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Who Answers?Hallucinogens are drugs that cause distortions in a person’s reality. When mixed with alcohol, the interaction can lead to potentially dangerous side effects including drug or alcohol hallucinations, toxicity or overdose, and psychosis.
How Do Alcohol and Hallucinogens Interact?
Alcohol and hallucinogens are mind-altering substances. Both affect the brain’s structure, changing how neurotransmitters communicate. Specifically, these substances interfere with glutamate, serotonin, and dopamine.
Alcohol and hallucinogens can send mixed signals to the brain, confusing the messages sent throughout the body. When mixing alcohol and hallucinogens, you have the potential of experiencing the adverse effects of both substances at the same time.1
Alcohol and classic hallucinogen interactions can include one or more of the following:1
- Motor skill impairment
- Sweating
- Nausea or vomiting
- Disorientation
- Breath rate, heart rate, blood pressure, or temperature increases
- Sleep disturbances
- Drug or alcohol hallucinations and intensified sensory experiences
- Mood swings
- Nervousness and paranoia
Some studies show mixing alcohol and hallucinogens decreases the intoxication effects of alcohol. Even if this happens, it presents dangers, such as continuing to drink not realizing your level of impairment or the damage you may be doing to your liver and kidneys.2
Alcohol and ketamine, alcohol and PCP, or alcohol and any other dissociative hallucinogen interactions may include the following:1
- Sense of floating or feeling detached from the body
- Disorientation or confusion
- Nausea or vomiting
- Alcohol hallucinations
- Vital functioning increases
- Psychological distress
- Sensory experiences
Higher doses increase the intensity of symptoms, even presenting a risk of respiratory failure.
Higher amounts of alcohol and PCP can produce severe symptoms such as aggressive or violent behaviors, muscle spasms, seizures, and psychotic episodes. Alcohol and ketamine in large doses have effects similar to a “bad trip” in which a person can experience terrifying feelings, extreme detachment, and something like a near-death experience.3
What Are the Long-Term Effects of Mixing Alcohol and Hallucinogens?
Long-term effects of mixing alcohol and LSD or other psychedelics can be severe and include persistent psychosis and hallucinogen persisting perception disorder (HPPD), better known as flashbacks.
Continuing to mix alcohol and hallucinogens can lead to physical and psychological diseases and damage involving the: 4
- Brain
- Liver
- Kidney
- Respiratory system
- Heart
- Reproductive system
- Mental health
It may also lead to severe accidents and injuries and overdose.4
Who Is at Risk of Severe Side Effects From Alcohol and Hallucinogens?
The side effects of mixing alcohol and hallucinogens can be more severe if you have:5
- Blood pressure problems
- Heart, kidney, or liver dysfunction
- Digestive problems
- An autoimmune disorder
- Depression, anxiety, or other mental health disorder
- Cancer of any kind
- Pregnancy
- Fetal alcohol spectrum disorder (FASDs)
Additional severe side effects may include:6
- Psychosis, or a complete separation from reality which can include delusions, hallucinations, and agitation
- Vision problems
- Respiratory issues
- Headaches
- Edema in the lungs, brain, and other organs
- Hallucinogen persisting perception disorder (HPPD), which is a long-lasting and potentially permanent non-psychotic disorder presenting with mostly visual symptoms
- Sleep disturbances
What Are the Symptoms of Alcohol and Hallucinogen Toxicity?
Mixing alcohol and hallucinogens can lead to several dangerous outcomes. Depending on the hallucinogen, this can include toxicity or overdose.
Unfortunately, overdose can occur the first time you mix alcohol and hallucinogens.7
An overdose occurs when taking too much of a substance or multiple substances. Your brain and body starts to shut down. The symptoms of alcohol overdose can range from mild to severe. Specific signs to watch for are impairments of speech, coordination, memory, and balance.7 The consequences can be severe when alcohol overdose symptoms occur with classic and dissociative hallucinogens.
Alcohol and Mushrooms Toxicity
Overdose does not always mean passing out, going into a coma, or dying. Extremely high toxicity from the psilocybin in “magic mushrooms” or “shrooms” can cause serious side effects.
Signs of mixing alcohol and mushrooms may include:8
- Cholinergic toxicity
- Gastrointestinal problems such as cramping and diarrhea
- Frequent urination
- Salivation
- Tearfulness or crying
- Disulfiram toxicity
- Hypotension, or low blood pressure
- Tachycardia, or an extremely high heart rate
- Abdominal pain
- Gastrointestinal problems
- Lethargy, or extreme fatigue
- Liver function deterioration
- Kidney function deterioration
- Confusion
- Hallucinations
- Slow breathing or heart rate
Alcohol and LSD Toxicity
Symptoms specific to alcohol and LSD toxicity can vary by person, but commonly, a person will experience:9
- Accidents or injuries due to falling while intoxicated on hallucinogens
- Persistent psychotic symptoms, which may include hallucinations and delusions
- Catatonia, or an abnormality of movement and behavior—usually staying abnormally still, not speaking, and exhibiting other unusual behavior
Alcohol and PCP Overdose
PCP is a hazardous drug when taken alone. Mixing alcohol and PCP can be dangerous. You must recognize the signs of overdose, which can be extreme opposite effects, including:10
- Violent behavior
- Trance-like state
- Psychosis
- Coma
- Convulsions and uncontrolled movements
- Side-to-side eye movements
Alcohol and Ketamine Overdose
Ketamine is unsafe when used recreationally. Even when used as a treatment for depression in a clinical session, mixing alcohol and ketamine can lead to overdose.
Overdose symptoms include:11
- Respiratory problems, including apnea
- Slowed heart rate or hypotension (i.e., low blood pressure)
- Seizures
- Stupor
- Coma
Can You Be Addicted to Alcohol and Hallucinogens?
According to the National Survey on Drug Use and Health, 372,000 Americans meet the criteria for a hallucinogen use disorder.12 Addiction to two or more substances, such as hallucinogens and alcohol, is known as a polysubstance use disorder.
Over 97% of people with hallucinogen use disorder also qualify for a diagnosis of polysubstance use disorder.12
Research shows African American, Native American, and Caucasian young adult men have the highest rate of polysubstance use disorders.
Individuals with a mental health condition are also more likely to have polysubstance use disorder.13
Call 800-839-1686 Toll Free. Privacy Guaranteed. No Commitment.
Help is standing by 24 hours a day, 7 days a week.Who Answers?What Are the Risk Factors for Polysubstance Use Disorder?
While no characteristics guarantee or predict that a person will misuse substances or develop addiction, certain factors increase the risk of mixing alcohol and hallucinogens or other substances.
Risk factors for substance use include:14
- Someone in their immediate family has a substance use disorder
- Their home of origin was chaotic, unsafe, or unstable
- They have issues with coping skills, problem-solving, emotion regulation, impulse control, or interpersonal communication
- Their peers misuse alcohol and drugs
- Alcohol and hallucinogens are accessible
- They have a co-occurring disorder such as ADHD, depression, anxiety, or post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD)
- They have a poor self-image or perception of their self-worth
- Certain genetics and biological factors
Research indicates that some additional factors increase the risk of polysubstance misuse, including:15
- Heavy advertising in the person’s community
- History of any type of abuse, neglect, or significant trauma
- Low involvement in school activities and academic learning
- Young age of first alcohol or drug exposure
When Should I Seek Treatment for Polysubstance Use Disorder?
There is no wrong time to seek help if you are concerned about substance use.
Call 800-839-1686 Toll Free. Privacy Guaranteed. No Commitment.
Help is standing by 24 hours a day, 7 days a week.Who Answers?You can assess whether you are likely to have a polysubstance use disorder by answering a few questions. Do you:15
- Use or mix alcohol and drugs more than you intend to?
- Try to stop using substances but cannot do it on your own?
- Have cravings and strong urges to use substances?
- Keep misusing alcohol and other substances even though you knowingly have a psychological or physical condition that is getting worse, such as hallucinations?
- Keep mixing alcohol and hallucinogens or other drugs even though doing so is causing problems personally, professionally, and socially?
- Spend a significant amount of time seeking, using, and recovering from alcohol or drugs?
- Experience withdrawal symptoms when not using substances?
If you answer yes to one or more of these questions, it may be time to get help. Hallucinogens require specific treatment because they are different clinically from other mind-altering addictive substances.
To be connected with a treatment provider, call us. We are here 24/7 at
800-948-8417
Who Answers?
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Resources
- National Institute on Drug Abuse. (2020, June 02). Hallucinogens and Dissociative Drugs Research Report.
- Wai, M.S., Chan, W.M., Zhang, A.Q., Wu, Y., & Yew, D.T. (2012). Long-Term Ketamine and Ketamine Plus Alcohol Treatments Produced Damages in Liver and Kidney. Human Experimental Toxicology, 31(9), 877-886.
- Iranpour, A., & Nakhaee, N. (2019). A Review of Alcohol-Related Harms: A Recent Update. Addiction & Health, 11(2), 129 – 137.
- Center for Disease Control and Prevention. (2021). Alcohol Use and Your Health.
- Nichols, D. E. (2016). Psychedelics. Pharmacological Reviews, 68(2), 264-355.
- National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism. (2021). Understanding the Dangers of Alcohol Overdose.
- Tran, H.H. & Juergens, A.L. (2021, August 11). Mushroom Toxicity. Treasure Island (FL): StatPearls Publishing.
- Baquiran, M. & Al Khalili, Y. (2021, July 07). Lysergic Acid Diethylamide Toxicity. Treasure Island (FL): StatPearls Publishing.
- U.S. National Library of Medicine. (2021). Phencyclidine overdose. MedlinePlus.
- Orhurhu, V.J., Vashisht, R., Claus, L.E., & Cohen, S.P. (2021, October 30). Ketamine Toxicity. Treasure Island (FL): StatPearls Publishing.
- Alozai, Uu. & Sharma, S. (2021, July 24). Drug and Alcohol Use. Treasure Island (FL): StatPearls Publishing.
- McLellan A. T. (2017). Substance Misuse and Substance use Disorders: Why Do They Matter in Healthcare? Transactions of the American Clinical and Climatological Association, 128, 112 – 130.
- National Institute on Drug Abuse. (2021). What is the scope of hallucinogen use in the United States?
- McCabe, S. E., West, B. T., Jutkiewicz, E. M., & Boyd, C. J. (2017, July 27). Multiple DSM-5 Substance Use Disorders: A National Study of U.S. Adults. Human Psychopharmacology, 32(5).
- National Institute on Drug Abuse. (2012). Principles of Drug Addiction Treatment: A Research-Based Guide, Third Edition.