In Switzerland’s Basel, Albert Hoffman, a Swiss chemist at the Sandoz pharmaceutical research laboratory, inadvertently ingests LSD-25, a synthetic drug he developed in 1938 as part of his investigation into the medicinal properties of lysergic acid compounds.
Upon taking the drug, which is scientifically referred to as lysergic acid diethylamide, Dr. Hoffman experienced unsettling sensations and vivid hallucinations. He documented the encounter in his notes:
“Last Friday, April 16, 1943, I was compelled to halt my laboratory work in the afternoon and return home, as I was experiencing a remarkable restlessness along with slight dizziness. Once home, I lay down and slipped into a state that was not unpleasant, somewhat akin to intoxication, marked by an exceedingly stimulated imagination. In a dreamlike experience, with my eyes shut…I found the brightness of daylight to be glaringly unpleasant…I witnessed a continuous flow of incredible images, extraordinary figures adorned with vibrant, kaleidoscopic colors. This phenomenon diminished after about two hours.”
Following a deliberate second dose to affirm that this peculiar physical and psychological condition stemmed from the drug, Dr. Hoffman released a report detailing his findings, thus introducing LSD to the world as a hallucinogenic substance.
The widespread adoption of this so-called “mind-expanding” drug did not take off until the 1960s, when counterculture icons like Albert M. Hubbard, Timothy Leary, and Ken Kesey publicly advocated for the use of LSD as a recreational choice. By 1965, the manufacture, sale, possession, and use of LSD, which was known to elicit adverse effects in some users, were outlawed in the United States.
