4 ms·

Ive smoked for about 15 years now. Started heavy through highschool and college and after college usually just a rip before bedtime. I cant say I've experienced

by apl002 7y ago

Ive smoked for about 15 years now. Started heavy through highschool and college and after college usually just a rip before bedtime. I cant say I've experienced anything negative. No issues focusing or memory problems, or dealing with stress/anxiety. I've quit for months at a time cold turkey with no issues. I'll probably never fully quit but I am doing it less just cause I worry about the effects on my lungs more than anything.

mdorazio 7y ago
Anecdote like this is bad for two reasons: 1) How do you know you wouldn't have done better had you not smoked starting in high school? You can't go back in time and A/B test yourself 2) Your personal physiology may be fine with marijuana use, but that's not a guarantee that the same applies to everyone else. I'm sure plenty of HN readers (myself included) knew people in high school who did suffer from marijuana-related focus, effort, and studying problems
- apl002 7y ago
  I totally agree with you. In my comment I wasn't trying to say the article was false, just my own experiences weren't negative. Some of my closest friends that I smoked all day with in HS never went to college and work in lower wage/service industry jobs. Also to be fair, I was an awful student. However i was always the type that if I didn't want to do something, nothing could get me to do it. Yet when I want to do something, I tend to have pretty positive results. I still think I would have been a terrible student even if I didn't smoke weed. Who knows!
- sterileopinions 7y ago
  >but that's not a guarantee that the same applies to everyone else It's a pretty well supported statement though. This comment is better applied elsewhere in the thread however.
- whateveracct 7y ago
  > 1) How do you know you wouldn't have done better had you not smoked starting in high school? You can't go back in time and A/B test yourself It's just high school :) if GP passed and moved on, who cares? High school success becomes more and more of a boolean outcome as you get further away from it imo. And tbh even boolean is generous. "I wish in the past I had tried more things 'cause now I know that being in trouble is a fake idea."
  - monktastic1 7y ago
    > It's just high school :) What? The parent comment is asking: how do they know they wouldn't have done better for the past fifteen years if they hadn't started in high school.
anon9001 7y ago
I've had approximately the same experience. Here's hoping it doesn't cause any long term issues, but I think I would have had a heart attack by now if I didn't smoke to calm myself down and realize I shouldn't take things so seriously. A truly enlightened individual doesn't need any drugs, but I'm not there yet. Maybe in time. For now I think the weed is a net positive.
- apl002 7y ago
  Yep, agreed on that. Over time I have smoked less and less. Like i said I don't think I'll ever 'quit' but I imagine the time in between seshes will grow longer. All in all cannabis has been very net positive for me
- whateveracct 7y ago
  I hate when people frame doing drugs in terms of needing them to have a good time. It's just a thing you do that affects your mind, like anything else. It's potentially more intense and definitely different than most other things, but acting like it's a crutch is existentially dishonest I think.
  - anon9001 7y ago
    I'm not 100% sure I understand your comment, but I don't think it's dishonest to frame drug use as a crutch. One of the odd things about drugs is that if you do use them as a crutch (and I certainly do), then you are forfeiting recreational value. I smoke to feel "normal" and to avoid nightmares (it turns off dreaming, which is quite useful). That means I can't get "high" like non-potheads can. When I haven't smoked in a while, I get giggly and have the munchies and every idea is mindblowing, and that's truthfully quite a lot of fun and is the reason most people start smoking weed. Unfortunately, if I don't smoke after work, I can't really feel like my work day is over, and I'll keep thinking about work until I exhaust myself. If I don't smoke before bed, there's a good chance I'll have horrible nightmares and wake up in a cold sweat. These aren't symptoms of withdrawal that go away in time, that's just how I lived my life before discovering weed, and that's how I feel daily even if I take a months-long break from smoking. I would love to not need weed as a crutch, both to be healthier and so I can occasionally get a giggly-munchies-omg-this-music-sounds-amazing type of high. The problem is, if I quit smoking, I feel less mentally healthy, and all of the psychiatric drugs that could possibly help are worse in health and effect than weed.

by apl002 7y ago

mdorazio 7y ago

Anecdote like this is bad for two reasons: 1) How do you know you wouldn't have done better had you not smoked starting in high school? You can't go back in time and A/B test yourself 2) Your personal physiology may be fine with marijuana use, but that's not a guarantee that the same applies to everyone else. I'm sure plenty of HN readers (myself included) knew people in high school who did suffer from marijuana-related focus, effort, and studying problems

apl002 7y ago
I totally agree with you. In my comment I wasn't trying to say the article was false, just my own experiences weren't negative. Some of my closest friends that I smoked all day with in HS never went to college and work in lower wage/service industry jobs. Also to be fair, I was an awful student. However i was always the type that if I didn't want to do something, nothing could get me to do it. Yet when I want to do something, I tend to have pretty positive results. I still think I would have been a terrible student even if I didn't smoke weed. Who knows!
sterileopinions 7y ago
>but that's not a guarantee that the same applies to everyone else It's a pretty well supported statement though. This comment is better applied elsewhere in the thread however.
whateveracct 7y ago
> 1) How do you know you wouldn't have done better had you not smoked starting in high school? You can't go back in time and A/B test yourself It's just high school :) if GP passed and moved on, who cares? High school success becomes more and more of a boolean outcome as you get further away from it imo. And tbh even boolean is generous. "I wish in the past I had tried more things 'cause now I know that being in trouble is a fake idea."
- monktastic1 7y ago
  > It's just high school :) What? The parent comment is asking: how do they know they wouldn't have done better for the past fifteen years if they hadn't started in high school.

anon9001 7y ago

I've had approximately the same experience. Here's hoping it doesn't cause any long term issues, but I think I would have had a heart attack by now if I didn't smoke to calm myself down and realize I shouldn't take things so seriously. A truly enlightened individual doesn't need any drugs, but I'm not there yet. Maybe in time. For now I think the weed is a net positive.

apl002 7y ago
Yep, agreed on that. Over time I have smoked less and less. Like i said I don't think I'll ever 'quit' but I imagine the time in between seshes will grow longer. All in all cannabis has been very net positive for me
whateveracct 7y ago
I hate when people frame doing drugs in terms of needing them to have a good time. It's just a thing you do that affects your mind, like anything else. It's potentially more intense and definitely different than most other things, but acting like it's a crutch is existentially dishonest I think.
- anon9001 7y ago
  I'm not 100% sure I understand your comment, but I don't think it's dishonest to frame drug use as a crutch. One of the odd things about drugs is that if you do use them as a crutch (and I certainly do), then you are forfeiting recreational value. I smoke to feel "normal" and to avoid nightmares (it turns off dreaming, which is quite useful). That means I can't get "high" like non-potheads can. When I haven't smoked in a while, I get giggly and have the munchies and every idea is mindblowing, and that's truthfully quite a lot of fun and is the reason most people start smoking weed. Unfortunately, if I don't smoke after work, I can't really feel like my work day is over, and I'll keep thinking about work until I exhaust myself. If I don't smoke before bed, there's a good chance I'll have horrible nightmares and wake up in a cold sweat. These aren't symptoms of withdrawal that go away in time, that's just how I lived my life before discovering weed, and that's how I feel daily even if I take a months-long break from smoking. I would love to not need weed as a crutch, both to be healthier and so I can occasionally get a giggly-munchies-omg-this-music-sounds-amazing type of high. The problem is, if I quit smoking, I feel less mentally healthy, and all of the psychiatric drugs that could possibly help are worse in health and effect than weed.