is a figure Which can welcome you during an intense benadryl journey.
Faceless, shrouded in black with red eyes and a hat, it hides ominously in the corner. Benadryl Hat Man is a shared and recurring hallucination that people see when taking dozens of antihistamines at one time. The figure, depicted in Halloween costumes, POV-Benadryl trip memes, and Walmart graphic tees, has become a symbol of a new drug trend that sees young people deliberately taking large doses of the drug, not to avoid allergies, but to get high.
John, a 21-year-old college student who traveled on Benadryl, never saw the Hat Man. Still, he says, “I could see how it could happen. It is.” [Benadryl] Dig deep into your brain to find whatever is scaring you. So, if you’re afraid of the Hat Man, I’m sure you’ll see the Hat Man.” This quest to reveal the unpleasant, although terrifying, is, in fact, the purpose of recreational Benadryl use. (John does not want his real name used for fear of friends finding out.)
When used in high doses, diphenhydramine, an ingredient in Benadryl, acts as a hallucinogen, a hallucinogenic class of drugs that is becoming increasingly popular among young people for non-medical purposes. Unlike psychedelics or other hallucinogens, there is no real possibility of a good trip on a delirium. According to people I talked to, every trip is bad, every trip is brutal, and that’s the point.
In 2020, the “Benadryl Challenge” gained popularity on TikTok, daring participants to take a dosage of at least 12 Benadryl pills for an intense journey. This trend, which resurfaces every few years, drew attention to the psychoactive effects of delirium tremens. One user told me, “I saw a video about it once on TikTok, so I knew it could be used recreationally.”
With little or no harm reduction information readily available regarding high levels of consumption, problems began to grow. In May 2020, three Texas teenagers were treated for Benadryl overdoses in just one week, one of whom was just 14 years old and took 14 pills. The 14-year-old recovered and returned home the next day. In August 2020, a 15-year-old boy died from a seizure after a drug overdose in Oklahoma. In September 2020, the FDA issued a warning to parents to stash and stash their Benadryl supplies, warning of the possible risk of heart problems, seizures, and, most commonly, coma and even death. Despite warnings, it seems this trend is continuing. In 2020, 4,618 cases were reported to US poison centers for the use of Benadryl; According to a study published in, this number will increase to 5,960 in 2023 Pediatrics Free Science in August. Benadryl, and deliriums in general, have established themselves as a staple of the fringes of American youth – a cheap and easy way to get fucked up. WIRED contacted Benadryl manufacturer Kenview for comment. A spokesperson for the company said, “This behavior is extremely concerning and dangerous,” and encouraged consumers to “carefully read and follow label directions and contact your health care professional if they have any questions.”
John started taking Benadryl recreationally in November 2024, when he was 20, after hearing about the ability to use it to sleep and then travel online. He was depressed at the time and took 12 pills several times a day for major trips, with each trip lasting four to six hours. Instead of the Hat Man, John saw eyelash mites, tiny insects that form in clusters at the base of your eyelashes, along with “shadows that spread out across your periphery.” The journeys were also touching; John would see and feel spiders all over his body, describing a “foreboding tingling” feeling.