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Location: United Kingdom
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 Posted: Fri Oct 06, 2006 12:02 pm Post subject: Use Of LSD |
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LSD is commonly known as 'Acid'. It was popular in the UK during the late 1960's and early 1970's and also again in the late 1980's with the rise of 'acid house parties'. Its popularity has declined with the appearance of Ecstasy and LSD now has a relatively limited number of users when compared to that drug.
It is manufactured for the street market in illicit laboratories, mostly in Europe and North America.
LSD is an almost unbelieveably potent drug. An average dose taken for a 'trip' would be around 200 micrograms. That is one fifth of a milligram - or one five-thousandths of a gram. A single heaped tea spoonful of LSD would contain something like 20-25,000 doses!
Because a single dose of LSD is so small, the pure drug is usually diluted to a great extent and then a single drop containing enough for one dose is placed onto blotting paper, sugar cubes etc. Blotting paper is a popular medium for the drug as it can be cut into squares, representing single doses, that can be decorated with cartoon characters and suchlike (see illustrations at top of page). Alternatively, the drug can be added to gelatine sheets or made into tablets or capsules.
LSD tablets can be very small. An example is that commonly called a 'microdot', which is about the side of a pinhead. This can be very strong because of the difficulty in accurately measuring and preparing the tiny quantities necessary for an effective dose.
A single dose - or 'trip' - costs between 3 and 5 Pound Sterling.
Consequences of LSD use
Physical Health
LSD appears to have few direct effects on the physical health of a user. No deaths caused by an LSD overdose have ever been reported and there is no physical dependence on the drug, as no withdrawal symptoms occur when a user stops taking it.
However, LSD can exert a profound indirect effect on physical health. Cases of suicide have occurred after taking LSD and the drug can induce violent or hazardous behavior, resulting in death or injury to the user or others.
Driving a motor vehicle, walking near traffic or being near vertical drops while under the influence of LSD can all result in serious or fatal accidents. Irrational behaviour is common under the influence of the drug and a user may run onto a busy road or attempt to fly etc. Similarly, the distorted perception of time and distance and other vivid hallucinations caused by LSD make driving a motor vehicle absolute madness - yet an LSD user would have no real appreciation of the dangers.
Mental Health
Repeated use of LSD may result in prolonged depression and anxiety. The drug may reveal deep seated mental or emotional problems that were previously unknown to the user.
Heavy users sometimes develop signs of organic brain damage, such as impaired memory and attention span, mental confusion and difficulty with abstract thinking. It is not yet known whether such mental changes are permanent or if they disappear when LSD use is stopped.
'Flashbacks' can occur, where a person experiences LSD's effects for a short time without taking the drug. These can occur up to two years after the last time LSD was taken and may be very frightening.
A small minority of regular LSD users become psychologically dependent on the drug and the need to keep taking it becomes a compulsion.
Legal consequences
LSD is a Class A drug under the Misuse of Drugs Act. It is illegal to produce, supply or possess it. The offense of supply - in the eyes of the law - can be committed by giving a single dose to another person.
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