Marijuana can certainly have some health benefits. It helps people with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) to concentrate. It helps those with Parkinson’s disease control their shaking.
Some insurance companies even offer life insurance for marijuana smokers, but the effects of smoking this drug can be detrimental to a person’s health in the long run.
Smoking of any kind can cause damage to not only your lungs but also your psyche. It provides instant gratification, but it can do some serious harm to the body, the brain, and your mental health.
Let’s look at some ways that you can quit smoking marijuana in particular and the effects of constant marijuana use.
Marijuana is a drug that has a lot of stigma surrounding it. For the longest time, marijuana was considered illegal in most states. The consequences of being in possession of it were pretty dire. That didn’t stop people from using it and growing it, though.
Marijuana has many different ways that it affects people. The most prominent way is how it affects the body.
How Marijuana Affects the Body
Using marijuana for long periods of time can cause a number of health issues. Marijuana can greatly affect the lungs from constant use. You can run the risk of getting lung cancer and chronic bronchitis.
Another effect is that marijuana can cause you to have a heart attack if you’re not careful. Marijuana can increase your heart rate and your blood pressure. It only takes a few minutes for this to happen.
This herb can lead to you getting cannabinoid hyperemesis syndrome (CHS). This syndrome consists of vomiting, nausea, and severe dehydration. Many have gone to the emergency room as a result of constant smoking. Marijuana has also been known to stain your teeth.
There are other ways to consume it like edible candy, this is a common way to consume marijuana without having to smoke it. This form of consumption allows you to reap the benefits without damaging your lungs. Also it’s safer for individuals with respiratory problems.
An unhealthy lifestyle like smoking daily can affect your life in many ways. One of those ways can be education because marijuana not only affects the body but also affects the brain.
How Marijuana Affects the Brain
As the old saying goes, a mind is a terrible thing to lose. And that’s something that could happen to someone who smokes marijuana on a daily basis. Studies show that marijuana can actually lower your IQ over time.
Also, depending on when you started smoking, this drug can inhibit your brain from developing properly. Some developmental problems include remembering, grasping concepts, and self-control.
It’s so crucial to keep up your brain health. Your brain harbors your personality, your emotions, your thoughts, and your memories. If your brain is deteriorating from smoking marijuana, then you should do all you can to preserve it and stop using.
How Marijuana Affects Your Mental Health
If marijuana affects the brain, you can be sure that it also affects your mental health. This drug has a tendency to increase psychosis in individuals. Psychosis happens when reality is distorted by thoughts and emotions that are damaged due to traumatic events.
If you have mental disorders like anxiety or depression, marijuana could make these disorders worse. Marijuana has also been found to increase the risk of people developing schizophrenia.
When you don’t manage your mental illnesses, they inevitably manage you. Try to stop using marijuana and you may find that you’re able to regulate your mental health better.
Be careful if you’re smoking marijuana while on medication. This drug has been known to negate the effects of medications and, as stated above, cause a worsening of symptoms.
5 Ways to Stop Using Marijuana
Stopping the use of marijuana can be challenging, but it could mean life or death if you don’t. This drug can be addictive for some and can be difficult to stop. It’s not impossible to quit, but you will have a long road of recovery ahead of you. Below is a list of some ways you can stop using.
- Cold turkey – This method is very hard to execute. Stopping anything cold turkey takes a lot of strength and mental fortitude. You may experience withdrawal symptoms to some degree. If you feel you’re up for that challenge, then, by all means, go for it. Just know that this is one of the hardest ways to quit.
- Slowly limit your use – Unlike going cold turkey, this method isn’t as challenging. Gingerly decreasing the amount of marijuana can be beneficial to you, especially because you can ease into removing it from your life. Set a date for when you’ll reduce the amount of marijuana you’re smoking and don’t stop until you’ve run out of the drug.
- Seek professional guidance – This is probably the most ideal method for quitting. It’s better to have help and accountability than to go it alone. You can do therapy, inpatient rehabilitation, outpatient rehabilitation, and group therapy. All of these options provide great tools for how to cope with withdrawal symptoms and how to effectively stop using.
- Know your why – As human beings, we need to have our why for us to persevere through hard situations. When you can grasp why you’re choosing to stop using marijuana, it becomes that much easier to keep going when the cravings hit. This can be transferred to all areas of your life. Know your why and nothing can stop you.
- Seek support from loved ones – It can be uncomfortable and embarrassing to ask for help from your family and closest friends, but it can be so powerful to have the support of your loved ones. Humans are communal creatures. We need those closest to us to offer their support and be with us in our times of need.
Marijuana affects the body and the brain, which in turn affects your mental health. The negative impact it has on development and the psyche far outweighs the benefits. Marijuana is known as a gateway drug, and rightly so. It can open doors to other drugs that give short-term pleasure and long-term pain.
This drug should be avoided altogether, especially when it’s only being used for recreational purposes. Marijuana only prevents you from dealing with stressful situations in healthy ways. It isolates you from those that care about you. It stifles your intelligence. Nothing good will come out of continuing to use it. Choose to quit today.
Peyton Leonard writes and researches for the life insurance site, QuickQuote.com. Peyton is passionate about physical and mental health. She strives to help others dealing with addictions find hope in recovery.
