As well-intentioned as I'm sure Oblio's advice was about following my unintentional example of waiting to smoke till I was out of high school, I truly think everyone has to follow his/her own heart. I'm certainly not intending or wanting to be a mentor to anyone other than my own son. Heck, that only works about a quarter of the time anyway since he already knows all there is to know in life!

The truth is I waited till I was out of high school and into college to smoke because college was when I was first introduced to it, not because of any conscious choice to wait. I might well have smoked earlier if the opportunity had presented itself. My instinct tells me that under ideal circumstances, 17 or 18 is probably about the right time for most people to try weed. But my time here has also made me believe there are younger people who try it and can use responsibly, too. I see this in the way they relate moderate use and also in the way they interact with other board members courteously and maturely.

All this is a long way of saying, Maddy, that you need to make this decision on your own. If you're scholarly and conscious about grades, and if you worry that this may affect your intellect, memory or motivation, that'd be a consideration toward waiting. If you believe you're able to try it and, if you like it, use it moderately and in a way that doesn't interfere with your life, that'd be a consideration toward taking your first toke. If you're a bit of a risk-taker and your gut tells you this is likely to be the first step on a long line of experimentation with various psychoactive substances, some of which might potentially get out of control, that to me would be something to hesitate about.

One big consideration that a lot of youngsters don't think about is whether or not you're ready to accept any negative consequences that may arise from marijuana use. If you got busted by your parents or, say, police, are you ready to accept that responsibility and deal with the falllout? If you go to a party and get high with friends and then, say, have a wreck while you're under the influence, would you be ready to deal with that? Or if you had sex with someone while you were high, would you be prepared to deal with those consequences? These aren't meant to scare you as much as be realistic questions about some of the things that can happen to youngsters who use weed or alcohol. Whatever you do, Maddy, I wish you the best of luck!
birdgirl73 Reviewed by birdgirl73 on . Tempted to try smoking weed... Hello there, I don't drink alcohol as i am recovering from an illness and i have never smoked a cigarette in my life. However, i have always been intrigued with what weed can do for you. I am quite nervous about trying it as i don't know what to expect, any first time experiences would help me alot. Also, i'm worried about it making me feel badly sick, i don't want to smoke it with tobacco at all, so what would your best method be and how much would you suggest to try? Also, how long Rating: 5