Report on cannabis.....True or false?

Former Member · December 2002

http://www.thisislondon.co.uk/lifeandstyle/health/articles/2170461?source=Evening%20Standard

Report here basically saying that cannabis makes you depressed, Only having done it about 4 or 5 times in my life I can't say if its right or wrong.

But would some of you who do, do drugs agree with the finding in the report?

Or is it shit?, just another way of trying to stop people doing drugs etc

If it were to be true, would you be happy to have it legalised?

Former Member · December 2002

Well. One hand says that consistant use of cannabis makes you more likely to be depressed. The other suggests that depressed people are more likely to use cannabis. Which of those is true? Both? Neither? Who knows. Anyway. I don't know about that, but I do know that continual use makes people lazy and dulls the brain. The occasional joint on a weekend is hardly likely to have an overal effect in that respect I don't think.

I think this will get moved to drugs...

Former Member · December 2002

Originally posted by Mist

I think this will get moved to drugs...

No no, It can't!

I'll delete it before I ever let that happen!

In all of my sad little time here I have never gone onto the drug forum and vowed I never would.

Please mods, Don't move it.:(

Please

Former Member · December 2002

well i smoke cannabis almost every day, not in the day time, but when i come home from work i roll up a few jays and unwind... i have been smoking it for about 3 years, and i've been doing it regularely for about 1 year. i am not depressed, showing any signs of depression, and i dont feel taht its dulled my brain at all. if anything i am happier and better adjusted now than i have been at any other point in my life, im not suggesting that this is because of my cannabis use but what im saying is that regular use of cannabis has certainly not adversly affected me in any way. (yet).

of course im not reprisentative of every cannabis user, but it does seam to me that, as mist pointed out, its not cannabis that makes people depressed, its depression that triggers excessive cannabis use.

Former Member · December 2002

Drugs are baddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddd.

Tell you what harmless, you will be depressed when the mighty reds open a can of whooooooooooop ass at upton park and dump you out of the cup

Skive · December 2002

Originally posted by Harmless

In all of my sad little time here I have never gone onto the drug forum and vowed I never would.

...and what's wrong with the drug forum?

As for cannabis making people depressed, I'm not so sure. I think the reality of the situation is that different drugs yhave different affects on different people. Cannabis can certainly make you a lot of things (lethargic, paranoid, stoned

) but in my opinion depressed wouldn't be a common problem.

I used to smoke weed all the time and used to have no problems with it, after a while it started to give me a touch of paranoia so I stopped. Simple as that. I know loads of people however, that smoke it up every day and have no probs what so ever.

Drugs like ecstasy have no where near as bad an effect on me as weed, but to others it often leaves them depressed midweek (suicide tuesday). As I said before when it come down to it, different people react differenetly to different drugs!

Former Member · December 2002

i've been smoking cannabis for 35 yrs. do i come across to any of you who know me as depressed or incapable ? i live a full life. i'm very happily married. i have a great family. i have wonderful friends. i have serious responsabilities. i work in the community to the benefit of others for no financial reward. i care about people.
the majority of long term...20/30 yrs smokers are free of all these negative things that are reported. if anything, the long termers are socialy aware and socialy active. yes there are those who should leave cannabis alone as there are those who should leave alcohol alone.

Former Member · December 2002

PLEASE DONT MOVE TO THE DRUGS FORUM. some people obviously see it as a den of eniquity and vow never to go there. how many more young people refuse to go there and get an education into the pros and cons ? how many parents forbid thier children to go there. the drugs debate always needs a wider public...it might be your stereo that gets nicked next !

Former Member · December 2002

Originally posted by ebb
Drugs are baddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddd.

Tell you what harmless, you will be depressed when the mighty reds open a can of whooooooooooop ass at upton park and dump you out of the cup

lol:D , I'm alreeady depressed, But I think I’ll be below rock bottom come Sunday:eek:

There's nothing I can say.....I think the best we can hope for is 8-0 to them.

...and what's wrong with the drug forum?

Nothing, I'm sure it's a lovely place.

I just don’t think I could add anything of use to it (not sure I do in other forums) but I just haven’t ever gone in it before, and would just like to keep it that way.

Former Member · December 2002

In my experience it hasn't made me depressed.

You can bet though that next week there will be a new report out completely contradicting this one.

:crazyeyes

Former Member · December 2002

Mr Roll would seem to be an exceptional case though.

I've seen some of my closest friends go totally off the rails through cannabis use and abuse, yet for my own part I still smoke pretty much every evening. I don't think depression is a direct result of drug use in anything but short-term comedown situations. The pivotal factor seems to be the mental health and welfare of the person involved.

Former Member · December 2002

i'm only as exceptional as the hundreds of people i know around the world who have been smoking most of thier adult lives.
soldiers, sailors, airforce, solicitors, coppers, bin men, con men,
local poloticians, nurses ,doctors, checkout girls, musicians, etc etc etc. for the vast majority cannabis seems to be fine. but there will always be people that don't like the stuff for one reason or another. there will always be people who have some kind of adverse reaction to the stuff. like aspirin, alcohol, nuts, soap powder. there cant be a drug that fits all suits all.

Former Member · December 2002

Alex your worst nightmare has come true

Former Member · December 2002

Even if this is true, it shouldnt make any difference whatsoever to the legalization debate. Unless the government would like to say that they are dense, as alcohol also causes depression but remains on sale at most corner shops.

They never stated if the users in the studies were on other drugs, which im guessing a lot of them were.

Duffy

Former Member · December 2002

People should be aware that Cannabis smoke is extremely harmful as it contain very large quanities of tar and cancer causing agents. The safest way to take it is to eat it in hash cakes that way you avoid most of the risks.

Cannabis is known to have an adverse effect on the brain so the best thing to do is use it in moderation. It is known to affect concentration and the carrying out of complex mental tasks. It is also widely thought by the medical proffesion to cause schizophrenia in some people aswell.

Former Member · December 2002

I am with M/roll - heavy daily toker for over 20 years, no problems - and that applies to everyone I've known over the years (inc. doctors, nurses, accountants, civil engineers etc. etc.) :cool:

I was once under the doctor for stress-related depression, caused by work [work is bad for your health - don't hear them telling us to give that up:p ] - the doctor was more than happy with me toking, as self medication!

Anyway, here's a bit from the ASH (anti-smoking group, but pro-legalisation of cannabis!) web-site;

Schizophrenia and depression: Cannabis use has been associated with schizophrenia and other psychiatric conditions, especially in late teenagers. The exact nature of that relationship has been uncertain, with several hypothesis proposed: that the cannabis use causes the onset of the illness; that cannabis use triggers the illness in individuals that predisposed to it; that it is one possible factor in a multi-factorial syndrome; or that the causal relationship is in the opposite direction – namely that people with these conditions derive a therapeutic benefit from cannabis and seek it out in order to self-medicate. There is no certainty about which hypothesis is valid, but recent reports[6] suggest that the argument that cannabis use causes these psychiatric illnesses is gaining ground.

FULL REPORT HERE

Former Member · December 2002

from most of what i've read it seams that the most convincing theory is that cannabis (and other drugs particularely hallucinogens) can trigger or hasten the onset of latent psychological conditions, ie these people were more than likely to get it anyway, just all the disease needed was a trigger and that happened to be drugs. however it could quite easily have been something else, death in the family, or some other traumatic personal crisis.......

of course thats not a scientific fact and there are a million and one reports both supporting that and contradicting it....

Former Member · December 2002

dear mr lawnmower, from your posts in poltics and now in here i pressume your a cut and paste merchant who has no experience and very little knowledge of anything you post about.
what exactly are you trying to tell us that we are not already aware of ?

Former Member · December 2002

I smoke once in a while, and it usually makes me happier. Except one time when I smoked for a week straight, I started to get terrible headaches and had to stop. It's a nice thing to do to escape boredom once in a while, but I think it's sad when people feel they have to do it every day. I see smoking as an escape, as it alters your perception on the world for awhile. I can see how if you are depressed, escaping reality all the time would seem like a good idea. So I think people who are depressed to begin with smoke all the time, I don't think it causes depression. Also, when me and my friends smoke, it's often when we are angry or upset that we choose to do so. When I'm happy or feeling good about myself, I have no urge to smoke weed.

Former Member · December 2002

Noooow, I would argue with this, saying that the study would have to be long term and have cause and effect factors instead of just a correllation...

Of course, it kinda depends on certain factors...

However, we have to keep in mind that marijuana is a drug, and therefor obviously effects your body chemistry in some way.
Again, there was a study in Sweden and a weak correlation between cannabis and schizophrenia... I'm not really an expert on schizophrenea, but still, it's only a correlation and doesn't show cause or effect.
How do you classify 'depression'? Clinically? Symptons?

Sooooo, this is a bit of a ganja bashin' piece.

Report on cannabis.....True or false?

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