Posted by Mitchell on September 6, 2001, at 19:04:01
In reply to Re: Cannabis and Depression » Mitchell, posted by paxvox on September 6, 2001, at 12:35:42
> A very nice follow-up, Mitchell.
Thank you.
>I found from my personal experience that marijuana causes me more "ills than thrills", and that chronic use as a teenager in the 70's did little to promote my overall well-being, rather an escape to a separate reality.
> PAXA group of studies I would like to assess in this context, but have not, deal with teenage use as relates to aggression, depression and social success (of the mainstream variety). I didn't include them in that essay because I couldn't get my mind around the topic of teen drug use in the limited time I wanted to spend adding to this thread last night, but they are interesting studies. Of course, no amount of research can provide a definitive last word over an individual's experience. I recognize the credibility of your experience and its potential usefulness to others seeking guidence in related situations. I suspect a prescription for amphetamines and some focused, goal-directed counseling might have produced different results in my teen experience, but the experiences I encountered were productive in their own way. But I was more of a thinker than a thrill seeker. I stood to gain little from the thrill of academic success. To the contrary, I could readily attest that academic performance was a symptom of participation in a system I considered ill.
If anything, I would suggest that for some people, including people being treated for mood disorders, frequent use - as often as two or three times a day - seems helpful. For others, even occasional use can be problematic or counterproductive. At this point, neither the law nor the available science provides a reliable guidepost, and personal experiences can tend to shed a dim light on the boundaries, both indicative and contraindicative, of the relative usefulness of this old and extremely popular medicine. Use alone probably cannot, scientifically, be considered a morbid symptom. Heavy use or even light use of this or any other substance *might* be problematic, not necessarily for their pharmacological risks, but for their role as a diversion from confronting real social and personal problems.
Also, so sorry about the pathetic spelling in parts of that post.
poster:Mitchell
thread:77688
URL: http://www.dr-bob.org/babble/20010902/msgs/78077.html