cannabis users?

[sunshaker]

Over the years i have used cannabis on and off ,
I know all its effects, I still smoke now and again, the last few years my main reasons for using "cannabis" is that i know it makes it harder to ap/lucid dream, and sometimes my experiences are so intense, So i needed a way to shut them off, which i found cannabis did to some extent.
But for those who smoke cannabis and wonder why they cannot achieve what they wish, this may help,

http://medicalxpress.com/news/2013-11-marijuana-induced-memory-problems-over-the-counter-painkillers.html

[desert-rat]

I tried it 2 times 20 + years ago .   

[Szaxx]

I never bothered, the mental instability of those I knew who used it was enough. They were 'up' for an hour and 'down' for a week.
I'd spend my cash on a mixed salad and stay 'up' for far longer without the 'down' presenting itself at all.
Stay healthy, stay wealthy.

[Sixx]

I used to smoke pot alot when I was younger, and I have been tempted over the last few months to get some
just for the hell of it .
But since I've been working on getting out of body for nearly 3 years now,
I've given up all my addictions , not that pots an addiction,  but i get more of a buzz from  meditation, and vibrations now
the whole process I guess.
having  said  that I'm no monk, I still love a cold beer on a hot day
mmm beer...

[sunshaker]

I have nothing against "cannabis", Sometimes i think it is misunderstood,
Cannabis came back into my life 10yrs ago,

I was having a problem shutting off, there seemed no dividing line between wake/sleep, I spent most of my time sitting under the trees in my garden trying to find my balance, Where i met "Fats the cat" who used to sit for hours with me and helped me to see a new focus,

A while later i bumped into a Vicky a neighbour i vaguely knew, We walked up the road together (slowly), she suffers from chronic me,
At my house sat "fats", which to my surprise was vickys cat, she had been wondering where he had been going.

10yrs later me vicky and fats have a special bond,

Vicky is not a "young lady", And the M E takes its toll on her body, Over the years she realised cannabis was the only relief she found from her condition,"other than ALL the massages she now gets me to do" ,

She grows a plant each year and only smokes when the pain becomes to much to bear,

I started to have a sociable smoke with her the odd evening, I found this also allowed me to "just sleep", which was greatly needed at the time. Sometimes we just need to be able to power down.

But now i realise my cats are better than any drug.

[DancinKarmaBear]

it depends on the person, it also depends on whether or not they respect the sacred plant for the teacher that it is. Cannabis is one of my plant allies, I have deeply connected to its spirit and use it as medicine. I have used it daily for 6 years now. Actually, for me, it increases my lucid dreams and conscious state and makes astral projection much easier. It has been used in shamanism in many cultures for thousands of years. Its interesting to me that for some people it prevents dreaming, because its always helped me remember my dreams and helped me become lucid and have vivid dreams. Everything is different for everyone though. I wonder though, because I eat it or use a vaporizer, I don't usually smoke it, if that could make a difference? well, even when I smoked it, it still produced strong spiritual affects, and it has also improved my memory over the years. I remember everything. Also, it does not impair me, so maybe that is why.

it actually helps me focus and concentrate much better, the "stoned" feeling doesn't really happen to me, I don't feel stoned, I dont get the foggy feeling some people describe, I only feel more myself, like more my true self, thats really the only way I can describe it. does that make any sense?

[Stillwater]

I think it is something that can be useful in measured amounts with balance. It is like most good things in life... a little ice cream can be a good thing, 2 gallons will take its toll.

It can help people with chronic pain and change their life for the better if used in balance, and I think that is its main use. I think it can have its uses for others if touched quite infrequently, but chronic use changes that.

Once a year... a new perspective. Once a day... a crutch and a ball and chain, and you can be sure it will drag you down pretty deep.

[Lionheart]

It can help people with chronic pain and change their life for the better if used in balance, and I think that is its main use. I think it can have its uses for others if touched quite infrequently, but chronic use changes that.

LOL, I tried it once before for "pain management" and it had the reverse effect. It actually relaxed the muscles, which made the nerve pain worse or relaxed the nerves which made the muscular pain worse. Anyways it didn't work. But, in it's defense, sometimes my Percocet does the same thing. 

[djed]

Just reading a newspaper article, from a medical scientist studying hospital patients who had recently suffered strokes. His findings were that a larger percentage of them had been using cannabis regularly. 

[Stillwater]

LOL, I tried it once before for "pain management" and it had the reverse effect. It actually relaxed the muscles, which made the nerve pain worse or relaxed the nerves which made the muscular pain worse. Anyways it didn't work. But, in it's defense, sometimes my Percocet does the same thing.  tongue

Yeah, clearly it isn't the be-all do-all, and in its pain management capacity it depends heavily on the nature of what is causing the pain. I have had relatives though with some types of nerve pain or cancer effects and it ended up being one of the few things that helped them cope.

I am a person who is very suspicious of the pharmaceutical industry; it has produced a handful of good compounds over the years, but the danger is that there is a strong profit motive behind everything it does, and that many imperfect substances which have so many ill effects they may outweigh the benefit are being railroaded through. Cannabis isn't without its own drawbacks, but for many people limited short term use can help them deal with their conditions with much less side-effects than their pharmaceutical alternatives.

I think it is sort of a polarizing topic; people have been strongly taking one side or the other; those who support it will behave as though it is a magical plant with no negative sides, and those against it will demonize it in any absurd way possible. The truth as with most things I think lies firmly in the middle.