Why I, and many other people use marijuana

[ChunkySalsa]

That's not an alteration in the perception of reality. You don't perceive that the world is a different place. You feel better about how the world is or are able to cope with it better. Marijuana alters one's sense of the world. Very different.

Please don't make marijuana out to be a hallucinogen by saying it "alters one's sense of the world." Just about everything alters your sense of the world; things like drinking too much water, eating sugar, drinking caffeine, popping SSRIs, and standing next to an attractive person all make changes in your brain's neurochemistry and "alters one's sense of the world." Cannabis is definitely more potent than caffeine and sugar, but it doesn't make one disassociated from reality unless your tether was already pretty frayed.

And I'll sooner listen to the Pharmaceutical companies, government, and research studies than some random person on the internet with anecdotal evidence that has no substantiation.

And that's a fallacy. SSRI's don't do that... it's propaganda that they do. And marijuana can cause psychotic episodes in folks that have a family history of that. SSRI's don't do that.

People with a family history of psychotic episodes could have one from all sorts of stimuli, not just from smoking weed. Any type of stressful situation, such as consuming too much sugar and speaking in public, could cause them to have one. That's hardly relevant to the 99.9% of the population not prone to them.

Skateboarding is a risky activity for people born with a genetic calcium deficiency, but for the vast majority of the population the minimal risk of a broken bone is a justifiably trifling concern eclipsed by the question "Will I have fun?"

(Oh, and the pharmaceutical industry, at the behest of the FDA, are the ones spreading word that SSRIs can cause an increase in suicidal thoughts and behaviors.)

 

[Alyssa]

That's not an alteration in the perception of reality. You don't perceive that the world is a different place. You feel better about how the world is or are able to cope with it better. Marijuana alters one's sense of the world. Very different.

I respectfully disagree. Even if one feels better about the word, the world can seem like a different place. Of course, now we're merely playing with semantics, but as someone who has depression, I can tell you how being depressed can alter perception. Even something as simple as having a better attitude can do that. Our perceptions of the world have to do with chemical reactions from neurotransmitters and electrical impulses, as well as the influence of hormones. That's really all perception is. And drugs which alter those chemicals do, in fact, change perception.

And I'll sooner listen to the Pharmaceutical companies, government, and research studies than some random person on the internet with anecdotal evidence that has no substantiation.

.. a matter of opinion. I have attempted to provide evidence in the past only to have people disregard it. It's almost as if the person I am arguing with doesn't even bother to read it at all. We all tend to filter information according to our various biases. Even sensory information is filtered like that thanks to the RAS system in the brain.

People look for evidence around them that fits with their predisposed biases. It significantly limits human perception to whatever it is that makes us feel comfortable. I consider this to be a profound human weakness, and I hate that I do the same thing.

I never said there were no side effects, but these particular ones are not as significant as side effects from smoking marijuana.

I know this is antecdotal and all, but from my own experience- having done both- the side effects from SSRIs were much more disruptive and long term. My source supports my earlier assertions about SSRIs. I would rather be depressed then take them again.

And that's a fallacy. SSRI's don't do that... it's propaganda that they do. And marijuana can cause psychotic episodes in folks that have a family history of that. SSRI's don't do that.

It is my opinion that you are biased against marijuana and for SSRIs. I did find, in addition to my other source, this government site which states that people are more likely to at least consider suicide on SSRIs than placebo:

In the FDA review, no completed suicides occurred among nearly 2,200 children treated with SSRI medications. However, about 4 percent of those taking SSRI medications experienced suicidal thinking or behavior, including actual suicide attempts—twice the rate of those taking placebo, or sugar pills.

In response, the FDA adopted a "black box" label warning indicating that antidepressants may increase the risk of suicidal thinking and behavior in some children and adolescents with MDD. A black-box warning is the most serious type of warning in prescription drug labeling.

The warning also notes that children and adolescents taking SSRI medications should be closely monitored for any worsening in depression, emergence of suicidal thinking or behavior, or unusual changes in behavior, such as sleeplessness, agitation, or withdrawal from normal social situations. Close monitoring is especially important during the first four weeks of treatment. SSRI medications usually have few side effects in children and adolescents, but for unknown reasons, they may trigger agitation and abnormal behavior in certain individuals.

NIMH · Antidepressant Medications for Children and Adolescents: Information for Parents and Caregivers

It was enough for the FDA to put a blackbox warning on labels. Other studies show the problem to be even worse.

 

[Captain America]

Smoking marijuana makes your babies come out naked and toothless.

 

[Tigger]

This is one of the biggest reasons people use it, and it's why I use it also. Teens and young adults use it to forget about problems and traumatic experiences, I'm 17 and I've been through some nasty s*** the past 10 years. Marijuana helps to to forget all that, 80% of users in Canada below the age of 18 either had divorced families and/or abuses in family or school. Should this be a reason to legalize it? I think it is.

Oh, whoa is me. From the moment I was born I've been dealing with nasty stuff. See, I was born with a very obvious birth defect..... a full facial birthmark. You know what, I was taught to deal with it rather than wallowing away my days in the bottom of a bottle or with some sort of drug.

 

[Gardener]

Oh, whoa is me. From the moment I was born I've been dealing with nasty stuff. See, I was born with a very obvious birth defect..... a full facial birthmark. You know what, I was taught to deal with it rather than wallowing away my days in the bottom of a bottle or with some sort of drug.

Considering the fact you have refused to actually deal with it by seeking to understand why it is you need to abuse women, I would say that you have little ground for attacking his own, particular response as you are.

 

[lizzie]

This is one of the biggest reasons people use it, and it's why I use it also. Teens and young adults use it to forget about problems and traumatic experiences, I'm 17 and I've been through some nasty s*** the past 10 years. Marijuana helps to to forget all that, 80% of users in Canada below the age of 18 either had divorced families and/or abuses in family or school. Should this be a reason to legalize it? I think it is.

Is it a reason to legalize it? No. I support legalization, but it has nothing to do with that.

You NEVER forget the nasty stuff. You can stuff it away, you can try to ignore it, and you can try to pretend it never happened, but it never goes away- ever. The healthy thing to do is put it in perspective, and learn to live with it, without letting it ruin your life. Easier said than done, no doubt, but everything in your life stays filed away.

 

[Tigger]

Considering the fact you have refused to actually deal with it by seeking to understand why it is you need to abuse women, I would say that you have little ground for attacking his own, particular response as you are.

My personal philosophies about gender relations have absolutely nothing to do with the birthmark, Gardener. They come from a totally separate philosophical place and time. Now, feel free to try again, if you're still intent on trying to insult me. That was Strike One; you've got two more.

 

[joko104]

I always smoked to get high. Never needed an excuse: I like being high.

I think that's the real reason.

 

[Gardener]

My personal philosophies about gender relations have absolutely nothing to do with the birthmark, Gardener. They come from a totally separate philosophical place and time. Now, feel free to try again, if you're still intent on trying to insult me. That was Strike One; you've got two more.

Of course they do. You just refuse to seek the sort of help that would allow you to understand it because you have created the rationalizations that mask the true issue.