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Lisa Bieberman’s 1967 pamphlet Session Games People Play: A Manual for the Use of LSD has an unexpectedly durable core: a recent survey found that respondents generally agreed with 18 of its 19 advice points. That is agreement with advice, not evidence that following it prevents harm or makes an unsupervised psychedelic session safe.
What is the 1960s guide?
Session Games People Play: A Manual for the Use of LSD is a pamphlet by Lisa Bieberman, published in 1967 by the Psychedelic Information Center at 26 Boylston Street in Cambridge, Massachusetts, according to the Luminist archive. It is distinct from the better-known books associated with Timothy Leary and Richard Alpert. Nautilus describes Bieberman as a Radcliffe student who worked in their orbit, but whose pamphlet focused on practical preparation and situations that could go wrong rather than psychedelic evangelism.
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Its archived introduction states: “This book then is no tourist’s guide through paradise, but a down – to – earth discussion of the sorts of things that can go wrong in an LSD session and how to prevent them.” The surviving text is historically interesting because it treats trust, preparation, privacy, expectations, anxiety and interpersonal behavior as practical concerns.
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A 2026 Nautilus feature reports that a research team surveyed more than 500 psychedelic users and guides; 86 percent of respondents had taken psychedelics during the preceding year. Respondents generally agreed with 18 of the pamphlet’s 19 advice items. A separate Popular Science account describes the sample as nearly 600 self-described users of LSD, MDMA, ketamine, psilocybin mushrooms and other substances. Those are the publications’ slightly different rounded descriptions; the underlying paper was not accessible to independently verify exact recruitment or sample details.
#1 Best Overall
The result is a measure of respondents’ views, not a clinical trial, a harm-reduction outcome, or validation of every statement in the 1967 pamphlet. In Nautilus, study co-author Daniel Kruger identified themes that drew strong agreement: people in a session should know, like and trust one another; a guide cannot do all the work for a participant; an experience eventually ends; anxiety does not necessarily mean something is wrong; and a private place where participants will not be disturbed is preferable. These are reported points of agreement, not a professionally validated checklist.
Where did respondents differ?
Mirrors
The pamphlet’s advice about mirrors was the clear outlier. Nautilus reports a broad range of responses that averaged out: some respondents saw mirrors as unsettling, while others considered them meaningful. The survey therefore does not establish a universal rule about mirrors.
Going out in public
Kruger told Nautilus, “I don’t think anybody has studied whether it’s a bad idea to go out in public.” That is his description of what he knew, not a finding from the survey or a systematic review. He said he personally would not recommend it; that is an interviewee’s view, not a demonstrated study conclusion.
Why the pamphlet still matters—and where it stops
The pamphlet is an early example of pragmatic, lay-facing risk-reduction writing. Nautilus presents Kruger’s interpretation that Bieberman was doing practical information work while more prominent psychedelic figures attracted attention with spiritual and cultural claims. The survey suggests that much of this practical framing remains agreeable to the people asked, but it cannot establish whether the pamphlet’s advice works or whether its other claims are accurate.
Rank #3
Some of the pamphlet’s categorical statements about danger, control, duration and supposed “antidotes” belong to its 1967 context; the reported survey does not validate them. The contemporary Nautilus report notes serious possible risks, including psychosis, mania, suicidality and cardiovascular risk, and distinguishes naturalistic use from structured clinical settings. It is not a complete clinical risk review, so this article does not treat the pamphlet as current medical guidance or provide instructions for unsupervised use.
Nautilus also quotes Kruger saying that nearly all use he described occurs outside regulated environments, in contrast with structured and supervised clinical research settings. That is a comment in a 2026 interview, not a timeless prevalence estimate or a full account of law and access. Mentions of Oregon and Colorado in the article should not be read as a national legal summary. The archived pamphlet text is available online, but Nautilus says it is unclear how widely it is known.
Rank #4
- Used Book in Good Condition
Where to read more
The archived pamphlet text is available from Luminist. For contemporary coverage, see Nautilus’s October 2, 2026 feature and Popular Science’s September 30, 2026 report. Popular Science quotes Kruger, a study co-author and University at Buffalo psychologist: “As a public health professional, I believe we need to protect these users,”
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