Six Months on the Fadiman Protocol: What Actually Changed

I started microdosing because I have persistent depressive disorder (dysthymia) that has partially responded to SSRIs but left me with ongoing low energy, diminished motivation, and what I think of as a "creative ceiling" — I can execute but I can't generate. I'm a graphic designer. The ceiling matters.

I used the Fadiman Protocol: 0.1g on Day 1, nothing on Days 2 and 3, repeat. I weighed doses on a 0.001g scale. I grew my own B+ from a spore syringe. I kept a journal from Day 1.

Months 1–2: Genuine Improvement

The effect in the first two months was real and consistent. On dose days I had more energy and generative capacity than baseline. My journal entries from this period describe "color returning" — a phrase I used repeatedly without planning it. My therapist noticed I seemed more engaged. I started two new design projects I'd been avoiding.

The sub-perceptual thing is actually true: at 0.1g I was not impaired, did not feel high, could drive and have meetings. The effect was subtle — more available, less flat. I'd describe it as the difference between 70% and 85% of normal capacity.

Months 3–4: Plateau

The improvement plateaued. Not a crash — I was still better than unmedicated baseline — but the upward trend stopped. Research on microdosing suggests tolerance develops and recommends breaks. I took a 3-week break at month 4 and the effect returned on resumption, though somewhat reduced.

Months 5–6: Diminishing Returns

By month six I was less certain the effect was real. The improvement from months 1-2 was still there relative to my pre-microdosing baseline — but I couldn't clearly attribute ongoing benefit to current doses versus the baseline shift that happened earlier. I continued primarily out of habit and the fact that I wasn't worse.

What I Conclude

Microdosing helped most in the first two months. It seems to have shifted my overall baseline upward. Whether ongoing microdosing maintains that shift or whether the initial shift was more durable than the ongoing protocol, I genuinely cannot say without a blinded comparison. The 2024 Imperial College RCT found similar patterns: initial improvement, unclear long-term maintenance effect.

If I were advising someone: don't expect microdosing to do what a full dose does. For mood and energy, the initial weeks are the most promising period. Combine with therapy if you're treating depression specifically.