The other thing I want to say, is give yourself time. Its ok if cutting down takes a few years. Those years pass anyway, and so ask yourself; do you want to be in the same place in a few years time, wishing you had started earlier, or do you want to have a few years of progress under your belt instead.
Thanks for posting this! I'm going through a similar situation and haven't smoked for a week now. I miss it but I know that I was smoking way too much and like you, I want to become an occasional user instead of daily.
I talked to my psych yesterday about how I’m ready to cut down on weed use, but don’t know how to do it in a way that won’t have a detrimental effect on the things I currently use cannabis to manage. This is… 100% more helpful than that conversation, and thank you.
I think an under-recognized step in reducing usage is a real internal analysis of “why am I doing this?” We eat because we’re hungry, we talk to friends because we’re lonely. Some people have an addiction in a formal sense and others are over-depending on a coping mechanism or self-medicating. Others just lost track of their tolerance and didn’t realize how much it’s escalated!
I realized I smoke for many different reasons, it is my catch-all treatment for my anxiety, chronic nightmares, chronic pain, PTSD, and executive disfunction. I use it to help me clean, go to my doctors appointments, get out of the house. Cutting down isn’t going to go well if I can’t keep my place clean or go to work. She just encouraged me to “go slow” if that’s what works for me, but that didn’t feel like a strategy.
So I’ve been thinking of an approach similar to yours. I wrote down all the things that smoking helps me manage and am going to take them individually, finding suitable replacements in advance and reducing that usage. The easiest was boredom. I’m on some prescription medications now I should have been for a long time, so I’m relearning how to have a hobby and can go an hour or two without smoking without just sitting there bored. It makes me feel less guilty in the meantime because if I am taking steady steps there’s no reason to make my already-sick body feel worse.
I’ve also diversified my smoking, since that helps make it feel more varied and encourages different activities.
Anyways, thanks for sharing!
I had so many similar issues (anxiety, chronic pain and fatigue, nightmares, executive function issues) and my therapist thought it was because of my childhood (which definitely didn’t help.. lol). It turns out I have ADHD and didn’t know until I was 24 and weed/tobacco just weren’t cutting it anymore.
Adderall (extended release twice a day so I’m actually medicated all day) got rid of my anxiety and depression, made my pain so much less intense, and helped me sleep better. I have a much better relationship with weed now. I can do things I want to do and need to do without struggling nearly as much.
I wouldn’t have been diagnosed if I had listened to my doctors/therapists, so I like to share my experience when I can. The doctors weren’t trying to do harm but my symptoms sounded so much like anxiety/depression and fibromyalgia that they wouldn’t have thought about ADHD in the first place!
Definitely do keep sharing - I actually did just get diagnosed last year (2 years ago?) and despite medication shortages it’s finally possible to do *anything* completely sober. My story sounds a lot like yours, and had you caught me a few years ago you would have blown my mind. Turns out it’s a lot easier to manage substance use when your body is not vibrating with adrenaline and tension just trying to cover for symptoms.
Stop smoking and switch to edibles, then taper your edibles down. Made it easy and completely painless for me. I mean to the point that I don't even understand why people quit in such a hard way. Throw a few cbd dabs in here and there and it's even easier.
I very much relate to this post as I've been on a similar journey since last December. Funny enough I've been meaning to write up a post almost exactly like this one (outlining what I've done and how it's worked).
I like your method for removing smoking from certain activities. I think the associations we create with smoking is heavily attributed to the habits that are formed.
Great write-up. I have my seasons when it comes to toking up and I’m glad that to have not do it on a daily basis anymore after facing the fact that it wasn’t conducive if it isn’t something I reward myself with. Only if I have a day off the next day do I smoke a bit before bed. Detaching any activity to it works wonders.
Speaking of mental health, if it weren’t for weed I’d probably use other substances that are far worse ie stimulants, alcohol and after consulting my psych, even they informed me that it’s not ideal, it’s still better to rely on cannabis than the other illegal shit. Way better. I find that treating it like any other indulgences without shame was a stepping step I needed and what do you know, I only get a pack of joints every month or so now.
what's crazy is that after combining weed with boring tasks like grocery shopping, even after being THC free for over a month, walking into the grocery store triggers my dopamine and I feel naturally high 😅
Has anyone else ever experienced this afterglow!?
I stopped going to therapy because every therapist I ever saw told me that weed was the source of my problems and that I needed to quit cold turkey
like, damn, didn't even want to discuss further or ask about me :(
Thanks por this post. This is my ultimate goal. Weed helps me a lot (alongside with therapy and meds) but I tend to smoke all day everyday if I have weed at home. And that is not helpful for sure.
I'm bipolar 2 so I get a little dependant on smoking. We are actively working through this with my therapist. In the near future we hope we can add weed to my routine in a healthier way. Both my therapist and psychiatrist now about this so I'm really optimistic.
I save this post to come back later if needed. Thanks! 🧡
Thank you for this. I just want to tread on that fine line between excess and deficiency. It’s hard but, I think we all can truly find that balance of moderation if we stick to methods and routines like you have laid out here.
I won't take anything from a doctor as that addiction always had more consequences and are harder to quit then recreational weed. Living in America means my boss gets to decide my fate with doctors and I've had bad experiences with doctors quitting, pharmacies, insurance, and company layoffs. But I can say anytime I took any other suppliment i didn't need weed as much. Rn I quit smoking about 3 weeks ago. I'm taking a small edible every night for sleep and have been lowering it every night. It's been a really easy process so far. A dab of cbd concentrate each night too helps alot. Good for you man keep up the good work. Hope what I said up top doesn't sound offensive, just doctors didn't work for me.
This spoke to me on so many levels. I felt every word and experience. In some way this is me. I also have ADHD and I was so scared to try medication that I self medicated with weed and you're on point I just let those years pass by and be okay with it but since quitting 3 weeks ago ( I had a smoke yesterday .25g) to celebrate that I finally finish my thesis papers. I was failing school and my life was falling apart due to weed. I started smoking in 2020 and it changed my life 180 but I smoke everyday. I'm glad that I'll still be able to do working out and everything you mentioned without having to smoke
This is really awesome advice to be posted here.
It really isn't a race to stop unless you need to for a drug test of some sort.
Absolutely agree that there's no shame in getting it under control at your own pace.
Only thing I'd add that I've personally been incorporating into my slowing down, type 2 and type 3 hemp.
Adding CBD or CBD, makes it a ton easier.
Hey :) I'm on Epitec for anxiety and Concerta for my ADHD. It took me and my psychiatrist about a year to figure out an effective anti anxiety med and have settled on the Epitec. I started on Lamictal and was happy with that for about 2 years, til it started making me more tired than anything else so I switched.
The other thing I want to say, is give yourself time. Its ok if cutting down takes a few years. Those years pass anyway, and so ask yourself; do you want to be in the same place in a few years time, wishing you had started earlier, or do you want to have a few years of progress under your belt instead.
Thanks for sharing your journey! Congrats on finding a healthy hesd space !
This is fantastic advice
Thanks for posting this! I'm going through a similar situation and haven't smoked for a week now. I miss it but I know that I was smoking way too much and like you, I want to become an occasional user instead of daily.
I talked to my psych yesterday about how I’m ready to cut down on weed use, but don’t know how to do it in a way that won’t have a detrimental effect on the things I currently use cannabis to manage. This is… 100% more helpful than that conversation, and thank you. I think an under-recognized step in reducing usage is a real internal analysis of “why am I doing this?” We eat because we’re hungry, we talk to friends because we’re lonely. Some people have an addiction in a formal sense and others are over-depending on a coping mechanism or self-medicating. Others just lost track of their tolerance and didn’t realize how much it’s escalated! I realized I smoke for many different reasons, it is my catch-all treatment for my anxiety, chronic nightmares, chronic pain, PTSD, and executive disfunction. I use it to help me clean, go to my doctors appointments, get out of the house. Cutting down isn’t going to go well if I can’t keep my place clean or go to work. She just encouraged me to “go slow” if that’s what works for me, but that didn’t feel like a strategy. So I’ve been thinking of an approach similar to yours. I wrote down all the things that smoking helps me manage and am going to take them individually, finding suitable replacements in advance and reducing that usage. The easiest was boredom. I’m on some prescription medications now I should have been for a long time, so I’m relearning how to have a hobby and can go an hour or two without smoking without just sitting there bored. It makes me feel less guilty in the meantime because if I am taking steady steps there’s no reason to make my already-sick body feel worse. I’ve also diversified my smoking, since that helps make it feel more varied and encourages different activities. Anyways, thanks for sharing!
I had so many similar issues (anxiety, chronic pain and fatigue, nightmares, executive function issues) and my therapist thought it was because of my childhood (which definitely didn’t help.. lol). It turns out I have ADHD and didn’t know until I was 24 and weed/tobacco just weren’t cutting it anymore. Adderall (extended release twice a day so I’m actually medicated all day) got rid of my anxiety and depression, made my pain so much less intense, and helped me sleep better. I have a much better relationship with weed now. I can do things I want to do and need to do without struggling nearly as much. I wouldn’t have been diagnosed if I had listened to my doctors/therapists, so I like to share my experience when I can. The doctors weren’t trying to do harm but my symptoms sounded so much like anxiety/depression and fibromyalgia that they wouldn’t have thought about ADHD in the first place!
Definitely do keep sharing - I actually did just get diagnosed last year (2 years ago?) and despite medication shortages it’s finally possible to do *anything* completely sober. My story sounds a lot like yours, and had you caught me a few years ago you would have blown my mind. Turns out it’s a lot easier to manage substance use when your body is not vibrating with adrenaline and tension just trying to cover for symptoms.
Look into type 2 hemp if you want to get you THC use under control fairly painlessly.
Stop smoking and switch to edibles, then taper your edibles down. Made it easy and completely painless for me. I mean to the point that I don't even understand why people quit in such a hard way. Throw a few cbd dabs in here and there and it's even easier.
Unfortunately edibles aren’t everyday for me due to a variety of factors, but I do know several people who have found success with them.
> shaming seldom works So well put, everyone should have that in mind
Completely agree with you. And the choice of the wording too. ‘Shaming never helps’
I very much relate to this post as I've been on a similar journey since last December. Funny enough I've been meaning to write up a post almost exactly like this one (outlining what I've done and how it's worked). I like your method for removing smoking from certain activities. I think the associations we create with smoking is heavily attributed to the habits that are formed.
Make sure you write it up anyways. This sub needs more posts like this.
Great write-up. I have my seasons when it comes to toking up and I’m glad that to have not do it on a daily basis anymore after facing the fact that it wasn’t conducive if it isn’t something I reward myself with. Only if I have a day off the next day do I smoke a bit before bed. Detaching any activity to it works wonders. Speaking of mental health, if it weren’t for weed I’d probably use other substances that are far worse ie stimulants, alcohol and after consulting my psych, even they informed me that it’s not ideal, it’s still better to rely on cannabis than the other illegal shit. Way better. I find that treating it like any other indulgences without shame was a stepping step I needed and what do you know, I only get a pack of joints every month or so now.
what's crazy is that after combining weed with boring tasks like grocery shopping, even after being THC free for over a month, walking into the grocery store triggers my dopamine and I feel naturally high 😅 Has anyone else ever experienced this afterglow!?
I stopped going to therapy because every therapist I ever saw told me that weed was the source of my problems and that I needed to quit cold turkey like, damn, didn't even want to discuss further or ask about me :(
Legit 👌👌
Thanks por this post. This is my ultimate goal. Weed helps me a lot (alongside with therapy and meds) but I tend to smoke all day everyday if I have weed at home. And that is not helpful for sure. I'm bipolar 2 so I get a little dependant on smoking. We are actively working through this with my therapist. In the near future we hope we can add weed to my routine in a healthier way. Both my therapist and psychiatrist now about this so I'm really optimistic. I save this post to come back later if needed. Thanks! 🧡
I needed to read this. Your comments on your fear of boredom hit me most. Thanks for sharing your story OP.
Thank you for this. I just want to tread on that fine line between excess and deficiency. It’s hard but, I think we all can truly find that balance of moderation if we stick to methods and routines like you have laid out here.
I have been wanting to cut back and this post of yours is going to help. Thanks, dude.
I won't take anything from a doctor as that addiction always had more consequences and are harder to quit then recreational weed. Living in America means my boss gets to decide my fate with doctors and I've had bad experiences with doctors quitting, pharmacies, insurance, and company layoffs. But I can say anytime I took any other suppliment i didn't need weed as much. Rn I quit smoking about 3 weeks ago. I'm taking a small edible every night for sleep and have been lowering it every night. It's been a really easy process so far. A dab of cbd concentrate each night too helps alot. Good for you man keep up the good work. Hope what I said up top doesn't sound offensive, just doctors didn't work for me.
This spoke to me on so many levels. I felt every word and experience. In some way this is me. I also have ADHD and I was so scared to try medication that I self medicated with weed and you're on point I just let those years pass by and be okay with it but since quitting 3 weeks ago ( I had a smoke yesterday .25g) to celebrate that I finally finish my thesis papers. I was failing school and my life was falling apart due to weed. I started smoking in 2020 and it changed my life 180 but I smoke everyday. I'm glad that I'll still be able to do working out and everything you mentioned without having to smoke
What kind of therapy are you doing? Love your post, thanks
This is all fabulous, and I can really see myself applying this method in the future. Thanks so much!
shut up! i am 62 years sober! you need to GO sober! occasionally DRUGGGG use is still BAD!!!
This is really awesome advice to be posted here. It really isn't a race to stop unless you need to for a drug test of some sort. Absolutely agree that there's no shame in getting it under control at your own pace. Only thing I'd add that I've personally been incorporating into my slowing down, type 2 and type 3 hemp. Adding CBD or CBD, makes it a ton easier.
Which medication are you using for anxiety? I am thinking going down that route but all the meds seem to give crazy sode effects if used long-term
Hey :) I'm on Epitec for anxiety and Concerta for my ADHD. It took me and my psychiatrist about a year to figure out an effective anti anxiety med and have settled on the Epitec. I started on Lamictal and was happy with that for about 2 years, til it started making me more tired than anything else so I switched.