GARY OUR MUSHROOM

They received the name Fly Agaric for their traditional use as an insecticide, where bits of the cap were placed in milk to attract and kill flies.
The Vikings used to eat these toxic mushrooms for their hallucinatory effects in order to “go berserker” before battle
The story and imagery of our modern day Santa Claus was inspired by the traditions of the indigenous Siberian shaman, who on the night of the winter solstice, would gather and consume the fly agaric to launch himself into a spiritual journey and solve the village’s problems.
He wore a red and white suit to honor the color of the mushrooms, and would enter villagers’ yurts through the chimney (since heavy snowfall would block the doorway) to hand out the mushrooms
Even the story of Santa’s flying reindeer was inspired by this mushroom, as real life reindeer apparently have a bit of a drug problem and will eat the amanita just to get high!
While Amanita muscaria are toxic if eaten raw, there are ways to prepare this mushroom for consumption by removing the water soluble toxins (ibotenic acid and muscimol).
I’d only recommend you try this if you do your research, know the risks, and are very confident in what you’re attempting.
Medicine can also be made from the dried mushrooms, either tinctured or infused in oil to relieve pain (especially back and sciatic nerve pain), but should only be attempted by experienced herbalists.