Daily use -->Tolerance break--> What now?

[Jabberwocky]

Hi.

I'll be facing a tolerance break soon, most likely lasting 2-3 months.
I'm a daily user, vaping between 0.2-0.4 grams of dried bud a day. It's not the most potent weed in the world but it's pretty good.
I have been a regular user for 10 years. Out of those 10 years, I quess 5 years are daily use, 3-4 is "now and then" or on/off daily use and the last 1-2 years would be tolerance breaks.

I'm one of those people who get pretty serious withdrawal symptoms from Cannabis. Low stress threshold, easier to get angry, insomnia (with severe night sweats and multiple awakings), low appetite, severe restlessness and so on, lasting for about 2 weeks.

Once I'm done with the tolerance break, I will try to become an "every now and then" user and see how that might fit me.
Only problem is that I know from experience that this can be hard for me to pull off because it doesn't take much use to get some minor withdrawal symptoms once again.

For example, I had this 2 month tolerance break once and then it was done I smoked for a few days (3 or 4). On the first and second day after this "binge" I had trouble sleeping again and it was pretty clear to me that it was due to Cannabis withdrawal.

So I would like to hear from someone who has been in a similar situation. One who used to be a daily user and then switched to using regularly but not daily.
How often could you consume Cannabis without getting any withdrawal symptoms on the off days? Could you use for 2+ days in a row or did you need to keep at least 1 day between every session?

Educated guesses are welcome too

 

[jamielovesmary]

hey bruddah i use to smoke daily like at least 3.5 grams a day but i got kicked out my house i was homeless for a month but i still got smoked everyday then i got into some trouble i had to move from my town to a new region cause my surrety who bailed me lives in a different region i sometimes go back up to my town and smoke i get EXTREMELY high almost uncomfortably high but when i come back down i have no connects/dont want to smoke without my fam ( close close friends ) on the first 2 days i experience lack of motivation just because all i think about is smoking its a little harder to fall asleep than ushal but i find after the first 3 days its really not that hard its all in your mind ( mind over matter ) sorry for spelling errors but this isn't English class so idgaf

 

[thujone]

Yeah I'm the same way; all or nothing with no chance of occasional use. To deal with restlessness I drink lemon balm tea at night to help me sleep, I find it to be as effective as a mild benzo but without effects carrying on into the morning. To deal with the extra anxiety through the day it helps to cut out coffee and drink green tea and chamomile instead. Herbal teas can be pretty potent at the right dose, they definitely save me on those first few days into a break.

Should also add that keeping it to a once-a-day activity can prevent tolerance from building up at all...

 

[Jabberwocky]

Hi JLM

I don't mind spelling errors at all as long as I'm able to understand you. Which I am. You didn't mention how long your binges are though, which is of the utmost importance here. You said that you do get minor withdrawals for a few days when you don't smoke after a binge but how long of a binge are we talking? Are you still using around 3,5 grams on these days?


Thujone

Just to be clear. What your saying is that in your case occasional use is off the table, so instead you smoke everyday with regular tolerance breaks?

I strongly disagree with your statement regarding tolerance which I find somewhat misleading. I mean, if one already has a tolerance and starts using, lets say, 0.2 grams of bud once a day, when the tolerance development would be very slow but I doubt that it will be nonexistent. While you might not notice it the first, say, 6 months, you might after 2-3 years.
Also, consider this. If a person who never tried Cannabis before were to start using a small amount, only once every single day, I would bet that the person in question would notice some tolerance development within the first week. After a couple of months of "once a day daily use" I'm pretty sure that the amount that used to get this person extremely high just wouldn't do the same anymore.

I think there is some truth to your statement though. As mentioned in my first post, I use daily but an amount which most would agree is in the low end of the scale (200-400 mg dried bud) and the tolerance development is very very slow. Extremely slow actually - but it's there if you examine the situation close enough. That's just me though.


I'm kind of surprised that this thread is getting so little attention. I would have thought that this would be something that most tokers would have some experience with at some point in their life.

 

[thujone]

Dunno, can't say I've ever gone more than two years without taking a break. When I was smoking the withdrawals were tougher because it was a higher tolerance but ever since I switched to vaping a decade ago I have mostly been satisfied with just filling the crucible halfway. Tolerance still builds up from toking more than once a day, and just having the usual amount packs more of a punch after a clean day, but it overall seems to plateau instead of just escalating. Basically, ever since I have been vaping I never felt like I needed to take a longer break to get back to normal so I only do that when circumstances require it (like when travelling out of the country). Everyone's different ofc but it seems like the top two options in this scenario are either to toke heavily and deal occasionally with tough tolerance breaks or scale back at the first sign of increased tolerance and possibly avoid having to take a real break at all.

 

[Egzoset]

Salutations SourTulip,

...it doesn't take much use to get some minor withdrawal symptoms once again.

Withdrawal symptoms??

I'm wondering, have you considered alternate methods of consumption besides smoking?...

Vaporisation using a bag as with the Volcano provides a lot of control over dosage, though one ends up using the whole bag anyway!

My HerbalAire has a faily devastating effect so i much prefer the feeling and ritual of a moddified vaporizing pipe.

You've got plenty, use it wisely instead!

Personally i think it's roller-coaster features that cause marginal symptoms. The T-Break period is no fun. With a toking method broken down into proper "packets" you could attempt to acquire proper control over your consumption profile. For example, 1 of my pipe bowls is 125 mg and i can obtain an average of 5 ~ 7 tokes depending how i perform as an manual operator... Because the pipe is pretty much similar to a musical instrument. Euh... In any case, the pipe requires pre-heating as it is but who knows what's the next trend on the near-future vape market! Well, man existing items are much preferable to smoking today. I can tell this much.

Forget joints, explore more finely! Using bags if you must! At 1st. Then some serious vaping shall await for a pleasant journey, riding the tolerance line, gently... Avoiding to trip over that line, ideally. Every once in a while it's not forbiden by religion to take a break off cannabis and resume course only a couple days after a pause. It happens sometimes, guys get busy, etc. In the end you could be happy using as little as a couple pipe bowls on weekday nights, to ease with sleep as needed.

I'm writing all this because what i'm suggesting is that perhaps there's a slim possibility your consumption method has some influence on the outcome. If so why not explore other options?...

Good day, have fun!!

 

[Jabberwocky]

Hi Egzoset

Yeah, withdrawal symptoms like night sweats and multiple awakenings, lower stress/anger threshold, decreased appetite, warm uncomfortable rushed (hard to describe) and stuff like that.

Actually, I don't smoke. I just use the word 'smoking' instead of 'vaping' sometimes, better stop doing that.
I got the Volcano and a MFLB.
I wouldn't say that the Volcano has good dosage control though, I actually see this as being it's weak spot. Because it doesn't work that great with very small dosages and as you said, once the bag is filled it will most likely be emtied soon there after. If I were to take small puffs often throughout a session, the volcano would suck. I would have to warm it up-turn it off-warm it up again, all the time to fill half a bag or so every time. The MFLB does a much better job when consuming in this manner. On the other hand, the Volcano is great when I want to get high and not just a little buzz since it's possible to vape a rather large dose in a short amout of time if needed.

 

[Egzoset]

Salutations SourTulip,

Yeah, withdrawal symptoms like night sweats and multiple awakenings, lower stress/anger threshold, decreased appetite, warm uncomfortable rushed (hard to describe) and stuff like that.

Oh, the thing is i keep remembering this old film when i read about "withdrawal symptoms":

BL: The portion of population having issues with cannabis alone? (2014-Nov-3)​

I got the Volcano and a MFLB.

That's not without similarities to my HA vs VG duo: one deep & slow while the other feels conveniently quick & pleasant.

So i might be tempted to argue your bags are too intense and this makes you flirt with high-tolerance too often i'll bet.

At least i can tell my HA has some destructive aspect when compared to the pipe scenario.

Good day, have fun!!