From Ayahuasca to Magic Mushrooms: The Start of My Psychedelic Journey

My first trip into the psychedelic realm first started off with Ayahuasca. And no, I wasn’t in Peru or some sacred indigenous spot; my ceremony happened right in Oakland, California. Sure, I wanted to experience it in its homeland, but the vibe in Oakland was everything I needed and more.

I like to say my psychedelic journey popped off in 2020, just before "The 2020" actually popped off. My ceremony happened almost exactly a month before San Francisco's mayor shut the city down and the California governor followed by shutting down the state. From that transformative experience, my spiritual awakening exploded beyond my imagine. It unlocked the parts of me that was waiting to be reached. It’s like my spirit guides and ancestors have been waiting for me to get to this point of healing. My energy, my outlook, my unlearning of all the stuff I thought I knew—even about myself—shifted so much for me.

Ayahuasca marked the start of my healing journey, offering the love and strength I needed to navigate one of the toughest periods in history with resilience and clarity.

Fast forward to November 2020, election night. I'm in New York City with my two closest friends, right in the midst of the pandemic, about to dive into a salad infused with potent magic mushrooms. We deliberately chose this night to detach ourselves from the world anxiously awaiting the outcome of the election. Needless to say, it was an amazing trip—it connected us to deep spiritual energies and deepened the authenticity of our friendship.

Beyond the immediate experience, that trip was pivotal in another way—it helped me conquer an addiction I hadn't realized I had: alcohol. I used to drink heavily, using it to mask, escape, and cope with the false realities I was living in at the time. I used to believe alcohol brought out my best self.

I wouldn't call myself an alcoholic, but I did abuse alcohol quite a bit. I was never an outlandish drinker, but there was a lot of questionable moments within my drinking that would have me thinking at times “ why do I have to have a drink everyday to the point of getting drunk”

Needless to say, Two weeks after that trip, I noticed I hadn’t touched a drink and hadn’t even thought about it. That’s when it hit me—the mushrooms had worked their magic. Digging deeper, I found out that magic mushrooms can actually help cure addictions.

For the next two years, I microdosed and took intentional trips regularly. Those magic mushrooms made my days brighter, lighter, and kept me in the moment. Early in 2023, I got this spiritual download to learn about what it takes to grow mushrooms. After a year of deep research, I felt ready. When the time was right and my soul was hungry for that connection, I turned my closet in my tiny 200-square-foot Harlem studio into a grow lab, where I can have abudance access to earth medicine at my own finger tips.

As a Black, queer, pansexual, and solo polyamorous man, my journey with psychedelics has been intertwined with my battles and victories in mental health. From healing childhood trauma with my parents, navigating a breakup, embracing my queerness in all its glory, and standing firm on who the fuck Nick Ricardo is. It’s been a path of self-discovery, healing, and growth, and I'm thankful for every single moment. This journey hasn’t just helped me face and heal from my past; it’s also allowed me to embrace my true self with love and pride beyond imgaine.