Modern humans must learn how to relate to psychoactives
responsibly, treating them with respect and awareness,
working to minimize harms and maximize benefits, and
integrating use into a healthy, enjoyable, and productive life.
Standing on the Brink
LSD
Citation:   WhiteDog. "Standing on the Brink: An Experience with LSD (exp52623)". Erowid.org. Oct 1, 2008. erowid.org/exp/52623

 
DOSE:
1 hit oral LSD (blotter / tab)
BODY WEIGHT: 65 kg
This wasn't the first time I'd taken LSD - I'm also confident it won't be the last time - but it did open my eyes to the enormous power of psychoactive drugs. I'm 26 years old and no stranger to the joys of chemical experimentation - pot, mushrooms, acid, E, meth, bzp, opium, I have indulged in and enjoyed all of the above and more over the past decade. One of the reasons I have always enjoyed the likes of LSD and psilocybin is their ability to completely transport me to a new reality. Generally this has been a pleasurable experience - opening my mind to different ways of thinking, finding pleasure and beauty in the most unexpected of places. This time was different.

The day started with a road trip to see the Rolling Stones. Personally I can't imagine a better way to start a day! During a stop for road works at around 6.00pm I decided to drop. The trip commenced after around 20 minutes - the usual stuff, feelings of anticipation, finding amusement in the most mundane things and slight perceptual disturbances. Nothing untoward really. The group I was with decided that they would each take half a trip and hold off until around 8.30. Perhaps that would have been a wiser choice.

Upon arriving in Wellington we booked into our accommodation. Explaining myself had already become somewhat of a challenge - though I managed to cope. During the taxi ride to the stadium I felt the waves of the trip building inside my head and body - by this point I was looking forward to what promised to be an absolutely stellar evening. We found our seats with a minimum of fuss and settled in for what promised to be the show (and the trip) of a lifetime!

When the band arrived on stage and launched into the first few songs I remember thinking that whoever had made this batch of acid had done so with this very concert in mind. The music, the lights and the crowd seemed to gel into one unseperable and ever changing entity. I was entirely overwhelmed (in a good way) by the whole experience! The concert seemed to go on for ever, encore after beautiful encore. By the end of the show I was almost in a trance, standing almost completely still among a crowd of 40,000 feeling the music, the lights and the acid wash over, through and around me. A strong trip - yes. But certainly a good one!!

After the show finished I remember trying to take stock of my situation. Where was I? Where did I need to go? Who was I with? Was I behaving in an appropriate fashion? I was suddenly transported into a very hostile and confusing world. Leaving the stadium was difficult - I became paranoid and confused by the crowds of people around me. There seemed to be a residue of the light show from the concert following me around, wherever I looked I was greeted by brightly flashing lights and gross visual disturbances. I can honestly say that at this point I was completely unable to seperate the effects of the drug and the reality of what was happening around me. I heard voices instructing me to do various things, which I thankfully managed to ignore, I felt eyes upon me, at one point I found myself wandering around in a completely different city. At least that was what my brain was telling me! I knew I was in Wellington, yet my brain persisted in telling me that I was back in my home town of Dunedin wandering familiar city streets. I had also become prone to incoherent outbursts and was distrustful of everyone around me.

I decided at this point I should probably make my way to somewhere a little less public so returned to the backpackers we were staying at. Upon arriving in my room I removed a shoe and launched it out the window. It was closely followed by my other shoe and a packet of cigarettes. At this point I had a moment of clarity. It was like the real me had returned. I was still tripping, as evidenced by the incessant shifting of the walls and floors around me, but I was coherent again. One of the crew I was with summed it up nicely when they said 'Fuck!! Where have you been for the last two hours?' I'm still not sure. Having come, at least partially, to my senses we went for a bit more of a wander around the inner city, exploring, walking, talking shit. I was still having a storming trip, but at last I was able to function!! We ate kebabs, we ate curry, we drank, and I wished I hadn't thrown away my shoes. Gradually we all returned to earth and made our way back to our room for a fitful sleep. The trip was over and I had been somewhere I had never been before.

I firmly believe that I ended up in some kind of drug induced psychosis during the night. What triggered it? Who knows. I have taken higher doses before without the same effects. This was the first time that I had had my ass handed to me on a plate by drugs. I was left with a sense of falibility - no one can ever claim to have total control over a drug experience and this wasn't an insight I'd had until now. I had a newfound respect for hallucinogens and what they could do to a man. This trip was the best I've ever had and the worst. The concert experience was nothing short of magnificent - the after show was very close to hell on earth. World War Three inside my head!

This illustrated to me the importance of respecting (and never underestimating) the power of drugs. We all take them to have fun - but there's always the potential for the unexpected to occur. Everyone should have at least one experience like this. Especially those who claim to be able to go harder than everyone else. That was me. Now I know I'm not chemically invincible and it took me just one tab to teach me that.

Exp Year: 2006ExpID: 52623
Gender: Male 
Age at time of experience: Not Given
Published: Oct 1, 2008Views: 6,147
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LSD (2) : General (1), Festival / Lg. Crowd (24)

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