• CD Moderators: someguyontheinternet
  • Cannabis Discussion Welcome Guest
    Posting Rules Bluelight Rules

Memory troubles

8ft-Sativa

Bluelighter
Joined
Feb 20, 2004
Messages
3,792
Location
NZ
Damn, weed has totally bombed out my memory. . . . . . I think?

Its like this I smoked weed like a true stoner, from early sunrise to sundown and then in the middle off the night even I was always blazed and I mean always.

This continuous cycle went on for about three years, when I was out I would pull out all my draws to look for weed, get down on my hands and knees in hope of finding that elusive bud I think I dropped earlier that week. Whatever you get the idea I was HARDCORE.

Now I have quit like five weeks ago and the thing that’s pissing me off is I can’t remember shit and I mean it, its like I will read an interesting book on something e.g. on spiders/insects and then a few hours later I think to myself what did I learn from that book?

My mind goes blank and it’s like I might off well not have read it because I don’t retain anything. And its really getting me I don’t want to be a dumb ass all my life I want to learn read retain information not for it to just evaporate out of my head.

I smoked from 17-20 years old what sucks about this is my brain was still developing in these three years so that would have permantly retarded it right? My body was quite slow at developing I mean I didn’t get facial hair until I was like 19 and it still isn’t a full beard so its not like my brain would have developed before 17.

Im trying ginkgo tablets but they don’t seem to be doing much I feel real retarded and sometimes struggle to construct a sentence, its all funked up.

So im hoping time will heal though who knows? Anyone have roughly the same experience?
 
Ginko needs 6 weeks to get going i think, i find they are better for mild anxiety and they improve my concentration
 
Damn i have no memory after many days of nitrous parties and ambien induced sleep for years.

I think its just in your head and your being a little sensitive about the memory issue. I have read somewhere that taking breaks off weed usage will get your short term memory back to normal, i hope im right its been a while since i read that article. But really I dont think its much to be concerned about, it wont be permanant.
 
The thing that I have always been told about smoking weed is that if you quit completely, that it will take some time, but all of the negative affects will fade off after long enough. 5 Weeks is not that long compared to the years that you've been smoking. Your body is probably just starting to get used to the lack of THC. You don't need anything like Ginko, just give it some time, the more you exercise your brain, e.g. reading/drawing/basically doing anything that involves creativity or a more concrentrated thought level, the easier it will be to remember things.
 
8ft-Sativa said:
I mean I didn’t get facial hair until I was like 19 and it still isn’t a full beard so its not like my brain would have developed before 17.

That's right , your brain stops growing at around age 21. But facial hair hasn't got anything to do with this. You can't say, hey, that guy hasn't got much or any facial hair, so his brain hasn't stopped developing yet. What about asians? 8(

It has been 5 weeks ago. You were a hardcore stoner as you said yourself. The after effects could sustain for this long. Give it some time. Use supplements, etc.
 
Last edited:
it can take as much as 6 months to fully restore ur memory afta chronic pot use
also ur concentration is probly being distracted easily as a pot wd, which doesnt help u remember things
wen i stop for any long period of time i find my head gets all cluttered wiv distracting thoughts
be patient - uve still got the drug in ur bloodstream
17-20 isnt SO bad, sum ppl start in late primary school
good on u for being strong and facing ur addiction - it takes willpower and guts to do so.....id start worrying if ur still feeling mentally-compromised in 18 months time wiv no weed
hang in there!!
 
I was talking to a bunch of psych majors and premeds last night, and they told me the human brain isn't done developing til' 22. you've gone real hard for 3 years, so your brain was accustomed to having the weed effect and direct all of your brain activity. basically you're gonna have to re-develop ways of remembering things, and the way to do that is pretty much gonna be keep reading and stuff. i'd say another few months of newspaper reading and some exercise and you'll be back to where you were.

keep your head up, man! people have come out of much worse burnout periods.
 
My question is, did you have a better memory when you were baking?

Like others have said, maybe all you need is just a little more time, time to get used to functioning without pot, I'm sure it'll come back to you man.

I have been smoking about the same amount of time as you, fairly heavily, but I haven't experienced much difficulty retaining knowledge, I'd guess it's because I've always been a pretty heavy reader, no matter what substances I'm using at the time. My short term is completely fucked though, I can never remember where I've left something, which is irritating to say the least, but a small price to pay in my opinion
 
The problem could be with how you're defining "good memory." I think it's hard for anyone to read something, wait a few hours, and recite it back. My guess is that if someone asked you a specific question about what you've read, you'd be able to answer the question correctly.
 
Read Edward de Bono's "Lateral Thinking" it may help you devise different methods of actual learning and stroing information. Its not enough to just read something and go "sweet, now I know about spiders and their web formations"- you need to either write about your perceptions of it or put the shit into a practical context, where you actually use the information.

Gingko biloba definitely helps- look into things like lecithin as well, plus mnemonics (sp?) and even speed reading or 'photographing' techniques as well.

I find the memory problems caused by weed are NOTHING compared to the amnesiac qualites of the benzo class of drugs . . . .
 
funks_hybrid said:
I was talking to a bunch of psych majors and premeds last night, and they told me the human brain isn't done developing til' 22. you've gone real hard for 3 years, so your brain was accustomed to having the weed effect and direct all of your brain activity. basically you're gonna have to re-develop ways of remembering things, and the way to do that is pretty much gonna be keep reading and stuff. i'd say another few months of newspaper reading and some exercise and you'll be back to where you were.

keep your head up, man! people have come out of much worse burnout periods.

Just for information's sake, what credible science source would give you the impression that this is the case? Sounds like those psych majors need to brush up a little.

On the molecular scale, smoking weed does not change your genetic code (carcinogenic effects in the lungs is still debated though). Therefore, your brain should continue to develop as directed BY YOUR DNA, even though the repeated stimulation of cannabinoid receptors causes you to attempt to reach homeostasis (somehow causing memory loss and other side effects). This is accomplished by more receptor sites becoming available, and that gives rise to the entire store of tolerance. But in short, the process of your brain needing to balance from the high cannabinoid reflux is not the same as the process directing the development of the brain, which would be DNA. Stimulation of cannabinoid receptors is not known to cause any interactions unfavorable to the brain.
 
i have had this same problem. and same thing with trying to construct a sentence but i thought the temporary speech impedement was due to my ecstasy use. i tried the ginko thing too and did not notice a difference.
 
Well...

All the things about learning and psyche the guys said is true, you'll brain will need time and effort from yourself to learn to store thing again

However, you might want to tackle the physical-neuronal aspect of this first


A bit of reading will tell you that:

Part of marijuana's euphoric properties are from its anti-cholinergic effect on the brain.

Choline is a building bloc of the brain and is necessary to build and retain new memories

Long term usage of pot will mess up your brain choline levels

Therefore, why don't you try to get them back to normal? (Or close to ;) )


Go to any health store and get some Triple Strength, 35% Lecithin, which contains PhosphadilCholine (sp?). Take 2-3 of them morning and night for a few weeks.

Whenever I smoke a lot I take a handful of these before going to sleep, and the brain fog is much better the next day.

Try it, it's great ;)


Of course if you really want to get back in mental shape, get on a higher quality source of Choline (Alpha-GPC), some vitamin B to increase absorbtion and an healthy dosage of piracetam. Do that for the next 3 months, take high doses of Omega 3s, do some memory exercices and then report back :)


Have fun
 
Thanks for all the info, i got some piracetam on the way im been on ginko for two weeks and dont really notice anything yet.

Ill look into that lecithin too, alot of people have said ginko is bunk and theres no studies to back up all those benifets it lists on the back could well be a load of hooplah!
 
Hey man, I'm now 23 and have been smoking since I was 17 also. Pretty much non-stop, and as much as you for a few years (17-20 as well). My memory started to get worse and worse, and one day I realized that it was because I was being mentally lazy. A person needs to execise their mind, and consciously attempt to remember things. It doesn't just happen naturally. For some reason, weed seems to make some people forget this. In the last year, I've started to take nootropic drugs (piracetam, hydergine, and choline), and train myself to be more conscious of my thoughts. And you know what? I've never felt sharper, and I still smoke every day. of course, I have a career job now as well, and I only smoke once or maybe twice in the evenings after work, so decreasing your intake helps, too.

Good luck! It's most likely all in your head... like everything else. Oh, and I see you've considered piracetam. it's nice, but the hydergine has helped me the most. They work wonderfully together as well. Hydergine is more expensive but worth every penny.
 
Xorkoth said:
Hey man, I'm now 23 and have been smoking since I was 17 also. Pretty much non-stop, and as much as you for a few years (17-20 as well). My memory started to get worse and worse, and one day I realized that it was because I was being mentally lazy. A person needs to execise their mind, and consciously attempt to remember things. It doesn't just happen naturally. For some reason, weed seems to make some people forget this. In the last year, I've started to take nootropic drugs (piracetam, hydergine, and choline), and train myself to be more conscious of my thoughts. And you know what? I've never felt sharper, and I still smoke every day. of course, I have a career job now as well, and I only smoke once or maybe twice in the evenings after work, so decreasing your intake helps, too.

Good luck! It's most likely all in your head... like everything else. Oh, and I see you've considered piracetam. it's nice, but the hydergine has helped me the most. They work wonderfully together as well. Hydergine is more expensive but worth every penny.

Hey yeah man ill give it a go, im takeing up drawing too to get the creative cogs in my brain rolling too.
Ill look into that hydergine stuff too, never heard of it but i need all the help i can get.

Melburn, na man i did not even se my doctor for this just ordered it over the net, especially when its like 70 bucks a doctors visit Oucchh!
 
You don't go to a doctor for nootropic drugs. You order them from suppliers. Hydergine is the only one requiring a prescription, but US doctors don't really ever prescribe it except for parkinson's and alzheimer's. Piracetam and the rest are perfectly okay to get without any kind of prescription, as they are unscheduled. Piracetam is extremely cheap especially if you buy6 it in bulk powder. I got mine for $9.99 for 250 grams, and the dosage is around 1 gram at a time.

Nootropics seem to help your mind get back into shape and also stimulate your motivation to do mental work. Probably the most important part of "healing" is to just take responsiblity for working out your brain with creative and logical tasks. Don't get lazy, as weed tends to make you do. You can still smoke and be mentally sharp. I do.

And I wouldn't go to a doctor for nootropic drugs. Doctors in the US usually barely even know what they are, and since they're usually in the pockets of US pharmaceutical companies, they'll mostly just try to prescribe you some sort of antidepressant, because of course, you must be depressed if you're smoking every day. What other reason would there be for it? No need to change your brain chemistry and mess with your emotions unless you're suicidally depressed due to a chemical imbalance.

That's been my experience, at least.
 
Top