Mental health patients - Daily use?

GlenBot

- 4y

Rep: 4195   Lvl: Gold

Yes daily user for about 7 years - used to only after work and since my health deteriorated so bad and I lost my job, I’ve found this “chatter” as you say has calmed a lot. Personally, I believe that it is born of stigma - external as well as internal. I took some time to work through it in my head and my medication makes me a beaseline “normal” to function enough to manage daily symptoms and tasks. I presume you are medicating for a reason and not just recreationally with friends (I used to do both and don’t see a problem, imv) and there is the route to solving the chatter.

I was called a jobless junkie by an ex’s gf at the time and this was whilst we were in Amsterdam LOL
So thanks to ocd that rings round my head now I am it working but I have to challenge it and remember that these are the horrible words of someone who knew nothing of my struggle and was highly jealous. It’s been over 10 years and it still niggles from time to time.

So my point is - it may not fully disappear but try your best to work out your own chatter - helps when responding to stigma / discrimination in the moment too! Hope that helps a little

Richie

- 4y

Rep: 4049   Lvl: Gold

Hi, I'm prescribed for asd and cptsd.

Can you explain what you mean by internal chatter a bit more?

Were you a user of cannabis before being prescribed medical, or is this your first time?

I use daily and have done for many years, with some small gaps/ breaks but generally being a daily user. I used to work full time, and now I work part time casual hours and look after my son. I feel well and healthy and am also not taking any pharmaceuticals any more.

Hotboxer

- 4y

Rep: 4040   Lvl: Gold

I have been a cannabis user for a long time but my habits changed in 2020 and a large part of that was due to... well the pandemic, During the first lockdown, It was at that point I started seeing it as a medication. I'm not ashamed to admit that yes, I am prescribed for mental health and went down that rabbit hole of medications that just did not work for me.

I started spacing out when I would smoke, Setting myself goals and then medicating, Often using it to help me sleep because I also suffer from insomnia. So back in 2021 I heard from my friends that they were prescribed cannabis so I looked more into it and decided to apply and here I am today.

Got myself a decent ish Combo of vapes (Mighty & Volcano), But I don't vape 24/7, Usually I'll wake up and make coffee, See how I'm feeling that day as I have IBS issues and the cannabis tends to help with that due to the anti-inflammatory properties in it.

On an average day? I most likely fill my volcano twice with my Sativa and once at night with my Indica.

MedicalMe

- 4y

Rep: 3967   Lvl: Gold

i dont have it for mental health, and work from home, so although i use it daily, only after 17:00hrs. This seems to have enough of a calming affect on my system that it carries through the next day even though any noticeable effects are well over.

Steveo

- 4y

Rep: 3994   Lvl: Gold

I've used daily for the past 12 years you'll be fine. All for mental health and pain 🙂

MedicalMe

- 4y

Rep: 3967   Lvl: Gold

Having tried most mental health medications, and come into contact with patients with experience of those I have not tried myself, I am often reassured that cannabis is way less of a concern to be taking on a daily basis than some of the recommended treatments or existing medicines for most mental health conditions.

Medicated81

- 4y

Rep: 3692   Lvl: Gold

I do use daily and have for most of the past 6 years, since I was a student. I'm in full time employment and use mainly at night. I have noticed I'm a lot clearer in the day time when I've gone a few days without medicating. But it's not worth the 'internal chatter' as you put it that I get alongside it. I try and get breaks every so often because it feels good for my mental health and tolerance, and helps keep the balance. I would usually advise people against daily use if they're unsure, as it is a psychoactive at the end of the day. But the negative effects from regular use that I've witnessed in others have usually been in developing minds or the person started using as a developing mind. So I think the odds are better in your favour starting in your 30s, and that will help daily use be less damaging if damaging at all (case by case)

HenryBig

- 4y

Rep: 4657   Lvl: Gold

Similar story to you, and consume THC flower and CBD oil morning and bedtime. I find CBMPs alleviate a lot of my symptoms by calming my brain down.

I am guessing, however, that you mean a different sort of internal chatter. If it's what I think you are describing, sometimes I get that when I have had a bit too much THC to CBD. I have some CBD and sorts it right out. It is quite a safe and managable indicator for when things are out of balance (I keep about a 1:1 THC:CBD), yet not at any level of impairment.

skyred

- 4y

Rep: 5054   Lvl: Gold

Since getting my prescription my intake has increased a lot - previously I would vape once a day but now I take my medication several times a day. I did have my own internalised stigma at the start but now that I’m seeing results, I really don’t care. It’s a medicine like any other, prescribed by my doctor to be taken as needed, daily.

I’m still unable to work due to my disabilities but I am far more motivated, productive and happier with my current intake. Other people have noticed this too which is helping battle the stigma.

Mashpal

- 4y

Rep: 4361   Lvl: Gold

I’m autistic (probably ADHD too, but not diagnosed with ADHD) and I get internal chatter a lot. If I’m not focusing one something, I either get the chatter or ‘ear worms’ which are essentially looping sections of songs. It’s really annoying. When I first started smoking, cannabis helped quiet things down but as I smoked more it eventually just went back to ‘normal’ and could even make it worse.

I’ve been taking a break and I’ve found that it has been helping, I think for some people breaks are necessary. There is evidence that smoking too often can reduce the ‘medicinal’ effects of THC. CBD apparently can prevent this but I’ve been smoking so long with little access to cbd that my receptors I guess just aren’t doing what they used to when exposed to cannabis. Currently on a few months break.

I think my diet also has an influence too. When I eat healthy foods it improves but if I eat junk it gets worse. Also, sitting inside doing nothing doesn’t help. If I keep myself busy then I have less opportunity to pay attention to the chatter in my head and it tends to quite down when I pay it less attention

I’m currently unemployed but hoping to change this soon (disclosure: I am not a medical patient and this is partly why I have stopped using for now)

Steveo

- 4y

Rep: 3994   Lvl: Gold

I'm an anxiety patient and I use it all the time that I'm not working.

Weekdays morning - 5pm is the only time I don't use it.

My anxiety is generally so bad that just being alive hurts. Every interaction is unpleasant, every show is boring, everything is just shit. It's exhausting because I can't enjoy anything at all.

Cannabis gave me my life back.

I'll take cannabis daily over SSRIs anytime.

Bruno

- 4y

Rep: 6255   Lvl: Gold

What’s “internal chatter”? I’m NOT a mental health patient (chronic pain) but I’m curious what the issue is.

I vape 0.1g every hour or so (20% THC, Dynavap). I’m medicated all the time because I need to be. It’s something that is still challenging for me to wrap my head around. I’ve been a medical user for about 5 years, in the UK, US, Germany and BM.

Strain choice is so crucial to long term use. I run a software company. For me, the big trade off is usually between euphoria and lethargy. It’s probably something different for everyone. Unfortunately, in the UK, strain transparency is garbage and switching can be an additional cost.

I don’t drive much. I stopped using THC in oil because I didn’t want to drive at all that way. I will drive on the same day as I’ve vaped after a suitable break. Even then, there’s a hidden trade off between driving cannabis impaired and pain impaired.

We have a legal defence to most cannabis testing because the test is only saying we used cannabis at some point in the last few days, which we obviously did. You should be able to tell whether you are actually impaired. Personally, I’m keen to keep my body count as low as possible, so I add on some time to make extra sure. Seems prudent.

Dudley86

- 4y

Rep: 5933   Lvl: Gold

ASD/ADHD prescribed for pain issues due to knee surgery's over 20 years was easier to get onboard p21. Work as fulltime Carer for a 97 year old relative so using is really easy for me to access when I require.

I had a conversation in 2010 with my GP when I was out of work, I stated I use cannabis to manage my pain and racing mind/sleep emphasizing its the only thing that works and I would like you to look into Sativex Oromucosal Spray as I feel if I had something like this I could potentially work, but as I'm smoking cannabis atm it wouldn't be acceptable in the workplace and would be a issue.

They wrote it up as "the patient feels he is unable to work as he smokes cannabis". At least things are changing slowly.

HelenRocket

- 4y

Rep: 4592   Lvl: Gold

Thanks so much to all of you who have taken the time to comment, I feel the chatter is reducing already after the amazing replies.