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Is It the Weed???

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LawyerLife

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Sep 4, 2016
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Need help figuring out the cause of my Friend's anxiety. Here is his story:

-Smoked weed for the first time in November of 2012 at the age of 33. He liked it a lot
-Smoked heavily during 2013, usually 2-4 hits from a bong on a fairly regular basis. Usually every other day, but not every single day. Took breaks here and there, sometimes for a week.
-Stress levels from work and rough marriage increased more and more. Went through several episodes of separation from wife, caused him severe stress.
-Started using less and less during 2014, due to weed no longer having same happy effect, and due to not being happy in life. Always the same use, 2-4 hits from a bong.
-Last few months of 2014 barely used weed at all.
-End of 2014, beginning of 2015 did MDMA 9-10 times over 3 months, smoked weed about once a month.
-from March of 2015 to about September of 2015 smoked week about every two weeks.
-September separated from wife, developed severe anxiety and got a little depressed. Used weed once or twice and noticed that it made his anxiety worse.
-from September 2015 to May 2016, used literally once a month, each time needed 3-4 weeks to get over bad anxiety after use.
-Quit on May 8, and has not used since.

The Problem:

-Had no acute withdrawal at all, started Wellbutrin XL 150 in June to ease sadness and anxiety due to separation from wife and work and family stress.
-Felt better and better, but in first week of August developed severe depression and anxiety.
-have been severely anxious ever since, but not as depressed.
-Non stop throughts that he's a failure, that he messed up in life, that he messed up his marriage, that he's not competent and etc.

The Question:

-is he going through PAWS, or did the severe stress from Wife, Work and Family cause him
To develop the severe anxiety?
-He has no cravings for weed or any drug.
-He has no sex drive
-No motivation
-has no pleasure in anything.
-smallest things stress him
-vacation did not help.

What are your opinions? Thanks.
 
Forgot to add: He always used when he was happy, or in a good mood. Rarely used weed when he was sad or to alleviate stress. He does not like to smoke, drink or anything when he's down.
 
Has your friend considered seeing a therapist? Anxiety issues can be dealt with pretty effectively with talking therapies, mindfulness.

I don't think weed is to blame for any of the above. It became a coping mechanism for an underlying anxiety problem, which can make it all worse in turn. I've been guilty of that myself.

Take a break if you need to and re-evaluate.
 
I guess I'm wondering when it becomes an issue of Post Acute withdrawal. I've read that it takes 90 days for THC to clear the body. He was doing very well between May 8 when he last smoked and up until exactly Aug 9 when he literally woke up and felt terrible. It's now been 4 months exactly and he's feeling severe anxiety, dysthymia, lack of motivatation etc etc ... That's why I was suspecting that it was the weed.

But then again, his use really was not all that heavy. Other then in 2013. And even then the 2-4 hits from the bong every few days. I've read that some people smoke literally every single day, round the clock. I can understand if they were to have PAWS. But every brain is different.
 
Is it the cause? Who knows? A marriage breakdown and just a plain shitty life will cause this too.

Is the weed helping? Doesn't appear to. If he takes weeks to recover from smoking weed then he should just avoid it and find something better that agrees with his mental health
 
LawyerLife said:
All these weed smokers and only a few replies. Anyone else ?
Click to expand...

Whoever we're talking about needs to talk their issues through with somebody.


Sounds like weed's exacerbating a pre-existing condition and, if true, your friend needs to find the root cause of his anxiety. My guess? I think it might be a good idea to start here:


LawyerLife said:
-Non stop throughts that he's a failure, that he messed up in life, that he messed up his marriage, that he's not competent and etc.
Click to expand...


That's some fuckin' heavy baggage to carry around 24/7. Eventually, second-guessing every move you've made and constantly reinforcing negative thoughts like ^^those^^ will break a person's mind. The only way out of it is to determine the cause of your anxiety and develop a strategy to overcome it-- and it's so much easier to beat anxiety once you make a conscious effort to understand why and how it effects you.
 
Firstly thanks for being a good person to your friend and at least attempting to help, speaking as someone who acted the same way for several years after some serious family shit went down it seems apparent that his anxiety coupled with the separation have sent him into a deep depression. The best thing you can do is just be there and try to encourage him to go talk to a professional about how he's feeling. He'll likely shoot this idea down and there's no way you can force him to go but it's the best thing for him.

On another note you should also encourage him to stop using marijuana if it's just amplifying his anxiety issues, It doesn't sound like he's dependent so it shouldn't be something too difficult to give up. It is absolutely known to cause anxiety, panic attacks etc.

It'll take time for him to come around, just keep doing what you're doing.
 
Appreciate all the replies.

As many times as I've tried to explain to my friend that it wasn't the marijuana that caused his problems, it doesn't get through. He's convinced that it was the weed that messed up his mind and that it is to blame for all his issues. I've tried to explain that the stress and chaos in his personal life caused him to develop severe anxiety and depression.

I point out to the fact that when he was a happy and content person his weed smoking did not cause him anxiety and did not make him feel bad. He keeps saying that it was the weed that slowly made him the way he is. This despite the fact that he didn't abuse it.

If I can only convince him that the weed was not what did him in, I think he would turn it around. He's so terrified that he messed up his brain from using weed.

He's not doing good. Horrible anxiety, panic attacks, depression, motivation totally gone. His relationship messed him up really bad, he's unable to even go on a date with a chick. Really don't know how he's gonna turn it around.
 
It's just because the weed use began around the same time as the issues and the longer the weed was smoked the worse things got for him. That is how the connection between the two, but it has no basis in reality. Since it is such a regular ritual even at a few bong rips a day, it's easy to point the finger at it rather than look in the mirror. Even if the way he acts on weed causes problems somehow it is still him smokin the weed. If used as an escape it can obvious exacerbate. He'll figure out that it's harmless down the road and probably start thinking of it as one of the safest medicines.
I'd be way more concerned about using Mdma 9 times than smoking any amount of cannabis over multiple lifetimes. 9 times over 3 months is completely insane. If that is recognized as a potential long term concern, there are healthy methods one can look into for healing the serotonin system. If it caused any problems, they would be emotional in nature. Make it harder to deal with shit and more prone to outbursts, depression, stuff like that.

Watch out for your friend, there are things out there a lot stronger than weed to take its place when the weed stops working as an escape and I do not mean Mdma. He went to smoke weed only once a month while doing Mdma. It was a replacement, seeking alternatives. Mdma gets boring quick. Next time it could be clonazepam or oxycodone, something that is highly addictive and not just brain damaging like that ecstasy is. Could even be hustled to him by a doctor. Some of those drugs can even seem more subtle and less intrusive than cannabis at first and likely if given access to a xanax or oxy he would likely start a habit at this point, thinking he is better off than with the weed losing interest in it. At least your friend isn't addict to opiates or benzos? It's people like this who are exactly prone to those types of drug problems. Go to the hospital for a panic attack you get a xanax it starts from there

Someone really needs to knock it into his mind that the cannabis was being subconsciously used as a medicine, and that pretty much any other drugs is gonna leave him worse for wear. Maybe it has to be himself but hopefully there can be prevention. I'd stick with the weed and chill the fuck out, in fact I'd smoke even more than 2 to 4 bong rips. That is a pussy amount for someone with problems and tolerance to the anxiety happens quick, but not the antidepressant effect. Why not increase that to 30 bong rips a day or start on hash cause it sounds like a little something could help get over that shitty relationship (women drive me bananas) and it keeps people away from other drugs when their attention is on pot. That is my biggest concern I see, that guy getting addicted to benzos or opiates down the road. All it would take is trying them and for a little while he would probably seem way better off and happier, but would really be worse.

Definitely sounds like therapy is needed but hey I need it too and I am here smokin weed on percocet with no appointments booked. To me it sounds like those problems had been there for a while and weed was masking them, but eventually the problems surfaced because you can't deny the truth forever, and also because of drug tolerance. If drugs are going to be used for that weed sounds perfect for it so it's really no wonder. Panic attacks are a big deal, and my panic disorder came out right at the start of me quitting pot for 3 years. Really I had similar issues but my stress came from chronic back pain. Wish I had never stopped weed looking back as I thought the same... that it was a problem. Only quitting for an extended period of time made me realize it was harmless and in fact a benefit. Now I am not split over my weed use. I am a pothead.
 
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It seems to me that your friend has become anxious/depressed because of his relationship issues with his wife, not because weed messed him up somehow. The fact that he used to enjoy smoking only solidifies this point. It's important to remember that weed can be like a psychedelic, albeit a minor one. If he's going through severe depression, it makes sense that weed is exacerbating it. I agree with everyone who said he should try seeing a therapist. It almost sounds stupid, pointless, and not worth the money to people who've never seen one, but if you remain open to the idea you'll be surprised by how much it can help you.
 
A lot of people stop using marijuana due to anxiety. I have my medical card and use it fairly frequently, in the evenings most days after work, and I definitely get anxiety sometimes. I find that moderating usage (both in terms of amount used and frequency of use), making sure to be active and healthy, and not being in a bad state of mind are all very effective to prevent the negative side effects. If someone is depressed and marijuana makes them feel worse (as it has to me at times), I recommend taking a break.
 
i think the period of mdma abuse which was very excessive is the most damaging thing in this story.....regular mdma use will definitely cause one to be stressed and easily saddened or blow things out of proportion that would normally not be such a big deal
 
One Thousand Words said:
Is it the cause? Who knows? A marriage breakdown and just a plain shitty life will cause this too.

Is the weed helping? Doesn't appear to. If he takes weeks to recover from smoking weed then he should just avoid it and find something better that agrees with his mental health
Click to expand...
This. Weed probably is not the cause but if its not helping his state of mind why smoke it? Its not for everybody or a cure all substance. My advice try exercising in the outdoors.
 
Weed has kicked up my anxiety before, but mostly after long periods of abstinence and only till i got used to it again. I blame the Wellbutrin side effects, 100%.
 
LawyerLife said:
-End of 2014, beginning of 2015 did MDMA 9-10 times over 3 months, .
Click to expand...
The thing that stood out to me was his heavy MDMA use. It is said that you should only use MDMA once every 3 months (in order to let your serotonin levels recover), not 9-10 times over the same time period. That may have had a severe effect on his serotonin levels, which ultimately may be a factor in the problems he is facing now.
 
UPDATE -

My friend managed to turn the corner, and felt better up until the first week of last month. Then he decided to test himself and see if he can smoke weed again. So he smoked Indica almost every day for 2 weeks straight. Predictably, his depression is back.

I'm so pissed off at him, he was clean for 5+ months. He said he wanted to get to the bottom of what was causing his problems. And sure enough we are back at square one. His anxiety is not back, but he's depressed. Now he knows he's done.

How long until he feels better guys? How many of you have relapsed just a little but went back to not smoking?
 
It's not the weed man. Maybe you will feel better once you confront your issues instead of running away from them with bong rips (nice job writing in 3rd person by the way).

And who gets angry at someone for 'relapsing' on weed apart from misinformed parents who would rather their children chug gallons of booze. Do you know what a real addiction is like? When you relapse, it's a death risk and every day is a fight. I would call this a person choosing to smoke more weed, no offense it's just not a real addiction nor does it cause or even exacerbate mental health issues at all. It is completely, and utterly harmless apart from the time people possibly waste giggling stoned a little too often, and the money that people waste on getting ripped off by an exponentially overpriced vegetable.
 
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