How lsd is taken

How To Take LSD

Eden Loi · August 23rd, 2018

Disclaimer: this article is intended as harm reduction advice. We do not condone illegal activities. Always check your local laws.

This article was updated on October 26, 2021

Tabs, doses, drops.

Leary, Lennon, MKUltra.

Lysergic acid diethylamide, the psychedelic poster child, has a rich history surrounded by mystery and myth. First synthesized by Swiss scientist Albert Hofmann in the 1930s, LSD quickly spread into the streets and developed a reputation as a substance like no other.

Less than fifty years after its synthesis, acid had already reached and influenced figures that would change the world, including legendary artists, philosophers, educators, scientists, inventors, businessmen, athletes, and doctors.

LSD played a paramount role in ushering the psychedelic revolution of the 1960s and 70s, which influenced millions to revolt against the status quo, and caused waves that are still rippling through our society today. It’s a potent psychedelic, known to shift perspectives, kill egos, and sometimes completely change lives.

Before you take LSD, you should be sure that it’s what you want to do. Educate yourself on the risks, and the best ways to minimize them. Third Wave offers many resources that help you make the safest decisions, like our Ultimate Guide to Sourcing Psychedelic Medicines.

There are different forms of LSD

In your search for psychedelic candy, you might encounter LSD in a number of different forms.

In its most immediate form, LSD exists as the crystalline result of the reaction between diethylamide and lysergic acid. After mixing or dissolving, it turns into an ingestible liquid. Unless you are making it yourself, a vial of liquid LSD is all pure as it will come and as pure as you’ll want it.

However, LSD mostly comes as a “tab”. People make tabs by dropping a set dose amount of liquid acid onto a sheet of perforated blotting paper. Liquid acid can be dropped on just about anything, though, so a “tab” might also look like a small bit of gelatin, a sugar cube, gummy candies, even cookies.

For the user, the main difference between these forms is that tabs will probably give you more control over your dosage amount. Even a tiny piece of blotter paper is easier to cut than a drop of LSD is to split or measure out into micrograms.

Other than that, issues regarding freshness or potency will depend more on a reliable source than a specific liquid or tab form.

It can be challenging to know where to begin or which sources you can trust. That’s why we compiled our tips and resources into the Ultimate Guide to Sourcing Psychedelic Medicines.

How to Ingest LSD

Oral ingestion is the safest, most direct way to ingest acid. Usually, people recommend taking it sublingually, or under the tongue. Some might find this experience uncomfortable, especially if using a thicker or wider tab. People prescribe different amounts of time to keep the acid under the tongue.

There’s no need to get caught up in the specifics. Holding a tab under your tongue for 15 minutes instead of 45 won’t profoundly alter your trip. Personally, I just swallow it, without holding it sublingually at all. I haven’t noticed any difference.

One reason you might want to keep it under your tongue though, especially if it’s your first time trying a particular batch, is to taste and test the acid. Or more accurately, you’ll want to not taste the acid.

LSD shouldn’t leave any taste in your mouth, nor any sense of numbness or bitterness. If you taste something metallic, bitter, or numbing, there’s a good chance it’s not LSD. Sometimes people will sell LSD imitations, which are still psychedelic, though they present a risk of toxicity. The best way to be sure that you are taking pure LSD is to purchase a test kit, such as the kits available at Test Kit Plus.

Where Should You Take LSD?

The physical location of where you take your LSD trip is a very important factor in the experience. You should first familiarize yourself with the concept of Set and Setting in psychedelic experiences.

Briefly, the “set” is short for the mindset during a trip. It includes the preparation and expectations of the voyager and guide before embarking on a psychedelic experience.

The setting is the surrounding in which the trip occurs. It includes the physical environment and the space for the session.

There are two recommended options for a physical setting when taking psychedelics:

It’s also essential that you have a sober guide with you, someone you can trust and depend on if things get uncomfortable for you.

Again, for more on set and setting, see: Set & Setting For Psychedelics.

How lsd is taken

A chemical usually sold in tiny amounts on blotter paper, as a liquid, or a pellet/micro-dot.

Quick info

How the drug works varies from person to person

How it looks, tastes and smells

What does it look like?

LSD is usually sold as small squares of paper with pictures on them, known as tabs or blotters.

LSD can also be sold as a liquid or as tiny pellets, known as micro dots.

What does it taste/smell like?

Liquid LSD (often called liquid acid) has no taste at all. LSD tabs taste like the paper.

How do people take it?

LSD stands for its chemical name, lysergic acid diethylamide, and is commonly called acid.

It’s a powerful hallucinogenic drug, which means you’re likely to experience a distorted view of objects and reality if you take it. The experience of taking LSD is called tripping.

LSD trips can last several hours and can be very intense. Trips are often described as ‘good’ or ‘bad’ depending on whether the experience was enjoyable or distressing.

When you take LSD, there’s no way of knowing how you might feel or what kind of trip you’re going to go on. And once you start tripping it’s difficult to control the effects.

LSD can also be taken in very small amounts, and this is sometimes called micro-dosing.

How it feels

How does it make you feel?

For most people, the world appears distorted when they take LSD. Colours, sounds, objects and even time can all seem very strange and disturbing.

Taking LSD can make you feel:

It can also make you:

LSD feeds off your imagination so every person’s experience is unique.

How the trip goes will be affected by how much you take, your surroundings, who you’re with and how comfortable you are with them, as well as by your mood.

If you’re in a bad mood, feeling worried or depressed, the LSD might make those feelings worse.

How does it make people behave?

This depends on how much LSD the person has taken. If the person has taken a small dose of LSD you may not even notice they’re on it.

People on LSD might be quieter than usual as they’re so ‘in their heads’. Some people have trouble speaking when they’re on LSD.

People who take larger doses can act unpredictably. They can become fixated on certain things, emotional, paranoid or even aggressive.

Duration

How long the effects last and the drug stays in your system depends on how much you’ve taken, your size and what other drugs you may have also taken.

To kick in

Acid can take from 20 minutes to two hours to take effect, but it really depends on how much the user takes.

If you feel that you’re having, or are going to have, a bad trip, let your friends know and get their help. Go to a nice, quiet spot where you feel safe and can relax.

How long will it be detectable?

LSD will typically show up in a urine sample for 1 to 3 days.

How long a drug can be detected for depends on how much is taken and which testing kit is used. This is only a general guide.

The risks

Physical health risks

There’s no evidence to suggest that LSD does any long-term physical damage.

However, people have been known to harm themselves during a bad trip. So people in a bad mood, feeling depressed or worried should avoid taking the drug.

Mental health risks

If you have mental health problems, or a history of mental health problems in your family, taking LSD could make them worse.

If you panic on a trip it can be scary and confusing. A bad trip could be your worst nightmare come to life.

LSD could have serious, longer-term implications for somebody who has a history of mental health problems. It may also be responsible for setting off a mental health problem that had previously gone unnoticed.

Flashbacks, or ongoing visual distortions, can occasionally happen, often causing great distress. Sometimes these experiences are called Hallucinogen Persisting Perception Disorder (HPPD), although very little is known about why some people are vulnerable or how to help them.

What is LSD cut with?

LSD is cheap to produce so it’s not usually cut with other drugs.

But you may hear people talk about pure LSD, good quality LSD and bad quality LSD. This is to do with how the drug is made and whether there were impurities as a result of the production process.

Mixing

Is it dangerous to mix with other drugs?

Yes. Everytime you mix drugs you take on new risks. However, some drugs are more dangerous to mix with LSD than others.

Addiction

Can you get addicted?

There is no evidence to suggest that LSD is addictive, but you can become tolerant to its effects. This means you need to take more of it to get the same effect as before.

The law

This is a Class A drug, which means it’s illegal to have for yourself, give away or sell.

Possession can get you up to 7 years in prison, an unlimited fine or both.

Supplying someone else, even your friends, can get you life in prison, an unlimited fine or both.

Like drink-driving, driving when high is dangerous and illegal. If you’re caught driving under the influence, you may receive a heavy fine, driving ban, or prison sentence.

If the police catch people supplying illegal drugs in a home, club, bar or hostel, they can potentially prosecute the landlord, club owner or any other person concerned in the management of the premises.

Was this information useful?

LSD (Acid): Ultimate Guide To the World’s Most Famous Psychedelic

LSD is by far one of the most popular psychedelic drugs in the world — and for good reason. This powerful compound has a tendency of inducing valuable personal insights.

Categories

Contents

By now, you’ve probably heard about the powerful psychedelic compound known as acid.

It’s famous for being the inspiration behind many of the Beatles’ hit music, driving the counterculture of the 1960s, and for its (attempted) use by the CIA as a mind-control agent in the MK ULTRA project (more on this later).

In this guide, you’ll learn everything you need to know about LSD.

We cover dosing, what to expect after you take it, and touch on the interesting history of perhaps the most famous psychedelic in the world.

We’ll also review the research supporting the therapeutic use of LSD for addiction, depression, anxiety, and cluster headaches.

Let’s start with the basics by exploring what LSD actually is.

What is LSD?

LSD is a semi-synthetic derivative of a group of compounds called lysergamides. These compounds are primarily found in a species of rye fungus called ergot.

LSD works by activating serotonin receptors in the brain — which produces changes in visual, auditory, and tactile perception. It promotes introspection and dissolving of the “ego”.

An acid trip can last anywhere from 8 to 12 hours.

Conventional uses of acid revolved around self-growth and spiritual exploration — but research has also shown a lot of promise for LSD as a treatment for psychiatric disorders.

It has the ability to “reset” the default mode network — which is a series of brain processes that control our inner sense of self-worth and ego. Hyperactivity in the default mode network has been linked with depression, anxiety, obsessive-compulsive disorder, addiction, and more.

LSD: Specs & Technical Details

Common Names For LSD

LSD has been around for over 60 years now and has accumulated many nicknames over the years.

Here are some of the most prominent names for LSD:

Trip Sitter Safe LSD Guidelines

What’s The Dose of LSD? (LSD Dose Calculator)

The most common dose for LSD is about 80 micrograms — which is the average amount of LSD in a standard square of blotter paper (+/- 10%).

Depending on the manufacturer, the dose per blotter square can range from about 20 mcg of LSD to 100 mcg.

The usual dose is to take one blotter square at a time. Some people will take two or even three doses. Only people with a lot of experience using LSD should even consider taking more than one square at a time. It’s easy to underestimate the effects of LSD until it’s too late.

Many people will take one square, and prematurely take another after an hour when the effects aren’t “strong enough”. Sixty minutes later, you’ve got two full doses of LSD. Once you’ve taken the LSD, you can’t un-take it. You’re going to feel the effects no matter what you do — so make sure you don’t take too much.

Double-check the potency of the DXM you’re using, and look for the addition of other compounds such as acetaminophen which can cause severe liver-toxic side-effects at this dose.

Embed this calculator on your site

Copy and paste the code below

Successfully copied to clipboard!

Include this code unmodified to your website to display the calculator. The widget will appear exactly where you insert the code. Copy the code, and paste it into your site’s HTML code.

Microdose

(10 – 25 micrograms)

Any dose below the psychoactive threshold is considered a microdose. This means the dose isn’t strong enough to make you hallucinate.

The threshold for LSD is roughly 25 mcg — so most people will take around half or less of that as a microdose (10 – 25 mcg).

The purpose of microdosing isn’t to “trip.” It’s used as a tool to promote a heightened sense of focus and productivity, boost creativity, and support mental health conditions like depression and anxiety over long periods of time.

The main benefits of microdosing appear gradually over the course of several weeks or months.

There are a few different philosophies on the dosage schedule while microdosing. The most common is the protocol outlined by Dr. James Fadiman — a prominent psychotherapy researcher. He sought to standardize microdosing to make it easier to research.

Dr. Fadiman’s protocol is to take a microdose of LSD every third day for a full month.

You can microdose for longer than this but should never do more than three months at a time before taking an extended break for at least a month.

LSD dosage schedules:

The Standard Psychoactive Dose

(80 – 200 micrograms)

The average psychoactive dose of LSD is very low — around 80 to 200 micrograms. Even a dose of 20 mcg is enough to produce subtle changes in perception.

The high potency of acid makes measuring the dose difficult. A single drop of acid that’s been diluted for making blotters contains around 70 mcg.

However, a single drop of an undiluted LSD solution could contain as much as 70,000 mcg.

Instead of measuring out drop doses, manufacturers dilute and coat small pieces of paper with LSD and cut them into squares for individual doses. This is referred to as blotter paper.

These paper squares are then placed in the mouth and held there to allow the active ingredient to absorb through the mouth’s mucus membranes.

It’s hard to know what the exact dose is for a single square of blotter acid paper. Factors like how the LSD was stored, whether it was exposed to sunlight or not, and the potency of the acid used to make it can all affect the dose per blotter paper.

You can get a rough gauge on the dose per piece based on its effects. If you or someone else has taken acid cut from the same sheet of blotter paper, you’ll be able to get an idea if it’s on the high-end of the dose (100 mcg LSD) or the lower-end (20 mcg). If you’re not sure, it’s wise to start with just a single piece rather than underestimating the effects and taking too much.

Heroic Dose

(200 – 400 micrograms)

A heroic dose is considered any amount above 200 micrograms. These doses are powerful and produce dramatic shifts in the perception of reality. At this dose, you’re likely to experience dissociative thoughts, loss of ego, visual and auditory hallucinations, and out-of-body experiences.

This dose should never be attempted by anybody who doesn’t already have a lot of experience using LSD or is under the direct supervision of a trained psychotherapist.

While this dose can provide incredible insights and introspective benefits, it also brings a much higher risk of a “bad trip”.

LSD Tolerance

The body forms a tolerance to all tryptamine psychedelics relatively quickly. This includes LSD, DMT, LSA, and psilocybin.

Tolerance means the body becomes resistant to the effects of a drug. You’ll need to take a larger dose the second time you take it to match the intensity of the initial dose.

Tolerance to LSD usually develops after a single dose and can take two weeks to reverse entirely.

If you take a 100 mcg dose of acid today, you’ll need to take roughly 280 mcg tomorrow to experience the same intensity of effects. However, if you wait for about two weeks, you’ll only need to take 100 mcg to get the same effects all over again.

How Does Tolerance Form?

Compounds like LSD push the balance of receptor activity outside normal parameters. More specifically, LSD activates the 5-HT2A receptors in the brain — causing psychoactive effects. The activity of 5-HT2A goes so far outside the normal range; the body automatically makes changes to reduce the effect.

In order to reduce the activation of these receptors, the body will “hide” some of them. The next time you take LSD, fewer receptors are available for it to exert its effect — producing less impact.

Over the course of 10-14 days without the drug, these receptors will become “unhidden,” and LSD has the same level of impact it had the first time all over again.

LSD Tolerance Calculator

Check out this simple LSD tolerance calculator to help you find the approximate dose to overcome the effects of tolerance when using LSD more than once in a two-week window.

*Note, aside from microdosing, it’s recommended that you avoid taking LSD more than once every two weeks.

This calculator is only able to provide an estimate. Please do not be deceived by the apparent precision of the numbers. For the best experience, let 2 weeks pass between each trip, tolerance should be back to normal after 14 days.

Embed this calculator on your site

Copy and paste the code below

Successfully copied to clipboard!

Include this code unmodified to your website to display the calculator. The widget will appear exactly where you insert the code. Copy the code, and paste it into your site’s HTML code.

What Does LSD Feel Like?

Every LSD experience is unique. The effects of the drug feed off your own thoughts and imagination, so the direction a particular trip can take depends on how you’re feeling, the stimuli in your environment, and the people you’re with.

In general, the effects of LSD are usually positive. While it’s possible to have a negative experience (aka, a bad trip), the right preparation (positive mindset, comfortable setting, and a trip sitter) can dramatically reduce the chances of this happening.

Most people report introspection, laughter, and creative insight while taking LSD.

Many of these experiences resonate with people for years after the experience — such as realizing the importance of some of your personal relationships, recognizing toxic thought patterns, and more.

LSD can produce the following feelings:

Not all of the effects of LSD are positive. It’s important to be aware of the negative effects that can arise periodically throughout the trip. If these feelings appear, it’s important to remember that they’re only temporary. As soon as you stop focusing on them, they tend to disappear. Resisting these feelings only makes them worse.

Having a trusted guide with you during your trip — especially if using higher doses — is the most effective way to avoid or dissolve negative feelings during the trip.

Some of the more negative feelings that can arise include:

How LSD Feels According to Dose

LSD Trip Timeline: When Does it Start? How Long Does it Last?

Acid takes around 30 to 60 minutes before it starts to kick in. If you hold the blotter paper under your tongue, it may be even faster.

Acid is one of the longest-lasting psychedelics — in some cases providing psychoactive effects for up to 12 hours. The average duration is closer to 7 hours before you’re about 95% back to normal. Residual effects can linger for several more hours, involving feelings of introspection and mild visual distortions.

Here’s what a typical timeline for an acid trip looks like:

T0: The Initial Dose

This is when you first take LSD — marking the start of the journey.

T30: Onset Of Effects

Mild effects may start to appear, starting with a tingling sensation in the stomach. By T60, you’ll begin to see some visual perception changes (objects appear to be moving or vibrating). This is usually accompanied by laughter and giddiness.

T120: Peak Effects

Two hours in, the effects will be blatantly obvious. You may feel euphoric, giggly, and introspective. You’ll be experiencing both visual and auditory hallucinations at this time.

The effects of the drug can be quite intense around this time. This is the period where the heavier side of acid happens. You may experience dissociative thoughts, ego death, and in some cases, out-of-body experiences.

This is the most critical stage to have a trip sitter nearby to help you through any challenging experiences. The hallucinations and dissolving of the ego can cause paranoia, anxiety, and fear. Taking steps before taking LSD — such as finding a trusted trip sitter and finding an environment that’s comfortable and safe — is the best way to avoid problems during the peak effects.

T240: The Slow Downhill Fade

Around the four-hour mark, your trip will have already reached a climax and will start to decline.

You’ll go through periods of high intensity, followed by periods of lower intensity. This waxes and wanes over the next three hours, each time reaching a lower “peak” at the top of the wave.

T360: The Comedown

By hour six, the effects will be dramatically reduced. Some people find they’re back to normal by this time; others may still be experiencing residual effects from the drug.

This period remains full of introspective thoughts as you replay the experience you just went through. Many people feel very relaxed at this point and usually end up in a comfortable position lying or sitting down as you ponder the experience you just went through.

You’ll feel lazy and relaxed — but not tired. This is a great time to journal or talk about your experience with the rest of your group.

T600: The End of the Trip

This is the 10-hour mark. The majority of people will be completely back to normal at this point. Most people will start to feel sleepy by this point as the brain seeks the opportunity to recharge.

You’ve spent the past 10 hours exploring, moving around, and thinking at a high level.

This is a good time to get some rest and get a fresh start tomorrow.

Is LSD Legal?

LSD is illegal in most parts of the world. It’s listed as a Schedule I drug on the UN Convention on Psychotropic Substances (1971). This means all countries taking part in this convention are expected to include LSD on their prohibited substances list.

There are currently no countries where LSD is considered legal — however, there’s a growing list of countries, states, and municipalities that have moved to decriminalize LSD.

Decriminalization doesn’t make a substance legal — it just removes the penalties for being in possession of personal amounts of the drug.

Countries That Have Decriminalized LSD:

Europe

North & South America

Local States & Municipalities

Is LSD Safe?

There are over 60 years of research to prove LSD is both non-toxic and non-addictive. There have never been any reported overdose cases from people taking too much LSD, and there’s no indication of addiction to LSD.

Tolerance formation is possible in people who take LSD often — prompting them to take larger doses to get the same effect. However, when they stop taking LSD, no symptoms of withdrawal or cravings are reported.

The best way to assess the toxicity of a drug is to find the LD50. This is a term used in medical research that describes the amount of a drug needed to kill roughly 50% of the study participants (usually mice).

There has yet to be an established LD50 for LSD. Even exceptionally high doses of the drug are non-lethal.

In the 1970s, a group of party attendees mistakenly snorted between 1000 and 7000 micrograms of LSD in powder form after mistaking it for cocaine [4]. This is equivalent to taking roughly 100 doses of acid at once. Some of the people in this group experienced problems with bleeding in the digestive tract, vomiting, and temporary comatose states. Everybody in this group survived the incident unharmed.

Despite the high level of safety, there are some potential risks to using LSD. During the trip, visions and hallucinations can cause bouts of anxiety, paranoia, and intense fear —some of which can cause long-term mental harm.

Another long-term (albeit rare) side effect that can result from LSD use is a condition called hallucinogen persisting perception disorder (HPPD). This disorder is characterized by long-lasting changes to visual or auditory sensory information — sometimes lasting several months or years after the initial trip.

Side Effects of LSD

There are two different categories of side effects from LSD — physical side effects (changes in body metrics like temperature or heart rate) and psychological side effects (changes in perception, mood, and mental condition).

Physical Side Effects of LSD

Psychological Side Effects of LSD

How Strong is LSD Compared To Other Psychedelics?

LSD is considered moderate in terms of strength. It produces much less psychoactivity than a drug like DMT or salvia and more psychoactivity than others like mescaline or marijuana.

LSD is most comparable in terms of effects to magic mushrooms.

You’re unlikely to experience out-of-body experiences on LSD unless you take exceptionally high doses (not recommended).

LSD vs. Magic Mushrooms

LSD is very comparable to magic mushrooms in terms of effects. Both LSD and the active ingredient in magic mushrooms (psilocybin) share a very similar structure and interact with the same receptors in the body.

The difference in these two compounds is subtle — mushrooms tend to have a stronger “body high” and have a shorter duration of effects (about 4 – 6 hours). LSD is more “mental”, producing striking changes in visual and auditory sensory perception.

The psychoactive dose is similar for both compounds — starting at around 20 mcg of pure LSD or pure psilocybin.

LSD vs. DMT

LSD and DMT (dimethyltryptamine) target the same receptors in the brain. Low doses of DMT share many similarities with LSD, and very high doses of LSD are similar to DMT.

DMT has a much higher chance of producing out-of-body or transcendental experiences — stripping away the ego and forcing introspection.

LSD Vs. Mescaline

Mescaline is a psychoactive alkaloid produced in several species of cacti, including peyote and San Pedro. The effects of this compound are very similar to LSD, but with a few distinct differences.

While both LSD and mescaline produce Kaleidescape patterns in vision, mescaline has stronger visuals in low-light environments or while the eyes are closed. Mescaline also produces a unique geometricization effect — causing 3-dimensional objects to appear flat and distorted.

LSD vs. LSA

LSA stands for d-lysergic acid amide — it’s often referred to as ergine. Both LSD and LSA are similar in terms of effects and chemical structure.

Both compounds are classified as ergoline alkaloids (alkaloids extracted or derived from the ergot fungus). LSA is naturally-occurring and can be found in plants and fungi such as ololiuhqui, Hawaiian baby Woodrose (Argyreia nervosa), sleepy grass (Achnatherum robustum), and morning glory seeds (Ipomoea violacea). LSD is a synthetic version derived from other alkaloids in the ergot fungus.

LSA is different from LSD in that it’s also a sedative and produces a much milder trip overall compared to LSD. It produces a feeling described as being heavy.

LSA is also much more inconsistent in terms of its intensity. This is partly due to being derived from plant-based sources, which can yield varying concentrations of the alkaloid in the final product. LSD, on the other hand, is made in concentrated form in a lab setting — so every dose is going to be the same.

Psychedelic Research on LSD

1. LSD For Anxiety

So far, several tryptamine-based psychedelics have been shown to produce a substantial improvement in anxiety symptoms over the years. This includes psilocybin from magic mushrooms, DMT, and LSD. This effect is thought to stem from a “resetting” of the default mode network (DMN).

A Swiss study explored the effects of LSD in a clinical setting on ten patients diagnosed with a life-threatening disease [2]. This study’s results were remarkable — after just one psychoactive dose, 66% of patients reported an increase in quality of life, and 78% noted a noticeable reduction in anxiety levels. These effects were sustained at the 12-month follow-up mark — suggesting a single dose of LSD can offer long-term improvements in anxiety symptoms.

2. LSD For Addiction

Researchers have been exploring the effects of LSD and other psychedelics for addiction treatment since the 1960s.

LSD was shown to offer particular improvement for the treatment of alcohol addiction.

In 2012, a review paper analyzed the results of six trials exploring the impact of LSD on alcoholism. The studies included in the trial were conducted between the years 1966 and 1970 [9]. In total, 325 patients were treated with LSD, and 211 received placebo control. All patients were administered a single dose that ranged from 210 to 800 mcg of LSD.

The study reported a dramatic reduction in alcoholic cravings at the first follow-up treatment, which was sustained at the final 6-month follow-up. In total, 59% of the LSD patients saw significant improvement in their alcoholism.

3. LSD For Cluster Headaches & Migraines

LSD is a sub-member of the larger class of compounds called ergotolines — which are derived from the ergot fungus. Several of these compounds have proven useful as a treatment for cluster headaches and migraines.

An article published in Neurology reported that over 80% of study participants that took LSD noticed their cluster headaches were significantly reduced in both frequency and severity [1].

How LSD Works

The chemical structure of LSD is similar to serotonin — which is one of the most influential neurotransmitters in the brain. Serotonin is responsible for regulating mental processes such as mood, arousal, eating habits, digestion, and much more.

The similarities in structure allow LSD to interact with the serotonin receptors [5,8]. In particular, LSD targets 5-HT2A and 5-HT2C receptors. These receptors are responsible for the psychoactive effects of LSD and other tryptamine-based psychedelics (such as DMT or psilocybin).

LSD is different from other psychedelics in that it can also activate the dopamine D2 receptors [10]. This ability to modulate the balance between serotonin and dopamine activity is thought to be how LSD provides its powerful hallucinogenic and introspective qualities.

The History of LSD

LSD was first invented in 1938 by a famous Swiss chemist named Albert Hofmann. He was also the same man to isolate psilocybin and psilocin from magic mushrooms for the first time.

Hoffmann discovered acid by accident while working for the pharmaceutical company, Sandoz. He was searching for a new drug to help with uterine contractions during pregnancy.

LSD, as we know it today, was the 25th compound he synthesized from compounds he extracted from a rye fungus called ergot. His notes listed the compound as LSD-25 — which remains a common name for the drug to this day.

After inventing LSD-25, it was quickly ruled out for having no impact on affecting uterine contractions, so it was shelved for about five years.

In 1943, Hoffmann returned to ergot and resynthesized LSD-25 and other compounds to perform some experiments.

Somehow or another, a few drops of LSD-25 ended up on his skin. About an hour later, he started to experience a “not unpleasant intoxicated like condition, characterized by an extremely stimulated imagination.”

After this experience, Hoffman became understandably interested in LSD-25 and dedicated the subsequent several years towards further testing the compound for potential medical applications and toxicity. The first clinical trials for the new drug began in 1947 in a psychiatric hospital in Basel, Switzerland.

MK-ULTRA: LSD & The CIA

Almost immediately, the CIA in the United States became interested in the new reality-shifting drug. They had interests in the drug as a potential mind-control agent and formed a covert operation under the code name MK-ULTRA.

While MK-ULTRA was active, LSD was administered to CIA agents, members of the public, prostitutes, patients in psychiatric hospitals, and government employees — sometimes with their consent, other times without.

The program was ultimately canned after it became clear the LSD was not the truth serum or mind-control agent they were looking for.

LSD Counterculture

In the 1960s, LSD managed to escape the laboratory and became accessible by the mainstream public. Sandoz (the owner of the drug at the time) was sending large quantities of the drug to virtually any researcher interested in testing it. Professors Timothy Leary and Richard Alpert at Harvard University were two of the primary recipients of this deal in the United States.

Leary and Alpert were approved for a study program by the University to test the drug (which was legal at the time). They explored the effects of the drug under different conditions on students. Many times both Leary and Alpert were under the influence of the drug themselves while conducting the study. This, along with the notion that Leary and Alpert pressured students to take LSD, lead to their dismissal from the university in 1963.

After the two professors were no longer bound to the University, they began sharing everything they knew with the public in the forms of public talks, books, and events.

Alpert traveled to India to learn Hinduism. He later wrote several “seminal” books on the subject of spirituality under the pseudonym Baba Ram Dass.

Leary went on to publicly promote the use of psychedelics and became a leader in the counterculture of the 1960s. He’s famous for several catchphrases of the time — “turn on, tune in, drop out,” “set and setting,” and “think for yourself and question authority.” He was once described as the “most dangerous man in America” by then-president Richard Nixon.

The LSD Prohibition

A man named Dr. Sidney Cohen lead the push for a prohibition against LSD and psychedelics. He conducted various studies throughout the 1960s and lobbied the government to introduce laws to prohibit the use of hallucinogenic drugs. He argued that in the wrong hands, LSD could become dangerous.

During this time, the media reported stories about people jumping out of windows while under the influence of LSD, starring into the sun until going blind, and other fantastic (and unfounded) stories aiming to demonize the drug.

In 1968, the US federal government banned the possession of LSD, and later moved it into the official schedule I restricted drug status in 1970. This category is reserved for drugs that have a significant risk of abuse without any medical value — such as heroin or cocaine.

Research on LSD came to a screeching halt and didn’t start to pick up again until the 1980s. After its prohibition, it became very difficult for research programs to gain access to the compound for further studies. Only a handful of universities retained access to psychedelics during this time.

The New Age In LSD & Psychedelics

We’re currently entering a new wave of psychedelic research. Laws are loosening around the world, and the pile of evidence supporting the therapeutic value and high level of safety for psychedelics like LSD is becoming impossible to ignore.

There’s a push towards bringing LSD back into the health system in the form of psychedelic-assisted psychotherapy.

Places like British Colombia, Canada, Oregon, USA, Mexico, and several US municipalities have either legalized or decriminalized the use of psychedelics. More are expected to follow suit over the next couple of years.

What society would look like if psychedelics were legal

LSD Frequently Asked Questions

1. Is LSD Adulterated with Strychnine?

This myth is based on a report by Albert Hofmann, who analyzed a powder that claimed to be LSD that was made of pure strychnine — an extract from a plant called Strychnos nux-vomica.

Strychnine is deadly poisonous and often used to kill rats or other rodents.

Throughout the late 60s and beyond, the strychnine “contamination issue” was used as a way to deter people from using LSD. Older sources claim the strychnine was used as a bulking agent or was accidentally added by bathtub chemists when making illicit LSD using rudimentary chemicals at home. Some reports even claim that strychnine is a byproduct of the breakdown of LSD.

None of this has any truth.

There have never been any reports of strychnine in street LSD. And there’s a good reason for this.

LSD is very potent and almost always dosed in the form of a small 5 by 5 mm blotter paper. If strychnine was added, it would dilute the LSD and remove its ability to induce the psychedelic experience. Likewise, this dose of strychnine is far too low to cause any issues.

LSD is more likely to be adulterated with PCP or NBOMe substances — which is why you should always test a sample of LSD before you take it.

2. Does LSD Cause Chromosomal or DNA Damage?

The idea that LSD causes damage to the chromosomes has been around since the 1960s after a series of reports found that pure LSD caused damage to DNA in vitro. The effects were reportedly similar to that of ionizing radiation. This received a lot of attention in the media but was later disproven.

The problem with jumping to conclusions from in vitro research like this is that the results have very little correlation with the organism at large (in vivo). Yes, raw genetic material exposed to pure LSD can cause it to break down, but the same could be said for just about anything. When we take LSD, we take a few micrograms, which are then distributed through the entire body. It’s not even possible to take enough LSD to drench our genetic material in the same way found in the study.

A few years later, a systematic review explored the effects of 68 studies involving LSD and concluded that there was no risk of damage to the chromosomes and is not a teratogen or carcinogen in humans [11].

3. Will I Get Flashbacks After Using LSD?

A flashback can be defined as a transitory recurrence of emotions and perceptions originally experienced while under the influence of a psychedelic drug.

In basic terms, the visual and auditory hallucinations that accompany substances like LSD or magic mushrooms can reappear suddenly — lasting anywhere from seconds to hours.

This effect is characterized as a condition called hallucinogen persisting perception disorder (HPPD) according to the DSM-IV.

Flashbacks are exceptionally rare and tend to be short-lived and mild. Most people report a positive experience during a flashback — consisting of feelings of joy, visual hallucinations, and introspection — rather than fear or confusion.

The cause of flashbacks isn’t well understood. Stanislav Grof theorized that flashbacks could happen when someone undergoes a session with LSD or psilocybin and resists facing difficult emotional experiences that surface during the trip. This suggests that flashbacks are the result of poor integration after a psychedelic experience.

The most common myth for what causes flashbacks is that LSD is somehow “stored” in the spinal cord and brain. The myth suggests that LSD can be re-dosed by cracking your back.

There is no scientific basis to this theory, and LSD is not stored in the spinal cord, brain, or anywhere else in the body.

4. What Are the Best LSD Alternatives?

There are dozens of other compounds that make up the lysergamide class of psychedelics. In fact, LSD isn’t even the strongest or longest-lasting of this class — it’s simply the one that’s received the most publicity.

There are many other LSD alternatives that offer virtually indistinguishable effects, with varying “twists” on the experience (like alterations in the visuals or body high).

Researchers at Purdue University, led by Dr. David E. Nichols, have been exploring various LSD derivatives to uncover their effects. This research is still in its early days, but several of these compounds have since entered the designer drug market and are now widely available online.

Here are the most popular acid alternatives ranked from the most potent, to the least potent:

5. How Popular Is LSD?

LSD is, by far, one of the most prevalent psychedelics in North America and Europe.

Recent surveys have found that roughly 1% of the US population has taken LSD within the past 12 months.

In the UK, nearly 5% of the entire population has tried LSD at least once. Canada is only slightly lower with about 4.1% of the population reportedly having taken LSD.

6. What Are LSD Gel Tabs?

LSD gel tabs are similar to the conventional LSD blotter papers, but instead of being infused with a piece of absorbant paper, gel tabs suspend LSD in gelatin.

There are several benefits to gel tabs over blotter papers:

What the Future of LSD Looks Like

LSD is currently illegal throughout most of the world (with a few exceptions). As public interest in psychedelics continues to grow and develop, laws and regulations around this non-toxic substance are starting to open up.

Over the past few years, there’s been a lot of exciting research on the use of this psychotropic compound for treating addiction, anxiety, and depression. There’s also a lot of interesting research currently in the works exploring the role of LSD on resetting the default mode network (DMN).

This is a rapidly developing space. Stay up to date by signing up for our monthly newsletter below.

How to take LSD (Acid)

Learn how to take LSD. Did you know that it’s possible to avoid most ‘bad’ trips?

Contents

How to take LSD (Acid): A TripSafe Guide 👽

Thank you to Matthew Johnson, Bill Richards, and Roland Griffiths, for all of their scientific research on these subjects.

Look before you leap trip.

Emphasizing safety is important.

These guidelines are designed to maximize the chance of lasting positive benefits, and to minimize the chance of any challenging or “bad” trips.

Remember, no drug use is perfectly safe. But you can take LSD in a safer manner if you’re going to use it anyway.

LSD is not risk-free and is illegal. If you’re going to take LSD, trip safe. 👽

What had been clear to Hofmann almost immediately had by this time been observed independently by Osmond and a host of others: for LSD to have the greatest positive effect, subjects needed to take it in a safe, supportive, and aesthetically pleasing environment with a clear idea of what to expect. When difficult issues arose-as they often did-the safe setting and supportive presence of a therapist would allow the subject to process this emotional dynamite, defuse it, and transcend it. 1

“taking very high doses of LSD under very uncontrolled conditions … really is a crapshoot” 2

Tim Ferriss: “I would not recommend that anyone touch psychedelics without professional supervision. There are legal ramifications to consider. I would take it as seriously as you would choosing a neurosurgeon to remove a tumor.”

🙋 Safe use is important to avoid adverse reactions

These safe use guidelines are based off research into the clinical and research use of psychedelics.

“Persisting adverse reactions are rare when research is conducted along these guidelines. Incautious research may jeopardize participant safety and future research.” 3

Psychedelic retreats

While not LSD, magic mushrooms are decently similar in effects and therapeutic potential to LSD.

It is our understanding that magic truffles are legal in the Netherlands, and in Jamaica magic mushrooms are either outright legal or the laws don’t seem to be enforced.

☑️ Safer and more enjoyable usage checklist

Many LSD users are instead seeking to optimize fun instead of lasting positive benefits and safety, in which case some of these guidelines may not apply. For example, if optimizing more for fun and less for safety, a user may prefer not to use a blindfold and headphones, and may choose to drop acid at a festival or in nature instead of in a safe home environment.

We believe the most important tips that should be followed by everyone regardless of their purpose for taking LSD are:

🚫 Risks to avoid

Serious risks:

These risks can be reduced to near zero with proper precautions.

It’s also preferrable and possible to reduce the risk of having a bad trip.

What correlates with having a bad trip?

👨‍⚕️ 1. Avoid with certain health conditions

⛑ Helps avoid serious risks.

Avoid if you have any of these contraindicated conditions:

You should have:

💉 2. Avoid drugs that interact with psychedelics

⛑ Helps avoid serious risks.

Tricyclic antidepressants include: Amitriptyline, Anafranil, Asendin, Aventyl, Elavil, Endep, Norfranil, Norpramin, Pamelor, Sinequan, Surmontil, Tipramine, Tofranil, Vivactil.

SSRIs are not reported to cause a dangerous interaction, though they are reported to substantially decrease the effects of LSD.

Some users choose to consume cannabis while on LSD. Research recommends against this for anyone seeking to minimize risks and anxiety while tripping. 3

⚖️ 3. Use a safe dosage and start with 30-40 micrograms

⛑ Helps avoid serious risks and 😁 helps maximize positivity.

Start small

Griffiths et al. found that starting with small doses and increasing over time with the subsequent sessions (at “1-month intervals”) generally produced greater persisting positive effects. 8

You’re more likely to benefit from psychedelics in clinical settings when starting first with low doses. “The researchers also found that participants who received lower psilocybin doses before the higher doses were more likely to have long-lasting positive changes in attitudes, behavior, and remembered mystical-type experiences than those who received the highest dose first.” Following the researcher’s protocol would approximately involve doing a 30-40 microgram trip first, then a 60-80 microgram before anything larger, then a 120-140 microgram before anything larger, then either stopping there (this was the dosage that resulted in the highest increase in well-being) or doing a 170-240 microgram trip. 9 8

With acid, start first with 30-40 micrograms. 10 8

You may then increase to a maximum of 60-80 (67) micrograms, then a maximum of 120-140 (133) micrograms, and then a maximum of 170-240 (200) micrograms. 10 8

If you’re particularly eager, you can skip the smallest dose and jump to

67 micrograms first.

Why bother starting slowly? Clinical research indicates you’re more likely to experience lasting benefits if you start low, instead of starting high.

45% to report a persisting positive increase in mood from this dosage assuming they had first tried 35 micrograms, then 67 8

Ensure high confidence in your dosage

Anecdotal reports suggest that dosage per tab is much easier to assess for LSD acquired online, and that acquired acquired offline varies wildly in how accurate what you’re told the dosage is vs what the dosage really is.

LSD purchased online is often substantially stronger per tab than if purchased offline / on the street, as suggested by anecdotal reports of users who had previously taken two tabs of “street LSD,” and then tried one tab of LSD purchased online and found the effects of one tab to be substantially stronger than their previous two tabs of street LSD.

You should re-assess your dosage and start at a low dosage again every time you get LSD from a new source.

Does dosage vary by weight?

It doesn’t seem like dose should vary by weight, at least not much. This is possibly because people who weigh more have more serotonin receptors and therefore don’t need a larger dose to account for increased weight. Though more research is needed. 12

How can I convert between LSD (acid) and shrooms dosages?

To approximately convert from LSD to shrooms: LSD dosage in micrograms * 0.024 = shrooms dosage in grams. 6 10

e.g. 100 micrograms of LSD * 0.024 = 2.4 (grams of dried shrooms)

This uses 6.25mg of psilocybin per gram of dried mushrooms 6 and 1.5 micrograms of LSD being roughly equivalent to 225 micrograms of psilocybin. 10

This is a rough approximation for many reasons, including that mushroom potency can be quite varied.

💯 4. Buy a test kit to ensure your LSD is not fake

⛑ Helps avoid serious risks and 😁 helps maximize positivity.

If you’re not certain that it’s real LSD, it’s absolutely not worth taking it given the physical and mental risks that other common “fake acid” substances may possess.

Unfortunately, other substances are sometimes sold as LSD (acid). Of particular concern is NBOMe which unlike LSD, does not have low physiological toxicity, and sadly NBOMe has been involved in a few deaths in the last few years. 4

All of TripSafe’s information and recommendations assume pure acid containing 100% LSD.

Recommended LSD test kits

The most important test kit for LSD is the Ehrlich reagent.

Shrooms may be safer than LSD

The risk of getting a dangerous counterfeit substance is dramatically lower with shrooms.

Shrooms also last for

6 hours all up as opposed to

12-18 hours, which is can be easier on the user and increases the chance you will be able to find a willing trip sitter. Trip sitters strongly increase safety and can also increase enjoyment by helping significantly shorten the duration of any anxiety.

For inexperienced users, the effects of LSD and shrooms are roughly the same, with the exception of a higher “body load” (feeling of heaviness) on shrooms. It is easy to find 100 reports online saying that shrooms are better or easier, just as it is easy to find 100 reports online saying that LSD or easier.

Backup testing methods (not recommended)

“If it’s bitter, it’s a spitter”

If your LSD has an extremely bitter taste and/or numbs your mouth after a few minutes, spit it out. Anecdotal reports suggest extreme bitterness indicates the presence of some NBOMe. This is not a great method, as it is both unreliable and can be an anxiety inducing way to begin an acid trip.

Blotter and/or ink may taste slightly bitter, so this method is not flawless (anecdotal reports).

Additionally, some DOx chemicals are orally active and will still have effects when swallowed. 13

“NBOMes were initially thought to be orally inactive, meaning they wouldn’t work if swallowed. However, this is not the case for all NBOMes per se; certain NBOMe salts do have an observed oral bioavailability, with little known about the oral bioavailability of NBOMes in their freebase form. Therefore, when a substance might be an NBOMe, discard the blotter entirely rather than swallowing it, if you do not wish to risk being under the influence of an NBOMe.” 14

UV light

If you aren’t willing to use a test kit but do have access to a UV/black light, following this guide is better than nothing. A test kit is certainly better, as this method is not foolproof: some paper glows under UV light regardless, and long exposure to UV will destroy LSD.

😇 5. Have a trusted, sober guide who is experienced in supporting psychedelic sessions

⛑ Helps avoid serious risks and 😁 helps maximize positivity.

In research on bad/challenging trips with psilocybin, “only 2.7% [of the people reporting a bad trip] had a trusted and sober guide present who was experienced in supporting psychedelic sessions.” 6

“It is difficult to overemphasize the importance of the interpersonal atmosphere created by study staff in influencing a volunteer’s response to a hallucinogen.” 3

Anecdotal evidence suggests that having a sitter that is not familiar with descriptions of altered states of consciousness can lead to unpleasant experiences.

🏠 6. Trip in a 100% safe, pleasing and familiar environment

⛑ Helps avoid serious risks and 😁 helps maximize positivity.

A pleasant environment may reduce the chance of bad feelings while tripping. 3

Your environment psychedelic-prep checklist:

A non-house environment increases the chance of something unexpected happening. Unexpected things can be hard to deal with on psychedelics. Please wait until you at least have a few experiences at the given dosage level before doing things like tripping in very public environments.

😄 7. Wait until you’re in a good mindset

Your trip will likely be easier and more enjoyable if you’re in a good mindstate both on the day, and have been in a good mindset in general in the previous few weeks.

While you’re on psychedelics, you’ll need to give up control and the desire to understand everything that is happening to you.

“Whenever in doubt, turn off your mind, relax, float downstream.”

People are more likely to have challenging experiences (“bad” trips) if they have:

📝 8. Prepare yourself

😁 Helps maximize positivity.

🎧 9. Optional: Wear eyeshades and headphones

😁 Helps maximize positivity.

Eyeshades and headphones can make it safer. “The employment of eyeshades and headphones (through which supportive music is played) may contribute to safety by reducing the distractions of environmental stimuli and social pressures to verbally interact with research personnel. This may be especially important for volunteers who are experiencing the effects of a hallucinogen for the first time.” 3

“Typically, we have kept eyeshades and headphones in place for most of the session. In the latter hours of the session some time is spent with the volunteer sitting on the couch, interacting without eyeshades and headphones, although music may still be played through speakers to provide nonverbal structure and continuity.” 3

🙏 10. Respect psychedelics

Have an appreciation for how powerful the psychological effects of psychedelics can be. 3

Don’t trip again until you’ve completely integrated your previous trip into your life.

“People can have these experiences and get puffed up about them, rather than approaching them with humility,” Bogenschutz said. “They can become more grandiose and think they have special knowledge and wisdom.” 2

🗓 11. Don’t trip again until you feel your previous trip has been fully integrated into your normal life

😁 Helps maximize positivity.

Integration involves taking your experience and trying to get positive benefits from it in your daily life.

Make no major decisions until at least a day or two, perhaps a little longer. 15

More followup care should be given to those who consumed 150 micrograms or more. 15

More tips

📅 Follow these tips for the day of your trip

What are the best activities for an LSD trip?

What if I’m concerned about my own use or a loved one’s use of LSD?

Please read this free guide: the 20 minute guide. It’s for parents, but it applies to friends, etc. There’s also a separate version for romantic partners.

Alternatively, there’s a full book version of the same guide called “Beyond Addiction” which is excellent, or you can buy the PDF of the 20 minute guide.

If you prefer video content and have access to HBO, please watch the HBO Documentary ‘Addiction.’

Please start with the above resources, even if you’re ready for treatment.

What about taking higher doses?

This advice seems pretty helpful for taking high doses on this reddit thread.

The Trip Sitter Guide

Psychedelic Therapy

Want to learn about the therapeutic use of psychedelics including shrooms and LSD? See our page on psychedelic therapy.

Read these next

“In a study of nearly a hundred people who took a psychedelic, guided as outlined in this manual, seventy-eight percent reported, “It was the greatest experience of my life.” This response was true even for those people who had taken a psychedelic many times before.” Read the EntheoGuide

How lsd is taken

LSD

(Acid, Lucy, Tab, Lysergic Acid Diethylamide)

TrippyWiki score: 9.1/10

TABLE OF CONTENTS

What is LSD?

Back in 1943, Swiss chemist Albert Hoffman accidentally poured some research substance on his hand and started tripping. Since then, LSD has become the most popular synthetic psychedelic – for a good reason. The stigma around LSD is starting to disappear because the benefits of this substance are hard to deny.

Why choose LSD over other psychedelics?

LSD…

Long-term benefits & side effects

LSD…

How to take LSD

Administration

Dealers mostly sell LSD on a blotter but you can also buy it in gummy bears or in a liquid form. Either way, you can either swallow the substance or let it dissolve on your tongue.

Always test your blotter with a Marquis Reagent Testing Kit because 25I-NBOMe is commonly sold as LSD and it can be extremely dangerous even in a tiny amount. If the drug turns brown, you have NBOMe.

If you are not willing to do this, s wallow the substance. If you do so, NBOMe should not affect you in any way.

If you stick the tab under your tongue, the drug will dissolve a little faster and it will take slightly less time to notice the effects.

Dosage

Many psychonauts recommend starting with a light dose (around 50 µg) but this isn’t necessarily the best way to go.

If you start at lower doses, your ego will learn how to control the psychedelic states. Because of that, it’ll be harder to let go once you move to higher doses and this can easily lead to bad trips.

You will also not get as many benefits from the drug as if you were to start with higher doses. That is why in psychedelic-assisted psychotherapy, 200+ µg are used.

It’s been shown that mystical experiences can deeply change your identity and the higher the dose you take, the more intense they will be.

Do not, however, start with a strong dose if you don’t have a trip sitter nearby.

300+ µg can easily cause you to reach a breakthrough where you lose sense of the physical world. You will become so conscious that you will “go unconscious.”

The last thing you want is to be lying on the ground for hours in nature, let alone on a street or in a club.

So keep in mind that the higher the dose you take, the more important it is to be in a safe environment.

Some people are more sensitive than others. There are people who can take 200 µg and feel nothing. This mainly happens to people with autism. Otherwise, it is rare.

Equivalents for 100 µg of LSD

The effects of the psychedelics below are not the same as the effects of LSD. This chart only compares the intensity of each substance.

Safety checklist

Maximize the benefits

Keep in mind that integration is even more important than the trip itself. Taking psychedelics would be almost useless if you didn’t retain any lessons in your day-to-day life.

What will help you the most is contemplating about the experience – be it by journaling, thinking about the trip, or sharing your memories with a trusted friend.

Distracting thoughts can get in the way, which is why you want to spend the day after your trip without TV, social media, and other distractions.

If you can, spend time in silence and solitude. Me ditate, go for a walk, contemplate the experience.

Should you listen to music on LSD?

Music can make the trip more pleasant and greatly increase the benefits. That is why it is used in most psychotherapy sessions.

However, not all music is created equal. Listening to N.W.A. and 2Pac wouldn’t be so helpful. Even positive, relaxing music with lyrics can be a distraction.

If you decide to listen to music on psychedelics, choose calm, classical music with little to no lyrics.

This playlist used in Johns Hopkins psilocybin studies is proven to be extremely effective:

The author of the playlist, Roland Griffiths, went over hundreds of songs and only chose the best of the best based on how his patients responded to the music.

The music should be loud enough so you can hear it clearly but not unpleasantly loud. If you can, play it in your headphones.

Duration

Onset = 20-40 minutes
Come up = 45-90 minutes
Peak = 3-5 hours
Come down = 3-5 hours

What does LSD feel like?

Common short-term effects include:

Euphoria
Music enhancement
Increased creativity and open-mindedness
Mindfulness, being present
Higher capability for love and compassion
Pain relief
Feeling one with all that is
Seeing life from a different perspective
Appreciating small things
Higher energy
Increased awareness
Stamina enhancement
Feeling your emotions more intensely
Memory suppression
Time distortion
Inability to sleep
Visual effects (enhanced colors, seeing patterns in everything, distortions, …)
Getting stuck in a thought loop
Confusion
Nausea
Headache
Inability to focus
Increased body temperature
Increased heart rate
Worse thermoregulation
Difficulty urinating
Anxiety, paranoia
Vulnerability

The higher dose you take, the more intense these effects will be.

With that said, it is impossible to accurately describe the experience through human language.

The psychedelic affects each individual differently and no two trips are the same. Therefore, there is virtually no way to know what your trip will feel like.

The only way to truly know what LSD feels like is to take LSD.

LSD will most likely give you a pleasant experience. Bad trips can happen but you can prevent them by following the tips below.

Bad trips

Bad trips mostly happen because people take the substance irresponsibly. If you take this psychedelic the right way, there is virtually no chance you’ll get a bad trip.

In case you still do, that’s good! A “bad” trip isn’t always bad, it can actually be the most healing and insightful moment of your life!

During a “bad” trip, negative emotions are coming up from your subconscious mind. They have always been there whether you are aware of it or not. They have been damaging your life and a difficult trip is an opportunity to process these traumas and unpleasant feelings and let go of them.

The more painful the experience, the more you can heal.

So instead of calling bad trips bad, call them challenging.

If you understand that bad trips are awesome in the long run, not only will you feel more comfortable diving into these challenging states, it will actually excite you!

Why they happen

The most common reasons for getting a bad trip are:

How to cope with a bad trip

How to end a bad trip

One possible way is to put on music that is familiar to you. Another way is to switch up your location and move from one place to another. This can completely change your train of thought.

In case the trip becomes extremely challenging and there is no one around you to keep you safe, consider ending your trip with a trip killer.

Using a trip killer usually is not the best idea because the bad emotions will stay unresolved and you will get little to no benefits from the experience. With that said, using a trip killer is smarter than harming yourself.

The 2 best options that you have for ending a bad trip are Phenibut and benzodiazepines.

Phenibut is generally safer. The downside is that it can take hours to kick in.

So to end a trip, use benzodiazepines but only do this if you completely have to.

Interactions

Microdosing

If you are not ready to take higher doses, microdosing is a way to go because it can bring similar benefits to your life with even fewer side effects.

Experts in the field generally recommend microdosing with 10-20 µg every 3rd day. Taking a microdose more often is not a good idea because you would become tolerant to LSD and the substance would have little to no effect.

20 µg is more likely to bring positive benefits into your life so start at 10 µg and gradually build your way up.

Around 80% of people who take microdoses claim that it has profoundly changed their lives.

For some, microdosing has cured their depression and helped them find beauty in small things. Some also say that they experience significantly less anxiety when they microdose.

Many people take tiny doses of acid to become more creative and productive throughout the day. Microdosing has also been shown to increase athletic performance.

What is awesome about microdosing is that you can stop at any time in case you notice some adverse reaction or if you simply don’t see any benefits.

How to microdose

Put your blotters into distilled water (10 ml of liquid per 100 µg). Keep the water in a cold dark place for 24 hours to make sure your tab has fully dissolved into the liquid.

Put the liquid into your fridge so that the substance doesn’t oxidize. If you store your substance in the fridge, it will last for up to a year there, sometimes even longer. The same applies to a freezer.

Take 10-20 µg of LSD (1-2 ml of the liquid) every 3rd day, preferably on the days you want to be the most creative.

Do so in the morning so that the substance doesn’t interfere with your sleep.