An Introduction to LSD

LSD, or lysergic acid diethylamide, is a synthetic drug with potent psychedelic properties. Commonly known as acid, it was originally derived from compounds found in ergot, a fungus that grows on rye. LSD was first synthesized by a Swiss chemist named Albert Hofmann in 1938, who was testing various lysergic acid compounds as stimulants. During further testing in 1943, Hofmann somehow accidentally ingested some LSD, and the resulting dreamlike hallucinations he experienced intrigued him enough that he purposely ingested the drug several more times, eventually concluding that it might be useful in psychiatric therapy. While LSD was used and studied in a therapeutic setting during the 1950s and early 60s, its adoption by the 60s counterculture movement as a recreational, mind-expanding drug branded it as dangerous in the eyes of the U.S. government. This led to its designation as an illegal substance in 1968 and a subsequent ban on any scientific studies into its potential medicinal uses.

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