Marijuana.com

KHIS

I have smoked marijuana since I was 16, at first it was a weekend thing, getting high at parties and with friends. I quit for a year during my final year at high school but as soon as I was outa there and in college I started up again. I really enjoyed getting high. It got to the point where when I moved into my own appartment I was smoking up to 3 joints a night, smoking to make long distance car rides more enjoyable, smoking to make the weekly grocery shopping a much easier and exciting occupation. I always had on me, growing up in South Africa it was always cheap and in abundance.

Then just last year I started getting really stressed out at work. I started having very strange episodes while stoned like all the signs of a heart attack. I started to realise that my heart rate went through the roof while stoned and this freaked me out more. It all came to a head one night when I ate a dope cookie at a party and subsequently ended up in the ER. Since then I have been very concious of my heart rate, stoned or sober.

At about the same time my younger brother, also a heavy smoker, experienced a mental breakdown and was diagnosed schizophrenic. The doctors blamed his marijuana habit. He is still recovering on a daily dose of Lithium, 5 months later.

The last time I smoked I had a few tokes on a spliff while visiting friends in Manchester, my heart started racing again and I started freakin out a bit, but manged to control it and relax.

My dilemna is that I still want to continue smoking, just on a smaller scale but I am terrified. Especially after reading the article about marijuana inducing psychosis. Not to mention the heart rate problem.

Advice???

 

jewishjake420

You could be one of the very few that is allergic to bud.

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KHIS

If that were so why after so many years? I think it is stress related but need some serious solutions from some mature weed smokers my friend...

jewishjake420

First I think I've been smoking weed longer than you so we aren't going to get on the topic of if I'm a mature smoker or not. Second, allergies can develop over time. Third, maybe you are getting some bad bud or you just aren't smoking in a comfortable place without worries. My suggestion to you is that the next time you smoke, do it in an enviroment that is safe from you getting caught and is relaxing at the same time.

KHIS

Thank you. I didn't mean to imply that I had been smoking longer. I just wanted some mature advice and suggestions rather than quick remarks, which is what I took your previous reply to be.

 

kurtastrophe

yo man what do these attacks feel like. im going through a similar situation but im not even sure theyre panic atacks.

KHIS

Don't know if you smoke cigarettes but at first like a massive headrush, like my blood pressure and temperature have suddenly increased and my heart starts racing and I suddenly get really agitated and figity. I feel overwhelmed and need to go for walk and get some fresh air.

After reading all the other posts and threads I reckon they are just panic attacks and stress related. I reckon I'm just going to chill and wait until I'm in the right frame of mind before I toke again.

My life's been kinda hectic in the last 6 months so I'll wait for everything to calm down. Maybe you should try this too???

kurtastrophe

yea idk, doesnt sound like were talking about the same condition. im in a pretty chill setting right now, being at home with my best friends over christmas. in my case i dont think it is stress related because i dont feel stressed at all. i wish it were as simple as chill out cuz i could deff do that right now.

aposiopesis

Hi KHIS, Sometimes I get the racing heart phenomenon, its really really terrifying. I have schizophrenia, I suspect that there is something in some weed that only spins out those of us vulnerable to it - schizophrenics have abnormal neurochemistry, maybe that's the vulnerability. You mention your brother is schizophrenic, it is hereditary so you may be on the lower end of the schizoaffective spectrum - asymptomatic, but dopamine (or something) levels still on a hair trigger.

Different cannabinoids occur in different ratios in different MJ depending on factors like: genetics, care during veg. state, harvest time, curing, storage conditions et al.
For me i suspect THC good, CBN & CBD bad. But that is purely speculative.
Another idea worthy of consideration is other contaminants eg: Mold and Marijuana.

My solution is this: if I am forced to get MJ of untested origin, I smoke a tiny bit first, if the patch test yields no unpleasant symptoms then I get blazed, then if I love the smoke I buy loads of it to last for ages. Because of the tolerance factor ideally I prefer to have 2 or 3 different varieties, in practice not always the case. I find the effect is worst with hydro for some reason, my friends think this is mad, probably is, I don't claim to be sane. I haven't had a panic attack since about July last year, (on zonky hydro my friends loved). If it really scares you then don't - your own intuition is always the best guide. Anyway Hope all your smokes is kindbud, and take it slow, just get very gently baked until your sure you have some buds that you love.

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daytripper

Hey there, Khis. I haven't been smoking nearly as much as you but I've also started developing similar symptoms. Not physical yet, but I experience anxiety and paranoia both while I'm stoned and sober. This is something I've never experienced before (except of course on the odd time when you're tripping) I gave it up for two months but really missed it. I was irritable and I always felt anxious and seemed to have developed a permanent lump (metaphorically speaking) in my throat. As soon as I toked up again after fulfilling my promise to myself of a 2 month abstenance, I felt great. But now, I suffer from guilt because I feel that I'm dependant on pot to make me function normally and happily. So its catch 22. If I don't smoke, I feel irritable, anxious and perpetually worried. I don't even want to spend time with my kids. When I do smoke, I feel good until I start getting guilty about the means I employed to make me feel good. I have an impending feeling that I'm wasting my life away, which is something you cannot afford to do when you have a five year old and an 18 month old depending on you.

Trouble is, when I am stoned, I know that I am a much better father to my kids. I listen to my 5 yr old son talk about his life without interupting him or patronizing him as I put him to bed at night. I am fascinated by his world and it gives me a unique window into his soul that I would otherwise have no time or patience for. I know this because I look at it as almost a chore when I'm not stoned.

So, although we may come from vastly different backgrounds and even suffer different symptoms and concerns, we are in the same predicament. We want to know if Marijuana is bad or good for us. I would quit if I was convinced that pot has more negatives than positives. What does everyone else think?