What is psilohuasca?
Maybe you came across the word on a forum or in a late-night thread. It can sound like a clever middle road: something like ayahuasca, but closer to home. It deserves a closer look, because the risk picture is more complicated than it seems.
Psilohuasca is a made-up word, a blend of psilocybin and ayahuasca. It refers to combining truffles or mushrooms with harmala alkaloids, the MAO inhibitors that are also in the caapi vine used for ayahuasca. MAO inhibitors slow down how your body breaks certain substances down. That is exactly why the combination is not a small tweak. It changes how your body responds, and it brings along the risks that come with ayahuasca.
This page explains what psilohuasca is and why it carries extra risk. It is not a guide. We don't give recipes, amounts or instructions, and we don't advise anyone to try it.
How psilohuasca differs from ayahuasca
Ayahuasca combines DMT from chacruna leaves with an MAO inhibitor from the caapi vine. Psilohuasca swaps the DMT source for truffles or mushrooms but keeps the MAO inhibitor. So the part that makes ayahuasca demanding for your body and risky with medication stays in. With ayahuasca, nausea and vomiting are common, and there is no reason to assume the MAO inhibitor becomes gentler in another mix.
If you want to understand ayahuasca itself, what people describe and what Dutch law says about it, read our guide on the truffle ceremony vs ayahuasca.
Why psilohuasca carries extra risk
The risk sits mainly in the MAO inhibitor. Public health sources in the Netherlands and Australia are clear about this:
- Medication: combining an MAO inhibitor with some medications can be dangerous, especially antidepressants such as SSRIs and other medication for mental health.
- Food and drink: tyramine, found in some cheeses, alcoholic drinks and food that is no longer fresh, can interact with MAO inhibitors and cause a dangerous rise in blood pressure.
- Unpredictability: mixing substances with an MAO inhibitor makes the effect harder to predict, in strength and in length.
- Mental health: people with a history of psychosis or other serious mental health conditions run a higher risk with these kinds of experiences.
If you take medication, never stop on your own to make something like this possible. Always talk to your doctor. And if you ever feel unwell after taking something, call emergency services straight away.
A ceremony is not a substitute for medical or psychological help. Read more about safety
Is psilohuasca legal in the Netherlands?
Part of the answer is clear. Truffles are not in the Dutch Opium Act and are legal. Mushrooms are on list II of the Opium Act and have been banned since 2008, so any version with mushrooms is illegal. We don't give a legal verdict on the combination as a whole, because the medical risk of the MAO inhibitor matters more than the legal question. For the rules around truffles, see the legal side of a truffle ceremony.
A gentler, legal way in: a truffle ceremony without additions
Many people who look into psilohuasca are searching for depth. They know themselves well, run their lives from their heads and want to feel again, but they're also afraid of losing control. A heavier, less predictable mix doesn't make that fear smaller.
Stars Frequencies guides the truffle ceremony in Amsterdam with legal truffles only, without an MAO inhibitor. A day lasts about 7 hours, in a small group of at most 8 people (€295 per person) or privately (€495). Rosa is in the room for the whole ceremony. You don't have to let go of anything before you're ready. Letting go is not a condition. It is a result.
- A free 30-minute intro call with screening comes first: Rosa asks about your health and medication and tells you honestly if it isn't right for you now.
- The amount is tuned to each person, based on the intake and your experience.
- Meditation and sound healing with singing bowls are a fixed part of every ceremony.
- About half of the participants are doing it for the first time. No experience needed.
Curious what truffles actually are and how they differ from mushrooms? Read what truffles are.
“I was nervous beforehand, but Rosa's calm was contagious.”