Marijuana as an anti-depressent

So i woke up this morning feeling pretty crappy about a number of things. You know that awful sinking feeling you can get sometimes in the pit of your stomach when you even think about leaving the house? when you think about how much stuff there is do to just looming ahead, but not enough will to do it. I tend to go through phases where, for about a week or so i just can't lift myself out of bed and i find fault in everything in my life and things generally just seem 'too difficult'.
By nature I'm a pretty moody person, not only do my moods change quite regularly, they tend to be all consuming and I often take them out on (or inflict them upon) the people who are closest to me, even when they have nothing to do with the mood itself.
And when i say all consuming, I mean my whole body, mind and the way I react to situations are effected and as hard as I try to lift myself from the mood (if it be a shitty mood, sad, stressed whatever)it just won't happen. This gets pretty annoying when there's i really don't want to be in that mood, but there's nothing i can do, like i have no control over it at all.
HOWEVER, i have found something that brings me out of it, helps me think things through and realise if i'm being unreasonable (i can almost step back and separate myself from the things that are upsetting me and take an outsiders view and ask myself advice, after all, who knows me better than me?) and generally puts me in a much lighter frame of mind.
Pot. It never ever fails, and there are several people (my closest friends) who will back me up when I say that if i am in a shitty or depressed frame of mind, a small cone is all i need to lighten up. Now i hear you all say STOP! you're using it as a crutch blah di blah - and yes, i've thought that through - i definitely do think i've come to rely on it as an instant mood enhancer, however I don't think its in vain at all. I have come to some major realisations about mself and my behaviour and the way i deal with things and treat people sometimes. Realisations which have been a long time coming (to quote my mum there)
Like i said before, pot allows me to exist (if only for an hour or two at a time)in a world where only *I* exist. I had a cone before school today, something I have probably only done about 2 or 3 times in my life, but yeah, i was feeling crap and had a boring as hell tute on first, so it kind of motivated me to get there rather than me just tsyaing home in bed.. i'll admit it's probably not the most sensible habit to get into (asnd trust me when i say it's not going to become regular) but i just had a few things to sort through in my head, and the total isolation that mj can offer me is what i sometimes need to straighten myself out.
Without a doubt, by the time I got to school I was feeling cheery and confident and almost fully sorted about the shit going down with me.
I guess my concern is this; If it's all working fine for me, If i'm sorting through my problems, having these top realisations and learning stuff about myself, and have a definite escape from these stupid unsubstantiated phases of depression (strong word, i know)- should i be feeling guilty? So long as the cones don't interrupt my schoolwork (and so far they haven't) I'm fine with it.
Now, i'm ready for an onslaught of "you're going to have to learn do deal with things without assistance from drugs blah blah" and yes, you're right, I agree.. sort of. To those comments I ask you, what about the people who are prescribed Zoloft and Prozac etc. I guess in a way I am my own doctor and have found my own medicine. *giggle* by god did that sound corny!
Opinions please? Does anyone else use pot like this? Better still, does anyone use pot for medicinal purposes?
Cheers,
mona.
PS. Just so you know, I don't just say "oh i'll have a cone" if i'm feeling slightly irritable etc - it's only if i feel like i'm gonna have a hard time continuing my day in my current state of mind..
PPS. I know i'm a mod, and I know i should know better - but if this doesn't fit in this forum, then shoot me and move it
[This message has been edited by mona (edited 16 October 2000).]

Can't agree more. It's an instant, harmless mood lift.
What do you think the people in the "medical marijuana" movement are SECRETLY thinking?

- Citrus

Nothing wrong with what you're doing Mona - as long as you have a handle on it and your feet firmly set in the ground. Just don't fall into the trap I did many moons ago where I got to a point where I had to smoke to feel normal - I could no longer cope with being straight.
Marijuana has been used as a treatment for depression for many years and I see nothing wrong with it as long as it is done in a mature fashion. Good Luck with it Mona
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"Well, me don't swim too tough so me don't go in the water too deep."-July, 1975 Bob Marley

Can't agree more. It's an instant, harmless mood lift.
What do you think the people in the "medical marijuana" movement are SECRETLY thinking?

- Citrus

You have a level headed approach to your situation, analysing why and when very maturely! IMHO, you are dealing with it perfectly, not too much, not too little and always when you *know* your next few hours/day will be hell.
Sounds like you have it under control and as haste has said as long as it doesn't verge on "needing a bong to be you" everything is sssssweeeet maaaaate!
PS Have a billy or a Fat J
and watch Pizza tonight on SBS! he he he..That station's too ethnic for me! he he

Well fuck me! i thought i was a rare breed by doing this!!
I used to do it (and as haste also did) but a tad too much just to feel normal- and to get to sleep ..A few years on , i feel i can do it and not feel like i need a cone every two hours..
There are some ppl that i've told this too that say the sort of things like " oh but you're fucked if you need a joint to feel good "
I say fuck u to them..If they've had a hard day at work and they go for a beer , same shit, (well , sorta - u know what i mean ) ; If i'm in a bad mood for no really good reason and i want to feel better , then lay the weed on me! I mean , there's almost always a few little reasons - such as people's attitudes or something at work that have made me feel shitty - so that's a factor that has influenced my feelings , right? so if i add something ( ie a j ) to my brain , that kinda even's it out ... and by god it feels good!
Just like that South Park episode where Mr Mackey is kicked outta school for giving 8 year olds pot , and he's in the alley with the bum:
Bum ~ " Hey , want some of this? "
Mackey~ " Aaah , marijuana's bad. It makes you feel low and depressed."
Bum ~ " And you don't feel that way now ?"
Mackey~ " Oh. Good point *takes huge drag* oooh yeah baby...*insert funky music*
Well that kinda sums it up really
'moke on
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fly high , but watch your head

agree mona, sound like you know what your doing, but first try all options, simple other options is have you tried no mj for a month or so, see if that works too?

A whole month!?!?!??!?!?!
Are you kidding or WHAT??

Mona : Sometimes the day after cones i feel SOOOOO shit, i guess it's my personal thing but i WAS using weed as an escape hatch. It was SO easy for weed to take over my life, but i was going through a very very bad patch in life.
Just proceed with care, getting stoned before uni 2 or 3 times a semester can easily turn into everyday for half a semester.
Self control and regulation seems to be the word of the day
Play safe
rc1n
P.S This is from my personal experiences, weed fucked me around big time and it was so easy for weed to do. I'm sure you know what you're doing and the same won't happen to you Just My 0.02 to ease my conscience (sp?)

i wouldn't be able to use pot like this.
for me being depressed had a lot to do with not feeling comfortable around ppl and not having any motivation to get up and do things....like assignments and study. i guess i was in a different situation to you mona because i was feeling crap because i was doing nothing, rather than having the pressure ofseveral things on at once....i wouldn't be energetic enough to get myself into stressfull situations. so i would smoke to kill the numbness of doing nothing...
i don't smoke anymore....everytime i do it i don;t enjoy it....and it seems to suck the life out of me for a few days. but thats probably because i associate pot with one of the darkests points in my life. it's also frustrating because i have a few friends who are often too stoned to socialise.
i've got too many bad associations with pot to ever enjoy it again lol
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professor.....whats another word for pirate treasure?

the medicinal claim to the usage of pot is a pretty thin line, personally im all for the recriational useage of mj, i just had a little myself, but dont think that smoking pot to lessen stress and just get high can be counted as medicinal. Also in the case of depression, mj can be a very influencial factor over the state of mind of the user (rarely a good thing).
A friend of mines mother was a diagnosed sufferer of M.S. and she used mj to reduce the symptoms of the disease to such an extent, that serveral years afterwards, the disease is practically dormant in her system (ofcourse there is not enough evidence to prove that the inactivity of the disease is due directly to the self-medication of marijuana).
PS this is a true story, not some bullshit urban myth.

OK, so when I asked if anyone used pot for medicinal purposes, I wasn't implying that what I am doing would be considered for 'medicinal purposes' I guess my little analogy about me being the doctor was carelessly placed. I guess I just meant that, I've found a temporary cure...
As for the smoking before uni Rc1n, i totally understand and yeah, i can sort of feel that it could get out of hand. I've devised a new set of smoking rules, and so far i haven't stuck to them teehee but yeah like i said - i've had a lot on my plate lately and it is a form of relaxation for such a big stress head like me.
ARGH! excuses excuses new smoking rules begin today!
hmm..

I use pot everyday after work to relax and wind down for the night, I have done so for years, and I feel perfectly good about it cos it comes from the ground.
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5 days a week my body is a temple. The other 2 it's an amusement park.

Hmmm... it sounds as though there are a lot of depressed people here. Depression is a lousy condition, BUT the best treatment approach is a combination of good counselling/psychotherapy to get at the causes of the problem, and possibly an antidepressant. Constant use of marijuana to self-medicate depression is likely to exacerbate depression and lead to amotivational syndrome. Having the right emotional support, whether from friends or counsellors, is really important too.

miss mona ,great insight into the finely chopped green abyss we have come to love ,my friend and yours marijuana.
as i sit here in quite a deep state of stonedness ,well ive been sitting here for about 27 minutes since i clicked on reply ,i have come to the conclusion that;
i enjoy being stoned .
(() (() (() *toke*cough*pass* (() (() (()

as i said, im all for recreational use, tend to have a billy after work myself, but just saying that if it is serious depression, then mj may not be the best company, but you dont sound like a depress victim, so dont worry.

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Pharmacy, 21st October @ the Capsule
Mrs. Wood (UK) Jason Midro Ajax vs Krash Rudeboy Tom Campbell

ok im not saying you are a major pot head or anything mona, but how much would you say you smoke? im asking this because ive always thought that by smoking pot you tend to loose motivation, maybe it would be a good idea to try and fully quit for a month or so just to see if you can get over ur depression without any help from your trusty friend (the bong) haha I understand that this will be a hard test for yourself, but it might be just what you need. I dont smoke pot anymore and i cant say im a motivation queen but EVERYONE that i see day to day smokes and it becomes frustrating when all they feel like doing is munching out and staring at the telly hahaha
remind u of anyone peakatronic??? LOL
i dont know, its sunday, im scattered and i need some fucking motivation right now to get me through the bastard of a day im about to encounter! hahaha maybe i should be taking ur advice! J/K!!
[This message has been edited by dil8dpupil (edited 21 October 2000).]

I'm not depressed!!! I *get* depressed about certain things, but I'm not "depressed".
I have motivation!!! But when i *get* depressed about certain things, I can hardly think of anything else and it makes me feel crappy, and who wants to do stuff when they feel crappy?
I do my schoolwork, I never have a cone if I know I have a heap of work to get through, and I never skip classes or anything like that.. pot has never sapped my motivation for anything, (except for maybe going to the pub as often as most of my friends do but I blame bluelight for that too)
Anyway, thanks for your help.

i can see how you might've seen my post as inferring that....sorry about that mona
i just associate pot with that part of my life.....which is well and truly behind me

It's weird, pot seems to be a drug which only suits certain people. I very rarely smoke, prolly less than once a month, basically because of the paranoia.
once i've had a cone i don't feel capable of doing anything at all, and then i worry that i need to do stuff but can't, then i'd get stressed and have another cone and... well you get the cycle.
I have a good friend though that can smoke as much as he likes and then wander off to work for the day as though he is completely straight. I just couldn't do that, in fact I'm lucky if I go out in public at all after a couple of good cones.
Smoking daily, or most days is an easy trap to fall into, and unfortuanately the cycle is sometimes difficult to break... I have seen this cycle with several good friends for years, and while they're not junkies lying in the gutter, they have also been very successful in not acheiving anything in the 4 years since leaving school, and while i don't point the finger at pot, it is a definite contributing factor.
I guess what I'm trying to say is that like every drug moderation is the key, mj can be great and used wisely, even be a useful drug, but it can also quietly suck away motivation without you noticing
In your case though, I think the fact that you're looking at it as a possible problem is a good thing, but the fact that you can't bare to think of a month without it shows there may be a problem - but thats one for you to decide