im 15 years old and i smoke pot regularly, everyday after school some mornings before school and every weekend about 6 or 7 times a day and sometimes i even do it with my mom. i realize that i have a problem and i need help with it.i have been smoking pot since i was about 13 and i will be 16 in december. ive tried to quit so many times but i just cant seem to go through with it. ive broken so many promises to my family and friends that its pathetic "i promise i wont do it again" yeah.. i say that a lot but then i get around people that do and i just cant seem to say no. i want to quit so bad but i dont know how to.. i need help
L, you can look through some of my posts on this board and get an idea about where I come from. It is possilbe to quit, but it takes a pretty big committment. How far are you willing to go to quit the dope?
August
August
im willing to go as far as i have to.. i want to quit.. i want my old life back where i was actually a happy person and enjoyed doing things with my friends
i only mentioned me smoking pot, but recently i have started to "pop pills" and i have tried meth a couple times too.. i want to stop all of this
Lyndsey, I started when I was 15. It was no big deal at first but after a few months I got my hands on some really good stuff and it was over after that. Like you, I smoked every day. I ususally started first thing in the morning, school or no school.
I lost nearly 20 years to smoking dope, and I can promise you that it will not get better from here. I sincerely hope that you are able to see through a commitment to quit, so that you might avoid some of the pain, loss, and heartache that I sufferred.
I tried every conceivable way to quit. None of them worked for me and as I became more ashamed of the fact that I could not quit, I became more insistent that I did not have a problem. Slowly this became my dirty little secret and I drifted away from family and friends. In the end, i was all alone.
I was lucky to have found help in the rooms of NA and AA. Once I admitted to myself what I was, a drug addict, and committed to going to meetings and taking the suggestions that were offerred to me, I managed to stay off the dope. It was not easy, but it was worth it. If you are willing to go to any length to get off the dope, including admitting that you have no power to control the dope, and if you are willing to go to meetings so that others with similar issues can help, you can do this.
My life has not been a cakewalk since I quit, but it is so very much better than it was when I was still using. I got my soul back, and once again, I have relationships with friends and family. I also have a good job and do not get nervous when I see a cop in the rear view mirror.
Good luck.
Let me know how you are doing.
August
I lost nearly 20 years to smoking dope, and I can promise you that it will not get better from here. I sincerely hope that you are able to see through a commitment to quit, so that you might avoid some of the pain, loss, and heartache that I sufferred.
I tried every conceivable way to quit. None of them worked for me and as I became more ashamed of the fact that I could not quit, I became more insistent that I did not have a problem. Slowly this became my dirty little secret and I drifted away from family and friends. In the end, i was all alone.
I was lucky to have found help in the rooms of NA and AA. Once I admitted to myself what I was, a drug addict, and committed to going to meetings and taking the suggestions that were offerred to me, I managed to stay off the dope. It was not easy, but it was worth it. If you are willing to go to any length to get off the dope, including admitting that you have no power to control the dope, and if you are willing to go to meetings so that others with similar issues can help, you can do this.
My life has not been a cakewalk since I quit, but it is so very much better than it was when I was still using. I got my soul back, and once again, I have relationships with friends and family. I also have a good job and do not get nervous when I see a cop in the rear view mirror.
Good luck.
Let me know how you are doing.
August
Lol.. i know what you mean talking about a cop in the rear view mirrow.. im going to try to stop doing it on the weekdays and not so much on the weekends because i know it will be hard for me to just stop cold turkey.. i dont think i would be able to do that but im going to try to just cut back and then eventually stop and if that doesnt work then i will start talking to a counselor or something and try going to AA meetings.. but thanks for listening to my story and for responding.. it helps knowing that im not the only one who has ever been in this situation
Lyndsey, feel free to stop in and touch base from time to time. If you can cut back to controlled using, you are better person than me, but I respect your desire to give this a try.
Good luck.
August
Good luck.
August
oh my gosh.. i feel horrible... i said i was gonna stop smoking and its just not working so great.. some of my friends came to my house and they had a blunt rolled and started smokin it it my house and i smoked with them.. i dont think i can do it its so hard.. i really need some help
Lyndsey, you may be getting closer to realizing what it is you are dealing with. No one has the right to tell anyone else that they are an addict, but if you have crossed that line into addictive use, it is a whole different ball game.
We addicts have no will power over our drugs. We cannot simply cut back to occassional recreational use because the drugs have interacted with our body chemistry in a way that short circuits our sense of control over them. Combine that with the peer pressure that any young man would experience and it is a very serious challenge.
FWIW I can also tell you that once a person becomes an addict his body chemistry slowly alters in respect to the drug and over time the good aspects of the drug, i.e., the sense of euphoria, slowly decreases and the bad aspects, i.e., short term memory loss and paranoia to name a couple, will increase. Addicts often switch to other drugs at that point and the cycle begins anew. This certainly happened to me. I often switched from high quality to weed to 25 year old scotch to pure peruvian blow and back again, but I always returned to the pot. Check out the difficulties that some of the folks are having on the meth, coke, heroin, and pain pill boards and you could conceivably be getting a glimpse of your future.
There is help out there, you know what my suggestions are on this, but it takes an enormous amount of courage to give it a try. You have to make the decesion as to what you want to do about this, no one can make it for you. For me, once I realized what I was and sought help, it lifted and enormous weight off my shoulders.
Let me know how you are doing
August
We addicts have no will power over our drugs. We cannot simply cut back to occassional recreational use because the drugs have interacted with our body chemistry in a way that short circuits our sense of control over them. Combine that with the peer pressure that any young man would experience and it is a very serious challenge.
FWIW I can also tell you that once a person becomes an addict his body chemistry slowly alters in respect to the drug and over time the good aspects of the drug, i.e., the sense of euphoria, slowly decreases and the bad aspects, i.e., short term memory loss and paranoia to name a couple, will increase. Addicts often switch to other drugs at that point and the cycle begins anew. This certainly happened to me. I often switched from high quality to weed to 25 year old scotch to pure peruvian blow and back again, but I always returned to the pot. Check out the difficulties that some of the folks are having on the meth, coke, heroin, and pain pill boards and you could conceivably be getting a glimpse of your future.
There is help out there, you know what my suggestions are on this, but it takes an enormous amount of courage to give it a try. You have to make the decesion as to what you want to do about this, no one can make it for you. For me, once I realized what I was and sought help, it lifted and enormous weight off my shoulders.
Let me know how you are doing
August
Lyndsey,
First you do not have to talk to me or listen to me. I am a juvinile substance abuse officer, and I am not out to get kids into trouble. I am out to give them the tool they need to change their ways of life. I have been there and I will only help you. Enough said. I have been reading your your addictions, and you can still be helped. But first you have to asked yourself "why". Why do you seek out drugs to coupe with life. life is difficult enough. and that maybe the reason. Dig deep into your mind and ask yourself "What is it that I go need, before you turn to drugs". Is it it a need to feel a sense of belonging, or an excape, if so why. I don't know you. But I have helped hundreds of young adults to quit. and stay that way. let me know. I care... Officer Chris
First you do not have to talk to me or listen to me. I am a juvinile substance abuse officer, and I am not out to get kids into trouble. I am out to give them the tool they need to change their ways of life. I have been there and I will only help you. Enough said. I have been reading your your addictions, and you can still be helped. But first you have to asked yourself "why". Why do you seek out drugs to coupe with life. life is difficult enough. and that maybe the reason. Dig deep into your mind and ask yourself "What is it that I go need, before you turn to drugs". Is it it a need to feel a sense of belonging, or an excape, if so why. I don't know you. But I have helped hundreds of young adults to quit. and stay that way. let me know. I care... Officer Chris
Lyndsey, I want to remind you that this site is anonymous and what you say here cannot be traced back to you. It is important that you feel safe here in what you write, knowing that it will not fall into the hands of authorities.
Maybe I am overestimating the significance of this, but I spent most of my juvenile life worrying about being busted so I get concerned when someone leads with the fact that they are a cop, even if they have the best of intentions, as I am sure this poster has. If I am over reacting here, just ignore me--I come from a different era where we do not trust authority figures easily :-)
I will provide you with an anonymous email address if you wish to talk to me personally about your addiction issues. I will let you know right up front that I am a lawyer and that I will protect everything you say to me under my sheild of confidentiality. No one, including your parents, President Bush, or any cop from the local deputy up to John Ashcroft can force me to divulge my confidences. Just let me know, and I will place the email address on this site for a short period of time for you your access.
Personally, I hope you continue to post on this site because you never know when you will say something that might really help others. However, I wanted to give you an alternative if it will make you feel safer.
Please stay in touch with me Lyndsey.
August
Maybe I am overestimating the significance of this, but I spent most of my juvenile life worrying about being busted so I get concerned when someone leads with the fact that they are a cop, even if they have the best of intentions, as I am sure this poster has. If I am over reacting here, just ignore me--I come from a different era where we do not trust authority figures easily :-)
I will provide you with an anonymous email address if you wish to talk to me personally about your addiction issues. I will let you know right up front that I am a lawyer and that I will protect everything you say to me under my sheild of confidentiality. No one, including your parents, President Bush, or any cop from the local deputy up to John Ashcroft can force me to divulge my confidences. Just let me know, and I will place the email address on this site for a short period of time for you your access.
Personally, I hope you continue to post on this site because you never know when you will say something that might really help others. However, I wanted to give you an alternative if it will make you feel safer.
Please stay in touch with me Lyndsey.
August
Moderator-..come on.."Officer Chris"? Get his msg. off this board...he's got to be a fraud..
i dont know if i am an addict or not but i do know that i need and want help. I went one day without smoking and i thought i was going to go crazy.. i would just lay in my bed and be freezing cold but i would be sweating at the same time too.. it was really weird.. and then when i went to bed i had these really weird dreams.. and then yesterday it just seemed so much easier to do it then to say no and watch the other people do it. Im scared of what you said that if i dont stop then i will get into other drugs and i dont want to do that.. i have tried other things but i dont want to get heavily into them.. i have seen that happen to my mom and i see how miserable she is and i dont want that to happen to me. And what you said about the email thing it doesnt matter to me.. i mean i really dont like cops at all but what can he do.. he doesnt know me so it doesnt matter.. but i am going to try really hard and say no tonigh.
Lyndsey, not everyone moves from pot to harder drugs, or so I am told. However, most people who are addicted to harder drugs started with pot. When I was young, I hung with a group of stoners and it all started out as doing pot, but then someone shows up with some hash, or some hash oil, and from there it is an easy step to other things like meth or X.
I came up during a different era, but I had a love affair with psychedelics that really cemented my career as an addict. At the time, it was all about this grand spiritual journey, but in the end, I was just using drugs to escape my everyday consciousness. Thats how the drugs work. They are great in the beginning, but as you do more and more, your relationship to them begins to change for the worst.
A lot of people wind up doing Oxys these days. That is the direction my neice, just a little older than you, went. She is strung out like a stoned cold junkie these days.
A lot depends on the dynamics of your group, but it is likely that many of the people you are hanging with are going to start bringing around harder drugs at some point and you already see how easy it is to just go with what everyone else is doing. If one of the harder drugs clicks with you, you may find yourself strung out before you know it. No, it doesn't happen to everyone, but in light of the struggle you are having with pot, my guess is that you are at risk.
For now, lets just focus on the pot. One of the first things they tell you when you go to meetings is that it is time to find new faces and new places. I know this is tough, because we all need our friends. The meetings help because they allow you to meet others who offer support to stay clean instead of temptation to use. I understand and respect the fact that you may not be ready to go to a meeting just yet, but you might think about whether you can start expanding your social horizons a little bit. Are there any activities you can get into or places you can go where you might meet some more friends who are less likely to use around you?
After I got clean, for example, I really got into white water kayaking. Most of the guys I hung with were not in 12 step programs but we were all so tired at the end of the day that nobody had any energy left to party.
I am also putting in a link to marijuana anonymous. Again, not trying to shove it down your throat or anything--MA is primarily online but they do have literature that you might want to read through. Hey if you hanging around tonight and not smoking there might not be much else to do, right?
Lyndsey, you hang in there. I know this is tough--especially if your mom is smoking. But others have done it.
Good luck.
August
http://www.marijuana-anonymous.org/
I came up during a different era, but I had a love affair with psychedelics that really cemented my career as an addict. At the time, it was all about this grand spiritual journey, but in the end, I was just using drugs to escape my everyday consciousness. Thats how the drugs work. They are great in the beginning, but as you do more and more, your relationship to them begins to change for the worst.
A lot of people wind up doing Oxys these days. That is the direction my neice, just a little older than you, went. She is strung out like a stoned cold junkie these days.
A lot depends on the dynamics of your group, but it is likely that many of the people you are hanging with are going to start bringing around harder drugs at some point and you already see how easy it is to just go with what everyone else is doing. If one of the harder drugs clicks with you, you may find yourself strung out before you know it. No, it doesn't happen to everyone, but in light of the struggle you are having with pot, my guess is that you are at risk.
For now, lets just focus on the pot. One of the first things they tell you when you go to meetings is that it is time to find new faces and new places. I know this is tough, because we all need our friends. The meetings help because they allow you to meet others who offer support to stay clean instead of temptation to use. I understand and respect the fact that you may not be ready to go to a meeting just yet, but you might think about whether you can start expanding your social horizons a little bit. Are there any activities you can get into or places you can go where you might meet some more friends who are less likely to use around you?
After I got clean, for example, I really got into white water kayaking. Most of the guys I hung with were not in 12 step programs but we were all so tired at the end of the day that nobody had any energy left to party.
I am also putting in a link to marijuana anonymous. Again, not trying to shove it down your throat or anything--MA is primarily online but they do have literature that you might want to read through. Hey if you hanging around tonight and not smoking there might not be much else to do, right?
Lyndsey, you hang in there. I know this is tough--especially if your mom is smoking. But others have done it.
Good luck.
August
http://www.marijuana-anonymous.org/
yeah there probably is somewhere i can go to meet new people that wouldnt smoke but i mean every one of my friends does and i dont want to just like blow them off.. but i will try to meet some new people.. and im so proud of myself.. some people came to my house tonight and they were smoking and taking pills and oh my god it was so damn hard but i said no and i feel so good but i hope i jsut dont have any more weird dreams or somethin.. im goin to bed though.. and thanks for website
lyndey,
I feel your friends on this site are giving you some good advice. You have a problem with Marijuana, and this is only the start. I did not have to post my name as Officer Chris. If I can't be honest with who I am, then how can I help you. I have helped endless teens with this problem and I continue to, and they trust me. I am the only one that can give you the cold facts of what happens if you don't quit. Your "friends" are right you should be afraid of the "cops" because when you get caught and you will (a fact) they have to uphold the law. I would like to help you understand the consequences of marijuana and other drugs and also deal with the types of peer pressures that influence this type of behavior. I for one do'not want you to get caught up with the law, and would like to see you on your way to recovery. please trust me
I feel your friends on this site are giving you some good advice. You have a problem with Marijuana, and this is only the start. I did not have to post my name as Officer Chris. If I can't be honest with who I am, then how can I help you. I have helped endless teens with this problem and I continue to, and they trust me. I am the only one that can give you the cold facts of what happens if you don't quit. Your "friends" are right you should be afraid of the "cops" because when you get caught and you will (a fact) they have to uphold the law. I would like to help you understand the consequences of marijuana and other drugs and also deal with the types of peer pressures that influence this type of behavior. I for one do'not want you to get caught up with the law, and would like to see you on your way to recovery. please trust me
Take that victory and build on it, Lyndsey. let me know if I can help you develop a plan for staying away from the pot.
August
August
Hi Lindsey,
My name is Jack D. I am 33 years old, married and have a wonderful 5 year old son named Irish. My wifes name is Cindy.
I have been smoking pot since I moved to British Columbia 13 years ago, prior to that all I ever knew was hash. I cannot recall a day in the last 13 years that I have not smoked. Today I broke down and cried, I have carried the weight of having a drug addiction on my shoulders far too long. I simply could not look at my little boy and think of myself as a "great dad" which is what so many people say I am! I am tired of being so stoned that I cannot even eat, so burnt out that my stomach churns, turns and gurgles and refuses to let me eat. My breathing after I smoke is not to different from that of a 60 year old man with emphazema. It is killing me inside or at least it was. After about a 10 minute break down session, I took every crumb of weed that I had in my possession and flushed it. Today is my first day, I am having it really ruff right now, but I am going to give it a shot. I don't even know if this is making any sense I am so damn emotional. But I just wanted to tell you that I read your post and it made me realize the many years that I had wasted with drugs, I thought to myself, here is this young lady desperatly wanting to quit this crap, and she is in her teens! I wish that I had the mental capacity at your age to want to quit. But I did not! Keep on keepin on girl. I hope I can find the power to quit and stay clean. I hope you can too, your young and well on the right track. I am really glad that I found this website. Thank you for reading. Jack
My name is Jack D. I am 33 years old, married and have a wonderful 5 year old son named Irish. My wifes name is Cindy.
I have been smoking pot since I moved to British Columbia 13 years ago, prior to that all I ever knew was hash. I cannot recall a day in the last 13 years that I have not smoked. Today I broke down and cried, I have carried the weight of having a drug addiction on my shoulders far too long. I simply could not look at my little boy and think of myself as a "great dad" which is what so many people say I am! I am tired of being so stoned that I cannot even eat, so burnt out that my stomach churns, turns and gurgles and refuses to let me eat. My breathing after I smoke is not to different from that of a 60 year old man with emphazema. It is killing me inside or at least it was. After about a 10 minute break down session, I took every crumb of weed that I had in my possession and flushed it. Today is my first day, I am having it really ruff right now, but I am going to give it a shot. I don't even know if this is making any sense I am so damn emotional. But I just wanted to tell you that I read your post and it made me realize the many years that I had wasted with drugs, I thought to myself, here is this young lady desperatly wanting to quit this crap, and she is in her teens! I wish that I had the mental capacity at your age to want to quit. But I did not! Keep on keepin on girl. I hope I can find the power to quit and stay clean. I hope you can too, your young and well on the right track. I am really glad that I found this website. Thank you for reading. Jack
Jack.. good luck and i know you can do it if you really want to and im sure you are a great dad you jsut have a problem which can be fixed if you put your mind to it.. today is day 2 for me and its hard but im doing good so far.. and im glad that my posts have helped someone else besides me. and Officer Chris.. any advice you wanna tell me about anything will be appreciated.. and thanks to all of you.. it makes it a lot easier to do this having people believing in you.. thanks
Hi Jack and Lindsey,
Today is day 3 for me to stop smoking pot. I've been smoking for over 30 years, I quit 2 times in that span, and I've been smoking everyday for the last 5 years.
You can do this, if I can do this, both of you can do this. I'll share my reasons for quitting with you, you have both shared your reasons.
I got laid off from my job of 27 years in July. I've been pretty stoned since July, it was shocking for me to get laid off. But now I have to look for another job at the first of the year, and I figure it will take me 2 months to pass a drug test. I'm so old, I never had to take a drug test to get or keep a job.
And talk about someone crying Jack, I can't even think of how much money I'd have if I didn't spend it on pot. Heck, maybe I could have retired now if it would not have gone "up in smoke".
And to tell the truth, I wasn't getting very high. I was using more than ever, but not really getting the buzz that you get when you first start. I coughed my head off most of the time. I had to have a joint with me all the time.
Plus, I was not very social. No one I know smokes, so I'd sit in my basement and get high alone. I'd avoid family and friends just to be by myself and get high. Pretty sad when you look at it that way.
Maybe we can help each other. I am going to succeed this time, I have to. I have to get a job, I have to save my money. When will it be any easier? So far, the only physical thing is insomnia. It's all habit and mental. I do feel clearer in my head, seems like I see things better too.
I've been keeping myself busy this week, from painting my kitchen, to doing a jigsaw puzzle, and playing with my polymer clay. Helps to keep your hands busy I think.
I'm keeping my head up, and working toward feeling better about myself. Just think, when I succeed with this, I'll be perfect! hahaha, that was a joke!
Hope to talk to you soon
Mary
Today is day 3 for me to stop smoking pot. I've been smoking for over 30 years, I quit 2 times in that span, and I've been smoking everyday for the last 5 years.
You can do this, if I can do this, both of you can do this. I'll share my reasons for quitting with you, you have both shared your reasons.
I got laid off from my job of 27 years in July. I've been pretty stoned since July, it was shocking for me to get laid off. But now I have to look for another job at the first of the year, and I figure it will take me 2 months to pass a drug test. I'm so old, I never had to take a drug test to get or keep a job.
And talk about someone crying Jack, I can't even think of how much money I'd have if I didn't spend it on pot. Heck, maybe I could have retired now if it would not have gone "up in smoke".
And to tell the truth, I wasn't getting very high. I was using more than ever, but not really getting the buzz that you get when you first start. I coughed my head off most of the time. I had to have a joint with me all the time.
Plus, I was not very social. No one I know smokes, so I'd sit in my basement and get high alone. I'd avoid family and friends just to be by myself and get high. Pretty sad when you look at it that way.
Maybe we can help each other. I am going to succeed this time, I have to. I have to get a job, I have to save my money. When will it be any easier? So far, the only physical thing is insomnia. It's all habit and mental. I do feel clearer in my head, seems like I see things better too.
I've been keeping myself busy this week, from painting my kitchen, to doing a jigsaw puzzle, and playing with my polymer clay. Helps to keep your hands busy I think.
I'm keeping my head up, and working toward feeling better about myself. Just think, when I succeed with this, I'll be perfect! hahaha, that was a joke!
Hope to talk to you soon
Mary
