LSD and Brain Damage

nyarlothothep

I've been reading A Scanner Darkly which got me thinking about LSD. I don't know much about what constitutes brain damage, for example, say with Syd Barrett who apparently fried his mind on LSD or people who have major psychotic episodes which they never fully recover from, is the psychological damage in these cases equivalent to neurological damage in the sense that they develop essentially broken dysfunctional thought process like a computer which has built up quirks from repeated shut downs? Anything in excess usually causes damage, why not LSD in extremely high doses? And what kind of damage if any does it cause?

Ash.J.Williams

nyarlothothep wrote: »

I've been reading A Scanner Darkly which got me thinking about LSD. I don't know much about what constitutes brain damage, for example, say with Syd Barrett who apparently fried his mind on LSD or people who have major psychotic episodes which they never fully recover from, is the psychological damage in these cases equivalent to neurological damage in the sense that they develop essentially broken dysfunctional thought process like a computer which has built up quirks from repeated shut downs? Anything in excess usually causes damage, why not LSD in extremely high doses? And what kind of damage if any does it cause?

i would doubt Syd's mind was messed up from drug use, i would hazzard a guess he was predisposed to mental illness. I've done buckets of lsd both synthetic and natural and i'd say it definitely has changed my life.

nyarlothothep

Ash.J.Williams wrote: »

i would doubt Syd's mind was messed up from drug use, i would hazzard a guess he was predisposed to mental illness. I've done buckets of lsd both synthetic and natural and i'd say it definitely has changed my life.

Yes, he was schizophrenic if I remember correctly. However, I'm just wondering, people with internet addiction apparently develop physiological changes in terms of brain tissue, if I remember correctly. With something like internet addiction why not the same with LSD?

Ash.J.Williams

nyarlothothep wrote: »

Yes, he was schizophrenic if I remember correctly. However, I'm just wondering, people with internet addiction apparently develop physiological changes in terms of brain tissue, if I remember correctly. With something like internet addiction why not the same with LSD?

I would imagine had i never tried it, i would feel a lot different now!

JuliusCaesar

nyarlothothep wrote: »

is the psychological damage in these cases equivalent to neurological damage...?

No.


is the short answer. Google the Stress Vulnerability Hypothesis. It's a biopsychosocial model of the development of disorders.

nyarlothothep

Hmm, would taking massive amounts of LSD cause brain damage? What kind of damage would occur? I don't think people with psychological disorders are brain damaged but if there is a physical reason for their thought processes then how do you define this condition? Is it a different kind of brain? Or a malfunctioning brain?

Valmont

nyarlothothep wrote: »

Hmm, would taking massive amounts of LSD cause brain damage? What kind of damage would occur? I don't think people with psychological disorders are brain damaged but if there is a physical reason for their thought processes then how do you define this condition? Is it a different kind of brain? Or a malfunctioning brain?

There have been many theories concerning the effects of LSD, including chromosomal damage, persistent hallucinatory disorder, ad infinitum. The wiki on LSD is very well researched and points out the fallacious nature of most of the anti-drug lobby's claims.

LSD temporarily alters the functioning of the 5HT-2A serotonin receptors in the neocortex. How that translates into the 'LSD experience' is anyone's guess!