Back when Kyle Quincey was toiling on the defense for the Colorado Avalanche, visions of the Stanley Cup weren’t dancing through their minds. The Avalanche would play just six playoff games during Quincey’s time as part of their rearguard from 2009-12.
That’s certainly not that case this spring. If you were to check the Stanley Cup odds at Colorado sports betting apps, you would find that the Avalanche are listed among the favorites to be lifting Lord Stanley’s mug.
Were Colorado to win the championship of the NHL for the second time in three years, it would certainly lead to a magical summer for hockey fans in the Rocky Mountain State. However, in Quincey’s case, it’s a different type of magic that is foremost in his mind.
Magic mushrooms, to be precise. He’s a true believer in the healing powers of this fungus.
After years of struggle, the former NHL defenseman feels he’s finally found peace of mind in his post-NHL days. It’s where and how he’s finding it that is most surprising and more so, perhaps even revolutionary.
Denver resident Quincey isn’t merely a proponent of the healing qualities of functional mushrooms, he’s an investor in the product. He was first introduced to the substance by fellow former NHLer Daniel Carcillo. Quincey has since utilized psilocybin, the drug in the functional mushrooms, to help overcome his own mental health issues that he was dealing with shortly following the end of his pro hockey career in 2019.
“I ended my career in Finland,” Quincey explained while sitting on a panel at the 43rd Telluride Mushroom Festival in August of 2023. “I came home, I’ve had 20 concussions.”
He was diagnosed with 15 concussions during his playing days, but Quincey estimates that the actual number of head injuries he suffered while a hockey player was probably closer to 20.
“I had massive mood swings, from pure euphoria to suicidal thoughts,” he said.
“On almost my year anniversary of retiring, my youngest son was diagnosed with brain cancer. And COVID hit the same week.”
Made Famous By Hippies
Known as magic mushrooms by the hippies of the 1960s for their psychedelic properties, it turns out those folks back in the midst of the summer of love knew what they were talking about. Functional mushrooms are becoming a legitimate treatment to help those suffering from the after effects of brain trauma.
“We see the problem,” Quincey told the Life After Fame podcast. “We’re living the problem. Part of that is finding a solution. That’s why I’m heavily invested in these functional mushrooms to solve the problem.”
Building Magic Mushroom Spa
It was in November of 2022 that Colorado voters, following the lead of Oregon and Washington, D.C., were approving legislation that would legalize psilocybin-assisted therapy. Commencing in 2025, Colorado will be offering legal psilocybin-assisted treatment.
In preparation for the rollout of this new law, Quincey is making a powerful move into the business side of the psilocybin marketplace. Entering into partnership with Jeremy Widmann, a Boulder, Colorado-based biochemist who operates a CBD company called Boulder Hemp, they are already growing functional mushrooms, with plans to eventually open a spa and retreat which will offer psilocybin-assisted therapy to patients.
Their products include full-spectrum CBD tinctures, as well as sell feminized seeds and seedlings. They are also partners in a 280-acre property in Crawford, Colorado that will be the future location of the Do Good Ranch. This will be the spa and retreat where people in need can go for functional mushroom treatments.
“We’re investing heavily into functional mushrooms,” Quincey said. “We have a product called Just Beat It which helps support a healthy lifestyle. We bought a farm up in Crawford, Colorado which is by Paonia. We’re growing functional mushrooms.”
The plan is to offer treatment to athletes, as well as to veterans and first responders.
“The mission there is to create a sanctuary and safe place for veterans, first responders, athletes and all warriors that are willing to do the work to heal themselves,” Quincey said. “All of us in these industries, it’s very high stress. We trained our bodies, we never trained our minds. Right now, these guys have fought for our country, but cannot heal in our country. They have to go to Mexico, Peru, and Jamaica. It’s ridiculous. So we’re trying to be the answer to that.”
Researchers associated with Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine are also studying evidence that psilocybin-assisted therapy can help in the treatment of Parkinson’s Disease, Alzheimer’s and cancer.
“It’s a multi-vitamin for your brain,” Quincey said.
The studies are also showing that psilocybin is far less addictive than many other drugs. Yet it is displaying similar effectiveness to the current antidepressant drugs on the market.
Study Reveals Healing Power Of Functional Mushrooms
Taken in pill form, the neuro-generative effects of psilocybin-assisted therapy significantly reduces the effects of depression. These findings were reported in a study that was unveiled during the 2022 American Psychiatric Association annual meeting. This was the largest randomized, controlled, double-blind study of psilocybin therapy ever completed.
The study showed that a single 25mg dose of COMP360 psilocybin, in combination with psychological support, was associated with a highly statistically significant reduction in depressive symptoms after three weeks, with a rapid and durable response for up to 12 weeks.
Dr. David J Hellerstein, a Professor of Clinical Psychiatry at the Columbia University Irving Medical Center served as a Principal Investigator on the trial and was impressed by the findings.
“Treatment-resistant depression is one of the biggest challenges we face in psychiatry, and chances of success decrease with each treatment that a patient tries,” Hellerstein said. “It’s rare to see such positive outcomes of clinical trials in this disease area, which is why these results are so significant.
“I hope this represents a major step in finding new options for people living with treatment-resistant depression.”
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