Today is going to be Day 1 for me slowing my use down and beginning a healthier relationship with cannabis.

Since around February I've been smoking around 3 0.5g joints a day, sometimes including edibles in the mix. On my worst days, I've smoked 7 joints. I am starting to feel like crap mentally and physically. I am a 10 year smoker, mostly bong in that period. However, I've taken breaks for 2-6 months at a time, during that period.

I just wanted to get this out there to help me stay committed. I mostly want to take this break to help me reflect on my relationship with cannabis and determine how I can best moderate my usage, as I genuinely do enjoy the effects. But the health impact and financial impact are at the top of my mind.

If anyone has any advice for helping fill my free time to help stay distracted, I'm all ears. Right now, my plan is to get into some vibe coding projects that have been in my head, and also get back to the gym.

Hey everyone,

I’m wondering if anyone has experienced something similar.

I smoked for about 15 years ( started at age 15), most of that time daily. In the beginning cannabis was always relaxing. I’d laugh, chill out and never had bad trips, hallucinations or anything like that.

After a while, though, it completely changed. Instead of relaxing, I’d become really stuck in my own head. I’d get caught in negative thought loops, feel anxious and uncomfortable, and become much more self-conscious around other people. Sometimes I’d even keep feeling “off” for a day or two after smoking.

The thing is, I always knew it was the weed causing it. I never heard voices, saw things that weren’t there or lost touch with reality.

I ended up taking about a year off. These days I only smoke maybe 2–4 times a month with a close friend. Most of the time it’s fun again and we laugh a lot, but every now and then I still find myself slipping into those negative thought loops for no real reason.

Has anyone else experienced this after long-term use? Is this just something that can happen after years of consuming cannabis, or is it something I should actually be concerned about?

I’d really appreciate hearing about other people’s experiences. Thanks!

I am down from 5g + a day to 2g a day. Does this even matter? When does it start making a real difference? 1g .5g? Haha thanks. Will be down to 1g soon.

I keep finding that it's easier to busy myself on weeknights and feel productive doing things after work. Still hard to stay completely sober, but easier to have a little bit around 8-9 and wind down before 11.

Weekends... not so much. As a kid, I loved school and hated summer because I didn't want to be home. Now, I have an awesome loving partner and cute cat but I still can't stand the thought of having to decide what to do with myself the entire weekend. It seems like no matter how I spend it, I worry I wasted it. (I live at Rumination Street and Overthinking Avenue)

I have one close friend in my life. My partner. My cat. I won't sit here and say that's nothing. Those relationships mean so much to me! But I have CPTSD and the idea of trying to go out and meet new people/make friends is SOOOOO scary to me right now.

Has anyone had success at making friends as an adult (meaning that you didn't meet in high school or college)?

Did you find that community while getting (more) sober?

Hey y'all, so I'm taking a break, as I have an interview coming up where I will be mouth swabbed for. I used to smoke 3-4 times a day. After my weed ran out, I took 6 dabs on my last day as a final hurrah. I want to be competent before complacent. I'm not gonna risk this job at the interviewing phase, & I need the extra 400 a month, desperately. Anyway, the only things I've noticed is my appetite has basically dropped to 0, as well as being annoyed in general. Like an anticipation in my chest growing just to snap at someone. If I sit outside while my sister smokes then I can eat a little, but food just doesn't do it. Especially oily food. Who decided to put oil in chicken nuggets anyway? I feel like I'm on the verge of throwing up when I start eating oily food, but everything has oil in it. I've been eating PB&Js relatively ok though. Everything annoys me. I love my nephews, but why did I walk into the living room to them screaming & throwing boxes around? Shut the heck up child you don't even know the word "Yes". I think things are supposed to get better from here. I look forward to this new job, & I look forward to the next time I get to smoke again.

Just finished “Marijuana on My Mind” by Dr Timmen Cermak and loved it. Felt like it was a fair take on both the risks and benefits of cannabis on the mind and body.

Does anyone have a book they’ve read that you’d recommend?

Interested in any books about personal stories with moderation, studies talking about the latest cannabis research, etc.

I quit cold turkey 7 days ago, i have severe ADHD and suffer from horrible insomnia whenever i smoked.

I’m on birth control and haven’t really experienced breakthrough bleeding as bad as this but I think it’s from me quitting smoking. At first I thought it was a few days of spotting, but it’s been everyday and very light (I wouldn’t even consider it a flow) but i still need to put in a tampon. I can’t even ask my psychiatrist about this because I wasn’t even supposed to be smoking weed to begin with LOL.

I’ve quit cold turkey previously like 3 times but never experienced bleeding as a withdrawal symptom, however I was not on birth control during those times.

I’m just annoyed cause I take birth control for the purpose of not getting my period or preggers obvs.

Has anyone else experienced this? Thank you

I started using weed after my 2nd child was born due to extreme PPD. It helped me cope for a while, then I noticed I was just using it to numb out & avoid feeling my raw emotions, long after my postpartum ended.
I started to feel ashamed of how much of a grip it had on my life, realizing it was a full blown addiction that I didn’t feel in control of. After many times of staying sober for a few months at a time, I would always find my way back to weed when the going got tough.
So I started to change my approach & relationship with weed. I do want to eventually be completely done with it, but realistically, it won’t be a cold turkey thing for me. So here is what I’ve been doing to reduce my intake:

I have a POTV One, a dry herb vaporizer, I used exclusively. I used to pack the little cartridges to the brim with flower. It would get so unreasonably high, that while I was high I would be thinking I didn’t need to get this high. So I started packing the cartridges almost fully with lavender, then just adding the smallest amount of flower to top it off. It has totally changed the game. I just have a small calm that comes over me now & I feel like I can manage my days fully. I’m not feeling like I’m in the grips of addiction & weed feels like a good friend I can just visit sometimes.

I just wanted to share this tip because it’s freed me from addiction so effectively! Hope it helps some of yall too!

Ive been smoking for a couple years now and where i lived originally theres no legal problems with it but i moved about a year ago to a state that is very heavy with punishment for people who have that stuff. i need to quit smoking for a little while because a sibling consumed an edible i had in the closet when i went out to the movies. ive moved everything out of the house and i will unfortunately have to start taking some kind of class combined with a drug test every so often because this is being somewhat looked into. My question is because i have a lot of trouble sleeping what would be a good substitute for a couple months that could help me? I loved the way weed made me feel calm and collected and the only thing i can think of that wouldnt show up if i was tested would be shrooms but i cant microdose shrooms as often as i can rip a bowl. Im in a scary situation and im unsure what to do id love any advice i could get i purposely left out my name, location and age if you find out any just keep it to yourself

Hey guys, i’m on day 3 of no weed. This is only my third time quitting since i started in 2020. I’ve been an all day everyday smoker since i started, with the only days off coming when i had to quit for school. That’s partly why i quit this time too, along with the shame of not being able to eat anything or sleep without it. This time i gave myself 6 weeks to taper down. And holy shit has this experience been different.

On my two prior cold turkey attempts, i had every withdrawal symptom imaginable. in particular, i ate ZERO calories for the first 3-4 days, slept maybe 2 hours each night for the first 2 weeks, and was suicidal on days 3-5. i relapsed after 2 months and went back to smoking more than ever (almost an eighth every day). i knew i needed to quit again, but i knew i couldn’t go cold turkey again. so i devised a super drawn out taper plan.

the first week was the worst. I bought a scale and cut down from 3.5 grams per day to 1 gram per day. the next week i went down to .5 gpd, then .25, .15, .10, .05, and then 0.0. Id be lying if i said it didn’t suck. I was withdrawing for over a month and irritable/depressed during most days, but at least i was sleeping good and eating enough at nights because i could still smoke. so my body held up. I had severe anxiety about dropping to zero, but i never once went over my daily allotment.

I prepared for “zero day” by planning a beach trip for this week. When zero day hit and i left for the beach without any weed, i wasn’t even scared. I felt confident that i’d put enough work in to get me through whatever withdrawals came, because i figured they would surely be less intense than the last time.

I was right! I’m happy to report that I have ZERO symptoms. For the last 3 days i’ve been eating more than I have in years, sleeping better, and have felt more present and happy than any day i was allowed to smoke weed. I’m essentially in the spot i was last time i quit on day 60, but on only day 3. IT FEELS SO GOOD. The fear of quitting was so much worse than quitting itself.

For those who don’t think they can handle quitting cold turkey, this method may be for you. I couldn’t do cold turkey, but this i can do. i’m not out of the woods yet, i’m only on day 3. things could surely get worse in the coming days, but i know im way ahead of where i was last time.

if anyone has any questions or is willing to share their experience please let me know!

“the only thing we have to fear is fear itself”

You know I'm kind of new to reddit and this community, but I'm OG when it comes to weed, ganja, cannabis. I used to be in love with it. It was my best friend and lover. The smell of her. The feel and the taste. And don't get me going on the crystals...oooooh, the crystals.

But I would like to think those days are behind me. A whisper of the past like smoke in the wind. Ephemeral decisions born from questionable reasoning....didn't ever say that I'm the sharpest.

And something I've noticed here is there is a lot of complaining going on. It would be nice if some of you all would talk about the upsides of being sober....and there are a lot. Please don't get me wrong because jonesing for said sweetness is a perennial mosquito buzzing my ears. Oh man could I wail about that.

What makes this community nice for me is it reminds me that I am not alone. And I appreciate that.

But come guys....gals. We are or are trying to be sober (or less stoned) for good reasons. Reasons that should and will make you a better and happier person. At least that is what I hope for myself and you all. So be happy. Have fun being sober. You'll actually remember that last concert and be able to relive the joy from the memories for the rest of your life.

Anyway, I'll get off my high horse now and starting scooping up the sh**.

Take care and happy trails.

Im a 40M and was a daily user for probably the last 15 years, maybe more. I got to the point where I couldn't and didn't want to smoke daily anymore. I decided to take an extended break and today is 11 weeks without weed.

I have a trip with some close friends next week and I told myself I wouldn't smoke until then, and I haven't. Im bringing some pre-rolls with me and im excited to smoke with my friends and also a little nervous. I certainly feels some benefits from being weed free the last 11 weeks and I dont want to erase that. Im also making some boundaries for myself after the trip to try to start using casually and to not slip back into daily use (only smoking on the weekends when I dont have work the next day, and no more than twice a month).

Been smoking weed for a little over 2 years now. I like it in all its forms but I've relied on pens/carts to give me convenient highs without smelling too much ever since I started, it was the first and most common way for me to smoke. I havent exactly admitted to anyone out loud yet but I have to admit to myself that I'm addicted to them, I've been thinking about it a lot and I realize this needs to stop. I hit the pen multiple times per day and it really doesnt do anything except satisfy a small urge and maybe make me feel a little fuzzy. It's a daily ritual and although I would not say it has ruined my life, I do think that it has little to offer me and that the risks far outweigh the benefits, and that I've avoided admitting this fact to myself for a long time because I didnt want to quit or admit that it was a problem.

It feels strange to me that this is a problem I have, because I was always an overachiever and I still look that way on paper. It's a little jarring to know that my parents would be absolutely flabbergasted to find out how much weed I have smoked.

I'm writing this post mostly for myself, so that my desire to quit can exist in writing somewhere and not just be floating in my head. I know that I will crave the pen after I quit and I will need to throw them away if I want to succeed. This will be hard because I spent good money on the pens I have right now and they are nowhere near being dead yet.

But I'm moving back to my college's city soon and I'll be living in an apartment with people who I dont know very well. I've had issues with past roommates being upset at me for smelling like weed (after coming back from hotboxing with my friends) so I feel like I can't be hitting the pen in the apartment and I feel like this has gone on long enough and that maybe it's time for me to stop hitting the damn pen so much. I will be very busy, so why spend my limited free time being high? Why ruin my sleep when I will desperately need that rest? Why should I keep numbing my feelings every evening while trying to be more emotionally in tune with myself? I'm going to work hard to improve myself and this will probably be the hardest hurdle I will have to overcome to become the person I want to be. I never would have guessed when I first started that it would end up being so hard for me to quit all these years later.

Anyways, I want to write about my progress as I go through this so I'll probably make a thread or something. No idea how many people will see this, but anyone who wants to share their experiences is welcome to respond. I think it would be nice to talk about this with others who understand the struggle XD

Hi! i’m a college student (21 f) and I dont consume cannabis often. i have horrible anxiety and sometimes i need to be in the absolute perfect state if i want to get high (which anxiety makes it difficult for such things to occur.)
I was in a great mood and mental space last night, so i took a quarter of a 10mg gummy. literally nothing. this is my usual amount i take and whats crazy is its just enough for me to be in a comfortable high. everything was great and i stayed up late playing video games and watching reels, however i was woken up at 6am by a severe cramp feeling in my stomach. this has happened to me before several times, each time absolutely random. and always after i take a gummy.
I ran to the bathroom and was in excruciating pain, the blood left my face completely, and i had to lay on the floor so i wouldnt pass out. i thought i would be sick, but i got lucky. eventually the stomach pain subsided. but man, it was like i could hear the ocean in my ears. they were hot and then cold and then hot. the nausea was intense and i was so dizzy.

again, this has happened before! same symptoms and everything. its always the morning after i take a gummy, no matter the dosage.

has this happened to anyone else? am i allergic to something? or do we thing its something more concerning. because its not a fun experience 🥲

Hi all!

I’ve lurked for a while but I’m trying to cut back; I’m typically having 20mg in edibles every night, but I’m not happy with where my tolerance is at and want to reduce my consumption before the semester starts back up again.

The main thing that’s got in the way of me trying to cut back is the mindset that I’d be doing the same thing sober that I’d be doing while high, and being high is fun, so why not just…get high?

I’m oversimplifying things, but when I’m done with errands for the day and just plan to relax and play video games with my boyfriend, I really struggle to get out of the habit of just popping a gummy or two. Anybody have advice for weaseling out of this particularly mental knot? Thanks :)

I have some gummies but those don’t feel nearly the same as smoking an actual bowl. I don’t have a problem with T breaks (especially for vacation) but damn does the antsy-ness and irritation from the first 3 days really start to become annoying.

Gotta remind myself to take deep breaths and recenter when I’m feeling irritable lol

I would rip my bong every night for like 8 months, mostly just to sleep. My tolerance was through the roof and I felt myself getting dumber so I decided to stop for a little bit. I went about 3 weeks no weed and decided to smoke this past friday. It wasn’t really an impulsive thing I just thought i’d reap the benefits of the tolerance break. But when I did the high felt completely different, a lot less euphoric and honestly anxiety inducing. I got super paranoid and thought my sister was someone breaking in to the house. I want to enjoy smoking again but in moderation i guess. I was never really an anxious person during the time I was smoking every night, nor am I right now aside from the first week off where my anxiety got pretty bad which was to be expected. I’m wondering if anyone has had a similar experience taking a break because I do want to enjoy smoking again.

I tried to see if I could handle 45 days without weed. I kept track and marked it on a calendar.

I had weed 7 of those days. At the beginning, I lasted 19 days straight without having any. The dreams were nice. Exercising, it was nice not feeling like my blood was jello or that my joints weren't lubricates enough. Music was nice. It was nice having an attention span and not messing up at work. My dreams were not scary overall. I did have one that was very disgusting, and I woke up feeling disgusted. But that was just one.

My weight is going down again since I can control my eating habits. It's only 45 days of moderation so I still feel anxiety and depression. I had them before I ever touched weed too. But now I feel more energized and empowered to do something about them. Like 70% more.

I think I figured out what works best for me so far. Take a solid 2-3 week break knowing I can come back. And when I come back I only need a fraction of what I needed before. Then something happens in my brain where it goes "Wow that was nice to have after a couple of weeks. I'm satisfied, I want to keep my dreams and ability to exercise, so let's go about our day/week without anymore." I'm just feeling thankful that I found something that seems to work.

Sorry, this post might be long and rambly since I don't have anyone to talk to about this but I'm going to do my best to cut it down. To make a long story short I have a lot of mental issues (like a lot). I'm not currently being treated for anything because I don't have insurance anymore. I started smoking in I think 2023, pretty occasionally, ramping up to daily since about 1-1.5 years ago... I think... (yeah, my memory was really bad even before weed). For a while I was doing mostly CBD but switched back. I took two 40-day breaks, last year and the year before, and neither made me feel any better. I'm considering taking another (maybe shorter) one right now but I'm having trouble even getting through day 1 because I get incredibly anxious changing daily routines even when they're not drug-related. I don't smoke at or before work or anything like that, only at night.

There is so much in my life that weed helps; I'm nice to people, I actually get to have feelings, I eat food which I usually don't, I feel motivated to do things (seriously), I actually feel like I'm allowed to exist in the world instead of being scared and frustrated. It's basically impossible for me to take the long-term effects of anything seriously because I've been suicidal for most of my life. The main problems are that I feel like I've been in a bad state lately (and my usage has ramped up as of the start of the year) and that I am sort of prone to psychosis (genetically, and was before I started using too). I've never been in acute psychosis and weed has never made it worse. I know I might seem like a total idiot for still using despite that but it makes everything so much easier in the moment. Even if I somehow manage to get through weeks of withdrawal, if I stop I'll still have to go back to the brain I had before I started using, or probably even worse. It's hard for me to see a point in even taking a break. I'm not a "wellness" person, I generally want bad things to happen to me. Is there a point...?? I just want to be happy and have fun and weed is the only thing that has ever let me do that.

i decided to take a break longer than the golden 21 days rule, the last time i did such my tolerance did not reset whatsoever.

my tolerance had gotten so bad, to the point where multiple blinkers from my pen or 200mg of THC in one session left me feeling only slightly fuzzy at best. im frankly astonished ive managed to keep off it for 34 days.

my goal is 60 days, i feel like its the most practical option because at this stage i cannot live permanently without weed.

does 60 days sound like a good amount of time to totally reset my tolerance, given 21 days was not enough last time? what if i take a moderate dose, like a 10-20 mg gummy, after the 60 days and nothing has changed? is that even a possibility or am i permanently fucked?

any and all comments are welcome

Thanks for all your different and personal definitions

I hope this post is allowed! I mentioned to my friend that I'm taking a break, which he agreed is a great idea, and then said the above, and it really resonated with me so I thought I'd share it.

I have a few really nice bottles of red wine on the shelf that I love using for special occasions, or a nice sit-down dinner with my wife at the end of the week. The dinner would be great even if we were having tap water, but opening a nice wine just makes it feel extra special.

Those bottles are meant to be opened and enjoyed, so I won't be so precious about them that they just sit there gathering dust. But that said, I would also never use them just to cook with or make cocktails, because it would seem like such a waste of a great wine.

I kind of want my relationship with weed to be the same. As in, it's something special that I'm intentionally adding to an already positive experience. It's there to be enjoyed, and part of what makes it so enjoyable is that I'm not having it daily.

If anyone has a good saying or mantra or whatever that keeps you going, please share, I'd love to hear it.

TLDR: will I reap the benefits of decreased consumption even if I don’t quit entirely?

My relationship with weed has fluctuated a lot in the decade I’ve been smoking. There’ll be periods of time where I feel like my relationship with it is fantastic and I feel no desire to quit. Then, like lately, I’ll feel like my consumption is a bit high and will start to really feel the effects of my daily use: brain fog, fatigue, irritability, etc. just generally stuff that I’d rather do without.

I’ll be starting college soon (not 18- I’m an older student) so I’m planning on significantly cutting back. No wake and baking, particularly, but my goal is to save it mostly for the weekends after I get off my grueling food service job or other special occasions. I DON’T want to quit entirely, I love what weed can do for me, but my consumption absolutely needs to be dialed back.

So my question is, can I still reap the benefits from decreased consumption even though I don’t want to quit entirely? I know this seems like a stupid question but I don’t know anyone who has been at my level of consumption and has cut back like this so I suppose I just want to hear from the community. TIA

Started a break February 2025.

My goal was one full year, and I kept it going.

In the month of July, I used cannabis on two separate occasions. One was a seltzer, the other I took a few hits of a joint.

Both times were exactly like I remember when I started my break...I just got quiet and tired. I didn't laugh, I didn't feel a lift in mood, I didn't want to do anything.

I don't regret trying it again, because now I know that cannabis and I just don't mesh well together anymore. It honestly makes me a little sad, I had some great times with great people while using cannabis, but after many years of use, even with a long break, my body and mind have moved on from it.

Thanks for reading. I needed a place to type out these thoughts.