Salvia

How is salvia used?

The fresh leaves are held under the tongue (also called sublingual absorption), and the dried leaves are smoked in a bong or mixed with tobacco and smoked as a cigarette. Salvia is also used as a tincture or tea and in some countries, commercially extracted products are available.³

Effects of salvia

There is no safe level of drug use. Use of any drug always carries some risk. It’s important to be careful when taking any type of drug.

Psychedelics affect everyone differently, based on:

• size, weight and health
• whether the person is used to taking it
• whether other drugs are taken around the same time
• the amount taken
• the strength of the drug (varies from batch to batch)
• environment (where the drug is taken).

Onset and duration

How fast a drug takes effect and how long it lasts can vary depending on how it's taken - for example, whether it's smoked or swallowed.⁵

When smoked the effects of salvia begin within 60 seconds and usually last between 15 and 20 minutes. However, higher doses of salvia can cause effects that last up to 2 hours.^2-4

When placed under the tongue the effects begin within 5 to 20 minutes and can last between 30 minutes and 2 hours.^2-4

Effects

Effects may include:

• anxiety
• amnesia
• short but intense hallucinations
• loss of energy (higher doses can cause sedation)
• pain relief
• confusion
• delusion
• feelings of impending doom
• increased appreciation of music
• uncontrolled body movements
• changes in visual perception
• laughter
• detached from the body
• restlessness
• increased body temperature
• time distortion.^{3, 6}

Impact of mood and environment

Drugs that affect a person’s mental state (psychoactive drugs) can also have varied effects depending on a person’s mood (often called the ‘set’) or the environment they are in (the ‘setting’):

• Set is a person’s state of mind, previous encounters with psychedelic drugs, and expectations of what’s going to happen. For example, feelings of stress or anxiety before using salvia may result in an unpleasant experience (bad trip).^{7, 8}
• Setting is the environment in which someone consumes a psychedelic drug – whether it’s known and familiar, who they’re with, if they’re indoors or outdoors, the type of music and light. For example, using salvia in a calm, quiet and relaxed environment can lead to, or contribute to, a pleasant experience but being in a noisy, crowded place may result in a negative experience.⁷

Being in a good state of mind, with trusted friends and a safe environment before taking salvia reduces the risk of having a bad experience.⁷

Bad trips

A ‘bad trip’ usually includes anxiety, paranoia, panic, or other negative emotions. People can also experience unpleasant or intense hallucinations.^9-12

Taking a large dose of salvia can increase the risk of a bad trip. Other things like age, sex, personality, mental state, and previous experience with the drug, also affect someone’s experience.^9-12

While a bad trip can be scary, it’s generally not life threatening and the effects will go away as the drug leaves someone’s system.^9-12

Being with trusted friends, in a good state of mind, and in a safe environment before taking any psychedelic drug reduces the risk of having a bad trip.^{10, 13}

Overdose 

To date there have been no reported deaths from salvia.

However, as salvia impairs thoughts and emotions, it can cause loss of contact with external reality, leading to impaired judgement and risk taking.¹⁴

Mixing salvia with other drugs

Mixing salvia with other drugs can have unpredictable effects and increase the risk of harm.

Mixing includes using more than one drug (including alcohol or medications) at the same time, or one after another. You should also consider what drugs you’ve taken in the last 24 hours.

• Salvia and alcohol: may cause nausea and vomiting. Could also make it harder to tell how each drug is affecting you which, which can lead you to take more of one drug than you intended.
• Salvia and cannabis: may have unpredictable and negative effects, and in rare cases psychosis.
• Salvia and dissociatives (such as ketamine or nitrous oxide): may increase risk of intense dissociation or a short negative trip.
• Salvia and psychedelics (such as LSD, psilocybin, or DMT): may intensify or negatively increase psychedelic effects. Can contribute to having a ‘bad trip’.
• Salvia and MDMA or stimulants (such as cocaine, speed, methamphetamine): could make it harder to tell how each drug is affecting you and increase anxiety, paranoia, and thought loops.
• Salvia and tramadol: could increase the risk of seizures.^15-17

Reducing harm

There are ways you can reduce the risk of harm when using salvia.

• Start with a lower dose so you know how it affects you. It’s going to affect each person differently because of differences in weight, tolerance and metabolism.
• Consider the type of experience you would like. Chewing the leaves produces a milder trip as opposed to smoking which can produce a much more intense experience.
• Consider the impact of mood and environment.
• Consider having a person to ‘trip sit’. A person who remains sober and can help out if needed.^{3, 18}

Coming down

When smoked, after-effects can last approximately 15 to 60 minutes.³

When placed under the tongue, after-effects may last around 30 to 120 minutes.³

Long-term effects 

The long term effects of salvia haven’t been studied enough to understand what the risks might be.¹⁹

Flashbacks

In rare cases, use of salvia can lead to flashbacks, which are brief, visual distortions that can occur long after the drug was last taken.^{2, 18, 20}

Salvia and mental health

People with a family history of mental illness are more likely to experience anxiety or paranoia after using salvia. This is in line with what the evidence tells us about people with mental illness and psychedelic use.¹⁸

Tolerance

Salvia is not known to cause tolerance.³

Unlike traditional psychedelics, salvia does not cause cross-tolerance between other psychedelic drugs.³

There have been anecdotal reports of salvia causing ‘reverse tolerance’ (also known as sensitisation).^{3, 21}

This means the effects of a drug can feel stronger the more times someone uses it.²¹

This may be because people become more familiar with salvia after using it, making its effects easier to recognise rather than stronger.²¹

However, as the effects of saliva can be very intense, most people choose not to use it regularly.^{3, 18}

Dependence

Salvia is not known to cause physical or psychological dependence.^{3, 4, 18}

Withdrawal

Withdrawal refers to the symptoms that can occur when someone who is dependent on a drug, or who has been using it regularly over time, stops or reduces their use.²²

Withdrawal can include physical symptoms (such as headaches, or nausea) and psychological symptoms (such as anxiety, or depressed mood).²²

Symptoms - including how strong they are and how long they last - will vary depending on the type of drug and a person’s history of use.²²

There are no known salvia withdrawal symptoms, however if you experience symptoms after stopping or reducing your use, or have concerns, contact your doctor or the help and support services listed below for advice and support.

Pregnancy and breastfeeding

Before pregnancy

There is very little information about the impact of salvia on fertility.

Without available research, it is safest to avoid use if you are trying to get pregnant.

During pregnancy

There is little research about the impact of salvia on the development of a baby during pregnancy.

It is recommended to avoid using this drug while pregnant.

After pregnancy

It is not recommended to use salvia during breastfeeding because we don’t know enough about how this drug impacts breastmilk.

It is also not recommended to use salvia while caring for a baby because of the impact on overall perception of people and things around you.

One growing area of research is the use of psychedelics in the treatment of postnatal depression.²³

Some early studies are showing that there may be value in this approach, however further research is needed.^{23, 24}

As this is a new treatment area, it’s important that you do not attempt to self-medicate with salvia.

Consult with a health care provider to see if psychedelic therapy meets your needs.

Getting help

If your use of salvia is affecting your health, family, relationships, work, school, financial or other life situations, or you’re concerned about someone, there is help and support.

• Call the National Alcohol and Other Drug Hotline on 1800 250 015 for free and confidential advice, information and counselling about alcohol and other drugs.
• Search our Help and Support directory to find your preferred support, by adding your location or postcode and filtering by service type.