Free Term Paper on LSD
A Guide to the “Not So” Wonderful World of LSD
Discovery
of LSD
LSD (Lysergic acid diethylamide) come from a fungus that grows on
rye and other grains. Albert Hofmann, working at Sandoz, a Swiss pharmaceutical
company, produced LSD for the first time in 1938. He was hoping that it
could be used to stimulate circulation and respiration, though this idea
failed. Hofmann forgot about the new found drug, and didn’t use it for five
years. In 1943 he accidentally ingested LSD and experienced some effects of
the drug, such as visual distortion, dizziness and restlessness. He
experienced the drug again, though this time not on accident.
Forms
of LSD
LSD can come in many different forms. Three more common forms are
paper blotter, liquid, & gelatin. Paper blotter, the most common form of
all,
comes divided into ¼" squares called tabs. These tabs usually have
between
30 - 100 ug of LSD. These papers are made by taking a sheet of
absorbent
paper, usually decorated, and soaking it with a dilution of LSD.
All the
dilutions are not the same, for the can vary greatly from batch to
batch,
LSD
2
and there is no way of telling
exactly how much LSD is on it.
Liquid LSD is usually water based, though it
can be based with other
solvents. A single drop of liquid LSD could be up to
50 times stronger the
regular paper blotter because it is more than the
normal dose. It is not
all that common for people to sell liquid LSD because
there is no way to be
sure of it’s potency. It is usually stored in small
dropper bottles.
Gelatin LSD, also known as "window panes", is made by
mixing liquid LSD with gelatin. It has to be formed into small, thin squares
after that. A
single gelatin tab usually has around 50 - 150 ug of LSD. This
method of
making LSD is generally better because it protects the LSD from
being
exposed to the air and sun, which can break down the drug.
Cost of LSD
When LSD is sold as paper blotter, the price usually
ranges from 3 - 10
dollars per hit, though it can be more expensive
depending on where it is
sold. Being sold from friend to friend it is
usually less, but places such
as raves will sell it for more. Less common
LSD will go for more money then
blotter paper will. It’s price is around
8-10 dollars per hit. If you by LSD in bulk, such as sheets of blotter paper, it
is always less per hit, ranging from 1-2 dollars per hit.
LSD
3
Use of LSD
LSD is most commonly ingested orally. With both paper
blotter and gelatin, the LSD is placed in the user’s mouth, the chewed or
swallowed. When using liquid LSD it can be put on the tongue and swallowed, or
put directly in the
eye.
Physical Effects
LSD is said to disrupt
the way seratonin, the chemical in the brain that
enables electrical
messages, is used by the brain. It distorts the
messages, most visual, and
causes one on LSD to "see things". Changes such
as slight rise in body
temperature and heart rate, and dilated pupils are
all due to LSD when on
the drug.
When taking LSD you also
LSD
6
Works Cited
“Facts about LSD”
http://www.arf.org/isd/pim/lsd.html
(4 May 2000)
“L.S.D.”
http://www.brookes.ac.uk/health/libra/lsd.html
(3 May 2000)
Erowid “Erowid LSD vault”
http://www.erowid.org/chemicals/lsd/
(3 May 2000)
“LSD”
http://members.aol.com/rscottlcsw/lsd.htm
(3 May 2000)
LSD
http://www.mninter.net/~publish/lsd.htm
(4
May 2000)
DEA-Publication: LSD in the United States
http://www.mninter.net/~publish/lsd2.htm
(4 May 2000)
“Lysergic Acid
Diethylamide” (LSD) Illegal LSD Production
http://www.mninter.net/~publish/lsd3.htm
(4 May 2000)
LSD
7
“Lysergic
Acid Diethylamide” (LSD)
http://www.mninter.net/~publish/lsd5.htm
(4 May
2000)
“Lysergic Acid Diethylamide” (LSD)
http://www.mninter.net/~publish/lsd7.htm
(4 May 2000)
Terrill,
James “The Nature of the LSD Experience”
http://www.psychedelic-library.org/terrill.html
(4 May 2000)
“Neuroscience Resources fir Kids – LSD”
http://www.soton.ac.uk/~jrc3/chudler/lsd.html
(4 May 2000)
feel a tingling sensation in your
fingers and
toes, chills and goose bumps, and facial flushing Feeling
nauseated, weak,
dizzy and intense anxiety is very common when experiencing
LSD. It can also
effect blood pressure, blood sugar, and amount of
salvation.
LSD
4
Mental
and other effects
Visual images and hallucinations are very common with
LSD. If taking too much of the drug, these visuals can become too extreme or
overpowering, cause one on the drug to want to stop the drug, which is not
possible. With a normal amount of LSD in one’s body, the visuals are intense
colors and flashes of lights. Tracers are also common.
Emotions range from
various different states. Some feel content, others disturbed, confused, or even
afraid. There is distortion in time, distance, and gravity. Feeling all senses
at once, fusion, is common, such as music being “seen” of objects being “heard”.
A person on LSD does not have any control over their thought process.
Though
most people enjoy their experience with LSD, there are those who can have an
extremely unpleasant experience, called a “bad trip”. One who is having a bad
trip can experience feeling such as fear, anxiety, and depression. They can feel
as there is no reality, that they have no identity, and that they are melting
into nothingness. There are some long-term effects of LSD, the main one being
flashbacks. This is when a person, who is not on LSD at that time, experiences
what he would be feeling if he were on the drug. Flashbacks can occur days,
weeks, months, even a year after the drug was last taken. They usually only last
a couple of minutes, and are distortion of images and vivid colors.
LSD
5
Tolerance and dependence of LSD
There is no
physical dependence on LSD. A user will not experience withdrawal after quitting
the drug. One can develop a psychological dependence though, if one is a regular
user. The need to keep taking the drug becomes a compulsion.
Tolerances to
LSD’s effects develop rapidly. A larger amount of LSD is required to produce the
effects desired. When one takes LSD a few days in a row, it’s almost impossible
to get the “normal” effects the drug usually provides. One who builds up a
tolerance to LSD also has to take more of the lesser hallucinogens the get the
effects.
LSD and the Law
LSD is illegal. It is a schedule 1
drug, meaning that it has no medical use. To the law, LSD was names a Class A
drug, along with cocaine and heroin, due to the Misuse of Drugs Act of 1971.
Police can charge a person with possession of LSD, with intent to sell, or give
away free.