LSD (lysergic acid diethylamide)
What It Is: One of the most common drugs making up the hallucinogen class. It was discovered in 1938 and is one of the most potent mood-changing chemicals. It is manufactured from lysergic acid, which is found in ergot, a fungus that grows on rye and other grains. This drug is illegally sold on the street in tablets, capsules, and occasionally in liquid form. It is odorless, colorless, and has a slightly bitter taste. Slang/street names include Acid, tabs, sugar cubes, blotter, etc…
Type of Drug: Hallucinogenic Drug
Method of Use: Often LSD is added to absorbent paper, such as blotter paper, and divided into small decorated squares, with each square representing one dose. It is usually taken orally, but can also be absorbed through the skin
What It Does: The effects of LSD are unpredictable. They depend on the amount taken; the “set”, user’s personality, mood, and expectations; and the settings or surroundings in which the drug is used. Usually, the user feels the first effects of the drug 30 to 90 minutes after taking it. The physical effects include dilated pupils, higher body temperature, increased heart rate and blood pressure, sweating, loss of appetite, sleeplessness, dry mouth, and tremors. Sensations and feelings change much more dramatically than the physical signs. The user may feel several different emotions at once or swing rapidly from one emotion to another. If taken in a large enough dose, the drug produces delusions and visual hallucinations. The user’s sense of time and self changes. Sensations may seem to “cross over,” giving the user the feeling of hearing colors and/or seeing sounds. These changes can be frightening and can cause panic. Users refer to their experience with LSD as a “trip” and to acute adverse reactions as a “bad trip.” These experiences typically begin to clear after about 12 hours.
Health Risks: Some LSD users experience severe, terrifying thoughts and feelings, fear of losing control, fear of insanity and death, and despair while using LSD. Fatal accidents have occurred during states of LSD intoxication. Many LSD users experience flashbacks, recurrence of certain aspects of a person’s experience, without the user having taken the drug again. A flashback occurs suddenly, often without warning, and may occur within a few days or more than a year after LSD use. Flashbacks usually occur in people who use hallucinogens chronically or have an underlying personality problem; however, otherwise healthy people who use LSD occasionally may also have flashbacks. Bad trips and flashbacks are only part of the risks of LSD use. (WARNING: Individuals with a family history of schizophrenia or early onset mental illness should be extremely careful because LSD has been known to trigger latent psychological and mental problems).
Legal Status: Illegal in the United States
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