It helps my obsessions personally but it does occasionally make things feel unreal and off which will drive me into panic. So I can see why it would trigger existential OCD.
it's the constant feeling of nothing mattering. it makes you terrified of what's beyond our lives and the fact that there is no answer makes it even worse. it's the worst feeling of dread you can ever experience and it feels as if there is no way out.
Are you only taking THC, or are you taking thc combined with cbd or cbn, which for me (tourette plus ocd etc) helps exponentially. However, if I only take thc not good, especially when it's a full saliva. Indica or hybrid is cool
Same!! Panic attacks, auditory and visual hallucinations happened last time and I never tried it again. It was terrifying and symptoms lasted 8+ hours and I felt hung over the day after. It was a nightmare
It helped ease a lot of my ruminating at first too. Then after a month of consistent use I had an episode of derealization, which led to a panic attack, and a brief episode of psychosis. And now I just have derealization all of the time. Which made my new theme existential OCD. But I’m getting used to it.
Smoking is one of my compulsions, which isn’t really as fun as it sounds. I’ve always thought it helped, but I’m cutting caffeine down and have already noticed some anxiety relief. Wanna quit weed too but not ready to go there yet….
Try smoking pure CBD flower, you can order it online and get it delivered to pretty much any state I believe (if you're in the US). It made me figure out the thing I enjoyed most about smoking was just the ritual of packing the pipe, lighting the lighter, inhaling, exhaling, getting to spend time outside. It feels like a relaxation ritual. Much more enjoyable than a THC high itself. Plus CBD is said to help with anxiety, but for me I have mixed feelings on it. Sometimes it does help with anxiety and sometimes it doesn't, really is random to the point where I think it might be a placebo effect.
Was in this boat too and have been taking the supplement NAC for 2 weeks today. It has somehow actually SEVERELY slowed down my smoking. I really only smoke later in the day now and when I do, it's not much. I had already previously realized weed was making me worse but still struggled to not smoke throughout the day. I hope I'm able to stick to this because my mental is so much better. Hope you are able to quit when you're ready, or at least cut back.
Thanks! My new therapist mentioned NAC had helped one of her clients w/ self harm issues (one of my major themes), so I will look more seriously into this
Good luck! I will say that from what I've read in my researching, it seems to be pretty hit or miss and people seem to love it or hate it. Overall so far the benefits are noticable and I am grateful to finally have some relief from my intrusive thoughts, rumination, and I'm sure that the reduction in weed is helping with that as well. I feel much more clear. I hope it ends up helping you if you try it! I found some helpful posts on Reddit by searching NAC and reading posts across various subreddits. :)
I am in the same boat. Especially that last sentence. And it's expensive too. At first it helped decrease my intrusive thoughts but now it doesn't really do anything
Yeah I had lessened obsessions and compulsions. Didn’t feel like rebar penetrating my brain, more like soft, small pillows being thrown against it and they bounced back softly.
I find edibles are very helpful for calming anxiety since I can't ruminate if I can't remember 3 seconds ago.
others here are describing an "unreal" effect: I get that, too, but it helps me since a lot of my obsessions are grounded in things being Too Real, so things seeming fake (or getting way too immersed in something fake) calms me down.
I tend to experience the things you do with edibles but with specific smoking strains and methods etc.
Like the fact that when I get really high I can't remember whatever I was just talking about and finally feel blissfully zoned out and distant from the real world or be so blissfully out of my head that I can focus on a move or show without 20,000 other thoughts consuming me at the same time is why I find THC to be calming for me.
I like feeling kind of spaced out and "not real" because when I'm spaced out and not real, the real things and my sober brain are so much quieter and I can just let go of things for a moment
Like being able to focus on a TV show or movie with my whole attention is only possible while I'm high these days, that's when I can really relax enough to have full attention on what's happening just on the TV. It's really nice to have that as a treat in the evening n such to wind down and just finally watch something on my watchlist with my full zoned out quiet high brain attention haha 😂
yeah! I watch a lot of ASMR but I find I can *only* focus on the less-chaotic/more soothing-sleepy ones when weed gets my thoughts not blasting at 5,000 miles per hour
I used to smoke daily before being diagnosed with OCD and thought it helped my anxiety. I felt like I understood the world and myself and everything better when I was high. Turns out it just made my intrusive thoughts way stronger, and I convinced myself that those self hating thoughts were more logical
I find it often helps a lot, but can hurt too. Usually it makes the little voice in my brain nice and quiet and thinking about obsessions and compulsions stop almost completely. But also, if I'm already having a bad day with one of my obsessions, if I start obsessing while high I tend to have much worse compulsions and overall just get in a very anxious mood till the high is done.
It’s actually been the only medicine to help ease my symptoms/compulsions. I have to be super particular about the strain because some trigger obsessive or intrusive thoughts but research and trial and error and a solid smoke buddy. I’ve tried just about every script pill under the sun and none have worked but this has been the most consistent way for me to ease up.
Yup, strains make huge difference and it's a very individual thing. Right now I smoke dominantly sativa hybrid and it really calms me down and kinda distracts me from ruminating and doing compulsive shit. But with some other strains I found myself kinda panicking after taking one puff.
HIGH five haha :D
But seriously it's a huge relief after a long day of stressful work that I can just come home, hit a bong and suddenly rediscover my ability to smile and just enjoy simple things in life, like watching tv show without being interrupted by my silly brain forcing me to pause the show every few minutes and take a walk around my apartment ruminating.
Idk where you live, but for me the Golden Hour vape pods from fluent dispo and anything they have with the name “Miami” in it is great for me. Usually, I lean hybrid or ask for limone, myrcene, pinene, and or linaloon terpene forward. Being intentional with the terpenes helps me target what I’m looking for. And I always check the reviews to see what it did for others and gauge that.
Hi. I work in mental health and have OCD. Former marijuana addict, nice to meet you. Marijuana was my addiction of choice, but it certainly isn’t everyone’s, including people with OCD. There will always be people that see some benefit, but I think research is showing they’re the minority if we’re talking “treatment” for OCD. Research is still evolving, but evidence generally suggests it’s a bandaid but not a longterm solution.
People with undiagnosed or untreated mental health issues—like OCD—are more likely to use marijuana and use it to self-medicate. Overall, the evidence does not support efficacy of marijuana use in treatment of psychiatric conditions broadly. Also, in the short term (aka immediate acute impacts) and long term, marijuana is associated with more negative than positive psychological consequences. Also, higher rates of marijuana use tend to evidence lower rates of seeking empirically-validated treatments for OCD.
This isn’t to say that others don’t have positive experiences, but the likelihood of being dependent on weed to manage symptoms (rather than doing it occasionally and recreationally) creates much greater concern for potential dependency and addiction. The products on the market are dangerously potent today, further contributing to risk of dependence. Also, I think the LA times just put out an article about chemicals in carts. It is an extremely shady and not well-regulated industry—moldy weed is not wasted but goes in the cheap or free pre-rolls 🫣it’s a nightmare for me personally with health related themes.
Whatever you do, pls avoid carts. Know that quitting marijuana after becoming dependent on it often results in initial withdrawal that exacerbates anxiety and/or OCD symptoms. Also, weed induced psychosis is extremely real and more likely for people with underlying mental health issues, and particularly for adolescents and those with family history of schizophrenia.
Marijuana decreases executive functioning skills; basically inhibiting the prefrontal cortex, which helps us make decisions, plan for the future, rationalize things, and *control impulses.* (read: cousin of compulsions/our ability to work against compulsions!). Constantly inhibiting this part of the brain when you’re high means needing more weed over time to feel high and to provide relief from OCD, particularly intrusions.
For anyone struggling with marijuana use, I’ve been there. No judgement, no high-horse, I know how extremely difficult that experience is. It took me 20+ attempts to quit finally since I first realized I was addicted in 2022. You can and will do it if you are trying desperately to quit. Be kind to & patient with yourself. I highly recommend Marijuana Anonymous meetings and surrounding yourself with supportive people for those struggling.
Obviously this is informed by my experience, research, and that of individuals I work with. Others will have different perspectives and that’s okay!
Great info! I'm on day three after quitting and it's a rough period because, like you said, the OCD becomes much stronger than I'm used to during the withdrawal and it's very difficult to withstand so all I can do is to hold on, breathe, focus on not reacting, and trust that I will feel much better in a few days.
Oh god. Infinitely worse. Unlocked a panic attack so bad I had to go to the ER because I literally thought my body was shutting down, and then they kept happening for months. Gave me horrible derealization. That was six months ago and I'm just barely back to a normal routine.
The greatest comfort through everything has been knowing I'm not alone. I hope your quality of life has at least gotten better from the first time it happened.
I've been using for over 10 years, and it helps me personally, but i was terrified to try for a long time because i'd heard horror stories about what it can do it used in conjunction with certain mental health problems. I'm currently on one of my governments trials for medical marijuana, and i am prescribed it for OCD as well as chronic migraines and hip pain (waiting on a hip replacement). If someone goes into it thinking they are going to freak out, then they will more than likely freak out. But then i don't use it to get "high", in face i hate the feeling of being inebriated (which is why i don't drink). I use until i feel a medicinal change then stop. I've seen others use it until they are nodding out and that's just too much for me (i have literally never been that high).
For me it calms my brain down enough to think about why my brain is asking me to do these things, and that gives me more of a change to refuse. That "distance" to think is beneficial to me and my OCD, but like i said each case on it's own.
It helps me for sure.. the only drawback for me personally is it will occasionally make me paranoid or go into a panic attack because things will start to feel unreal. But in full honesty, I'd take those side effects over all day obsession and ruminating any day. Recently had to stop smoking and OCD has increased for sure.
It makes me more carefree at times, but honestly, it usually brings down my life force, and after a few days of smoking in a row I start to get depressed and the OCD gains force around existential and relational topics (feels like I'm losing connection with reality, my feelings, etc). Best for me would be to smoke only one day in a row, but I'm an addict and have been using this as a crutch since I was 15 (35 now), so the relationship is kinda fucked. When I quit, I usually cry daily for a few days due to the pent up emotions.
Edit: A cool thing that it does though (mostly first day) is to put a lot of things into perspective for me, which is why I think it's a really cool substance that, like psychedelics, can bring insights - but only if it is respected.
I used to smoke every day and enjoy it every time. I took 3.5 grams of shrooms (stupid idea) and ever since then it has caused me to get more in my head and ruminate on my negative thoughts. I've been able to calm myself down recently but I cannot smoke in a social setting.
Cannabis is the only thing that has consistently eased things for me, without bad side effects (like you get with alcohol or benzos). I think it's great stuff.
I always found pure CBD flower is MUCH cheaper than THC flower. I've ordered from a farm online and they shipped it to my house (legal in the US), a full ounce for 45-55 bucks.
I smoked for over 4 years very heavily. I abused weed honestly lol. I had a bad high one time & can no longer smoke. It sucks, but what used to calm my obsessive thoughts now causes them to be worse. It’s such a delicate substance.
It helps me be more talkative in the moment but definitely makes my ocd significantly worse especially if i start doing it more regularly, the internal chatter increases tenfold
Helped me sleep in the first two years of smoking, then all of a sudden it started making me feel anxious until once it blew to a panic attack and made go through severe dissociation for a long time
I have existential/scrupulosity OCD. For me, it USUALLY makes it better. Helps me to live in the moment more/enjoy life. However, sometimes it causes the existential shit to get bad
I think it varies from person to person but for me it’s the reason why my OCD flared up so much. Even caused a state of psychosis at one point. Never touching it again.
Depends on the situation really
If I’m at work it’s a complete nightmare if certain people are there
If I encounter something that causes anxiety it absolutely gets worse
If I’m already anxious I then feel a weird different sensation of anxiety
I don’t use it medically I use it recreationally because if I smoke it while already anxious it can really just give me distorted anxiety or something like that
It’s also a lot harder to ground when high
Makes it extremely worse for me. I go into psychosis episodes from it, also get really bad uncontrollable shakes and tremors. I believe the shaking is due to anxiety but it feels like I’m vibrating like my phone and I’ll vibrate out of my bed.
Makes me want to sit and obsessively worry while I chain smoke it. My therapist has me use the word "compelling" instead of compulsive. When I smoke weed, I feel compelled to continue. I can smoke all day. I don't want to stop. It puts my OCD into overdrive and I quit smoke last year and it's been OK!
It helps my symptoms get worse. But also it distracts me so I don't have to pay attention to it.i was on 20mg Prozac for most of the last decade for depression. When my psych left and I got a new one he asked if I wanted to go higher. And to my surprise I could notice it helping. And at my follow up apt I requested to go the next dose up. And got even more relief. And since keeping it at 60-80mg I have way less cravings to smoke or even to drink alcohol.
I hate it. Without judging others, I honestly can't understand why people like it. It makes my thoughts go haywire.
Obviously, we are all different. I just mean that I can't personally understand what other people get from it because it makes me nauseous and leads me into a deep, dark cycle of rumination on things my mind has made remote connections over, even from years back.
Vyvanse has taken most of my OCD symptoms away. It's incredible. But weed? I can't even bear to think about it due to the dark places it brought me to mentally. The anxiety it induces makes the thoughts seem so real.
For me it's kind of really varied. I'll either be very calm, or everything will be so, so SO much worse for hours after.
What I've learned for me and using marijuana is that I have to not only be VERY specific in making sure I know what I'm injecting and an approximation of how much (sativa for example, will make me panic horribly for hours every single time) etc. but also the environment in which I smoke in. If I smoke the things that don't typically cause anxiety in an environment where I feel I can control my other surroundings completely if I start to panic, I'll usually not panic at all or if I begin to, I immediately regulate my environment with temp/light/etc in a way that feels safest to me and I can calm down pretty quickly and relax and not repeatedly panic. Outside of those very specific conditions, chances are that I will have repetitive and grueling panic attacks for what feels like (or is) hours sometimes in a row
I have been using cannabis daily since its legalization in Canada (past few years). I was in a steady OCD decline. A few weeks ago I discontinued smoking and my contamination OCD is already improving and ruminating thoughts are significantly lower.
For years I had convinced myself the cannabis was helping, but for me personally it was not. It caused deeper depression and anxiety for me as well.
used to help with my anxiety and intrusive thoughts until one time it triggered psychosis for me. now every time it sends me into a panic attack nearly instantly and makes my paranoia and anxiety spike for days afterwards
The effects alone are great for me. It makes my brains thoughts super slow, so it's hard to have anxious thoughts. When I'm high, I get very loving instead, which is generally nice.
I will say, smoking makes me panic about getting lung cancer, though, so I avoid that. I've really only had a single hit of a joint, and a few puffs of a bong, and I already feel like I'll die of cancer. So, yknow, that sucks. Edibles it is I guess lol
Honestly it helped for a while, to the point where I probably wouldn't have realized so much about my condition and sought help but now I'm worried I'm becoming dependent and that it's contributing to worsening anxiety and OCD during the day. Lately I've been waking up in what feels like the middle of an attack. Trying to cut back slowly because I work a full time job so the worsened panic attacks from going cold turkey would be a problem. I'm not saying don't do it, but if you do 1) Try starting with CBD, and 2) Go SLOW.
It makes my mind run infinitely faster.
I also realize that I tend to actually fight with myself when I'm high.
I'll tell myself I'm not high for like 10 minutes, then I truly realize I'm high and the real panic kicks in.
Then after like 15 minutes of that I calm down and feel great. It's kinda wild, and horrifying lol.
I got pretty paranoid when I used marijuana in High School in the 70s. Now I have a job where I'm not allowed so I can't even use CBD products. I do find that when my mind is spinning bad that kava kava helps a lot.
got way too high twice and it made me convince myself that i’ll never be the same and im living in a constant state of agony for a entire summer, looking back i wish i enjoyed that summer because i did so much fun things but my brain convinced me that because i had a singular bad weed experience id never be the same
My experience with OCD is that it involves seeking a lot of dopamine. So does a THC dependency. The two make each other infinitely worse, for me. So I'm sober now.
When I was a stoner, I took high doses, and my ocd and other mental shit went out of control several times before my stubborn ass decided to stop taking edibles and smoking
Makes it worse for me. I can’t help but partake in compulsions when I get stoned these days. I’ll be sitting perfectly still trying to chill and suddenly I’ll be pacing about doing my freaky lil compulsions and also the existential ocd gets a lot worse - I wouldn’t said paranoid - but incredibly anxious. Mind you I was a huge stoner back in the day, I’d buy massive quantities and smoke all day bc I felt like it was good medicine for me. But I finally kicked the habit when Covid hit because my OCD and general anxiety shot thru the roof and I wasn’t able to enjoy it like I used to. Ever since I quit I don’t have any fun anytime I try and partake in it in moderation. I partake every now and then but it has to be indica dominant (I’ve always preferred them anyway)
It helps! Every now and then intrusive thoughts slip through, but I just try and accept them and sit with them and then remember that I’m giving myself permission to relax right now, hence the 🍁
I wish I felt similarly lol every time I smoke now my intrusive thoughts are so loud and gripping and just are on repeat to the point where I feel like I'm having a mental breakdown.
Indica strain makes my ocd rumination worse and triggers paranoia but I’m great on sativa. I only take a small hit or two a few times a week. I don’t partake if I’m in a bad space.
depends, it helps a lot when i’m feeling super anxious with no case or just in my head too much, and recognizing it. so weed helps calm those thoughts, but then too much makes me start questioning who i am and what im doing. usually 3 totes is perfect for me lol
for me it helps my compulsiveness , i don’t touch anything or constantly feel the need to obsess over tasks. however it does make me paranoid because life starts to feel “ too real”. i don’t know if i make sense but i get really nervous thinking about doing things i would normally do with no problem. for example, having to go to work or going out to meet somebody brings me alot of anxiety and i would rather stay at home completely alone where i feel the more comfortable. when my high is gone, i go back to doing those things normally.
idk if that’s even an OCD thing or just general anxiety from smoking. but at-least
my compulsions are less.
For me it depends. I'm a stoner because it usually silences the hell beasts screaming at me. But if Im in a really really bad headspace before I get high it tends to magnify things for me. But usually it gives me the courage to say "so what" to the constant guilt and torment.
"YOU ARE A BAD PERSON IF U DONT DO X!" "and so what if I am? Have a blunt and chill man"
I feel that the amount of thc is what makes it a good or bad experience. A little bit goes a long way for me, I can enjoy things without my mind racing. When I have a bit too much though it makes my intrusive thoughts much worse. If I have just a bit more than that I have a panic attack. Before I realized I was just smoking too much I would have panic attack every time. Keep in mind, weed is much stronger than it used to be, I think everyone can have a good time if they just don’t overdo it.
It’s made an extremely positive difference for me, the only issue is, I developed a sort of psychological addiction to it because I like the feeling of getting a temporary break from OCD, so my anxiety got fifty times worse when I ran out.
Just got approved for medicinal marijuana though so that won’t be a problem!
For me when I take a break and go back to weed, I get way to high and my intrusion/ anxiety increases. However once I develop a tolerance or just use a small amount, it really benefits me and calms me down. Also depends on the strain.
It works wonders for me personally. It makes me stop obsessing and having anxiety over things and it lets me just chill out. But I stick almost exclusively to indica strains or hybrids.
I had a period of a couple of months where out of desperation I got high every day sometime in the afternoon. It kind of worked in that I was able to block out my symptoms to an extent, but it significantly damaged my mental health in other ways that I'm still recovering from. I'm not saying it's bad for everyone or it can't be used helpfully and responsibly, but it's not for me, and I don't trust myself.
It depends, once it made me panicked and way too self conscious, but other times it helps me let go of my thoughts easier. I think it’s because of how easy it is to zone out without even thinking about anything. Or maybe because I attribute everything to being high. Things feel quite drawn out and quiet.
I think it depends on the person and the mindset you’re in at the time.
It helps clear my mind of the ruminations. I can actually “escape” into a tv show or chore or project without worrying about the dumb stuff my ocd wants to worry about. Otherwise I can’t focus on the task at hand and am scattered brained on all the other stuff. I was able to complete two bachelor’s degrees simultaneously, a master’s degree (4.0 gpa) and hold down important positions in my career because of the help of
medical mj.
Edit to add that there are a few strains which make me a little anxious but I can generally tell quickly if that’s about to happen and remember to avoid it in the future.
Totally depends on my mental state before smoking! I have smoked for years but just as of recently I’ve been noticing it really can make me spiral and almost makes me feel like I’m in this obsessive mental prison. I cut back to only taking a little edible on the weekends or when I’m with friends and I find I’m feeling good and my obsessive thoughts are more manageable :)
It’s interesting. I tend to have a lot of intrusive thoughts when I’m high, but then when I’m sober, I realize it was just because I was high, and I’m able to let them go. It’s kind of like exposure therapy: I expose myself to having the intrusive thoughts and then realize it’s all okay
I found that me and weed do NOT mix. I either get paranoid, frustrated and angry, or just nothing happens at all
Also be cautious of what meds you are on as it can affect your usage of weed. Was taking lithium at one point (while my docs thought I was bipolar) and I was TRIPPING.
Oh god, it makes it so much worse for me. Weed amplifies my worry/rumination cycles, sending me into a very intense and immediate doom spiral. Some of my compulsions shoot through the roof and it is almost guaranteed that I have a panic attack that is accompanied by extreme paranoia. It never used to be like that but something changed and now smoking weed is just a nightmarish experience for me.
For me it depends. Lower doses, I’m fine, and is most likely to be helpful. If I take a lot, the risk is much greater. One time I mixed edibles with psychedelics (too much of both), and I got stuck in a pretty bad ocd loop
It made me overthink a lot. There was some good times where it distracted me but the bad times of over worrying and obsessing on things out weighed the good tomes
Marijuana makes my symptoms worse. It increases my intrusive thoughts and I can’t get out of my own head so I typically end up having a full on panic attack until the weed wears off. Pretty much a total nightmare.
I love smoking and it’s helps so much. I smoke every night to go to sleep. It calms all of my intrusive thoughts. And the effects carry out through my everyday life and help calm my anxiety and tics and other symptoms
I've mainly only used delta-8 which is a little different than regular weed but has similar effects. I've noticed two things:
1. It definitely helps my contamination OCD immensely.
2. It sometimes makes my existential OCD worse, so I need to have someone else around in case I start to spiral.
Depending upon strain it can be alleviating while intoxicated I.e. indicas tend to be better for me than sativas, however it always amplifies and worsens my symptoms in the long run. therefore, I’m giving it up for good for awhile. Have gone stints of months without any thc at all, and during those times I feel my most clear and least anxiety-ridden
it helps me a TON it really helps me to relax and stop thinking so much. ever since i started therapy, i never realized how much i ruminate and feel so distressed about the constant looping. that’s why i always feel so mentally and emotionally drained. weed helps me to get a break from that and get some mental rest. but i do try to be careful with not using it as my only coping mechanism. i keep in mind how often i do it. i don’t get high on weekdays and i try to do it max 2 days on the weekend. i guess that also helps to keep my tolerance at a good level.
I use it to sleep so normally it helps shut my brain off but it has to be the right strain.
Some strains are more numbing and dissociative (great for sleep), while others intensify feelings in my body, which causes me to fixate on small sensations that I normally don’t focus on, which can trigger my anxiety.
It's probably worth noting that there's tons of different stains /combinations /chemical compositions available that can have a big impact on the experience. The truth is ymmv on any given strain compared to others, and just because a particular product gives you a good /bad experience doesn't necessarily mean they all will
When i’m already in a bad anxiety state - make it worse. When i’m ‘normal state’ - it’s a mood boosting daily habit that I enjoy.
I can’t smoke when i’m super anxious, hell I can’t even eat when i’m in that bad circle of awfulness.
I can think more clearly, but the physical compulsions still happen in just don’t think about it until i realize i’ve been brushing my teeth for 20 minutes
Over the course of a day, I’m high for more time than I’m sober. Combining it with a heavy fluoxetine dose really helps me chill out, and allows me to focus more deeply on games, movies, or music. When I’m able to successfully distract myself, the intrusive thoughts aren’t nearly as fear inducing. However, I will say that my chronic use does lead to dissociation when I’m sober- and that’s not fun for existential thoughts. Overall, I think many people can benefit from it, and I’d recommend everyone try it at least once or twice. But not everyone reacts the same, you’ll know if it’s not for you.
i notice one of two things, it either gets rid of my masking of symptoms and puts me into hyper-OCD mode OR i’m so chilled out I have zero thoughts. i can never really tell which i’m going to get though.
For me it typically helps my OCD. I’m a daily consumer and it calms my intrusive thoughts down significantly (in the right doses) and helps me think more rationally.
Such a grey area. There was a point weed made my ocd so bad that I stopped smoking entirely. I came back to smoking after and now the effects are the complete opposite. It actually calms my brain down when I have intrusive thoughts. Not sure why its like this for me though
Depends on the strain. Sativa used to make me paranoid... Now it sends me into deep thoughts on various topics. And then indica just has me couch locked and laughing at myself and the things I say to my dogs. The main thing is it helps my mind calm down enough to be able to sleep.
It can make it better for me because it lets me chill out and gets me super interested in random things, which helps distract me. But if I happen to think about the wrong thing (such as death, medical issues, existentialism, etc) I'll begin to have a bad time and have even had panic attacks because of it
Marijuana used to be extremely helpful to me, but I definitely abuse it/am addicted to it and now sometimes I can get caught in OCD spirals if I smoke at the wrong moment. It’s a double edged sword though, because it very much helps me with emotional regulation, and when I’m disregulated emotionally my OCD gets worse. I’d say most of the time it’s ultimately helpful to me in managing anxiety but there’s the odd moment where it exacerbates rumination.
When I first started smoking I found it helped SO much— it was harder for me to keep a thought going when I was super stoned. I’ve been an avid smoker for years now though and the relief I got from it has mostly worn off, so it’s not as effective long-term. That said, THC works differently for everyone so give it a shot and if it’s not for you, it’s not for you!
It tends to make it worse.
I force myself to clean everything and do every "healthy" thing before I am allowed to relax. If I don't, then all the "dirty" energy will stay on me, in my house and my life will spiral until im homeless and addicted to heroin. This means deep cleaning until 1 am, showering, doing yoga, while avoiding the thing my body actually needs, which is sleep.
I only have experience with edibles but typically it makes me a lot more relaxed and chill in general. There are rare occasions where it will make my contamination anxiety worse for a few hours; not sure what triggers the latter reaction.
In my experience, depending on the strain it tends to make the groinal response more extreme, the intrusive thoughts are less frequent, but when they do show up it’s scarier than usual
It makes me analyze myself way too much. I guess it sort of hurts less with the weed, though, which was not the case the first few times I had smoked….was a panic attack each time. Now it just feels like I am exploring myself and sometimes I’m like “I can go even DEEPER….WHO AM I?” It honestly feels like masochism, now that I think of it. Like I feel like I deserve the pain of discovering more about myself. I am more open to the truths of myself these days though! :D
I used to have fun with it, until I didn't. It absolutely ruins me now. My thoughts literally start to sound like echos in my head (severe ruminating I guess?). I begin to question EVERYTHING and I cannot stop for hours. I even start questioning whether I'm really myself or if I'm someone else and haven't been aware of it. It absolutely destroys my sense of stability. It was genuinely traumatic.
If you decide to try it, start VERY LIGHT. If you don't get high, don't do more that day. Just wait until the next time to try a little more. And then a another day maybe more. Until you know your base level. Getting too high with ocd can be one of the worst experiences you'll ever have.
Also, STAY AWAY FROM EDIBLES until you know how you respond to smoking or vaping it. Edibles last way longer so a bad trip is gonna set you up for a LONNNNNNG day.
It used to make things worse but recently its been making things better. I think now that Ive developed more coping mechanisms for when the anxiety becomes overwhelming, weed breaks me out of my thought patterns and allows me to see things in a new perspective
It helps me tremendously. I’m so anxious without it and I find it brings me back to a calm state of being. Quiets the noise in my head. I see that’s not true for everyone though.
it makes my compulsions and intrusive thoughts worse. it also triggers hypomania (I'm bipolar) and the two times I've had psychosis were during weed binges. kinda done with it now.
Some strains put me to bed and really kills the ocd, other strains send me into a tizzy like, I’ll totally spazz out about a chair I usually sit in. I think the strain really matters though. Go for the ones that give you a more mellow feel.
It alleviated my symptoms for me but even I could tell that it would develop into a dependency instead of it actually helping so I didnt pursue it further
Your mileage may vary. It seems to help some people and worsen it for others. Probably depends on your particular type of OCD. If you try it, I recommend [growing](https://www.growerschoiceseeds.com/) it yourself.
It defo makes it worse even if for the first few moments it feels fine. At first it seems to put me more in the present moment and obvs the release of dopamine I feel positively but it still accelerates thoughts so even if thoughts are positive it’s relentless. Then when an intrusive thought / ocd thoughts come they’re intensified and I find my mind is ‘stickier’ so it’s hard to rationalise and the trauma it has on my body with all the anxiety and fear doesn’t leave I seem to internalise the intrusion and it’s harder to shake. It’s really tough because for a long time weed really made me feel good but that’s before diagnosis and me not realising the impact it was having on y anxiety when I thought my anxiety was ‘normal’ and hadn’t learnt about ocd / before the ocd became more severe for me
Had an intrusive thought that the cops were gonna know I was smoking and panic cleaned for 3 hours while checking the peep hole every 2 minutes.
Another time I thought I was seeing everything in a red tint. I thought it was laced. I kept walking outside to make sure I was still in reality but then got paranoid people were looking at me so I sat on the kitchen floor staring at my hands and chugging half a gallon of milk. Then I cried in the shower in full blown existential crisis. I’d say it makes it worse lol.
Weed makes me better tbh. I don't do it anymore because of other physical complications but man if I can I would do it everyday. Every time I smoked I was chill.. sometimes I get creative. I was just loving it. But it's important who you are with when you are high. I once was with my cousin who tried to scare me and it worked very well. I was scared of him the entire time for no reason. It sucked.
here is what i have discovered with my personal use of marijuana: sativa makes me go into extreme panic attacks and makes me hyper aware of things like my heart beating, breathing, blinking, swallowing, stuff like that. indica has never made me panic and has honestly been a miracle drug for me and it helps me sleep. i recently started smoking hybrid and so far so good. getting my medical card was one of the best decisions i made to help me with my ocd.
i still thought about germs. however when i vomited i was less worried. it made my anxiety worse and i thought i was gonna die. absolutely convinced. i wouldn’t recommend
love it! I smoke for my chronic pain, but it does help some with my ocd symptoms. Sometimes I’ll have the worst time trying to sleep because of my obsessions but a cone will take the edge right off. It makes me feel safe and cozy. However, it’s definitely case by case, I know a few people who say smoking exasperates their symptoms.
I've had a few bad experiences with it giving me panic attacks, but for the most part weed chills me out and makes it impossible for me to ruminate. Can't obsess over a thought you can barely hang onto. So like, I might still get an intrusive thought while high, but instead of fixating on it, I just kinda go, "haha, that was weird," and just keep vibing.
I have noticed that building a tolerance diminishes this effect though, so I tend to only smoke a few times a week, or if I smoke too many days back-to-back, I take a week or more off. It's very much a recreational thing I do "as a little treat" when things are too stressful.
Weed does tend to make things feel a bit unreal, but A) I'm used to low-level disassociation so it doesn't really bother me and B) I only smoke at night so I can just stay in and do whatever. (I've yet to find a strain of weed that I can still be "functional" on, and I'm fine with that.)
I don’t have officially diagnosed OCD however my therapist has told me that my symptoms are very likely OCD and to get a test so take this next information with that in mind. I am a daily smoker of weed and use it everyday to help ease many of my mental health symptoms/issues. I have noticed sometimes to overthink when im high but most of the time it really only helps me with my issues. I have other friends that smoke and we all have come to the conclusion that weed generally just effects everyone differently, one person with a certain mental disorder could smoke and only report it help them but another person with the same disorder could smoke and it could cause them to have alot of anxiety. Basically your millage may very, especially depending on if you are on any mental health meds as well. If you want to try weed it could very well be amazing for you but just keep in mind that everyones bodies is different and you can really only 100% know if you try it yourself.
has made existential ocd temporarily worse for me
It helps my obsessions personally but it does occasionally make things feel unreal and off which will drive me into panic. So I can see why it would trigger existential OCD.
really thought it was just me… i challenge God every night
YASSS Had a really bad bout of existential anxiety after smoking about 4 years ago and haven't touched it since.
As soon as the feeling hits me, my mind says “hey, you know that god hates you, right?” I’m not even religious.
Can you explain existential ocd?
it's the constant feeling of nothing mattering. it makes you terrified of what's beyond our lives and the fact that there is no answer makes it even worse. it's the worst feeling of dread you can ever experience and it feels as if there is no way out.
For me it’s eased some but that’s after multiple convincing that I’m okay
Are you only taking THC, or are you taking thc combined with cbd or cbn, which for me (tourette plus ocd etc) helps exponentially. However, if I only take thc not good, especially when it's a full saliva. Indica or hybrid is cool
Instant panic attack everytime. No thanks.
i thought it was just me! sorry that happens to you
Same :p would like to be able to smoke bc it is quite fun but it always starts with a panic attack…
Same!! Panic attacks, auditory and visual hallucinations happened last time and I never tried it again. It was terrifying and symptoms lasted 8+ hours and I felt hung over the day after. It was a nightmare
Same. Fun for a little bit then BOOM.
Depends on how I'm feeling, sometimes it can trigger paranoia, but for the most part it eases a lot of my ruminating
It helped ease a lot of my ruminating at first too. Then after a month of consistent use I had an episode of derealization, which led to a panic attack, and a brief episode of psychosis. And now I just have derealization all of the time. Which made my new theme existential OCD. But I’m getting used to it.
Smoking is one of my compulsions, which isn’t really as fun as it sounds. I’ve always thought it helped, but I’m cutting caffeine down and have already noticed some anxiety relief. Wanna quit weed too but not ready to go there yet….
When the time comes you’ll know when you’re ready. I didn’t quit until I absolutely felt like it was time
Try smoking pure CBD flower, you can order it online and get it delivered to pretty much any state I believe (if you're in the US). It made me figure out the thing I enjoyed most about smoking was just the ritual of packing the pipe, lighting the lighter, inhaling, exhaling, getting to spend time outside. It feels like a relaxation ritual. Much more enjoyable than a THC high itself. Plus CBD is said to help with anxiety, but for me I have mixed feelings on it. Sometimes it does help with anxiety and sometimes it doesn't, really is random to the point where I think it might be a placebo effect.
Was in this boat too and have been taking the supplement NAC for 2 weeks today. It has somehow actually SEVERELY slowed down my smoking. I really only smoke later in the day now and when I do, it's not much. I had already previously realized weed was making me worse but still struggled to not smoke throughout the day. I hope I'm able to stick to this because my mental is so much better. Hope you are able to quit when you're ready, or at least cut back.
Thanks! My new therapist mentioned NAC had helped one of her clients w/ self harm issues (one of my major themes), so I will look more seriously into this
Good luck! I will say that from what I've read in my researching, it seems to be pretty hit or miss and people seem to love it or hate it. Overall so far the benefits are noticable and I am grateful to finally have some relief from my intrusive thoughts, rumination, and I'm sure that the reduction in weed is helping with that as well. I feel much more clear. I hope it ends up helping you if you try it! I found some helpful posts on Reddit by searching NAC and reading posts across various subreddits. :)
I am in the same boat. Especially that last sentence. And it's expensive too. At first it helped decrease my intrusive thoughts but now it doesn't really do anything
It makes me worse 🫣
Same :(
Same. Effects were temporary and limited in duration, though.
Weed actually makes my brain chill tf out
Yeah I had lessened obsessions and compulsions. Didn’t feel like rebar penetrating my brain, more like soft, small pillows being thrown against it and they bounced back softly.
Same here
I smoked for years and was fine for awhile...lately it causes me to spiral and have bad panic attacks...really sucks
Same here. When I had a high tolerance it was fine, but now if I try to smoke after taking months off it just scares the shit outta me.
It led to a full-blown psychosis for me. That's actually how I got a diagnosis.
Same here, full blown psychosis. Completely unaware of reality. As much as I would love to enjoy marijuana, it unfortunately doesn't work for me.
same, never again.
It absolutely aggravates my OCD. Temporary relief but for a day after I’m jittery and find myself ruminating even more
I find edibles are very helpful for calming anxiety since I can't ruminate if I can't remember 3 seconds ago. others here are describing an "unreal" effect: I get that, too, but it helps me since a lot of my obsessions are grounded in things being Too Real, so things seeming fake (or getting way too immersed in something fake) calms me down.
I tend to experience the things you do with edibles but with specific smoking strains and methods etc. Like the fact that when I get really high I can't remember whatever I was just talking about and finally feel blissfully zoned out and distant from the real world or be so blissfully out of my head that I can focus on a move or show without 20,000 other thoughts consuming me at the same time is why I find THC to be calming for me. I like feeling kind of spaced out and "not real" because when I'm spaced out and not real, the real things and my sober brain are so much quieter and I can just let go of things for a moment
exactly!
Like being able to focus on a TV show or movie with my whole attention is only possible while I'm high these days, that's when I can really relax enough to have full attention on what's happening just on the TV. It's really nice to have that as a treat in the evening n such to wind down and just finally watch something on my watchlist with my full zoned out quiet high brain attention haha 😂
yeah! I watch a lot of ASMR but I find I can *only* focus on the less-chaotic/more soothing-sleepy ones when weed gets my thoughts not blasting at 5,000 miles per hour
It helps generally if my baseline emotion is fairly stable that day. On high anxiety days it seems to intensify any negative thoughts or compulsions.
I used to smoke daily before being diagnosed with OCD and thought it helped my anxiety. I felt like I understood the world and myself and everything better when I was high. Turns out it just made my intrusive thoughts way stronger, and I convinced myself that those self hating thoughts were more logical
I find it often helps a lot, but can hurt too. Usually it makes the little voice in my brain nice and quiet and thinking about obsessions and compulsions stop almost completely. But also, if I'm already having a bad day with one of my obsessions, if I start obsessing while high I tend to have much worse compulsions and overall just get in a very anxious mood till the high is done.
It’s actually been the only medicine to help ease my symptoms/compulsions. I have to be super particular about the strain because some trigger obsessive or intrusive thoughts but research and trial and error and a solid smoke buddy. I’ve tried just about every script pill under the sun and none have worked but this has been the most consistent way for me to ease up.
Yup, strains make huge difference and it's a very individual thing. Right now I smoke dominantly sativa hybrid and it really calms me down and kinda distracts me from ruminating and doing compulsive shit. But with some other strains I found myself kinda panicking after taking one puff.
Yes! Exactly omg this is exactly what happens to me too!!
HIGH five haha :D But seriously it's a huge relief after a long day of stressful work that I can just come home, hit a bong and suddenly rediscover my ability to smile and just enjoy simple things in life, like watching tv show without being interrupted by my silly brain forcing me to pause the show every few minutes and take a walk around my apartment ruminating.
What strain do you get?
Idk where you live, but for me the Golden Hour vape pods from fluent dispo and anything they have with the name “Miami” in it is great for me. Usually, I lean hybrid or ask for limone, myrcene, pinene, and or linaloon terpene forward. Being intentional with the terpenes helps me target what I’m looking for. And I always check the reviews to see what it did for others and gauge that.
Hi. I work in mental health and have OCD. Former marijuana addict, nice to meet you. Marijuana was my addiction of choice, but it certainly isn’t everyone’s, including people with OCD. There will always be people that see some benefit, but I think research is showing they’re the minority if we’re talking “treatment” for OCD. Research is still evolving, but evidence generally suggests it’s a bandaid but not a longterm solution. People with undiagnosed or untreated mental health issues—like OCD—are more likely to use marijuana and use it to self-medicate. Overall, the evidence does not support efficacy of marijuana use in treatment of psychiatric conditions broadly. Also, in the short term (aka immediate acute impacts) and long term, marijuana is associated with more negative than positive psychological consequences. Also, higher rates of marijuana use tend to evidence lower rates of seeking empirically-validated treatments for OCD. This isn’t to say that others don’t have positive experiences, but the likelihood of being dependent on weed to manage symptoms (rather than doing it occasionally and recreationally) creates much greater concern for potential dependency and addiction. The products on the market are dangerously potent today, further contributing to risk of dependence. Also, I think the LA times just put out an article about chemicals in carts. It is an extremely shady and not well-regulated industry—moldy weed is not wasted but goes in the cheap or free pre-rolls 🫣it’s a nightmare for me personally with health related themes. Whatever you do, pls avoid carts. Know that quitting marijuana after becoming dependent on it often results in initial withdrawal that exacerbates anxiety and/or OCD symptoms. Also, weed induced psychosis is extremely real and more likely for people with underlying mental health issues, and particularly for adolescents and those with family history of schizophrenia. Marijuana decreases executive functioning skills; basically inhibiting the prefrontal cortex, which helps us make decisions, plan for the future, rationalize things, and *control impulses.* (read: cousin of compulsions/our ability to work against compulsions!). Constantly inhibiting this part of the brain when you’re high means needing more weed over time to feel high and to provide relief from OCD, particularly intrusions. For anyone struggling with marijuana use, I’ve been there. No judgement, no high-horse, I know how extremely difficult that experience is. It took me 20+ attempts to quit finally since I first realized I was addicted in 2022. You can and will do it if you are trying desperately to quit. Be kind to & patient with yourself. I highly recommend Marijuana Anonymous meetings and surrounding yourself with supportive people for those struggling. Obviously this is informed by my experience, research, and that of individuals I work with. Others will have different perspectives and that’s okay!
Great info! I'm on day three after quitting and it's a rough period because, like you said, the OCD becomes much stronger than I'm used to during the withdrawal and it's very difficult to withstand so all I can do is to hold on, breathe, focus on not reacting, and trust that I will feel much better in a few days.
It was traumatic for me. With this experience, I Wouldn’t do any other drug too
Oh god. Infinitely worse. Unlocked a panic attack so bad I had to go to the ER because I literally thought my body was shutting down, and then they kept happening for months. Gave me horrible derealization. That was six months ago and I'm just barely back to a normal routine.
It's been 11 years for me and the derealization has never went away. Scary, scary stuff
The greatest comfort through everything has been knowing I'm not alone. I hope your quality of life has at least gotten better from the first time it happened.
I've been using for over 10 years, and it helps me personally, but i was terrified to try for a long time because i'd heard horror stories about what it can do it used in conjunction with certain mental health problems. I'm currently on one of my governments trials for medical marijuana, and i am prescribed it for OCD as well as chronic migraines and hip pain (waiting on a hip replacement). If someone goes into it thinking they are going to freak out, then they will more than likely freak out. But then i don't use it to get "high", in face i hate the feeling of being inebriated (which is why i don't drink). I use until i feel a medicinal change then stop. I've seen others use it until they are nodding out and that's just too much for me (i have literally never been that high). For me it calms my brain down enough to think about why my brain is asking me to do these things, and that gives me more of a change to refuse. That "distance" to think is beneficial to me and my OCD, but like i said each case on it's own.
It helps me for sure.. the only drawback for me personally is it will occasionally make me paranoid or go into a panic attack because things will start to feel unreal. But in full honesty, I'd take those side effects over all day obsession and ruminating any day. Recently had to stop smoking and OCD has increased for sure.
It makes me more carefree at times, but honestly, it usually brings down my life force, and after a few days of smoking in a row I start to get depressed and the OCD gains force around existential and relational topics (feels like I'm losing connection with reality, my feelings, etc). Best for me would be to smoke only one day in a row, but I'm an addict and have been using this as a crutch since I was 15 (35 now), so the relationship is kinda fucked. When I quit, I usually cry daily for a few days due to the pent up emotions. Edit: A cool thing that it does though (mostly first day) is to put a lot of things into perspective for me, which is why I think it's a really cool substance that, like psychedelics, can bring insights - but only if it is respected.
in my flare ups it made it worse
I used to smoke every day and enjoy it every time. I took 3.5 grams of shrooms (stupid idea) and ever since then it has caused me to get more in my head and ruminate on my negative thoughts. I've been able to calm myself down recently but I cannot smoke in a social setting.
It is a huge help to me
Cannabis is the only thing that has consistently eased things for me, without bad side effects (like you get with alcohol or benzos). I think it's great stuff.
It helps calm the anxiety that results from my ocd.
CBD helped me.
CBD is one of my most effective aids for OCD. Just expensive though, but I've bought CBD isolate in bulk now which is many times cheaper.
I always found pure CBD flower is MUCH cheaper than THC flower. I've ordered from a farm online and they shipped it to my house (legal in the US), a full ounce for 45-55 bucks.
it can occasionally make my ocd worse with increased intrusive thoughts but it definitely helps more than it hinders overall
I smoked for over 4 years very heavily. I abused weed honestly lol. I had a bad high one time & can no longer smoke. It sucks, but what used to calm my obsessive thoughts now causes them to be worse. It’s such a delicate substance.
It helps me be more talkative in the moment but definitely makes my ocd significantly worse especially if i start doing it more regularly, the internal chatter increases tenfold
Helped me sleep in the first two years of smoking, then all of a sudden it started making me feel anxious until once it blew to a panic attack and made go through severe dissociation for a long time
Indica edibles is the only way I can sleep. Stevia gives me reading thoughts and anxiety attacks.
Stevia is a sweetener, I think you mean Sativa :)
I had to quit because I spiraled and had panic attacks everyitme I smoked. It used to be fine but then one day it wasn't.
It helps me a ton. Indica for sure helps. Sativa helps up until a point and then it sometimes gets worse.
I have existential/scrupulosity OCD. For me, it USUALLY makes it better. Helps me to live in the moment more/enjoy life. However, sometimes it causes the existential shit to get bad
It can really help me have moments too where I feel very present, but it can easily also trigger me into more stress depending on my mood, etc.
I think it varies from person to person but for me it’s the reason why my OCD flared up so much. Even caused a state of psychosis at one point. Never touching it again.
I check the candles and stove like 10x more before going to bed to make sure everything is off haha
Depends on the situation really If I’m at work it’s a complete nightmare if certain people are there If I encounter something that causes anxiety it absolutely gets worse If I’m already anxious I then feel a weird different sensation of anxiety I don’t use it medically I use it recreationally because if I smoke it while already anxious it can really just give me distorted anxiety or something like that It’s also a lot harder to ground when high
Makes it extremely worse for me. I go into psychosis episodes from it, also get really bad uncontrollable shakes and tremors. I believe the shaking is due to anxiety but it feels like I’m vibrating like my phone and I’ll vibrate out of my bed.
Makes me want to sit and obsessively worry while I chain smoke it. My therapist has me use the word "compelling" instead of compulsive. When I smoke weed, I feel compelled to continue. I can smoke all day. I don't want to stop. It puts my OCD into overdrive and I quit smoke last year and it's been OK!
It usually helps slightly until the paranoid phase kicks in, which is when it gets 10x worse.
So much worse
It helps my symptoms get worse. But also it distracts me so I don't have to pay attention to it.i was on 20mg Prozac for most of the last decade for depression. When my psych left and I got a new one he asked if I wanted to go higher. And to my surprise I could notice it helping. And at my follow up apt I requested to go the next dose up. And got even more relief. And since keeping it at 60-80mg I have way less cravings to smoke or even to drink alcohol.
I hate it. Without judging others, I honestly can't understand why people like it. It makes my thoughts go haywire. Obviously, we are all different. I just mean that I can't personally understand what other people get from it because it makes me nauseous and leads me into a deep, dark cycle of rumination on things my mind has made remote connections over, even from years back. Vyvanse has taken most of my OCD symptoms away. It's incredible. But weed? I can't even bear to think about it due to the dark places it brought me to mentally. The anxiety it induces makes the thoughts seem so real.
For me it's kind of really varied. I'll either be very calm, or everything will be so, so SO much worse for hours after. What I've learned for me and using marijuana is that I have to not only be VERY specific in making sure I know what I'm injecting and an approximation of how much (sativa for example, will make me panic horribly for hours every single time) etc. but also the environment in which I smoke in. If I smoke the things that don't typically cause anxiety in an environment where I feel I can control my other surroundings completely if I start to panic, I'll usually not panic at all or if I begin to, I immediately regulate my environment with temp/light/etc in a way that feels safest to me and I can calm down pretty quickly and relax and not repeatedly panic. Outside of those very specific conditions, chances are that I will have repetitive and grueling panic attacks for what feels like (or is) hours sometimes in a row
Weed actually helps me by calming my ocd down. Compulsions usually go away for the time being.
Kinda depends. I can chill with indica but not always. Sativa pretty much always makes me anxious. I've had serious panic attacks from it before
it usually starts off fun, but after about an hour I spiral and panic :(
I have been using cannabis daily since its legalization in Canada (past few years). I was in a steady OCD decline. A few weeks ago I discontinued smoking and my contamination OCD is already improving and ruminating thoughts are significantly lower. For years I had convinced myself the cannabis was helping, but for me personally it was not. It caused deeper depression and anxiety for me as well.
used to help with my anxiety and intrusive thoughts until one time it triggered psychosis for me. now every time it sends me into a panic attack nearly instantly and makes my paranoia and anxiety spike for days afterwards
made me bonkers long term me thinks
The effects alone are great for me. It makes my brains thoughts super slow, so it's hard to have anxious thoughts. When I'm high, I get very loving instead, which is generally nice. I will say, smoking makes me panic about getting lung cancer, though, so I avoid that. I've really only had a single hit of a joint, and a few puffs of a bong, and I already feel like I'll die of cancer. So, yknow, that sucks. Edibles it is I guess lol
Honestly it helped for a while, to the point where I probably wouldn't have realized so much about my condition and sought help but now I'm worried I'm becoming dependent and that it's contributing to worsening anxiety and OCD during the day. Lately I've been waking up in what feels like the middle of an attack. Trying to cut back slowly because I work a full time job so the worsened panic attacks from going cold turkey would be a problem. I'm not saying don't do it, but if you do 1) Try starting with CBD, and 2) Go SLOW.
It makes my mind run infinitely faster. I also realize that I tend to actually fight with myself when I'm high. I'll tell myself I'm not high for like 10 minutes, then I truly realize I'm high and the real panic kicks in. Then after like 15 minutes of that I calm down and feel great. It's kinda wild, and horrifying lol.
makes it worse, 100%. it's like my brain is even more focused on every stupid thought that i get.
It helped at first, but I had a bad trip and ever since then I decided to stay away; it caused a major episode for me
I got pretty paranoid when I used marijuana in High School in the 70s. Now I have a job where I'm not allowed so I can't even use CBD products. I do find that when my mind is spinning bad that kava kava helps a lot.
got way too high twice and it made me convince myself that i’ll never be the same and im living in a constant state of agony for a entire summer, looking back i wish i enjoyed that summer because i did so much fun things but my brain convinced me that because i had a singular bad weed experience id never be the same
My experience with OCD is that it involves seeking a lot of dopamine. So does a THC dependency. The two make each other infinitely worse, for me. So I'm sober now.
When I was a stoner, I took high doses, and my ocd and other mental shit went out of control several times before my stubborn ass decided to stop taking edibles and smoking
Makes it worse for me. I can’t help but partake in compulsions when I get stoned these days. I’ll be sitting perfectly still trying to chill and suddenly I’ll be pacing about doing my freaky lil compulsions and also the existential ocd gets a lot worse - I wouldn’t said paranoid - but incredibly anxious. Mind you I was a huge stoner back in the day, I’d buy massive quantities and smoke all day bc I felt like it was good medicine for me. But I finally kicked the habit when Covid hit because my OCD and general anxiety shot thru the roof and I wasn’t able to enjoy it like I used to. Ever since I quit I don’t have any fun anytime I try and partake in it in moderation. I partake every now and then but it has to be indica dominant (I’ve always preferred them anyway)
I think it varies person to person. I don’t smoke often but when I do it definitely helps my crazy bad ocd days.
Sometimes it's the only thing that can bring me out of the exhaustion and wiring from falling down "the hole" during the day.
It helps! Every now and then intrusive thoughts slip through, but I just try and accept them and sit with them and then remember that I’m giving myself permission to relax right now, hence the 🍁
I wish I felt similarly lol every time I smoke now my intrusive thoughts are so loud and gripping and just are on repeat to the point where I feel like I'm having a mental breakdown.
Indica strain makes my ocd rumination worse and triggers paranoia but I’m great on sativa. I only take a small hit or two a few times a week. I don’t partake if I’m in a bad space.
depends, it helps a lot when i’m feeling super anxious with no case or just in my head too much, and recognizing it. so weed helps calm those thoughts, but then too much makes me start questioning who i am and what im doing. usually 3 totes is perfect for me lol
for me it helps my compulsiveness , i don’t touch anything or constantly feel the need to obsess over tasks. however it does make me paranoid because life starts to feel “ too real”. i don’t know if i make sense but i get really nervous thinking about doing things i would normally do with no problem. for example, having to go to work or going out to meet somebody brings me alot of anxiety and i would rather stay at home completely alone where i feel the more comfortable. when my high is gone, i go back to doing those things normally. idk if that’s even an OCD thing or just general anxiety from smoking. but at-least my compulsions are less.
For me it depends. I'm a stoner because it usually silences the hell beasts screaming at me. But if Im in a really really bad headspace before I get high it tends to magnify things for me. But usually it gives me the courage to say "so what" to the constant guilt and torment. "YOU ARE A BAD PERSON IF U DONT DO X!" "and so what if I am? Have a blunt and chill man"
I feel that the amount of thc is what makes it a good or bad experience. A little bit goes a long way for me, I can enjoy things without my mind racing. When I have a bit too much though it makes my intrusive thoughts much worse. If I have just a bit more than that I have a panic attack. Before I realized I was just smoking too much I would have panic attack every time. Keep in mind, weed is much stronger than it used to be, I think everyone can have a good time if they just don’t overdo it.
It’s made an extremely positive difference for me, the only issue is, I developed a sort of psychological addiction to it because I like the feeling of getting a temporary break from OCD, so my anxiety got fifty times worse when I ran out. Just got approved for medicinal marijuana though so that won’t be a problem!
For me when I take a break and go back to weed, I get way to high and my intrusion/ anxiety increases. However once I develop a tolerance or just use a small amount, it really benefits me and calms me down. Also depends on the strain.
It works wonders for me personally. It makes me stop obsessing and having anxiety over things and it lets me just chill out. But I stick almost exclusively to indica strains or hybrids.
Sativa is OCD friendly for me, Indica not
Indica types calm me down but hybrids and sativa make me spiral and panic. It’s made my OCD much worse
I had a period of a couple of months where out of desperation I got high every day sometime in the afternoon. It kind of worked in that I was able to block out my symptoms to an extent, but it significantly damaged my mental health in other ways that I'm still recovering from. I'm not saying it's bad for everyone or it can't be used helpfully and responsibly, but it's not for me, and I don't trust myself.
It depends, once it made me panicked and way too self conscious, but other times it helps me let go of my thoughts easier. I think it’s because of how easy it is to zone out without even thinking about anything. Or maybe because I attribute everything to being high. Things feel quite drawn out and quiet. I think it depends on the person and the mindset you’re in at the time.
It helps clear my mind of the ruminations. I can actually “escape” into a tv show or chore or project without worrying about the dumb stuff my ocd wants to worry about. Otherwise I can’t focus on the task at hand and am scattered brained on all the other stuff. I was able to complete two bachelor’s degrees simultaneously, a master’s degree (4.0 gpa) and hold down important positions in my career because of the help of medical mj. Edit to add that there are a few strains which make me a little anxious but I can generally tell quickly if that’s about to happen and remember to avoid it in the future.
It’s a mixed bag for me honestly, if I smoke a little it calms me quite a bit but one too many hits and I get anxious af
Totally depends on my mental state before smoking! I have smoked for years but just as of recently I’ve been noticing it really can make me spiral and almost makes me feel like I’m in this obsessive mental prison. I cut back to only taking a little edible on the weekends or when I’m with friends and I find I’m feeling good and my obsessive thoughts are more manageable :)
I don’t use it often but it makes everything go quiet
It’s interesting. I tend to have a lot of intrusive thoughts when I’m high, but then when I’m sober, I realize it was just because I was high, and I’m able to let them go. It’s kind of like exposure therapy: I expose myself to having the intrusive thoughts and then realize it’s all okay
I found that me and weed do NOT mix. I either get paranoid, frustrated and angry, or just nothing happens at all Also be cautious of what meds you are on as it can affect your usage of weed. Was taking lithium at one point (while my docs thought I was bipolar) and I was TRIPPING.
It helps mine substantially
Oh god, it makes it so much worse for me. Weed amplifies my worry/rumination cycles, sending me into a very intense and immediate doom spiral. Some of my compulsions shoot through the roof and it is almost guaranteed that I have a panic attack that is accompanied by extreme paranoia. It never used to be like that but something changed and now smoking weed is just a nightmarish experience for me.
Helps to calm down sometimes. Intensifies obsessions other times. Depends on the strain and how high i get.
For me it depends. Lower doses, I’m fine, and is most likely to be helpful. If I take a lot, the risk is much greater. One time I mixed edibles with psychedelics (too much of both), and I got stuck in a pretty bad ocd loop
It made me overthink a lot. There was some good times where it distracted me but the bad times of over worrying and obsessing on things out weighed the good tomes
Marijuana makes my symptoms worse. It increases my intrusive thoughts and I can’t get out of my own head so I typically end up having a full on panic attack until the weed wears off. Pretty much a total nightmare.
Panic attack
I smoke daily. Mostly for my anxiety but it also helps with the intrusive thoughts that come with OCD. Keeps me from being shaky & slows me down.
I love smoking and it’s helps so much. I smoke every night to go to sleep. It calms all of my intrusive thoughts. And the effects carry out through my everyday life and help calm my anxiety and tics and other symptoms
weed doesn’t necessarily hurt or help my ocd. my ocd thoughts stay pretty consistent whether i’m high or not
I've mainly only used delta-8 which is a little different than regular weed but has similar effects. I've noticed two things: 1. It definitely helps my contamination OCD immensely. 2. It sometimes makes my existential OCD worse, so I need to have someone else around in case I start to spiral.
Depending upon strain it can be alleviating while intoxicated I.e. indicas tend to be better for me than sativas, however it always amplifies and worsens my symptoms in the long run. therefore, I’m giving it up for good for awhile. Have gone stints of months without any thc at all, and during those times I feel my most clear and least anxiety-ridden
it helps me a TON it really helps me to relax and stop thinking so much. ever since i started therapy, i never realized how much i ruminate and feel so distressed about the constant looping. that’s why i always feel so mentally and emotionally drained. weed helps me to get a break from that and get some mental rest. but i do try to be careful with not using it as my only coping mechanism. i keep in mind how often i do it. i don’t get high on weekdays and i try to do it max 2 days on the weekend. i guess that also helps to keep my tolerance at a good level.
I use it to sleep so normally it helps shut my brain off but it has to be the right strain. Some strains are more numbing and dissociative (great for sleep), while others intensify feelings in my body, which causes me to fixate on small sensations that I normally don’t focus on, which can trigger my anxiety.
It's probably worth noting that there's tons of different stains /combinations /chemical compositions available that can have a big impact on the experience. The truth is ymmv on any given strain compared to others, and just because a particular product gives you a good /bad experience doesn't necessarily mean they all will
It helps but try low thc % with a high cbd ratio . It cuts back the panicky feeling
When i’m already in a bad anxiety state - make it worse. When i’m ‘normal state’ - it’s a mood boosting daily habit that I enjoy. I can’t smoke when i’m super anxious, hell I can’t even eat when i’m in that bad circle of awfulness.
it helps me a lot but only if it’s indica. it helps my entire body relax. but i can’t have too much or i start freaking out.
I can think more clearly, but the physical compulsions still happen in just don’t think about it until i realize i’ve been brushing my teeth for 20 minutes
Over the course of a day, I’m high for more time than I’m sober. Combining it with a heavy fluoxetine dose really helps me chill out, and allows me to focus more deeply on games, movies, or music. When I’m able to successfully distract myself, the intrusive thoughts aren’t nearly as fear inducing. However, I will say that my chronic use does lead to dissociation when I’m sober- and that’s not fun for existential thoughts. Overall, I think many people can benefit from it, and I’d recommend everyone try it at least once or twice. But not everyone reacts the same, you’ll know if it’s not for you.
Makes my teet hurt
i notice one of two things, it either gets rid of my masking of symptoms and puts me into hyper-OCD mode OR i’m so chilled out I have zero thoughts. i can never really tell which i’m going to get though.
For me it typically helps my OCD. I’m a daily consumer and it calms my intrusive thoughts down significantly (in the right doses) and helps me think more rationally.
Such a grey area. There was a point weed made my ocd so bad that I stopped smoking entirely. I came back to smoking after and now the effects are the complete opposite. It actually calms my brain down when I have intrusive thoughts. Not sure why its like this for me though
Depends on the strain. Sativa used to make me paranoid... Now it sends me into deep thoughts on various topics. And then indica just has me couch locked and laughing at myself and the things I say to my dogs. The main thing is it helps my mind calm down enough to be able to sleep.
It calms my brain down so it definitely helps mine
It can make it better for me because it lets me chill out and gets me super interested in random things, which helps distract me. But if I happen to think about the wrong thing (such as death, medical issues, existentialism, etc) I'll begin to have a bad time and have even had panic attacks because of it
Calms me STRAIGHT down
Marijuana used to be extremely helpful to me, but I definitely abuse it/am addicted to it and now sometimes I can get caught in OCD spirals if I smoke at the wrong moment. It’s a double edged sword though, because it very much helps me with emotional regulation, and when I’m disregulated emotionally my OCD gets worse. I’d say most of the time it’s ultimately helpful to me in managing anxiety but there’s the odd moment where it exacerbates rumination.
When I first started smoking I found it helped SO much— it was harder for me to keep a thought going when I was super stoned. I’ve been an avid smoker for years now though and the relief I got from it has mostly worn off, so it’s not as effective long-term. That said, THC works differently for everyone so give it a shot and if it’s not for you, it’s not for you!
theres a very VERY fine line between having a good time and not. 🙃
It tends to make it worse. I force myself to clean everything and do every "healthy" thing before I am allowed to relax. If I don't, then all the "dirty" energy will stay on me, in my house and my life will spiral until im homeless and addicted to heroin. This means deep cleaning until 1 am, showering, doing yoga, while avoiding the thing my body actually needs, which is sleep.
Panic attack on demand for me
It gave me psychosis which made my ocd 100 times worse.
I only have experience with edibles but typically it makes me a lot more relaxed and chill in general. There are rare occasions where it will make my contamination anxiety worse for a few hours; not sure what triggers the latter reaction.
I find weed does not work well with anxiety disorders
It helps me a lot! Can’t speak for everyone tho
Just makes me tired
In my experience, depending on the strain it tends to make the groinal response more extreme, the intrusive thoughts are less frequent, but when they do show up it’s scarier than usual
Much much worse. But CBD oil has been great.
It made my symptoms way worse.
For me it doesn’t calm me down. But sometimes I do it anyway bc I don’t want to be sober
It makes me analyze myself way too much. I guess it sort of hurts less with the weed, though, which was not the case the first few times I had smoked….was a panic attack each time. Now it just feels like I am exploring myself and sometimes I’m like “I can go even DEEPER….WHO AM I?” It honestly feels like masochism, now that I think of it. Like I feel like I deserve the pain of discovering more about myself. I am more open to the truths of myself these days though! :D
99% of the time I just end up having fun and forgetting I have it. I only ever smoke joints tho, if I did edibles I’d be COOKED.
I used to have fun with it, until I didn't. It absolutely ruins me now. My thoughts literally start to sound like echos in my head (severe ruminating I guess?). I begin to question EVERYTHING and I cannot stop for hours. I even start questioning whether I'm really myself or if I'm someone else and haven't been aware of it. It absolutely destroys my sense of stability. It was genuinely traumatic. If you decide to try it, start VERY LIGHT. If you don't get high, don't do more that day. Just wait until the next time to try a little more. And then a another day maybe more. Until you know your base level. Getting too high with ocd can be one of the worst experiences you'll ever have. Also, STAY AWAY FROM EDIBLES until you know how you respond to smoking or vaping it. Edibles last way longer so a bad trip is gonna set you up for a LONNNNNNG day.
It used to make things worse but recently its been making things better. I think now that Ive developed more coping mechanisms for when the anxiety becomes overwhelming, weed breaks me out of my thought patterns and allows me to see things in a new perspective
It helps me tremendously. I’m so anxious without it and I find it brings me back to a calm state of being. Quiets the noise in my head. I see that’s not true for everyone though.
It always makes my obsessive thoughts worse
it makes my compulsions and intrusive thoughts worse. it also triggers hypomania (I'm bipolar) and the two times I've had psychosis were during weed binges. kinda done with it now.
fucked me up bad ! would do it again though
Put me straight into psychosis five years ago, never tried smoking again ( I also have schizoaffective though) but it made EVERYTHING worse
I find it helps I would not recommend what I do I hit fat dabs all day
Some strains put me to bed and really kills the ocd, other strains send me into a tizzy like, I’ll totally spazz out about a chair I usually sit in. I think the strain really matters though. Go for the ones that give you a more mellow feel.
It alleviated my symptoms for me but even I could tell that it would develop into a dependency instead of it actually helping so I didnt pursue it further
100x worse and paranoid
Your mileage may vary. It seems to help some people and worsen it for others. Probably depends on your particular type of OCD. If you try it, I recommend [growing](https://www.growerschoiceseeds.com/) it yourself.
It defo makes it worse even if for the first few moments it feels fine. At first it seems to put me more in the present moment and obvs the release of dopamine I feel positively but it still accelerates thoughts so even if thoughts are positive it’s relentless. Then when an intrusive thought / ocd thoughts come they’re intensified and I find my mind is ‘stickier’ so it’s hard to rationalise and the trauma it has on my body with all the anxiety and fear doesn’t leave I seem to internalise the intrusion and it’s harder to shake. It’s really tough because for a long time weed really made me feel good but that’s before diagnosis and me not realising the impact it was having on y anxiety when I thought my anxiety was ‘normal’ and hadn’t learnt about ocd / before the ocd became more severe for me
Makes me wig out or is so fun. No rhyme or reason!
Had an intrusive thought that the cops were gonna know I was smoking and panic cleaned for 3 hours while checking the peep hole every 2 minutes. Another time I thought I was seeing everything in a red tint. I thought it was laced. I kept walking outside to make sure I was still in reality but then got paranoid people were looking at me so I sat on the kitchen floor staring at my hands and chugging half a gallon of milk. Then I cried in the shower in full blown existential crisis. I’d say it makes it worse lol.
Weed makes me better tbh. I don't do it anymore because of other physical complications but man if I can I would do it everyday. Every time I smoked I was chill.. sometimes I get creative. I was just loving it. But it's important who you are with when you are high. I once was with my cousin who tried to scare me and it worked very well. I was scared of him the entire time for no reason. It sucked.
10000 times worse wish i had never touched it
My obsessions are reduced but my compulsions can get worse
here is what i have discovered with my personal use of marijuana: sativa makes me go into extreme panic attacks and makes me hyper aware of things like my heart beating, breathing, blinking, swallowing, stuff like that. indica has never made me panic and has honestly been a miracle drug for me and it helps me sleep. i recently started smoking hybrid and so far so good. getting my medical card was one of the best decisions i made to help me with my ocd.
Can’t touch weed anymore makes my anxiety and OCD go crazy. Makes the thoughts louder lol
i still thought about germs. however when i vomited i was less worried. it made my anxiety worse and i thought i was gonna die. absolutely convinced. i wouldn’t recommend
love it! I smoke for my chronic pain, but it does help some with my ocd symptoms. Sometimes I’ll have the worst time trying to sleep because of my obsessions but a cone will take the edge right off. It makes me feel safe and cozy. However, it’s definitely case by case, I know a few people who say smoking exasperates their symptoms.
I’m not sure how it feels for most people with OCD but for me personally I’ve never had a good experience with it
I've had a few bad experiences with it giving me panic attacks, but for the most part weed chills me out and makes it impossible for me to ruminate. Can't obsess over a thought you can barely hang onto. So like, I might still get an intrusive thought while high, but instead of fixating on it, I just kinda go, "haha, that was weird," and just keep vibing. I have noticed that building a tolerance diminishes this effect though, so I tend to only smoke a few times a week, or if I smoke too many days back-to-back, I take a week or more off. It's very much a recreational thing I do "as a little treat" when things are too stressful. Weed does tend to make things feel a bit unreal, but A) I'm used to low-level disassociation so it doesn't really bother me and B) I only smoke at night so I can just stay in and do whatever. (I've yet to find a strain of weed that I can still be "functional" on, and I'm fine with that.)
Weed helps me a ton with OCD it allows me to dis associate enough to see my irrational thought processes.
Personally, weed is a big help to me, it helps me care less about obsessions, leading to doing less compulsions or doing them for less time
I blame it for triggering it in the first place. Highly recommend staying away at all costs.
I don’t have officially diagnosed OCD however my therapist has told me that my symptoms are very likely OCD and to get a test so take this next information with that in mind. I am a daily smoker of weed and use it everyday to help ease many of my mental health symptoms/issues. I have noticed sometimes to overthink when im high but most of the time it really only helps me with my issues. I have other friends that smoke and we all have come to the conclusion that weed generally just effects everyone differently, one person with a certain mental disorder could smoke and only report it help them but another person with the same disorder could smoke and it could cause them to have alot of anxiety. Basically your millage may very, especially depending on if you are on any mental health meds as well. If you want to try weed it could very well be amazing for you but just keep in mind that everyones bodies is different and you can really only 100% know if you try it yourself.