Psychedelics and hallucinogens consist of a wide variety of drugs that can have immediate and powerful effects on the mind.
Much of this is being explored in Netflix ’s new series, How to Change Your Mind, which steps through the doors of perception to better understand what these drugs actually do to an individual.
In the summer months and festival season, there is an increase in cases of people taking these substances.
The results can be dangerous, so it is important to understand the side effects in case you need to help someone suffering from an adverse reaction.
Abbas Kanani from Chemist Click provides his expertise as the company's superintendent pharmacist, giving his insight on the side effects to look out for.
What are the short-term side effects of psychedelics?
The effects of psychedelics can vary depending on the specific drug you’ve taken, be it LSD, mescaline, psilocybin, cannabis or even DMT.
Generally, all of them will provide you with altered states of awareness, which can include the following:
- Changes in sense or perception of time (time goes slower or faster)
- Vivid hallucinations, even being able to ‘touch’, ‘see’, and ‘hear’, things that don’t exist
- Intensified feelings and sensory experiences such as surroundings being brighter
- Mixed senses such as ‘seeing’ sounds and ‘hearing’ colours
Some physical side effects can also include nausea, increased heart rate and energy.
The short-term side effects can also include dizziness, impulsiveness (rapid emotional shifts), loss of appetite, numbness and sweating.
Abbas explained: "There are associated risks with taking psychedelics. When the body absorbs the drug, it begins to distort the perception of time and space, making it difficult to concentrate and make decisions.
"The body can experience intense visual sensory experiences, hallucinations (feeling sensations or hearing sounds that aren't real), increased energy and a lack of rational thinking."
The effects can take hold within minutes, though they can last for many hours after.
He continued: "Effects tend often begin within 20 to 90 minutes with some psychedelics such as LSD lasting as long as 12 hours. As the drugs take effect, blood pressure, breathing rate, or body temperature will all increase.
"If you suspect someone you know has taken the drug, look out for a dry mouth, whether they report feeling nauseous or have a loss of appetite as these are all side effects.
"They may also feel relaxed, but could have difficulty falling asleep. They may also have feelings of panic and sweating which could progress to paranoia and psychosis."
What are the long-term side effects of psychedelics?
Users may not consider the long term effects of the drugs either, as once the trip is over it may appear that the consequences have passed.
However, as Abbas states: "Drug takers could also experience weight loss, anxiety, memory loss and depression. There can also be serious longer-term effects from taking psychedelic drugs.
"The first is Persistent Psychosis - a mental condition, which can disturb vision, distort thinking, trigger paranoia and extreme mood changes.
"The second, Hallucinogen Persisting Perception Disorder (HPPD) which spark flashbacks and reoccurrences of drug taking experiences without warning which can be mistaken for other disorders, such as stroke or a brain tumour.
"These are more common in people with a history of mental illness, but they can happen to anyone, even after using hallucinogens one time."
Prolonged use of hallucinogens can also result in people building up a tolerance, meaning the effects are less acute.
Research has also shown that building up a tolerance for one kind of psychedelic can mean you have a tolerance for other kinds.
So, if you regularly take LSD, the impact of mescaline or psilocybin will be reduced.
However, this is not the case for drugs that affect other neurotransmitter systems, such as cannabis.
