LSD and Beyond: How Being a Research Subject Transformed My Life

Why did Lesley Linebarger take LSD just days after she graduated from Stanford? When she took a course on human potentials, the professor was part of an off-campus group, IFAS, doing research into the effects of LSD on normal people. He explained their work, and she was intrigued by the possibility of it helping her to get over her anxiety and fatigue. To take LSD as a research subject, you had to be screened by the team. That went fine for her. You also had to pay $500 to help cover costs. Her family was willing to do that when she asked for it as a graduation present. So one summer day in 1964, she was given a dose and then stretched out on the sofa in the IFAS office. The psychologist who was attending her covered her with an afghan, helped her put the large headphones on, and started a Brahms symphony on the record player.The music filled her body. She soon noticed that she wasn't in the office any more but was lost in time and space. Memories floated in and out, mostly fearful ones. Things changed quickly. Eventually, in detail spelled out in the book, she had a spiritual awakening.Later chapters describe the many ways that her life changed for the a change of career, time spent living in Spain, and so many examples of serendipity. The LSD experience changed her interests in fruitful ways that continue to this day.ABOUT THE AUTHOR Lesley Linebarger later became Zana Hart. She was a librarian and now she is the author of memoirs and mysteries. Find out more at her website zanahart.com.