I’m talking about any thing that can be produced from cannabis of any strain, not laced and not something that’s glycol-based or a dry-plant vaporizer; and consumed via inhalation of it’s smoke or digestion (ex: edibles). Not discussing the legality of it or any other unnecessary nuances, just the benefits and harm of it. Studies are extremely encouraged btw. =p
My experience is purely anecdotal but for me it seems to make me more anxiety prone and more paranoid even when sober and thats been a lasting effect so far. Im still for legalization and I know it affects people differently. Sadly for me its mostly negative for now
Quick edit: if anyone knows more about this effect im really interested in finding out more. My doctor hasent really been that helpful
Kurzgesagt just put out a new video (piped link)on the topic, they always link the sources and studies they used.
The current belief is that it can affect the brains of growing children, but they’re not sure to what extent. In my state the legal age is 21, the same as for drinking. In adults, straight cannabis will not harm you in any way other than the usual effects of being under the influence and not always making rational choices. Worst case, you sleep it off. Do keep in mind that smoking it can slowly damage your lungs, the same as breathing any find particulates over a long period of time. I personally prefer edibles for long-term use, but the baking process does reduce the potency.
Now, like any drug, the reason you want to take it can be very important. If you need something to escape reality on a permanent basis, obviously you have a larger problem that no drug is ever going to solve. However the occasional evening can be quite entertaining, much like a trip to the water park. Other people (like myself) take it on a regular basis to help with medical problems, usually pain relief or sleep issues, where CBD is the answer rather than the THC component.
For myself, I’ve had sleeping problems for the past 16 years (since a bad car wreck). I worked with my doctor for awhile trying to find something that would help. The problem is, I’m a computer tech and I need my mind sharp for troubleshooting or writing code. All the prescription drugs leave your brain in a fog through much of the next day, and then what use am I? It turns out that marijuana has a fairly quick drop-off, so it can provide help through the night, and is pretty much out of my system by the time I head for work. As with anything, it takes some time to find the right dose. I take it along with other prescription medications to address different issues, but I’ve been getting good restful sleep for the past 9 years and feeling much more like myself again. For these purposes I highly recommend it, but talk to someone knowledgeable to guide you to the right strains and give advice on what to expect.
I thought the theory that it affected childhood brains was based on the damage it cause to frontal lobe development? And the notion that it was up to age 21 was based on that erroneous “The frontal cortex is developed at 25 years old” study, that actually just stopped looking at patients older than 25?
Honestly I’m not really sure about that. What I’ve seen on the idea of damage to children usually has the caveat of “more study is needed”, but of course nobody wants to subject children to such a study on purpose. On the other hand, I haven’t seen any studies yet that concluded long-term use in adults would cause any permanent damage. I suspect there could be outlying cases of extremely heavy usage but in moderation it so far appears to be perfectly safe.
For about 2 years, I was smoking at a level that was definitely bad. I would smoke 2-3 bowls in the morning, then have multiple sessions at night of 2-3 bowls each. I was going through an ounce of flower per week.
The sheer amount of time it took to smoke that much was a waste, I mean I was watching TV while I was doing it but it was pretty garbage TV, since I wasn’t mentally present enough to watch anything good.
I basically gave myself asthma. I never had asthma attacks before I started smoking and then I started getting them during my sessions and then I started getting them outside of my sessions.
Anyways, I’m 3 months clean now with no plans to ever touch it again. I know that I can’t just be a joint-on-the-weekend-kind of guy. I’m no longer getting asthma attacks and I’m sleeping much better now (and I get dreams again! I missed that so much)
Plenty of nice scientific info in the thread but from a personal experience as someone who used to hit the bong 3x daily for months, it makes you okay with being bored, it’s instant entertainment, and at the end of it you feel stupid because you wish you’d done something with the time and been bored more to get that spark of creativity to come through.
Depend on what country you’re in.
How so?
