Do Pot and AA mix?

[JBones77]

It's been my experience that a lot of people who have an addiction to one thing either also have an addiction to something else too, or have in the past had an addiction to something else, or will in the future have an addiction to something else. There are people who become addicted to things because they have addictive personalities. So for that reason I don't think Pot and AA mix...in the sense that I don't think a person should be going to AA and glorifying Pot and/or encouraging it's use in abstaining from alcohol. What works for one does not work for all.

I am not going to AA, but I have made a choice to stop drinking. Pot has never been a problem for me. Throughout my adult years, I've smoked it occasionally, but never habitually...it's always been a fun thing to do once in a while in the same way that alcohol for the non-addict is a fun thing to do on occasion.

But the ability to become psychologically addicted and dependent on it is very real. (Unfortunately it is part of the "weed culture" to protest that marijuana is not addictive or destructive...which probably comes from the fact that it is illegal in most places and the goal from the marijuana lobby is to get it legalized or at least decriminalized in most places...which it should be in my opinion.) Just like any other substance, it can be, and is, abused by many.

I've known several people who smoke daily and their lives are a wreck and they are in such a fog they can't see what's right in front of their face. These people are the ones who I've noticed, in my experience, usually proclaim the loudest the benefits of marijuana and the lack of addiction and dependence. They are in complete denial.

A former friend of mine is one example. He's a former friend because I've smoked less and less over the years and he smokes all the time and wants to hang with people who smoke all the time. He hasn't held down a job in years. He'll get a job, go there for a little while, miss a lot of days, (mondays because he's worn from the weekend or fridays cause the party got to start early) get fired or quit. In the past he's been lucky enough to collect unemployment a couple times and do nothing but smoke 24/7...other times he had to go back out looking for a job and go right back to the same old same old.

He hasn't lived in one place for more than a couple years for the last 15 years. He has bills to pay or pot...he chooses pot. He misses work or gets fired and he can't cover rent. He can't get any stability in his life.

He couldn't stop smoking long enough to pass a pi$$ test when he was going to a court appearance where he knew he was gonna be tested based on the accusations the other party made.

And if you've ever seen him run out when he can't get in touch with any of his connections...it ain't pretty. Pacing around...eye's bugging out, shaky, very agitated...he picks up the phone book and starts calling everyone, people he hasn't talked to in years. Willing to travel for hours to go meet them. He has a nasty chronic cough and is always getting colds and bronchitis. There's not even a question that he's an addict...and I've known several people like this with different, but similar situations.

Like alcohol addiction, when you're in the middle of it, sometimes you can't see it. But the thing is, I actually could see what I was doing to myself and my life for a long time now...I just didn't want to face it. With pot though, I wonder if it's even harder to see it...the denial is extremely strong in "potheads".

So the answer is NO...Pot should not be glorified or encouraged at AA whether you have a problem with it or not...because there's a good chance you could be turning on someone to trading one life of hell for another (and one that may be even harder to see).

[Freedom1990]

I can't believe this thread is still going. Good grief!

[jaclynrae]

depends i know many AA meetings who turn the other cheek

[frstnm]

Originally Posted by jaclynrae

depends i know many AA meetings who turn the other cheek

does that mean that they are smoking while being in AA ?

[doorknob]

Originally Posted by JBones77

And if you've ever seen him run out when he can't get in touch with any of his connections...it ain't pretty. Pacing around...eye's bugging out, shaky, very agitated...he picks up the phone book and starts calling everyone, people he hasn't talked to in years. Willing to travel for hours to go meet them. He has a nasty chronic cough and is always getting colds and bronchitis. There's not even a question that he's an addict...and I've known several people like this with different, but similar situations.

That was me right therre...

[Eroica]

Originally Posted by JBones77

He hasn't lived in one place for more than a couple years for the last 15 years. He has bills to pay or pot...he chooses pot. He misses work or gets fired and he can't cover rent. He can't get any stability in his life.

Wow, and you attribute all of that to pot addiction and not to any underlying disorders? I dont think pot use should be encouraged but neither should misinformation. They say at SR that medical advice shouldnt be given but you apparently diagnosed your friend. If he cant get through pot "withdrawals" long enough to get a **** test, its probably because he doesnt really want a job. I'm sorry for your pothead friend, but pot has proven to be less addictive than caffeine and a host of other drugs. No one I know has ever had to detox from pot.. and no one I know has been killed from it, and no one I know has stolen or whored themselves to get it.

[Pagekeeper]

For me, pot and AA do not mix, no.

[JBones77]

Originally Posted by Eroica

Wow, and you attribute all of that to pot addiction and not to any underlying disorders? I dont think pot use should be encouraged but neither should misinformation. They say at SR that medical advice shouldnt be given but you apparently diagnosed your friend. If he cant get through pot "withdrawals" long enough to get a **** test, its probably because he doesnt really want a job. I'm sorry for your pothead friend, but pot has proven to be less addictive than caffeine and a host of other drugs. No one I know has ever had to detox from pot.. and no one I know has been killed from it, and no one I know has stolen or whored themselves to get it.

First, No misinformation has been given (please show me where I've provided misinformation)
Second, I provided no medical advice. (please show me where I've provided medical advice)

You're getting pretty defensive! It's really not necessary. It's sounds like you're reading more into my post than is there. Do what works for you. As I've said, I've never experienced a problem with it either.

I just wanted to relate that like any other drug, marijuana CAN BE PSYCHOLOGICALLY ADDICTIVE for some. I've seen it with my own eyes and several people who have posted in this thread have seen it in themselves.

[lostbutterfly]

I know someone whose lungs are bleeding coz of smoking pot, and he can't stop either. I was useless when I smoked. Couldn't even put my kids to bed. Much like I was when I drank!!

Everyone's different, I know some very functional people who smoke everyday too, and are in high up positions. But I wasn't like that. I can't stop anything once I start!

[All About Love]

i cant believe this is still going

read the aa big book
does it say anything bout pot being ok?

[ChaosDystopia]

Alright, so... I read this thread, and decided to register so that I could post and share my experience with marijuana and recovery. I have currently been clean and sober since 06/07/08 (I didn't plan the numbers to come out that way when I cleaned up, but it sure is an easy date to remember). Prior to this date, I had been in and out of the programs since the age of 17 (and I am currently 20, coming up on 21). I have often questioned whether or not I could use drugs like marijuana, entheogens like psilocybin and LSD, responsibly. On one of my relapses, I decided to eat psilocybin mushrooms to try and induce a spiritual experience. That decision led me to a couple months of smoking pot all day, every day, popping ecstacy, and drinking and snorting as much cocaine as I could get my hands on. The alcohol, cocaine, ecstacy, were all mostly used on the weekends (which were my days off of work) and marijuana was the only constant substance that I used, but I used it from the time I would wake up until the time I would go to sleep.

Every other relapse that I have had, the thinking has always been similar to this: "I'm just going to smoke marijuana, and not go back to any of the other stuff." It's funny how I fail to realize that, even if I were able to stay away from the other stuff (which I am not), all I do when I smoke weed is... smoke weed. All day, every day. I try and delude myself into thinking that it's a spiritual catalyst, but there is absolutely nothing spiritual about doing nothing but smoking weed.

In the seven months that I have currently been clean and sober, I will admit that marijuana is probably the most insidious addiction that I am afflicted with. There are times where I romanticize the notion of changing my major to philosophy and smoking weed all day, every day... but then I remind myself that the world is currently facing the greatest problems it's ever faced... and sitting on my ass, smoking green buds and talking about things like anarchism and existentialism is definitely no productive way of bringing about change.

[Rob B]

Originally Posted by All About Love

i cant believe this is still going

read the aa big book
does it say anything bout pot being ok?

No, it doesn't say anything about pot, why? because it is an outside issue. To quote Bill Wilson "Sobriety: Freedom from alcohol by the teaching and practice of the 12 steps is the sole purpose of an AA group".

AA has no opinion on pot. Do I as a member? sure, if you are smoking pot you are not sober, but again that's my opinion.

[James13]

Originally Posted by JBones77

And if you've ever seen him run out when he can't get in touch with any of his connections...it ain't pretty. Pacing around...eye's bugging out, shaky, very agitated...he picks up the phone book and starts calling everyone, people he hasn't talked to in years. Willing to travel for hours to go meet them. He has a nasty chronic cough and is always getting colds and bronchitis. There's not even a question that he's an addict...and I've known several people like this with different, but similar situations.

Same as Doorknob. That was me completely.

I would call people I didn't really care about hanging out with to score some bud. Sometimes I would feel guilty because I would pretend to just be calling to say hello, then I would weave the "by the way, you wouldn't know where I could find some bud?" into the conversation before I got off the phone. Really sick addict behavior.

Like alcohol addiction, when you're in the middle of it, sometimes you can't see it. But the thing is, I actually could see what I was doing to myself and my life for a long time now...I just didn't want to face it. With pot though, I wonder if it's even harder to see it...the denial is extremely strong in "potheads".

Couldn't agree with you more- the denial in being addicted to the Chronic is very strong.

I knew I was an addict, but I would tell myself "it's just pot"... so I repeated to myself it was "harmless". This while I sat in my apartment for days sometimes, staying baked out of my mind, letting **** crumble around me.

The "harmless" argument happens in potheads because they measure pot against "harder" drugs like blow, meth, etc. Somehow, many potheads use this to rationalize their addiction. I did.

[James13]

Originally Posted by Eroica

Wow, and you attribute all of that to pot addiction and not to any underlying disorders? I dont think pot use should be encouraged but neither should misinformation. They say at SR that medical advice shouldnt be given but you apparently diagnosed your friend. If he cant get through pot "withdrawals" long enough to get a **** test, its probably because he doesnt really want a job. I'm sorry for your pothead friend, but pot has proven to be less addictive than caffeine and a host of other drugs.

Pot hasn't been proven to be less addictive at all. To the contrary, more research has been done on pot that supports the very opposite.

Especially considering the THC levels in today's pot, which is several times higher than pot of the 60s and 70s. Also, the well respected medical journal, The Lancet, lists the addictive potential for various forms of drugs. Cannabis was more addictive than many.

And from personal experience, I had no problem stopping my coffee and soda drinking. It took 5 years of attempted moderation to stop my pot smoking.

No one I know has ever had to detox from pot.. and no one I know has been killed from it, and no one I know has stolen or whored themselves to get it.

Yeah, I used to tell myself this when I smoked weed all the time when I would spend days at a time high.

[frstnm]

NA conciders alcohol to be a drug as well.
A drug is a drug is a drug.

I have an addictive personality and will use any substance that alters my mood or feelings in an addictive manner.
This is why I choose complete abstinance.

I cant believe this thread is still going but it is a good reminder for me.
Pot was my first love / addiction.

[James13]

Sorry I revived the thread. I couldn't resist.

[Richard54]

I find this thread very interesting...

Reason being, is that I have quit drinking and am 15 days sober,
but I am still an occasional pot smoker.

Actually, I am smoking way less pot since I quit drinking.
Maybe every couple of days I will smoke a half a joint.

Is is not possible that, just as there are 'normal' drinkers, who can have two or three
drinks with no problem, .......there can be occasional pot smokers, who use it recreationally?

With no urge or desire to smoke all day long baked, listening to Bob Marley?

Perhaps I am just playing with fire here, being an alcoholic but, like I said I smoked a lot more pot when I was drinking. Now that I'm 15 days sober from alcohol I'm finding less of desire to 'spark one up', but I do like an occasional toke.

I'll add that I'm 54 and have been smoking pot for 40 years.
Alcohol was the drug of devastation in my life, not pot.

I'm interested in any opinions on this.
I was totally addicted to alcohol, but don't really consider a few tokes every couple of days
much of a danger.

Am I just fooling myself?

[James13]

Originally Posted by Richard54

I find this thread very interesting...

Reason being, is that I have quit drinking and am 15 days sober,
but I am still an occasional pot smoker.

Actually, I am smoking way less pot since I quit drinking.
Maybe every couple of days I will smoke a half a joint.

Is is not possible that, just as there are 'normal' drinkers, who can have two or three
drinks with no problem, .......there can be occasional pot smokers, who use it recreationally?

With no urge or desire to smoke all day long baked, listening to Bob Marley?

Perhaps I am just playing with fire here, being an alcoholic but, like I said I smoked a lot more pot when I was drinking. Now that I'm 15 days sober from alcohol I'm finding less of desire to 'spark one up', but I do like an occasional toke.

I'll add that I'm 54 and have been smoking pot for 40 years.
Alcohol was the drug of devastation in my life, not pot.

I'm interested in any opinions on this.
I was totally addicted to alcohol, but don't really consider a few tokes every couple of days
much of a danger.

Am I just fooling myself?

I absolutely believe that there are plenty of pot smokers that can use occasionally and not have a problem with it, just like occasional drinkers.

I'm not telling you what you should do or not do. But, I will say that I have met many, many alcoholics in recovery who relapsed in their drinking after smoking the bud again. The "marijuana maintenence" as they call it.

Sounds like alcohol is your DOC. I would do things reciprocal to your experience. Pot was my DOC, and alcohol would enhance it. But I wasn't a huge drinker. However- I have noticed that I crave alcohol more now that I'm not smoking MJ. So I decided to not drink as a precaution for cross-addiction. And I have a feeling if I started drinking, it is possible I would not go into alcoholism, but would start smoking the MJ again.

Could I moderate the MJ after being sober longer than I ever have in 5 years? I don't know, but I don't want to take that chance. I'm trying to change as a person, and MJ was symbolic of and a big reason for no change. All the other substances I toyed around with came and went, but weed was the constant.

Hope things work out for you and you do what's best for you. Congratulations on not drinking. Peace to you.

[unity]

Hi. I am really glad to find this thread and thank you all for sharing. I found this site because I googled "Pot and AA"

I drank beer...lots and lots of beer...to get away from all the pain of stuff I couldn't understand. I've never craved other drugs...the only one I had ever tried was pot. The few times I tried it, it made me laugh so hard my cheeks hurt.

Taking alcohol out of my life has made me so much stronger. My life and my spirit have improved so much. I go out with friends and am so happy to have fun without drinking. Things aren't perfect...I still get sad...have irrational thoughts...get stuck. But I am glad I am not drinking.

Last night some friends came over for dinner and brought some pot. I was happy..not craving alcohol...didn't have to fit in...things were really comfortable. When they went to smoke, though, I thought about giggling till my cheeks hurt like that time years ago...so I took a few drags.

I have read everything you all have written. I get frustrated with the whole nicotine...caffeine thing. Why can someone be called sober and still smoke cigarettes all the time? Why is it different if I smoke a joint one night? I am so conflicted about it...it's driving me nuts. Did I ruin my sobriety? I haven't had a drink. Do I have to start all over?

But here's what I HAVE learned from my itty bitty 1 year in the program:
1. I don't have to know the answer...I have to know ME...ruminating over it is gonna get me into a bar way faster than smoking one joint ever will. My understanding of what to do or "call" myself (sober or not) may take some time to arrive.
2. The deepest part of my heart tells me that I needed to have passed the joint...doesn't matter what anyone else says...I may be able to argue with my sponsor...but I'll never win an argument with my gut...or my HP..lol.
3. I am so so sad that I did it. It was not worth any of these feelings I am having. But I accept and love myself through the choice I made...and I am happy that I didn't drink. Now I'll do the next right thing.

Anyway...I think my HP led me to this site...helped me read through this thread...get some good perspectives...and accept the discomfort. I am posting this reply more for myself...and allowing myself that selfishness. Thank you to whoever is actually reading it...lol..you're very patient.

I want to share one impression, though, just about the thread, that made me sad. I don't know who Tropical Mango is or why they posted. But...they DID post...and isn't that a way of reaching out? Who knows who is being disingenuous? Does it matter? Can't we all sympathize? How can we, as alcoholics, call all TM's rationalizations a way of "promoting the use of drugs"? I guess what I'm saying is that I just read so much negativity in some responses...and I hope maybe we can reread what we posted and see where we ourselves were triggered by TM's comments and why.

[Pagekeeper]

I have a friend in the program who has two sobriety dates, one for alcohol and one for pot. She was sober for two years and then one of her parents died and she shared a joint with her sibling. One time thing, never took a drink or smoked pot again. I respect her decision to have two sobriety dates. She's been off the booze for 20 years and shared a joint one time 18 years ago.

[Eroica]

Alcohol and opiates are intoxicating but pot really hasnt ever intoxicated me to the point where I'm like, "Oh, my god.. what have I done under the influence?! That pot again!" I have never stolen or lied to get pot. I don't encourage pot use or coffee use, except that caffeine in large doses is toxic, but in large doses THC isn't. It isn't good to smoke anything, but pot is safer than cigs. This is a fact.

I guess it just means what you mean by sober. Someone who is on sub or methadone can still go to NA meetings right? I would consider them to be clean. And if they're on wellbutrin or other anti-depressive or anti-psychoic or anti-anxiety medication, most people would still consider them to be clean even though they're on psychoactive substances.

[Dee74]

I always feel compelled to share my experience when pot is pushed as 'the less harmful drug'

Alcohol and opiates are intoxicating but pot really hasnt ever intoxicated me to the point where I'm like, "Oh, my god.. what have I done under the influence?! That pot again!"

I have.

I have never stolen or lied to get pot.

I have.

It isn't good to smoke anything, but pot is safer than cigs. This is a fact.

Actually due to the way pot smokers smoke, there's a lot of lung disease in long term users - I'm hoping I stopped in time, but my lungs are definitely damaged and will never be the same again. It's not uncommon, even just in my circle of friends, to have cases of emphysema, COPD, chronic bronchitis, frequent pneumonia...many of these people are non tobacco users.

to get back somewhere near to the thread...anything I'm doing to alter my reality, or escape it, is exactly the same behaviour that got me into trouble in the first place, and I see it as fundamentally damaging to my continued recovery.

but...as neither you or I are members of AA, Eroica....I suggest we leave this thread to it

D

[Eroica]

Please don't put words in my mouth Dee. If I ate a bunch of pot I would never die, no matter how much I consume. If I do the same with tobacco I will die as in high doses it is toxic. Its documented again and again that cigs are deadly-but not just cigs-but tobacco. Marijuana isn't.

Its unfortunate that people put misinformation out just to further their agendas, and the government's. Either marijuana is safer than tobacco or it isn't. AAers are saying that pot is bad, but when they offer rationalizations, they make untruthful statements so I have to correct them. No one benefits from lying.

Safety is not about addiction, but how much damage it does to your body. Yes smoking anything is bad, but this isn't "marijuana's" fault. If I smoked lollipops I would damage my lungs too. What does that have to do with marjuana?

AAers can make up their own definition of sober, but studies prove again and again that pot is safer than other substances-meaning that it causes less damage than other substances.

[1SoberSwede]

All I can say is that.Some can use it safely,and some cannot.I have smoked weed in the past,and could either take it or leave it.Alcohol however had all but destroyed my life,and I could not stop.I have never gotten into trouble after taking a couple of hits from a joint.I can see where it could cause problems for some,but never had a problem with it myself.People in A.A. will judge you no matter what you do or don't do.As long as I don't drink,which is what my problem is,it really doesn't matter what people think.You have to do what works for you...

[Pinkcuda]

I question whether an Alcoholic will turn to any other drugs in the first place when alcohol isn't avaliable. Are they really "Alcoholic" or are they just looking for a way to escape?
That's coming from me who can probably count on one hand the times I deliberately set out to get drunk in the last ten years.
We "Alcoholics" have this delusion that we actually do possess the ability to drink like everone else. A lot of us set out with the best of intentions when we drink. Yet we fail time and time again.
Of course I've never done drugs of any kind and probably never will. That makes my opinion biased and narrow.
Alcoholics Anonymous as an entity has no opinion on the issue one way or another.
We are members looking for a common solution to our common problem. Drugs are not our "Common Problem"