Benefits of being off weed

W0nd3rPink

Thank you so much for not deleting this message. You really need to stop being so hard on yourself. For many of us, we have this belief that when we quit smoking that the world around us magically becomes perfect. However, the world is not perfect and neither are we.

We all have and suffer to a degree from our own personal weaknesses that inherently hold us back in life. The weed is one of those great tools that allows us to accept these things about ourselves and in many cases creates many others. Once the cloud of smoke is lifted, these things we have avoided or created come back. It is your time to identify and correct these things for tremendous personal growth. If this was comfortable it would not truly be personal growth. You read many happy stories on this site of how great everyone’s life is now that they have overcome this habit. However, there are many struggles wrapped up in these moments you sometimes do not read. Many people are re-discovering things they had forgotten about themselves- good and bad.

How courageous you are at your age to turn away from the people who you have called friends because you knew that the situation was not right for you. How powerful is that? Your entire teen years have been about smoking and for some reason you decide to quit smoking. I know you said it was a panic attack, but many smokers have experienced that and much worse and continued to smoke. You were powerful enough to make that change and I am certain you are powerful enough to change the things you are unhappy with in your life.

Seven weeks and counting….. What’s next?

Totally substance free, but high on the fact that the work week is done and a beautiful sunset just welcomed me home. I have an improvised verse to share :

I was locked down for so long.
Stuck in a cell of my own making.
Boxed in and shutting out the light
to smoke in solitude.

I am free now.

I smashed the bars when I gave away my pipe.
I demolished each brick of that prison
with every opportunity that I passed on smoking.

I thought I was safe in there.
I thought nothing could hurt me.
My padded walls never allowed me
to actually feel the pain I was inflicting on myself.

On the outside, at first it was scary.
How would I make a go of it in this vast new world?
My security blanket was gone.

In its place I found something larger
more substantial.
I don't need some external source to fill me.
No smoke needs to pollute my lungs to enlighten me.

I'm here,
complete in my self.
At home in this world.

Free at last,
I smile up at the sun
and carry those rays inside me,
to share with my friends.

I like that WL. That's exactly how it is. The thing is that most of us are scared to leave the prison at first. The "padded walls" had made us delusional... Not too bad for improv... Not too bad at all.

I would like to see more of this. I think you may have inspired me to write a little something.

Take it easy bro.

Bardoc thank you =) Tonight has me thinking about my friends. and when i think about them i want everything back to the way it was. i dont see any difference in the way i am either when i smoke or not. i really just want to be normal again. its really getting me down and i dont want to feel like i have been feeling lately anymore i want my friends and i want to smoke. i want everything to go back to the way it was.

W0nd3rPink

One thing is definite. If you were to go back to smoking EVERYTHING would go exactly back to the way they were. And then you get to go through the many cycles of smoke-guilt-quit-suffer-smoke. Most of us that have smoked for a while have gone through this many times.

Do you see yourself smoking for the next twenty or thirty years? Of course not, but the fact of the matter is we all thought that at one time. Then year after year, cycle after cycle, we continue to smoke.

I know your life is not the same right now and I know how terrible you must feel to be without your friends and the smoking. These are the things you have done all through your teen years and are such a way life for you. Listen when I tell you that the life you speak of is NOT normal, just easier.

At this point, you have not even attempted to start a new life. You are staying in that cluttered apartment, playing Nintendo, and bored out of your friggin mind. Come on man, your making me want to start smoking again! Get out and do something new tomorrow and step out of your comfort zone. Go embarrass yourself somehow.

You have to get out that apartment otherwise your going to want the same damn lifestyle you are trying to avoid! I am not saying this to be harsh…just care about you.

6 months free from the clutches of cannabis today!

Wheeeee!

I have definitely begun to believe in myself once again. If I set out to do something, I do everything in my power to make it happen. It was horrible to admit defeat in all those past attempts at quitting. To get beaten by a bag of dried plant parts?!? I'm not sure what I had been smoking, but I'm glad to be getting back to who I really am.

A word to those struggling,

It is not just about giving something up. You need to fill the hole with something else. It's less about losing a part of you than it is about building and strengthening the parts that complete you.

I'll use the analogy of obesity. If you spend years satisfying yourself with junk food (to alter your mood, beat stress, etc.) you gradually become fatter. If you suddenly give up junk food, you will miss it incredibly. You will have to burn off all those years of built up mass. The thing is, if all you do is stop eating altogether, you'll waste away to nothing. It's not helpful to starve yourself. You need to eat healthy foods and exercise to build up your muscles. <Remember> Your muscles were always there, but they were just buried under so many layers of fat that you could not see them. They need to be cared for, developed, in order to grow. We need to care for ourselves (all parts of ourselves!) during the recovery.

Please note that the former analogy is not an attack against anyone who has excess weight on their body. It is merely a way of describing what happens when we build up so many layers of 'weed fat' on our bodies and brains.

I admit that I am not on the boards helping people through their early days as well as I did in the past. In truth, that's because I cannot fully relate to how that feels anymore. I no longer think constantly about smoking cannabis. I am far more focused on sculpting my life into a work of art that represents how I feel today.

My strongest sentiments are these:

If you truly want to give up your addiction, you will succeed.

It is less about 'quitting' something than it is about 'creating' the life you truly want to live.

Namaste

What a great post! Your analogy was very precise and extremely clever.

this is a great thread.....large up the massive ..this thread is helping me through .....only day one... ...but it's a start...

Hello reflectionz, and welcome!

One day at a time - if you can go one day weed-free, you can go the next, and so on.

It's worth it! Stick at it, and when you want some support, drop in here, the folks here are welcoming and supportive, and very positive.

cya
SpoonBanger

I don't believe i ever posted to this thread before. I guess I just figured with as many response as there are, everything was covered. So if I am re-hashing, my apologies.

Sight clarity is my present benefit. In regards to the mirror a user produces for me. There is these guys here at work that are using at lunch occassionally. Kind of humorous to me now. I did that for years and can only imagine what others were thinking of me looking all baked. But anyhow, not comparing or judging, just observing, that they aren't going anywhere in life or this company. Just playing games and ditty bopping like everything is rosy. Though in reality, it is quite sad to see the choice of that over actually doing something with their lives. We all learn one way or another.

I look at that mirror and walk away realizing that as long as I don't forget the reflection and who i am now, I can keep on in recovery. The moment I forget what it's like, I potentially go backwards and I don't want that nor need to.

No more f$#@^$n eyedrops!

I often used to wonder whether I was doing any damage to my eyes by loading 'em up with that crap up to six times a day.

Also, I now shower in about a third of the time it used to take. Good for when you're living through a drought.

Hey All,

I check in less often than I used to, but I noticed some bickering on the boards and felt like putting in my two cents. My life is better now that I am no longer addicted to cannabis. How has it improved you ask?

Check the thread.



P.S. It's great to see some amazingly supportive people helping one another through tough times! Another thread that I keep checking back on is the "Relapse- A checklist." Now that's some wisdom!

6 months free and LOVING the WORLD!

KICKING BUTT! 6 MONTHS FREE OF DOPE!!!

You have been such an inspiration to me throughout my 32 days of being on the fourm. I'm so happy to see that you still come back here and there to check up on all of us and let us all know how you are getting on. It really helps me to see and hear of those who have actually made it. Wow! Soon enough you will be here saying it's been 1 year! Let me take this opportunity to say a personal THANK YOU for your words of advice and encouragement to me over the past month that I've been here. You are truly one of the success stories and that gives hope to all that are already here battling their addictions and to those just starting out.

Well done babe, YOU ROCK!!!!

Lots of love, your mate Bubblewitch xxx

Hey everyone,

it's been a couple of cannabis free weeks since I last peeked in on this forum. I've been off dope for over a month now and can honestly say that I don't miss it at all. In all the years I smoked (25), one hundred days was the longest sober period I ever had. That break was was due to a bet with a friend of mine - I slid right back into heavy smoking after that, starting on day 101. This time it's different, and I believe the list of benifits that you started really helped to get me so motivated. Thanks again, wakinglife. It really helped to see in words so many things I felt was missing in my life, and that I longed for. Now I feel like I'm on the winning team!

I won't have time to stop by so much in the near future - I actually bought a house last week, and it needs A LOT of work. But be sure: I'll be back to boast. I also want to say "SIX MONTHS!!" and so on

Hope your still hanging in there reflectionz, and all of you who are struggling in the different phases of abstinence. Be strong!

Hi Everybody!

Yes, there are over 100 benefits listed in this thread that people have experienced since overcoming their addiction to weed!

This morning I wanted to share my theory of Compound Benefits. (Think 'compound interest' if you know finances.) I'll take the example benefit of feeling less socially awkward. Once you have a bit of self-confidence back you might try a yoga class (or church, or archery, or whatever type of class interests you). I'll use the example of a yoga class since this is what's been helping me feel great inhabiting my own body.

So, you have the courage to go to this yoga class. You've had a new experience and you open yourself to the possibility of change. You also have a clear mind to receive new ideas and get to know yourself better. Maybe you talk to one of the people afterwards. Next thing you know, you meet someone new, who brings a new vitality and perspective to your life.

To summarize, I want to say that the benefits of conquering cannabis addiction are huge, but there are many secondary benefits which build on these. You gain the initial rewards, and then they compound and bring even more joy your way.

I'll end with a true story: I was leaving the gym on Saturday when a voice called my name. I would have not even recognized my old friend. He exuded confidence and peace. I asked him how he's been and he said, "Great now!" It turns out that two years ago he had gotten addicted to cocaine and amphetamines and lost everything. Then he had gone to rehab and spent some time at a half-way house across the country. He was on leave from his job, his wife had left him, and he was now building a new life. We talked for a few minutes and he beamed, "I had it all wrong before. Happiness comes from in here." (He tapped his chest.) He had been to the bottom and realized that no external source can bring true internal peace. I have had the same revelation since my recovery from addiction. It turns out that he now has a new girlfriend (who has a child similar in age to my son) and we both have Jack Russell terriers. We exchanged numbers once again and I feel that this will be a new stage in an old friendship. I was so appreciative that I had gotten through my drug past so I could relate to what my friend was saying. If I was still smoking chronically, I wouldn't have even given him my number. Who knows what this friendship will mean. It might even bring happiness to our partners, our kids, our pets! LOL

Life brings us so much good stuff. We just have to be awake enough to appreciate the opportunities that come our way.

Thanks to all those who supported me on my path! By supporting each other we create something stronger. If you struggle, you need to have the faith in yourself that you will persevere through this and go on to creating a life that you truly enjoy living!