ADD & marijuana

[Anonymous]

I have found that, although ADD is not yet an approved condition for its medical use, marijuana helps me to focus and calms my mind enough to stay on task. I am wondering whether others have tried this or found it to be true as well. Also, I am wondering whether the experts or doctors think ADD may someday be an approved condition for medical marijuana.

REPORT ABUSE

[Anonymous]

Are you seeking any treatment? Are you taking any medication to help with your ADD?

I used to smoke quite a bit before I started to recieve treatment for my ADHD. I’m not sure exactly if it helped me with focusing, perhaps it just made the toils of everyday life undiagnosed a little easier. It did not help with my anxiety, my social awkwardness, fidgeting, hyperactivity, hyperfocusing, sesitivity to noise, and touch, distractability, inability to manage my emotions, or anything else that comes along with having ADHD. If anything I was just too “stoned” to care. The problems still existed and I was still affected by them. I have been on Adderall for 1 week now and do not have much of a desire to smoke. It seems to me that later at night when the Adderall has stopped working for me that symptoms start comming back, and side effects start to diminish that I even think about smoking. Its still around but consumption has gone down significantly. Compared to recieving professional treatment, there is nothing that compares.

REPORT ABUSE

[Anonymous]

It is on the list for medical use in Canada, But I have heard it is not the best

REPORT ABUSE

[Anonymous]

I can only speak from the point of view of a former user, and one with not only ADD, but also Asperger’s Syndrome, and during the time of my using, PTSD.

There is NO question that marijuana made my life far worse than it was before I began using.

I cannot speak from the point of view of ADHD only.

All it did for me was provide escape. Nothing more. I ignored my finances, performed poorly at my jobs, and slept a LOT. It also affected my diet. I ate nothing but junk. The year following my last indulgence, I found I had more energy, performed much better at work, started paying bills instead of blowing my finances on junk food and dope, and became exponentially more productive.

The single most noticeable affect pot had on me was massive short term memory loss. I for one don’t see how on earth a drug that has that effect can possibly help with ADD.

I suppose it can be different for others, but if any professional ever recommended it to me, I’d walk right out of their office and seek help elsewhere.

REPORT ABUSE

[Anonymous]

Great topic folks..I’ve recently started getting serious about my recently self diagnosed ADD (not much H)..I’ve smoked pot most of my last 40 yrs,having stopped for five years or so, and now only smoking about once a week. I got a Medical Card and have been experimenting with various hybrids, and particularly edibles, which I really enjoy because there’s no lung damage..

For myself, I’ve found that I get more verbal and creative when stoned, and feel more relaxed physically, yet stimulated mentally. Since I’ve never been an overly talkative or hyper acting person ( more like the old ” laid back Type B personality”), I find the mental stimulation enjoyable and the Altered State to be a positive influence on my perspective.. I also think the “spaced” conditions allows more time for focusing on all the passing “fog” of thoughts that seem to be my normal state..

I’ll be starting with a treatment protocol next week {no meds yet) and hope to hear my therapist’s opinion. I will attempt to have EEG tests, straight and stoned, to see what changes may occur..

Maybe we could use this thread to start a Stoners Corner to share about our program, with or without pot,etc..Be well !!

REPORT ABUSE

[Lindstr7]

Lee- Former stoner here. I’ve smoked pretty consistently since I was about 18 yrs. old. I’ve not smoked now for about 3 months and only occasionally feel the desire after starting Ritalin about a month ago. Ritalin makes me feel “normal” like I CAN get things done, I DO belong here, instead of just dreaming about fitting in. Pot made me feel inspired about whatever for a few minutes, then it was off to the zone-dome.

Since quitting and starting ritalin, I don’t have the urge like I used to (and it WAS a strong urge, HAD TO HAVE IT….NOW), and feel lots more focused and realize the only thing it did for me was offer relief from a world I felt was rejecting me. Did nothing for my SOCIAL PHOBIAS (made them worse if anything), my DIET (junk, high fat, low fiber foods), FOCUS (god I was all over the place), MOTIVATION (sat around and did nothing but internet, eat, daydream, tv), Nothing got done.

That being said, I did have a sister who smoked daily and she managed to keep a clean house, wonderful, creative cook, neat appearance, bills paid, generally had it together (or so I thought). She did have RAGE issues though and eventually committed suicide when faced with a life changing situation (divorce).

So, while i do believe it affects different people differently, I can’t image it being a useful tool in treating ADD symptoms, omly possibly the H (hyper) symptoms and JoeLaLonde indicates he has not much of the H. I’m not Anti-pot, just don’t think it will help

AD(H)D.

REPORT ABUSE

[Anonymous]

Thanks for the response Lindstr..So Sorry to hear about your sister..I know how the drug question might be so dramatic in that context, as I lost my Brother around cocaine in the 70’s..Drugs are not to be taken lightly or for granted..Pot or otherwise..

Really great that you have found some relief with Ritalin..I hope your progress and happiness continue to gain ground..

Although it sounds like pot was an escape for you, I feel comfortable as a casual user using it as an “experience enhancing tool”, but Feel ok about abstaining when my coach {inevitably} orders it.

Pot has also become a part of my married life for over five years, since my partner also enjoys occasional “down time”. She is very productive, organize, and focused on her own and uses our habit as a way of reconnecting and “closing shop” on her busy schedule..It will be interesting to see if she’ll stop if I do..Hopefully, since we’re both in our 60’s, addiction is not an option or a a real risk..

But nevertheless, I don’t advocate anything for anyone except getting professional help first..

‘Stoner 1 over and out.”.

REPORT ABUSE

[Lindstr7]

Thanks for your kind words Lee…. it would be interesting to know your test results for the EEG, etc. When I smoked I detected a mild increase in my heart rate. Wonder how ritalin+ pot would affect the heart. Hey, not trying to turn you into the resident guinea pig but if you’re gonna do it anyway…… might be interesting to know what the tests say. Thanks for sharing.

REPORT ABUSE

[Rick Green – Founder of TotallyADD]

Great stuff here.

In the interviews with did for our video on using Marijuana and Cannabis for ADHD (a new video which I will shamelessly plug because it’s very good) Dr. Ari Tuckman says, “I have a lot of clients who smoke a lot of marijuana and some who just dabble… What they say is, I can focus better after I smoke pot and in some ways they might be a little bit right, but we gotta put a big asterisk on that.  They’re right in a sense of the more anxious we feel the worse we concentrate.  That’s true for everybody. So if we can bring down your anxiety, yes your focus will be better.  Doesn’t treat your ADHD, but at least you feel less anxious, stressed out and overwhelmed.  Also if you’re a little bit depressed it can kind of lift your mood a little bit in that moment.  So I think it does have some positive effect.  But I think that it’s only a positive effect by comparison.  Like if your focus is bad enough on account of feeling anxious and stressed out and overwhelmed and if we can reduce some of that your focus might seem to be a little bit better. But the danger is that it kind of eats you slowly.”

That phrase, ‘eats you slowly’, still haunts me.

REPORT ABUSE

[kc5jck]

I guess neurotypicals find it hard to take ADHD seriously when they hear things like alcohol and weed and speed help counteract the effects of having it.

REPORT ABUSE

[blackdog]

You have to weigh the pros and cons with everything. And when it comes to marijuana, the cons far outweigh the pros. Which is why the medical use is limited to people who are terminally ill or in extreme pain.

You also have to consider the source. The people who grow marijuana are, mostly,  criminals and they often hurt other people in the process.

It depends a lot on the individual, what your specific symptoms are, and how you respond to the drug. There is a difference between casual use and addiction.

I am one of the rare cases of undiagnosed ADD with little or no self medication. I just never fell in with “that crowd” as a teenager/twenty-something and never started using any kind of drug. But if I had been in the right position to try it I probably would have. I always felt like I needed something, but I was never really sure what it was I wanted. I often wonder how different my life would have been if I had experimented with drugs and found something that did work for my depression/anxiety/ADHD.

REPORT ABUSE

[sdwa]

Wow. God, no. Marijuana always made me incredibly paranoid. Then for the next few days I would feel weepy and weird. Kind of jealous of the people who like it. It always made me feel dirty, foggy, sludgy, and icky. Yuck.  If I smoked it regularly, it would make me fat, stupid, paranoid, depressed, and completely apathetic. I get better results from caffeine – and used to from nicotine when I was still smoking.

REPORT ABUSE

[Rick Green – Founder of TotallyADD]

Frankly, SDWA, I don’t need any help getting fat, stupid, and depressed. Watching TV does that for me.

My ‘weapon of choice’ before I knew about ADHD and found a better weapon was Caffeine. I drank a lot of cola. A lot. It worked, but the side effects… starting with the gas. I mean, hey, I think it’s funny when I burp, but my wife and kids are less enthused.

REPORT ABUSE

[Wgreen]

Rick, funny you should say that. I’m climbing the walls right now because I’ve run out of…. Cola. I’m very conflicted because I also feel an urgent need to post something on another string before I leave the house. But as soon as I’m finished, I’m going to stock up on my favorite Atlanta beverage. I just hope my brain doesn’t explode before I make it to the store.

And hey—investors, make a note of this: the instant some pharma company comes out with a “super” new Attention Deficit medication, you need to dump your Coke stock.

REPORT ABUSE

[sdwa]

@Rick: You kill me.

@Wgreen: Coke stock. LOL. Who knew, right?

REPORT ABUSE

[Author]

Posts