Yell, thanks for such a great conversation starter! I'm another person who uses the herb to soften and soothe my mind without the sometimes stupefying side effects of pharmaceuticals. I consider it a medicine, a sacred medicine. I think that the pivotal aspects of how someone uses pot are in setting --> being in both a physical and psychological space that feel fundamentally safe; intention in use --> are you using pot to get high and have a giggle :rofl: ... to enhance sensation, perception, and creativity ... to open your mind to expanded thoughts ... to numb yourself out ... to express the sacred in yourself ... to help bring on sleep ... to relieve migraine pain, nausea ... to moderate muscle spasicity ... to avoid being a thinking, feeling, responsive and responsible human being ... to change the tenor and tone of self-critical thoughts into self-compassionate thoughts ... to have a hoot with a group of good friends and share some warm-from-the-oven baked treats and rolicking, quirky conversation :Hug_emoticon: ... ?
... What are your honest, real reasons for smoking pot (or otherwise injesting, as through molten-chocolate cakes which have a very special treat in their core: a pool of fuuudge :wink:)? I know that my useage has spanned many of the possibilities I wrote of above. I once ate half a triple-decker fudge cake ... and more than once I have been calmed to my core, quieted for a time in a way that nothing else can quiet me. A few times I've smoked when I felt "off" -- anxious, surly, in "F*ck it" mode ... and I ended up feeling more of the same.
At the same time, I make sure to employ other practices for quieting: breathwork (pranyama), yoga, walks in beautiful places, reading, stretching, bathing, dancing, tucking myself into bed and burrowing, being with my beloved cats in whatever way they will consent to be with me :wink:, nestling and snugging with my husband.
Ram Dass once wrote, "When you've gotten the message, hang up the phone!" In other words, if what you're using isn't working for you, stop using it -- especially if it's bringing more harm than good to you.
When I use this medicine wisely, it is a gift. I think and move in a flowing way; I feel grateful and serene; I feel happy -- simply, like a very young child; I can see into and through myself with a contemplative, compassionate eye. This is the best medicine that marijuana can offer: a feeling of compassion and the desire to express it. I'm not kidding; sometimes I think that this herb (when used with respectful and sacred intention) can rewire the way we think ... we find ourselves having the friendliest, most benevolent thoughts toward our fellow humans, everything else in Creation, and even toward ourselves.
What could be wrong with a plant that can move us to be kind to ourselves? What better medicine could there be?
... and as a caveat: Moderation in use. Too much of a good thing can slide into a bad thing. For some people, in relation to certain substances or behaviours (like gambling), moderation can mean none.
I would never use this herb if in a fearful ... agitated ... hypervigilant ... angry ... despondent state of mind. There must be calmness, clarity, and a sense of being secure and safe in body and mind. Then, the gifts of this plant can work in you to their highest potential (no pun intended...? :thumbs-up)
