SALVIA: Hallucinogenic drug legal in most states

While many people have never even heard of Salvia divinorum, an estimated 750,000 Americans not only knew about it but consumed it last year. Salvia divinorum is a variety of sage plant, fully legal in most states, that is used by those looking for a drug-induced altered perception experience.

Depending on how the drug is taken, onset of the effects may just take seconds and last for five minutes to half an hour. The Drug Enforcement Agency lists these effects of the drug: Perceptions of bright lights, vivid colors and shapes; distortion of body movements and body or objects; state of feeling unwell; uncontrolled laughter; a sense of loss of body; overlapping realities; hallucinations; incoordination; dizziness; slurred speech.

Salvia is acquired through the internet or from retail stores in states where it is not yet illegal. The effects are so powerful and uncontrolled that it’s recommended that new users or those about to use a high potency of the drug have a “sitter,” a person who remains sober and looks out for the safety of the drug user.

There are no federal laws controlling its possession or use. Twelve states have made this drug illegal or regulate its sale and use while thirteen more states have pending legislation. For the last two years, a debate has been waged online and in various media about the need to prohibit the possession of the substance. But once you’re outside the circle of those interested in taking or controlling mind-altering drugs, the name Salvia divinorum may draw a blank among parents, school officials and even some law enforcement personnel.

The most vivid way of finding out for oneself what this drug is like is to tune in to www.YouTube.com. Do a search for “salvia” and more than four thousand results will come up. Watch a few of these videos and then decide for yourself how you think the drug should be handled.

“Young people who are not educated about drugs and their dangers may try Salvia or other drugs just because they hear their friends talking about them,” said Ryan Thorpe, Director of Admissions of Narconon Arrowhead, one of the country’s leading drug and alcohol rehabilitation and education centers, located in Canadian, Oklahoma. “Peer pressure is one of the biggest influences in the initiation of drug use and in the decision to continue to use drugs. Unfortunately, just a few uses of some of the drugs our young people use is enough to get them addicted. Preventing drug use initiation is far easier and less expensive than rehabilitation.”

For more than forty years, the Narconon network of more than 120 centers around the world has restored drug and alcohol abusers and addicts to a clean and sober lifestyle. The Narconon program was founded in 1966 by William Benitez in Arizona State Prison, and is based on the humanitarian works of L. Ron Hubbard. For more information on how you can help a loved one addicted to drugs or alcohol, contact Narconon Arrowhead at 1-800-468-6933 or visit the Narconon Arrowhead website. Or visit the Narconon Arrowhead website.