Street Names

Acid, Trips, Blotters, Dots, Microdot, Tabs, Purple Om, California Sunrise, Blue Star, Sugar, Big D

Description

LSD comes in a variety of forms, it can be pills, tablets or capsules and also as small stamps of blotting paper with various pictures on it such as cartoon figures or symbols.

Routes of use

Ingestion and smoking

History

LSD (lysergic acid diethylamide) is isolated from a wild fungus called Ergot that grows on grasses such as rye. It was discovered in 1938 by Dr Albert Hofmann who was interested in using it as a circulatory and respiratory stimulant. He was also the first person to undergo an 'acid trip' in 1943 when he accidentally took some LSD. It was used by psychotherapists during the 1950's and 60's to recover repressed thoughts. It also started to find its way into the hippy scene at this time and was used for 'mind expanding' trips.

Effects people seek

The user will initially feel disorientated and confused. LSD trips vary from person to person but most people experience hallucinations of one kind or another such as distortions in the size or shape of objects, there are also effects of sound and colour. The majority of the effects are psychological or emotional in nature and are thought of as being mystical in nature. The intensity and nature of the trip can be affected by the environment they are in as well as their emotional state prior to taking the drug. The user can experience 'good' or 'bad' trips or a combination of the two. Trips can last up to 8 or 12 hours.

Other effects

Bad trips can be accompanied by anxiety, fear, paranoia or depression. The trip-induced distortions of the environment make it difficult for the user to make assess risks therefore it is extremely dangerous to drive or use machinery when tripping or to be near a busy road. There are no long term physical dangers due to LSD use and no evidence of brain damage.

Dependence & Tolerance

There is no physical dependence to LSD but some users may develop a psychological dependence. Tolerance develops very quickly and after a few days of use the drug will no longer have any effect unless abstinence is observed for a few days.

The Law