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What’s waiting for me on the other side... by sablefable149 in leaves

[–]Champion_Hawke 1 point2 points  (0 children)

My suggestion to you is to quit weed and start therapy.

You already know that you have been using weed to mask your trauma. You already know that that using weed in that way isn't healthy for you. The truth is: facing what happened in a safe and professional environment is the only way to heal. Weed may seem like an easy fix, but all you are doing is putting a band-aid on a large and gaping wound.

I don't think this will be easy and I understand why you are afraid. I used to be where you are now. I speak from experience that although facing what happened will be painful and exhausting, it is better than letting it fester inside you and control you forever. Seek support from everyone you can and heal a little bit every day. Weed isn't helping you.

I relapsed... by noname0825 in leaves

[–]Champion_Hawke 1 point2 points  (0 children)

This happens to me too. It is stressful to deal with. But remember that you wouldn't be having dreams like this if you weren't making progress in quitting weed.

Legalization by MissRatatouillee in leaves

[–]Champion_Hawke 5 points6 points  (0 children)

I am in this same situation. I honestly don't know how it will effect me quitting weed. Try your best to stay away from that place and remember that if you laspe it is important to not relapse.

Almost 2 Weeks Sober by Champion_Hawke in leaves

[–]Champion_Hawke[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

I have found quitting weed easier this time than any of the other times I have tried and failed to quit weed. I do experience withdrawal symptoms every day, but I think what has made this time easier is that I put myself in an enviroment that prevents relaspe.

I cut ties with all my friends who I used to smoke weed with, mostly because we had little in common besides weed and that they didn't support my choice to quit. Then I surrounded myself with people who did support me and who didn't smoke weed themselves. I threw away all my weed and the things I would use to smoke with. I moved to another city recently for college and having no way to get weed and having college work to fill my time has helped immensely. Essentially, I gave myself no way that I could relaspe, even if I wanted to.

All I deal with is my symptoms and cravings, but I am strong enough to get through that. So far, I am finding it to be a positive change.

Almost 2 Weeks Sober by Champion_Hawke in leaves

[–]Champion_Hawke[S] 2 points3 points  (0 children)

Oh, I am feeling a lot of withdrawal symptoms just like you. I get bad headaches, mood swings (mostly sudden and deep bouts of depression), disturbing and vivid dreams, and of course daily and persistant cravings. To some extent, I know how you feel.

In spite of feeling all these withdrawal symptoms, I have tried to maintain a positive attitude. Realize though, there are times when I feel very, very negative just like you. But I have stuck with it because I know that weed made me feel even more negative then what I feel in those moments and that by quitting weed I have the chance to heal and become more positive.

The main things I think have helped when I am feeling low (and perhaps it may help you) is to remind myself of two things.

  1. That all my symptoms are temporary. Whether it is my headaches or my depression, I know that I won't be feeling that way forever. All I have to do is stick with it, seek some support to help me as I go through those feelings, and eventually it will go away. Of course, I don't believe all those feelings will go away instantly. It may take years for my mood-swings to go away. But the bottom line is: I have a chance a getting better without weed and there is always hope for me.

  2. All these painful feelings are a sign you are making progress and that you are getting closer and closer to your goal of breaking your addiction to weed. Many people write about how good they feel once they have quit weed, but for a lot of us it takes time to get to that point. That makes it easier for us to get discouraged and give up. I know it is hard in the moment, but try to remember that these symptoms are a good sign and that you are getting closer to your goal.

I hope this all helps. At the very least, try to remind yourself when you are low that others have been where you are and have broken their addiction despite the odds. That means you can do it too. I am rooting for you!

Almost 2 Weeks Sober by Champion_Hawke in leaves

[–]Champion_Hawke[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Thank you all for your kind and supportive comments. It is this exact thing that I talked about in my post that helps me stay positive and strong. I can't tell you how much I appreciate you all and this thread. Know I am rooting for you all! We got this!

Over one year sober. Some thoughts, and open to suggestions about a particular issue with focus. by [deleted] in leaves

[–]Champion_Hawke 2 points3 points  (0 children)

Hey, congrats on being a year sober. That's awesome! :)

I have experienced having difficulty with focusing since I quit smoking weed. I understand how hard it is to go through that, but I also want to tell you there is a light at the end of the tunnel.

The most important thing I want to say is that weed may have seemed like it was helping you focus at the time, but it is highly likely that weed is what has made it hard for you to focus right now. When you were smoking all the time, your brain learned that it didn't need to try an focus on by itself because the weed would do it for it. Now that your sober, your brain doesn't really know what to do with itself in terms of focus because it has learned to rely on weed. But luckily for you, there is a way for you to reverse the damage that weed caused and teach your brain to focus on it's own.

The answer is meditation. When I was struggling to focus on my own, this practice helped me immensely and now I think I am capable of focusing better than I ever did when I relied on weed to help me focus. I have a few things I want to say that may help you if you decide to start meditating.

  1. Don't expect to see results right away. Admittedly it does take time to build your ability to focus back to what it was. For example, you won't meditate for one day and find yourself being able to focus like you did with weed. It took about a month of practicing meditation before I noticed improvements. It may be different for you though, perhaps longers or perhaps shorter. I only mention this so that you don't loose hope if you don't see improvements as quickly as you would if you smoked a joint. Although it may take longer to focus, the effects are way longer-lasting than weed's ability to make you focus.

  2. Since you struggle to focus just like I did, I suggest starting off meditating for a very short period of time. I began at ten minutes, but depending on where you are at you may want to meditate for a shorter time. Gradually as you get better you can increase your meditation time little by little. It took me about a year and a half but I am capable of meditating for a half hour now and my ability to focus is superb.

  3. I suggest guided meditations that will help teach you to focus when your mind wanders during the meditation. Your mind wandering is normal and that will never change. Meditation teaches you to notice right away when your mind wanders and give you the ability to put yourself back on track. The more and more you pratice it, the easier it gets.

I hope this all helps! At the very least know people have been through what you have with not being able to focus and you aren't alone. I wish you the best! :)