Natural Treatment for "The Blues"

“I speak of a clinical depression that is the background of your entire life,

a background of anguish and anxiety,

a sense that nothing goes well,

that pleasure is unavailable and all your strategies collapse”

Leonard Cohen

Depression is a common mental disorder that causes people to experience depressed mood, loss of interest or pleasure, feelings of guilt or low self-worth, disturbed sleep or appetite, low energy, and poor concentration.   

Depression is different from feeling down or sad.  Unhappiness is something which everyone feels at one time or another, usually due to a particular cause.  A person suffering from depression will experience intense emotions of anxiety, hopelessness, negativity and helplessness, and the feelings stay with them instead of going away.

Depression can happen to anyone.  Many successful and famous people who seem to have everything going for them battle with this problem.  Depression also affects people of every age.  Living with depression is difficult for those who suffer from it and for their family, friends, and colleagues. It can be difficult to know if you are depressed and what you can do about it.

Signs and symptoms of depression

·         Tiredness and loss of energy.

·         Sadness that doesn’t go away. 

·         Loss of self-confidence and self-esteem. 

·         Difficulty concentrating. 

·         Not being able to enjoy things that are usually pleasurable or interesting. 

·         Feeling anxious all the time. 

·         Avoiding other people, sometimes even your close friends. 

·         Feelings of helplessness and hopelessness. 

·         Sleeping problems

·         Very strong feelings of guilt or worthlessness. 

·         Finding it hard to function at work/college/school. 

·         Loss of appetite. 

·         Loss of sex drive and/or sexual problems. 

·         Physical aches and pains.

·         Thinking about suicide and death. 

·         Self-harm.

If you experience four or more of these symptoms for most of the day - every day - for more than two weeks, you should seek help from your GP.

Types of depression

There are several types of depression, some of which are listed below:

·         Mild depression

Depression is described as mild when it has a limited negative effect on your daily life. For example, you may have difficulty concentrating at work or motivating yourself to do the things you normally enjoy.

·         Major depression

Major depression interferes with an individual’s daily life - with eating, sleeping and other everyday activities.  Some people may experience only one episode but it is more common to experience several episodes in a lifetime. It can lead to hospital admission, if the person is so unwell they are at risk of harm to themselves.

·         Bi-polar disorder

The mood swings in bi-polar disorder can be extreme - from highs, where the individual feels extremely elated and indestructible, to lows, where they may experience complete despair, lethargy and suicidal feelings.  Sometimes people have very severe symptoms where they cannot make sense of their world and do things that seem odd or illogical.

·         Post-natal depression

Many new mothers experience what are sometimes called 'baby blues' a few days after the birth.  These feelings of anxiety and lack of confidence are very distressing but in most cases last only a couple of weeks.  Post-natal depression is more intense and lasts longer. It can leave new mothers feeling completely overwhelmed, inadequate and unable to cope.  They may have problems sleeping, panic attacks or an intense fear of dying.  They may also experience negative feelings towards their child. It affects one in ten mothers and usually begins two to three weeks after the birth.

·         Seasonal Affective Disorder (SAD)

SAD is associated with the start of winter and can last until spring when longer days bring more daylight.  When it is mild, it is sometimes called ‘winter blues’.  SAD can make the sufferer feel anxious, stressed and depressed.  It may interfere with their moods and with their sleeping and eating patterns.

Taking control of your depression

Depression often makes you feel helpless.  Taking action to make yourself feel more in control will have a positive effect, whether it’s going to see your GP for treatment, joining a gym, going for daily walks, or doing something that you are interested in or good at.  If you don’t feel up to starting something new or joining a local group on your own, ask a friend to come with you.  There are many things you can do to help manage your symptoms and a wide range of treatments, both medical and non-medical, available through your GP.

How you see yourself

The way you think about yourself will affect your frame of mind and feelings of depression. It is common to have feelings of worthlessness or guilt with depression.  Try to be aware of any negative thoughts you have about yourself and how they might be affecting how you see yourself and how you feel.  If you can, try to think about how realistic these thoughts are and how you might change them into something more positive.

Social networks

If you feel depressed it can be difficult to be sociable.  Loneliness may make you feel worse, so it’s important to keep in touch with friends and family.  Having people around you or groups that you are involved in will help to reduce feelings of isolation.  If you do not have many social networks you could find out about local community groups or befriending schemes from your local library or ask at your GP surgery.

Worries about work, money or a legal situation

Making sure that you do not feel overwhelmed by your work responsibilities is important because it gives you a sense of being in control.  It’s important to make time for yourself to do things you want to do or to be with friends and family. 

·         If you're struggling to cope with work pressures and you have access to an occupational health department, you can speak to them about how you are feeling.  They may be able to help you to review your work commitments or address specific issues that are affecting your work.

·         If you are having financial difficulties, speak to your local Citizens Advice Bureau about how you might get financial help.  Debt counseling provides free, confidential and independent advice for people with debt problems.

·         If you are out of work or want to change your job, your local job recruitment centres may offer support in finding work.

Where possible, you should always try to keep working.  This is because people with depression often find that having something meaningful to do and a reason to get up in the morning is very helpful.  Being with work colleagues, having a routine to the day, and the sense of achievement in getting a job done are all good for your mental health.

Close relationships

Problems with close personal relationships can have a devastating effect on how you feel about yourself and the world.  If you are struggling to cope with a difficult relationship or your depression is causing problems in your relationship you can contact a marriage counselor or you could speak to your GP about getting other forms of relationship counseling.

Physical activity

There is good evidence that exercise can lift your mood because it can take your mind off your depression as well as stimulate the release of endorphins in the brain.  Endorphins are neurotransmitters produced in the pituitary gland in the brain that produce feelings of happiness.

If you have mild or moderate depression your GP might recommend you to join an exercise referral scheme.  Ideally you should be aiming to take 50 minutes of exercise three to five times a week.  You can break this time down into shorter periods to fit it into your everyday life.

Diet

Some studies have suggested a link between what you eat and depression, but there isn’t enough conclusive evidence to say whether or not it can definitely make a difference.  There is some evidence that foods that are rich in some essential fatty acids found in oily fish, like mackerel, salmon, herring, sardines, kippers and fresh tuna can help to relieve depression.  Whether there is a direct link or not, eating healthily will help you generally feel better and give you more energy, especially if you are also exercising.

Avoiding alcohol and drugs

Alcohol acts as a depressant on the brain.  If you are already suffering from depression, drinking alcohol can make you feel worse instead of better.  With such a vicious circle it is best to drink moderately, if at all.  Recreational drugs should also be avoided.

Managing anxiety

Around half of those people who experience depression will also experience anxiety.  Taking steps to manage your anxiety can help give you the mental space to begin to deal with your depression. Talking about what is making you anxious, as well as a healthy diet and exercising, will all help you to control your anxiety.  Some people, especially those with mild depression, find that relaxation techniques such as meditation and yoga help them to manage their anxiety.

Complementary medicine

There is some evidence that St John’s Wort can help with mild to moderate depression.  However, this drug is known to interact with other substances so you need to get advice from a pharmacist or other health professional before taking it.

ST JOHN’S WORT

Hypericum perforatum

Available as:

Tablets with a standardized concentration of Hypericin

Dosage

400 to 600mg dried extract, equivalent to 900 micrograms total Hypericin daily

Precautions

There is evidence of interaction with some prescribed medication, specifically the blood clotting drug Warfarin.  It could also interact with drugs for HIV, organ transplants and epilepsy, with theophiline for asthma, some anti-depressants, tripitane for migraine and low-dose contraceptive pills.  It is best avoided during pregnancy and breast feeding.

Despite these suggestions, St John’s Wort is definitely safer than aspirin, paracetamol or other anti- inflammatory drugs.

What is it?

An upright perennial growing to around 1 metre (3 feet) high with attractive brilliant yellow flowers, St John’s Wort grows wild throughout Europe.  It flowers normally around St John’s Day, June 24^th, which is how it gets its common name.

For centuries, St John’s Wort has been used in the treatment of chest infections, bladder problems, wound healing and as a gentle sedative.  Its modern use, however, is mainly for the treatment of mild to moderate depression.  Over 2 million people have tried it for this reason in the UK alone.  Even this is not a new treatment – the ancient Greeks called St John’s Wort the “sunshine herb” as it bought light back into the lives of depressed people.

What it does

St John’s Wort contains volatile oil, flavonoids and, most importantly, hypericin, which is not only an ANTI-DEPRESSANT but also has powerful ANTI-VIRAL properties.  Hypericin is found in all parts of the plant.  A recent analysis of 23 different clinical trials has shown beyond doubt that St John’s Wort is extremely effective in the relief of mild to moderate depression. 

Yet even mild depression can trigger a range of depressing symptoms that can all be helped by St John’s Wort such as:

Insomnia

Exhaustion and tiredness

Muscle pain

Headaches

Palpitations

Repeated studies have proved that individuals suffering from mild to moderate depression respond well to this GENTLE and NON-ADDICTIVE herb as they do to more powerful chemical sedatives, tranquilizers and anti-depressants.

"There's nothing, repeat, nothing to be ashamed of

when you're going through a depression.

If you get help, the chances of your licking it are really good.

But, you have to get yourself onto a safe path"

Mike Wallace

Strengthen Your Immune System Naturally

Problems of the Immune System

Disorders of the immune system fall into four main categories:

Immunodeficiency disorders

These occur when a part of the immune system is not present or is not working properly. Sometimes a person is born with an immunodeficiency although symptoms of the disorder might not appear until later in life.  Immunodeficiency can also be acquired through infection or produced by drugs.

Autoimmune disorders

In autoimmune disorders, the immune system mistakenly attacks the body's healthy organs and tissues as though they were foreign invaders.  Autoimmune diseases include:

• Lupus, a chronic disease marked by muscle and joint pain and inflammation
• Juvenile rheumatoid arthritis, a disease in which the body's immune system acts as though certain body parts
• Scleroderma, a chronic autoimmune disease that can lead to inflammation and damage of the skin, joints, and internal organs
• Ankylosing spondylitis, a disease that involves inflammation of the spine and joints, causing stiffness and pain
• Juvenile dermatomyositis, a disorder marked by inflammation and damage of the skin and muscles

Allergic Disorders

Allergic disorders occur when the immune system overreacts to exposure to antigens in the environment. The substances that provoke such attacks are called allergens. The immune response can cause symptoms such as swelling, watery eyes, and sneezing, and even a life-threatening reaction called anaphylaxis. Medications called antihistamines can relieve most symptoms.  Allergic disorders include:

• Asthma, a respiratory disorder that can cause breathing problems, frequently involves an allergic response by the lungs. If the lungs are oversensitive to certain allergens (like pollen, molds, animal dander, or dust mites), it can trigger breathing tubes in the lungs to become narrowed, leading to reduced airflow and making it hard for a person to breathe.
• Eczema is an itchy rash also known as atopic dermatitis. Although atopic dermatitis is not necessarily caused by an allergic reaction, it more often occurs in kids and teens who have allergies, hay fever, or asthma or who have a family history of these conditions.
• Allergies of several types can occur in kids and teens. Environmental allergies (to dust mites, for example), seasonal allergies (such as hay fever), drug allergies (reactions to specific medications or drugs), food allergies (such as to nuts), and allergies to toxins (bee stings, for example) are the common conditions people usually refer to as allergies.

Cancers of the Immune System

Cancer occurs when cells grow out of control. This also can happen with the cells of the immune system.  Lymphoma involves the lymphoid tissues.  Leukemia involves abnormal overgrowth of leukocytes.

Although immune system disorders usually can't be prevented, you can help your immune system stay stronger and fight illnesses with natural herbs as well.

I have written articles on Cat’s Claw and Echinacea as great immune boosters, but another herb that has powerful properties in strengthening immunity is Lapacho.

LAPACHO

(tabebuia impetiginosa pau d’arco)

Available as

Capsules

Dried Bark

Dosage

2 to 3 Capsules of 500mg finely ground bark powder taken three times daily

2 to 5 Grams of powdered bark daily

Precautions

Using whole bark has no serous side-effects, nor are there reported interactions with other medicines.  However, this herb is not suitable during pregnancy or lactation. Care should be taken if using concentrated extracts, as overdosing can cause vomiting, nausea and bleeding.

What it is?

Of all the herbs used by the ancient Incas, lapacho was one of the mainstays.   In the four centuries since the Spanish Conquest, one herb has cropped up from time to time in Europe.  Czar Nicholas II and Ghandi are both known to have done what millions of Brazilians do – start their day with a cup of lapacho tea.

Also called pau d’arco, ipe roxo or taheebo, lapacho is a rain forest medicine made from the inner bark of the large native South American tree known as tabebuia.  Throughout South America, indigenous tribes have drunk tea made from the shredded inner bark to boost the effectiveness of the body’s own immune defence mechanisms.  They have also used this traditional remedy for centuries in the treatment of asthma, bronchitis, infection and also some forms of cancer.

As far back as 1882, one of the lapacho’s constituents was isolated and identified as lapachol, an anti-microbial and potentially tumour-fighting chemical.  Today, scientific evidence shows that crude extracts of lapachol – more potent than refined versions – offer effective protection against a wide range of bacterial and fungal organisms, including Candida albicans, which causes thrush.

What it does

Rain forest Indians have always valued lapacho as a powerful medicine for strengthening immunity and to protect them against gut parasites.  Research at Sao Paulo, Harvard, the University of Munich, the University of Rio de Janeiro and the American National Cancer Institute has increased awareness of this amazing natural medicine.  In many parts of the world, physicians are recognising it as an aid to patients with Immune-deficiency illnesses.

If you are tired all the time or suffer from Chronic Fatigue Syndrome, lapacho can be a great aid to recovery due to its positive effects on the immune system.

Remember to stay healthy with exercise, plenty of water and a good night’s sleep. 

Until next time, always remember to laugh often, love freely, and live your life out loud!

Today is Global Oneness Day

"Could changing just one belief put an end to war, eradicate poverty, save the environment, create genuine community, show us who we really are, make us happy, free us from selfishness, let us love our enemies, wake us up to the miracle of this moment, create a world of wonderful new possibilities and transform life into the exquisite celebration of existence we all long for it to be?”  

Author and philosopher - Timothy Freke

Today is Global Oneness Day.   Humanity’s Team declared 24 October 2010 as the first Global Oneness Day – a day intended to inspire awareness, appreciation and celebration of life’s underlying Oneness, that we believe all of life is connected, in the same way that Earth Day is intended to inspire awareness, appreciation and celebration of the earth’s natural environment.  And like Earth Day, Global Oneness Day invites people to bring Oneness into their lives in practical ways, not just conceptually.

Practical demonstrations of Oneness will give people tangible, experiential proof that living in Oneness works.  This will, in turn, encourage us all to expand our hopes, beliefs and behaviors so that, a generation from now, humanity will finally realize a dream it has had since time immemorial of a world living in peace, harmony and happiness.

A CIVIL RIGHTS MOVEMENT FOR THE SOUL

Humanity’s Team as a Civil Rights Movement for the Soul calls for a New Spirituality to emerge in the world.   As such, Humanity’s Team is the vehicle through which the citizens of the world can participate in reclaiming their civil right to unique and personal expression and experience of the divine.

Through Humanity’s Team, the citizens of the world can participate in sending a message to the world that we are renewing and restoring our connection with God, life, and one-another.  As such, Humanity’s Team is a leading spokes-movement of the world for the message of Oneness.   We believe that the problems of the world are not political, economical, social, but Spiritual, and that the citizens of the world have a choice to re-write its history to become one that is reflective of the Spirit of Oneness.

Humanity’s Team believes that this is an important time to be alive. It is a time where life as we knew it no longer “is”, and life as we will know it “is not yet”. Life on the planet needs changing, now, in important ways. More than it has in a very long time.

Not only are we entering a new era, but a new experience – we are Awakening to Oneness.

Awakening the World to Oneness

Because mankind has over the years tried in so many ways to create a better world without making real impact, we may have become less and less confident that a solution to our problems really exists; we do not believe that true transformation is really possible, and we believe that we are only setting ourselves up for greater disappointment.

Mankind needs a single pivotal idea that can move the world; a radical idea that undermines our assumptions about who we are and what life is.

This pivotal idea is that We Are All One.

If these ideas resonate with your own, Humanity’s Team invites you to join them to Awaken the World to Oneness!

So head over to the Registration page: 

Sign the Declaration of Oneness:

Sign Up for the Global Rhythm Circle for Oneness: 

Listen to all the wonderful evolutionaries who are speaking as I write and leave a comment at the bottom of the Sessions page.  Replays will be available after 24 hours.

                              

"I believe all suffering is caused by ignorance. People inflict pain on others in the selfish pursuit of their happiness or satisfaction. Yet true happiness comes from a sense of peace and contentment, which in turn must be achieved through the cultivation of altruism, of love and compassion, and elimination of ignorance, selfishness, and greed."

Dalai Lama

5 Visionaries Who Experimented With Drugs

“Whether you sniff it smoke it eat it or shove it up your ass,

the result is the same: addiction.”

William S. Burroughs

Is intelligence related to an increased likelihood of recreational drug use?  It's an interesting hypothesis, and one that's been gaining momentum in recent years.  If a definitive link between intellectual capacity and drug use does exist, it will likely be some time before anyone establishes one.  Having said that, this much is for certain: history has more than its fair share of experimenting experimentalists.

Let's meet 5 of history's most influential scientific and technological visionaries, along with their drugs of choice - namely Cocaine and LSD:

1. Sigmund Freud — Cocaine

“Before you diagnose yourself with depression or low self esteem, first make sure you are not, in fact, just surrounded by assholes”

Sigmund Freud, the father of psychoanalysis, was a physiologist, medical doctor, psychologist and influential thinker of the early twentieth century.  He articulated and refined the concepts of the unconscious, infantile sexuality and repression, and he proposed a tripartite account of the mind’s structure—all as part of a radically new conceptual and therapeutic frame of reference for the understanding of human psychological development and the treatment of abnormal mental conditions. Notwithstanding the multiple manifestations of psychoanalysis as it exists today, it can in almost all fundamental respects be traced directly back to Freud’s original work.

To Freud, cocaine was more than a personal indulgence; he regarded it as a veritable wonder drug, and for many years was a huge proponent of its use in a wide array of applications.  In a letter written to his fiancé, Martha, Freud wrote:  "If all goes well, I will write an essay (on cocaine) and I expect it will win its place in therapeutics by the side of morphine and superior to it... I take very small doses of it regularly against depression and against indigestion and with the most brilliant of success."

Freud published such a review, titled "Uber Coca" in 1884.  Interestingly, Freud's paper was one of the first to propose drug substitution as a therapeutic treatment for addiction.  While replacing morphine with cocaine is something we now know to be counterproductive to recovery, the concept of substitution therapies persists to this day.  

2. Thomas Edison — Cocaine

“If we all did the things we are really capable of doing, we would literally astound ourselves”

Thomas Edison held a world record of 1093 patents for inventions such as the light bulb and phonograph, the transmitter for the telephone speaker, and key elements of motion-picture apparatus, as well as other bright inventions. He also created the world's first industrial research laboratory.

In 1863, French chemist Angelo Mariani invented "Vin Mariani," a Bordeaux wine treated with coca leaves, the active ingredient of which is none other than cocaine.  The ethanol content in the Bordeax could extract cocaine from the coca leaves in concentrations exceeding 7mg per fluid ounce of wine.  Thomas Edison, the prolific American inventor and notorious insomniac, was one of many people of the period known to regularly consume the cocaine-laced elixir.

3. John C. Lilly — LSD

“You don't have to suffer continual chaos in order to grow.”

John C. Lilly was a physician and psychoanalyst. He made contributions in the fields of biophysics, neurophysiology, electronics, computer science, and neuroanatomy.  His eclectic career began as a conventional scientist doing research for universities and government. However, he gradually began researching unconventional topics. He published several books and had two Hollywood movies based partly on his work.

Lilly was a pioneer in the field of electronic brain stimulation.  He was the first person to map pain and pleasure pathways in the brain; founded an entire branch of science exploring interspecies communication between humans, dolphins, and whales; invented the world's first sensory deprivation chamber; and conducted extensive personal experimentation with mind-altering drugs like LSD and ketamine.

It bears mentioning that Lilly's experiments with interspecies communication, personal psychedelic use, and sensory deprivation often overlapped.

4. Steve Jobs — LSD

 “That’s been one of my mantras — focus and simplicity. Simple can be harder than complex: You have to work hard to get your thinking clean to make it simple. But it’s worth it in the end because once you get there, you can move mountains”

Steve Jobs was the co-founder and CEO of Apple and formerly Pixar.  LSD was a big deal for Steve Jobs.   Evidently, Jobs believed that experimenting with LSD in the 1960s was "one of the two or three most important things he had done in his life."   What's more, he felt that there were parts of him that the people he knew and worked with could not understand, simply because they hadn't had a go at psychedelics.   This latter sentiment also comes through in his recently-published biography, wherein Jobs goes so far as to associate what he interpreted as Bill Gates' dearth of imagination with a lack of psychedelic experimentation:

"Bill is basically unimaginative and has never invented anything, which is why I think he's more comfortable now in philanthropy than technology. He just shamelessly ripped off other people's ideas."

"He'd be a broader guy," Jobs says about Gates, "if he had dropped acid once or gone off to an ashram when he was younger."

5.  Bill Gates — LSD

“If geek means you're willing to study things, and if you think science and engineering matter, I plead guilty. If your culture doesn't like geeks, you are in real trouble”

Bill Gates is an American business magnate and philanthropist. Gates is the former chief executive and current chairman of Microsoft, the world’s largest personal-computer software company, which he co-founded with Paul Allen. He is consistently ranked among the world's wealthiest people and was the wealthiest overall from 1995 to 2009, excluding 2008, when he was ranked third; in 2011 he was the wealthiest American and the second wealthiest person. During his career at Microsoft, Gates held the positions of CEO and chief software architect, and remains the largest individual shareholder, with 6.4% of the common stock. He has also authored or co-authored several books.

Strangely enough, Bill Gates totally did experiment with LSD, though an excerpt from a 1994 interview with Playboy reveals he was much less open about it than Jobs:

PLAYBOY: Ever take LSD?

GATES: My errant youth ended a long time ago.

PLAYBOY: What does that mean?

GATES: That means there were things I did under the age of 25 that I ended up not doing subsequently.

PLAYBOY: One LSD story involved you staring at a table and thinking the corner was going to plunge into your eye.

GATES: [Smiles]

PLAYBOY: Ah, a glimmer of recognition.

GATES: That was on the other side of that boundary.  The young mind can deal with certain kinds of gooping around that I don't think at this age I could.  I don't think you're as capable of handling lack of sleep or whatever challenges you throw at your body as you get older. However, I never missed a day of work.

Now if you feel intellectually challenged, please do not go out there and experiment with drugs – it is not the answer to life’s challenges!

Were you surprised by these results or did you expect it?


(Source references include an article "10 Scientific and Technological Visionaries Who Experimented With Drugs" by Robert T. Gonzalez at io9.com)

The Effects and Symptoms of LSD

“In the 1960s, people took acid to make the world weird.

Now the world is weird, and people take Prozac to make it normal.”

Lysergic Acid Diethylamide, commonly known as LSD, is a semi-synthetic drug made of lysergic acid.  Also known as Lysergide or LSD-25, it is a colourless, tasteless, odourless, crystalline substance which is soluble in water or alcohol.  It is a chemical that alters a user's mood, thoughts or perceptions.  For this reason, LSD is grouped into a class of drugs known as hallucinogens or psychedelics.  These drugs can cause auditory, visual or somatosensory hallucinations, paranoia or dream-like states.

LSD is a very powerful drug - a dose as small as a single grain of salt (about 0.010 mg) can produce some effects.  Psychedelic effects are produced at higher doses of about 0.050-0.100 mg.

LSD was first synthesized from a fungus that grows on rye and other grains.   In 1938, Albert Hofmann working in the Swiss pharmaceutical company called Sandoz, produced LSD for the first time.  He was hoping that this new drug could be used to stimulate circulation and respiration.  However, the tests he conducted were all failures and he forgot about LSD for 5 years.  In 1943, Hofmann accidentally ingested (or somehow absorbed) a bit of LSD and experienced some of the psychedelic effects of this chemical: dizziness, visual distortions and restlessness.  A few days later he prepared 0.25 mg of LSD in water and drank it.  He again experienced the mood and thought altering effects of LSD.  This he documented in his book “LSD – My Problem Child”.  He died on April 29, 2008.  He was 102 years old.

The street names for LSD are Acid, beast, blue cheer, blue heaven, dot, Lucy in the sky with diamonds, cid.    Common illegal forms of LSD include:

·         blotter paper

·         mini tablets (‘microdots’)

·         capsules

·         gelatine sheets

The effects of LSD

The effects of LSD strongly depend on the mental state of the user and the circumstances in which the drug is used. Therefore, the same dose can produce good and bad ‘trips’ in the same person, depending on the circumstances in which the drug is used.

Tolerance to the effects of LSD develops quickly and users must increase their intake of LSD to get the same effects. The exact neural pathways that are affected by LSD are not completely known. LSD has a chemical structure that is very similar to the neurotransmitter called serotonin. It is thought that the effects of LSD are caused by stimulation of serotonin receptors on neurons, perhaps in the brain area called the raphe nuclei. However, it is still not clear what produces all the effects of LSD.

The sought-after effects of LSD are:

·         changes in mood and sensory perception

·         ‘mind expansion’ as a key to quasi-religious transcendental experiences  

·         feelings of empathy and increased sociability.

The possible short-term effects of LSD are:

·         a distorted perception of depth, time, and the size and shape of objects

·         hallucinations  

·         heightened senses of sight, sound and touch

·         psychological or emotional effects such as anxiety, depression, dizziness, disorientation and paranoia

·         physical effects such as dilated pupils, lowered body temperature, nausea, vomiting, profuse sweating, rapid heart rate; and convulsions

Many users experience flashbacks, a recurrence of certain aspects of a person's drug experience without the user having taken the drug again.  

The possible long-term effects of LSD are:

·         a growing tolerance to the drug, which disappears quickly after use of the drug is stopped

·         flashbacks which can occur days or even months after the last dose has been taken, leading to disorientation, anxiety and distress

·         prolonged anxiety and depression after use of the drug is stopped.

The physical dangers of the long-term LSD use are unknown.

Symptoms of LSD use

The severity of symptoms produced by LSD depends on dosage, state of mind at the time of ingestion and environment. The mildest symptoms have been reported as a feeling of well-being, mild hallucinations and perceptual disturbances and heightened sensitivity to pleasant stimuli. Other people have reported extreme terror, fear of death, inability to interact socially and unpleasant tactile hallucinations, such as a crawling sensation on the skin. Impairment generally lasts from four to 12 hours, although symptoms may last longer depending on the dose.

Most aspects of the LSD experience are subjective and difficult to measure.  Physical symptoms associated with LSD mimic the actions of the nervous system, similar to those caused by some stimulants. The most distinguishing symptom of LSD intoxication is the hallucinogenic effect, which does not usually accompany most stimulants. LSD shares many of its effects with other hallucinogens, so a user may have difficulty determining which hallucinogenic drug he took.  Only a laboratory analysis can determine this with certainty.

Someone who has taken LSD may show these symptoms:

·         increased heart rate

·         rapid breathing

·         increased body temperature

·         increased blood pressure

·         increased tear production

·         salivation

·         loss of appetite

·         nausea

·         sweating

·         sleeplessness

·         dilated pupils

·         tremors

·         change in visual perception or visual hallucinations

·         auditory hallucinations

·         synesthesia (combined sensory perception such as hearing colors or tasting sounds)

·         tactile hallucinations or magnification of touch

·         delusions of grandiosity

·         distortion of time

·         terrifying thoughts and feelings

·         despair

·         fear of losing control

·         fear of insanity and death

Legal information

LSD is listed in Part III of Schedule 2 of the South African Drugs and Drug Trafficking Act, 1992 (Act No 140 of 1992) as an Undesirable Dependence - Producing Substance.  However, from a pharmacological point-of-view it is not considered as being dependence producing.

LSD is a Schedule I drug in the U.S. Controlled Substances Act.  Schedule I includes drugs with a high potential for abuse and no accepted use in medicine. The Controlled Substances Act of 1970 in the USA states that the mandatory penalty for possession of 1 gram of LSD is 5 years in prison.

LSD is a Class A drug under The Misuse of Drugs Act 1971 in the UK which is intended to prevent the non-medical use of certain drugs.   Maximum penalties under the Misuse of Drugs Act are 7 years plus a fine for possession and Life plus a fine for supply.