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Schizophrenia linked to marijuana use disorder is on the rise, study finds

cnn.com

381–390 of 454 posts

Re: Schizophrenia linked to marijuana use disorder is on the rise, study finds

#381

I think it's too common a sentiment that psychoactive substances like cannabis and psilocybin are harmless and in fact are good for mental health. I've had adverse mental reactions to both and I would caution people with family history of anxiety.

A past colleague of mine told me a shocking story. He was a heavy weed smoker (multiple times a day) and one evening couldn't find his weed and as he was searching for it, became increasingly furious.

Eventually, he was so angry that he blanked out. He told me he found himself in a hyper lucid state, but in absolute darkness and in a state of pure dread.

He felt the presense of millions of dead egos that were "roaming" like zombies in this strange environment. Some were screaming like their skin was being pulled from their body, some were tormenting others. A total nighmarish trip.

He was so shocked by this experience that he stop smoking pot that very evening and never touched it again.

Re: Schizophrenia linked to marijuana use disorder is on the rise, study finds

#382
post #166

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Anecdotally, I've heard in the 60s and 70s generally people would just smoke a lot more weed in a single sitting than today. Several joints to a person of harsh brick weed vs. half of one with decent modern weed, for example.

Anecdotally, half a joint of weed purchased from a legal, recreational shop is enough to get a dozen people stoned into the ground, unless they are regular users of the stuff.

I moved to a recreational state and I tried a single puff. I was almost instantly high. Prior to this I had not used marijuana since I was a stupid teenager doing stupid stuff, so it had been over a decade since the last time.

When it was available back then it was always some low quality dirt weed that you could smoke for days and still function on.

With the legal recreational stuff, I was so blasted out of my mind that I couldn't hold a conversation. I had a mild panic attack because of slow playing music, and was high for the rest of the night. It was not fun, it was scary.

Maybe my tolerance has decreased, sure, but the strength differences in modern recreational weed are so severe that they probably should not be considered to be the same drug any longer.

If what was available to me as a teenager was like beer, the new stuff starts at vodka and goes way past Everclear.

Re: Schizophrenia linked to marijuana use disorder is on the rise, study finds

#383

I have enjoyed smoking Cannabis for decades, but a recent bought of financial difficulty coupled with a desire to get programming last week has shown some teeth on the cute little bubbly image of Cannabis in my mind. I started smoking more (due to stress) and trying to complete a new project (financial difficulty) and it was just a nightmare. It's noticeably more difficult to concentrate and retain new information wh…

Just to give another perspective. I vape pretty much every evening. It's just a small amount and it's also is heavy on CBD. After all my work is done.

I can't say i perform any worse in any regard than i did before (didn't use to partake a few years ago). But i also eat clean, sleep enough, exercise and so on. I also keep my tolerance in check. The latter may be because of the CBD, that should in theory also prevent some of long term effects of THC.

Bottom line, i think it's is highly individual to the person and also what product is used. Cannabis is a highly complex substance, unlike say alcohol (IMHO). You may have to try out a few combinations before you find one that suits you and your chemistry/biology.

Re: Schizophrenia linked to marijuana use disorder is on the rise, study finds

#384

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> "It makes you dumb" was one of their favorite cut downs. Well, it does measurably decrease IQ. And at least in teens, this reduction seems like it may be permanent.

After more than 30 years of daily cannabis use with occasional tolerance breaks I recently took an IQ test along with a series of mental evaluations and was in the 99th percentile. So maybe cannabis took me down just enough to avoid being one of those Mensa jerks? It might be interesting and revealing to see the correlation between casual cannabis dismissal and low or reduced IQ, but of course that goes against the p…

What do you mean by casual cannabis dismissal?

Re: Schizophrenia linked to marijuana use disorder is on the rise, study finds

#385

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I would be astonished if, in tracking your first tokes of the day on a heart rate monitor, you didn't get around 20bpm faster. While feeling great, I'm sure! I'm not saying for an instant that it's dangerous or bad, but "relaxing", well not in any straightforward way. A practical application of this is to suggest that those who want to use cannabis for a good night;s sleep, get started two or three hours before bedti…

"I'm a lot more sensitive now and sometimes it gives me panic attacks" Have you tried using the minimal amount of very low-potency weed? In my experience negative effects like paranoia and panic attacks come from overdose, either by using high-potency weed and/or smoking too much.

Yes, although it's more like "one small puff on a spliff with company" or "minimum viable hit off a cartridge". Sometimes a half of a 5mg gummy, or even a whole one.

Panic attacks are well under a 1 in 20 response now or I just wouldn't bother, since it isn't any fun at all for about 20 (subjectively very long) minutes.

Re: Schizophrenia linked to marijuana use disorder is on the rise, study finds

#386
post #220

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> "It makes you dumb" was one of their favorite cut downs. Well, it does measurably decrease IQ. And at least in teens, this reduction seems like it may be permanent.

Yeah, I've heard people say that all my life. Some folks love to believe that. But there's nothing that really backs that up with solid proof. A lot of them whom I've heard say that were coke users, which to me would indicate a lack of intelligence. Here's a couple studies that seem to disprove that myth about weed users but, like all of these studies, they really cannot claim to be conclusive. Still better than most…

The "some folks" include the scientists who actually study this.

But good job cherry picking a study. Hope it makes you feel better.

Re: Schizophrenia linked to marijuana use disorder is on the rise, study finds

#387
post #245

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> Now... I'm absolutely convinced that marijuana use can have absolutely catastrophic mental health implications for some people. I'm also convinced it can help people with certain conditions. Absolutely. I am cutting down on weed after seeing it wreck a friend. They were really bright and down to Earth, but they use weed to deal with anxiety and now need to smoke before hanging out with friends. Now they are fully d…

Is weed legal and culturally accepted where you live?

Yes it is

Re: Schizophrenia linked to marijuana use disorder is on the rise, study finds

#388

Earlier quoted context omitted.

To be fair, that could be just normal paranoia from smoking too much, or perhaps your body doesn't agree with that strain. I have what's called a paradoxical reaction to whatever they use to put you under anesthesia. I wake up in a rage, they have to take me out very slowly. I have a friend like this with marijuana. She finds indicas make her euphoric and energized and creative, when she should be couch-locked with a…

Well, no. So there are the occasional 140-160 BPM panic attacks now, so I approach the substance with caution and respect. But that's quite distinct from going from a resting rate of, say, 80 (about my serum maximum of caffeine rate) to a nice 100, while feeling great and getting a bunch of stuff done around the house. Euphoria and relaxation aren't identical concepts...

Right I got you, for instance I can't smoke sativas as they may cause me to start panicking as well. I was just saying it may have been the strain and how it affected you particularly. Sativas are more euphoric but can cause paranoia etc. Indicas are nore of a relaxed high good for the end of the day. Had you tried Indicas to see of they had the same effect.

Just saying 'marijuana did this to me' without context of the strain or if it was constant across strains isn't super helpful.

Re: Schizophrenia linked to marijuana use disorder is on the rise, study finds

#390
post #67

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Same observation. I also smoked weed in my teens and early twenties and I remember it making some of the most banal horse shit ideas seem profound, or like I really understand how the universe clicked together. I bet hanging out with a bunch of stoners steeping in my own bullshit for another decade would make me a(n even more) pompous ass too.

I doubt this even happened lol.

“I doubt that even happened lol.”

Says man who, earlier in the same thread on weed-induced arrogance, writes, “my experience is the opposite.“

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