Symptoms of the marijuana withdrawals

I just want to let everyone know that life does exist without pot. I've been quit for 6 months now, experienced a bit of insomnia but that disappeared after about the first month. I was a chronic in the worst way I have been smoking pot daily since I was 15, I am 20 now. That's 5 years of living life in an absolute fog, I've tried to quit before many times. I am not sure why it worked this time, I just started to see it as pointless I quess. After a while it drowns out everything else, I quit for mental clarity and because I wanted to go back to school. I always found it impossible to focus and read when I was getting high all the time, it really affected my attention span. Before it seemed almost impossible to picture my life without it. I never realized that after a certain amount of time I would forget all about what it was like to be high. I never thoght that the desire would ever go away when it was so constant before. Getting clean really is like waking up from a dream I quit alcohol recently too. I was a little depressed for a while after I quit pot, but the important thing is to get through it and drag yourself up out of that slump. Now I feel like I can actually look forward to the future and I have a lot more motivation than I had. I have truly become a different person and now I'm waging war on tobacco. My brother was diagnosed with cancer so I've decided to cut the cigarettes lose as well. Sometimes it's just the right time, and when one door closes anouther opens, good luck.

Hi. And thank you all for your messages.

I smoked marijuana for approximately 6-8 months. In that time I might have missed 5 days, other than that I was stoned every chance I got. No matter how much weed we bought it was always gone the next day. Whether it was a gram or $100 worth.

I cut down a little last week and then two mornings I got up and had to throw up before going about my normal routine. I am now completely quit I haven't had any since last Thursday.

And I've been horrible ill ever since. My back hurts, for the first few days I was throwing up, I can't eat, I have no appetite, I'm nausious, phlem in my throat, sweating, hot/cold flashes and horrible irritability.

I didn't know it was withdrawl. I didn't know if I gave it up I'd have these problems. This is so hard. I hope it ends soon. Funny though one of my reasons for quitting was so I could give my daughter the attention she deserves and instead all I do is scream at her.

Thank you all for sharing your experiences, at least now I can put myself at ease about why this is going on. I think not knowing the cause was the worst thing about it.

PS-I had to quit for my daughter and because I spend every cent I can on marijuana which means that the bills weren't being paid and I was hardly buying groceries.

I wish I had known all this stuff before I started cause I never would have.

I've been browsing all 10 pages of this thread for a few days now- and I keep seeing the same symptoms as my own recurring post after post. I've been dealing with these 'symptoms' for some time now- off and on. It's only been recently that I've begun to realize that most times I've begun to feel this miserable has been around the time I've had a 'dry spell' where I've run out and haven't been able to get more for weeks at a time.
All along I thought it was something significantly more serious- everything from a cold/flu to a serious condition like MS. I can't recall how many times I've gone to see the doctor about my symptoms, or how many times I've been prescribed antibiotics as a result. Before Christmas I was REALLY sick- almost completely immobilized due to fatigue. I was prescribed strong antibiotics used to treat staph infections- and had bloodwork done. The bloodwork all came back negative- and the antibiotics did next to nothing.
One symptoms I have not seen listed here, however, and thus- I'm not even sure whether it applies or whether my situation stems from something else- is sores on my neck and scalp- and occasionally my face. This is why my doctor prescribed me the antibiotics. Usually they feel like a cyst under the skin, and are occasionally itchy- and become inflamed if I scratch/poke at them.
Everything else, however, is bang-on. The headaches, the lightheadedness/dizziness, the depression, the extreme anxiety (which I tend to suffer from anyways), the paranoia/hypochondria, the lack of appetite, the irritability, the tightness/pain in my neck and lower back. I have it all.

I've been 'dry' for about 2 weeks now, and really began feeling symptoms last Wednesday night- specifically aches & pains in my legs, fatigue, and the lightheadedness. I've woken up wanting to puke- though I haven't. All-in-all, this 'feels' identical to every other time I've been 'sick', and I've jumped through many many many hoops to try and identify what the source of the problem may infact be. I'm so thankful for having found this thread and hear that this isn't some strange phenomenon that I'm suffering through myself. I even went and had a root canal that I had been putting off for years (admittedly, it needed to be done) thinking that it was the cause of my problems- causing recurring infections causing me to feel the way I have.

I echo what others on this thread have said- had I known that this is how difficult it would be to stop smoking weed, I never would have started in the first place! And in my case- it isn't even a case of deciding to stop... I just ran out and haven't been able to get more. I've read on here people suggesting to ween yourself off it to try and prevent these withdrawal symptoms- and I certainly would, but that simply isn't an option for me. And so- I suffer.

While this thread has given me insight into what is actually going on, unfortunately those closest to me aren't buying it. They tell me I'm going through caffeine withdrawal- but how can that be since I've consumed caffeine regularly for the past two weeks? Hard to feel withdrawal from something you still consume regularly! I'm already irritable as $h!+ and get easily pissed off at anyone that even looks at me the wrong way... and the last thing I need is for people to tell me how I'm f***in' feeling and tell me I'm wrong in my assessment. granted, they are all big weedheads too- but I feel like I'm doing battle just to stand by my findings and my opinions. I even sent them a link to this thread and was criticized for it because it's "just a f***ing posting- go ask a doctor" Ya- I've asked many doctors in the last 2 years that I've been having these withdrawal symptoms (again, off and on- not constantly.. if I had these symptoms constantly for two years then I'd be posting a suicide note instead), and these are the same brilliant minds that throw some antibiotics at me and gladly charge my insurance for their 'professional diagnosis'. Ya right.

Yes, these symptoms are real. That doesn't mean they affect everyone! I've gone through 'dry spells' before and haven't had any problems- but those were in my early days of smoking up... as time goes on and your body becomes more and more used to it, it can affect you differently. I'm sure there are plenty of other factors- like diet, like genetics, like lifestyle, that all contribute to whether or not going 'cold turkey' from smoking weed on a day-to-day basis will result in such symptoms. But as soon as someone even hints at something negative about pot- suddenly you become the f***in' enemy. In a world where people claim that you can 'get cancer from anything these days'- why the f*** do they believe to their very cores that weed is the exception?

I really wish I knew how long I can expect these symptoms to persist. Everything I've read on this thread seems to indicate anywhere from a few weeks to a few months. I suppose I'm in it for the long haul then- especially since it's unlikely I'll be picking up any more. I'm not advocating not using weed- because it has admittedly helped me through some very trying times in my life, but there is a limit to how much the body can physically handle- and I crossed that limit a long time ago.

Moderation is the key- like anything in life, too much of anything is not good in the long-run.

These posts have been extremely helpful, thanks to all for posting.

I am a 21yr old male, have been a regular(daily pretty much) user of MJ for about 2-4 years. Recently, about 5 days ago i stopped smoking cold turkey because i got a good internship this summer, and might have a drug test. Anyways, some of my later smoking experiences were very unpleasureable... heart palpitations, increased heart beat i did throw up as well once, i felt like i was having a heart attack... 5 hours after i smoked i had a roomate take me to the hospital. They ran a bunch of tests.. ekg chest xray etc. The xray said my heart was fine... but the EKG had some problems. I have had another one since, and both times my pulse was around 120-130 because i was so nervous. The doctor in both cases said that the EKG was probably off due to my heart rate. I will be getting a 2-d echo and a 24-hour holter just to make sure everything is groovy. BTW im about 5'9 160 pounds in pretty good physical condition.

I have no desire to go back to smoking whatsoever, no insomnia either, and no real anger. However, i have waves of overwhelming anxiety come over me at random times, where my heart beats fast and hard when im not smoking!! Also i become emotional sometimes for no real reason and start tearing up... something that never happens to me. I have never experienced these things in the past... in fact i would be the last person my friends/family would think this could happen to. I'm always saying how stress can kill people, and they should be more laid back. I was wondering if these symptoms can be caused by MJ withdrawal... or if i have something more along the lines of an anxiety disorder. I suppose, my body is so used to having THC in the system, that its creating a chemical inbalance thats throwing me off. I do have some xanax type drugs which were prescribed for me, but i try not to use them... Its only been 5 days since i last smoked... do you think this could be a result of me stopping cold turkey? If so.. how long do you think this will last? Any advice/comments/suggestions would be wonderful.

Welcome to my life for the past month.



Me quitting smoking all started with a huge fight I got in with my mother. At the end of the fight, I felt terribly guilty since she brought up me smoking pot so much. I promised myself that I would cut down and only smoke once a day (going from over 5 times a day) and slowly cut back. By doing so, my body started experiencing a little withdrawal from not getting it so much. Every time I went to smoke, the anxiety I felt was overwhelming to the point that I decided to simply stop altogether. I still felt anxiety/nervousness all the time when I stopped, but it really peaked at about a week-two weeks. Like yourself, I was given a generic for xanax and used them only on an as-needed basis (I only took about 5 in total). I also became emotional like yourself with symptoms of fatigue, dizzyness, restlessness, flattened emotions, depression, pains in my head/throughout my body, loss of appetite (lost 10 pounds), and also coughing up phlegm most days. I'm just over a month now and my symptoms are about 75% better than they were when I first stopped. I still wake up some mornings with anxiety from vivid dreams/nightmares (in fact, that's the reason why I'm up right now!) but I feel that with everyday, In feel a little bit better and that I'm on the road to recovery. By the fact that you took your own initiative to quit shows that you're conscientious by nature and doing good things for yourself. My best advice to give is to 1.) Find a hobby that will keep your mind off of what you're feeing and 2.) Try to understand that what you're going through is normal and that your symptoms will improve with time. Time is the ultimate healer...remember that and good luck.

The anxiety is what's really doing me in I think- and unfortunately I have no true way to prove that it is indeed withdrawal from MJ as opposed to simple stress and anxiety. I've had a lot of things change in my life recently- new job prospects, new financial situation, etc. that are considered to be stressful situations. Tack on the stress from my current job, and I'm really left scratching my head wondering what really is the truth.

Like I've read on previous posts in this thread, hypochondria comes into play and while I'm pretty confident it's withdrawal symptoms I'm feeling- I can't help but wonder whether it actually is something else at play here, like a 'simple' anxiety disorder (which I'm sure I've suffered with in the past- long before I ever started smoking), or an infection of some sort. Part of me almost doesn't want to believe that it's MJ withdrawal- and I have had mild cravings lately. More along the lines of 'gee, it'd be nice to smoke a bowl and play some XBOX just the vege out for a while'- but it isn't like I'm scraping the inside of the bowl in a frenzied panic because I NEED to and that I can't play games without it. Of course, today being 4-20 doesn't help either.

But I'm trying to stick to my convictions and remind myself that it is very likely withdrawal- and I often come back and read the postings in this thread to remind myself of that. But it's been a hard grind for the last few weeks- and I don't necessarily feel worse as time has gone on- but I certainly haven't felt all that much better. It's the dizziness, fatigue, and the aches & pains that are the most annoying. My legs right now feel like they've been put through a dehydrator- they feel tight and still, but not all the time. The dizziness is near constant. The fatigue is usually worse at night and first thing in the morning.

I'm encouraged to hear others who are feeling better after about a month- I'm about halfway there myself, a few more weeks and I'm hoping to be feeling much better- especially if I continue drinking more water, getting plenty of rest, and getting some exercise whenever I can. I certainly don't plan on smoking again- especially as regularly as I did before- but again, today being 4-20, and with everyone I know still smoking- it's awfully hard to try and stick to that.

well... i won't read that whole thread, but i can tell you my experiences. i'm 24 and i've been addicted to marijuana seriously for only a few months but i smoked more than most people (mornings, midday and evening at least) and when i ran out and quit i began having horrible withdrawals including vomitting, dry heaving, EXTREME body temperature changes complete with sweat and goosebumps. it is an addiction and anyone who tells you otherwise is in denial... as i was.

Hi All,
Im a 20 year old male... I will be 21 years old this year... I started smoking pot since I was 15.... At 18 I became a "medical marijuana" user by lying to some corrupt doctor because california could care less about "the comapssionate act" and who gets a card.

Weed is quite possibly the worst thing I have ever done to myself. I dont care about what any of you say about how one can control themselves and smoke and be productive. If you smoke weed you will become a slave to the drug no matter what... I use to be "pro" weed... loved bob marley and the stoner life, I believed in it all... until I realized what a lie it was.

I barley made it out of High School, and when I turned 18 and got the most potent weed and hash/oil... and it got so much worse. I was a club card member for 2 years.... I spent all my money at the club, every single last dollar that I got, I gave it all to these so called "healing" clubs which I watched ripped off the same kids just like me over and over, and helped feed everyones addiction. None of them are sick... all just addicts.

Weed does nothing positive... it hurts your body and mind. It will make you a stone... that cares about nothing. It will drag you to a crowd of people who are just like you, addicted to weed. People who get high all day and talk about non-sense that you or them wont even remember. It makes you anti-social, it makes you not care about anything other than getting high, It makes you neglect your non-stoner friends and somtimes your family, and bieng a male, it makes you care less and less about girls even. It makes you eat when your not hungry, to the point where you gain fat. (Tests have been done where rats ate until they exploded because of the "munchies") The only thing that matters is having a sack, and if you dont, you will do anything to get one. If you dont get a sack, you are not happy, and its almost like torure.

The more potent the weed the harder your detox will be. The longer you smoke the more damage you do to your body. If you are a male.... your estrogen levels will shoot up, and your sperm gets damaged. (the #1 reason men are infertile is marijuana) Try building muscle and smoking... its impossible because your hormones are all messed up. It destroys your memory completley and I still wonder if I will ever get my short term memory back. It destroys your bodys cycle of releasing dopamine, and it destroys your hypothalumus, and pre-frontal cortex.

Now... you can read this and think Im wrong... or think its just me. I have lost 5 years of my life to this awful plant that I wish I never embraced.

Today will be my 4th day sober... I have had withdrawl symptoms that include: Lonliness, Depression, Felling Sick all the time, Insomnia, No apeptite, Terrible Nightmares, No ambition to do anything, Social Anxiety disorder.... it makes you hate yourself and your life.

I'm done smoking for ever... I have no money left, I couldnt even renew my membership to the clubs... and after decididng to quit and going through the first 4 days... I dont think I will ever touch this life ruining drug again. I have neglected and lost all my non-stoner friends.... and all my stoner friends dont even care to talk to me because I dont smoke anymore.

I wonder how long it will take to feel normal and repair what I have done to myself... maybe I never will. I regret everything I have done involving cannabis... and I hope that whoever reads this can understand that if anyone tells you otherwise... they are lying... and you will learn the hard way like I did.

i think u sould ust have fun with ur life there is 101 more fun thinks to do instead of smoking pot 8)

sincerly amber

After smoking VERY potent marijuana roughly 4 times a day for over a year it has been a week since I stopped. I am defenitely irritable but oddly enough I am tired all the time; without question more tired than I ever was (usually). Has anyone else ever experienced this? I find it odd as I was expecting the reverse to occur.

I started smoking Pot when I was 18. I started off smoking a J every now and then, Like on the weekends and stuff. Then over the years started to smoke more and more. I got to the point where I was smoking a half ounce almost every 4 days, just by myself. I would smoke threw a pipe, and stay high from the time I woke up to the time I wnet to sleep. Then my Dad passed away and I started tring to straighten my life up. So I desided to quit. I went like 3 or 4 days with out smoking at all. Then I got mad over something and and said F IT! got a J I had not smoked and broke it in half and started to smoke. Then when I was threw I went and sat on the bed. I started to feel strange. I started having short breaths, and felt my heart pounding very hard. I laied back on the bed. My hands, feet and the back of my head started tingling, my Mom called for a ambulance, They came and took my Blood preasure it was 230 over 201. They threw me in the back of the ambulance and got me to the hospital. They ran all sorts of tests on me and couldnt find anything wrong. I told them that I had smoked some MJ, and asked them if it could have maybe been laced with something. They checked my blood and found nothing but the pot. A guy nurse came in and told my it sounded like a anxity attack, he had when he was younger. I was put on blood presure meds and sent home. The nurse came up to me before I left and gave me some papers on anxity. I took the pills, read the papers and did what they said, And needless to say I stoped smoking. And drinking caffine and alcohol as the papers said. Well I was all better in a few weeks. I had not smoked in a few months and one of my friends was helping me do something and fired him up a J. I was smelling the smoke and started to get a contact and felt that weird feeling again. I knew what it was this time so I didnt panic. I went outside and took deep breaths and calmed my self down. then every thing was ok. Then never got around it anymore. That has been over 3 years ago and I am back to normal. No attacks at all. Every blue moon If I even suspect one coming on, I take deep breaths and keep my mind off of it and it passes. Once you know what it is it is easier to control. And if you panic it makes them worse. But I am glad that I have quit and am great now. Just remember though if you have anxity it gose away in some cases others it dont. I believe it is how you treat it, wheather it gose away or not. And anxity can cause heart attacks and strokes. So my best advise is if you have it dont smoke it.

zarah wrote:

Marijuana is considered to be a heavy drug like heroin or cocaine, yet that means that the consequences of smoking marijuana can be serious. Although some European countries like Netherlands have legalized the use of cannabis it is still illegal in the US and in the most parts of the world and not without reason. Since you already have a history of drug abuse I think it’s the best that you do go to the rehabilitation center to cure your addiction. You didn’t mention how serious that addiction of yours is but I'm sure that your parents know what’s the best for you. Marijuana withdrawal is as serious in symptoms as for example heroin addiction and it still causes symptoms like irritability, anxiety, physical tension, decreases in appetite and mood. Withdrawal symptoms first appear after the first 24 hours and can last from 10 to 28 days, depending on the person and the seriousness of the addiction. These symptoms are normal and this is something you have to go through not just in marijuana withdrawal but also in withdrawal from any addictive substance. I hope that you will make it through and am expecting to hear from you when you get out of the rehab. Good luck.

Youre retarded. Thannk you.

i,ve been smoking for 20 years 2 day,s ago i stoped feeling sh*t all the sypyoms canny get 2 c a doc cracking up and only 2 day no one semse 2 understan that it is an adiction don,t care what anyone says sycotic it,nt the word .smoked 3g a day . for me this is a verry big deal cause in the real world i can,t cope just with normal day things do go thir if u are concidering taking this pleez don.t it wrecks you.re life