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More Americans report near-constant cannabis use

theatlantic.com

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Re: More Americans report near-constant cannabis use

#11

Post by peterwwillis »

sonnyblarney wrote: post #2

It's unconventional given the liberal/libertarian aspects of the current movement, but this is a problem. I know at least two people very well, and a few more less well who smoke - all - the - time. They vape it like tobacco. They are basically permanently 'kind of high' - completely functional, you'd never really know it to meet them ... but this is more than a little distressing. One is in finance, the other a heal…

One in six Americans takes psychiatric prescription drugs, mostly antidepressants. Weed is basically an antidepressant and pain killer.

I think the bigger question is, why are Americans self-medicating so much?

Re: More Americans report near-constant cannabis use

#12

Post by meesterdude »

dfsegoat wrote: post #3

I know people that have kicked opiates and tobacco cold turkey - but who could not give up using cannabis if their lives depended on it. This is a legitimate concern in the current tide of de-criminalization / legalization.

This is a false equivalency. opiates and tobacco have vastly higher toxicity than marijuana - which is lower toxicity than aspirin or caffeine.

Re: More Americans report near-constant cannabis use

#13

Post by sonnyblarney »

marssaxman wrote: post #6
sonnyblarney wrote: post #2

It's unconventional given the liberal/libertarian aspects of the current movement, but this is a problem. I know at least two people very well, and a few more less well who smoke - all - the - time. They vape it like tobacco. They are basically permanently 'kind of high' - completely functional, you'd never really know it to meet them ... but this is more than a little distressing. One is in finance, the other a heal…

If you'd never really know it to meet them, what about their usage is distressing? Most people are "basically permanently 'kind of high'" on caffeine, or nicotine, or both. Is that distressing?

For one, I also have family members who are very alcoholic and 'you'd never know it' either, i.e. fairly highly functional.

The effects of caffeine and nicotine are mild, and mostly physical. Especially with nicotine, it's a 'maintenance addiction' in that smoking in addicts is mostly to get to 'stay normal' because the body has adjusted dopamine receptors. A little bit similar with caffeine in that we build a tolerance.

I don't think it's a stretch to consider that there might be some issues with a good chunk of society walking around stoned all day. I'd put 'drunk' in a similar category.

The people who I know who are like this are themselves concerned but they can't seem to change their habits. It's not just a matter of 'physical/mental' state - they are basically different people in this mode and they know it.

Re: More Americans report near-constant cannabis use

#14

Post by e40 »

sonnyblarney wrote: post #2

It's unconventional given the liberal/libertarian aspects of the current movement, but this is a problem. I know at least two people very well, and a few more less well who smoke - all - the - time. They vape it like tobacco. They are basically permanently 'kind of high' - completely functional, you'd never really know it to meet them ... but this is more than a little distressing. One is in finance, the other a heal…

You didn't list what you think the problem is.

Re: More Americans report near-constant cannabis use

#15

Post by Benjammer »

sonnyblarney wrote: post #2

It's unconventional given the liberal/libertarian aspects of the current movement, but this is a problem. I know at least two people very well, and a few more less well who smoke - all - the - time. They vape it like tobacco. They are basically permanently 'kind of high' - completely functional, you'd never really know it to meet them ... but this is more than a little distressing. One is in finance, the other a heal…

>you'd never really know it to meet them

>this is more than a little distressing

But, I mean, that's just not how our current paradigm of mental health medicine works, afaik. A lot of mental health related diagnoses are entirely based on the effects to people's lives and ability to accomplish what they want in life. The disorder _is_ the effect on your life, it's not like some internal disease that will do it's work unnoticed and then suddenly kill you if untreated or something because your blah-count is abnormal and your foo-readings are off the charts.

>the 'bad effects' are [...] _going to be_ psychological

I don't think it's fair to postulate on future effects of things like this, when we have current, researched problems with society in this area that we aren't addressing, like the attention-rent-seeking behavior of basically all software today.

Re: More Americans report near-constant cannabis use

#16

Post by sonnyblarney »

compcoffee wrote: post #9
sonnyblarney wrote: post #2

It's unconventional given the liberal/libertarian aspects of the current movement, but this is a problem. I know at least two people very well, and a few more less well who smoke - all - the - time. They vape it like tobacco. They are basically permanently 'kind of high' - completely functional, you'd never really know it to meet them ... but this is more than a little distressing. One is in finance, the other a heal…

> they're going to be psychological and we're in kind of new territory. It may be new territory for you, but I can assure you that grown adults have been smoking pot for a long time, and understand the psychological effects and their limits.

No. I believe staying high all day changes people quite fundamentally, I feel this way because I know people who have changed due to it, and one whom I knew only as 'stoned always' who quit one day for no apparent reason and his life fundamentally changed. You probably have heard of him, actually.

Re: More Americans report near-constant cannabis use

#17

Post by insickness »

In the past I was addicted to pot. I was addicted in the sense that pretty much everything felt better when I was high. I was more relaxed and had less anxiety. Sex was better. Food tasted better. I was more creative. I thought about much deeper things. I spent less time online and in front of screens.

The biggest downside for me--and the reason I ended up quitting--was that my sober life just sucked in comparison. I was just waiting until the end of the day when I could go home and light up.

The other downsides were that I wasn't as sharp mentally when I was sober. I wasn't as ambitious. I was less social. In other words, it made me feel fine just hanging out in my apartment doing nothing. On the balance that made pot a negative for me.

Quitting wasn't that hard. And I still think about how great I felt when I smoked. I may smoke again in the future but for now, I appreciate operating in the real world without any crutches.

Re: More Americans report near-constant cannabis use

#18

Post by clankfan »

I knew a lot of people that were addicted to weed because they were bored without it and because their social lives are completely dependant on smoking weed -- without weed they would just sit awkwardly. Some of them went more than a decade like this and didn't develop many important areas of their mind because of it.

Re: More Americans report near-constant cannabis use

#20

Post by meritt »

sonnyblarney wrote: post #2

It's unconventional given the liberal/libertarian aspects of the current movement, but this is a problem. I know at least two people very well, and a few more less well who smoke - all - the - time. They vape it like tobacco. They are basically permanently 'kind of high' - completely functional, you'd never really know it to meet them ... but this is more than a little distressing. One is in finance, the other a heal…

> but this is more than a little distressing

You are struggling with your own personal moral beliefs.

You even stated they are "completely functional" yet you're significantly troubled by marijuana use while you have no issues with excessive use of caffeine and nicotine.

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