Cannabis psychosis.. Anybody here have it?

[beachguy in thongs]

I think its all weed man.. KB, I feel like I can control that better than other shit. Hmmm, mid-green really fucks me up, Snow White fucked me over, Canadian weed(I did a lot of this) really fucked me up. Just fyi when I say it fucks me up, I mean like the "After effects" of the weed on my body. Like many weeks later. For example depression, anxiety, paranoia, psychosis. But as of yet, its pretty good. I jog a 1 and 1/2 miles everyday (excluding yesterday) and I havent smoked for a month. I feel pretty normal again, though sometimes I do battle depression just a tad.

No, wrong answer. I meant, (LOL), how much do you smoke, at one time? Do you smoke a joint? Half a joint? A bowl? More than a bowl? A blunt?

[beachguy in thongs]

Why teenagers should steer clear of cannabis

* 16:21 05 July 2006

Adolescents' use of marijuana may increase the risk of heroin addiction later in life, a new study suggests. Researchers say the work adds to "overwhelming" evidence that people under 21 should not use marijuana because of the risk of damaging the developing brain.

The idea that smoking cannabis increases the user's chance of going on to take harder drugs such as heroin is highly contentious. Some dub cannabis a â??gatewayâ?� drug, arguing that peer pressure and exposure to drug dealers will tempt users to escalate their drug use. Others insist that smoking cannabis is unrelated to further drug use.

Now research in rats suggests that using marijuana reduces future sensitivity to opioids, which makes people more vulnerable to heroin addiction later in life. It does so by altering the brain chemistry of marijuana users, say the researchers.

â??Adolescents in particular should never take cannabis â?? itâ??s far too risky because the brain areas essential for behaviour and cognitive functioning are still developing and are very sensitive to drug exposure,â?� says Jasmin Hurd, who led the study at the Karolinska Institute in Sweden.

But Hurd acknowledges that most people who use cannabis begin in their teens. A recent survey reported that as many as 20% of 16-year-olds in the US and Europe had illegally used cannabis in the previous month.

"Teenage" rats

In order to explore how the adolescent use of cannabis affects later drug use, Hurd and colleagues set up an experiment in rats aimed to mirror human use as closely as possible.

In the first part of the trial, six â??teenageâ?� rats were given a small dose of THC â?? the active chemical in cannabis â?? every three days between the ages of 28 and 49 days, which is the equivalent of human ages 12 to 18. The amount of THC given was roughly equivalent to a human smoking one joint every three days, Hurd explains. A control group of six rats did not receive THC.

One week after the first part was completed, catheters were inserted in all 12 of the adult rats and they were able to self-administer heroin by pushing a lever.

â??At first, all the rats behaved the same and began to self-administer heroin frequently,â?� says Hurd. â??But after a while, they stabilised their daily intake at a certain level. We saw that the ones that had been on THC as teenagers stabilised their intake at a much higher level than the others â?? they appeared to be less sensitive to the effects of heroin. And this continued throughout their lives.â?�

Hurd says reduced sensitivity to the heroin means the rats take larger doses, which has been shown to increase the risk of addiction.

Drug memory

The researchers then examined specific brain cells in the rats, including the opioid and cannabinoid receptors. They found that the rats that had been given THC during adolescence had a significantly altered opioid system in the area associated with reward and positive emotions. This is also the area linked to addiction.

â??These are very specific changes and they are long-lasting, so the brain may â??rememberâ?? past cannabis experimentation and be vulnerable to harder drugs later in life,â?� Hurd says.

Neurologist Jim van Os, a cannabis expert at the University of Maastricht in the Netherlands told New Scientist the research was a welcome addition to our understanding of how cannabis affects the adolescent brain.

â??The issue of cross-sensitisation of cannabis/opioid receptors has been a controversial one, but these findings show the drugâ??s damaging effects on the reward structures of the brain,â?� van Oshe says. â??There is now overwhelming evidence that nobody in the brainâ??s developmental stage â?? under the age of 21 â?? should use cannabis.â?�

The research appears in the online edition of Neuropsychopharmacology.

http://www.newscientist.com/search.n...query=cannabis

[jamstigator]

If you're younger than 18-ish, I'd be judicious in my cannabis use. Why? Because there have been few, if any, studies done on the longterm effects of heavy cannabis use on a developing (e.g. young) brain. There might very well be some pretty harmful consequences. I don't *think* there is, but since there's no evidence either way, hey, it's your brain, it's YOU, and I'm not sure that getting high at that age is worth the risk.

On the other hand, I started smoking at 15, although not heavily until 18, and I came out more or less okay. This is why I suspect there may be no problems even for a young, developing brain. But still, there *could* be problems associated with heavy cannabis use on a developing brain, and I just happened to dodge that particular bullet. Who knows. You weigh the risks and make your own call; I'm just pointing out that it's not necessarily a totally frivolous decision. But I don't have to live with the consequences of your decisions -- you do.

[beachguy in thongs]

If you're younger than 18-ish, I'd be judicious in my cannabis use. Why? Because there have been few, if any, studies done on the longterm effects of heavy cannabis use on a developing (e.g. young) brain. There might very well be some pretty harmful consequences. I don't *think* there is, but since there's no evidence either way, hey, it's your brain, it's YOU, and I'm not sure that getting high at that age is worth the risk.

On the other hand, I started smoking at 15, although not heavily until 18, and I came out more or less okay. This is why I suspect there may be no problems even for a young, developing brain. But still, there *could* be problems associated with heavy cannabis use on a developing brain, and I just happened to dodge that particular bullet. Who knows. You weigh the risks and make your own call; I'm just pointing out that it's not necessarily a totally frivolous decision. But I don't have to live with the consequences of your decisions -- you do.

Current and former marijuana use: preliminary findings of a longitudinal study of effects on IQ in young adults
Peter Fried, Barbara Watkinson, Deborah James and Robert Gray
http://www.cmaj.ca/cgi/content/abstract/166/7/887

[Mr.N]

When I smoke its usually just 1 g... This was before I quit.. Before I quit it would be 1 g and up.Rarely 2.5 gs, 2 gs around that area beach guy. Then when I finally decided to quit the last few times have been reduced to 1 g. NOW, when I smoked it wasn't a weekly thing. It was like once or twice a month, not in the same week. But give or take 1 or 2 weeks from when I last smoked. So I am what you call a "Light smoker". Hope this helps you guys..

[psychocat]

I think for some it is simply not their thing, I am a heavy smoker I guess.
I smoke on average 6-7 grammes a day every day, have done for 15 years now.

[jamstigator]

6-7 grams a day! Dayum! I did the math, and over 15 years that comes out to 72-84 pounds. When you die, can I have your lungs? I bet I'd get high smoking 'em!

[Mr.N]

Damnnn psychocat, I give it up to you man, thats pretty impressive? No side effects what so ever?

[MelT]

MelT, Thats amazing! It really reminds me of a salvia trip I had. That is a really neat piece of art, the colors and lines blend together really well. Do you have a deviantart account? mines http://doormatt.deviantart.com/

Thanks Stoneberg. I just checked out Deviant and am trying to join now. You've got some nice stuff on there, you do mainly sculpture?

I was a computer games artist for a about 13 years (amiga, PC, etc), I do mainly photo-realistic stuff, a pixel at a time. Here's a link to a (cheap but free) site where I have some bits and pieces - I keep the trippier stuff under wraps :

http://hometown.aol.co.uk/__121b_LTK...r3e7/zPKhNiw==

Melt

[Mr.N]

Hey Melt, I kinda want to get into the videogame buisness. Haven any contacts or any advice to give to me?


Thanks man:thumbsup: