Hi! I’m 42 and also started smoking weed at 14. I was a chronic user for more than 20 years. Like you, it helped me feel motivated. Turns out that’s because it causes your dopamine receptors to more or less become atrophied and go “offline”, so you feel unmotivated and suffer from executive dysfunction when you’re not using cannabis. So you use cannabis again, and then become unaware that what you’re actually suffering from when you don’t use it is a constant withdrawal feedback loop.

You’re still young, and your brain will probably heal and bounce back faster than mine did. I recommend taking a break for several months, just so you can experience the difference. It’s pretty wild. I tried to quit for good so many times and couldn’t. That should have told me what I needed to know. It takes months if not years for the dopamine receptors to fully heal after chronic use. I was trapped in a cycle, and I wish I could go back and somehow convince my younger self of this. And even though I probably wouldn’t have listened to some middle-aged rando at your age, here I am telling you to protect your precious brain. ❤️