ADHD and MARIJUANA

[Faria]

Hi I'm new to this site and was wondering about someone who has ADD/ADHD and whether or not it is wise to smoke pot while on the meds or off.  Just curious to know if anyone else smokes pot when the meds wear off.  For me I have smoked pot since I was fifteen years old, five years after I was diagnosed with ADD/ADHD.  I am 27 now any suggestions would be very helpful.

Thanks,
David

[LenaButler]

If you are considering using marijuana for anything, medicinal or not, you should know what side effects you could potentially be seeing.

http://www.testcountry.com/infographics/side-effects-of-using-marijuana.html

[genealowiz]

I'm sure she was referring to this
http://www.drhallowell.com/blog/on-marijuana-and-adhd/

Dr. Hallowell's Blog
On Marijuana and ADHD
35I want to make clear my view on the use of marijuana by people who have ADHD.  I am writing this post because of a recent piece in the New York Times that misled some readers.

I am totally and completely opposed to the use of marijuana by people who have ADHD.  John Ratey and I made this clear some fifteen years ago in our book Answers to Distraction, and our opinion has not changed.  The reason I feel this way is that I have seen too many patients get into enormous difficulties due to their use of pot.  Not only can they get into trouble with the law, they can develop a dependency that leads them to be less productive in their lives than they otherwise could be.  People with ADHD are at great risk for developing addiction or dependency on all illicit substances, as well as activities like gambling, spending, sex, food, and even exercise.  In my experience, marijuana ranks at or near the top of the list of substances that cause problems for people who have ADHD.

I hope this clarifies my position.  Pot and ADHD do not mix well.

Happy Holidays to you all!!!!!

[Lindsaylilly]

That is the most misinformed, incorrect, and ignorant response I've ever seen. First of all pit doesn't kill brains cells, the government test that led to this assumption has been publicly critized for its poor design. During the test monkeys received marijuana smoke through a gas mask however, the scientists did not follow procedure and pumped too much smoke into the monkeys mask in too little time, this caused a lack of oxygen which is what killed the monkey and caused the brain cells to die. The brains cells were killed as a result of lack of oxygen and not by the drug itself. Secondly, pot does not contain "over 300 ingredients that are harmful to your body" that is an absolute lie, pot actually has very few active ingredients which is way it is very safe. Pot smoke does not contain the same amount of harmful carcinogens as cigarette smoke, this is an unfortunate and incorrect stigma. The only reason consuming marihuana is considered to be detrimental to health at all is because most people consume marihuana through smoking. Obviously using this method the plant matter is incinerated which releases the active ingredients but also releases undesirable products such as CO2 which aren't harmful to the body in small amount. Pure cannabis use has never been linked to any forms of cancer and there have been a grand total of ZERO DEATHS directly contributed to marijuana use. It is a non addictive substance. The DEA will show statistics that say the most common drug that teens go to rehab for is marijuana which is true, HOWEVER this is true because when a minor is convicted of possession or some other cannabis related offense he or she is given the option to go to jail and or pay a hefty fine OR go to rehab and avoid jail. Naturally most people choose to go to "rehab" for cannabis addiction because they want to avoid jail. Weed isn't addictive because when users are withdrawn from the substance their aren't any serious physical problems. With truley addictive substances such as herion, the body will have a serious negative physical reaction when it is no longer exposed to the drug. As far as the "Stepping Stone theory" that smokin pot will lead to increased drug use of hard drugs like cocaine and heroine; it is documented that less than 1 in every 104 marijuana users does cocaine and even less than 1 in 104 use heroin. Cannabis is known to be less addictive than tobacco, alcohol and even caffeine. Marijuana can be consumed without and health problems through edibles which work by making a butter out of the active ingredient THC and this is then used to make baked goods. These baked goods are obviously eaten and give the same desired effect of smoking which is feeling "high". There is also vaporizing which involves hosting the plant material to a point which will release the active ingredients such as the THC and cannabinoids which will make the user feel "high" but doesn't burn the plant matter so there isn't any harmful smoke or carcinogens. Many police chiefs have gone on record saying that they would prefer marihuana be legal to alcohol because there are many deaths, beatings/abuses, and crimes committed when under the influence or because of alcohol. Cannabis has never been implemented as the cause of any crime.

So next time you try and present false information to sway someone's opinion please do some research first. Surely your capable of doing this if I can, after all I smoke pot recreationally and even I took the time to do my research and become well informed and I'm just a lazy stoner right. Haha some people amaze me

[JRT1082]

Thats just incorrect. "The nickname Pot comes from the Spanish word Potiguaya, which means Marijuana Leaves. It’s a Mexican-Spanish word that is a contraction of potación de guaya, which referred to an alcoholic drink made of marijuana leaves soaked in Brandy or Wine. The name became popular in the United States in the late 1930s and early 1940s."

[daneast]

I have a boyfriend been diagnosed with ADHD and he has started smoking weed and i think it has changed him totally but Not in a good way !!!!!!
He is aggresive and more selfish than ever !!! and he admits its not doing him any good but cant seem to give it up .  I think personally being with my boyfriend 15 years he is not the man he used to be