Help: weed related sloth / amotivational syndrome .

September 17, 2005 9:47 AM

Help: weed related sloth / amotivational syndrome .

So, I have this friend who lives in a country where marijuana use is tolerated. He’s happy as a clam. The drug enhances his creativity, makes sex, eating and simpsons watching way more enjoyable and is a pleasant indulgence every other week or so.

The problem happens over the next few days: the following day, he is in a torpor. Can’t be bothered to get out of bed. Not a hangover of headaches, etc, but just plain sloth – slightly heavy limbs, fuzzy thinking. If he has to get out of bed, no problem (i.e. for work) – but woe betide any weekend that sees MJ use the night before. Similarly, for the next couple of days, a mild melancholy decends on him where he’s a tad more miserable than usual.

Are there any pre / during / post chong activities or remedies this person can use to remove the listlessness and blueness from his post pot persona?

posted by lalochezia to sports, hobbies, & recreation (22 comments total)

Exercise will probably help. Getting to the gym on a regular basis is good for getting the endorphins flowing. Also, and I realize this answer won't be seen as too PC, but if you're talking about the Netherlands, there are dozens of different types of pot available and not all of them have the same effect. Maybe a good excuse for some experimentation.
posted by BorgLove at 10:00 AM on September 17, 2005

...or maybe laying off the pot for a while.
posted by angry modem at 10:02 AM on September 17, 2005

it's my experience that it comes with the territory ... if it's a big enough problem for him, perhaps he should consider slowing down or even quitting

sorry, but i've felt a lot livelier and smarter since i quit ...
posted by pyramid termite at 10:03 AM on September 17, 2005

Jack Herer (herb variety from NL) doesn't do that.

Never smoke in the morning!

Don't smoke so damn much at night that you're still wasted when you awake. Wastes herb and your time.

Note: It is fairly normal for younger guys to not want to get out of bed without special motivation.
posted by Goofyy at 10:07 AM on September 17, 2005

The reason why I don't smoke weed is that it has this effect on me. I'm lazy for days afterward. So, I just don't do it.
posted by elisabeth r at 10:40 AM on September 17, 2005

The solution to any drug-related listlessness is more drugs!

I don't know what's 'tolerated' over there, but if your friend can get some Modafinil, that will probably help him get his energy back. Could also try some caffeine.

He should consult with a doctor, this sounds like the kind of place that would have socialized medicine.
posted by delmoi at 11:13 AM on September 17, 2005

Just make your friend get up and have a big coffee. Then drag him/her out for a good long walk. The easiest way to get over the sloth is to avoid giving in to it, and the walkies could well help with the melancholia as well (sometimes those blues can be because the altered state of consciousness has jarred something real but previously hidden loose, it's sometimes a good idea to actively explore this, rather than trying to escape it). Doing something creative while having a weed hangover (writing, painting, whatever) can also be helpful and productive. Or so I've...uh...heard.
posted by biscotti at 11:37 AM on September 17, 2005

It also suppresses your REM if you take so much it's still in effect as you sleep, too, which of course will make you tired.
posted by abcde at 11:45 AM on September 17, 2005

I know some guys who smoke up and then go mountain biking, and they highly reccommend physical activity to counteract the laziness and depression associated with regular marijuana use. Smoke earlier in the day and go for long walks; like abcde says, if he's still messed up when he hits the bed, he won't get very restful sleep.
posted by muddgirl at 12:05 PM on September 17, 2005

It's down to attitude. If you let yourself be a useless stoner, you'll be a useless stoner. If you get off your Duff, you will be productive.
posted by five fresh fish at 12:34 PM on September 17, 2005

These kids today. What's the point of smoking dope if you get up and do stuff afterwards?
posted by rdr at 2:12 PM on September 17, 2005

Commit to a specific morning activity (a walk, a bike ride, gardening, whatever) the night before (prior to smoking) and set an alarm for it. But really:

i've felt a lot livelier and smarter since i quit

Yeah.
posted by ori at 3:43 PM on September 17, 2005

Open all of your windows and let some fresh air in.
posted by blag at 5:05 PM on September 17, 2005

Deadlines help. Can't say I've experienced this phenomenon though.
posted by singingfish at 5:45 PM on September 17, 2005

sorry, but i've felt a lot livelier and smarter since i quit ...
posted by pyramid termite

Out of personal curiosity, can I ask how often you smoked, pyramid?
posted by pornucopia at 10:27 PM on September 17, 2005

I know people who smoke far more than that, work full time and have no trouble getting out of bed.

Perhaps he's just depressed and the herb just happens to increase his depression.
posted by Matt Oneiros at 11:19 PM on September 17, 2005

"Don't smoke so damn much at night that you're still wasted when you awake. Wastes herb and your time."

I second this. In the words of Gallagher: "Don't smoke dope when you're already stoned! You don't get any higher, you just get lower on dope!

Also those that mentioned intense aerobic exercise post-session are right on. If done before eating a meal, it will leave you cold sober before you go to bed and relatively hangover-free the following day.
posted by Manjusri at 11:24 PM on September 17, 2005

I used to smoke every day for nearly a decade, and was fully functional working and maintaining very active "more than hobby" activities.

I think people are all different; the ennui that can settle in with some people may be related to a lack of internal motivation, the depressive effects of herbs combined with the lateral thinking it induces can make one's life seem like a waste. Most "successful" (?) heads I know get away with massive puffing because they're driven by something that keeps them going no matter how burnt they get (in the case of me & people I know, that's music).

I live in Corea now & haven't had any real access to herbs for a couple-three years (except for annual trips abroad), and I haven't noticed much of a difference in my "brightness," just in my "sense of humor," which has suffered haha.
posted by Joseph Gurl at 3:39 AM on September 18, 2005

Yeah, herb enhances whatever attitude you have at the time. If he's a naturally lazy person, herb will make him lazier. The super motivated people I know remain as motivated when they're smoking. I don't smoke any more because I'm a very lazy person and herb makes me into a real loser.
posted by sid at 9:45 AM on September 18, 2005

But that doesn't really answer your question. I find the best remedy for post-toke malaise is ice cold water, exercise, and coffee, in that order.
posted by sid at 10:37 AM on September 18, 2005

...but that doesn't really answer your question. I've found the best remedy for post-toke malaise is ice water, exercise, and coffee, administered in that order. However, none of those will help if you can't be arsed to get out of bed.
posted by sid at 10:41 AM on September 18, 2005

Out of personal curiosity, can I ask how often you smoked, pyramid?

constantly, unless i was at work ... (and sometimes then, too) ... for about 10 years ... there were 10 years before that when i would have smoked it constantly if i could have found it constantly

the 80s and a few years of the 90s were nothing but a big haze of smoke for me

yeah, i really needed to quit, i'm really glad i did
posted by pyramid termite at 11:08 AM on September 18, 2005