Educational Media Reviews Online

LSD, mushrooms, mescalin, psilocybin – classic auditory and visual hallucinogens, and probably the best known of hallucinogenic drugs due to the 1960s counterculture. These and newer, more potent hallucinogens are profiled in this HRM video program. The video and Teacher’s Resource Guide provide a balanced look at what these drugs are, their effects on the user, and a brief look at how they work in the body.

In addition to the classic hallucinogens, The Truth about Hallucinogens reviews the club drugs MDMA and Ecstacy. Although typically not considered hallucinogens, they do alter perception and can cause visual and auditory hallucinogenic experiences. The dissociative drugs or anesthetics ketamine (“special K”), and PCP or “angel dust” are also considered hallucinogens by causing a feeling of being separated from the body. Hallucinogens are appealing by allowing the user to escape reality temporarily, and produce feelings of power and invincibility, not to mention the exploration of transposition of the senses.

The program points out that while hallucinogens may not be physically addictive, users do build up a tolerance to the drugs and they may become psychologically addicted. The Truth About Hallucinogens is expertly produced, and a good tool for providing young people, junior high through high school, with an introduction to this class of drug. Recommended.

See also EMRO reviews for: GHB: The Facts, Everything You Need to Know About Substance Abuse in 22 Minutes, Club Drugs: The Real Deal.