How to Look Like You Are on Drugs

Co-authored by wikiHow Staff

Last Updated: July 13, 2023

Acting in a play, movie or short? Looking to put together a killer Charlie Sheen costume for Halloween? No matter the reasoning, an "on-drugs" costume is a good excuse to get a little weird and wacky, and playing these roles convincingly will greatly increase your range as an actor. Note, however, that these are broad, often stereotypical generalizations meant to be used as a guide for your own unique spin.

Method 1

Method 1 of 4:

Looking Like you Are High

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A bag of chips or a box of Oreos is the perfect prop for the high-guy. Aim for regular, unceasing eating, which is why bagged chips and pretzels are often your best bet. The "munchies" generally aim for salty or sweet foods, and some stoners find them uncontrollable. Well-placed, constant eating will help sell the part well.
2
Move slowly and laconically. You're not in a hurry, man. Keep the hustle to a minimum, really only moving when it is most necessary. High-guys & gals rarely feel compelled to do things that aren't strictly necessary, and neither should you. When you do move, take your time.
- Try to flow through your movements, like the pictures of grooving hippies used in cartoons and old videos.
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3
Rub your eyes with your fingers, agitating them slightly to make them appear red. This is the classic "stoner" gaze. Smoking causes the veins in your eyes to expand, which makes them much more visible. This causes the well-known red eye in stoners.
- You can also rub some freshly cut onion or peppermint extract under your eyes to get the tears flowing, which causes red eye.
- Try not to blink. It isn't fun, but it will create red eye.
4
Relax your face and body muscles, letting them droop and feel slack. Your eyelids and lips will fall lightly to the floor, as if half asleep. Let yourself sink into the chair, or slump slightly whenever you're standing. You want to be totally relaxed.
- If you find yourself staring for a long time into nothing, body barely moving, then you're crushing it.
Imagine that your throat and mouth are bone dry, as many people who smoke regularly can attest. Drop your voice into a low, bass-y register and scratch out the words a bit.

Method 2

Method 2 of 4:

Looking Like You're On Psychedelics

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1
Spend a long, long time looking at things with a sense of wonder. Tripping causes many users to see patterns, new colors, and even objects and people appear out of everyday life, making the entire world a fascinating playground. The idea of seeing the world as if for the first time, astonished by the shifting things around you, is key to playing the psychedelic user.
- Keep your eyes wide open, taking in as many sights as possible.
- Curiosity is your guiding principle.
There is rarely something funny happening, but a tripper will find the humor. Usually, this sort of laughter just kind of bubbles up in trippers as the result of a cool sight, strange new texture, or completely random, untraceable thought.
3
Touch a lot of things, rubbing them to enjoy the variety of textures. Psychedelics tend to be sensory overload, and touch is one of the most commonly enjoyed. Note, however, that trippers are rarely zoned into one sense at once. The thing you're stroking is likely changing color or visualizes as well, molding under your hand.
- Again, the sense of wonder is key to selling the performance. You don't have to explain what you see -- just be entranced by it.^{[1]
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4
Get deep and philosophical about our shared experience and place in the universe. People who trip are rarely selfish -- they're too out-there to be self-absorbed. Instead, they often "see" connections between everyone, and every living thing, that sober people don't. When they talk, trippers are often speaking on a "higher plane" that doesn't usually make sense for the people who aren't on the same ride:
- A long rant about the beauty and connection between you and the earth would not be out of place.
- Stopping halfway through a thought, as if taken by an incredible and inexplicable new truth, can help if you're running out of philosophical thoughts to improvise.
5
Consider throwing a fake "bad trip," complete with a mental breakdown, if you're a true actor. Want to really go for broke on your fake trip? Make it a bad one! You'll need to be convincingly freaked out, and you'll need a point of fixation -- either an object that has "transformed" into a demon or an imaginary space that you claim is "filled with horrible energy." Bad trips are characterized by:
- Wide-eyed fear
- Fixation on a real or imagined worry, stress, or terror
- Sweating, nervously moving.
- Nausea
- Desire to be anywhere but here
- Inability to move (paralyzed by fear)

Method 3

Method 3 of 4:

Looking Like You're On "Uppers" (Cocaine, Amphetamines, etc.)

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People might not really enjoy your company, but such is the burden of acting. Motor-mouth syndrome commonly besets those using high-energy drugs like cocaine, as the thoughts spill out so fast the user can't get them up fast enough. It doesn't matter what you're saying, just keep talking.
2
Resist the urge to stand still. Tap your fingers and feet. Get up and move around every few minutes. Let your eyes dart back and forth across the room uncontrollably. You want to feel like there is an enormous reserve of energy inside of you that is bursting at the seams, powering you like the energizer bunny.
- Many cocaine users even report that they breathe faster than normal.
If you're faking drug inhalation, then you'll be scratching at your nose and wiping away excess snot for the majority of the night.
When all of your energy comes from drugs, you can quickly go from restless to agitated. You might snap easily, be prone to anger, or just start acting uncomfortable and squirmy. This is often showcased by extreme mood swings, which become more noticeable with higher doses and longer highs.^{[2]
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5
"Crash" into a low-energy mess if you don't "re-up" during the acting job. Uppers don't tend to last long, instead sapping the user of all their energy and leaving them far, far more depressed than when they began. Cocaine, for reference, usually only lasts about 20 minutes.^{[3]
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- Sleepiness, irritability, and lethargy are common in the crashing phase.

Method 4

Method 4 of 4:

Looking Like You're On "Downers" (Opiates)

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This is most common dangerous and powerful drugs like heroin. Downers, like opiates, usually leave people in a happy stupor, unable and unwilling to move off the couch they're on. They often squirm around sensually like a baby in blankets, getting comfortable and enjoying every single second of it.
Watch Ewan McGregor's masterful performance as a heroin addict in Trainspotting to see how quick this shift can be. Opiates often hit hard, bringing a wave of euphoria, before putting the user into a mellow, sleepy, and often useless state.^{[4]
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Most opiate users have their heads blissfully in the clouds. They may start a thought, but finishing it isn't really important. Ask someone's attention, but don't have anything to say when they turn to you. Keep your voice low and quiet.
The overall idea is to remain stuck in the clouds, unable to pin down your thoughts. More often than not, this leads to literally falling asleep, your head lolling up in surprise slightly every so often, as if just waking up.^{[5]
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Again, this is particularly true of heroin, but drugs like Oxycontin are actually the same type of compound, just slightly weaker. Scratch on your forearms, but don't make a big deal of it. This is just another uncontrollable tic, not some dedicated urge.^{[6]
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Question

Can I use this to get arrested?

Community Answer

If you want to, sure, I suppose you could. But if you don't actually have any drugs on you, they won't be able to charge you with anything.

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Is it necessary to put red food coloring in my eyes to make me look high?

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Never put food coloring in your eyes, ever! You can seriously harm yourself.

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Can I really get high by just looking at my house floor?

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No, that will not get you high.

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Tips

Try to be more subtle than you think. The steps above are the extremes of behavior, but most real drug users generally exhibit much less pronounced versions of the above. Consider how "high" your character really is in the scene.

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If you want to play a meth addict, you can use makeup to create scabs on your skin and paint your teeth gross colors.

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Tips from our Readers

The advice in this section is based on the lived experiences of wikiHow readers like you. If you have a helpful tip you’d like to share on wikiHow, please submit it in the field below.

If you are trying to be realistic, try to avoid basing your behavior around what you see in comedies. Those portrayals are often exaggerated for comedic effect, especially in older shows and movies.
Depending on the drug, you could contour your face to look more skeletal. For heroin, try blacking out your teeth. For krokodil, use makeup to make your skin look flaky and peeling.

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