted perception of reality, including changes in self-perception.

Tee explains that microdosing mushrooms isn't something she does daily and that it's not recommended to do so every day. She microdosed between zero and five days a week around the time she stopped taking an SSRI. There are times in her life when she doesn't use the drug at all.

Tee felt strongly that psychedelic mushrooms helped her process her emotions and move on from them, and therefore believed that this medicine could bring mothers together to heal.

"That's how Moms on Mushrooms was founded," she states.

Moms on Mushrooms

Tee discovered that mothers across the country experience a range of emotions, including distress, anxiety, overwhelm, sadness, depression, and existential ennui, during her comedy tour. These feelings are concerning.

Many women she spoke to were using pills and alcohol to deal with broken marriages and trauma.

Tee proposed a plan to unite moms and discuss their concerns, which would lead to changes in neural pathways and the decline of addictions.

Tee established Moms on Mushrooms, a platform for moms to share their experiences and interests in psilocybin mushrooms. The group meets both online and in person.

"Our private monthly membership costs just $2 a month, and once you join, it's like Facebook but for moms under the influence of shrooms," she says.

Tee provides courses on safety and intention while microdosing psilocybin mushrooms, as stated on the Moms on Mushrooms website, which emphasizes the goal of being "careful, curious, caring, and cautious" rather than being "high."

The members of Moms on Mushrooms were hesitant to discuss their experiences with CNBC Make It regarding the use of psychedelic drugs for mental health treatment due to the negative connotations associated with the drug. Tee explains this reluctance, stating, "It's understandable."

Despite the negative connotation associated with it, Tee describes the group as a "supportive community of women who assist one another," and microdosing has enabled mothers in the community to address their emotions and resolve them to lead happier lives and be better parents.

In 2020, Tee and her family were severely injured in a car accident caused by a drunk driver. Despite being "very injured," they miraculously survived the crash.

After the accident, Tee reports experiencing intense post-traumatic stress, but "managed to transform that trauma and the fear of that day [through] microdosing."

"She says she felt like sadness and grief were like coming up and out of her, and they wouldn't go back down or stick."

A study at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis may shed light on why psilocybin aided Tee in processing and recovering from her traumatic experience.

Research shows psilocybin may have positive effects on people with some mental health conditions

A study conducted at Washington University in St. Louis examined the brain activity of seven healthy adults who received high doses of psilocybin in a controlled environment over the course of 18 visits.

Dr. Joshua Siegel, a faculty member at NYU Langone Health's Center for Psychedelic Medicine, explains that each participant in the study received brain imaging before and after taking psilocybin. This allowed researchers to establish a baseline of the participants' brain networks and activity. Siegel was involved in the study while working at Washington University in St. Louis.

Participants received either psilocybin or Ritalin during follow-up visits, which served as a placebo for the study because both drugs cause an arousing effect, similar to that of coffee stimulation.

Siegel and researchers observed that an hour after administering psilocybin, the core regions of participants' brains responsible for their sense of self were disorganized. These regions are also crucial for regulating mood and habits, Siegel notes.

"According to Siegel, this experience leads to a feeling of ego dissolution, which is a unique and subjective sensation that is different from the usual daily consciousness. This signals the brain to be in a more flexible and adaptable state."

The flexibility in thinking brought about by psilocybin's effects on the brain could change how individuals respond to negative emotions.

Clinical trials have demonstrated that a high dose of psilocybin, administered in a clinical setting under professional supervision, can produce positive outcomes for individuals with depression, anxiety, and alcohol addiction, according to Siegel.

The effects of taking a large dose of psilocybin appear to be positive and enduring.

Researchers examined "lasting changes in the brain" of participants in a study co-authored by Siegel two weeks after their final dose of psilocybin.

According to Siegel, the lasting effects of psilocybin on the brain can provide an opportunity for individuals in a maladaptive state of depression or other illnesses to reset and establish new patterns of thinking, behavior, and mood.

The research conducted by Siegel and his team focused on the effects of pure psilocybin, not the psychedelic mushrooms that contain it, and the participants received a high dose of psilocybin, not the lower doses typically consumed by microdosers.

Siegel stated that he hasn't found any convincing proof to suggest that microdosing can alleviate depressive symptoms or other mental health issues.

Psychedelic therapy should be conducted under medical supervision, doctors warn

Although research suggests that psilocybin may aid individuals with specific mental health issues, Siegel cautions about the potential risks.

He states that all previous clinical trials involving psychedelics excluded individuals with a history of schizophrenia or bipolar disorder, or those at high risk due to having a first degree relative with either of those illnesses.

Even without a history of psychosis or mania, taking psychedelics can still trigger a psychotic or manic episode.

If you're considering psychedelic therapy, Siegel advises seeking professional support to ensure a "controlled setting with a trained therapist and a safe environment."

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