Live Stoner Chat Need help dealing with anxiety !

[Inspired]

Hi community. I post this thread today because I need help from all of you cannabis smokers.
A month ago, I've had the first panic attack of my life after smoking some crappy weed, I was really scared of dying, I felt like my throat was getting smaller and smaller and I was going to die because I couldn't breathe ! I went to the hospital and they told me it was only psychological.
Since then, I'm really anxious and 3 days ago, I choice to celebrate the end of my exams with friends (I drank a lot) and I smoked half a joint ! I ended up at the hospital again, I was scared to death. I rolled one this afternoon with 2 friends and took 3 small hits on it, and guess what? I started feeling really bad and anxious again.
I'm asking you guys, if you have any advice that could help me. I've smoked for a whole year before this happened and never had any problems.
I smoked my stuff. I harvested a month ago my Think Different and cured for about a month.
I don't understand why, but I love smoking, it's something I can't be ask to live without, even though I don't smoke very often, it's something I don't want to stop.
Sorry for the long talk But I feel bad and I'm scared of taking a single hit anymore.

 

[chemli]

sorry i hope you get the help u need

 

[seasickdee]

I always found that taking a few puffs of the blue asthma inhaler used to stop my anxiety attacks.. also deep breaths into a brown paper bag.. and try to control your breathing as much as possible.. I know that's easy to say but once you get proper oxygen back to your lungs your mind becomes clearer and you realise that your not " dying " (I know I felt like it when I took mine) you gain control again.

best of luck with it man.

 

[ninja1]

I have only twice had anxiety or panic attacks which Ill say was really bad, my whole chest felt like it was getting tighter and felt as if i was going to die it was scary. I often get what i would call mild anxiety attacks compare with that unless that was a panic attack and not anxiety but there the same thing right? I can be walking down the street and suddenly I feel light headed as if im going to faint and as if everyones looking at me but i get to the point where im so convinced im gonna faint and feeling weird that I dont care about people looking and rest again something. I have even once just sat down in the middle of a busy train station. I hadn't thought about an asthma pump cheers for the tip

 

[BlazeChina]

With me, when I smoke it's like handing my body over to my subconscious.. you're probably so subconsciously worried about what happened the first time that whenever you smoke again it's bringing back the fear.

Try to talk yourself out of that thinking pattern...be able to accept that it's just the weed making you feel that way...take deep breaths and don't let your mind wander too far.

Maybe it'd be a good idea to work your way back into it.. start with a weaker strain ... just enough to mellow you out and give you the confidence to say "I've got it under control". Put on some calming music when you smoke too..see if that helps.

It's not exactly a sure fix.. it all depends on your own will power and state of mind.

 

[Soylent Green]

help

I have smoke weed for more than 10 years on a daily base, and I noticed it can be strain dependent! Back in the day I couldn't stand Kush. So maybe you should try another strain! But the trick is when you get the anxiety you should try to relax, tell yourself its all ok and say if I die so what try to self relativism.And I you feel bad smoking you should better stop smoking for a will after all, it needs to bee relaxing, fun not the opposite.

 

[Bed]

Hi community. I post this thread today because I need help from all of you cannabis smokers.
A month ago, I've had the first panic attack of my life after smoking some crappy weed, I was really scared of dying, I felt like my throat was getting smaller and smaller and I was going to die because I couldn't breathe ! I went to the hospital and they told me it was only psychological.
Since then, I'm really anxious and 3 days ago, I choice to celebrate the end of my exams with friends (I drank a lot) and I smoked half a joint ! I ended up at the hospital again, I was scared to death. I rolled one this afternoon with 2 friends and took 3 small hits on it, and guess what? I started feeling really bad and anxious again.
I'm asking you guys, if you have any advice that could help me. I've smoked for a whole year before this happened and never had any problems.
I smoked my stuff. I harvested a month ago my Think Different and cured for about a month.
I don't understand why, but I love smoking, it's something I can't be ask to live without, even though I don't smoke very often, it's something I don't want to stop.
Sorry for the long talk But I feel bad and I'm scared of taking a single hit anymore.

The fact you went to the hospital not once but twice for weed-anxiety shows us that you have a propensity to over-react. You also appear to have little experience in "talking yourself out of it" and therefore little experience in comforting and/or encouraging & reassuring yourself.

Sometimes recurrent weed-anxiety means it's time to take a break for awhile...but that's usually only related to 24/7 usage. You said you don't smoke it that often. So, let's just treat it as a frightening experience similar to falling off a horse or being in an elevator that suddenly drops...

To get back on the horse, so to speak, you're gonna have to realize that your panic is caused by thinking/worrying about how others are thinking about you...and, thinking/worrying about having another panic attack when you start to smoke it...

You're gonna have to see the sense in not giving a damn what anyone thinks about you---good or bad. You're gonna have to be able to steer your focus away from thoughts that start pushing your panic button. You do this by shrugging your shoulders to the scary thoughts and changing the subject.

If I were you, I wouldn't get high with anyone for awhile.
When you can get high by yourself without a panic attack, then you can ease your way back to getting high with others.

If your environment does not feel safe---such as a place where you might "get caught" smoking dope---then don't get high there. Only get high where you feel safe.

To ease back into it, I wouldn't smoke it until I really, really wanted to. And then I would only take one small hit and wait a few minutes and see where that takes me.

The thing is:
The anxiety attacks have more to do with the overall way you think about yourself and your life when you're not stoned. Weed as a trigger is usually not the cause.

There's public anxiety attacks.
There's private, in your room anxiety attacks.

The public ones are usually neurotic---the worry about getting caught or how you look or what other people are thinking of you.

The private, in your room anxiety attacks are usually caused by too much weed, too fast.


I speak from experience.
Anxiety attacks---whether sober or stoned---simply mean giving way too much of a fuck about what other people think of you; too much of a fuck about some panicky thoughts. It also means you're too critical of yourself. You don't trust your instinct/intuition. You need to step up to the plate and be the big, easy going, reassuring daddy within. The one who says, "It's okay. It's only an anxiety attack. I've obviously smoked too much, too fast. I'm just gonna lie down here and ride it out. And if I am really dying, fuck it. I can think of worse ways to go. But I know this is just too much powerful weed too fast. And it's perfectly okay if I pass out for a few moments. Next time I smoke this particular stuff, I'll space out my hits better."


Bottom line:
You'll ease back into it sooner or later by virtue of your genuine desire to smoke it. And I assure you, the majority of us chronic potheads have experienced weed-anxiety at some point in our lives. Sometimes it can happen without any paranoia or panicky thoughts---it just happens because we've smoked too much, too fast. So we learn by experience how to pace ourselves.

Don't concern yourself with keeping up with the others. Don't be afraid of being called a light-weight or a pussy for not smoking as much as they do. If they ask why you ain't keeping up, tell them the truth without making a big deal about it, and then change the subject.

 

[jawnroot]

Hey there friend. You sound on the younger side; it takes most people a good long while -- maybe to 30 or beyond -- to feel comfortable in their own skin. Until then throttle back on the weed. If you put yourself in the hospital twice in a week do you really need people on a weed forum to tell you what should by now be obvious? If you haven't gotten yourself in trouble, psychologically or legally, you will eventually if you continue a negative pattern of behavior.

Either way it seems you have some underlying tension that needs unwinding. Look at your life...are you comfortable financially, interpersonally and sexually? If not start looking into these things and if necessary seek professional counseling.

All the best to you my friend. Things generally get better in time and months or years from now I'm sure you'll be blazing comfortably but for the time being give it a rest and focus on areas that need focus

 

[Inspired]

Hey guys, sorry, I didn't the time to go on the internet since I started the thread.
THANKS YOU SO MUCH for all the helpful tips guys ! I'll take a break from weed for some months and I'll see a specialist so I can know myself better and actually
control these attacks. If I start again, I'll obviously start slowly with a weak strain so I don't get too high too fast.
I'll save you guys' post so I can read them sometimes to remind me of your good tips.

 

[blue]

Inspiring attitude good work & Good Luck!

All the best!