LSD risks, social and health risks.

LSD: risks and danger

Physical dangers and Social dangers of LSD

Although LSD is generally considered nontoxic, other dangers may arise from bad judgments made during the experience. As with many drugs, while under the influence of LSD the ability to make sensible judgments and understand common dangers can be impaired, making the user susceptible to personal injury. If the user attempts to drive a car or operate machinery, their impaired state may lead to accidents and injury.

There is also some indication that LSD may trigger a dissociative fugue state in individuals who are taking certain classes of antidepressants such as lithium and tricyclics. In such a state, the user has an impulse to wander, and may not be aware of their actions, which can lead to physical injury. MAOIs and SSRIs are believed to interact more benignly, tending to diminish LSD's subjective effects greatly.

There is also a commonly reported risk of "flashbacks", a psychological phenomenon in which an individual experiences an episode of some of the subjective effects of LSD (this may be a positive or negative experience) long after the drug has been consumed and worn off -- sometimes weeks or months afterward.

Flashbacks usually occur in people who use hallucinogens chronically or have an underlying personality problem; however, otherwise healthy people who use LSD occasionally may also have flashbacks. Bad trips and flashbacks are only part of the risks of LSD use. LSD users may manifest relatively long-lasting psychoses, such as schizophrenia or severe depression. It is difficult to determine the extent and mechanism of the LSD involvement in these illnesses.