Australia needs to take marijuana addiction more seriously, experts say

[poledriver]

Australia needs to take marijuana addiction more seriously, experts say

THERE’S a secret addiction sweeping across Australia and we aren’t hearing about it.
We all know the damaging effects of the monster drug ice and other hard narcotics, but what about the substances that are a little easier to get and widely spread?

Marijuana is not something you often associate with the word “addiction” or consider it to be dangerous, but many people are hooked on the drug and it’s a problem experts say we need to take more seriously.
A National Epidemiological Study of Alcohol Use and Related Disorders found adults who smoked marijuana were more likely than non-users to also abuse alcohol.
According to the National Institute on Drug Abuse, marijuana use is also linked to other addictions like nicotine.

In 2010 National Cannabis Prevention Information Centre director, Professor Jan Copeland, said about 750,000 Australians were smoking cannabis every week and about 70 per cent of people aged between 20 and 29 had at least tried it.

Sydney’s Jason Hameister had this secret addiction and nobody knew — not even he realised how dependent he was on the drug.
He had smoked cannabis for more than 20 years and at the height of his addiction, he could smoke up to 50 cones a day.
Despite hiding it from those closest to him, he never really thought it was a problem.

Cont -

http://www.news.com.au/lifestyle/he...y/news-story/ec21613465beea12591b3b951ab563a4

 

[One Thousand Words]

The sorry state of Australia's garden hoses is serious business

 

[poledriver]

It sure is.

NSFW:

 

[ro4eva]

A National Epidemiological Study of Alcohol Use and Related Disorders found adults who smoked marijuana abused alcohol were more likely than non-users to also abuse alcohol smoke marijuana.

Fixed?

 

[manboychef]

There are so many more problems that need to be taken seriously before this even comes up.

 

[neversickanymore]

^ this

 

[szuko000]

The one thing i dont understand is how people can just allow themselves to over abuse something and believe its not an issue. This is a matter of personal responsibility, much like alcohol. Why is it that if you drink a bottle of vodka a day your more likely to believe you have a problem then if you "can smoke 50 cones a day?" I get upset when i go through 2+g in of weed a day and it barely costs me anything, its more like "why do i feel the need to smoke this much?"

I agree with chef though

 

[poledriver]

yeah there are many people who do get way too deep into just getting stoned all their waking life, and for family or friends who see this they do get worried and know it's not the best for the person. Similar to as szuko mentioned about drinking a bottle of vodka a day. Although the bottle of vodka sounds a lot more dangerous to me than using weed all day.

Both would mean I would be unable to do nearly as much as I do. And my decisions would not be alert ones etc.

I guess cannabis addiction can be pretty serious for some people. Although not deadly it can be quite negative when constantly abused.

 

[ro4eva]

The one thing i dont understand is how people can just allow themselves to over abuse something and believe its not an issue. This is a matter of personal responsibility, much like alcohol. Why is it that if you drink a bottle of vodka a day your more likely to believe you have a problem then if you "can smoke 50 cones a day?" I get upset when i go through 2+g in of weed a day and it barely costs me anything, its more like "why do i feel the need to smoke this much?"

I agree with chef though

All I know for certain is, that when I was at my lowest point with respect to addiction, I'd be in complete denial whenever a loved one respectfully stated that I have a problem. And it was common for me to become angry as well if they wouldn't leave me be. And I see the same behavior in others who are dealing with addiction.

Why is it so difficult to acknowledge? That's a good question. Pride is definitely a factor (at least in my case). Another is likely due to fear of the consequences (which could do some serious damage on top of the habit), since our abstinence-based, harm reduction-refuting war on (certain/some) drugs has resulted in addicts facing some pretty nasty stigmatization and whatnot.

Nevertheless, I sincerely wish I had the courage to admit far earlier that the drug in question was in control of my life, and not the other way around (which is what I was pretending before it became obvious that I was full of shit).

I had to hit rock bottom to wake up basically. I also nearly killed myself on multiple occasions in the process, so there's that.

P.S: I want to be clear that I am not trying to judge anyone reading this who is dealing with a drug addiction. On the contrary, my acceptance and empathy for you and your situation increases, because I'm certain you're dealing with enough shit in your life, and I refuse to needlessly add to that a metaphorical slap in the face when you could use a helping hand instead. And I wish western culture in general felt the same way as I, but unfortunately, it's a work in progress (one which I'm trying to contribute to).

 

[szuko000]

Probably has to do with self view largely as i always monitor my intake of anything, even caffeine i calculate down to an approximate milligram amount in my system. I never allowed myself the idea that i didnt know what i was doing. I did watch it all escalate from doing 1 30mg oxy to shooting up a bundle a day and smoking crack but my point is I always knew it was a problem. I always came clean about my additions to family before they knew and accepted them as personal faults that I needed to work on.

Your probably right though... i just literally couldnt see myself repeating the same action 50 times a day and not going "i repeat this action a lot perhaps something needs correcting" lol

Believe me I dont mean to come off as uncaring as I have been there and hold nothing but empathy for people who went through addiction. I guess I just always skipped the first step

 

[ro4eva]

Probably has to do with self view largely as i always monitor my intake of anything, even caffeine i calculate down to an approximate milligram amount in my system. I never allowed myself the idea that i didnt know what i was doing. I did watch it all escalate from doing 1 30mg oxy to shooting up a bundle a day and smoking crack but my point is I always knew it was a problem. I always came clean about my additions to family before they knew and accepted them as personal faults that I needed to work on.

That's such a good point - one which severely affected me and cannot be understated.

As a result of (among other things) sexual assault, domestic violence, protracted bullying as well as fundamentally-religious underpinnings, I regretfully reached adulthood with an awfully low level of self-esteem back in the day, and looking at myself through a mirror consistently yielded a warped representation of my body. And unfortunately, it was nearly impossible to ignore (to not be affected by it) whenever I was sober and trying to socialize.

I really wanted to fit in and be accepted by others whom I admired, but the immense awkwardness of my personality when not intoxicated certainly didn't help (if anything, it undermined my efforts). However, when under the influence (preferably a euphoric stimulant), I quickly realized that I was a completely different person in terms of confidence and contentment.

For once, I was desired by others - both in a friendly and sexual context. It was a novel and unique feeling, and it felt amazing. This is precisely why it was so difficult for me to stop getting high.

As my tolerance grew, I became reckless at the expense of my acute and long term health, and I very nearly paid the ultimate price on multiple occasions.

Oh well, what can ya do other than move on right? Doesn't help to ruminate, which is probably my cue to shut the fuck up about my past, LOL.

Your probably right though... i just literally couldnt see myself repeating the same action 50 times a day and not going "i repeat this action a lot perhaps something needs correcting" lol

Believe me I dont mean to come off as uncaring as I have been there and hold nothing but empathy for people who went through addiction. I guess I just always skipped the first step

You totally didn't come off as offensive in my opinion

And I have absolutely no doubt that, having personally been through it, you of all people have a level of empathy and understanding about such things that would undoubtedly make all the difference in the world if the same were true for our politicians and law enforcing bureaucrats.

For that reason, I've always thought about how differently western drug policy would have turned out if all the so called drug warriors and prohibitionists intimately knew what an addiction to one or more controlled substances entails (and the amount of crap many addicts have to deal with on a daily basis - all the baggage incurred over time).

 

[JessFR]

70% of 20-29 year olds in Australia have tried pot? If that's true I'm amazed. Unfortunately a lot of people when they get older become hypocritical sellouts and find a rationalization to prohibit what they themselves tried.

We all know the damaging effects of the monster drug ice and other hard narcotics

Agh! I give up. Everytime I see someone use the word narcotic and it's not using the dictionary definition of 'sleep inducing' substance it infuriates me. What does their idea of narcotic mean? It seems to just mean 'illegal drug' and nothing else. Ignorant clowns.

what about the substances that are a little easier to get and widely spread?

I really wouldn't call ice, marijuana, or heroin particularly hard to get. But whatever...

As a result of (among other things) sexual assault, domestic violence, protracted bullying as well as fundamentally-religious underpinnings, I regretfully reached adulthood with an awfully low level of self-esteem back in the day

I sadly know exactly what that's like (except for the religious part), I'm sorry to hear that. I didn't have as much trouble interacting with people but had a lot of trouble with emotional pain and trauma. Probably why I wound up using heroin to help cope. I hope your self esteem has improved since then. *hugs*