Microdosing with psilocybin - how to direct outcome?

Quantified Self Learning & Cognition
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Now that Santa Cruz has decriminalized natural psychedelics, we should start talking more openly about this new (or rather, rediscovered) and very potent tool in our arsenal of interventions.

I’ve known about shrooms and LSD for a while, but microdosing is a concept I became familiar with recently, thanks to this excellent and QS conference-worthy post by Janet Chang (may require viewing in an incognito window):

Some excerpts, but the whole post is really worth reading, as well as part 2.

The year I microdosed happened to be a particularly difficult one. […] I was recovering from some major career setbacks due to a series of unfortunate events involving a spinal injury […] pay cut […] I had plunged into a fog of depression and anxiety […]
By the end of the year, I had made a career transition that led to more than doubling my salary from the first job I took after the incident. I improved my emotional well-being and developed better relationships with the people around me. It didn’t solve all of my problems or make my life a rainbow-glittery world of unicorns — but it definitely made the days easier as I picked up the pieces of my life and started anew.

In my relationship with myself, I became more aware of my emotions in every passing moment, and could address them on the spot instead of letting my them build up. I was in a better mood. My mind stopped making up reasons for me to be unhappy, and instead focused my attention on the positive. Some days, a sense of inner peace would permeate my being.

I was less self-conscious and more creative. Everyday, more ideas and insights would pop into my mind than I knew what to do with. I held a greater appreciation for the arts. My apartment went from minimalistic and drab to tastefully and beautifully decorated. My alone time went from dead silent to filled with music, song, and dance. Despite a lifetime of hating clothes shopping, I started to enjoy every part of the process. I took up a dance class, and went from being a robotic dancer to deftly ‘on point’. I joked and laughed more.

Overall, my life became more emotionally attuned, social, happy, and carefree, and less rigid, serious, and fear-driven. Many friends of mine remarked that I was more relaxed and calm, and that I had more energy.

Two questions:

  1. Have others run similar microdosing experiments?
  2. I’m interested in microdosing as a tool for behavioral change, specifically reducing OCD behaviors (including procrastination), and increasing prosocial ones (including in the dating sphere). How might one direct their microdosing protocol and efforts towards those outcomes? So far it seems that psilocybin would be preferred to LSD, but I can only guess at how to target the behaviors.

PS: two resources I’ve found helpful:

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I don’t have any first-hand experience, but I know that the cluster headache community has been actively experimenting with microdosing for minimizing the frequency of their attacks. Rogier Koning from the Nobism community will probably have advice and pointers!

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I’ve sent out a few emails to see if somebody has a word of advice.

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I’ve years of experience using (and abusing) psychedelics. I used them mostly to escape and I justified / rationalised it by telling myself it was to heal so yeah take that as you like.

What I learned can probably be applied to microdosing as well.

Set and setting is a cliche for good reason. Literally every trip, each destination and section of the journey, can be found in the set and setting of your intentions in the beginning. Attitudes, values and beliefs can all be aligned with proper care and attention.

I never personally read his books, but people who did taught me how to think about psychedelics through the lens of Carlos Castaneda’s writings. He literally wrote the book on set and setting. Other than that, I think the forum over at Errowid might be of immense interest to you.