Stages of Marijuana Smoking

My best friend is going through the same thing you are. He did smoke a lot of pot in his time, but all of a sudden he quit because he thought it was gonna kill him. Since then, he's become an anti-weed advocate, but we are still friends. The reason he had to quit was not because the ganj was affecting him adversely, but all the propaganda and BS in the media made him scared. He got scared of something harmless, and his mind tricked him into believing that the weed smoking was ruining his life. Beware of misinformation and how much of it you are led to believe.

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by CaptainDank

My best friend is going through the same thing you are. He did smoke a lot of pot in his time, but all of a sudden he quit because he thought it was gonna kill him. Since then, he's become an anti-weed advocate, but we are still friends. The reason he had to quit was not because the ganj was affecting him adversely, but all the propaganda and BS in the media made him scared. He got scared of something harmless, and his mind tricked him into believing that the weed smoking was ruining his life. Beware of misinformation and how much of it you are led to believe.

---

I actually do not think your friend is going through a similar thing at all. He seems to be quitting because of what the government has told him, where I am quitting because of my own observations. Truthfully, I don't take the government seriously at all when they bust out there ridiculous scare tactics.

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by FindingTim

Stages:
1. Began pot experimentation around age 15, yet did not use habitually. Found experience to be life-changing . Even began to appreciate nature.

2. Began to smoke on weekends with friends. Created countless priceless memories.
3. Bought first sack, smoked alone for first time.
4. Continued to buy, began to listen to classic rock, and spent many hours on cannabis.com message boards.
5. Began to question marijuana use only because of potential cancer link, but began to smoke even more after reading numerous studies disproving the marijuana/cancer connection.
6. Hardcore marijuana abuse over summer, sometimes going a week at a time without sobering up. In a brainwashed stupor, attempted to persuade many peers to try smoking.
7. Lots of personal marijuana abuse over next two years, with several month long breaks in between.
8. Began to recognize own smoking as an addiction and a problem, yet began to incorporate smoking into almost any type of activity.
9. Began to realize that marijuana use was negatively affecting almost every aspect of life. Quit for a month several times, vowing to not smoke again for years. Continuously relapsed after a months time with justifications such as: â??itâ??s been long enough,â?� and â??Iâ??ll only use occasionally.â?�
10. Each month long break resulted in a mildly skeptical â??welcome backâ?? smoke, which always led to hardcore, 24/7 pot smoking. Despite realizing that pot no longer provided the epic mental journey of sophomore year, continued to use and abuse.
11. Began to pay close attention to levels of happiness and overall emotions while both stoned and sober. Found that happiness, intellect, and even enjoyment of music all were increased during days that followed pot binges, rather than during.
12. Decided that social abilities, intelligence, and emotions are far too precious to waste by smoking pot.

---

I too have felt these stages, almost exactly lol, but its all about moderation. If i smoke 24/7 my social skills do lack and i am lazy and all that stuff. Its all about moderation.

And some of you guys are being waaaaayyy too harsh to a man just voicing his opinion. Weed affects everyone diferently so just back off and stop trying to dictate people's thoughts.

Sounds to me like you have a real problem with self control, putting any drug into your system on too regular a basis for a long time will change a person (for better, for worse)

it sounds like you developed a psychological addiction to MJ, and you let it take over your life.


be thankful of one thing, if this was Booze, you would be a lot worse off right now, and possibly even dead (people might smirk, but people do drink themselves to death, be it by too much, or intoxication leading to the last wrong choice they will ever make)

MJ isnt the problem, you are- its good your taking positives steps, but remember nobody but you chose to abuse MJ, and if you dont learn self control, you could end up doing a lot more damage

Good luck man

hm essentially the positive and negative affects of marijuana after being used long term are subjective and vary from person to person

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by yhelothar

I think the problem is when you base your activities around smoking weed. I think it should only be secondary to whatever whether it be socializing with friends or whooping your friend's ass in a video game. You shouldn't smoke just to smoke and do nothing. That is addiction.

Marijuana IS addictive if you have an addictive personality. You could have been addicted to alcohol or sleep aids. You could be addicted to anything else too.

Weed shouldn't be your life, it should be a insignificant part of it or a hobby. Growing weed should be considered the same as a gardening hobby, without much to do with weed.

Good for you Tim. It isn't for everyone and you got yourself away from something that was negatively affecting your life. It probably isn't the same for most people, but you are your own person. Life is too short and too big to spend in your basement smoking when there is a whole world out there.

Too much of anything is bad for you, even if it isn't physically bad for you. Think about that for awhile.

---

If I had to relate to anything in this thread it would be that. I found myself always going out to mainly get high with friends but after I was stoned I'd just eat then sleep. I always wantedd to use it just as an enhancement drug but then I found that i started to use it to enhance EVERYTHING so it just became an everyday/all day thing.

And then one day after a week of ssmoking I smoked for the first time and this was the very first time I realized that I've been wasting my life just smoking/eaating/sleeping all day. And from then on the trips would focus on all the negative things about me: no friends because that I'm ugly, that I'm not good enough..etc. All those my insecurities amplified and so the smoking decreased immensely.

I admit I started to get lazy and zombie like day after smoking. I wouldn't dress as nicely or socialize as well as I did sober. I definitely was able to socialize VERY well while high because of all my creative thoughts and the food was great! But for the most part, I thought it changed me personality wise and just whole new me over all.

So, now my mind is clearer, I only do it on special occasions, you know like in moderation, along with drinking. Its not longer a top priority for me in life just a tiny part of it.

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by Breukelen advocaat

I find that the older I get, the less marijuana it takes to have the desired effects. Two ounces a year of high quality stuff, which is about a gram a week, is more than enough to help me every day. Right now I'm doing fine on less. It probably helped to keep me going during the years that I had a chronic medical condition that was misdiagnosed. If this is an "addiction", then so be it.

If you don't like it anymore, then you shouldn't post about it here.

---

Hmmm, two ounces a year/a gram a week... isn't that a bit low?
If possible, I'd do two grams daily.

How much do you smoke per day?

I remember reading a thread similar to this a couple months ago and the person had similar positives/negatives about quitting smoking. I'll see if I can find the thread.

Stop smoking blunts by yourself!

Buy a one-hitter bowl. One hit is all that is needed to activate your cannabinoid receptors.

"Moderation in all things, including moderation"

Secret is, you can't let yourself become addicted. Cannabis is not addictive physically, but mentally, one could become dependent on it. Where there's a will, there's a way, and I agree with LIP when he says a lot of the problems chronic smokers have stem from their tempraments, rather than the weed itself.

However, that's not to say one can blithely go through one's entire life stoned.

My personal feeling is that one should use weed like one would use alcohol: for unwinding after a hard day of work, for partying with friends, and for medicine.

This means a responsible user is sober: at work, at school, when supervising children, when operating heavy machinery, when doing a risky physical activity.

Just my opinion, but I agree with LIP for the most part.