LSD (acid)
LSD, which stands for lysergic acid diethylamide is a hallucinogenic (say: huh-loo-sun-o-jeh-nik) drug.
Hallucinogens change the way you sense the world around you. LSD is odourless, colourless, and tasteless. It can be painted onto small squares of paper that people lick or swallow.
Other names for LSD include acid, sugar cubes, white lightning, dose, tripping, and blotter. Capsules and liquids are also swallowed.
When you use LSD, your senses of space, distance, and time become altered. People say they "hear" colours or "see" sounds, but effects are unpredictable.
Once you go on an "acid trip," you can't get off till the drug's done with you - in about 12 hours! Strange feelings and strong emotions are typical. LSD can cause "bad trips" - users experience panic, confusion, sadness, and scary images. Bad reactions can occur even with the first use and a user may have flashbacks, where a person experiences the feelings of a bad trip even after the drug wears off. LSD affects judgment and behaviour may get out of control. The user may find himself or herself in a dangerous situation.
Physical changes include dilated pupils, increased heart rate and blood pressure, muscle twitches and shaking, sweating, sleeplessness, and loss of appetite.
