Drugs And Trauma

[nyc]

Hi there,

I have a question if you have some time.

Does anyone have any idea of the consequences of taking drugs (pot) during the trauma?

What would that do to the brain and ptsd symptoms?

What would be the implications for healing?

I know this is a weird question.

Thanks,
nyc

 

[anthony]

Drugs, not so well.... pot only, has measured effects in quantified doses to help the sufferer relieve anxiety. I am not going to say do it, or don't do it, as studies show both ways positives and negative long term effects of smoking it. It has short term advantages, long term disadvantages. Then again, so does prescription medication! You can find plenty of studies on smoking pot for medical purposes, just do a search and you will see for yourself.

 

[Lisa]

This is weird, my therapist has just brought this up therapy.

I was a heavy skunk smoker throughout the end of my truama year, and then fruther into PTSD. I stopped for a while and recently became a heavy smoker again. I've now given up, though if I had a choice (i've lost my dealer) I would still have some handy so I could go back to using it as relief of anxiety on bad days.

My therapist has been researching the use of pot/skunk, and today told me that from what he has read, there is a problem when people use it to cope on a daily basis. pot or skunk alters your mind, and for me, it is used to 'blank off' my mind and my PTSD. The trouble is, he says... it isn't allowing me to process if I am using it to block. To overcome PTSD, processing is ultimately important.

So perhaps looking at the reasons you are using pot could help you to find your answer? Is it helping you to deal with things, or helping you to keep things under a blanket?

 

[pandora]

You are exactly right. I think sometimes things just get to be too much between yesterday, today and tomorrow and sometimes that relief...if only for a few hours in the wee hours of the night when the house is quiet and no one is around....the break helps me get a better start on tomorrow. I have to make sure my thoughts are..tomorrow I will accomplish this, this and this. I think if you sat all day and smoked...nothing at all would get done in any aspect of your life. For some that can control it and make it occasional if can be beneficial for some...I was told by my psychologist that it will increase your anxiety. I take the time to relax and practice relaxation and breathing or have a hot bath and this also helps me sleep.

I know this is something i also don't like to admit as I never tried anything like this until i was 33....pretty much when my PTSD was uncontrollable and I went on stress leave...no more work for the workaholic!

 

[Seeking_Nirvana]

Hi nyc, I'm not sure exactly what to say to your questions. But I want to comment on this. If you need something to help you cope why not try medication that is legal?

My son smokes pot to cope and he recently got in trouble with the law for possesdion. I asked him to see a doctor because legal problems just add to the PTStressD. I have never been convicted of possession of drugs, but have been in trouble with the law. It sucks real bad.

I believe my father had PTSD and he smoked pot all of his life. I don't believe it helped him or hindered him in anyway with healing. He was murdered over pot though. A drug deal went bad.

Sorry for my 10 cents but I wanted you to consider pot in it's entirety.

Peace
Tammy

 

[Seeking_Nirvana]

I love your honestly Lisa LOL.

Peace
Tammy

 

[Grama-Herc]

NYC

If I read your question correctly, you aren't asking about smoking pot now. What you are asking is----if being stoned WHEN the trauma occured would have any impact on your current condition and symptoms. Would your PTSD be different if you had not been stoned?

Am I close to your question

 

[nyc]

Thanks everyone. Sorry if I wasn't clear. Grama Herc is correct. I'm asking about the effects of smoking pot during the trauma. Would that mess with the brain in a different way?

I know this sounds weird.

I haven't found any research on this.

 

[Grama-Herc]

NYC

Glad I was able to clarify your question but now we need to get an answer and I'm sorry to say I can't give ya that

Sure hope somebody can b/c this is a good question and I am interested in the answer myself.

 

[mightsurvive]

Hiya NYC

I too smoked pot during my trauma and I'm afraid I have no answers for you. I will be following this thread with great interest. I was told that pot can make flashbacks worse by my former psychologist but she wasnt refering to smoking during the trauma - just in general. She meant worse in the sense that they would be more vivid, not that smoking pot would make things in the flash back different than what actually happened.

I gave up smoking pot 5 months ago but had smoked heavily ever since the trauma 12 years ago.

Good luck with this thread and take care

 

[linasmom]

NYC,

I'm new here but hope I can provide something with my own personal experience. For me, smoking pot DURING the trauma helped with the anxiety that I would experience during trauma phases. However, as I got older, pot started making me paranoid - I'm not sure if it had any relation to me experiencing trauma and being high at the same time, earlier in my life. I will say this: if I could smoke pot and not get paranoid from the high, I would smoke every day instead of taking anti-anxiety and anti-depressants.

Personally, I DO think that certain kinds of pot CAN distort certain realities. It certainly has happened to me. I might take that into consideration with regards to your question.

best,
rachel

 

[linasmom]

Oh, one more thing!!! And this is fairly important - a side-effect of PTSD is memory loss, pot does not help with this. I have a very hard time remember how I "felt" during certain situations. The combination of the two (pot and PTSD) doesn't help.