Recommendations on how to stop smoking marijuana and what symptoms to watch for

Hi everyone! This site has been so interesting..so many reoccuring thoughts and feelings about the struggle to stop smoking. I am a 30 year old woman, and my husband and I have been smoking daily since we were teenagers. I have battled wanting to quit for years, but have remained comfortable in my familiar little world. Fundamentally, I dont have an issue with pot, as I dont with alcohol, but if I drank the way I smoke, it would be a clear problem. I have been toying with quitting since the new year..havent made it more than 6 days, but that is an accomplishment since there have been years without missing a day.

I have found day 4-5 to be the toughest...like many others I have insomnia, night sweats, but mostly the cravings. Not even to to really be high...just to relieve the gnawing cravings...like an itch that begs to be scratched. But a couple thoughts/mantras are my main motivation:

1. Ther body is an amazing thing and WILL develop a new normal if I get it a chance. I know this from giving up other things in my life as simple as the sweetner in my coffee.

2. This struggle is a part of my story and I want it to be something I went through and learned from and can apply to things I dont even know are going to happen yet.

3. Failure is not a slip up - its the refusal to get back up.

4. I want this. I can do this. Nothing truly worth anything comes easy.

5. Each day is a success, each time I talk myself down from a craving is a mental triumph and in time they will add up to the goal I have for myself.

Best of luck to everyone : )
xo
B

Hello everyone, thanks for all of your posts. I think venting and sharing our experiences can be extremely therapeutic collectively and individually in our journey. So here's my story...

I am 28 and have been smoking for 10 years, DAILY. About two weeks ago, without real intention (no conscious intention anyway) , I cut back to about 1 bowl and 1 blunt a day.

I have to start by saying that I'm not quite sure what caused the initial EXTREME panic attack, but here are the events that led to my decision to quit. I was prescribed a 30 day supply of Ambien about a month and a half ago, because as many pot smokers know, insomnia can be a symptom of long-term marijuana use (as ironic as it seems). (Sidenote: I have not finished the 30 day supply and do not plan to). I took it only as needed (not nightly), but found that 10mg didn't help much. On a couple occasions, I decided to take 2 pills to try and get to sleep. One night, about a week and a half ago, after taking 20mg of Ambien, I was only able to get about an hour of sleep. I felt slightly groggy, but decent the following day...until about 9 or 10pm that night. That's when the sudden, extreme, life changing panic attack hit me. I do have generalized anxiety, but have never experienced something so frightening.

I felt as if I were choking (possibly globus pharyngeus, possibly the anxiety, possibly a cold...still need to go to the doc to confirm, as my throat is still bugging me)...then I felt as if my soul had left my body or something. I started having chills and then hot flashes, repeatedly. Heart was pounding, and my perception of my environment changed. Everything felt totally foreign. Then I felt like I was dying. I decided to smoke some pot to try to calm me down...

Not only did the pot not calm me down, it actually made the experience way worse. I actually considered going to the emergency room. My fiance convinced me that I just needed sleep. Finally, I was able to calm my breathing and heart rate enough to sleep.

The next day, I felt the same way. Again, stupidly, I attempted to smoke to calm down. Same result. The next few days I cut back to one bowl a day...until I finally decided to quit smoking completely 2 days ago.

Here is what I have experienced for the past 48 hours: Insomnia, as expected. Bad headaches, extreme fear of death, paranoia that people close to me don't really like me, irritability, and little to no appetite. (I got a prescription for xanax which has somewhat helped with sleep, and def helped w the night-time anxiety). A few other things that have helped are working, staying busy, being in the company of others and prayer. I plan to start exercising soon as well.

Unfortunately, I have started smoking cigs again to help with nerves during the day.

I know this is going to be a process, but I'm proud of myself for not smoking for 2 full days, even with my fiance smoking it and having it in the house. I actually have a fear that if I smoke again, I'll have another major freak out. That, is motivation enough for me to want to quit.

Another sidenote: My first experience with pot was at age 12. It was a one time thing, but I literally heard a voice in my head telling me to kill myself while I was high. I never touched it again until I was 18.

Again, I don't know if it was the Ambien that caused my mental breakdown, or if it was the 10 years of daily pot smoking, but I know that I never want to feel that way again.

Much love and good luck to all of you, and I will try to come back and post my progress in about a week.

I am a 22 year old female and I have been smoking weed for 2 years nearly everyday and 2 years previous to that 3 times a year of so.

I'm really glad I found this collection of messages. Reading everyone's story has helped me to draw more inspiration to quit. I think I am a social smoker. I've been doing it since I was 14... I'm 30 now... half my life. It's a similar story to most of you... I started doing it with my friends because we were goofy little sh**s looking for something fun to do. And hell, to this day, sometimes I swear, most of my friendships circle around weed. Some don't though, and I need to spend more time with those people who don't smoke. Although I don't know if I'll have much of a social life after that, as most of them are far away. :-(  I would say I'm a moderate smoker as I don't smoke everyday, but I at least get high 3 to 4 times a week. I have been able to stop for long periods before... my record was 6 months... then when I cracked... it wasn't a little... I became a full blown smoker... again... ugh.

Hi - second post here my first was 3/11. Things are going good. I have slipped a couple times either buying a small bag when it comes my way and not being able to say no around "friends" (my pothead friends) when the bat or pipe is passed. I've certainly slowed down so that's what this thread is about, "Recommendations on how to stop smoking marijuana.."  I've been spending more time with my family literally telling myself that it's the best thing for me, not going to find some grass and things associated with that. The biggest thing is that my wife doesn't smoke. I'm very lucky in that regard.  My heart goes out to those of you who are with partners and have smoked together for a long time. Pull the weed, and the relationship may get pulled unless he/she is willing to quit then it will be a win win. Some things that have helped me were to start back old hobby(s) that I never associated with smoking weed and making a promise to myslef that the two will never ever be linked. If you're an active outdoorsie type you know exactly what I mean.. "it's more fun if you're high" BS, It can be just as much fun if not more because you're in control now. You are not powerless. If you slip up/on get back off it whatever it takes because you really want it!  Oh and the post on 4/1 just disregard it's probably the town dealer and should be deleted because this IS about helping people stop NOT to justifiy why pot is addictive or not blah blah trying to get all psychological... it's simply helping each other to stop and is working I feel. Thanks all good luck - much love 

Hi Everyone. After reading a lot of responses- especially most of this one. I realize that all are very similar. I wanted to also give my response and reading many of your responses has given me comfort in knowing I am far from being alone in this withdrawl "getting off marijuana". I thought I should give back- maybee it will help.

I am a fine artist (oil painter and printmaker). I am 27 years old and have been smoking since 2000. I have been smoking more heavily in 2001 when I was in college and able to make my own poor choices and until currently (past three years) it was getting out of control.

 I would smoke to escape into my artistic world ( I thought) and elivate the stress of friends/family/careers- life. What I have realized is that I wasn't escaping anything. When you come down off your high- you are worse off than you started- nothing was gained and not only have you lost a good amount of money that could have afforred a few real vacations filled with real experiences- I took mental vacations with fake experiences.

When my father left our family a few years ago, I got more and more into pot. Instead of being there for my mother- I was sellfish- and took time out for my own "healing". I was thinking of how things affected me- and not her or my two sisters.

Everyone in life has their own path- but don't forget that in order for our paths to take course- we must interract with one another to gain more along these paths of life. This forum, I believe is just that.

GREAT TIP: Spend time with people who you enjoy being with, that don't use drugs, and benefit from their strength and their balance.

Spending more time with my sisters, girlfriend, mother and nephew allows me to not think about pot and see how other people who have never even smoked pot before go through their lives with integrity, respect, and success. I hope you don't take this as me saying that smokers don't have any of these qualities- but I didn't.

I didn't have integrity, respect, and until recently have not seen much real qualitative success in my art. My girlfriend of almost 5 years doesn't smoke pot. She didn't want me to do it when she met me, and until recently has just realized that I have been lying to her for most of our relationship. We did have a good thing going in regards to every other aspect of our relationship- but with my overuse or misuse or abuse (whatever you call it) or ADDICTION!- let's be honest- I was having bad breathe so we wouldn't kiss,not doing the right things for myself in regards to furthering my career, I would have mood swings, and seperate myself a lot from her to smoke and be with my art. Ontop of it all, she is a teacher and if I ever had it on me- it would legally put her at risk. Also, she wants a strong man who doesn't rely on anything to get by or get high besides life.

Even through knowing I would loose her, having been arrested over three times with possession, heart palpitations, minor bronchitious, continuious misguided artistic motivation, lack of focus, and a plethora of other negative behaviour- I still continued to smoke.

I even remember my best friend who lost his mother called me up a few years after her passing and told me that he is surpirsed to hear I smoke everyday. He said- you still have your mother, a beautiful girlfirend, talented...etc. etc. SO WHY DO YOU HAVE SO MUCH PAIN? why do you choose to continue in this way- you have so much to get high on naturally- why are you sabotaging your life?

That conversation was 4 years ago and I still think of it to this day.

Why do we give ourselves more pain? More hardship? I really can't figure it out.

As an artist, I relied on it as a crutch- a way of seeing things uniquely. It has spawed creative impulses and basically all of my art to date. As I have been smoking daily for these past 11 years! Now, more sobering, I look at what my art has been and I want it to be something better. I look at what I have been and want to be better.

Only through the grace of God, the universe, Buddah, whatever the all incompassing energy that sweeps our lives and our world- this grace of karma or balance has given me multiple opportunities to change and to quit.

My charges have been dropped over the years due to one reason or another and my background is clear. I was lucky and motivated enough to collect a tuiton waiver to attend school for free and finish my art degree and certify to become an art teacher. I was lucky enough to have a great supportive family, girlfriend who is sticking by me in hopes of my changing, and among many many other opportunites that I had tried to sabbotage.

I was even kicked out of a foriegn exchange program for bad behaviour due to pot withdrawl and lost this great opportunitity a few years back.

Through it all I kept maryjane close by and just got smarter about how to get it, how to not get caught, how to hide it, how to lie about it and I was and have become this poisoned person.

I really do believe in God and am not a crazy religious church goer. I love reggae music and to me God is the spirit many musicians sign about and artists paint about- its the spirit more than a book, or a huge man with a white beard on a cloud in the sky. This spirit is undenaiable and is with every wave crashing on a beach to every bird that soars inthe sky.

The problem is that you can't get the spirit if you are high. The blunted eyes of our youth search for a God and for understanding- but if you have blunted eyes- you can't see the spirit or benefit from it. I feel as if this dark spirit has enveloped my mind and literally possessed me- addiction.

Now, more focused on what I want, and through sobering control I am better to make decisions in regards to showing my work, galleries who look to take advataged of drugged out artists or inexperienced artists, and actually meet deadlines with patrons. My art is also getting better and more detailed- I just use music as my muse and through concentration my work is improving and you can really see the difference.

Personally, I won't lie to my girl anymore and waste her time. I won't stay away from the people I love and who love me so that I can get high and paint. I can hang out with them and paint too- you can have it all if you are willing to be stronger and make daily promises to yourself.

I really didn't want to write this much- but I feel the more I tell- the better it may help some of you.

Be honest with yourself and only good things will follow. I am more realistic now and am better able to succeed because of it.

I just saw 127 hours, the new movie about the guy who cut his arm off when it was stuck under a boulder during a hiking trip. The movie was so much more than that. I suggest who ever is getting off pot or any adicition and wants a better clean life to see it- its inspirational.

Instead of hating the boulder afterwards, he realized what it did for him and he simply said thank you.

I thank pot for allowing me to see that I was wasting my time, my health and the time of the people I love.

Now, I am a better and stonger person as I have been clean for almost a month. I know its early, but starting to run, excercise, eating on schedule, listening to music, spending time with family/friends, and replacing it with good art and good times allows me to pull through.

Two things and thats it until I post in another month. 1- that commercial where the guy 'cacoons' himself in weed as a kid and then breaks through and he is in the same place living in his moms house at 40! - yeah... think about that. Sure, successful people smoke weed too- but for the most part if you are doing this c**p for years- you will not see much of a change in your life for the better. Don't you want to be better? GIve yourself more credit and give pot less credit- its really not that great to waste a small fortune, your time and kill long lasting relationships.

The last thing- a great tip that I use- is I think about smoking as a form of masturbation. Do you want to masturbate all day and all night? No! You turn into a pervert. If you are jerking off- you turn into a jerk off.

I don't want the next years of my life if I am fortunate enough to have them, to be wasted as a jerk off. I don't want to be sellfish and sell-fullfilling. I want to be so much more and so far I have been. A lot has happened in this month and it seems as if life is really life now.

So... if you want to get off. Replace it with something positive, like excercise and a good hobby. Of course my hobby of art is my hobby that was related to weed. But now I related it to me and its helping me to fill my time and my mind with thoughts other than a joint.

Be strong! You can do it- if you want it bad enough. Good luck, but you won't need it if you really try and are honest with what YOU want.

 

 

 

 

 

Like all of you, I too am trying too stop smoking weed. I dont remember exactly when it started maybe when I was 16 or 17 and I'm 20 now. It started on Occassion.. but turned into an everyday thing.. you know high school etc than it became everyday... It started with pipes and joints, now I find only a bong gets me high. I've probably been smoking everyday for a good 2-3-4 years Not really sure. I noticed when I stopped smoking I get really sick... a feeling like i Want too throw up.. Sometimes I do... at first I thought it was something else. I did a catscan, and everything my body is healthy so now I know its a weed addiction causing this. I'm 5 f 10 and about 140 pounds.. so I feel like my appetite is slipping... I Find myself wanting too smoke weed just so I know I can get some food in me.. I've seen a doctor and I did blood tests.. dosent seem like they can do anything for me yet... Im going too more doctors.. I'm going too try cutting down, I have a new born baby and my gf also smokes with me.

I tried taking graval that dident help.... its like... to be honest u guys you got the Flu 24/7... my doctor asked me if I smoked weed i said yeah, I still need too contact him maybe I will further push its a weed issue.. I would love something that worked like XNAX or whatever but u need a prescription it looks like. I have probably lost maybe 20 pounds or so.. in the past 5-6 months.. I feel its leading to anarexia.. I feel helpless......If theres anyone out there reading this and feels like me ur not alone ;/

If you have a newborn baby your wife, who is breast feeding should not be smoking pot. Her milk, which is necessary for your baby, is now polluted with THC. 

Thanks for all the info. I'm 50, started at age 13. I feel like this is impossible feat but need to start somewhere. I have taken breaks over the years but have smoked all day, every day for the past few years while out of work. I think this may be tougher for the people around me.

I have a lot of frends that smoke and have convinced themselfs that it will never afect them badly. This thred gives me proof that there are long term effects and it gives me a very good reason not to smoke. Most people will tell you not to smoke weed because "It will ruin your life." or "It kills brain sells." but evidence of the "scientifically proven" negative side effects is at best inconclusive. With this there is evidence that weed is bad.

I just wanna say thanks to everyone who taken apart of this thread because it really does help i was a 4 year pot smoker lighting up everyday a few times a day faithfully. Thanks to this and some other online resources mostly this one and ***this post is edited by moderator *** *** web addresses not allowed*** i have really found a way to beat this addiction. Again i just wanna thank everyone cus everything little comment has helped. Thank you. 

I've been smoking pot everyday for about 10 years. I'm 24 now and I feel like I'm about to watch my life go down the drain. I've had so many opportunities that other people would kill for and I've wasted every one of them because I'm a stoner. I've lost contact with so many friends and have dropped out of 2 degrees, both 1 semester short of passing - because It was easier to just stay home and smoke instead of doing exams.
I haven't started quitting yet... It's like I'm waiting for something.. The same thing I've been waiting for for the last 5 years (a pair of balls? some self respect?)
I've always been the first to say I love da green mannn legalize it.. but its people like me who f**k it up because I abuse it and let it destroy my life.
I need help, really really bad. I'm about to lose the chance of a career that I would love because instead of going to a meeting I called in a sicky and am now at home half naked and baked to the tree.

i just wanted to say thanks for all the posts ...i spent some time sifting through the 'self-help buy me' c**p...might work for some ~i just wanted a group of honest ppl sharing their REAL thoughts...I am 28 I quit for 8 mnths a little over a year ago..and gradually found myself smoking again almost on a daily basis .. i have attempted quitting in the 8 yrs of smoking on a reg basis roughly 4 times with little success but everytime got a little easier so dont get discouraged- you'll know when its the right time!and everytime i honed a new tool.. I went through AA for those 8 mnths and it taught me alot that i carry with me not in just the drinking and drug realm of my life but in everything, though i did not feel AA was right for me... my story is long and winding but when it comes down to it- my quality of life is less fullfilling when i use and just getting back to 'me' again took time. The thing i had to understand was that me was gone- this is a chance to build on the idea that i went out and experienced that world(the good and bad)...but now there needs to be more to me!i was lost in it and still often wonder if im using it or it's using me...hm?thots?

i am 47..been smoking since age 15 on and off..but for the last 15 years almost everyday in abuse and since my son's suicide last auguest..i'm drowning in it..today is the day!!! and crying while writing..so tired of this sh*t..i know whats ahead for me..i am scared of the suffering..but it can't be worse than losing my son!!! i want him to be proud of me...feel alone and lost..i cant stop slowly..it never worked for me before..i lived on a farm for 20 years with a workaholic husband..i have been bi polar i think all my life..non médicated..my brain swells on pills and am to sick..it never bothered my hubby that i smoked..it didn't change me really..made me more joyfull at the end of the day...i am so not proud of myself...i have thought of taking my life after my sons suicide..i have 3 more children for whom i have always been there and a first grand child on the way and i know if i dont get off this depresser...all i know is that i,m scared and so sick of failing at this...good luck to me:)

Kathy

 

f**k yeah, guys. I never post on forums either (as seems to be the general trend), mostly because I'm usually too lazy to sign up. lol.