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LSD Addiction

LSD is known as the drug that does not cause a physical addiction, but LSD addiction symptoms do occur. This happens because the LSD builds a tolerance in the body that requires higher doses each time in to reach the desired effect. This increasing dosage does not occur with every user; however, it is common. Fortunately, there are ways to treat LSD addiction symptoms when they are noticed early.

About LSD

LSD is also called lysergic acid deithylamide and is created from a fungus that grows on rye bread. The drug is taken in several forms, including pills, liquid or gelatin. LSD is fused into blotter paper or in small “buttons” that resemble candy. It was originally seen as a psychological drug to aid in treating mental disorders. In the 1960s, doctors used the hallucinogenic effects of LSD to study mental conditions that produced hallucinations. They believed that a better understanding of hallucinations and how they affect the body would lead to better treatment for schizophrenia and similar conditions. Unfortunately, that research was never completed.

The US banned LSD for medical use because of the drug’s effects; however, the drug stayed in circulation as a club drug, in the same category as ketamine, GHB and Rohypnol. According to a 2009 survey by the National Survey on Drug Use and Health, 779,000 people ages 12 and over had taken LSD in the 12 months prior to the survey. An estimated 2.9 percent of those people were 12th graders, and the majority were above high school age. Regardless of age, LSD was used primarily in the club or party scene, and LSD addiction symptoms are usually found in patrons of this environment.

The LSD High

LSD addiction is built on tolerance generated from repeated highs or “trips” on the drug. A trip is the hallucinogenic high that LSD users experience upon taking the drug. It stimulates the central nervous system, causing the body to feel, taste and smell the hallucination. This makes it more realistic. The intensity of the trip increases with the amount of the drug taken, and trips can last up to 12 hours.

Each time LSD is taken, the body increases its tolerance. The next dose must be higher to experience the same high. This tolerance builds until an overdose of LSD is possible.

You can find help with your LSD use. Just call us at . We can offer support and information to help stem the use before it becomes an addiction.

Signs of a LSD Addiction

LSD trips are characterized by the hallucinations the user experiences. You can spot an LSD addict by the delusions and any acting-out behaviors that are based on those delusions or hallucinations. The user may show other LSD addiction symptoms that include:

  • Rapidly changing mood swings
  • Confusion
  • Quickening pulse
  • Raised body temperature
  • Dry mouth
  • Depression
  • Insomnia

After prolonged addiction, the user can experience LSD addiction symptoms like hallucinations that seem to last longer with each trip. Some users develop mental conditions like depression and even schizophrenia. Long-term users can also experience vivid re-creations of their trips years later, in the form of flashbacks. These flashbacks can also occur long after the addict has completed an LSD addiction recovery program.

The LSD Overdose

An overdose on LSD is possible when the tolerance level for the drug requires large amounts of LSD to create a high. One of the first signs of an overdose is an LSD addiction symptom — a high fever. The body heats up as the high dose of LSD over-stimulates the central nervous system. Other symptoms and signs of addiction include:

  • Nightmarish hallucinations, also known as a “bad trip”
  • Heart palpitations
  • Heart attack
  • Excessive sweating and urination
  • Dehydration
  • Shallow breathing
  • Severe vomiting or nausea
  • Fainting
  • Paralysis that lasts until the drug is out of the system
  • Dizziness
  • Impaired movements

These symptoms of an overdose on LSD are easily spotted early on, as they are not the same symptoms that are affiliated with normal use. These LSD addiction symptoms can be reversed if the user is treated immediately. Call 911 or emergency response if you see any of these signs in someone after taking LSD. Contact us after the user is treated by emergency personnel to then get help with LSD addiction treatment.

Treating the Overdose

“The first priority in LSD overdose treatment is to restore the breathing and heart rate.”The first priority in LSD overdose treatment is to restore the breathing and heart rate. If you call 911 during the overdose, the operator may guide you through the steps of rescue breathing or CPR. These techniques are very important in helping the user until the emergency response team arrives. The responders or paramedics use oxygen and sometimes intubation to restore breathing, and medication is used to slow the heart rate. The user is secured for his safety (in cases of wild delusions) and transported to the hospital. There, the doctors and nurses administer fluids to prevent or treat the dehydration. They also treat the fever and heart attack with medication. The user then goes on intensive observation until the trip is over. Then, it is time to enter an LSD addiction treatment program to treat the underlying addiction.

Finding Help

You can get help for yourself or the LSD user in your life by contacting us. Call for support, resources, tools and information needed to curb LSD use. You can also learn more about spotting and treating the first LSD addiction symptoms before the more severe symptoms set in. If you know someone who has experienced symptoms but has not stopped taking the drugs, contact us to find out how to help them stop the drug use and begin down the road to recovery from LSD addiction.

Did You Know?

  • Albert Hoffman first created LSD in 1938.
  • Hoffman was also the first to find the hallucinogenic effects of LSD by accidentally taking a dose.
  • Timothy Leary, an author and psychologist, made the psychedelic connection in the 1960s, and the drug quickly became a public health concern.
  • LSD has 80 street names that include “acid,” “Looney Tunes,” “Elvis” and “back-breaker.”
  • LSD is synthesized from a fungus (ergot) that grows on rye bread.
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