Smoking, depression and Stress

Hi, i hope someone out there may have some answers for me because right now i'm stuck.

Im a 27 yr old single woman and have been smoking pot everyday for over 12 yrs. I've tried most drugs but pot is the only thing i was ever really in to. I have a 1st class honors degree (the best you can get here) and have achieved most of the targets in life i have set myself.

The problem is i work (on average 68 hrs a week) in a highly stressful freelance enviroment and every night when i get home there is nothing i enjoy more than a spliff, bath and bed. Nothing wrong with that you may think. However, i've noticed that when i'm not working all i seem to want to do is stay in and get high. Which is both financally and socailly crippling. It wouldnt be so bad if i had a spliff and got stoned and that was it for the night but i can easily smoke over 15g of strong skunk/hash/whatever i can get my hands on a week, to myself.

Ive noticed that the more im trying to sort my life out (i.e career), the more i seem to stay in and smoke and not really see my friends and met new people. No one really pushes me on this as they know how much work i do. Because im a freelancer there are times im not working or i have to do other work and my situation seems to get worse in that i smoke more. So i know it's not the type of work i do but it's me.

I have managed not to smoke for a few days even a few weeks once but all that happens is i can't sleep and i feel tense, bad tempered, snappy and unable concentrate. It's really starting to bother me as i'd like to meet a good man and live a normal life not constantly thinking about weed. I really cant afford it either but i always seem to find the cash.

I know i'm in a bad place right now. How do i sort myself out?

[Jade59]

Hi there, I smoked pot since the 80s, but finally quit for good last July.  I am an insomniac and used it for that, but like you, if I had it I would smoke it all day long and get nothing done, not want to face anyone because I felt even more anxious than normal and felt paranoid on top of it all.  When I stopped, it was just impossible to sleep even though I take something for sleep.....it was a very difficult hump to get over and took about a month for my sleeping to resemble anything normal and of course, dealing with the panic attacks were terrible as well, but once you get through all that life is sooo different.  I feel 100% better and I don't hide from people anymore because I'm high, my energy level is.....well, I HAVE energy.  The way you stop is to just STOP.  Maybe talk to your doctor about something for sleep and be honest about why you need it.  Plus, the money you will save will add up quickly because pot now days is extremely expensive.  My husband works, I can't due to physical problems, but we always found the money too.  Also, pot just buries your feelings so be ready to face what you haven't been able to face by smoking pot.  Maybe find an addiction therapist or just a talk therapist and arm yourself with resources when your ready to make this big decision and it is big when you've been smoking for so long.  You can do it if your sick of it enough!!

Very best of luck to you and Merry Christmas

[uberadtx]

FMXSMKR has some good advice there.  And I'm glad you posted here.  You have an addiction problem.  Like cocaine, pot is psychologically addictive.  Its the high that you are addicted to and somewhere along the line your mind has convinced itself that the only way it can feel good and relax is to smoke.  I will be honest, unless you are truly ready to give it up, you will continue to smoke by any means possible.  You already see how you will find money you don't have.  Thats a red flag and you know it.  Thats a huge realization and one you should be proud of!  It doesn't matter how long it took you to get to this point or how that makes you feel.  Its time to focus on your future without pot and thats not easy.  Its a major lifestyle change and you might not transition perfectly and thats OK.  Here's what you can do: make small changes.  Decrease the amount you smoke daily/weekly.  The days you do not smoke you MUST do something else. Giving your working hours you need to fill your time with something convenient for you.  Try something new like playing video games, reading etc.  Something that indulges your inner child. As trite as this sounds, I bought myself some crayons and coloring books.  I confess I would sit there smiling like an idiot plotting out the color scheme and picture.  My point is that you need to shift your focus on the days you don't smoke.  And each time you decrease the day/week, you need to fill that up with something else.  I am a huge believer in the whole inner child thing and thats why I recommend it.  It seems like there is a part of the brain that enjoys that.  It makes you feel good.  I used to be embarassed about it but now I embrace it and it makes my life a whole lot of fun!  Why does everything need to be soo serious?  We live in an extremely stressful world.  I don't think its necessary to be serious about what makes up our free time.  I used to love Bugs Bunny cartoons and Scooby Doo cartoons when I was little, now I own on them on DVD and will throw one on while cleaning my room/house.  They make me smile and thats important.  At least to me. It makes the everyday existence much more palatable.  Let me know your thoughts.

[Issam80]

Hi, I've been smoking hash and weed for almost 10 years, it affected my character since I smoked all day long, in class breaks, always high. I have a Master degree, I am 28 years old man. I 've quit smoking hash two years ago, I have had very bad headaches in the first week, I couldn't sleep, my mood was very bad. With time, things get to normal and you will just don't think about it. It makes everything we want to achieve as it is to lift a mountain on our shoulders, we end up smoking and thinking instead of DOING and concentrating. Don't be in a group when people smoke!!! After three weeks or so you will notice that you start to forget about it, and things will get to normal. Just courage!!!

Have a good luck!! I should try to quit smoking cigarettes too!!!

[TheDave]

One other thing to consider is to look into possibly going to drug treatment.  You will need to learn coping skills to help you deal with the feelings that pot helped mask and dull.  I was a smoker for a long time, and occasionally relapse still.  I know how hard it is because sometimes its the only thing that makes me feel normal.  Quitting cold turkey without some support system will make it much harder.  Lots of people go to AA Meetings also.  There are a lot of pot smokers in those meetings.  I would recommend that also.