Say No To Pot » marijuana

Drug Rehab – Part 2

admin — Sun, 10 Oct 2010 19:05:50 +0000

On the first or second day in the half-way house, I went out with friends to a movie “Get Shorty”. I think it was at the dollar theater at the time, so it was cheap. This was my first venture away from the half-way house since I was admitted to rehab. Somehow the conversation of having just one beer was brought up and the others in the car stated that this was not something that you could do because it was cause you to go back to your drug of choice. Of course, alcohol was the drug of choice for a lot of people there in the first place. I did not fully understand because I really didn’t feel that I had a problem with alcohol. However; I was only kidding myself because I was definitely an alcoholic. The only reason why I switched over to using marijuana years earlier was because the side effects were much less than alcohol. I always drank until I got sick and I did not like getting sick. My high school friends used to make fun of me once they saw that I was drinking my 6th beer. They would say: Here goes Steve again trying to drink that 6th beer and expecting that he will not get sick this time. I could never stop drinking until I was drunk, but it was definitely not my drug of choice, marijuana obviously was it.

During that first week in drug rehab I met some really nice people. One of my favorite individuals was a guy named “Jay”. Jay and I would have a blast at the 8AM and 4PM circle discussions. We joked around like crazy and were truly enjoying ourselves. During the circle meetings I was still stating my first name and indicating that I was a marijuana addict and that was all. At the circle meetings, the lady in charge of the Half-way house would make statements regarding various things to us. There were at least 2 or 3 people that she made comments about how it was there second or third time in rehab. She would say things like: Are you convinced this time that you really are an alcoholic and an addict? Do you think you will be able to stay sober this time when you leave?

During that first week, we immediately were directed by the staff and counselors that we must attend 12 step meetings or we would not be able to stay sober. This was my first real introduction to AA (Alcoholics Anonymous). I say real introduction because when I was 19, a girl friend of mine took me to an AA meeting. I was really only there to watch one of her friends pick-up a chip. I remember her even stating that I was an alcoholic just like the people in the meeting. Of course, I did not pay any attention to what she said at that time. So, technically I had been to an alcoholics anonymous meeting before and had never put two and two together about what rehab was going to involve.

When I started attending meetings (this time for real in rehab) I listened and was shocked at some of the things I heard. Some people stated terrible things that had happened to them directly do to the effects of using drugs and alcohol. This was not something that I had in common because my drug of choice was marijuana and it did not cause me to spend all of my money and ruin my life (yet). The other thing that I immediately noticed was a big age difference between me and the other people attending these 12 step meetings. I was only 26 years old which is the only reason why my drug use had not caused me a lot of problems. It only makes sense now that I look back at my age and what I was doing at that time. If I would have used for another 10 years I probably would have found myself in 12 step meetings stating how my life had been ruined.

I should also mention the withdrawal effects that I was experiencing during the first week. Mainly I was just craving my drug of choice (Marijuana) or frankly any drug. The mental obsession and cravings were almost unbearable. My mind was stuck between wanting to stop using drugs and not. At night, I would dream like crazy. So, really the only withdrawal symptoms that I experienced were unusual dreams and that strong craving that makes your toes curl up.
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Before I quit – Part 1

admin — Sun, 19 Jul 2009 23:55:02 +0000

This is a story of how drugs, particularly pot (Marijuana) came very close to ruining my life:

I was born to a good middle class family in the suburbs of Atlanta, Georgia in 1970. I was a one of 4 children and was raised modestly, but was loved and never abused. My parents were Christians and made sure that all of the children attended church every Sunday until age 16. Once you turned 16 years old and could drive, church became optional.
I know now that I had the potential and personality to become an addict from the beginning. As a young boy I experimented with alcohol and tobacco. I thought it was cool and felt it impressed my friends if I did so. I took my first drink when I was in the 6th grade. I believe that I was 11 years old. I did not get drunk the first time, but did get a buzz. I thought it was a lot of fun and wanted to do it again. The next time I drank was in the 7th grade and got really drunk. I was at a friend’s house and we got into his parents liquor cabinet. I completely blacked out and was told the next day that I was out of control and he was surprised that I didn’t wake up his parents. I also remember feeling very sick the next morning. I mean really sick.
Well, the drinking continued off and on until my senior year in high school. By then, I was known as the guy who liked to party. Which at the time I thought was really cool. I didn’t get into any trouble, but I definitely did plenty of things that I should not have been doing. Before graduating from High School we had a night where “Silly Awards” were given out to the seniors. I received the award “Most likely to buy a house next to a Miller Genuine Draft brewing plant”. My senior year in high school consisted of going to parties every weekend and even on weekdays. Honestly, I was very happy that year and still feel that it was the happiest part of my life. Soon that would all start to change. Click to Continue –>

Jail Time

admin — Sat, 18 Jul 2009 01:58:48 +0000

Unfortunately, people make too many assumptions on how I feel about the legalization of marijuana. Marijuana does not need to be legalized because it tells our youth that it’s okay to do one more drug. So instead of saying it’s okay to drink, we are also saying it’s okay to drink and smoke pot. Why would we want to add-on another drug? We can’t make alcohol illegal; it’s just way too late for that now. If it wasn’t and we could switch the two drugs then I would actually support that idea. Let’s face it, the addicts are the ones that get behind the wheels of a car and run over a family. The two drugs together are much more deadly than each one separately. But, if we want less deaths, and less problems with addiction we can not say “Hey kids, while you’re drinking go ahead and fire up a joint too.”

Being an addict, I’ll be the first one to say that we’ve screwed it up for all of the “normal people” in the world. We are the ones that run over people, hurt others and generally do bad things because we drink and use too many drugs. But, that’s the way of the world. Sometimes the bad apples ruin it for everyone else. I guess you could say the same for the health care industry. If it wasn’t for those people who got sick all of the time then it would be cheaper for the rest of us.

I am also firmly against putting “most” people in jail for selling drugs. The judges need to send people to rehab and not prison. Just because I don’t think we need to add another drug to the “OK LIST”, doesn’t mean I feel people should be put in prison for selling drugs. Each case needs to be evaluated separately and fairly.

Legalize Weed

admin — Tue, 16 Jun 2009 10:13:58 +0000

The problem isn’t making pot legal for all the “Normal People”. The problem is making it legal for all of the addicts. I remember that I really liked going to weddings and concerts. Because it was okay to get really drunk or stoned because everyone else was “doing it”. So making marijuana legal for addicts gives them the green light for a wedding everyday. Let’s face it the liquor store makes most of its money from the alcoholics. So who really gets hurt by making marijuana legal? Alcoholics and addicts are different because they “Crave”. This is what sets us apart from other people when it comes to using certain drugs. I’ve always said that we already have one drug legal that is terrible (alcohol). Why should the government make two drugs legal? I think everyone has heard the term “pothead” before. This term was created to describe someone who smokes marijuana all of the time. THC the active ingredient in marijuana gradually causes the brain to “slow down” in some areas. The strange thing is that the addict rarely notices that this has occurred. However; the people around him or her will notice the slowdown. I personally had this happen to me, so I know what it feels like to have other people laugh and call you a “pothead”.

These are the “pothead” effects that I experienced:

1. Slowed speech.
2. Slowed movement.
3. Trouble reading (My eyes could not stay focused on pages.)
4. Short Term and Long Term memory problems.
5. Trouble learning new material.
6. Did not mature into adulthood as expected.
7. Felt less than other people.
8. Depression
9. Anxiety
And the list goes on…..

These are some of my direct effects from smoking marijuana. Medical marijuana is a complete joke. Go see a psychiatrist and see if he or she would ever recommend marijuana for a patient. I was personally told that “Let me give you something that will help without all of the side effects of marijuana”. This is the real truth about the drug. The side effects are too many to count. Have you ever felt really paranoid when smoking marijuana? No, I’m sure that has never happened to anyone before……..

Can You Beat Drug Abuse and Addiction by Yourself?

admin — Fri, 29 May 2009 06:11:51 +0000

Drug addiction can begin anywhere. A father uses drugs and his son or daughter sees him. A friend invites you to join them in smoking a joint. A boyfriend or girlfriend doesn’t just buy you alcohol, but also “helps” you with your pill addiction. The problem isn’t that we all understand drugs are dangerous, but that so many try to defeat drug addiction on their own.
The leading health site Mayo Clinic offered five risk factors for people who become dependent on drugs: personality, social environment, anxiety and depression, genetics, and types of drugs.
That’s only part of the story. With millions who use illegal drugs on a daily basis, there has to be more problem factors. Let’s begin by exploring personality problems.
Personality:
The rates of people who suffer from depression using drugs is considered high in both government and private studies. Simply put, this is a classic example of why people use drugs. It’s also proof to some degree that defeating drugs on your own may be too hard. If you suffer from a worse condition like schizophrenia, which already has high suicide rates, defeating drugs on your own could be impossible.
Social:
Many use drugs to fit in with a certain group. And it isn’t always the young peer groups. In many ways society is becoming more accepting of active drug users. This all depends on the person and comes down to theory. But if this is the only problem, if you only use drugs to fit in and have no mental or physical problems, it may be possible to defeat drugs. The danger is in starting you become physically addicted, especially with the harsher drugs.
Type of Drug:
Some drugs will be tougher to “kick” than others. This isn’t theory at all. Cocaine, for example, has far more addicting aspects than marijuana. On the other hand, some “legal” drugs like cigarettes or pain pills can be just as addicting to certain people. Heroin addicts, cocaine users … the type of the drug doesn’t always fit in with the personality. However, when it starts changing how you live on a daily basis, when you have to get one or you think you’ll die, the only answer is coping, medication, and the help of professional doctors. Some drugs are simply too hard to kick on your own.
So what does it all mean? This isn’t meant as a scheme of studying why we’re addicted to drugs or how to defeat them. The drug epidemic has been a problem for decades. People are still dying. But many addicts are also successfully quitting drug use, sometimes on their own. The safest bet is to seek professional help in the beginning. Or, not trying highly addictive drugs in the first place.

Teens Using Drugs And the Effect on Families

admin — Thu, 28 May 2009 00:46:37 +0000

In a recent study on high school seniors, a high number (40 percent) of the teens had tried marijuana, a large number within the last month, and a smaller percentage even admitted to using marijuana on a daily basis. The “news” isn’t all bad, because teen substance abuse rates for some drugs have gone down in the past ten years, some as far down as 20 percent. The reality still is middle schools and high schools are the front lines of defeating the teen substance abuse problem we face.

Remember that you as a parent should talk to your teen about drugs. It sounds so simple, but many parents loathe lecturing their teens on the basics of life. Or they think that it’s a complete waste of time. Substance abuse is far too serious of an issue to simply push under the rug and forget. It does depend on the teen, how old they are, if they’ve used already, and even if you used once. Talking to teens is something that truly takes a masters course to do, but the odds are better when you are completely honest with them, explain what can happen to drug addicts, and give them healthy alternatives to having fun without drugs.

Often people within your family who experience someone going through drug addiction will react in many negative ways. A recent study by HelpGuides.com, using research, noted that family members often experience feelings of abandonment, anxiety, fear, anger, concern, embarrassment, or even guilt. These feelings are quite natural, and you may feel so angry that you want to completely cut off the teen. Abandoning them as they’ve abandoned you isn’t the answer. While it may seem odd for a parent to disown a teen for abusing drugs, we all do odd things when we feel betrayed and angered. You can’t entirely cut ties; you need to be firm but not throw them out of the house or into jail.

Your Potential

admin — Wed, 21 Jan 2009 06:35:02 +0000

Drug addiction and alcoholism is a disease. This disease is something that is genetically inherited from our ancestors. No one chooses to become an alcoholic or an addict. Alcoholics and addicts (like me) are generally really nice people. What sets us apart from “normal people” is when we use alcohol or other drugs we develop the phenomenon of craving. There is a point at which someone who has the genetic make-up can successfully stop using drugs/alcohol and not develop the disease. Unfortunately, most of us don’t stop before reaching “the point of no return”. Once this has happened, the individual can no longer successfully use drugs or alcohol.

I had a great time using drugs and alcohol when I first started using them. But eventually I no longer got very much enjoyment from them and felt I had to use them to feel “normal”. As you can tell from the name of this website and the other statements I’ve made, my drug of choice was marijuana. Most alcoholics and addicts have a drug of choice; this is the “standby” or one they cannot go without. Most of the people I meet in AA stated that their drug of choice was alcohol. There were several times when me and my friends tried to get cocaine or other drugs and were unsuccessful. But, marijuana was always there and it was our drug of choice.

By age 25, marijuana was no longer working like it used to. Really all I wanted was to be comfortable in my own skin. My psychiatrist stated (years after I got sober) he thought I eventually would have switched over to pain pills. I guess he took note of all of the statements I made regarding how this type of drug made me feel. Pain pills were definitely one of my favorites because of the energy and overall good feeling they gave me. I used to tell my friends that I could be at work “Smiling” as I was taking out the trash.

If you’re an addict like me and you’re pretty young, the odds of me convincing you that you have a problem are pretty slim. It’s very difficult to convince us addicts that we have a problem when the drugs are still working for us. After you finish reading this article I would like for you to take a few minutes and really think. Look back on your life. When you were 10 years old did you think this was how your life was going to turn out? Are you living up to your full potential or is something holding you back? This was the case with me. In my early teens I was on the computer all the time and at age 16 I had a bulletin board system running at my parents’ house. Once I started using drugs and alcohol heavily, I lost all interest in the thing I loved the most (the computer). I was definitely not living up to my potential and I definitely didn’t think by the time I was 25 that I would be smoking pot all day long and using other drugs just so I could get through the day. Take some time to think. Think back to when you were 10 years old.