LSD Used By Millions

During the late 1960's and early 1970's, the drug culture adopted LSD as the "psychedelic" drug of choice. The infatuation with LSD lasted for a number of years until considerable negative publicity emerged on "bad trips"- psychotic psychological traumas associated with the LSD high-and "flashbacks," uncontrollable recurring experiences.
 
So what is LSD? What effects does it have on people?

Narconon Drug Rehab in GA explains the effects of LSD so that others can be aware of these. “LSD is used by school children who don’t know any better,” comments Mary Rieser, Executive Director of Narconon Drug Rehab GA. “Education is the best prevention for drug abuse and drug addiction. Be pro-active and teach your children about drugs and drug addiction. Don’t get caught in the trap.”

LSD (d-lysergic acid diethylamide) is one of the most potent mood-changing chemicals. It was discovered in 1938 and is manufactured from lysergic acid, which is found in ergot, a fungus that grows on rye and other grains.

How are Hallucinogens Abused?

The very same characteristics that led to the incorporation of hallucinogens into ritualistic or spiritual traditions have also led to their propagation as drugs of abuse. Importantly, and unlike most other drugs, the effects of hallucinogens are highly variable and characteristically unreliable, producing different effects in different people or at different times. This is mainly due to the significant variations in amount and composition of active compounds, particularly in the hallucinogens derived from plants and mushrooms. Because of their unpredictable nature, the use of hallucinogens can be particularly dangerous.

LSD is sold in tablets, capsules, and, occasionally, liquid form; thus, it is usually taken orally. LSD is often added to absorbent paper, which is then divided into decorated pieces, each equivalent to one dose. The experiences, often referred to as “trips,” are long; typically, they begin to clear after about 12 hours.

How do Hallucinogens Affect the Brain?

LSD, peyote, psilocybin, and PCP are drugs that cause hallucinations, which are profound distortions in a person’s perception of reality. Under the influence of hallucinogens, people see images, hear sounds, and feel sensations that seem real but do not exist. Some hallucinogens also produce rapid, intense emotional swings. LSD, peyote, and psilocybin cause their effects by initially disrupting the interaction of nerve cells and the neurotransmitter serotonin. Distributed throughout the brain and spinal cord, the serotonin system is involved in the control of behavioral, perceptual, and regulatory systems, including mood, hunger, body temperature, sexual behavior, muscle control, and sensory perception. There have been no properly controlled research studies on the specific effects of these drugs on the human brain, but smaller studies and several case reports have been published documenting some of the effects associated with the use of hallucinogens:

-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 large enough doses, the drug produces delusions and visual hallucinations.
-The user’s sense of time and self is altered.
-Experiences may seem to “cross over” different senses, giving the user the feeling of hearing colors and seeing sounds.
-These changes can be frightening and can cause panic.
-Some LSD users experience severe, terrifying thoughts and feelings of despair, fear of losing control, or fear of insanity and death while using LSD.

LSD users can also experience flashbacks, or recurrences of certain aspects of the drug experience. Flashbacks occur suddenly, often without warning, and may occur within a few days or more than a year after LSD use. In some individuals, the flashbacks can persist and cause significant distress or impairment in social or occupational functioning, a condition known as hallucinogen-induced persisting perceptual disorder (HPPD).

Most users of LSD voluntarily decrease or stop its use over time. LSD is not considered an addictive drug since it does not produce compulsive drug-seeking behavior. However, LSD does produce tolerance, so some users who take the drug repeatedly must take progressively higher doses to achieve the state of intoxication that they had previously achieved. This is an extremely dangerous practice, given the unpredictability of the drug. In addition, cross-tolerance between LSD and other hallucinogens has been reported.

What Other Adverse Effects do Hallucinogens Have on Health?

Unpleasant adverse effects as a result of the use of hallucinogens are not uncommon—one of the reasons is that there are often a large number of psychoactive ingredients in any single source of hallucinogen.

The effects of LSD depend largely on the amount taken. LSD causes dilated pupils; can raise body temperature and increase heart rate and blood pressure; and can cause profuse sweating, loss of appetite, sleeplessness, dry mouth, and tremors.

How Widespread is the Abuse of Hallucinogens?

As a casual drug of abuse, LSD has remained popular among certain segments of society.

Traditionally, it has been popular with high school and college students and other young adults. LSD also has been integral to the lifestyle of many individuals who follow certain rock music bands, most notably the Grateful Dead. Older individuals, introduced to the hallucinogen in the 1960's, also still use LSD.
 
According to the 2006 National Survey on Drug Use and Health (NSDUH), there were 1.1 million persons aged 12 or older in 2006 who reported they had used hallucinogens for the first time within the past 12 months.

Monitoring the Future Survey

There were no changes in LSD use from 2006 to 2007 for any prevalence periods among the 8th-, 10th-, and 12th-graders surveyed. Perceived risk of harm from taking LSD regularly, however, significantly decreased among 10th-graders, from 60.7 percent in 2006 to 56.8 percent in 2007. Disapproval of using LSD once or twice also significantly decreased among 10th-graders (from 71.2 percent in 2006 to 67.7 percent in 2007), as did disapproval of taking LSD regularly (dropping from 74.9 percent in 2006 to 71.5 percent in 2007).

Such changes in attitude could signal a subsequent increase in use, an outcome that would be of great concern after the large decreases seen since the mid-1990s, when LSD use peaked among youth.

National Survey on Drug Use and Health

In 2006, more than 23 million persons aged 12 or older reported they had used LSD in their lifetime (9.5 percent); however, fewer than 700,000 had used the drug in the past year. There was no significant change between 2005 and 2006 in the number of past-year initiates of LSD.

Source: NIDA

If someone you know is using LSD, call us.  We have a 76% success rate.

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Call Narconon Drug Rehab in Georgia at 1-877-413-3073.
      
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