This board has been rather quiet lately, I was just wondering if we were all cured? I know I'm not, but I am on my 5th day of cleanliness. I like to read what everyone has to say, as it helps me to deal with my own problems.

I'm on my 5th day and doing OK overall. It's been rough, dreaming about it, thinking about it constantly, my moods are all over the place. Sometimes I feel like I'm free, sometimes I feel like I'm trapped. Sometimes I feel great, other times I feel like I just want to die. I was a lot more stable when I was smoking. Hopefully I'll be a lot more stable when I get done with these stupid withdraws.

Question: If I've been smoking pot almost every day for 22 years, how long will it take until I can pass a U.A.?

Hope everyone is doing well and that is why this board is so quiet.

Congradultions on 5 days!!! See what you can accomplish one day at a time?? I hope you are going to meetings - you will find that on the days you are holding on by a thread that will keep you going. PLEASE take my advice - because... we are , of course, never cured, and the single common denominator I have seen in relapses is that the relapser stopped going to meetings - tried to do it on their own, or they thought they were "all better!!!"

I have read that pot stays in your system for5 a minimum of 30 days - in two weeks from your last joint you will have 1/2 the thc in your system, two weeks after that 1/2 less of that 1/2 and so on, and so on.

You can dilute a UA by drinking a ton of H2O and then taking B12 to give your urine that healthy yellow color, but why chance it if you don't have to - just stay clean and you will have nothing to worry about. Now get your butt to a meeting!

congrats on the five days. after 22 years, do you experience long term lasting effects, either physically or mentally.
i used pot for about a decade, daily usage, then quit for a couple of years, but now i have continued my use and have been using daily for about a year now. i am interested in what am i doing to my body physically cause there is not a whole lot of rational,neutral info out there.

Hey Guys and Girls,

I'm not cured of anything yet. But am not dependant on a lot of things (including illegal drugs)each day by MY CHOICE. That says a lot right there. I am able to Choose, I no longer have to spend my money and my time doing something I know I should not.

I am not hurting anyone including myself anymore. What did I do to my body? What did I do to my mind? What did I do to/with my Life?
I'll never really have the full knowledge or complete answers to those questions. But what I do know makes me sick and ashamed.

I have damaged and altered how my mind works. Will it recover?
I hope so, but opinions vary.

I have damaged my spirit for sure, because I found out I was not strong enough to not use drugs without help and will always be an addict, and I hurt so many people.

I have damaged my body, how much? I don't know, but I am trying to salvage what is left each day.

I have damaged many people, including myself by using drugs. Will they recover, Will I ever forgive myself, Will they forgive me...I hope and pray that someday I will and they will.

Here is a link of additional links, there are many unanswered questions but there are many broken lives and broken familys that don't need any more proof...they have had enough already. http://open-mind.org/Drugs.htm

Well, it has now been a week and I am still clean. I did have a couple of beers this week end and felt guilty about it, but that is OK because now I know. Although my main addiction is to pot, alcohol was always my #2. I feel like I cheated myself and it was not that great, but I considered it a test and learning experience. My curiosity is gone and my desire to refrain from alcohol is a bit stronger, so it really was OK.

I have been to one AA meeting and one MA meeting. It was difficult to go, the emotions rampaging through my mind and body were intense for all kinds of different reasons. I will continue to go when I can, I think they will be a help. I am not making excuses although it sounds like it, but I have my own business and work about 60+ hours a week. (Some would say that this is another one of my addictions). I am recently divorced and am spending as much time with my children as possible. I just can't find time to attend as many meetings as I would like to. That is why I am hanging out on this board, I can pull some strength from it at any time of the day or night. I have been in e-mail communications with a couple of people who are just great and are giving me strength and encouragement, and that really helps too. This along with my own desire has been enough to get me this far, but I am just beginning this road and I know that I will need more than what I've been doing thus far. I will attend more meetings, I know I need to.

Bud: As far as I am aware, I have no physical side effects from my chronic usage other than the withdraws. My emotions are all over the place, I have night sweats, I have dreams about it, I am tired and lethargic and have to force myself to get things done. Mentally the side effects are that I am addicted, but I can't blame that on pot, it could just as easily be alcohol. I don't think that my short term memory is as good as what it should be, and I know that I have more difficulty concentrating than I should, and some of that is because I'm things about smoking. Socially the effects have been that I have isolated myself from main stream society, as main stream society doesn't smoke every day. Instead of going out and being a part of the world around me, I have created my own world which revolves around pot. Quite honestly, the price has been enormous and incalculable. From the outside, if you met me you would think I had it together and that there was nothing wrong, but from the inside I'm quite the mess. I am continually asking myself "where would I be if I didn't have this addiction". So many decisions have been made as a result of my addiction, such as who I married as she was originally accepting of my smoking, and my self employment because I can't pass a U.A. My life would have had a whole different feel and look if I could have just been normal. But like I said, I can't blame this on pot, if it wasn't pot it would be something else. The real problem is addiction, and that is a psychological hurdle that is huge. Pot was just my drug of choice, and for that I should be thankful, because with all that I have been exposed to, it could be a lot worse. If I were you, I would not worry about the side effects of pot, but the side effects of addiction.

Thanks everyone for all of your continued support on this board.

Catch 22

Hey Catch,
Well said, I think your getting the idea.
Don't work too hard and try and make those meetings. Hug and talk to your kids as much as you can, Don't make the mistakes I did,
because you can never go back.
Peace

Hi Catch22 -

Sounds like you at least have the desire - that is a big part of the battle BUT>>>>>

God, I hate to sound like a broken record, but you MUST make your sobriety a priority or it just won't stick. You can't just make meetings "when you can" you have just got to make meetings. One here and there will just not work, and I know this from both personal experience and from listening to countless numbers of people who relapsed. If you want a life, you have got to make your program part of it - a major part of it. Get a sponsor and ask for help - you can do it. Think about it.

hey , you will get over it I smoked for 30 years I quit 2 years ago , I actually found it quite easy compared to narcotics but christine is absolutly right , the one common denomonator vital to the success of being able to abstain for any lenght of time from any substace is AA , you have to go every day it will keep you focused , if you are a workaholic, do yourself a favor and along with the job of the job ,set aside a couple hours a day for yourself , you deserve it . its so simple and it really works , but you must make the time .hang in there

IM sorry this is just my opinion but i cant see how weed is addicting. Untill you have been stuck on heroin, crack, coke, alcohol and some pills i dont think you know what a real addiction is. You get NO physical withdrawel symptoms from smokin so i just cant understand why people think they are addicted to weed. Until you go through not being able to sleep, sweating all night and chills and stomach pains , you dont know what an addict is. Again just my opinion, like the movie half baked when the guy stands up and says hes addicted to weed people laugh at him. Well just my opinion.

Sorry if that offended anyone i just honestly cannot see addiction and weed in the same sentence.

rcb116:

Is you post intended to be positive and encouraging? What is the point of your uncaring and insensitive comments? Really? This is a forum upon which we educate and encourage others. You are welcome here, but if you don't have anything positive to say, I suggest that you keep it to youself. There is absolutely no good whatsoevever that can come from your immature comments.

Catch22

I want to share something that I get from the meetings I go to. What has worked for me is the idea that an addiction is a way of life. An addict uses to live and lives to use. Our whole life and thinking was centered around using. I'm paraphrasing here from our readings. "It doesn't matter what or how much you used, or who your connections were, only on what you want to do about your problem and how we can help." This is what gets people to remain in denial of their addiction. They think "oh, I only smoke pot" If your life and thinking is centered around pot then maycbe you should take a look at it. People are talking about that pot and addiction shouldn't be in the same sentence. Well, people can be addicted to anything. It is a way of life and what we use to cover up feelings and reality AND, is just a symptom of the disease. So is DENIAL. When you have to work for yourself because you can't pass UAs, then HELLO, you are having to adjust your life around your use of weed. Anyway, I don't want to get on a soapbox about this issue, but I see so many people relapse or go on until their life is destroyed by "just pot", then and only then to they surrender to the disease and are willing to do whatever it takes to stay clean including going to meetings even when they don't "want to" I have to get into this recovery thing just like I got into the drug thing. Go score some recovery from an NA meeting next time instead of the weed..... OH yeah and "alcohol is a drug!"

A grateful recovering addict

Hi all!

I have stated before that pot is NOT physically addictive. But I know of plenty of non-inspired waste-of life because of pot types.

Physically addictive or not - I have a ***** of a time getting into rehab because I was "NOT PHYSICALLY ADDICTED" to coke and booze. I binged in both, but hell, I went to the gym, worked, lived normally (kind of) in between. Was my life screwed up due to my usage!! Oh yea!!! Was it affecting my quality of life and my life itself? Oh yea!!! So who cares if pot is physcially addictive or not - if it ****s up your life somehow, you've got issues. Peace.