motivation quitting marijuana

elsey · Silver Member Joined: 01 Jul 2001 Posts: 267

Hello! I am 23 years old male and I have been smoking marijuana for a year now on regular basis. Regular basis meaning every day. Now, I believe it is high time I quit doing this, but I somehow can’t seem to do it. Now, I know that marijuana doesn’t cause addiction but it seems as if it has, because even though I want to stop, I keep smoking. I just don’t know how to find motivation for quitting.

lezlie · Silver Member Joined: 16 Aug 2001 Posts: 298

Hi there! It seems as if you haven’t made up your mind yet. If you were determined to do it, that means it is bothering you, you are having side effects or you would just like to be straight, right? This sounds like a very good motivation to me. I don’t know how well you are acquainted with marijuana’s long term effects, so maybe this can help you find your motivation. I surely hope so!!!! Frequent and prolonged use of marijuana can lead to: paranoia, impairments in learning, memory, perception, and judgment, difficulty speaking, listening effectively, thinking, retaining knowledge, problem solving, and forming concepts, intense anxiety or panic attacks, enhanced cancer risk, decrease in testosterone levels and lower sperm counts for men, damage to lungs, etc.

Guest · Guest

when you get high off weed chemicals are released from your brain called neurotransmitters (dopemine mostly) this causes the high. when you quit the brain produces less neurotransmitters causing all kinds of symptoms. i have smoked full time(1/4 ounce a week for 21 years) i have just quit and am having stomach problems...this is normal.. the brain is adjusting its levels...this can take a few months..but i have found a way to boost dopemine naturally..jogging. it is hard to do the first few days or weeks because of feeling tired because of withdrawl....but i promise if you get off the couch and run for thirty minutes you will get a similar but cleaner high..because it is a fact that rigorous exercise increases neurotransmitter production...hence the saying 'runners high" i quit smoking cigarettes this way.. not to mention that after running and weezing you really dont crave any smoke for at least 2 or 3 hours. if you can get motivated run 2-3 times a day for 30 min you will be so calm at the end of the day .. you might even become addicted to running...and that has alot of positive side effects. so you might want to run to keep your brains chemicals even so you dont have to suffer physically or mentally. and it also helps to avoid social situations that might cause you to reason with yourself and start back. anyway i am quitting because i have spent probably more than $100,000 on it in the last 21 yrs and i could really use $100,000 right now. dont let anyone fool you...long term marijuana use causes major addiction. good luck .. and dont psych yourself out... have the right attitude and be patient because it is an addiction.

quittingafter18years · Newbie Joined: 02 Jan 2007 Posts: 1

Quitting

Yoga Honey Bunn · Newbie Joined: 21 Dec 2006 Posts: 83

I can testify that life is much better without pot. I smoked for some 5 years daily, and my life is more interesting, stimulating, and exciting that it ever was before. I enjoy music just as much (I used to think that week helped me see things differently), I go places, I'm even living in Europe! So, I hope that this is good motivation...a life clean with no fake chemical highs.

weedgirl · Newbie Joined: 02 Mar 2007 Posts: 1

with me i have always been addicted to something. it has been OTC pills, prescription pills, tobacco, alcohol (i stopped before i became addicted, but i had some bad habits with that: driving around and drinking from a WINE BOTTLE ). i have had several close calls with cops pulling me over for speeding/tail light violations, when i had it in my car. i believe that one time, the cop knew, because he called for backup and the two of talked for a very long time in the car. he smelled it when i rolled my window down. as i lived with my parents, i never could sustain that much of a habit, mostly i smoked at night, and for only a few months at a time.

well now, i'm hooked, and its been a year and a half. i support myself now, i'm on my own, and i have a quarter-a-week habit. at some points it has been a half ounce a week. i've thrown out bowls, smashed bongs, made makeshift ones out of plastic bottles (which is supposed to be a very very unhealthy thing to do), now i'm on machine-rolled joints. i tell myself not to smoke before i go to work at 7:30. but i have this morning ritual of coffee, a joint, and Saved By The Bell. sometimes i wait til i get home. some times i want to be only a night time smoker. smoke to relax before i go to bed. other times i want to quit entirely. i have flushed an ounce down the toilet before. tried to hide it, seal it up, make it hard to get at. it doesn't work. and if i don't have it, if i go a day without it, even if i'm broke, i will somehow find the cash for it and sometimes spend a whole day waiting for my guy to drop by. i also smoke cigarettes like a chimney.

i am scared for my health, and my problem is also ruining my relationship.

i use weed because i feel like it makes me more even, it smooths over the rough edges and acts like an antidepressant. it makes life feel like a video game. nothing seems real. i have spatial-relation problems, sometimes i lose my footing and topple over..lol. it makes me feel creative. i am a musician and though i know i am responsible for my music, i feel like the weed let it out of me. i like how smoking makes your voice all sandpapery-smooth, and often will smoke a whole pack and a few joints while recording vocals. pot makes me acts sorta wierd, and social problems aren't helping me get my name out on the music scene here, even though i play a show at least once a month.

but i am in a rut, i need to change, something has to happen. i just know that its going to be painful to stop. any suggestions?

Guest · Guest

Hang in there WeedGirl! I have struggled with most of the things you are talking about - you do need a change. I've found that moving from one vice to another is usually a search for something in ourselves that we are not happy with yet. We evolve in life and are constantly looking to find ourselves - you will find yourself, just make sure you believe in yourself. Most addictions come through self esteem problems - self doubt and self loathing are the enemies. You are great just the way you are and you have to believe that! A little smoking and some self reflection is okay, but don't let it hold you back from the good stuff - Life is out there happening and it wants you to come out and play! That's what we are here for...

Guest · Guest

I;ve been smoking for well over 10 years now and I just quit last Wednesday. The physical cravings have passed but the worst part is waking up to my life. I have gained a lot of weight and I have pretty much isolated myself away from people. I have a lot of rebuilding to do. I see the task of restructuring my life as my new addiction. I can totally relate to those here who talk about how difficult it is to quit. I wish you the best of luck and perserverence.

Guest · Guest

Wow . . . I hate to admit it but I think I have a problem! First, I came to this board simply because my dealer didn't make it over to bring me my "goodies". This was after 3 days of "tomorrow", I think everyone has been there trying to hook up. Last night I got upset and impulsively decided, "screw him. . . I don't need it anyway!" Well, 6 hrs. later I found myself surfing the internet, wishing I was stoned, and landed here (fate?). I am 37 this week, I have been smoking Pot, or Hash pretty much daily since I was 14. The ease of getting it has been a BIG enabler. I've lived in Boston, New York, Los Angeles, Chicago, Montreaux (Europe), and a host of other places and I was always able to find a way to score. Because money was never really a problem (especially when I was using my parent's money!) the financial aspect never registered. This is not bragging in anyway, it was just another "blanket" keeping me warm and comfy, prolonging the realization. But what I have noticed is an increasing lack of motivation. My cycle now has been, "gee I'm bored might as well get stoned . . . maybe I should go buy something . . . Nah tomorrow, this pot is too good to waste time doing other things". Before I knew it, 10 years past by. I think one of the MAIN reasons but not the only one, I never thought I had a problem is because I never "graduated" to harder drugs. The opposite happened, if I dabbled with Cocaine, I could always get off it with the excuse, "I'll just go back to pot". Another odd aspect is the fact that when I was younger, everyone tried to prevent me from getting mixed up with drugs. So when I moved out on my own, I thought the party was just starting! I had no where to go, and all day to get there. I didn't have the normal worries of a job and responsibility. I grew up with a bunch of "privillaged" kids, and we all thought the same way. This I guess is the strength of peer preasure, irresponsible wealth management, and getting stoned. And believe me there were a bunch of us, more then our parents knew about (Anyone remember Less then Zero?). A 1/4 of us stayed only "pot heads", a 1/4 probably stopped, with the last half going down some dark paths. So I know I'm in the lucky half, but now I'm not sure that's good enough.

I'd be lying if I said I don't plan to get high again. After all its been a part of my life for more then half my existance. BUT I am now thinking a bit differently. Anyway, reading a bunch of these posts has given me a valuable insight. And the fact I've bothered to place a post makes me think, maybe there is hope? I am curious, if my dealer calls me today, am I going to say "come on over"? I guess I'll know in a few hours.

Thanks for reading.

Guest · Guest

My son is gifted in the arts and very intelligent. He earned a scholarship to a State College.

He is at the end of his freshman year. He was recently diagnosed with Depression and is on Zoloft. I also know he spokes pot daily. During the last few months (while taking both drugs) he decided he wanted to leave college, went from 12 credit hours on the Dean's list, to six credit hours, then just stopped going completely. When I told him he would have to start paying for all of his living expenses; car, gas, food, rent, etc., etc., etc., if he dropped out of school entirely (the hardest thing I ever had to do) he finally agreed to a compromise....take six credit hours each semester to keep his scholarship in tact, and get a part time job to help pay for his living expenses. He is an incredibly gifted musician and vocalist, and has written over 60 songs. His poems have been published and his writing is exceptional. He wants to pursue his music full time and says THAT'S why he wants to leave school, NOW. OK...HERE'S MY QUESTIONS... Him wanting to drop out of school seems totally out of character for him, although he did get a little burned out from all of the stress in Highschool. Could the combination of pot and Zoloft be clouding his judgement? I spoked pot in college and until I worked out my freshman issues - it caused me to go from a 3.8 to a 2.8 I know the pot ALONE effected my whole outlook on things. He says it has nothing to do with it and that he's felt this way about formal education for a long time. He was just doing what he thought everyone else wanted him to do. Now, as an adult, he's going to make his own path. I respect that, and he is a wonderful kid. Always has been. I just worry that the pot will lessen his drive and ambition.

motivation quitting marijuana

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