Reflecting On The Truth Behind Your First High

This is a guest post by Rick Neilson on the truth about your first high.

Getting High

Do you remember the first time you got high?

Most likely during a period of your life when young curiosities seemed to overwhelm you.

Maybe your friends were doing it. Maybe your older siblings were. Whatever the case may be, you wanted a taste for yourself.

Now, after years of experience, you find yourself in the process of quitting pot. When I first realized I wanted to learn how to quit smoking marijuana, I reflected on that first time I got high. I was in college, at a friend’s house, and everyone around me had already been smoking for a year or two. I was the new guy discovering something special within this particular social group. At that moment, I basked in the euphoria of the high and in my new friendships.

It really makes me think when I look back at how much I’ve matured over the years. When I began smoking weed, I had not a single intention of quitting. It all just felt so cool and relaxed. I didn’t see any reason to quit while I was feeling so good.

Now, I’ve come to terms with how pot can control my emotions, especially through chronic use. I know it’s not always cool to be high. I know it’s not responsible either. Yet, until I was in my late twenties, I was still smoking marijuana regularly.

Those First Intentions of Smoking Marijuana 

It’s important to give thought to our original intentions when we began our habits. Most likely with all of us, there was a time when we would’ve refused to smoke pot. Our innocent minds were still telling us marijuana was a drug. Then, something made us change our opinion. I’m curious as to what this was.

Peer pressure is one considerable factor, but not all of us felt forced into smoking weed. Rather, there was a desire within ourselves to experience it. The most notable reason I can remember is pot’s comparison to other drugs. I’ve always been told that weed isn’t so bad. That it’s safer than even alcohol. And, more importantly, that it’s non-addictive.

Once I figured out that I was on my way to quitting pot, I began recalling what all my friends had once convinced me. As much as I hate to admit it, I can be persuaded by everyone else’s point of view. It wasn’t peer pressure. Instead, I was reassured that weed isn’t as bad as society once made it out to be.

Though I wasn’t completely in the wrong for this kind of thinking, it came with its consequences. For one, addiction was an unexpected problem that followed a few years after my first toke. At first, I had not taken it into consideration. But over time, chronic use was really getting to me.

I was able to get by when I told myself there was no harm in my habit. This was still a product of my youthful curiosities. I didn’t want those interests to fade away. I wanted to continue being just as intrigued with weed as I was my first time getting high.

The First Intentions of Quitting Marijuana 

When does the habit of smoking marijuana become too much? When do we tell ourselves it’s time to stop?

I should mention that we at howtoquitsmokingweedhelp.com are pro-legalization. Likewise, we don’t feel there’s anything wrong with someone recreationally smoking pot from time to time.

I speak to the people who can’t go a day without getting high. The people who have taken their marijuana habit and turned it into something more. To plainly put it, if you’re smoking weed every day, you’re dependent on it in one way or another.

Now, you wish to learn how to quit smoking marijuana. Something has spawned within you to make such a decision. It could simply be curiosity, just as when you decided to start. You’re curious as to what a life will be like without THC in your system.

There is obviously a change that comes upon you when quitting pot. Right before I made the change, I questioned what this would feel like. Would it be empowering? Or would it only make me want to smoke cannabis again? I knew I’d never find my answer until I tried.

At first, the detox process was difficult. The withdrawal symptoms got me good. I didn’t want to eat. I was barely sleeping. On occasions, I even felt depressed. I kept telling myself I may never relive that initial euphoria I mentioned earlier. This alone had made me feel unmotivated.

Luckily, it all passed over within a couple of weeks. I kept myself occupied in ways I never expected. I began exercising, socializing more frequently, and eating healthier. It took me some time to figure out the strategies of replacing my weed habit.

The best part came to me about a year after quitting pot. I realized I was spending more time with my family instead of secluding to my marijuana sanctuary. I came to the conclusion that this is what I was so curious about before I made the decision to quit.

My life had changed in a way that made me want to be with others more often. I started feeling less alone. That depression I spoke of during withdrawal washed away completely. I was simply an overall much happier person.

Conclusion 

I’d be lying if I were to say that I wasn’t extremely happy my first time getting stoned. In fact, I was ecstatic. This is how I feel again, after years of unnecessary experience with THC. Extremely happy with my life, and discovering things that I thought I had lost forever.

To look back at my first high while learning how to quit smoking weed was important for me. It reminded me of why I began in the first place. Those original intentions I had for getting high ended up becoming my intentions for quitting pot. I just needed something new out of my life.

Rick Neilson is the primary content writer for howtoquitsmokingweedhelp.com, and at 31 years old, a recovering marijuana addict.  After 14 years of habitual marijuana abuse, and many attempts at quitting, Rick decided his life had to change.  Through his research, Rick found that unlike other drugs, there was not much information available about marijuana addiction, and its unique characteristics.  When he eventually found a solution that worked effectively for him, he decided to devote his life and career to the subject.  Rick now lives happily in Ohio with his wife and 2 dogs.  For the past several years, Rick has been researching marijuana addiction and writing for his blog on howtoquitsmokingweedhelp.com.  He is currently writing a book about marijuana withdrawal, as well as a complete program for marijuana cessation.  Rick can be reached at rick@howtoquitsmokingweedhelp.com.

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