Hallucinogens

What Are Hallucinogens?

Hallucinogens (also called psychedelics) are drugs that alter a person’s sense of reality. These experiences can include hearing, seeing, tasting, smelling, or feeling things that are not real. Hallucinogens include synthetic drugs and substances made from plants, and most are illegal.

Hallucinogens create mind-altering effects, which can change with each use. The experience can range from mild to intense and be unpredictable from person to person and drug to drug. A person may feel a relatively wide spectrum of effects that range from subtle changes to their environment or extreme terror with the belief that the visions or perceptions are real. Because of this, hallucinogens can produce strong emotional experiences.

When someone is taking a large dose of a hallucinogen, it is referred to as “tripping.” Some can give a good trip, filled with positive feelings and experiences, and others can give a bad trip, which is frightening or unpleasant.

Conversely, taking intentionally small doses of psychedelic drugs is called “microdosing,” which is generally defined as using 5-10% of a usual psychoactive dose. Common drugs used in microdosing include LSD and psilocybin mushrooms.

Individuals microdose with the intent to reap the potential mind-altering benefits of the drug while not being impaired or have the substance interfere with their normal functioning. A study from the Journal of Pharmacology identified common reasons individuals partake in microdosing, including:

• To increase cognitive function and ability
• To increase energy levels
• To regulate emotions
• To self-treat mental health conditions, such as anxiety and depression

While research has been conducted on microdosing, there is not enough current evidence to support this practice.

Types Of Hallucinogens

There are three types of hallucinogens, which are grouped based on how they work in the brain. These groups are:

• Psychedelic drugs
• Dissociative drugs
• Other non-classified drugs that can cause psychedelic effects

Psychedelic drugs interfere with the way a person’s brain processes serotonin. These drugs can affect a person’s sense of self and result in visual changes. Drugs in this category include LSD, DMT, mescaline, and psilocybin.

Dissociative drugs interfere with the way the brain processes glutamate. This can result in a person feeling disconnected from their body and surroundings. Drugs in this category include ketamine and phencyclidine (PCP).

Other non-classified hallucinogens include a variety of substances that produce psychedelic or dissociative effects. Drugs in this category include MDMA, ibogaine, and salvia.

Where Do Hallucinogens Come From?

Many hallucinogens were discovered in plants and fungi. LSD is manufactured from a fungus found growing on rye and other grains. Mescaline is derived from a plant called peyote but can also be made synthetically. Psilocybin originated from certain types of mushrooms in Central and South America, Mexico, the United States, and other parts of the world.

Some of the unpredictability and unreliable effects are due to the variations in compounds used to manufacture hallucinogens, especially the agents derived from plants and mushrooms.

What Do Hallucinogens Look Like?

Hallucinogens can come in many different forms, colors, and shapes. They can be tablets, powder, blotter paper, or dried mushrooms, which are then ground up or eaten fresh. If ground up, they can be placed into liquids or foods. Sometimes, the powders are smoked, snorted, or inhaled. Some forms are held in the cheek or under the tongue.

The most common hallucinogens are each unique in appearance:

• LSD looks like a clear, white, or different-colored substance that can be available as blotter paper, tablet, liquid, or capsule.
• Psilocybin looks like fresh or dried mushrooms, which may ground up and made into a tea or mixed into foods like chocolate.
• Mescaline looks like a white tablet, capsule, or fine powder.

How Do Hallucinogens Work?

Psychedelic drugs alter serotonin receptors in the brain, which are thought to be involved in mood, perception, and cognition. In addition, these types of hallucinogens cause a change in the default mode network (DMN) in the brain. The DMN seems to be most involved in activities related to self-awareness. It is theorized that this disruption may be why hallucinogens in this category give feelings of connectedness with others and the world.

Dissociative drugs also change the chemical balance in the brain at the N-methyl-D-aspartate (NMDA) receptor, leading to a feeling of being disconnected from the body and from the environment. Dissociative drugs also affect glutamate, which is important in learning, memory, emotion, and the perception of pain.

Negative Effects Of Hallucinogens On The Brain

The effects of hallucinogens can vary widely depending on:

• Age
• Sex
• Weight
• Previous use
• Environment
• The person’s expectations

Both the negative and positive effects are impossible to predict for each person.

Serious and sometimes semi-permanent harm can occur after taking hallucinogens. Fear, depression, anxiety, and paranoia can occur and be long-lasting, including rebound effects months or years after use.

These types of agents can induce hallucinations, which are distortions of reality. These can include intense emotions, seeing visions, smelling items that are not present, and hearing sounds that are not occurring. These can appear to the person as hearing colors or smelling sounds.

Effects Of Hallucinogens On The Body

Most of the physical harm after using a hallucinogen occurs due to dangerous behaviors after using rather than the drugs themselves. These behaviors may include suicide, accidents, risky behavior, and polysubstance abuse.

Many of the emergency room visits after hallucinogen use are because of the disturbing psychological effects, including delusions and paranoia. Hallucinogens can affect your self-control and self-awareness, which can result in irrational, aggressive, or violent events after taking a hallucinogen.

Different hallucinogens can produce dilated pupils, increased blood pressure, increased body temperature, sweating, and loss of appetite.

Can Hallucinogens Help Your Mental Health?

Some claim that hallucinogens can be effective in treating mental health conditions thanks to their mind-altering properties. A study from the New England Journal of Medicine found that controlled doses of psilocybin can be as beneficial in treating depression as a selective serotonin-reuptake inhibitor (SSRI), with participants favoring using the hallucinogen over the SSRI. Similarly, a study from the Indian Journal of Psychiatry found ketamine therapy to have a positive and rapid effect in treating depression and anxiety. Individuals were given six injections of 0.5 mg of ketamine over the course of two weeks and reported benefits both after the first initial dose and one month after the last dose.

While these results are promising and could offer a safer alternative to more addictive medications like opioids, more evidence is needed to fully support the use of hallucinogens in the treatment of mental health conditions, and individuals should not self-medicate with these drugs.

Symptoms Of Hallucinogen Addiction

Not all hallucinogens can be addictive; however, the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, 5th Edition (DSM-5) recognizes both phencyclidine use disorder and other hallucinogen use disorder. Both are characterized as problematic patterns of use of either PCP or other hallucinogens, respectively, leading to clinically significant issues in one’s life. Diagnostic criteria, or potential symptoms, of these hallucinogen addictions include:

• Taking the substance in larger amounts or for longer than intended.
• Having tried to stop using the drug(s) but being unsuccessful in doing so.
• Spending a lot of time trying to obtain hallucinogens or recovering from using them.
• Craving hallucinogens.
• Failing to fulfill obligations at home, work, or school due to hallucinogen use.
• Not stopping the use of the substance(s) even though it has caused significant interpersonal issues.
• Using hallucinogens in hazardous situations.
• Not stopping the use despite it causing or worsening physical or psychological problems.
• Needing more of the substance to feel the same effects (tolerance).

There are two other long-term effects of chronic hallucinogen use: persistent psychosis and hallucinogen-persisting perception disorder (HPPD). HPPD, also known as flashbacks, happens when hallucinations or disturbances occur many days, months, or sometimes years after use.

Legality In The United States

Most hallucinogens are illegal, but laws can vary from state to state on the status of some hallucinogenic mushrooms. Most psychedelics are federally prohibited due to no known safe amount of use and little to no benefit to humans.

In January 2023, Oregon became the first US state to legalize magic mushrooms. Colorado legalized personal use of mushrooms later in 2023. Each state may have variable legal status of hallucinogens and how they may be used.

Help Is Available

While not all hallucinogens are addictive, they all have potentially dangerous and unpredictable effects. If you or someone you love is having trouble quitting hallucinogens alone, know that help is available. Contact a treatment provider today.