mental health

[PlasticSturgeon]

i have social anxiety myself i find i dont sketch so much when im really high pop a seroquel and im good to go

That's so crazy to me, but that's what I hear from nearly everybody I know--that smoking weed is calming, relaxing, etc...
Weed makes me terribly depressed. It took me several years to finally come to terms with that (and to also realize that I wasn't being rude if I turned somebody down who offered it to me, haha). I spend a good portion of my time actively trying to not think about things (various and sundry thoughts of all sorts, but nothing particularly pleasant...hence suppressing them) and I usually do a pretty good job at that. I smoke and it's like a door in my brain is opened up and everything I don't want to think about comes out and just makes me extremely sad.
Occasionally I'll have an anxiety attack (not weed related) and have to pop a Xanax, but those don't do all that much for me...if I'm lucky I'll just fall asleep.
I drink...quite a bit (partially because it does just send me to a pseudo-happy spot)...but I often wake up the next day not feeling very well (mentally speaking, not physically). Laying off booze for a bit is a huge help. Granted my saying that makes me a bit of a hypocrite....

But in regards to the original poster, you're definitely not alone in those feelings. I would add something, but there's been a bunch of good advice posted on here.
I suppose just keep in mind that everybody is a hair different, and sometimes it will take some time to figure out what works best for you.

________
*Edit*
I didn't even see the post above mine before writing this.
Nice to know I'm not the only one who isn't affected positively by smoking, hah.

 

[jeffyDee]

thts because you arnt used to smoking mass amounts of it at one point i was busting quarter seshes 3 times a day thats more than half an ounce but then again what else is there really to do

 

[Deleted member 5971]

OP, this might sound cliche and alittle "ignorant" but dont look to perscription drugs for yer mental health the whole world is reliant on drugs to keep them sane, u dont wanna be like them. only YOU know everything that goes on in yer head no psychiatrist or drug can tell you anymore then u already knew about wuts going on in YER head. alone time with yerself is a nice fix. because after all ourselves is all we got.

 

[PlasticSturgeon]

thts because you arnt used to smoking mass amounts of it at one point i was busting quarter seshes 3 times a day thats more than half an ounce but then again what else is there really to do

Haha. Nah.
I smoked everyday for a long time when I was younger. Granted, no, not that much. But point being it just affects people differently.

 

[scatwomb]

Haha. Nah.
I smoked everyday for a long time when I was younger. Granted, no, not that much. But point being it just affects people differently.

Yeah, I really want to reiterate a few things you've said which are incredibly important:

1) Weed affects people differently.

and something you mentioned earlier...

2) Everybody is slightly different and it will take time to figure out what works best for you.

Personally, weed gives me panic attacks and impacts my mood significantly. A good friend of mine, who has bipolar disorder, will get delusional and sometimes manic if he smokes too much weed. A few others, on the other hand, function only when they are high all the time.

If you really want to get to the bottom of things mentally, drugs (either prescription or illegal), will just treat symptoms. In my mind, they should only be used as a last resort. That, however, is easy to say because my level of suffering at the moment is pretty low.

So yeah, don't feel as though you've failed if you use drugs to cope, but, damn, try other things first.

 

[Shoom]

"Insanity sometimes is the sane response to a mad society; insanity need not always be a breakdown; it can also be a breakthrough"

I think a lot of us feel that something is amiss, both around us and within. Modern society is fucking bizarre, and making sense of your awakened state in a world that seems both increasingly complex and increasingly regressive is only half the struggle. See your feelings and thoughts as beautiful and important; the battle inside your head is part of who you are and how you see. Look up some works by Erich Fromm and Carl Jung.

Also, http://positivedisintegration.com/#introto

 

[street mermaid]

I also have an anxiety disorder. I wouldn't suggest getting prescribed antidepressants for it. Though depending on how severe your condition is it might not be too bad of an idea to get some benzos to help you during your "attacks"
I find medication to be more unhealthy than healthy. There are a lot of alternatives you can do that will give you the same effects you want without the side effects. i've been on nearly every anti depressant and have taken all of the benzos but none of them have helped me as much as i have helped myself.
First. Breathe. Focus on that. I find breathing to be the hardest part sometimes, but its the first step into controlling the situation. racing thoughts, chest pain. just breathe.
Someone mentioned mediation. and this is defiantly one of the greatest things you can do for yourself. Learn some yoga too. There are even poses that you can do that will decrease anxiety and help you ground yourself. Exercise! Keep active. I longboard a lot, when shit gets to tough to handle and i'm able to just take off. I find it helps my mood almost instantly. Just throwing all of that energy into going as fast as i can is a great way to release it in a healthy way. If you dont board try going for a run. If you're able to. I'm not sure how healthy over exertion is but it feels damn good.
Passion flower. Get some. You can get this at any health food store. Its like a natural benzo. I get loose leaf and add it to tea[i would suggest chamomile]. Very calming. Other products i would highly suggest checking out would be valerian root. a natural sedative, also really calming. Other things that would be great to add to your herbal arsenal for fighting anxiety would be kava kava. you can even ask the health store people if they can make you a tincture containing the things you need. just talk to them, tell them what you're feeling and they will help you.
and weed. I smoke a lot of weed. i find sativa dominant strains to help my anxiety a lot more than indica but i've had a lot of people say that they get more anxiety from sativa strains. it depends on what works with you. its always a trial and error thing. try them all, mix and match. just do whats best for you.
I wish a doctor could have told me to try yoga and herbal suppliments ten years ago instead of switching me around on medicines that made me feel like i wanted to die constantly.
stay happy and healthy friend

 

[jeffyDee]

ya i agree on the effecting people different thing like the other day i smoked a couple joints with this chick and she went nuts like telling me an my buddy that she was talking to her dead grandma and shit and acting like she was on mush but ya i just get high all the time and i find it effects me positively im less violent and more social when im high

 

[jeffyDee]

but then again ive been smoking high quality weed for 9 years non stop

 

[Pheonix]

Since we're talking about weed effecting people differently, has anyone else noticed different types of weed effect you differently? In cali I was smoking blunts of super-dank with hash mixed in, but what helped my anxiety disorder better was a strain called Durban that was closer to the middies level. (most farmers harvest it too soon)

 

[Shoom]

Beware the sativa brownie.

 

[jeffyDee]

man half quarter purple kush cookies with space cake icing between them edibles are the shit

 

[jeffyDee]

the inside of the cookie was bright green

 

[ByronMc]

First time I smoked pot was in 1971,finally stopped in late 2005 ! I know what it does & I never wanna go back to it !

 

[kokomojoe]

I don't know how it happened but I overcame my anxiety and panic attacks, depression is the only thing that gets the best of me nowadays. Anyways, I remember one night I was laying down about to fall asleep. I was just thinking about the day and started to get that feeling of a panic attack coming on. My heart was racing, I was breathing hard and sweating and it felt like I was about to reach that ultimate peak of the panic attack. There was something inside me though, like I found something in the tornado of thought tearing through my head. It was as if this voice of power was rising against the destruction going on and was just like, NO MORE. Right at the peak of my panic attack I exhaled and it literally felt like I was exhaling a menthol cigarette. I felt as if every single bit of negativity came out of me. I haven't had any anxiety/panic attacks since then. It was probably the most spiritual thing that has ever happened to me. I didn't understand it and still don't but I'm thankful that it happened nonetheless.

 

[ByronMc]

Right at the peak of my panic attack I exhaled and it literally felt like I was exhaling a menthol cigarette. I felt as if every single bit of negativity came out of me. sounds/reads, like your trying to tell us you had smoked some pot. I may be way of base with that statement,but I've gotta put it out there !

 

[Pheonix]

If your weed taste like a menthol cigarette then you got some bad ganja.

 

[ByronMc]

If your weed taste like a menthol cigarette then you got some bad ganja.

If that's what was meant,I really don't think he meant it tasted exactly like a menthol cigarette,but to make it known,it was not something regular.

 

[jeffyDee]

id it had a cold taste it was prolly a coco puff so ya you had blow in ur weed