We use cookies for certain features and to improve your experience. See our Cookie Policy and Privacy Policy to learn more

Leafly

Shop legal, local weed.

Open
advertise on Leafly
ShopDeliveryDispensariesDealsStrainsBrandsProductsCBDDoctorsCannabis 101Social impact
  • Sign in
  • Create account
  • Strains
  • Shop
  • Shop
  • Delivery
  • Deals
  • Dispensaries
  • CBD Stores
  • Brands
  • Products
  • Learn
  • Cannabis 101
  • News
  • Leafly Learn
  • Science of cannabis
  • Doctors
  • Social impact
  • Lab partners
  • Download the Leafly App
  • Advertise on Leafly
    • Leafly.comUSA flag
    • Leafly.caCanadian flag
    • Leafly.deGerman flag
  • Help
  1. Home
  2. Leafly Learn
  3. Leafly’s guide to psychedelics
  • Cannabis glossary
  • Hemp
  • 420
  • Science of getting high
  • Consumption methods
  • Growing
  • Smoking
  • Edibles
  • Vaping
  • Dabbing
  • Tinctures
  • Topicals
  • US Legalization
  • Canada Legalization
  • Psychedelics
  • Social justice

Leafly’s guide to psychedelics

Published on April 15, 2021 · Last updated May 9, 2024
  • What are psychedelics?
  • Guide to psychedelics
  • Read more of Leafly’s guide to psychedelics
psychedelics
(Ann Clancy/Leafly)

Welcome to Leafly’s guide to psychedelics, where we explore the therapeutic and recreational benefits of these amazing substances.

The word “entheogen” is commonly used for these substances nowadays, a word in Greek which means “generating the god within.”

Entheogens are understood as compounds that promote life-altering experiences, encouraging profound insights into the nature of life and consciousness, and the term also alludes to the spiritual aspect of these substances and the idea of them as plant teachers.

What are psychedelics?

Psychedelics are potent psychoactive chemicals or plants that can alter perception, mood, and cognitive processes. Some of the most common psychedelics include:

  • Psilocybin (found in certain mushrooms)
  • LSD
  • MDMA
  • DMT (dimethyltryptamine)
  • Ayahuasca (a brew containing a woody vine and the leaves of the chacruna plant)
  • Mescaline (found in San Pedro and peyote cacti)

Mind-altering psychedelic plants naturally grow as far afield as the Amazon, the Himalayas, and the Pacific Northwest of the US. 

Psychedelics aren’t a new fad. Their use predates the written word, with archaeologists confirming their use in ancient ritual and ceremonial contexts. While the ingestion of psychedelics for recreational and sacred purposes has been ongoing, their therapeutic potential was first recognized by scientists in the mid-20th century.

The word “psychedelics” was first coined in 1957 to identify drugs that reveal useful aspects of the mind. In recent years scientists have begun referring to psychedelic compounds more properly as “entheogens.”

The term “entheogen” is commonly used for psychedelics nowadays, meaning “generating the god within” in Greek.

One of the motivations for this renaming was a concern among scientists that “psychedelics” carried negative cultural baggage from the 1960s. Use of the term entheogens is intended to allow patients, medical practitioners, policymakers, and the public to approach this emerging field of medicine and discovery without stigma or bias.

Between 1950 and the mid-’60s, more than 1,000 clinical papers were published on psychedelic drug therapy, spearheaded by researchers awed by the assorted medical benefits these compounds could potentially offer. 

Shop highly rated dispensaries near you

Showing you dispensaries near
See all dispensaries
  • Loading...
    Loading...Loading...
    Loading...
    Loading...Loading...
    Loading...Loading...
  • Loading...
    Loading...Loading...
    Loading...
    Loading...Loading...
    Loading...Loading...
  • Loading...
    Loading...Loading...
    Loading...
    Loading...Loading...
    Loading...Loading...
  • Loading...
    Loading...Loading...
    Loading...
    Loading...Loading...
    Loading...Loading...
  • See all dispensaries
See all dispensaries

The introduction of the Controlled Substances Act in 1970 saw psychedelics research slow to a trickle as government-sanctioned research ceased, and the compounds became tarred by the War on Drugs.

Fast forward to the present day, and studies into this fascinating compound have picked up momentum again. Scientists are delving back into psychedelic research, exploring the myriad ways this unique medicine may help heal diverse ills. Recent research has shown promise in using psychedelics to treat substance dependency, PTSD, depression, anxiety, and to help with end-of-life care.

Guide to psychedelics

Check out more in-depth articles on these topics:

Psychedelic medicine: How psychedelics can help image
Image Not Found
Psychedelic medicine: How psychedelics can help
How do psychedelics work? image
Image Not Found
How do psychedelics work?
The history of psychedelics image
Image Not Found
The history of psychedelics
Which psychedelic drugs are legal? image
Image Not Found
Which psychedelic drugs are legal?
Is cannabis a psychedelic? image
Image Not Found
Is cannabis a psychedelic?
Losing your self with psychedelics: How ego death can improve mental health image
Image Not Found
Losing your self with psychedelics: How ego death can improve mental health
Types of psychedelics image
Image Not Found
Types of psychedelics
MDMA (Ecstasy/Molly) image
Image Not Found
MDMA (Ecstasy/Molly)
LSD (Acid) image
Image Not Found
LSD (Acid)
Mushrooms / Psilocybin image
Image Not Found
Mushrooms / Psilocybin
How to dose psychedelic mushrooms image
Image Not Found
How to dose psychedelic mushrooms
DMT image
Image Not Found
DMT
What my first DMT trip taught me about life image
Image Not Found
What my first DMT trip taught me about life
What is ayahuasca? image
Image Not Found
What is ayahuasca?
How ketamine is transforming mental health treatment image
Image Not Found
How ketamine is transforming mental health treatment
What are peyote and mescaline? image
Image Not Found
What are peyote and mescaline?
Journeying with iboga, the Mt. Everest of psychedelics image
Image Not Found
Journeying with iboga, the Mt. Everest of psychedelics
How to dose psychedelic mushrooms image
Image Not Found
How to dose psychedelic mushrooms
Magic mushrooms and acid: What are the differences? image
Image Not Found
Magic mushrooms and acid: What are the differences?
Weed and mushrooms: Recipe for mind expansion or a bad trip? image
Image Not Found
Weed and mushrooms: Recipe for mind expansion or a bad trip?

Psychedelics medicine: How psychedelics can help

As the stigma of psychedelics is waning, more studies are showing the benefits these substances can offer to help treat a multitude of conditions, including anxiety, depression, PTSD, addiction and much more.

How do psychedelics work?

Learn how psychedelics affect the human brain, and how they interact with serotonin receptors and the default mode network (DMN).

The history of psychedelics

See how psychedelic have seen used in some cultures for thousands of years, and how interest in the substances increased in the 20th century, up to today.

Which psychedelic drugs are legal?

The psychedelic legalization movement has been picking up steam recently with cities, districts, and states decriminalizing them, and some even legalizing.

Types of psychedelics

Get to know more about MDMA, LSD, mushrooms, and DMT, their histories, how they make you feel, and why people take them.

Smoking weed with psychedelic mushrooms

Is it a good idea to mix the two, or a recipe for a bad trip? Research is sparse, but we look into the benefits of combining these two substances.


Pat Goggins and Emma Stone contributed to this article.

Read more of Leafly’s guide to psychedelics

  • Psychedelic medicine: How psychedelics can help
  • How do psychedelics work?
  • History of psychedelics
  • Which psychedelic drugs are legal?
  • Types of psychedelics: MDMA, LSD, Mushrooms, and DMT
  • Smoking weed with psychedelic mushrooms
Get good reads, local deals, and strain spotlights delivered right to your inbox.

By providing us with your email address, you agree to Leafly's Terms of Service and Privacy Policy.



Stay In Touch

Receive updates on new products, special offers, and industry news.

Something went wrong, please try again.

By providing us with your email address, you agree to Leafly’s Terms of Service and Privacy Policy.

Leafly mobile app
Get high for less.
Download the Leafly app.
Download Leafly: Marijuana Reviews on the App StoreDownload Leafly Marijuana Reviews on Google Play

Business Solutions
  • List your store
  • List your CBD store
  • List your brand
  • List your practice
  • Business log in

About Leafly
  • About us
  • Careers
  • Newsroom
  • Investor relations
  • Contact us
  • FAQs
  • Accessibility

Dispensaries in
  • Los Angeles
  • Seattle
  • Portland
  • San Francisco
  • Toronto
  • Detroit

Privacy & Terms
  • Terms of use
  • Commercial terms of use
  • Privacy policy
  • Do not sell my personal information

* Statements made on this website have not been evaluated by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration. These products are not intended to diagnose, treat, cure or prevent any disease. Information provided by this website or this company is not a substitute for individual medical advice.


© 2025 Leafly, LLC
Leafly and the Leafly logo are registered trademarks of Leafly, LLC. All Rights Reserved.