Lithium is used in psychiatry to stabilize mood in bipolar disorder. It has a narrow therapeutic window and acts on several neurotransmitter systems.
Combined with psychedelics, the following are documented:
- Seizures — even at lower psychedelic doses than without lithium
- Intensified and altered hallucinations — often experienced as overwhelming
- Serotonin-syndrome-like reactions — through complex interaction with serotonin receptors
- Prolonged trip duration and difficult re-integration
In the TripSit database, lithium + psychedelics is marked as “Dangerous”, based on established case reports.
Practical notes:
- If you take lithium: no LSD, no psilocybin, no other psychedelics
- Washout phase after stopping lithium: do it under medical supervision — lithium has a relatively long half-life (24 h+), and the metabolite buildup persists
- If you’re on stable bipolar treatment, stopping it for recreational use is not a sensible strategy
We recommend strictly avoiding this combination.