This is an argument that I have encountered many times in regards to marijuana and one I myself use to use when I had a marijuana habit, in order to convince myself it was ok. You know the one, alcohol is worse, tobacco is worse, etc. Well worse in what way? If you’re talking about permanent damage to the lungs, alcohol is not worse than marijuana for that and if you’re talking about short term memory loss and brain damage, then tobacco isn’t worse than marijuana in that respect either. If you’re talking about mental health problems then tobacco and alcohol aren’t necessarily worse than marijuana. I have never heard of anyone’s mental health problems being triggered or made worse by smoking cigarettes. So when people start saying that this drug is worse than that, it’s a bit of a silly argument because different drugs affect the human body in different ways. When you start saying which is “worse”, I think you have to ask yourself the question worse for what? Not only that but different drugs affect different people in different ways, for someone with a vulnerability or predisposition to mental health problems, smoking marijuana can be worse for their mental health than taking heroin. And before I get all the pro marijuana Rottweiler’s jump all over me crying “he said marijuana was worse than heroin” let’s burn him, well for certain peoples mental health it can be. So before you go convincing yourself of which drug is “worse”, just ask yourself worse for what. The all have their risks and side effects, even if they are different and one type of drug may be worse for a certain individual than another. So you can’t always really say that this or that drug is worse for everybody, because it isn’t always the case.
And for the record please don’t take this as me defending alcohol, tobacco or any other drug, either legal or illegal in comparison to marijuana, that’s not the purpose of this post. All I am saying is that all drugs can have different potential side effects and the only reason I am making this post is because there are some who believe that marijuana, is the exception to the rule and has no negative side effects. Which from firsthand experience I know isn’t the case.
Anyway the whole argument of which is worse than what, is a bit irrelevant when considering the negative effects of marijuana anyway, maybe there are other drugs that are worse for certain things, that doesn’t make marijuana any less harmful. Maybe smoking cigarettes is worse for the lungs than smoking marijuana, although there is plenty of evidence to say that it’s not, but let’s for arguments sake say they are, that doesn’t mean marijuana isn’t bad for the lungs too, it doesn’t make the negative effects marijuana has on the lungs any less worse.
Maybe it’s worse to get hit by a truck than a car, you still don’t want to get hit by a car. Can you see how irrelevant the “that’s worse” argument really is. Two wrongs don’t make a right.
I run a forum that offers advice and support to those who are trying to quit marijuana. To speak to others who are there, or have been there visit the Marijuana Addiction Forum.
Tuesday 27 January 2009
How to quit smoking marijuana
There are plenty of reasons you may want to quit marijuana, but allot of people find it difficult to achieve. So here’s a list of tips and strategies for quitting marijuana, that I found helpful in overcoming my marijuana addiction.
- Firstly I would consider are there any underlying reasons for why you are using drugs? If you are self medicating for either physical or emotional reasons, you may need to take action and even seek specialist professional help to treat the underlying problem.
- Then I would consider how you are going to quit, are you capable of doing it by yourself, or do you need a support group or professional treatment or rehab.If you chose not to go for professional treatment or rehab, then I would consider doing the following in order to maximize your chances of quitting.
- You need to decide the method you are going use to quit, are you going to gradually reduce the amount you smoke or go cold turkey? Personally I would advise gradually reducing the amount you smoke, as you hit the ground with much less of a thud, suffering less withdrawal symptoms like anxiety and depression, and providing you are able to measure out and stick to reducing the amount you smoke, from what I have read are more likely to succeed this way. I would advise that you do this over a six to eight week period. The option of going cold turkey will get you clean faster, providing you can stick to it and may be better for some, particularly if you have got to the stage where it causes you more distress to smoke than not, this may be especially true for those having a marijuana related mental health crisis. So different things work best for different people, but most will probably find gradually tapering off less stressful and easier to achieve. It’s a personal decision that everybody has to make for themselves based on their situation and what they feel is best for them, but gradually reducing the amount you smoke before you quit, is what I would advise for most.
- Distracting yourself with other things that your enjoy is vital if you are to succeed in quitting, these can include sport, exercise, hobbies, entertainment, books, DVDs, etc. I would say that it’s crucial that you do something that involves some kind of exercise, as your body is really going to be in need of those feel good endorphins it will release.- Avoid people who smoke dope, if you are going to succeed the last thing you want is to be around others, who are constantly putting temptation in front of you. This is one of the golden rules of giving up any drug.
- Limit your intake of caffeine, start reducing your consumption about 3 weeks before you stop smoking cannabis, this will help reduce symptoms like anxiety and heart palpitations.
- Consume lot's of complex carbs, drink lots of real fruit juices.
- Eat healthily, lots of vegetables and salad, maybe supplement your diet with vitamin and mineral tablets. The right diet will really help your body cope better.
- Continue to smoke tobacco if you mix it in with your marijuana, deal with one addiction at a time. If you want to quit tobacco as well do so either before you quit dope or after.
- Whenever you feel the like you are going to crack, try to focus on the reasons why you want to quit. Write yourself a list of all the reasons you can think of why you want to quit and whenever you feel the need read the list.
- Make a list of the top ten or twenty people that are the most important to you, or who you respect the most. Tell them why you want to quit and make a promise to them of when you will quit by, this will give you extra motivation as if you continue to use after that date, you will feel as if you are letting them down.
- Try to establish a connection with people who understand why you feel the need to quit. Establish a support network both online and offline.
- Once you have got to the stage where you have decided that you are not going to smoke anymore cannabis, get rid of all your smoking paraphernalia and equipment, delete or get rid of all your dealers numbers and definitely get rid of any dope you have already got.
- Identify triggers that cause you to smoke, try to avoid those triggers.
- Give yourself a treat for your achievements.
- Organise as much as possible before hand, particularly anything that might cause you upset or stress. Have your house clean, bills paid, do all you can to make it as stress free as possible, don’t expect to get to achieve too much else while you kick the habit, that is the achievement. Take time to accomplish it.
- Try to maintain a positive mental attitude, this is going to be a difficult mental battle and positive thinking will make all the difference. Remember whether you think you can or you can’t, you are probably right.
I run a forum that offers advice and support to those who are trying to quit marijuana. To speak to others who are there, or have been there visit the Cannabis Addiction Forum.
- Firstly I would consider are there any underlying reasons for why you are using drugs? If you are self medicating for either physical or emotional reasons, you may need to take action and even seek specialist professional help to treat the underlying problem.
- Then I would consider how you are going to quit, are you capable of doing it by yourself, or do you need a support group or professional treatment or rehab.If you chose not to go for professional treatment or rehab, then I would consider doing the following in order to maximize your chances of quitting.
- You need to decide the method you are going use to quit, are you going to gradually reduce the amount you smoke or go cold turkey? Personally I would advise gradually reducing the amount you smoke, as you hit the ground with much less of a thud, suffering less withdrawal symptoms like anxiety and depression, and providing you are able to measure out and stick to reducing the amount you smoke, from what I have read are more likely to succeed this way. I would advise that you do this over a six to eight week period. The option of going cold turkey will get you clean faster, providing you can stick to it and may be better for some, particularly if you have got to the stage where it causes you more distress to smoke than not, this may be especially true for those having a marijuana related mental health crisis. So different things work best for different people, but most will probably find gradually tapering off less stressful and easier to achieve. It’s a personal decision that everybody has to make for themselves based on their situation and what they feel is best for them, but gradually reducing the amount you smoke before you quit, is what I would advise for most.
- Distracting yourself with other things that your enjoy is vital if you are to succeed in quitting, these can include sport, exercise, hobbies, entertainment, books, DVDs, etc. I would say that it’s crucial that you do something that involves some kind of exercise, as your body is really going to be in need of those feel good endorphins it will release.- Avoid people who smoke dope, if you are going to succeed the last thing you want is to be around others, who are constantly putting temptation in front of you. This is one of the golden rules of giving up any drug.
- Limit your intake of caffeine, start reducing your consumption about 3 weeks before you stop smoking cannabis, this will help reduce symptoms like anxiety and heart palpitations.
- Consume lot's of complex carbs, drink lots of real fruit juices.
- Eat healthily, lots of vegetables and salad, maybe supplement your diet with vitamin and mineral tablets. The right diet will really help your body cope better.
- Continue to smoke tobacco if you mix it in with your marijuana, deal with one addiction at a time. If you want to quit tobacco as well do so either before you quit dope or after.
- Whenever you feel the like you are going to crack, try to focus on the reasons why you want to quit. Write yourself a list of all the reasons you can think of why you want to quit and whenever you feel the need read the list.
- Make a list of the top ten or twenty people that are the most important to you, or who you respect the most. Tell them why you want to quit and make a promise to them of when you will quit by, this will give you extra motivation as if you continue to use after that date, you will feel as if you are letting them down.
- Try to establish a connection with people who understand why you feel the need to quit. Establish a support network both online and offline.
- Once you have got to the stage where you have decided that you are not going to smoke anymore cannabis, get rid of all your smoking paraphernalia and equipment, delete or get rid of all your dealers numbers and definitely get rid of any dope you have already got.
- Identify triggers that cause you to smoke, try to avoid those triggers.
- Give yourself a treat for your achievements.
- Organise as much as possible before hand, particularly anything that might cause you upset or stress. Have your house clean, bills paid, do all you can to make it as stress free as possible, don’t expect to get to achieve too much else while you kick the habit, that is the achievement. Take time to accomplish it.
- Try to maintain a positive mental attitude, this is going to be a difficult mental battle and positive thinking will make all the difference. Remember whether you think you can or you can’t, you are probably right.
I run a forum that offers advice and support to those who are trying to quit marijuana. To speak to others who are there, or have been there visit the Cannabis Addiction Forum.
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