The subjective experiences of diphenhydramine (DPH) misuse, based on 32 first-hand YouTube accounts analyzed with thematic analysis, are predominantly unpleasant, featuring alterations in most sensory modalities, confusion, and dysphoria. Positive effects were rare and often overshadowed by negative aspects. Video makers frequently warned against misuse and occasionally reported adverse post-acute effects. Despite the prevalence of adverse experiences, patterns of repeated misuse were sometimes discussed. Motives for misuse included accessibility, affordability, and legality. The findings suggest DPH misuse can produce substantial, often distressing psychoactive effects that share phenomenological overlap with experiences produced by psychosis.
A person with red-green color blindness (mild deuteranomalia) self-administered the Ishihara color vision test before and after taking 5 grams of dried psilocybin mushrooms. Partial improvement in color vision peaked at 8 days and lasted at least 16 days after taking psilocybin, though later observations were confounded by additional substance use. The improvement extended beyond the acute drug effect, even though color blindness is typically a genetic condition. The authors call for systematic research to confirm these findings and understand the mechanism.