anxiety- xanax and marijuana?

[Tabitha22]

Hi i'm 21 and I had my first panic attack the other day out of no where and wanted to call 911 until I started reading about panic attacks and realized I had all the symptoms of one. The next couple days my chest hurt real bad and I had a lot of anxiety which I never had had before. I couldn't stop thinking about my breathing and my chest. I went to the doctor and of course he said everything was fine it was just anxiety and prescribed me xanax. I take about a 4th of a pill in the morning which makes me feel better and then when I start getting anxious at night I take about a half of one and it helps a lot. I have been scared to take more than that. I haven't been able to eat much at all and I have to force myself to eat. I used to smoke week a lot and I have been scared to smoke it. I tried the other day but it felt weird to blow it out and I got scared and anxious. Is it ok to smoke weed and use xanax together? It seems as if weed would be good for anxiety because it calms you down. I would rather use that then xanax because of it being so addicting but I'm scared to smoke again. I read some good and bad experiences of smoking weed with anxiety and I think the bad ones just scared me. I hate all these feelings and I just wish they would go away. I have a counseling appointment in a couple days and I hope that will help. Any advice? Especially about the marijuana and anxiety? Anything will help! Thank you!

[ava10]

Yes my first panic attack was when i was 17.  I was in my room and i was smoking a joint. then bam i had my first attack. I went tell my mom about it and she told me what was happen. Ever since then i never smoked again. But to my surpise the anxiety didn't go away.

[Tabitha22]

Well I had a lot of coffee that day and I don't normally drink coffee and I think that could have been apart of the attack. It started when I was getting ready to go to bed and then my chest hurt and I felt it was hard to breath and then it just spiraled from there. I don't think weed had anything to do with the attack because I would smoke it every day or every other day and never had that feeling before. I'm just anxious now because I'm scared. Anyone have any experiences or advice about marijuana and anxiety or just about anxiety in general? or even just about xanax? Anything will help

[MrGreen]

With weed you can have good trips and bad trips. Not that I smoke the stuff. Lord knows I know a lot of people who have ended up living on their nerves after smoking weed or some other subtances. Not talking big time drugs either. The sort of stuff you imagine is harmless. Well now they know it's not. It has screwed them up big time. So much for light drugs. It's a mugs game. At some point all smokers of the rubbish will end up the same. They have only themselves to blame.

[Prizma]

I think for everyone it's different. I've never smoked weed, don't care to. I have several friends that do--some do for anxiety. I've read up on weed and anxiety and most people will experience their first panic attack while smoking weed. I thought that a bit strange since I always thought weed was a downer/calmer.

If you're scared to smoke weed again, then don't smoke the weed! Seriously.. it was "cool" in the 60's but that was when the strains and potency of pot was definitely less than what it is now. There are so many varieties... and the THC content is more potent. Who knows what they combine/grow the varieties with. I don't recommend getting hooked on the xanax either. lol

Definitely try to look up other resources such as cognitive behavioural therapy, calming herbs (like Valerian, etc) and go from there. If at some point your anxiety becomes disabling to your every day life, then perhaps you'll have to try something stronger such as an SSRI.

[JSGeare]

You have 2 drugs here. One of them is medically precsribed and intended to help you chill when things get tough. The other is prescribed by people who make money selling it and is intended to make you feel so good you'll want to buy more. And more. Curiously enough, the one which is designed for and intended to have a beneficial therapeuctic effect is the one that people are uneasy about taking; whereas the recreational substance is somehow regarded as benign -that is, until you ingest some and get very wacky sensations.

Your question, framed, apparently, to get our permission to take the fun drug, portrays a concern not with health and a sound mind but rather with enjoying life while getting better with no real work on your part.

If you figure out how to make that work, then more power to you, and please enlighten the rest of us as to the magical combination; otherwise, spare a thought for the possibility that dope is so-named for a good reason. Sooner or later, you will probably discover that the exit from your anxiety and distress is not through drugs of whatever pedigree, but rather through work; until such time as you care to apply yourself to the task at hand, you will be for us an experiment in how to challenge a human brain. I am grateful for the demonstration but regret the loss of many good years of your life.

What's left of it, anyway.

[peggy64]

JS,

Excellant comment! Can't add anything to it.

[Omusicgame]

hmmmmm. everyones different Tabitha.  I mean, you can stay on the Xanax but smoking marijuana at the same time will mess u up.  Its like drinking at the same time while doing prozac.  You cant mix the two.  It'll take time, but you'll figure things out.  You'll find out what the problem is.

[ArcRendition]

Marijuana typically exaserbates anxiety though some smokers insist that it has anxiolytic properties.  Like any medication, marijuana affects people differently.  Although there is no documented pharmacologic contradictions between Xanax and marijuana, the two drugs may cause a contradictory effect.  Marijuana typically is contraindicated in patients experiecing symptoms of depression and anxiety.  Furthermore, noting the addictive potential of Xanax as a rationalization to use marijuana as the lesser of two perceived "evils"is not only dangerous and broken logic but may be indicative of a of a more substantial phycological descrepency that may need to be addressed by a professional.  

[Kasper87211]

First off, marijuana comes in MANY different strains. Sativas will you trip you out and cause anxiety almost 100% of the time if your prone to it.

Indicas are type of strains that give you a Body high and relaxes you. These Dominating indica strains cause no anxiety and may even help with it.

As far as mixing the 2, I don't think I would.

I can not handle sativa strains because i am anxiety prone and i worry a lot.
As far as indicas, they work well.

It's all about the strain and everyone is different. NOT ALL MJ is the same.
Dont bash it before you do your research.

[MayMayMeemers]

Nope,comming first hand experiance on pot and panic attacks...it makes you panic more not calm down...cause when you calm down and are high you think about things and it leads to an attack

[M4Y0U]

Hello there,

I don't know if you are interested in why anxiety and cannabis can happen i studied both GABA ( and cannabinoid receptors and i found a strong link between cannabis and anxiety.

Cannabinoid receptor type 1 (CB 1) receptors are thought to be the most widely  expressed  G­ protein coupled receptors in the brain. This is due to endocannabinoid ­mediated  depolarization ­ induced suppression of inhibition , a very common form of short ­term  plasticity  in which the  depolarization of a single neuron induces a reduction in GABA ­mediated neurotransmission. Endocannabinoids released from the depolarized neuron bind to CB 1 receptors in the pre ­synaptic neuron and cause a reduction in GABA release.

And if for example you are taking an anti-anxiety med like those in the family of the benzodiazepines like Bromazepam, Xanax, Ativan etc. They are acting by affecting the neurotransmitter gamma-aminobutyric acid. The anxiolytic (anti-anxiety) their effects are produced by the allosteric modification of a specific kind of neurotransmitter receptor, the GABAA receptor, which INCREASES the conductance of this inhibitory.

SO basically cannabis decreases and anti-anxiety meds increases. And i beleive this is why weed can cause you to have panic attack and anxiety if you are prone to anxiety.

Best regards
M4