What happened 75 years ago? A brief history of LSD
In 1938, the chemistry Albert Hofmann of the Swiss pharmaceutical company "Sandoz" based in Basel, discovered Lysergic acid diethylamide (LSD). Looking for a circulatory stimulant, he made some research on the substance gained from the ergot fungus which grows on crops, mostly rye.
But as the desired results did not appear in animal testing, he soon lost interest in LSD and stopped his study on it.
However, a few years later in 1943, he got the growing feeling that he had missed something profound about the substance and decided to revive his work on it. While doing so, Albert Hofmann one day suddenly noticed a strange, psychedelic and hallucinogenic effect on himself. First thinking of having made a mistake and accidentally came in touch with LSD having it absorbed by his skin and also being fascinated by this incident, he decided to do a self-experiement on April 19 th.
But there was one essential thing he did not know yet: LSD was way more potent that the ergot alkaloids known to date. And so he inadvertently took 250 microgramms which is five to ten times of a noticeable, effective dose.
Due to this mistake and the fact that the hallucinogenic effects of LSD had been completely new at that time as no one had ever studied them before, Albert Hofmann started to get a really heavy and scary trip, not knowing what he had to expect the next hours and which only got better at the point he decided to accept the experience and start enjoying the visuals and mindtrip.
(Having a trip without knowing what that means, how long it lasts and not even being prepared for such a high dose surely must have been very terrifying at the beginning.)
Fortunately Albert Hofmann took his bike and drove home at the beginning of the self-experiment so he was in a familiar and safe place when the experience got more and more intense. Today, a lot of LSD (colloquially called „Acid“) fans around the globe therefore celebrate April 19 th as a psychedelic milestone which they call „Bicycle Day“ remembering the substance's discoverers trippy ride.
Here is an animated short movie, inspired by this day
What does LSD feel like?
A photo my husband took in nature and which I processed with the Deep Dream Generator
As LSD is a psychedelic substance and psychedelic means revelaing the psyche, the effects of it are never the same to people as we are very versatile beings.
Even if the same person trips several times, the trips can and surely will be very different.
However, there are some effects that most people describe as having experienced under the influence of the substance and you can therefore concider „typically LSD“.
Before I count you some of them, I need to note something:
When being on LSD there are areas of the brain stimulated which normally are only stimulated weakly or not at all. Additionally the left and right side of it are much more connected than they are when you are not under the influence of the substance. In very simple words that means that the logical and the creative side communictae in a way they normally don't.
Therefore the experience of a psychedelic trip on LSD is so far away from what we know, see, feel, think and perceive normally, that it is impossible to give you an exact insight. It is only a try to explain the indescripable with my own words.
This is for educational and entertainment purposes only. I am not promoting the use of any substance or drug.
The effects of LSD
Your whole perception changes and the way you feel, see, hear and especially think feels somehow very alien. Some people enjoy that very much as it gives you a whole new perspective and point of view on things, yourslef, life and the whole universe. Others can't handle that strange experience and get very scarred.
Colors look way more bright, intense and beautiful
Sounds and voices can be heard very different. Sometimes it is hard or even impossible to understand what people are talking and you can even have acoustical hallucinations.
As the halves of the brain are connected in a whole new way you may even see sounds, taste colours or experience other psychedelic effects regarding your senses
Reality may look very sharp and clear like HD or 4K
Most people experience so called Closed-Eye-Visuals and Open-Eye-Visuals ( CEV's and OEV's) which are mostly geometric forms, moving fractals, mandala-like patterns or other structures in 2D and 3D (sometimes even more than 3D in a strange, new way you have never seen before)
Everything looks like it's breathing
Hallucinations and pseudo hallucinations (you see things which aren't there but are aware of the fact they aren't real)
Time feels very altered or you don't have a feeling for time and space at all anymore (for exapmle: 1 hour may feel like several hours, a whole day or even more. Or the exact opposite. But time getting slowed down is way more common with psychedelics)
You can have a very strong mindtrip with thoughts that seem not to be your own ones as they appear „out of nothing“ and don't feel like the way you normally think at all. This can be disturbing but also give you some very transforming philosophical, spiritual, and personal insights
The body sometimes feels very energized and you can feel a tingle, pressure, or a pulsating or flowing feeling
Some people feel uncomfortable, overwhelmed and even scared, others feel released, euphoric, as light as a feather and very calm and in a bliss. This often depends on the set and setting (your mood and the place you trip at) and your mindset towards the experince itself. If you are not prepared and take it reckless without knowing what to expect or if you are anxious, mentally unstable or a person who can never give up control about the situation, you are way more endangered to have a so called „Bad Trip“. If you are very good informed about the topic of LSD, psychedelic experiences, tripping, in a very good mood and in a safe place you like and feel comfortable, this lowers the risk of a negative experience a lot and you can probably enjoy the trip and maybe even learn a lot.
The mood and mental stability is also important as a psychedelic (revealing the psyche) experience may not only bring up good things, but also subconscious, suppressed or forgotten things and feelings that may hurt and feel very heavy (which is the reason it was and is used in LSD supported psychotherapy as it helps people getting aware of their feelings, traumas and more)
The feeling of being one with everything around you and the universe
Ego death experience. This is very, very hard to describe. In very simple words it means that you completely lose your identity and transcend to the existence itself in the most intense case. I recommend you this video by Dakota Wint as it describes it really very, very good in my opinion
Here are some more videos that might give you a little insight in how LSD can feel like and what you can see and experience
This video by psychedsubstance is about LSD and DMT. But as it describes the effects of LSD very good and easy to understand I wanted to share it with you
Look at the center of the video for 30 to 60 seconds without getting distracted. Try to blink not too often. After a while, look at a poster, some room decoration or just take a look around. The pulsating, morphing illusion is just pretty similar to what most people see on LSD
This is how objects may look like while tripping
The part with the house is pretty accurate, I guess
Why LSD got prohibited
Knowing more and more about the healing potential of LSD and the increasing encouraging results of studies, the psychedelic substance got very popular. Some psychotherapists used it to help treating people with various mental problems and disorders.
The Czech psychoterapist, psychiatrist and one of the founders of transpersonal psychology Stanislaf Grof was a true pioneer in treating his patients with LSD and he even succeeded in helping people who were diagnosed as incurable.
But despite the great scientific and medical benefits the substance got banned in the 1960's and 1970's (depending on the country) due to a rapidly increasing and sometimes very reckless (ab-)use by people. Especially the ones from the hippie movement who created a whole psychedelic culture involving art, music and personal and spiritual growth with the help of psychedelics. There also were many events and gatherings where a lot of LSD and other drugs were consumed The most famous one is the Woodstock festival in 1969.
With the following prohibition it was impossible or at least very hard for psychotherapists to get the licence to treat their patiente and for scientists to do research with the substance. The times of LSD as a wonder drug and medicine seemed to be endangered, if not even over. News almost only reported on people having bad trips as those storys sell good and attract readers and so the substance got demonized and turned into Albert Hofmanns problem child.
The LSD revival – will there be a psychedelic revolution?
Today LSD and the psychedelic culture get more and more popular again.
With hippies who moved to Goa between the 1960's and 1980's, a small state in India, celebrating partys on famous Anjuna beach where they played some psychedelic electronic tance music (Goa Trance and Psytrance), a new era of the psychedelic movement was born in the 1980's and 1990's. It didn't take very long until it spread around the globe.
Since the 1990's there are more and more events and festivals around the world playing the trippy tunes, showing some psychedelic art and people enjoying psychedelic experiences of any kind together. Some of the most famous ones today are Burning Man Festival, Ozora and Boom (which takes places in Portugal where all drugs are decriminalised nowadays).
With growing popularity and the revival of the culture, LSD became more popular again.
But not only modern day hippies, psychonauts and other friends of the famous substance by Albert Hofmann are interested in lysergic acid diethylamide today.
The number of studies on the health benefits of psychedelics grows and there are even associations like MAPS (Multidisciplinary Association for Psychedelic Studies), a non-profit organisation, who try to rise awareness of the profound advantages substances like LSD, psiloybin and MDMA and also Cannabis can have for patients and humanity.
Also more and more people start to blog, write, vlog and talk openly about LSD and their experiences.
Interesting to know: Studies revealed that LSD is a non-addictive substance and no one ever died by just taking it (only from doing dangerous things or losing control while tripping) as the lethal dose is so high it has never been reached. LSD is also rated as one of the less harmful drugs together with psilocybin containing mushrooms and Burprenorphine due to a study by Dr. David Nutt .
With growing popularity, events such as parties, festivals, exhibitions and fairs and the increasing number of organizations doing research on the substance, we maybe can witness a psychedelic revolution in the future!
Some quotes by famous supporters of LSD
My belt bag, showing a big and small flower of life and a version of the most famous LSD blotter motive(the paper where it gets dropped on to consume it) with Albert Hofmann on his trippy bicycle ride. The original version is without the word "WONDERCHILD" and Albert Hofmann is white instead of colourful
„Through my LSD experience and my new picture of reality, I became aware of the wonder of creation, the magnificence of nature and of the animal and plant kingdom. I became very sensitive to what will happen to all this and all of us.“ - Albert Hofmann
„Taking LSD was a profound experience, one of the most important things in my life. LSD shows you that there’s another side to the coin, and you can’t remember it when it wears off, but you know it. It reinforced my sense of what was important - creating great things instead of making money, putting things back into the stream of history and of human consciousness as much as I could.” - Steve Jobs
„LSD is simply an exploratory instrument like a microscope or telescope , except this one is inside of you instead of outside of you.“ - Alan Watts
„LSD is a catalyst or amplifier of mental processes. If properly used it could become something like the microscope or telescope of psychiarty.“ - Stanislav Grof
„I'm here today because of LSD. LSD gave me the confidence to be who I am today. Completely.“ - John Waters
„LSD lets you in something. When you're tripping, the idea of race disappears; the idea of sex disappears; you don't even know what species you are sometimes. And I don't know of anybody who hasn't come back from that being more humane, more thoughtful, more understanding.“ - Ken Kesey
„Impressionism is simply twenty minutes into LSD.“ - Terence McKenna
A photo I took in nature and processed with the Deep Dream Generator
What do you think? Will there be a psychedelic revolution in the next years? And if yes, how do you think it will be like? Only for medical purposes or also for private and cultural use?
What do you think about LSD? Madness or miracle? Or maybe even both? I am excited to read you comments!
Much love and light,
Yours Linda
Thank you very much for reading and your support! I appreciate that more than words can say! 💖
Sources
Books:
„LSD My Problem Child“ by Albert Hofmann
„Psychology Of The Future“ by Stanislav Grof
Online:
Source 1
Source 2
Source 3
Source 4
Source 5
Source 6