| As far as real drug addictions go, does marijuana really | | | | try a drug such as marijuana and they are hooked. |
| qualify as being a true addiction? Some people debate | | | | They are off to the races. The drug lights up their life |
| the idea that it could be a real addiction because there | | | | and they get excited and passionate about it. They |
| are generally no physical consequences when | | | | obsess over it and want to do it all the time. This is |
| stopping the use of the drug. But on the other hand, a | | | | addiction. What typically happens next is that the |
| lot of people seem to depend heavily on smoking | | | | person will start to slowly restructure their life so that |
| weed every single day of their lives and in this respect | | | | they are living a lifestyle that involves heavy smoking |
| it seems like the drug might very well be more | | | | of marijuana. In other words, they drift away from |
| addictive then we once thought. | | | | friends who do not smoke weed and start making |
| So what is the real truth here? Is it addictive? Or do | | | | new friends who do use marijuana all the time. They |
| people just fall into the patterns and the lifestyle | | | | start to focus and plan their activities around smoking |
| naturally and want to keep getting high? Where do we | | | | weed and planning and scheming for ways to buy and |
| draw the line and say that this behavior is real | | | | get more of it. This is the obsessive element that |
| addiction? | | | | accompanies any addiction. It happens with marijuana |
| Let's think for a second about what real addiction is. | | | | and this is just more evidence that it is an addictive |
| We can look at the medical definition, the definition in | | | | drug. |
| the dictionary, what behaviorists believe addiction is, | | | | Now of course, there are some who content that |
| and so on. For the purposes of our discussion, we are | | | | weed is not really addictive because there are almost |
| going to define addiction as this: when someone has | | | | no physical side effects when you stop using it |
| lost the power of choice regarding their behavior. That | | | | suddenly. This is actually not true in heavy smokers |
| is real addiction and almost no one would argue that | | | | and some people do experience signs of a withdrawal |
| someone in this state of being is not addicted. If they | | | | that include sluggishness and fatigue. But also, it is |
| have truly lost the power to decide whether to take or | | | | obvious to me that smoking weed is very addictive |
| leave a drug, then that is real addiction. | | | | mentally and many people use it on a daily basis in |
| Does this happen with marijuana use? Yes it does. | | | | order to escape their reality. Another way to say it is if |
| Most people who try marijuana get high a few times | | | | you are relying on marijuana use on a regular basis in |
| and then move on with their lives. The same would go | | | | order to make it through your day, then that is basically |
| for thousands of young people who try alcohol or | | | | using the chemical instead of coping with real life. This |
| other drugs for the first time in their life. It is just | | | | is an immature way to live and if you cannot walk |
| another experience for them and they move on and | | | | away from such a pattern very easily then you are |
| don't really think much of it. | | | | probably addicted to the drug. |
| But for a small percentage of people out there, they | | | | |