LSD is a potent hallucinogenic drug derived from ergot fungus. When ingested, it causes intense and unpredictable trips that can last up to 12 hours. Users experience a wide range of emotions and sensory distortions, not knowing what is real. Long term effects include flashbacks and psychological issues like delusions, impaired thinking, and panic attacks. While LSD is not physically addictive, it can still be psychologically addictive due to the euphoria and escape it provides users. Treatment focuses on behavior modification and counseling to address underlying issues driving abuse.

1. By: Stephanie Newett
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2. *
*Lysergic Acid Diethylamide, or LSD, is a
potent hallucinogenic drug that is derived from
ergot, a fungus.
*LSD can be purchased illegally as tablets,
capsules, or even liquid form and it most often
ingested orally.
*When LSD is ingested, the person will
experience a long “trip” that can last about 12
hours.

3. *
*Taking LSD is a very risky because the consumer
doesn’t know if they will have a good trip or a bad
trip. This can depend on the amount taken, the
consumer’s mood, and their surroundings.
*During a trip, the consumer may feel a range of
intense emotions from euphoria to absolute fear.
During their trip, consumers do not know what is
reality.
*LSD can create delusions and visual hallucinations.
Colors, time, sounds, and movements become so
distorted.
*One of the most dangerous parts of taking LSD is
that a person may experience flashbacks of their
LSD induced trip years after they have consumed
the drug.

4. *
* Higher or lower body temperature
*Tremors
*Loss of appetite
*Dry mouth
*Dilated pupils
*Rise and drop of blood pressure
*Sleeplessness
*Sweating
*After taking the acid, I imagined that we had driven head-on into
an eighteen-wheeler and were killed. I could hear the screeching
metal, then a dark and evil quiet. I was terrified at this point, I
actually thought we were dead....For a year I wouldn’t go into
any cemetery because I was terrified I would find my own
grave.” —Jenny

5. *
*People will often overlook the mental effects of LSD, but
these are the most debilitating .
*Delusions
*Visual hallucinations
*An artificial sense of euphoria or certainty
*Distortion of one’s sense of time and identity
*Impaired depth perception
*Impaired time perception, distorted perception of the size
and shape of objects, movements, color, sounds, touch and
the user’s own body image
*Severe, terrifying thoughts and feelings
*Fear of losing control
*Panic attacks
*Flashbacks, or a recurrence of the LSD trip, often without
warning long after taking LSD
*Severe depression or psychosis

6. *
*There are many videos on the internet that try to
simulate an LSD trip . Here is one example
*http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=P7xdNsi7WBg
*“Within my own little trip world I started to get
paranoid, feeling my friends were conspiring to do
something, maybe even kill me. I thought to myself, I have
to get out of here. I ran into my friend’s bedroom, opened
the window as wide as it would go and jumped out. Luckily
for me my friend lived on the ground floor. I ran across a
wooded area toward a bridge. I could feel my heart starting
to beat faster and faster. I heard voices telling me I was
going to have a heart attack and die. This was not the end.
Years later, I was running and all of a sudden, bam, I was
having flashbacks of the time I was running in my trip. I
started to have a bad panic attack and heard voices telling
me I was going to have a heart attack and die .I would tell
anyone even thinking of taking LSD to reconsider.” —Brian

7. *
*Treating LSD abuse is different that treating other drug
addictions because it is considered non- addicitive and
does not produce any withdrawal effects in the body.
*Treatment does not take place on a physical level, but on
a psychological level.
*Behavior modification – learning to find other ways to
relax, and to took for activities to engage time rather than
LSD.
*Counseling – many people abuse drugs as a means to
escape their problems. Addressing these problems can help
them remain sober.

8. *
*Do you believe that because LSD does
not create a physical dependency, like
cocaine or heroin, that it is not
addictive?

9. *
DrugFacts: Hallucinogens - LSD, Peyote, Psilocybin, and PCP. National
Institute on Drug Abuse. Retrieved from
http://www.drugabuse.gov/publications/drugfacts/hallucinogens-lsd-
peyote-psilocybin-pcp . March 30, 2014
How do hallucinogens (lsd and psilocybin) affect the brain and body?.
National Institute on Drug Abuse. Retrieved from
http://www.drugabuse.gov/publications/research-
reports/hallucinogens-dissociative-drugs/where-can-i-get-more-
scientific-information-hallucinogens-dis . March 30, 2014
LSD. The Partnership at Drugfree.org. Retrieved from
http://www.drugfree.org/drug-guide/lsd . March 30, 2014
What are the Risks of LSD? Foundation for a Drug-Free World. (n.d.).
Retrieved from http://www.drugfreeworld.org/drugfacts/lsd/what-
are-the-risks-of-lsd.html . March 30, 2014