ADHD & Cannabis

[PsyCLown]

Soo...

 

Anyone here been diagnosed with ADHD?

If so, how does smoking cannabis affect it, if at all?

[TheLazyFisherman]

I was never diagnosed with it but always knew i had a difficulty concentrating and I'm all over the show since i was a kid. More on the mild side though. Heavy indicas always helped me focus and relax.

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[TheLazyFisherman]

School was very difficult for me. Started to smoke in my matric year... Guess what, i did very well that year lol

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[TheLazyFisherman]

I think I'm actually referring to ADD

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[PsyCLown]

I think I'm actually referring to ADD

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ADD doesn't exist anymore, it's now all referred to as ADHD.
I believe you get 3 types: attention deficit, hyperactive, combination of both.

Wondering if anyone has been diagnosed and whether they find cannabis helps at all and whether they're on any other meds for it or not.

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[ORGANinc.]

On 8/13/2021 at 3:23 PM, PsyCLown said:

Soo...

 

Anyone here been diagnosed with ADHD?

If so, how does smoking cannabis affect it, if at all?

I smoke weed to concentrate ☝

[Naughty.Psychonaut]

was diagnosed in 2004 was put on some generic methylphenidate, didn't do shit. was sent to "focus classes" as a kid like being told I was stupid wasn't damage enough... was put on ritalin, nothing changed, was put on concerta, started taking the stuff for the fun of it cause I liked it, but never helped me focus. later on didn't have much interest in the stuff anymore and stopped taking even the recommended doses. I started smoking weed in 2008, but never helped me focus or anything like that. what it did help with is keeping me from bouncing off the walls and brought me closer to mushrooms which then got me behind the books and gave me a better focus.

so for weed helping with the adhd, I would say for me it defs helped with the hyperactiveness but not much with the focus. and if it wasn't for weed I'd probably still be chowing some sort of methylphenidate kak, which was the biggest help of all

[PsyCLown]

I was diagnosed as a kid, was also on Methylphenidate as a kid and then was off it as it's one of the best appetite suppressants I have ever tried and didn't seem to help much and turned me into a zombie.

Reading up on ADHD now, there are a lot of things I can relate to, but also some I cannot. More symptoms / signs which I can relate to though. Whether I was accurately diagnosed as a kid, I do not know.

Some have fallen away or gotten better as I've gotten older.
Weed certainly helps calm the restless mind, which also helps with sleep at night.

I'm actually taking a break from weed (not consuming any other intoxicating substances either, I wasn't before the break either so no change there) for August, so noticing the changes now as I'm not smoking currently.

Methylphenidate (Ritalin) is a nasty stimulant, the side effects are quite hectic and I do not feel it should be given to kids. I used it a few years back when I was studying after I had been working for a few years and had gotten use to multi tasking, trying to focus on a single thing for extended periods of time, I wasn't able to and the methylphenidate helped for sure.
The anxiety, heart rate, sweat, clammyness, appetite suppression and struggling to sleep if taken after 1pm was quite something. The lifespan of the focus is short lived, so requires one to "top up" to get through a full day of work / studying but the side effects linger on for longer.
It has its uses and purpose, I do not see how anyone could find it fun though.

@Naughty.Psychonaut without a doubt other substances can be life changing. For me it was a combination of MDMA and mushrooms which took me out of my shell and taught me lessons which have changed who I am as a person, for what I feel is the better.
Weed for me has never been as magical. It has its uses, but never any profound experiences... Like alcohol in the sense that there isn't much magic there, although more useful than alcohol without a doubt.

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[420SA]

I wasn't technically diagnosed with it, but it was essentially insinuated by my primary school during grade 4. The school occupational therapist requested that my parents put me on Ritalin, thankfully my parents refused. The school said that I most likely won't make it through school then, which is a gamble my folks took. I made it through fine. Wasn't a great student by any means but kept a steady C average which I was more than happy with lol

I probably say this with a bit of bias but in my honest opinion "ADHD" isn't always a disorder, it's a behavioural style/type. If you don't find something captivating you won't concentrate on it. We are still chimps after all. Unless you have a serious issue with keeping attention on something to the point that it's visibly concerning to others then sure, it's a disorder.... but if you're struggling to get a 7 year old to pay attention to a maths sum which he/she really doesn't give 2 shits about at that point in his/her life then you can't force the issue by chucking pills down their throat. Perhaps the system needs to adapt more than the child.

That being said, many of us have to work jobs we don't enjoy and so need a bit of assistance. As someone who spends a lot of time behind a PC I honestly don't think I would manage it without weed. It definitely does help me zone in better. I wouldn't say it's a cure, but I would say it helps for sure. It varies from person to person though and some find that it actually hinders their concentration. 

2 hours ago, PsyCLown said:

For me it was a combination of MDMA and mushrooms which took me out of my shell and taught me lessons which have changed who I am as a person, for what I feel is the better.

So many studies are coming out now backing this!

[PsyCLown]

I wasn't technically diagnosed with it, but it was essentially insinuated by my primary school during grade 4. The school occupational therapist requested that my parents put me on Ritalin, thankfully my parents refused. The school said that I most likely won't make it through school then, which is a gamble my folks took. I made it through fine. Wasn't a great student by any means but kept a steady C average which I was more than happy with lol
I probably say this with a bit of bias but in my honest opinion "ADHD" isn't always a disorder, it's a behavioural style/type. If you don't find something captivating you won't concentrate on it. We are still chimps after all. Unless you have a serious issue with keeping attention on something to the point that it's visibly concerning to others then sure, it's a disorder.... but if you're struggling to get a 7 year old to pay attention to a maths sum which he/she really doesn't give 2 shits about at that point in his/her life then you can't force the issue by chucking pills down their throat. Perhaps the system needs to adapt more than the child.
That being said, many of us have to work jobs we don't enjoy and so need a bit of assistance. As someone who spends a lot of time behind a PC I honestly don't think I would manage it without weed. It definitely does help me zone in better. I wouldn't say it's a cure, but I would say it helps for sure. It varies from person to person though and some find that it actually hinders their concentration. 

I agree 100% about it not necessarily being a disorder and at times can be beneficial as when something is interesting, one can have "super focus" for lack of a better wording.

I too made it through school with barely any studying, no interest in the subjects I took and where I was interested I did exceptionally well.
Others, even when interested, still struggled at times.
Others were able to spend hours studying, I never understood how that was possible.


Everyone is different seeing it more as a behavioural style or type is more accurate.
If we look at dogs, they too have different play styles amongst them - even among the same breeds.
Some dogs are naturally more dominant than others and it comes through and shows in the way they play and do things.
It's not a good or bad thing, just how it is.

I can imagine ADHD being an issue for some, if it's taken to the extreme. Although I haven't met anyone like this personally.
A very active mind is something which I still have and it's shown itself more now that I've stopped smoking.

I wonder whether it affects my preference for music as well, music which is too calm or slow or doesn't have enough going on doesn't keep my interest.
Naturally a lot of electronic music is layered and has a lot going on, I think this helps keep my mind busy and keeps me entertained and keeps my focus and doesn't let it drift and wander.
Some music my GF listens too, I just cannot. It's slow and IMO depressing and slow.
Like ain't nobody got time for that. Lyrics as well, it's not what engages me with music, it's the tune, the rhythm and the way it all integrates.
A good example is Florence + The Machine. I don't know what she is actually saying a lot of the time and typically it's more calm music but it's very "orchestral" like with build ups and "drops" and the tune and rhythm of her voice is quite pleasant. She plays with her voice a lot its far from monotone. I couldn't be bothered with what she is actually saying though and don't pay much attention to the lyrics at all.

If it was a different language one didn't understand, it wouldn't matter. I'd listen to it still the same. If it was all gibberish, it wouldn't affect the music or enjoyment at all.

Perhaps getting a little off topic now though.
Weed is great for calming down and relaxing I find. It reduces the activity / business in my mind. Doesn't help me focus much as I get lazy with weed and my enthusiasm / motivation disappears. For me it's not a bad thing though. It's why I enjoy it, great for unwinding.

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[Chris Jay]

I was chatting with a colleague of mine in the USA yesterday and we were having a good laugh about his ADHD and cannabis. He is amazing when it comes to pattern finding and that is what the joke was about. He uses cannabis to help him focus and swears by it. I have another mate here in South Africa who was sadly put on Ritalin, I honestly believe it screwed his entire life up. He managed to matriculate from high school and followed the arts. I think it screwed up alot of lives and maybe even led people to harder substances.

"Children diagnosed with attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) are at increased risk for substance abuse. Response inhibition is a hallmark of ADHD, yet the combined effects of ADHD and regular substance use on neural networks associated with response inhibition are unknown." Source

Quote

This work has demonstrated clear inhibitory network differences between participants diagnosed during childhood with ADHD and a Local Normative Comparison Group. Two regions of the endocannabinoid system, the hippocampus and cerebellar vermis, have been identified as being uniquely influenced by an interaction between cannabis use and the altered brain circuitry of ADHD diagnosed individuals. Future studies targeting hippocampal and cerebellar-dependent function in these groups may provide further insight into how this circuitry is altered by comorbid ADHD and cannabis use.

 

[GGG]

Yeah Ritalin , a few years ago the statistics of coke users IN rehab showed that 70% of them was on Ritalin.

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