Friday, March 22, 2024

How To Get Over Weed Addiction

Be Ready For Mental & Physical Symptoms Of Withdrawal

How to Overcome Weed Addiction

Notoriously, the worst part about quitting weed cold turkey are its side effects. Youre going to experience marijuana withdrawal anxiety, insomnia, loss of appetite, irritability and an increase in body temperature .

In the short-term, youll have mood swings and times where youll just want to give up. The good news is, its only temporary. Try to hold onto the reasons why youre doing this.

Make a list of reasons and paste it on your fridge or where you keep your wallet to server as a reminder.

Keep Busy And Cheerful

If you keep busy always and do activities that make you cheerful, there will be hardly any time and desire left in you to get back to the smoking pots.

Keeping yourself busy with activities helps to change your thoughts from the desire to smoke.

Despite being busy, you still make time to be alone and relaxed. Besides engaging in regular works and study, you can also think of social activities and physical exercises that help you spend your time wisely and usefully.

Reschedule your timetable giving no time for staying idle and lazy.

You Cant Stop Using It

If controlling the amount of marijuana you use is difficult, then its most likely that stopping or quitting altogether is seemingly impossible. Even if you want to quit, you just cant. At this point, you will need help to successfully get rid of the drug in your system and kick the habit of smoking or consuming marijuana.

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Avoid False Expectations And Seek Understanding

Once the addict stops using and begins the recovery process, dont expect that their faults and all the troubles of your shared lives will disappear. You might find, initially, exactly the opposite. Drug use was a coping mechanism for the addict. That coping mechanism will be raw for a while, especially when detoxing. Dont expect that a dramatic positive personality change will immediately take place.

When a marijuana addict begins going to meetings, there may be interference and conflict with your normal living schedule, routines, and family obligations. This is where your compassion, patience, and encouragement will be called upon. The time spent in the past by the addict in the pursuit of getting and staying high may now be spent going to meetings, reading recovery literature, speaking on the phone with other MA members, writing, meditating, and praying. These activities are of paramount importance to the newly clean addict and your support will be of great value.

You may be surprised to find that the addict now insists on attending to certain activities and responsibilities you felt compelled to take care of in the past. This is not a time to condemn past behavior, but an opportunity to practice trust and benevolence. The outcome will be the mutual reward of nurturing a new and healthy relationship.

Identifying What Triggers Your Marijuana Cravings

Signs of Marijuana Addiction  Lake County Underage ...

Are you only quitting cannabis, or did you have a habit of mixing cannabis with tobacco to smoke joints and will you also be going through nicotine withdrawal at the same time? Regardless, you have trained your body to actively expect marijuana in certain situations like when you are stressed, when you are meeting friends, or as you come home from a long day’s work.

You have roughly three options for dealing with cannabis cravings during your withdrawal period while still getting through them without returning to marijuana:

  • Accepting your marijuana cravings without giving in, and without doing anything special to counter the cravings.
  • Seeking distraction from your cravings.
  • Avoiding things that trigger your cravings.

No matter what option you choose, you will benefit from identifying the triggers for your marijuana cravings. Sit down and make a list of all the situations in which you usually feel like smoking pot. Then make a game plan. Some people find it helpful to fidget with objects like pens or lollipops while they are experiencing cravings, while others prefer to avoid seeing the friends with whom they used to smoke marijuana for a while. Others simply choose to ride the craving out which requires willpower.

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How Should We Prepare For Full Legalization Of Marijuana

While marijuana is now legal in many states and is readily accessible, we must remain vigilant, being aware that some people will become addicted to THC products. While cannabis may not be as addictive and dangerous as other drugs of abuse, it certainly has the potential for abuse.

At this point, it is unlikely that legal marijuana will go away anytime soon. While marijuana supporters continue to promote the drug as being safe, non-addictive, non-lethal, and not a gateway drug, we should be realistic about the fact that it is still a mind-altering substance.

Any intoxicating substance has the potential to be addictive and to be a gateway to other drugs. We must continue to educate the public on drug safety and we must be prepared to help people who do become addicted to cannabis and need help to overcome their addiction.

How To Treat Marijuana Addiction

Quitting marijuana is a complicated process to do all alone, and you may want to seek professional help to cease marijuana consumption. centers offer various forms of treatment to support those addicted to marijuana and help them cope with cravings, and avoid their triggers.

Like other mind-altering substances such as alcohol, marijuana addiction is also treated via various forms of therapy. There are treatment programs specifically structured for marijuana abuse or dependence that help you navigate your withdrawal symptoms, such as Cognitive-behavioral therapy, Contingency management, and motivational enhancement therapy.

Cognitive-behavioral therapy:

Cognitive-behavioral therapy, otherwise known as CBT, is a form of psychotherapy that teaches people strategies to navigate and improve their problematic or self-destructive behaviors. This helps them enhance self-control by identifying their negative thought patterns, limiting or stopping drug use, and addressing a range of other problems by learning to cope with their emotions.

Contingency management:

Contingency management is another therapeutic management approach based on consistent monitoring of the target behavior and utilizing incentives and rewards to enforce health coping mechanisms and changes. This form of therapy provides tangible rewards that strengthen their health and positive behaviors, which in turn help them stay sober.

Motivational enhancement therapy:

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Tips To Quit Smoking Weed

Making the decision to quit smoking weed is life-changing, especially if you commit to it and achieve sobriety. Here are some tips to help you on your journey to recovery:

1. Change your environment

One of the most important things to do when trying to stop smoking weed is to change your environment. Determine your triggers and avoid places, things, and people that tempt you to use weed.

If you have family members or friends who smoke, avoid their company. If your current environment exposes you to marijuana, move someplace else. These changes may seem overwhelming at first, but these are necessary.

2. Set goals

When you set goals, you put yourself in a mindset for success. Ask yourself what you want to achieve after you overcome your battle with marijuana addiction. This will motivate you to work hard toward your goal while living a full life without marijuana in the picture.

3. Get rid of your stash

If you have kept weed “for future use,” it’s time to get rid of them. You’re not going to use them anymore. Deciding to quit smoking weed means you have no use for marijuana stashed somewhere in your house. Throw them out and never look back.

4. Tapering

Some people opt to quit smoking weed cold turkey. However, this method predisposes them to severe withdrawal symptoms. The best way to stop smoking weed is to taper use gradually.

5. Be prepared

6. Keep yourself busy

7. Exercise daily

8. Plan sober activities

9. Have a support system

10. Get professional help

Realize Withdrawal May Occur

Do I Still Smoke? My Tip On How To Get Over Weed Addiction

Depending on how long you have been smoking pot, you may also experience withdrawal symptoms like cravings, headache, anxiety, sweating, and irritability. Keep in mind that these symptoms will decrease each passing day that you do not use the drug. Within a week or two, the symptoms should then be gone.

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Harmful Effects Of Marijuana Use

If youre wondering why you need to learn how to overcome marijuana addiction, think about the harmful effects. People who abuse weed will feel the need to sustain that maximum high. In order to do so, they inhale the smoke more deeply and hold it in their lungs for a longer period of time.

It irritates the lungs which may lead to asthma attacks, bronchitis, and chronic cough. The effect of smoking weed in pregnant women affects the unborn baby and may cause problems such as premature birth and abnormal size.

In worse scenarios, marijuana, when taken in higher and larger dosage, can also result in toxic psychosis and hallucination that makes most people paranoid. It affects your concentration, reaction to stimuli, and your coordination, making it dangerous for you to drive a car and even ride a bike.

What Are The Signs Of Marijuana Use Disorder

The American Psychiatric Association has combined marijuana dependency and marijuana addiction into one category: cannabis use disorder.

According to the APA’s Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders – Fifth Edition , marijuana use disorder is determined by the user’s behavior patterns. These include:

  • Taking cannabis in larger amounts over a longer period than originally intended
  • Wanting and trying to cut down or control marijuana use but not being able to do so
  • Craving marijuana
  • Sleep-related problems such as insomnia
  • Stomach problems
  • Sweating or cold sweats

These withdrawal symptoms can sometimes range from mild to severe. They also differ from person to person. While these symptoms may not be life-threatening, they can be uncomfortable.

For long-time users, quitting weed isnt easy. The longer the person has used marijuana, the higher the chance of developing withdrawal symptoms.

Is it Safe to Quit Marijuana Cold Turkey?

Quitting cold turkey means that a regular user, who uses a substance every day, decides to stop suddenly. There is no transition period in between.

This method of quitting produces negative effects, with severe withdrawal symptoms that make quitting cannabis very difficult or close to impossible.

Similarly, anxiety and depression have been linked to an increase in suicide risk. This can result in fatal consequences.

Quitting weed cold turkey may work for some people it could pose a serious health problem for others.

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Benefits Of Quitting Marijuana Use

Quitting marijuana provides significant benefits. Some of these are noticeable right away, while others might take a few weeks or months to take effect.

Some of the physical and mental benefits include:

  • Increased energy
  • Healthier lungs and heart
  • Positive, balanced mood

When a person decides to quit smoking marijuana, improvements in work or school performance, relationships, financial situation, and overall health become apparent.

Some things may take time, such as sleep problems. However, these will eventually improve after a few weeks or months.

Is Marijuana An Opiate

Effects of Marijuana Use in the Developing Brain

Imagine that you quit marijuana and then get intense cramps, chills, aches, spasms, nausea, depression, and anxiety? If the withdrawal is from opioids sprayed on either real, or fake marijuana, how would you know how to overcome the withdrawal symptoms?

If you were to go to a hospital ER or inpatient detox for weed, they would do drug toxicology testing and determine that you have opioids in your system. However, many drug users will decide to self-treat, using more fentanyl-tainted weed as the detox for weed withdrawal.

Of course, the serious issue with fentanyl-tainted cannabis, or fentanyl-sprayed oregano, is that a marijuana smoker who is opioid naive may overdose. Marijuana proponents believe that marijuana overdose is impossible. However, when fentanyl enters the mix, cannabis overdose is a very real possibility.

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What To Do If Someone You Love Is Abusing Marijuana

If someone you love is abusing marijuana, they may be in denial about the drugs potency, or their addiction. Through open communication, you may be able to help them realize they need to quit using. Here are some reasons to quit marijuana:

  • Physical reasons to stop smoking pot to feel better, reduce the risk of lung cancer, and be more energetic
  • Psychological reasons to stop smoking pot to reduce anxiety, get back to being happy without pot, and reduce depression
  • Relationship related reasons to stop smoking pot to get out of the relationship rut that comes from smoking too much pot, find new friends, and heal from the fights or pain that marijuana has caused you and your loved ones
  • Financial reasons to stop smoking pot to free up the money spent on marijuana, so you have more money to spend, put into savings, or use to pay bills
  • Legal reasons to stop smoking pot to stay out of trouble with the law

How To Quit Weed

This is a common question many people are currently asking and realizing to quit smoking weed is a challenging feat.

In the case that you have tried all of the options above and nothing seems to be working, there are a few more options you can try:

  • Speaking to a Professional: A therapist can be very helpful in working through what makes it so challenging for you personally to give up weed. Here you can understand concurrent disorders and addressing them would help you quit your marijuana addiction easily.
  • Virtual Treatment Programs: Do you know that you can quit marijuana with virtual outpatient programs in the comfort of your home, at your convenience? You can start your recovery journey easily with a comprehensive and structured online treatment program through a secure telehealth platform.
  • Outpatient Addiction Counselling: Some Addiction Centres offer outpatient rehab programs that teach you how to quit using marijuana.
  • Residential Treatment: If you have tried everything and need more help, inpatient rehab treatment is likely the best option.

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How Much Will You Cut Down

Now that you know how much you smoke, ask yourself what is realistic as a goal for cutting down?

For example: Will you be able to cut down to 0.5 grams of weed a day during the week and 1 gram on the weekends?

Write down the amount you want to cut down gradually. Setting realistic goals is important in this step.

You might be tempted to say you will cut more and end up not doing it.

This negative consequence may harm your confidence in yourself, so it is better to set a realistic goal than to set something impossible.

How To Quit Smoking Weed

How to Overcome Addiction to SEX, WEED & ALCOHOL

John C. Umhau, MD, MPH, CPE is board-certified in addiction medicine and preventative medicine. He is the medical director at Alcohol Recovery Medicine. For over 20 years Dr. Umhau was a senior clinical investigator at the National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism of the National Institutes of Health .

Some people assume that is relatively harmless, but research has shown that it can have a number of negative effects on health. While it may be less habit-forming than some other substances, there is also a potential for dependence and addiction.

If you want to quit smoking weed, there are several things you can do to improve your chances of success.

This article explores some of the tactics that you can try if you want to quit smoking marijuana. Youll also find information on symptoms of withdrawal you may experience and types of professional treatment that can help.

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How Long Does Marijuana Withdrawal Last

The duration of withdrawal from Marijuana is different for everyone. For most heavy Marijuana users, withdrawal symptoms begin on the first day after quitting and peak within 48 to 72 hours. Symptoms generally last 2 to 3 weeks and dissipate over time.

Day 1 During the first day of withdrawal from Marijuana, feelings such as irritability, anxiety, and insomnia are common.
Days 2 3 This period is typically the peak of withdrawal symptoms. Cravings can be strong, so relapse is most likely during this time. Sweating, chills, and stomach pains have also been reported during this period.
Days 4 14 Over the next several weeks, symptoms generally improve. However, depression can set in as brain chemistry changes and adapts to functioning without THC. Marijuana cravings may still be present as well.
Days 15+ Most, if not all, symptoms should be gone by week 3. Those with severe psychological addictions have reported feelings of depression and anxiety for up to several months after discontinuing Marijuana use.

Avoid People Places Or Things That Make You Want To Smoke Weed

People in early recovery from drugs or alcohol are often counseled to avoid people, places or things that trigger cravings to drink or use drugs. This principle can be just as helpful for those hoping to kick a weed habit. If you regularly used to smoke weed with a certain crowd, or bought joints from a dealer in the next town over, you may need to avoid seeing these people and the places and things associated with them at least for a time.

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Finding The Best Marijuana & Weed Rehab Center Near Me

Whether you go to a marijuana and weed rehab center near you or travel out of State is a question that will vary from one patient to the next. The best rehabilitation program will be one that is tailored towards your individual needs. Some find comfort in having friends and family nearby while others are better served by making a clean break from forces that often drive them to the marijuana addiction theyre trying to recover from. Youll have to make this decision for yourself.

If youre not sure whether you should go to a local rehab center near you or travel out of State for marijuana addiction, give us a call on to find out more about local and rehab program options.

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