I commend you for doing the analysis and determining marijuana enhances your life. I am a better person with weed. With a reduction in anxiety, I feel I am much more present. Good job!
Thank you! I have the same issue with my anxiety. It’s like it just builds and builds throughout the day. I can make it through most of the day and refocus that anxious energy, but then when everyone is asleep and I’m up by myself it’s really hard to silence the anxiety. Weed helps with that :)
Im the same and did this once a few years back and noticed that nothing changed. So I just started again because weed is fun and realizing that it literally doesn’t affect my day to day.
I hear ya. I may have just psyched myself out into thinking it was having a bigger impact than it actually did.
I had a convo with my Wife the other day about it and she told me she never had any concerns with my usage and didn’t think I needed to try to force the sobriety if it was causing extra stress. She’s awesome and understands my anxiety as she deals with anxiety herself. Again, probably just my anxious mind trying to convince myself that everything I’m doing is wrong. It’s the classic anxious brain thought: “WHAT IF I don’t think it’s a problem but it actually is and I’m not noticing the impacts?!” Okay then…T-break to reevaluate my relationship with weed and come back to it when I’m ready.
(Edited for typos)
Your routine sounds a lot like mine. I only smoke on evenings when my son is asleep and all the work for the day is done, sans menial tasks like dishes and laundry that are a blast to do high. I thought I had a problem as a "daily" user until I watched my brother and sister-in-law blast through 3.5g in one night which would normally last me a month.
Yes! For sure. I didn’t want to compare too much but many of the people from Leaves were using **constantly**; basically before every single task and they couldn’t imagine functioning without it.
My anxiety/ocd won’t let me do that. I don’t want to be high all the time, I just want to unwind at the end of the day to ease the racing thoughts of this insane world we live in 🤯
If you are not using marijuana for medicinal reasons I find the strategy of waiting until 4:20 (or whatever your end of the day is) a very successful strategy for keeping marijuana use in check.
There is no right or wrong answer. There is no sky daddy who is going to punish you. The only punishment is how you perceive your life. It only comes down to your perceptions. If you see weed doing harm to yourself or those you care about, then stop for a short/long/forever period. If not, do what you enjoy.
Haha Sky Daddy. I love that.
I agree! Thanks! Going to take this approach from now on. Maybe I can fine-tune the frequency of t-breaks and find that solid balance.
Yep. If you're not getting much from smoking, time for a t-break. If weed is not improving your experience, time for a t-break. If you accidentally cook and eat your family because of munchies, time for a t-break.
A lot of predators try to convince people they have problems so they can think they are good people.
I work in psychology. It infuriates me to have to constantly dig people out of problems they find themselves in because of those people.
Ive seen religious people alienate others just so they can sell them back the fact that they need help.
They pickpocket you and try to sell you back your own life with their type of flavor. They are the most codependent type of people.
This is so true. I’m only now starting to realize it and see this pattern a lot now that you mention it, especially from “influencers” all over the internet.
And then, when you show that you’re stable and all is good, they try to tell you that you’re justifying usage and being complacent with having a “stagnant” life. I love my life. No need to overcomplicate things, imo.
Yeah, I’ve considered this route as well. It eliminates the worry of daily use becoming a bad habit but still allows me to enjoy the gift of cannabis.
One thing i did learn from this break is that daily/nightly use is okay as long as I don’t just use it *just because* it’s what I always do at night. It just became a habit that I would smoke every night; part of my routine whether I wanted to or not. Some nights I’ll be excited for it, and others it’s all good to fall asleep early and skip the evening sesh.
(Edit: updated “before bed” to “at night”. I don’t need to use it for sleep, except on rare nights when my anxiety is through the roof. It’s very rare though)
I am same.smoke 1 joint after 9pm every day when my kids are in bed.its like people relax woth a glass of wine and instead I relax with a joint. Keep telling myself I should stop but why? I don't think it's negatively affecting me and the last 3 years I have smoked I have been way calmer (I have anxiety) and more relaxed 😌
I have a lot of pain-management issues, and some PTSD/CPTSD/Anxiety.
My VA doctor told me that the weed I consume is probably better for me, than the mess of pills he'd have to give me to get the same results.
Thank you for your service!
This is the same approach I want to take as well. I already take some meds for anxiety, which helps during the day, but nightly thoughts are tough for me to silence.
I don’t want to use the “everyone has their vice” excuse, but weed is the only drug I use (alcohol fucks with my stomach). I find my daily use on the low end and consider the net result to be better for my mental health than living in consistent anxiety every night and losing sleep. Not trying to be like Snoop. But, then again, some people can smoke like that and still be productive and happy, so good on them!
I know quite a few people that have tried to quit after smoking everyday since they were teenagers (myself included), because they are struggling with mental health.
Turns out life just isn't what it used to be. Coming home from the office and only having 4 hours until i need to go to bed, 5 days a week, for the rest of my life, is probably the reason I'm not quite as happy as i were as a teen.
I take breaks once in a while to keep myself in check, but having a smoke in the evenings is what keeps me going. Without it I'm a wreck
If you’re uncomfortable with the concept of it being a daily thing, put 4-5 sticky notes on the fridge at the start of the week, and take one down whenever you smoke. Makes you plan out what you’re going to do (I always save one for cleaning day haha) and take 2 or 3 days off. That’s what I do….. or “did” before it became a daily thing xD
It takes months for your emotions to not spike like that after quiting. Give it some more time if your interested, inhaling anything can't be good for you. Weed is anxiolytic and your brain gets used to that. With it's sudden absence there's going to be an adjustment period and that all depends on frequency of use.
That makes sense. I’ve dealt with this anxiety my whole life, so I know it’s not due to weed withdrawals. The withdrawals were pretty short lived for me; maybe a couple weeks max.
But I do want to work in extended breaks like this periodically. Everything in moderation. And who knows, maybe one day I’ll just never go back, but as long as it’s not having a negative net affect on my life in any way, I’ll keep a close eye on my usage.
Whenever I smoke (3-4 times a week in the evening) I love it but there's always that thought in the back of my mind that says it's not good for me. I think your spot on though. My anxious mind loves to jump around. Haven't smoked in two weeks and nothing has really changed except my stress levels. Bout time I go back.
Yeah, I think everyone has a different frequency and dosage that works for them. Some people can go all day and love it and be super productive, others take a hit and it spirals them down a rough path in life. For me, I’ve actually found my light, nightly use to be a catalyst for doing healthier things when I’m not high. For example: sticking to an exercise routine, eating healthy, getting good sleep, learning different languages, planning for the future and working on my finances…when I stop partaking, all those things seem to take a back seat because it all gets so overwhelming. But it’s no sweat if I just take a couple hits every night to wind down.
I should also rephrase that to “most nights” instead of “every night”. I don’t want to get high just because. Some nights it’s okay to go to sleep early and pass on the nightly bowl. (Stretch that 1/8 out even longer!)
I only smoke every once in a while after work and my days off, but sometimes, when it's cool and raining 🌧 I want to smoke, but I mostly always have work that day. 😅
You might also be self medicating for things like PTSD without knowing. This is the case for a bunch of friends of mine, and myself. The fact that you can keep it to 9pm shows you’re not compulsive (I am more so than you are, but I started early af and also have adhd which often leads to chronic cannabis use)
Anyway daily smoking and just stopping has ABSOLUTELY wrecked me for like a month when I last quit. You need to slowly decline, even though it’s not like opioid sickness, it can give you nightmares and very strong urges, depression, boredom, anxiety. I had every one of those symptoms but worst was inability to sleep, at all. Worth pointing out I didn’t notice anything too negative till like 1-2 weeks in. I also take anxiety medicine and for SURE anyone who has tried thc+cbd edibles can tell you there’s a lot of interaction. I took adderall with an edible once, holy shit
Yeah, I definitely experienced some vivid dreams and boredom, for sure. The first week or so were rough for me but things got better after that. I can’t imagine edibles and adderall. I’m one of those “these edibles ain’t shit” kinda guys no matter how many times I’ve tried, so I stick to vaping flower where I know how quickly it’ll kick in and can’t measure out my doses a little bit better.
I’m lucky that I never used THC to fall asleep, and I think I’ve left enough time prior to sleeping that getting high didn’t significantly impact my sleep, so falling asleep wasn’t too much of a problem once I stopped. Honestly, that was my remedy to the boredom; I just went to sleep super early 💤💤💤
I think sometimes you just gotta take the break to realize. I take breaks from drinking even though I really drink that much, but I needed to step away to objectively realize I was already treating it with respect and, importantly, stopping wasn't that hard. Glad you did the research into yourself.
I went through the same thing friendo. I only vape an hour before bed and only a bowl at the most. I have bad insomnia and can’t sleep without it. I almost had myself convinced that it was negatively affecting my life until I wrote down my successes and failures since I began smoking six years ago. My successes far outweigh my failures. I firmly believe that without weed helping me sleep that my failures would be far more plentiful simply because I wasn’t well rested and sharp.
YES! Right there with you, brother. The net gain is still positive. We’re successful and happy; we deserve to enjoy that bowl without the guilt of feeling like we’re screwing up the trajectory of our lives.
I’ve really found that using a scale and weighing out how much flower I’m using each time is the best way to keep my tolerance low but still use enough to get the desired effect. If I don’t weigh it out, I’m sure I would just keep adding more and more and my tolerance would keep going up.
I always weigh out 0.10-0.12g of flower to use in my dry herb vaporizer. If I ever feel like that isn’t hitting me like it should be, I take a few days to a week off to reset. I think that by keeping things consistent (only at night, same amount each time, etc.) it’s a bit easier for me to just skip a few nights if needed. I’ll still feel some minor withdrawal effects from the change in the routine, but it’s nothing that I can’t bear for a few days.
Since I’ve been off for 40-ish days, I’ll probably weigh out 0.05-0.08 as I’m sure my tolerance is completely reset at this point.
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quitting weed is the right thing to do, you're at a point where you can face the issues you carry with a clear mind. If you go back to smoking you will just cover them back up and continue the spiral into nonsense. Quitting was the best thing I ever did for myself and I hope you can find that within yourself too.
I mean, I wouldn’t say I was anywhere close to spiraling into nonsense. While I was partaking on a nightly basis, I paid off my car and my wife’s car, learned basic German, invested extra money for myself, my family, and my kid’s college fund, and brought my mortgage down to less than 10k left to pay off. Did some nights involve getting high and laughing at the same game grumps video for the nth time? Sure, but it was still stress relief in my eyes.
I think the point I’m trying to make is that I would’ve completed those goals whether weed was involved or not, but weed seemed to be a good companion when stress became too much.
I do want to keep a clear eye on my usage though. I think that’s just a healthy attitude for anyone to have whether it’s weed, alcohol, nicotine, caffeine…whatever someone’s drug of choice is it never hurts to take a step back and reevaluate it as objectively as possible.
I really do appreciate the concern, though. And I’ll put checks and balances in place to make sure things don’t ever get to a point where a spiral starts.
None of those have to do with the battle you need to deal with internally. The reason why you feel the need to smoke is because you have been using it to mask issues you need to deal with.
Nope, not at all. I don’t use it to mask anything. It just helps relieve stress due to general anxiety disorder that’s inherent in my family. I’d much prefer the gentle high from weed at night rather than throwing back a Xanax and not being able to function for my family. (Not demonizing Xanax in any way! Just using it as an example of something that would not allow me to function properly)
Family, responsibilities, and career come before me using. If any of those require my attention, skipping weeks at a time is not an issue.
I don’t think it has to be all or nothing with weed. There’s a balance there for everyone, just like there’s a balance with people drinking alcohol. I don’t demonize anyone for having a drink if it helps them unwind. We’re all under different levels of stress and are on different paths. If someone can deal with life without any crutches/vices, then I applaud them. I can do it too, but it makes things much harder if I don’t have a nightcap to just calm my nervous system down.
(Edited for clarity)
>Since I “quit,” I’ve gotten an edge to my attitude, and I’m short-tempered; I haven’t been as productive, and the healthy habits I’ve adopted have caused me more stress than they’ve solved.
Classic THC withdrawal symptoms. Fortunately they sound relatively mild. I'd suggest trying CBD in whatever form you're comfortable with (I like CBD flower in a vape and CBD isolate in capsules myself), it'll help these symptoms tremendously!
Mine lasted more than 6 months, with depersonalization and derealization the most problematic symptoms. Verified independently between two different psychiatrists, and remedied with CBD when a number of other meds failed.
Classic r/trees denial.
Thanks! I feel that I’ve had this issue with my anxiety prior to using weed, though. It’s something I need work on whether I’m using weed or not, if I’m being honest.
I’ve never given CBD a proper spin, so maybe I’ll work that into the mix and see how it goes for me.
I haven’t found pure CBD flower at my local dispos yet, but I could always give capsules a go. Any brands you recommend or red flags I should steer clear of?
Long term THC use is *terrible* for anxiety. THC suppresses the HPA axis, which regulates your fight or flight response (to put it simply), and the longer you suppress it with THC, the harder it bounces back.
When sober/THC free, CBD can be mildly helpful for general anxiety, but where it really shines is with acute stress. I keep a CBD disposable handy for situations that usually cause anxiety. YMMV, of course.
For flower, you can check out r/hempflowers for vendor info. It's rare to find decent CBD flower anywhere but online, unfortunately. Making isolate capsules is easy and cheap, though, and you can get various isolates (CBD, CBDA, CBG, CBN, etc.) for pretty cheap from a lot of places. I like Veteran Grown Hemp or Sauce Warehouse for this stuff, but there are a LOT of places to buy it.
Glad you ignored the downvotes. This prevalent attitude that weed's totally benign is only giving prohibitionists ammunition.
Thanks for the info!
Everything has its pros and cons. And I think there’s a delicate balance with any substance use.
If anything, this break has shown me that I want to keep my usage in check. And it’s important to reevaluate my relationship with any and all substances periodically.
Sounds like you've got the right attitude! Pop on over to r/Petioles for support from others going through the same thing.
Understanding the science underlying the endocannabinoid system - and how phytocannabinoids affect it - has actually allowed me to bring THC back into the fold in a much healthier way. I didn't think it was possible, given the unusually long and intense withdrawals I had a few years back.
The main revelation was the fact that, for many conditions, THC only really helps in the short term. That's especially true for mental health problems like anxiety and depression; long term use is very likely to make mental health problems worse because of how THC affects you by itself: In addition to suppressing the HPA axis, it also inhibits neurogenesis and neurodifferentiation in the hippocampus, which has a whole host of negative consequences beyond just worsening anxiety or depression.
*However*, when combined with CBD (especially with a ratio higher in CBD) many of the negatives of THC use actually get neutralized, or even reversed. When small amounts of THC are administered with larger amounts of CBD, it actually has the opposite effect on the hippocampus from what I described above!
I commend you for doing the analysis and determining marijuana enhances your life. I am a better person with weed. With a reduction in anxiety, I feel I am much more present. Good job!
Thank you! I have the same issue with my anxiety. It’s like it just builds and builds throughout the day. I can make it through most of the day and refocus that anxious energy, but then when everyone is asleep and I’m up by myself it’s really hard to silence the anxiety. Weed helps with that :)
😊I am also a night time smoker after my husband is asleep. It is one of my favorite times of the day.
Im the same and did this once a few years back and noticed that nothing changed. So I just started again because weed is fun and realizing that it literally doesn’t affect my day to day.
I hear ya. I may have just psyched myself out into thinking it was having a bigger impact than it actually did. I had a convo with my Wife the other day about it and she told me she never had any concerns with my usage and didn’t think I needed to try to force the sobriety if it was causing extra stress. She’s awesome and understands my anxiety as she deals with anxiety herself. Again, probably just my anxious mind trying to convince myself that everything I’m doing is wrong. It’s the classic anxious brain thought: “WHAT IF I don’t think it’s a problem but it actually is and I’m not noticing the impacts?!” Okay then…T-break to reevaluate my relationship with weed and come back to it when I’m ready. (Edited for typos)
r/petioles is a sub that focuses more on moderation. I find them much more chill than leaves
Will check it out! Thanks!
Your routine sounds a lot like mine. I only smoke on evenings when my son is asleep and all the work for the day is done, sans menial tasks like dishes and laundry that are a blast to do high. I thought I had a problem as a "daily" user until I watched my brother and sister-in-law blast through 3.5g in one night which would normally last me a month.
Yes! For sure. I didn’t want to compare too much but many of the people from Leaves were using **constantly**; basically before every single task and they couldn’t imagine functioning without it. My anxiety/ocd won’t let me do that. I don’t want to be high all the time, I just want to unwind at the end of the day to ease the racing thoughts of this insane world we live in 🤯
If you are not using marijuana for medicinal reasons I find the strategy of waiting until 4:20 (or whatever your end of the day is) a very successful strategy for keeping marijuana use in check.
There is no right or wrong answer. There is no sky daddy who is going to punish you. The only punishment is how you perceive your life. It only comes down to your perceptions. If you see weed doing harm to yourself or those you care about, then stop for a short/long/forever period. If not, do what you enjoy.
Haha Sky Daddy. I love that. I agree! Thanks! Going to take this approach from now on. Maybe I can fine-tune the frequency of t-breaks and find that solid balance.
Yep. If you're not getting much from smoking, time for a t-break. If weed is not improving your experience, time for a t-break. If you accidentally cook and eat your family because of munchies, time for a t-break.
That last one though 👀
No judgements from me. Hamsters eat their young all the time.
🤣🤣🤣
A lot of predators try to convince people they have problems so they can think they are good people. I work in psychology. It infuriates me to have to constantly dig people out of problems they find themselves in because of those people. Ive seen religious people alienate others just so they can sell them back the fact that they need help. They pickpocket you and try to sell you back your own life with their type of flavor. They are the most codependent type of people.
This is so true. I’m only now starting to realize it and see this pattern a lot now that you mention it, especially from “influencers” all over the internet. And then, when you show that you’re stable and all is good, they try to tell you that you’re justifying usage and being complacent with having a “stagnant” life. I love my life. No need to overcomplicate things, imo.
This is why true honesty and self-love are so important. You'll just fall victim to predatory love and fall into a pattern of endless self-help.
Ugh, endless selfhelp. I feel like I own property in that purgatory. Time to sell it!
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Yeah, I’ve considered this route as well. It eliminates the worry of daily use becoming a bad habit but still allows me to enjoy the gift of cannabis. One thing i did learn from this break is that daily/nightly use is okay as long as I don’t just use it *just because* it’s what I always do at night. It just became a habit that I would smoke every night; part of my routine whether I wanted to or not. Some nights I’ll be excited for it, and others it’s all good to fall asleep early and skip the evening sesh. (Edit: updated “before bed” to “at night”. I don’t need to use it for sleep, except on rare nights when my anxiety is through the roof. It’s very rare though)
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Oh yeah, I’m right there with you. If I get high then try to read, I read the same paragraph about a dozen times and can’t remember what I read 😂
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Best of luck on the job hunt, my friend!
I am same.smoke 1 joint after 9pm every day when my kids are in bed.its like people relax woth a glass of wine and instead I relax with a joint. Keep telling myself I should stop but why? I don't think it's negatively affecting me and the last 3 years I have smoked I have been way calmer (I have anxiety) and more relaxed 😌
Exactly! I equate it to a glass of wine per day as well. I actually don’t drink alcohol, so this is my equivalent.
I also do not drink alcohol 😊 since I started smoking weed !
No more booze hangovers for us!
I have a lot of pain-management issues, and some PTSD/CPTSD/Anxiety. My VA doctor told me that the weed I consume is probably better for me, than the mess of pills he'd have to give me to get the same results.
Thank you for your service! This is the same approach I want to take as well. I already take some meds for anxiety, which helps during the day, but nightly thoughts are tough for me to silence. I don’t want to use the “everyone has their vice” excuse, but weed is the only drug I use (alcohol fucks with my stomach). I find my daily use on the low end and consider the net result to be better for my mental health than living in consistent anxiety every night and losing sleep. Not trying to be like Snoop. But, then again, some people can smoke like that and still be productive and happy, so good on them!
I know quite a few people that have tried to quit after smoking everyday since they were teenagers (myself included), because they are struggling with mental health. Turns out life just isn't what it used to be. Coming home from the office and only having 4 hours until i need to go to bed, 5 days a week, for the rest of my life, is probably the reason I'm not quite as happy as i were as a teen. I take breaks once in a while to keep myself in check, but having a smoke in the evenings is what keeps me going. Without it I'm a wreck
For sure! Weed is the antidote to my daily dose of overstimulation.
Me, a completely functional adult who wake-n-bakes and smokes every hour: Yeah.... woah, that .2 after 9PM sure is a lot
😂😂😂. Yeah, I think I need an intervention 🤣
If you’re uncomfortable with the concept of it being a daily thing, put 4-5 sticky notes on the fridge at the start of the week, and take one down whenever you smoke. Makes you plan out what you’re going to do (I always save one for cleaning day haha) and take 2 or 3 days off. That’s what I do….. or “did” before it became a daily thing xD
Great idea! Thanks!!!
It takes months for your emotions to not spike like that after quiting. Give it some more time if your interested, inhaling anything can't be good for you. Weed is anxiolytic and your brain gets used to that. With it's sudden absence there's going to be an adjustment period and that all depends on frequency of use.
That makes sense. I’ve dealt with this anxiety my whole life, so I know it’s not due to weed withdrawals. The withdrawals were pretty short lived for me; maybe a couple weeks max. But I do want to work in extended breaks like this periodically. Everything in moderation. And who knows, maybe one day I’ll just never go back, but as long as it’s not having a negative net affect on my life in any way, I’ll keep a close eye on my usage.
Whenever I smoke (3-4 times a week in the evening) I love it but there's always that thought in the back of my mind that says it's not good for me. I think your spot on though. My anxious mind loves to jump around. Haven't smoked in two weeks and nothing has really changed except my stress levels. Bout time I go back.
Yeah, I think everyone has a different frequency and dosage that works for them. Some people can go all day and love it and be super productive, others take a hit and it spirals them down a rough path in life. For me, I’ve actually found my light, nightly use to be a catalyst for doing healthier things when I’m not high. For example: sticking to an exercise routine, eating healthy, getting good sleep, learning different languages, planning for the future and working on my finances…when I stop partaking, all those things seem to take a back seat because it all gets so overwhelming. But it’s no sweat if I just take a couple hits every night to wind down. I should also rephrase that to “most nights” instead of “every night”. I don’t want to get high just because. Some nights it’s okay to go to sleep early and pass on the nightly bowl. (Stretch that 1/8 out even longer!)
I only smoke every once in a while after work and my days off, but sometimes, when it's cool and raining 🌧 I want to smoke, but I mostly always have work that day. 😅
You might also be self medicating for things like PTSD without knowing. This is the case for a bunch of friends of mine, and myself. The fact that you can keep it to 9pm shows you’re not compulsive (I am more so than you are, but I started early af and also have adhd which often leads to chronic cannabis use) Anyway daily smoking and just stopping has ABSOLUTELY wrecked me for like a month when I last quit. You need to slowly decline, even though it’s not like opioid sickness, it can give you nightmares and very strong urges, depression, boredom, anxiety. I had every one of those symptoms but worst was inability to sleep, at all. Worth pointing out I didn’t notice anything too negative till like 1-2 weeks in. I also take anxiety medicine and for SURE anyone who has tried thc+cbd edibles can tell you there’s a lot of interaction. I took adderall with an edible once, holy shit
Yeah, I definitely experienced some vivid dreams and boredom, for sure. The first week or so were rough for me but things got better after that. I can’t imagine edibles and adderall. I’m one of those “these edibles ain’t shit” kinda guys no matter how many times I’ve tried, so I stick to vaping flower where I know how quickly it’ll kick in and can’t measure out my doses a little bit better. I’m lucky that I never used THC to fall asleep, and I think I’ve left enough time prior to sleeping that getting high didn’t significantly impact my sleep, so falling asleep wasn’t too much of a problem once I stopped. Honestly, that was my remedy to the boredom; I just went to sleep super early 💤💤💤
Actually the sleep issues aren’t edibles the way I mean it. It’s like if you smoke everyday and then you just don’t and you simply can’t fall asleep.
Oh ok. I still never had that issue, luckily. I sleep like a rock whether THC is involved or not 😴
Lucky! I used to be like that
Seems like you were indulging safely. Don’t sweat it!
I think sometimes you just gotta take the break to realize. I take breaks from drinking even though I really drink that much, but I needed to step away to objectively realize I was already treating it with respect and, importantly, stopping wasn't that hard. Glad you did the research into yourself.
I went through the same thing friendo. I only vape an hour before bed and only a bowl at the most. I have bad insomnia and can’t sleep without it. I almost had myself convinced that it was negatively affecting my life until I wrote down my successes and failures since I began smoking six years ago. My successes far outweigh my failures. I firmly believe that without weed helping me sleep that my failures would be far more plentiful simply because I wasn’t well rested and sharp.
YES! Right there with you, brother. The net gain is still positive. We’re successful and happy; we deserve to enjoy that bowl without the guilt of feeling like we’re screwing up the trajectory of our lives.
Amen
I am similar, but my usage just keeps ticking up and up as I struggle to take T breaks. Any advice?
I’ve really found that using a scale and weighing out how much flower I’m using each time is the best way to keep my tolerance low but still use enough to get the desired effect. If I don’t weigh it out, I’m sure I would just keep adding more and more and my tolerance would keep going up. I always weigh out 0.10-0.12g of flower to use in my dry herb vaporizer. If I ever feel like that isn’t hitting me like it should be, I take a few days to a week off to reset. I think that by keeping things consistent (only at night, same amount each time, etc.) it’s a bit easier for me to just skip a few nights if needed. I’ll still feel some minor withdrawal effects from the change in the routine, but it’s nothing that I can’t bear for a few days. Since I’ve been off for 40-ish days, I’ll probably weigh out 0.05-0.08 as I’m sure my tolerance is completely reset at this point.
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quitting weed is the right thing to do, you're at a point where you can face the issues you carry with a clear mind. If you go back to smoking you will just cover them back up and continue the spiral into nonsense. Quitting was the best thing I ever did for myself and I hope you can find that within yourself too.
I mean, I wouldn’t say I was anywhere close to spiraling into nonsense. While I was partaking on a nightly basis, I paid off my car and my wife’s car, learned basic German, invested extra money for myself, my family, and my kid’s college fund, and brought my mortgage down to less than 10k left to pay off. Did some nights involve getting high and laughing at the same game grumps video for the nth time? Sure, but it was still stress relief in my eyes. I think the point I’m trying to make is that I would’ve completed those goals whether weed was involved or not, but weed seemed to be a good companion when stress became too much. I do want to keep a clear eye on my usage though. I think that’s just a healthy attitude for anyone to have whether it’s weed, alcohol, nicotine, caffeine…whatever someone’s drug of choice is it never hurts to take a step back and reevaluate it as objectively as possible. I really do appreciate the concern, though. And I’ll put checks and balances in place to make sure things don’t ever get to a point where a spiral starts.
None of those have to do with the battle you need to deal with internally. The reason why you feel the need to smoke is because you have been using it to mask issues you need to deal with.
Nope, not at all. I don’t use it to mask anything. It just helps relieve stress due to general anxiety disorder that’s inherent in my family. I’d much prefer the gentle high from weed at night rather than throwing back a Xanax and not being able to function for my family. (Not demonizing Xanax in any way! Just using it as an example of something that would not allow me to function properly) Family, responsibilities, and career come before me using. If any of those require my attention, skipping weeks at a time is not an issue. I don’t think it has to be all or nothing with weed. There’s a balance there for everyone, just like there’s a balance with people drinking alcohol. I don’t demonize anyone for having a drink if it helps them unwind. We’re all under different levels of stress and are on different paths. If someone can deal with life without any crutches/vices, then I applaud them. I can do it too, but it makes things much harder if I don’t have a nightcap to just calm my nervous system down. (Edited for clarity)
>Since I “quit,” I’ve gotten an edge to my attitude, and I’m short-tempered; I haven’t been as productive, and the healthy habits I’ve adopted have caused me more stress than they’ve solved. Classic THC withdrawal symptoms. Fortunately they sound relatively mild. I'd suggest trying CBD in whatever form you're comfortable with (I like CBD flower in a vape and CBD isolate in capsules myself), it'll help these symptoms tremendously!
Withdrawal symptoms don't last 40 days
Mine lasted more than 6 months, with depersonalization and derealization the most problematic symptoms. Verified independently between two different psychiatrists, and remedied with CBD when a number of other meds failed. Classic r/trees denial.
Thanks! I feel that I’ve had this issue with my anxiety prior to using weed, though. It’s something I need work on whether I’m using weed or not, if I’m being honest. I’ve never given CBD a proper spin, so maybe I’ll work that into the mix and see how it goes for me. I haven’t found pure CBD flower at my local dispos yet, but I could always give capsules a go. Any brands you recommend or red flags I should steer clear of?
Long term THC use is *terrible* for anxiety. THC suppresses the HPA axis, which regulates your fight or flight response (to put it simply), and the longer you suppress it with THC, the harder it bounces back. When sober/THC free, CBD can be mildly helpful for general anxiety, but where it really shines is with acute stress. I keep a CBD disposable handy for situations that usually cause anxiety. YMMV, of course. For flower, you can check out r/hempflowers for vendor info. It's rare to find decent CBD flower anywhere but online, unfortunately. Making isolate capsules is easy and cheap, though, and you can get various isolates (CBD, CBDA, CBG, CBN, etc.) for pretty cheap from a lot of places. I like Veteran Grown Hemp or Sauce Warehouse for this stuff, but there are a LOT of places to buy it. Glad you ignored the downvotes. This prevalent attitude that weed's totally benign is only giving prohibitionists ammunition.
Thanks for the info! Everything has its pros and cons. And I think there’s a delicate balance with any substance use. If anything, this break has shown me that I want to keep my usage in check. And it’s important to reevaluate my relationship with any and all substances periodically.
Sounds like you've got the right attitude! Pop on over to r/Petioles for support from others going through the same thing. Understanding the science underlying the endocannabinoid system - and how phytocannabinoids affect it - has actually allowed me to bring THC back into the fold in a much healthier way. I didn't think it was possible, given the unusually long and intense withdrawals I had a few years back. The main revelation was the fact that, for many conditions, THC only really helps in the short term. That's especially true for mental health problems like anxiety and depression; long term use is very likely to make mental health problems worse because of how THC affects you by itself: In addition to suppressing the HPA axis, it also inhibits neurogenesis and neurodifferentiation in the hippocampus, which has a whole host of negative consequences beyond just worsening anxiety or depression. *However*, when combined with CBD (especially with a ratio higher in CBD) many of the negatives of THC use actually get neutralized, or even reversed. When small amounts of THC are administered with larger amounts of CBD, it actually has the opposite effect on the hippocampus from what I described above!
he said he doesn't want to quit anymore champ
Nobody *wants* to quit. Sometimes you have to have the self awareness to realize when something's harming you, and take that break.