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Weed

Discussion in 'LGBT Later in Life' started by I'm gay, Sep 12, 2016.

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  1. CyclingFan

    CyclingFan
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    I don't have a ton of time for this today, and to be quite frank, I am weary of the tone used on this thread and find it quite non-responsive to the original poster's question (also: this and this) but, a 1000% increase in ER admissions for marijuana? No.

    Is using marijuana in any way analogous to robbing a bank? No.

    Does it have negative side effects? Yes. The only person who stated that it did not was you for the purposes of erecting a straw man that you have torched quite effectively.
     
    #21 CyclingFan, Sep 16, 2016
  2. Chip

    Chip
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    Sorry, in the interest of precision, it is about 1000% (meaning, tenfold) for marijuana-induced psychosis. This is a direct result of the availability of higher potency (90% pure) marijuana, and the rarity of admissions for marijuana psychosis prior to the availability of high-potency weed.

    Overall ER visits for marijuana use are up about 50%.

    Of course not. I was making fun of your ridiculous argument that I'm somehow obligated to talk about the positives when warning about the risks.
     
    #22 Chip, Sep 16, 2016
  3. Nickw

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    At the risk of jumping in the middle of this...

    I think the issue, and maybe the OP's concern... When does pot use (or alcohol use) for that matter become self-medication instead of recreation? And, let's face it...both drugs are used for both.

    In the process of coming out, I started self-medicating on alcohol. I have always liked a beer, for the buzz, after a hard bike ride. Sitting in the sun on the deck. I don't see that as self medication. But, I started to have several glasses of wine in the evening, every night, to sort of dull things a bit. This crossed the line, IMO. I quit drinking for a month because I started to realize I needed the wine to relax.

    I don't use pot any longer (since grad school) although I buy some every couple weeks for a sick relative. It is legal and I can walk a couple blocks away and buy some "gummy bears" any time. But, these edibles are in a class by themselves compared to what I was smoking decades ago. You could, seriously, over do on these. Pot has become unsafe. Ask pretty much any physician and you will hear some frightening stories...same with alcohol of course. I am not pot bashing.

    To me, the real issue is if we (the LGBT) community relies on either drug too much as we are working through our sexuality issues and what that does to us and what harm that causes. And, for those of us who recreationally use either drug, how do we know when we crossed the line?
     
    #23 Nickw, Sep 16, 2016
    Last edited: Sep 16, 2016
  4. I'm gay

    I'm gay
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    OP here:

    Wow, I wasn't really expecting this much response, nor was I expecting the interesting debate. Chip, I always appreciate your posts on the threads I see you comment on, and even here you make some valid points.

    I think there is some tendency to point to examples, such as ER admission increases, as the evidence of the "inherent" problems with marijuana. Whether those facts you cite are completely true or not, biased or not, isn't really the issue or the reason I brought up the topic.

    As an academic exercise, it's really interesting to read the debate, but from a practical standpoint, it doesn't really answer not only my questions nor does it provide real helpful advice to others. I'm not using the super high potency stuff, nor do I think I'm in danger of psychosis from marijuana given that I've been using it for 30 years with no issues. I've never been to the ER because of it, nor have I personally ever heard of someone needing to be admitted for it. I have taken multi-year breaks from pot with no withdrawal symptoms or problems related to quitting, nor am I specifically worried about addiction.

    My original post was just to see if my marijuana use had similarities to others in this community or not, and to see if self-medication by marijuana use was common in this community.

    Thank you everyone for your responses.
     
    #24 I'm gay, Sep 16, 2016
  5. Chip

    Chip
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    Self-medication is an epidemic problem in the gay community, which is why substance abuse and chemical dependency issues are something like 4 times higher among LGBT populations than heterosexual populations. So, to directly answer your original question, there are an awful lot of people who are in the same situation you are, and more so, statistically, than our straight counterparts.

    There are plenty of "functional alcoholics" and "functional addicts", and the profession basically does not consider these people in need of treatment if the drug use is not having adverse consequences in the individual's life. The problem is that most people who are chemically dependent have rationalized their behavior and convinced themselves that they really aren't having adverse consequences, and this is a direct result of the way in which pretty much all drugs of abuse hijack the reason centers in the brain.

    In your case, I'd say it is definitely self-medicating. But I can't answer if it is adversely affecting your life. There are a number of good, validated tests (generally not the crappy ones you see on websites full of ads) that can help you determine if there's something to be concerned about.

    For clarification: When I talk about risks associated with drug use, it is usually principally about risks to teens and young adults, as the majority of people are dealing with the coming-out, bullying, and other shame/self-esteem issues that arise during that time period, though people who have never had drug issues can just as easily get in trouble with drug abuse in their 40s as in their teens.

    And that is part of the reason I'm passionate about these problems. With the increase in proneness to substance abuse, and the increased potency of drugs (such as weed) previously considered harmless, there is a greater risk that this vulnerable population will run into issues that can potentially be lifelong. And if they never start... they'll never have the problem. Discouraging use in the first place is the easiest way to ensure that someone will never have a problem.

    In pretty much all of the posts I make, I'm doing my best to speak not just to the OP, but to the hundreds or thousands of others who will also see the threads but may never post (EC has something like 10-15x as many people reading as it has people posting, and the overwhelming majority of them are nonmembers.)
     
    #25 Chip, Sep 16, 2016
  6. CyclingFan

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    There is no such thing as "90% pure marijuana", as has been pointed out several times on this thread. There are extracts that contain thc at that level. If one drinks 24 oz of vodka you will obviously have a different experience than drinking 2 beers, because you will ingest a larger volume of alcohol. But nobody drinks vodka the way they drink beer, because this is well understood. I do think that edibles can be more problematic as it is easier to ingest more than desired due to delayed onset, and that's definitely a place where there should be more education and regulation.

    Since marijuana use has doubled over the last decade, I'm not particularly troubled by a 50% increase in ER visits.

    You are of course not obligated to do anything with your argument, but pretending that there's no upside and using a ill fitting analogy is not exactly persuasive. There are things that humans do that have far more risk than smoking weed, and yet we do those all the time because there are offsetting benefits. But consider me 'zinged' if you like.
     
    #26 CyclingFan, Sep 16, 2016
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