Benefits of quitting cannabis

Hi everyone one,  Please bare with me as I get used to this site, I thought I posted when I joined but can't find it anywhere, so here goes again,  Today is day 5 of the quit for me,  what brought me here is I quit smoking cigarettes 80some days ago with an online support group and though I'd try and find one for pot ...and yippee I did...I really am tired of not reaping the benefits of being off the ciggies because of my increased pot smoking....I have the insomnia happening and the emotional ups and downs.....my young adult children have both quit using now, and I'm the one who is still smoking...sad eh....at my son's wedding in March I couldn't resist to go  out and have a quick puff, when I came back in to join the wedding party, thats after visine, purfume, hand washing , hand lotion u know the drill , he comes over to me smiling reaches for me to give me a hug and whispers in my ear "mom u smell like pot|" It was an eye opener for me, got me thinking is this what I want, and it sure isn't,,,,I' plan on giving this site my best shot and staying completely free of this demon....thanx

Congrats on your decisions to quit using. I am starting on day one again after today. I was doing really good this week...almost made it to day three and temptation was delivered to me personally! Read about it my quit journal...I will be updating it later today.

I noticed with this site you can not check back too often. Post and forget about it for a few days is what I am doing. I guess I am use to larger forums where my threads get responded too a bit faster. Regardless, this website has been a big help for me so far. It is nice to converse with others who feel the same way.

Hi Weedless Wendy

Good to have you here. I wish you all the best in your quit. Have you tried before? Well done on quitting the cigs, if you can do that you are half way there. I have tried to quit a few times, as you will see if you read my journal. Trying to get back on the wagon again now. Common Sense is right, this Board can go a bit quiet at times, there are just not enough of us quitters out there! I am going to make a sincere effort to come on here more often as it always strengthens my resolve to quit, and god knows I need all the help I can get. It helps me to help others so if you need any advice re the quit, just let me know! I've been thru it enough times, god knows! Keep posting and good luck. Don't toke up, no matter what.

love Weedless Wench xxx

Thank you both for your responses, I see there is only 65 members here so yeah I figured it would be abit quiet by times....guess the 3 of us will have to cheer each other on more...lol doing alot of crying today....kinda scared ....scared i'll smoke again....

wendy - sorry  I've been away for a few days - I usually try and check the site at least once a day - because it has made such a huge difference in my life.  We seem to have a lot in common.  I also have adult children and my daughters quit was huge inspiration to me! - laughed about the "mom you smell like pot" statement!!! I reeked for 10 years.  

Hopefully you've reached a point of no return - by that I mean that even if you have a slip up, you've come to the point where you realize that you have to change and you will never again be able to kid yourself into thinking otherwise.  

Please keep trying -  we are a small group, but I've come to consider the people here as my dearest friends.   It may seem like the blind leading the blind at times, but everyone certainly understands what you are going through - and just how difficult this process can be.  But you will also find that our lives have truly changed for the better by giving up this crippling addiction.  Some days I'm simply amazed that I've been able to do this.  

KEEP IT GOING!! -

Thank u Grandma....so glad to here u are still amazed that u have been able to do this....gives me hope.  I felt like I had myself boxed in a corner, cryed all morning and chewed gum, felt so lost and empty....then something amazing happened I sit down and talked to my hubby over how I was feeling....lol  I told him straight up how I felt so empty without my toke....when i quit cigarettes and the empty feeling would come i'd have a nice cup of chai tea and a puff....now that i can't do that i just didn't know what to do.   Hubby has been on my case for yrs to quit, he had been away all last week on business and when he returned i announce hey i've quit day 3 for me now...he was so happy, and I figured if I kept having this lost empty feeling i'd smoke and he would b so upset with me.....anyhoo he told me he was so happy that i'm even in the mind set to quit, and he knew i could and would when the time was right...I still haven't smoked and I don't want to either, but the relief I feel from having talked wiht him is amazing....I think I'll get thru this day now because of that.....hope u r all having a good day....

Wow, Wendy - well done on getting through another day. Believe me when I say you are not the first (and wont be the last) of us to be reduced to tears by this insidious weed. I really does bring out the worst in people, and it is those depressive moments that send many people back on it because they see getting stoned as the 'cure' for this depression. I believe that whilst it may seem to be so, it is patently obvious to me that far from being a cure, it is most definitely the cause of the depression, and freeing yourself from those feelings is one of the biggest gains to be realised from the quit. So hang on in there. Recognise there will be good days and bad days, and no matter how good or bad your day is, weed wont help you. It never did!

You are doing so well, please keep it up. It is truly inspirational.

love Weedless Wench xx

ughhh the empty feeling is killer,  its so hot and beautiful here today....makes me want to escape if you know what i mean...but I haven't yet thankfully.  Another big trigger for me hubby buys and sells RV's, and I do the cleaning inside....yep my me time for smoking and cleaning....I can't even bring myself to start the job, I know if I don't bite the bullet and begin he will be saying u better light up if thats what it takes....friggin lost feelings suck....

Thank u god for sunflower seeds...lol day 8 for me today woot woot....I still don't feel convinced in my head that I'm never going to puff again, but I feel good at having over a week in...its been forever since I've gone this long, and I haven't been drinking yet....I'm apt to have a heart attack because my body doesn't know this lack of abuse....wish this site was more active....anyways I'm still cigarette free and pot free...yay me !!

Oh Wendy - I've missed a day or two - so sorry.  I hope you are still on the quit and feeling somewhat better.  I've come to realize that so much of it is HABIT as much as it is addiction.  It's just what we are used to doing!!!  And it really requires that we find other ways to fill the time or things to do INSTEAD.  During the first part of my quit I took up eating pretty much as often as I smoked - and gained 30 pounds!! - I seem to have that under control.  

There are so many things we have come to think of as 'more pleasant' or at least easier to do if we've had a toke.  I KNOW WHAT YOU'RE talking about.  It will get better - it will get easier, but it requires some real changes. 

HANG IN THERE -

HUGS

Grandma

Well I'm happy to say that I got thru today so on to day 10 yay....I came so close to slipping if thats what u can call it today.  I have pot in the house I just don't feel ready to flush it yet...I decided this afternoon that i was going to have a spliff, I even rolled it....then hubby came in and says oh ur going to have one r u...how about us go for  a drive u havne't been out of the house all week....so off for a drive i went and didn't smoke one...and i have walked the past 2 mornings and went to a yoga class tonite, I guess my fear is i'll smoke cigarettes so I'm kinda giving myself permission to have a spliff, but I'm so so happy I didnt' heres to not having one tomorrow, I even thought if i can just get one month in maybe then if i still feel like it....I'm scared if I have one i'll go back to 8 or 9 a day and I know I don't want to do that....if i could do a couple a week I'd be happy buttttt I don't know actually I probably couldn't do that....I'm an all or nothing sorta gal....anyhooo have  a happy sober nite all....and i will too...

Hi Wendy

Sorry for being so lame and not fulfilling my promise of checking in more often. I have been cramming like crazy for an exam next week so my focus has been elsewhere. It has kind of helped me keep off the weed except that I have arranged to see my friend tonight and I will likely smoke some. I need a clear, stress free period to 'devote' to quitting, and I will hardcore it again.

Well done on making it to day 10! I am very proud of you. I believe all addictions have the "all or nothing" quality to them, I thought it was a facet of my personality but I believe it is the drug and nature of addiction, rather than something that is inherent in the person. If you put that drug back in your body, your body and brain will start to crave it again and it will take more willpower to stop again that it will take to not do it now (if that makes sense?) - what I am saying is dont do it!! It will make it harder to quit overall. Have a zero tolerance approach otherwise as soon as you have one you will try to rationalise having another one and as soon as you start thinking like that, it goes rapidly down hill.

I think your idea of doing yoga and going walking is great - not only to take your mind of the smoke, but also to help in the old detox. Get the crap out your system sooner and the sooner you will feel great... I would seriously advise you get rid of that weed though - flush it, or give it away, or give it to someone you trust to lock it away, so you would have to actually ASK in order to get it back. That would be a big deterrent for me. Good luck and keep strong. WELL DONE!

love Weedless Wench xx

Thanks for ur support I'm still smokefree....have to work tonite, which is a bartending shift...soooo will be my second shift since I quit, normally I'd puff all day but not today I've decided if and when I do it again i won't have to work that nite...so safe today and i feel great not having did it this week....it will be 2 weeks for me on Tuesday i haven't had this much time in ...in years for sure....not feeling so antsy as i was the first week....anyhooo heres to another lovely smokefree day and puff free day....

Wendy - I'm glad you are still with your quit - and I'm sorry I haven't been

here more and that the site has been so quiet!!! - I found that after two weeks

things just got easier and easier.  The less you have to think about it the better.

Doesn't mean you still won't have week moments - because you surely will - and

whether you let that lead you back to day one is a choice you WILL have to make.

Keep up the good work!!!

Grandma

Good morning everyone....well yesterday I decided to have a puff, I actually had 2.  I have no desire to have one today but it is still early, I guess what discouraged me after having one was the munchies, since  I quit smoking ciggies I have gained weight, and for the past couple weeks not puffing I haven't been munching late in the evenings....maybe that'll be my saving grace....it really didn't do awhole lot for me, having the spliff....I was a bit more relaxed with the second one but constantly carriying on a conversation in my head with myself....ie I only feel this way cuzz I haven't smoked, all it will take it to smoke everyday then I won't have this feeling....lol crazy I know, but I guess its the chasing the high, if I could get a buzz with each joint then I wouldn't want to quit probably , but when I stopped 2 weeks ago I was smoking more and more each day with no high feelings....anyway I'm still here and I promise not to puff today....have a great day everyone...

Hi Wendy

How do you feel after smoking? I mean, has it made you feel like you want to carry on? or has it strengthened your resolve to quit? I found after I had fallen off the wagon the first time (as in the first time I had quit and gone about 2.5 months clean) I didn't instantly get the urge to smoke again and there was 2 weeks before I fell off again. However, it was still the beginning of the end - almost because the urge to smoke again wasn't immediate, I thought I had finally cracked it and could therefore have the odd toke and not get hooked again. This thinking obviously led to me getting back on it and since then I have quit and fallen off several times over. I really think the initial quit gets easier each time you try but so does the falling off the wagon!! Each time I have fallen off , the interval has been shorter and shorter. So beware! You may be nothing like me but I just wanted to share my experiences so you dont fall for the same trap. Get back on the wagon and stay on it! It is the only way. Hope today has gone well - let me know if you have made it through weed free!

love Weedless xx

Ok.  I did it.  I made a profile and I'm typing a comment.  Congrats to everyone on this site who are working to overcome their addictions.  I have followed a ton of threads and feel like I almost know you.  My story is the same, but different.  I have been a heavy user for about 15 years.  I have quit a few times briefly, but not for over a year now.  I am ready for the change and have quit smoking cigarettes over two months ago so I feel I am ready.  My biggest problem is my partner.  He is as big if not a bigger stoner than I am.  What can I say? Like attracts like.  So, now I really really want to quit be he doesn't want to.  He doesn't have a problem smoking as much as he wants to and I realize it's not fair or even possible to ask him to quit with me.  So I will need to have an amazingly strong willpower to quit with weed around me 24-7.  I am in the proccess of smoking my entire secret stash and I feel terrible but I am forcing myself to smoke it all today.  That's what finally got me to quit cigarettes.  I just smoked and smoked until I got so grossed out I never wanted to smoke again.  I still crave them occasionaly but haven't had any serious cravings where I thought I would buy them again.  Anyhow, I guess tomorrow will be my first day.  I need to have a serious talk with my partner about respecting my desire to quit and not keeping his stash around the house.  I am afraid this will end the relationship which is extra hard as we have a child together.  Wow....how's that for an intro?

Hey people, just joined the site today too!

I have been a daily user for around 14 years, but over the last few months or so, really thinking about giving it up.

I quit Cigarettes just over a year ago and felt loads better for it.

Last week, I went through 3 days of really bad, low feelings after stopping the weed. - So I ended up relapsing over the weekend, which means I'm back to day one today.

I have read everyones posts with interest and have found them inspriational and it's good to know there are other people who have been through the same feelings.

There seems to be a lot of love on this site, which is great!

Wasted life - I really feel for you trying to quit while your partner is still smoking. - You can do it though if it's what you really want! - I just need to listen to my own advice now!

Thanks start of something new.  I like your user name better than mine. Mine's too negative but it was all I could think of in my stoner haze.

I was just reading about Ben being around smokers and how it actually made him remember why he quit.  I'm trying to look at my situation that way.  That at least if I have to see it and smell it, I can also see the results...lazy, munched out, un social...if you are really ready to quit, it starts to look really unattractive.  Almost to the point of...how did I used to enjoy that?

Easier said than done, I haven't even had one day without smoking and I am out of my mind as I write this.

Agreed, to say it's not easy is an understatement! - I have started to realise however, that the thought of quitting is almost harder to bear than actually doing it... 

All day today at work I have felt pretty low and negative, even though I had a smoke yesterday! 

Getting through this evening ok though, I know the next few days are gonna be tough though :-(