LSD facts
How it affects you
- LSD takes between 30-60 minutes to take effect and the effects can last 8-12 hours.
- Trips are unpredictable and vary hugely from person to person.
- The drug works on the brain causing changes to thoughts, senses and perceptions.
- It can cause visual disturbance, hallucinations, anxiety, dizziness or disorientation.
Other names
Tabs, trips, microdots, strawbs, blotter, acid.
Is it legal?
- Class A.
- Possession carries a maximum sentence of 7 years’ imprisonment and a fine.
- Supply or production carries a maximum sentence of life imprisonment and a fine.
The risks, signs and symptoms
- The most common health risk is short or long-term psychological damage.
- LSD can trigger a range of psychiatric problems, so if you have a history of mental health problems you should avoid LSD. Frequent long-term use can leave you feeling disorientated for quite a long time.
- LSD use can cause permanent eye damage.
- There is a risk that you could injure yourself while under the effects of LSD.
- You may experience 'flashbacks', re-living a few seconds or minutes of an LSD-induced trip, weeks, months or even years after taking it.
- It interacts badly with alcohol and cannabis, increasing side effects like nausea and anxiety.
How you can reduce the risks
- The only way to fully reduce the risks from LSD is to not take it.
- Some factors may lessen the chance of having a very bad trip, such as only taking LSD when you are in a place where you feel safe, with people that you trust and at a time when you feel content and relaxed.