Considering Quitting or Using Less Marijuana .... Have Some Questions
November 11, 2018 9:00 AM Subscribe
I have been smoking nightly and would like to taper down or quit, for numerous reasons and I have some questions
I have been smoking nightly for over a year (vaping oils) and have needed it to deal with anxiety and wind down at night. I only smoke at night. I stopped drinking when I started medication. A glass of wine at night was my preferred mode of self medication since I was nervous about medication (xanax etc). I liked that a glass of wine would chill me out.
I am worried about vaping weed and considering quitting due to:
Cost
Drug Testing if I want to change jobs
General Health - is it "bad" for my lungs or brain?
Can't travel with it (not legal in my state)
I feel like it has made me dumb during the day and it is hard to concentrate on TV or reading at night
I seem to need more and more to achieve the same effects
-How quickly do people usually taper? Can you quit cold turkey
-How do people who travel outside of the US bring marijuana or go without when away
-How long will nightly toking keep you from passing a drug test?
How bad is it for you?
Anything else that I should know?
Thank you in advance
I have been smoking nightly for over a year (vaping oils) and have needed it to deal with anxiety and wind down at night. I only smoke at night. I stopped drinking when I started medication. A glass of wine at night was my preferred mode of self medication since I was nervous about medication (xanax etc). I liked that a glass of wine would chill me out.
I am worried about vaping weed and considering quitting due to:
Cost
Drug Testing if I want to change jobs
General Health - is it "bad" for my lungs or brain?
Can't travel with it (not legal in my state)
I feel like it has made me dumb during the day and it is hard to concentrate on TV or reading at night
I seem to need more and more to achieve the same effects
-How quickly do people usually taper? Can you quit cold turkey
-How do people who travel outside of the US bring marijuana or go without when away
-How long will nightly toking keep you from passing a drug test?
How bad is it for you?
Anything else that I should know?
Thank you in advance
You can quit cold turkey for sure.
When I travel I find it there or bring it with me.
It really depends on your body. It took me 45 days to pass a drug test but I smoke all day every day.
It's not very bad for you but studies are hard to come by, because the government doesn't like weed.
I'm still a hard worker at work, have a clean home, my finances are in order, etc. I may be unique, I may not be. I am not rare here where weed is legal though, pretty much every type of person visits the dispensary!
posted by masquesoporfavor at 9:30 AM on November 11, 2018 [2 favorites]
When I travel I find it there or bring it with me.
It really depends on your body. It took me 45 days to pass a drug test but I smoke all day every day.
It's not very bad for you but studies are hard to come by, because the government doesn't like weed.
I'm still a hard worker at work, have a clean home, my finances are in order, etc. I may be unique, I may not be. I am not rare here where weed is legal though, pretty much every type of person visits the dispensary!
posted by masquesoporfavor at 9:30 AM on November 11, 2018 [2 favorites]
"I feel like it has made me dumb", that would be enough for me to dump my rig and not look back.
posted by Cuspidx at 10:25 AM on November 11, 2018 [3 favorites]
posted by Cuspidx at 10:25 AM on November 11, 2018 [3 favorites]
I quit a daily habit cold turkey a while back and it was hard. The mental health conditions I self-medicated for with marijuana came back, and I had lost my coping mechanism.
I suggest you seek treatment for your anxiety, this will help give you new coping skills. Depending on the severity of your anxiety you might be able to treat it without drugs. Even if you do need medication, benzos are no longer the drug of choice so you might see anti-depressants or beta blockers.
posted by crazycanuck at 10:52 AM on November 11, 2018 [2 favorites]
I suggest you seek treatment for your anxiety, this will help give you new coping skills. Depending on the severity of your anxiety you might be able to treat it without drugs. Even if you do need medication, benzos are no longer the drug of choice so you might see anti-depressants or beta blockers.
posted by crazycanuck at 10:52 AM on November 11, 2018 [2 favorites]
I don't know that there's much evidence that marijuana is bad for you (although smoking anything is bad, but vaping oil is less combustive, so better). But if you don't like the way it's making you feel, you should probably stop.
Maybe try switching to CBD for the anxiety?
posted by dis_integration at 11:53 AM on November 11, 2018
Maybe try switching to CBD for the anxiety?
posted by dis_integration at 11:53 AM on November 11, 2018
Ways weed might be bad for you: I don't sleep deeply on it, so if I got high more often I'd be chronically tired. Some people have a "rebound" effect where getting high regularly makes mood problems (anxiety, depression) worse when they're sober. These things might be "making you dumb."
Nthing that you should see a mental health professional for your anxiety, and possibly adjust meds.
Some people take week-long or two-week-long tolerance breaks so that weed becomes more effective for them - going cold turkey seems reasonable. I might suggest "tapering" by cutting back to weekends-only, and maybe changing the location and/or format of your marijuana use - only vape in the kitchen? CBD only? edibles instead of vapor? Best of luck.
posted by bagel at 12:04 PM on November 11, 2018
Nthing that you should see a mental health professional for your anxiety, and possibly adjust meds.
Some people take week-long or two-week-long tolerance breaks so that weed becomes more effective for them - going cold turkey seems reasonable. I might suggest "tapering" by cutting back to weekends-only, and maybe changing the location and/or format of your marijuana use - only vape in the kitchen? CBD only? edibles instead of vapor? Best of luck.
posted by bagel at 12:04 PM on November 11, 2018
Can you quit cold turkey
Yes, and many people have found that it is the only way they can quit. By all means try tapering if you want to, but, if you find you keep pushing the point where you actually quit into the future, or you always backslide into heavy use, you can safely just stop. Insomnia is usually the worst effect of this.
-How long will nightly toking keep you from passing a drug test?
It depends on how heavily you did it, for how long, and how overweight you are. And how high quality of a drug test is used. Maybe a month, maybe 3. 6 at the outside.
posted by thelonius at 4:28 PM on November 11, 2018
Yes, and many people have found that it is the only way they can quit. By all means try tapering if you want to, but, if you find you keep pushing the point where you actually quit into the future, or you always backslide into heavy use, you can safely just stop. Insomnia is usually the worst effect of this.
-How long will nightly toking keep you from passing a drug test?
It depends on how heavily you did it, for how long, and how overweight you are. And how high quality of a drug test is used. Maybe a month, maybe 3. 6 at the outside.
posted by thelonius at 4:28 PM on November 11, 2018
It depends on your habit. I knew two heavy marijuana smokers who quit, and then became full blown alcoholics out of nowhere. I've also known people who quit cold turkey and never looked back or thought about it since. I would just keep an eye on things. Keep a small amount around in case of emergency, something like that.
posted by xammerboy at 8:09 PM on November 11, 2018
posted by xammerboy at 8:09 PM on November 11, 2018
In the civil construction industry here they seem to have moved away from pee tests to mouth swabs, which to my understanding correlates much more closely to to actually being under the influence. You'd probably pass that kind of test within a few days. I think the move was largely driven by cost* but to my mind also results in more equitable drug testing.
I have friends that have trouble giving up, particularly going cold turkey, and others that can stop at a moments notice. While it seems to be variable in terms of how easy the experience is I don't know anyone that's actually had medical trouble.
Speaking for myself, I gave up with no issues years ago but I'd lose sharpness if I used every day and I don't think you and I are alone in that.
*When I worked in this industry as a storeman I was tasked with procuring the tests - I bought the least effective I could. Because while I'd prefer crane operators were not drunk, I believe what you do out of work should be your business, and plenty of other people on the inside of these systems feel the same.
posted by deadwax at 8:33 PM on November 11, 2018
I have friends that have trouble giving up, particularly going cold turkey, and others that can stop at a moments notice. While it seems to be variable in terms of how easy the experience is I don't know anyone that's actually had medical trouble.
Speaking for myself, I gave up with no issues years ago but I'd lose sharpness if I used every day and I don't think you and I are alone in that.
*When I worked in this industry as a storeman I was tasked with procuring the tests - I bought the least effective I could. Because while I'd prefer crane operators were not drunk, I believe what you do out of work should be your business, and plenty of other people on the inside of these systems feel the same.
posted by deadwax at 8:33 PM on November 11, 2018
Here is an article from leafy.com (a pro-cannabis website) outlining research of cannabis withdrawal syndrome and how to deal with it.
posted by metahawk at 9:26 PM on November 11, 2018 [1 favorite]
posted by metahawk at 9:26 PM on November 11, 2018 [1 favorite]
It's always difficult to stop anything. With that being said, since Marijuana does affect dopamine levels, when you do stop, you are likely to feel a drop off in wellness. But, still it is not a physical pain like opiate user trying to detox. I have seen many people stop cold turkey, and often take to exercise to minimize any drop in mood.
posted by joshtuv at 2:51 PM on November 12, 2018
posted by joshtuv at 2:51 PM on November 12, 2018
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Just a data point.
posted by humboldt32 at 9:08 AM on November 11, 2018 [3 favorites]