Today, marijuana is classified by the federal government as a Schedule I substance, which means the drug presents a high risk for abuse and is deemed to have no medicinal uses. However, several states have legalized marijuana for adult recreational use, and 23 states as well as the District of Columbia allow use of medical marijuana to treat marijuana addiction certain medical conditions. If you need surgery and use cannabis, make sure to tell your doctor about your use. Whether you use it recreationally or medically, it can affect how your anesthesia works. If your doctor is aware of your use, they’ll be able to take the steps to make sure you stay sedated, or “asleep,” for the entire surgery.
Recreational pot is now set to be a tent pole issue to drive Florida voters to the polls on November 5th. A poll from the University of North Florida’s Public Opinion Research Lab last year found that 70 percent of Floridians polled supported the change. “We look forward to bringing our message of allowing adults to safely use cannabis for their own personal consumption to the voters of this state,” the group wrote. Christian Democratic leader Friedrich Merz has vowed that his party will reverse the legislation if it wins national elections expected in the fall of 2025. Any likely new government coalition, however, would include one of the parties that supported the law.
Available Treatments for Marijuana Use Disorders
Marijuana Anonymous is one such support group based on the principles of Alcoholics Anonymous. MET is based on motivational interviewing and helps to increase changes in behavior by giving nonjudgmental feedback and helping people set goals. There are studies of children whose mothers used marijuana when pregnant with them. These children were found to have decreased verbal reasoning skills and more hyperactivity, impulsivity, and decreased attention.
This is an increased concern for younger people exposed to THC, including babies during pregnancy. Like any drug used medicinally, the potential risks of use are weighed against the potential benefits when deciding what should and should not be tried. Learn more about https://ecosoberhouse.com/article/is-it-safe-to-drink-alcohol-during-pregnancy/, risk factors, effects on the brain, and more.
Symptoms of Cannabis Use Disorder
Long-term marijuana use can cause adverse effects both physical and psychological dependence, making it difficult to stop using, and even creating withdrawal symptoms in its users. Substance dependence, also called chemical dependence, is when a person experiences physical dependence on a substance but is not addicted to it. One example is when a person who has taken a prescription medication for a long time stops taking that medication and experiences physical or mental withdrawal symptoms. Treatment options or “rehab” for marijuana addiction is similar to treatment programs and protocols for addiction to alcohol and other drugs.
- Your airways may be more sensitive, which could cause problems when your doctor puts in or takes out your breathing tube.
- Treatment is often sought because the long-term use of marijuana can lead to addiction, and individuals looking to quit have to deal with challenging withdrawal symptoms that can keep them from stopping their marijuana abuse.
- Since many of these withdrawal symptoms mimic warning signs of other conditions and problems, an expert assessment by an addiction professional is necessary to determine whether marijuana withdrawal is the cause.
- Increased extracellular glutamate levels activate inhibitory metabotropic glutamate receptors, reducing glutamate neurotransmission (Samuni et al. 2013).
- Over time, users may graduate from smoking marijuana to using it in high-dosage edible forms or propane-extracted concentrates called dabs.
The danger is even greater if you’re older or if you already have heart problems. Psychosis is a symptom of a serious medical condition called schizophrenia. Schizophrenia also affects the way you understand what’s real, but it includes other symptoms like trouble with speech and not being able to focus and show emotions. The main psychoactive ingredient, THC, stimulates the part of your brain that responds to pleasure, like food and sex. That unleashes a chemical called dopamine, which gives you a euphoric, relaxed feeling.
Can a person overdose on marijuana?
Or a drug can cause no withdrawal at all, as in the case of cocaine, but still pose a high likelihood that a person will develop an addiction when using it. The drug’s pain-relieving properties make it a potential replacement for pain medication. In 2014, states that had legalized medical marijuana reported a 25 percent drop in deaths resulting from an overdose of pain medication. The Aloha State was the first in the U.S. to legalize medical marijuana in 2000 and decriminalize personal use in 2019; efforts to legalize recreational cannabis have repeatedly stalled in the state house. This pattern underscores the deep-rooted divisions within Hawaii’s political establishment, where even a Democratic majority does not guarantee support for progressive legalization.
This program is ideal for educating patients and their families, school faculty and staff, behavioral and mental health professionals, and more. People smoke marijuana in hand-rolled cigarettes (joints) or in pipes or water pipes (bongs). They also smoke it in blunts—emptied cigars that have been partly or completely refilled with marijuana. These devices pull the active ingredients (including THC) from the marijuana and collect their vapor in a storage unit. One study estimated that approximately 3 in 10 people who use marijuana have marijuana use disorder, meaning that they are unable to stop using marijuana even though it is causing health and/or social problems in their lives.
