32
edits
Changes
no edit summary
Although most Opal users are standard drug abusers, a sizable minority feel that the drug produces a special, quasi-religious experience.
''Opal is an extraordinary visionary awakener, it is not a recreational drug. It produces a profoundly introspective state of awareness that is useful for meditation, contemplation, and self-reflection. Its effects are unique and cannot be compared with the effects of other drugs. In the right setting, if you are prepared Opal is a shamanistic drug that will broaden your mind so you can experience a bigger totality of experience. Occasionally, opal users will experience the dark side of that totality and feel the rape of Gaia Gala from man's greed and short-sightedness. Users have reported that they feel diseased, or that they feel the presence of a larger being holding them accountable for the sins of humanity against the planet<sup>1</sup>.''
Opal can produce euphoric and hallucinogenic effects. In addition, it may generate many of the same toxic effects seen with other stimulants such as cocaine. Many US emergency departments (EDs) now treat as many opal-intoxicated patients as methamphetamine-intoxicated or cocaine-intoxicated patients. Changes in mood, excitation, motor movements, sensory perception, and appetite appear to be mediated by central dopaminergic alterations. Serotonin alterations contribute to the amphetamine-related mood changes and psychotic behavior. Organic compounds stimulating limbic centers cause dream-like hallucinations.