Hi, For a part of the chapter I'm writing at the moment, a character takes a powerful drug and I'd like to go into a fair bit of detail as to what they actually feel like on the drug: The emotions it stirs up, the thoughts that go through their head, the physical effects it has on them. Now obviously I can research the basic effects of these drugs (Let's just say Cocaine for the sake of it), but mostly all the information you find on them is pretty clinical, with just lists of what happens. Is anyone aware of anywhere I could find a proper description from someone who has taken lots of drugs, as to how it actually made them feel individually? As I think reading experiences of real people would be much more helpful than these generic, clinical answers I've found so far. Thanks.
Check out this website: http://www.erowid.org/experiences/ Considering the nature of the site and the kinds of people that contribute, I'd suggest caution and take everything with a pinch of salt. Saying that, these are true experiences from people who experiment with various drugs and will be very different from the clinical answers you would have found elsewhere. Hope it helps.
do an 'advanced' amazon search for memoirs of addicts whose drugs of choice were those in your novel... you can buy them used for as little as a penny plus shipping [$3-$4 tops]... therein i guarantee you'll find more graphic descriptions of how the user feels than you want to know... you can also go to addict chats/forums and ask people who've gone through it all...
Narrow down your drug, as I have done them all when I was younger. Is it a stimulant or a hallucinogen? Why does he do the drug, is he seeking knowledge or just for entertainment? I agree about the clinical information being dry, but a lot of it is also bogus. cocaine for example lists the primary effect as "a feeling of euphoria". The main thing that hooks people psychologically about coke is the sex drive it produces and the ability to maintain an erection for hours, staving of a climax which when it arrives is monumental, not something that you see in the books.
Felipe is right, you need to be very specific about which drug your MC is taking and very importantly, why. Stimulants will be taken sociably, so if he's partying etc he'll be likely to use those types of drugs, though how you mentioned it as him taking a powerful drug, it gives me the impression he is doing the drug on his own, so likely a hallucinogen as certain people take those for "mind-expanding experiences," If this is the case I'd strongly suggest you look on Erowid for people's experiences on Salvia, Peyote and any form of magic mushroom. That'll give you something to work with I'm sure!
Later in life I studied a Yaqui religion in which psychotropic plants were used as a "vehicle" to transport you to "the other world." People have used drugs for thousands of years to achieve a heightened state of awareness and in religious services. Although methamphetamine and cocaine can have very strong physical effects, psychedelics open many new doors of perception and often end with a very profound learning experience. That is, if you can stop being fascinated by the ripples in a flag looking like the waves of an ocean.