Marijuana addiction Symptoms and treatment

Marijuana is a drug that presents great benefits when prescribed with a medical objective, but can become dangerous, especially, when there is an abuse of this substance. When consumed for a long period of time, dependency, tolerance and addiction can be developed. Marijuana usually smokes to produce a relaxing effect and generate euphoria in the person. Although there are others who prefer to eat it to prolong their effects. Regardless of consumption form, the person runs the risk of developing an addiction. In this psychology-online article we tell you some of the Symptoms of marijuana addiction and its treatment.

1. Marijuana addiction and abstinence symptoms
2. Most common symptoms of marijuana addiction
3. Reasons to stop consuming marijuana
4. How to overcome marijuana addiction: treatment

Marijuana addiction and abstinence symptoms

Prolonged marijuana consumption has an addictive potential. In many cases, occasional consumers or “new” consumers have no addiction symptoms. However, the daily and long -term consumption of marijuana It can have addictive effects.

Therefore, stop consuming marijuana suddenly implies a series of Abstinence symptoms: Irritability, insomnia, little appetite, anxiety, depression, agitation, craving (desire for consumption) and humor changes.

These symptoms usually appear in the third or fourth day consecutive without consuming the substance, to later disappear after 1 or 2 weeks. Although there are some symptoms, mainly psychological, that take longer to disappear and require some type of treatment to overcome them.

Some Psychological effects of marijuana consumption are:

• High levels of anxiety
• Depression
• Loss of interest in socializing
• Schizophrenic symptoms
• Acute psychotic reaction

Most common symptoms of marijuana addiction

The first step to overcome marijuana addiction is Recognize and ask for help. Recognizing the symptoms of marijuana addiction can help determine the severity of the case. Normally, marijuana addiction is the result of substance consumption along with other substances such as alcohol or other drugs, but these two criteria are not always given. Currently, cannabis dependence is quite common due to the large number of people consumed by marijuana.

Some Symptoms of marijuana addiction are:

• Marijuana tolerance: The person needs smoking more marijuana to achieve the same rewarding effects.
• When there is no marijuana consumption they appear Abstinence symptoms: The person presents physical dependence on marijuana. Some of the symptoms of this physical dependence are: stomach discomfort, anxiety or depression in the absence of marijuana consumption.
• Out of control: The person with addiction tries to reduce their consumption of marijuana, but is not able to do so. Even increases it despite not wanting to do it.
• Do not practice other activities: The addicted person begins to spend so much time to addiction that he does not have time to perform other activities, such as sport, reading ..
• Most of the time The person is drugged: The addicted person begins to be drugged more and more time, which interferes with his life.
• Consume marijuana Despite knowing the consequences: The person has already suffered some negative consequences of his addiction, but continues to consume.
• Consume marijuana to relax: get to develop dependence on marijuana to be able to relax.

Reasons to stop consuming marijuana

Probably marijuana addicted have ever thought about stop consuming it when addiction is a problem in their life. Here we propose some reasons to quit marijuana:

• Psychological reasons: Axiety and depression reduction. In addition, the person is able to be more relaxed and happy without the need for substance.
• Physical reasons: Feel better, with more energy and reduction in lung cancer risk.
• Establish new relationships: stop consuming marijuana allows us to use time to meet people in contexts other than consumption.
• Financial reasons: The money that was invested in the consumption of marijuana can be allocated to other purposes.
• Legal reasons: The addicted person can be kept away from problems with the law.

How to overcome marijuana addiction: treatment

If you are addicted to marijuana and you have decided that the time has come to leave, there are some steps that you can follow to start the recovery of your life. Overcoming marijuana addiction can be very difficult because it implies changing your life. You probably have anxiety and depression, and have changed your group of friends due to substance consumption. Addiction took you to another way and with the treatment you must change direction.

Here are some options to overcome your addiction:

• Rehabilitation: It is usually the most common method of treatment for addictions. At first the person must go to the center daily, and then increase the period of time between sessions (weekly, monthly). In these sessions, group or individual therapy is made with the objective, among others, to recognize and avoid those situations that trigger the person's addiction.
• Rehabilitation in internal regime: Generally, in cases of marijuana it is not usually necessary for the person to be admitted to a center, except in those cases in which addiction co-worses with some mental disorder or with another addiction.
• Behavioral therapy: There are people who decide to smoke because they get bored or need a stimulus to encourage themselves. Behavioral therapy can teach these people how to overcome their addiction through changes in their behavior. These positive changes will be aimed at the person being more productive and performing rewarding activities that stimulate you without resorting to drugs.
• Cognitive therapy: This method of treatment will help addict to think in a way that does not facilitate tobacco consumption. For example, we would work to change thoughts such as "To relax all I can do is consume marijuana ”.
• Community reinforcement: Many people who consume marijuana have trouble feeling good or happy without consuming drugs due to chemical changes in the brain produced by addiction. Community reinforcement programs can help provide the person with a reward to meet the recovery objectives, such as: Do not smoke for a month, or by establishing a series of commitments and complying with them.
• Self -help groups: There are many self -help groups that follow recovery models based on steps or phases that the addict must overcome to rebuild his life without addictions.

This article is merely informative, in psychology-online we have no power to make a diagnosis or recommend a treatment. We invite you to go to a psychologist to treat your particular case.

If you want to read more articles similar to Marijuana addiction: symptoms and treatment, We recommend that you enter our category of addictions.