Hallucinogen Drugs

DMT
What is DMT? DMT is found in a variety of plants and seeds; it can also be produced synthetically.

Street Names - "businessman's trip," "fantasia"

How is it taken? Sniffed, Smoked, Injected

What are the effects? The effects of DMT are known as a "trip" and last only 45 minutes to one hour. DMT has no effect when taken orally; unless it is combined with certain drugs.

What are the dangers? It causes impaired judgment that often leads to rash decisions and accidents. It can cause extremely frightening trips or flashbacks.

Is it addictive? It is not considered an addictive drug like cocaine, heroin or alcohol because it does not produce the same compulsive drug-seeking behavior. However, like addictive drugs, it produces greater tolerance in some users who take the drug repeatedly. These users must take higher doses to achieve the same results as they have had in the past. This could be an extremely dangerous practice because of the unpredictability of the drug effect on an individual.

LSD

What is LSD? LSD is the most potent hallucinogen known to man. LSD is derived from a fungus that grows on rye and other grains; however, it is also semi-synthetic and is chemically manufactured in illegal laboratories.

Street Names - "acid"

How is it taken? LSD is usually taken orally, but it is sometimes inhaled or injected. Pure LSD is a white, odorless crystalline powder that is soluble in water. Because an effective dose of the pure drug is almost invisible, it is mixed with other substances, such as sugar, and sold in the following forms:

• Blotter acid: paper, usually with pictures on one side, that has been soaked in an LSD solution.
• Capsules.
• Microdots: tablets.
• Solutions.
• Window panes: thin squares of gelatin.

What are the effects? An LSD "trip" can last eight to 10 hours. Physical reactions include dilated pupils, lowered body temperature, nausea, "goose bumps," profuse perspiration, increased blood sugar and rapid heart rate. LSD causes the user to have hallucinations and intense emotions:

  

• During the first hour after ingestion, the user may experience visual changes, with extreme changes in mood. 
• In the hallucinatory state, the user may suffer impaired depth and time perception, accompanied by distorted perception of the size and shape of objects, movements, color, sound, touch and the user's own body image.
• LSD can impair judgment and concentration, and invoke a distorted sense of self-preservation leading to physical risk.
• Effects can be dependent on the user's environment, mood and the people around him or her.

  

 What are the dangers?

•  LSD can impair judgment and concentration, and invoke a distorted sense of self-preservation leading to physical risk.
• A high dosage or impure mixture can produce a "bad trip" (acute anxiety reactions, paranoia, feelings of loss of control). 
• Once a "trip" begins, there is no way to stop it.
• Flashbacks or recurrences of parts of a "trip" can occur days or months after taking the last dose.
• LSD is illegal to posses in the United States.

Is it addictive? It is not considered an addictive drug like cocaine, heroin or alcohol because it does not produce the same compulsive drug-seeking behavior. However, like addictive drugs, LSD produces greater tolerance in some users who take the drug repeatedly. These users must take higher doses to achieve the same results as they have had in the past. This could be an extremely dangerous practice because of the unpredictability of the drug effect on an individual.

PCP

What is PCP? In the 1950s PCP was invented as a medical anesthetic; however, it caused serious side effects of confusion and delirium and was discontinued. In 1960, its name was changed to Sernylan and was sold as a veterinary anesthetic.

Street Names - "Angel Dust," "Supergrass," "Killer Weed," "Embalming Fluid," and "Rocket Fuel"

How is it taken? In its pure form, PCP is a white crystalline powder that dissolves in water. PCP sold on the street is often contaminated by poor manufacturing, causing the color to range from tan to brown and the consistency ranges from powder to a gummy mass.

PCP is found in the following forms:

• Tablets and capsules.
• Powder. Liquid. 
• A covering for a leafy material such as parsley, mint, oregano or marijuana to be smoked. 

Physical effects include:

• Numbness.
• Slurred speech.
• Loss of coordination, which may be accompanied by false feelings of strength and invulnerability.
• The observable effects in a user are a blank stare, rapid and involuntary eye movements, and an exaggerated walk.

Psychological effects include:

• Feelings of detachment, and distance from the user's surroundings.
• Auditory hallucinations.
• Distorted visual images.
• Severe mood disorders.
• Acute anxiety and a feeling of impending doom.
• Paranoia and violent hostility.
• Mental psychosis similar to schizophrenia.
• It may also result in amnesia.

What are the dangers? The U.S. DEA considers PCP one of the most dangerous drugs of abuse. Lack of coordination and exaggerated feelings of strength can cause the user to harm himself or others. PCP is extremely addictive.

Peyote & Mescaline

What are Peyote and Mescaline? Peyote is a small, spineless cactus. Mescaline is a hallucinogenic substance found within the Peyote cactus. Mescaline can be taken from the Peyote cactus or created synthetically. Throughout history, Peyote and Mescaline have been used by natives in northern Mexico and the southwestern United States as a part of traditional religious rites.

Street Names: "buttons," "mesc," "peyote"

How are they taken? The top of the cactus ("the crown") has disc-shaped buttons that are cut off and dried. The buttons are chewed or soaked in water to produce an intoxicating liquid.

What are the effects?  The hallucinogenic effects last about 12 hours.

What are the dangers? The effects can cause a chemically induced model of mental illness.

Is it addictive? It is not considered an addictive drug like cocaine, heroin or alcohol because it does not produce the same compulsive drug-seeking behavior. However, like addictive drugs, mescaline produces greater tolerance in some users who take the drug repeatedly. These users must take higher doses to achieve the same results as they have had in the past. This could be an extremely dangerous practice because of the unpredictability of the drug effect on an individual.

Psilocybin Mushrooms

What is psilocybin?  Psilocybin is a chemical obtained from certain mushrooms found in Mexico and Central America.

Street Names- "Magic mushrooms"or "Shrooms"

How is it taken?

• Eaten raw.
• Cooked in food.
• Dried and ingested.

What are the effects?

• Psilocybin may induce sensory hallucinations and intense feelings (including personal and spiritual insights).
• It can cause nausea when first ingested.
• Its effects last five to six hours.

What are the dangers?  Psilocybin is often fake (such as supermarket mushrooms laced with LSD or toxic mushrooms, which can lead to permanent liver damage or death).  Death, if you eat the wrong mushrooms (some poisonous mushrooms look similar to "shrooms"). Psilocybin can cause stomach pains and diarrhea.  Bad trips occur and are often very scary. Psilocybin is illegal to possess in the United States.

Is it addictive? It is not considered an addictive drug like cocaine, heroin or alcohol because it does not produce the same compulsive drug-seeking behavior. However, like addictive drugs, it produces greater tolerance in some users who take the drug repeatedly. These users must take higher doses to achieve the same results as they have had in the past. This could be an extremely dangerous practice because of the unpredictability of the drug effect on an individual.