[MEGA] Cannabis Addiction & Withdrawal
- Thread starter MasterVampire
- Start date
Ignot
Bluelighter
- Joined
- Aug 23, 2008
- Messages
- 362
That's some real withdrawal, no doubt. I commend you on that; I went through a similar event but it was just cold turkey Zannies,6mg a day or something.
Thing is, even those who have gone through true physical withdrawal symptoms of other drugs, once they get clean...They find kicking daily marijuana...difficult.
Found this today, thought it was really eye opening. It's something I've talked about before with my buddy who struggles with heroin addiction, but was never able to put it all together quite so simply as this video does.
We are social creatures, I truly believe. Although some solitude may do some good, we all need others. Take care of each other.
galaxysoup
Greenlighter
- Joined
- Nov 29, 2015
- Messages
- 26
I have no data, but I would say both. I believe it's easier/more cost effective for most people to just smoke, and because the effects of edibles are more intense and last longer, people aren't as inclined to do them all the time, and therefore just don't consume enough to really get symptoms of withdrawal or addiction from it.
EDIT: I've been reading "From Chocolate to Morphine", and it does state that one of the reasons cocaine is abused so often is because the effects last such a short amount of time, so the user goes back for more to stave off comedowns. On an edible I'd rarely go back for seconds, but just smoking weed, I'll probably go back for 23rds.
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Salutations, all
I thought I should share my current story, as perhaps people can relate to how I'm feeling after quitting smoking (4th day in), or even offer some insight or correct me if I'm wrong.
Firstly, I don't wish to delve into the discussions RE: cannabis being psychologically/ physically addictive - reading through everyone's posts on this thread I would conclude that the abuse of cannabis is down to the user's personality. Also it appears as though people on this thread ARE able to use cannabis with moderation, and therefore avoid abusing the substance & benefiting from the wonders cannabis has to offer.
For me however, I feel as though I've abused cannabis way too much from a young age & don't trust myself to moderate my usage, so I've gone cold turkey.
Smoked my first spliff at age 14, loved it, amazing. Few weeks later went back into the woods with the same group of friends and had an awesome time - cannabis was AWESOME! So through the next few months it slowly developed into a habit I could do when I had the pocket money to do so, just hanging in the local park with the same group of friends (& meeting other smokers) until after 2 maybe 3 years of doing this (and usage increasing), it developed into a daily thing. I was ignorant to the fact that each day I felt more & more like I needed to puff - not because of withdrawing, but because it felt like it was the only entertaining thing to do & only way to wind-down. Recently my estimated usage was roughly 1g a day, but this too was starting to increase (I should add - I've always smoked with tobacco (along with cigarettes when not high) - mostly spliffs & occasional shotties (bongs always sent me into mental meltdown).
4 years passed of smoking daily, the last 2 years of which I realised my life has been consumed by smoking - It's all I thought about. I was level headed enough not to smoke before work mon - fri, but it was the first thing I'd do when I get home, and the first thing I'd do waking up on the weekends. The last year of so of smoking, I've been experiencing real nasty side affects which I believe are down to abusing the substance. I had massive social anxiety, I experienced frequent minor panic attacks around my friends (which I'd keep silent and act normal) and 3 weeks ago had a fully blown panic attack when one of my friends (ish) joined our relaxed atmosphere, drunk as a skunk and high on lots of vali. The change in atmosphere sent me into melt down, I had to leave, I had the shakes for 20 minutes and my mind was racing faster than Usain Bolt. It subsided, but made me realise something in my life had to change.
Not going to lie, these past 4 days have been difficult, particularly at night time, however I've experienced nowhere near the anxiety levels I did when toking - I've also been free of panic attacks so far. On the downside my mood has been mostly down (& sometimes up but I wouldn't say manic) - I've been using valium (only for the past 3 days) to help with the sleep, so hasn't been too much of an issue - and of course, as most people seem to have experienced, complete lack of appetite. I'm not going to use valium from today - as I understand this is certainly a physically addictive drug and I don't want to end up a train wreck 1 step forward & 5 steps back (melatonin & complex B supplements have been suggested - I will try this - though melatonin is not available OTC where I live and I don't want anything of the sort on my medical history, so I may look for alternatives or deal with the insomnia)
My Dad's always toked, & my mums side of the family have a history of depression, prescription dependence & anxiety issues - perhaps this is why I'm more susceptible than others to abusing the substance.
It's early days for me to be offering advice really, but I totally feel like my anxiety issues & such were down to my abuse of this substance, and if you can relate to this, perhaps you should give yourself a good break from smoking and re-evaluate the effects it's having on your life. My next step is to get into a regular exercise routine, eating as healthy as possible, and using relaxation techniques such as meditation. I've also taken up nicotine-vaping instead of smoking cigarettes (although I've had the occasional cigarette when I have strong cravings to puff).
I will re-visit this thread a few days time, maybe a week, and share with you how I'm feeling.
Peace all, & please wish me luck
Quick update for you guys.
I've quit! I'm done - about 3 - 4 weeks in, I had 4 tokes on a spliff - The exact same adverse feelings I described above came rushing back - intensely. I wouldn't call it a relapse, more an experiment to see if it was the weed making me feel this way. It was. I had a major panic attack and haven't touched it since.
it's about 2 months now since I made the decision to quit. I feel a lot better.
If you relate to my original post - do it, quit, it's very much possible, and you'll feel a whole lot better. I don't think about weed anymore, I don't crave that rolling of a spliff to relax. I'm around my friends a lot who smoke - but I have no urges to indulge. It just isn't for me anymore - funny as 2 months ago I considered myself a hardcore smoker who would never be able to pack it in.
I'm not saying cannabis is a bad drug. It's not, but it's definitely detrimental to some users health, if this is you, take that first step. Don't cut down, just quit. Ask online for help. Ask me for help. Keep yourself busy, change your lifestyle. Kicking the habit is the best thing I've done for myself this year.
I smoked for several years, and in those several years I never had any intimacy. Now I'm clean I'm talking to girls again. I'm waking up feeling refreshed. I'm as assertive as I had hoped. I just feel so much better!
Update done. Peace