results to quitting weed

Been a weed smoker for 10 years here too, anywhere from 2 joints to 7 per day. The joints were usually zig-zags or RAW brand, slightly under 0.5 g and usually had rolled up filter tips. Never smoked any cigarettes (I can count the amount of spliffs I have smoked in my life with just the fingers from one of my hands). At the beginning of October I got a flu that lasted for 3 days and developed bronchitis-like symptoms afterwards that was so bad that I couldn't breathe, was coughing literally nonstop day and night, and got winded whenever I tried to walk up a flight of stairs. I never experienced anything like it before, even with past colds and flus. Sleep was impossible because I was wheezing heavily both in and out and would stop breathing in the middle of the night, choking for air. I was coughing up ridiculous amounts of phlegm (yellow, brown, green, pink, white and dark grey)... about maybe a pint per day!!! The coughing was so bad that there was blood and muscles being torn in my throat, neck and sides. Aside from seasonal allergies, I never had gotten this sick before.
This went on for a week until I got an appointment with the doctor, who prescribed me prednisone, antibiotics (doxy) and salbutanol inhalers. My oxygen level was 93% and the doctor believes I may have COPD. No stomach pain around my lungs, so she didn't think it was pneumonia.

I stopped smoking on Oct 7th (4 days prior to the doctor) and its now the 16th. I've had the following happen:
1. Crazy dreams. I never dreamed when I started smoking and now each time that I sleep I get very vivid, easy to remember dreams that are very bizarre and abstract.
2. Breathing is still bogged down but I don't get winded anymore. I'm suspecting the anti-inflammatories have had a lot to do with this, however. I'll make another post on this if I am still having to use an inhaler. Today is the first day I haven't felt the necessity to use it.
3. Better mood - Ironically I feel more happier and motivated.
4. The first three days after quitting I was coughing VERY heavily and long, day and night with no sleep (maybe an hour at most) for 4 days straight, with the last day being the worst. My phlegm started as brown coloured lumps and congealed strings, ranging from the size of a pea to the size of a quarter. After a week, the coughing was limited to waking up and I found myself able to function normally except with deep breaths.
5. I lost about 10 lbs. over the course of about two weeks, from the beginning of the illness. I also found food to be more bland.
6. I found that my speech and social skills improved. Being a heavy user, I always spoke slower, had pauses in my speech and found difficulty in trying to find the right word to say.
7. My memory has felt a lot better. I would forget all sorts of short-term things, like where I put my car keys or articles in the paper. These happen far less frequently.

I'm going to be switching to a dry-herb vapourizer from now on. Honestly, if you are smoking more than 2 joints a day habitually you should switch to a vapourizer and save your lungs. I'll make another progress note at the end of the month and let users know how things are going.

8 months hahahaha I quit after 16 years

Returning after a month to say that I was diagnosed with mild COPD. My lung capacity was slightly above 80%. I ended up switching to a vapourizer, my lungs feel much better now. I was still coughing up black specks and brown gunk for a good month, as well as having a couple more asthmatic like episodes early on into vaping. After learning how to properly vape, I still get as high as I would with combustion.

Go for vaping, waterbong or edibles. Don't kill your lungs off like I almost did!

Your post makes me want to stay on track. I have gone 10 days. I have all withdrawal Symtoms. Everything I been covering up with pot is resurfacing. I want to stay strong I feel like I been living in a fog for the last three years and I missed out on many things even though I did a lot of things it’s just blur. I wonder how I even got to this point. I’m going to stick it out and I don’t want weed as a part of my life. Using it as coping for life events. I realize I need to deal with them head on. Thanks for your post and encouragement.

How's hasn't it been goin man? I'm on day 6 rn , pretty sad that we have to count the days but it's true , and I started to feel really good the first few days but now I've come down with all of the symptoms listed in this post: sore throat , bad achyness, chills , super thick orangeish mucus ready to spit out all of the time... I'm glad I realized the importance of cutting this out of my life because I'm 19 and have been smoking for about 5-6 years with the last 3 years being daily. Let's keep this thread going with similarities and success stories...they're encouraging.

Read your post and am comparing it to my experience; get what you want out of it. 6 joints a day is a quite a bit of weed. Looking in the mirror, that amount may be a coping mechanism of escaping reality; the out of control anger could reinforce that statement. Self-medication can be tough to accomplish due to the desire to (continually) escape negative emotions without actually having an impact on the environment that causes these emotions.
Emotions are there to help guide us through life (yes, even the negative ones). They let you know if you're are going in a positive or negative direction in YOUR life, i.e. they are a kind of map. The fun part of weed can be the escape or distortion of everyday reality, however when the state of high is the norm, it is just a new norm... This new norm is one that allows to more easily ignore those emotions, but doesn't physically remove us from or change the reality. When the weed is removed, all of the emotions that you were feeling, or could have felt if not high, are still there and have likely collected into a bigger pile than before. Hence the loss of control or heightened state of anger? I highly doubt that weed will cause you to loose your mind. (Observe that feeling/emotion of "loosing your mind" and ask what is that condition telling you.) Weed does have psychoactive compound(s) that allows for a distortion of perceptions. (I suggest observing how perception and reality are related.) I think that weed/psychoactive compounds are a tool that aids in the release of perception/beliefs that are no longer helping in one's life and can help us grow and mature. On the flip-side, too much weed can prevent that growth! As far as quitting permanently? I would suggest listen to yourself/body/mind over time (not a hour, day, or week); give some time to collect data on whether weed is beneficial or a hindrance in living your life to its fullest. To collect this data and have a clear mind for making a decision....well my experience says a break or severely reduced intake to allow for the body and mind to readjust to "reality or even perceived reality" since that is where life happens. Write some thoughts down on paper or type them on a computer to help process this data and what you might be trying to "escape". Be honest with yourself, but not a tyrant. Congrats on stopping cigarettes and alcohol, especially if they were a hindrance in living life! Take that as a confidence booster proving that you are not "trapped" in your life. Making progress in increments, instead of sprints, appears to be easier and longer lasting. Small changes build momentum, are less arduous, and do accumulate into significant change or progress. If you decide that Mary is beneficial, fine, great! Own that sh*t. It is your life; find your balance.

Well I don’t have all the answers I have done a lot of research and you are all correct when you’re quitting smoking weed your lungs are going to expel all the c**p that’s been put into them the last many years black phlegm is not unusual and I see lots of it trust me I’ve been a daily smoker for almost 30 years recently quit on day 26 and going strong best thing I’ve ever done all I can say is keep with it yeah actually get your brain back your dreams back and pocket full of money !!

I am also suffering with the same cause, but my voice has become a little bit denser. I don't know what to do? And for how long this will continue?? If anyone suffering from the Same situation then please let me know what to do!!!

I was a heavy smoker for about 8 months. Smoking anywhere from twice to 10 times a day. I quit 2 days ago and the first day I got a very bad headache along with sweats and nausea. The second day i woke up with a terrible headache and an unexpected cough. Throughout the whole day I have not been able to stop coughing every few minutes. It is nice to know that I’m not the only one dealing with this. I never thought it was possible to become addicted, nor did I imagine how unpleasant the withdrawl symptoms could be. All I have ever heard was that you can’t be addicted to weed but now I know the truth. If you feel that you might be addicted I would recommend taking a break and seeing if you suffer from any withdrawl symptoms. Thanks for the thread guys, and good luck to all trying to quit.

So weird I have been having the craziest dreams since I stopped it’s been about a month and a half and I never remembered my dreams before but now they have been insane! Also I’ve had a sore throat for almost a week now it’s worse in the morning and at night before I go to sleep. I feel bad for putting my lungs through that for almost ten years now it’s time to heal :(

I’ve been daily smoker for years. I stopped 3 weeks ago and feel like I’ve had the flu since day 2. Still have sore throat and coughing especially at night. I just want to sleep all the time as my body aches, my head is foggy and I’m not motivated to do anything except veg out. Yes, vivid dreams, phlegm’s and sad. I’m so upset with my self for the damage I’ve caused my body and mind. The worst is the sore throat, I found this forum to see if it is common withdrawal or something else as all the articles on weed withdraw don’t mention it. I also have lost my voice on and off but have not seen anyone talk about the heart burn/ acid reflux. Is anyone having acid reflux especially at night or when lying down?

I wound like to share my symptoms time line:

Day 1-3
Strong cravings and feeling like not myself. Smoking was part of my rutine so feeling lots. Th voice of the cravings in my head like dark fingers stroking my thoughts with messages of: Just reduce you don’t have to quit, you will not have fun any more, This is boring, your getting old just have fun, this is who you are, how about on date nights...

Sore throat especially in the morning
Congested
Noxious
Loss of food taste
Tired
No motivation
On the lazy boy all day binge watching
Stopp3d working

Day 4- 8

all the above

Lost voice for 3 days
Cough
Fever 100
Eyes dry and Itchy
Dry itchy face
Body ache
Vivid dreams
Heart burn the Tums didn’t help much so nights were really bad

Day 8 - 16

All the above

No sex drive
Anxious
Sad
Angry
Just want to be alone
Got voice back

Day 16 - 21

All the above
Cravings less
Less Angry


Day 21 - 27

Flu symptoms only in the morning but still sore throat all day
Have more engery but not constant
Not angry and less sad
Trembling at times
Pressure in chestl
I’m starting to work and cooking
Still don’t want to go out and want to be alone

Before I was a smoker I was very sociable and loved to go out exploring new places and doing new things...I feel that person is still there. I know she will come back. I’m so glad I finally quit cold turkey after 30 years of smoking most days often several times a day.

Denial, the only way to stop is to stop full turkey because as soon as you have a smoke you are back to day one. Reducing only prolongs the symptoms experienced my most people who stop for a day or two and repeat. You will never feel better you will just be f*****g with you mind and body.

That is an excuse. Take it if you want it, but don't lie to yourself like that. Look, you were wee once, you didn't need weed then, you MADE yourself need it. IV said the same thing toyself and it's BS. What I can say to anyone reading this later (as it's old now, a year or older, how did you get on by the way?) Is get yourself some probiotics. They are making my detox much easier so far (five days in CHRONIC smoker for 11 years, as in forty quid a day sort of chronic). No one NEEDS anything but air food water and love.

I smoked for 4 years straight, usually once to twice a day. It's been about 25 days since I've smoked. Unlike most of these responses, I used a dry herb vaporizer. I am not experiencing even close to the symptoms some of the others are. No phlegm, but I have an occasionally light dry cough. I feel like I am coughing more than usual now, but it isn't severe. Reading these other posts makes me very glad that I used a dry herb vaporizer and didn't smoke multiple blunts per day like some others.

Also, I have definitely noticed that I remember my dreams more vividly. This seems to be a common trend. I find this interesting, since I would never really remember my dreams before I ever started smoking in the first place. Then, when I did smoke, I still didn't remember. But now that I smoked for 4 years daily and have stopped, I do remember almost every night. Strange how my marijuana use has affected my brain chemistry....