We feel like crazy 'shroom stans sometimes, but seriously… is there anything mushrooms can’t do? Magic mushrooms in particular are looking exceptionally promising as a treatment for a variety of mental health disorders, and that’s not all. New research suggests psychedelic 'shrooms may also offer rare relief to those who suffer from cluster headaches and migraines.

In an exploratory “proof of concept” study published in Headache, researchers at the Yale School of Medicine tested small doses of psilocybin, the active ingredient in hallucinogenic mushrooms, on people who experience debilitating headaches. When compared with those in the placebo group, patients who were administered two to three doses of psilocybin over a period of five days reported a significant decrease in migraine days in the weeks that followed. 

Emmanuelle Schindler, MD, Medical Director of the Headache Center of Excellence in West Haven, CT and Assistant Professor of Neurology at the Yale School of Medicine, led the research. She says these findings aren’t necessarily surprising given that psychedelics are “chemically and pharmacologically very similar to existing conventional headache medications.” But those medications may require not only daily dosing but also involve unpleasant side effects. In this study, patients tolerated the sporadic psilocybin therapy well and reported no adverse effects. 

While this research is promising, it was conducted on a very small group. Still, Dr. Schindler hopes it will serve as a catalyst for larger studies. “Doing the randomized controlled trial was a necessary step to go forward to investigate the drug,” she says. “And I can’t do it all. I need help. So, we also need other groups to be interested and to do the research as well.”

Given a recent report predicted the psychedelics therapeutic market will be worth over $13 billion by 2031, it’s likely that many will be motivated by the potential (read: $$$) of this particular cure. In the meantime, those who suffer from recurrent headaches may find relief by self-administering magic mushrooms at home—responsibly, of course!