"I know several people who use marijuana as an antidepressant, and a very effictive one at that... Instead of turning to the pharmaceutical companies and ingesting their chemicals every day, they turn to a natural herb to push the dark away. J's mother is on several anti-depressants and she is far more whacked out than most people I've seen that have smoked a doobie, that's for sure!"
I needed to respond to this...marijuana can also induce depression in people who have been chronic users for years and years. It occurs frequently enough that there is actually a "marijuana induced depression" diagnosis. I write this because my ex suffers from this form of depression. He went from being a supportive, loving partner and completed devoted father (at the beginning when he was not smoking) to being in a place where he is unemployed, often does not have enough food to eat, is on the verge of being homeless, incapable of taking care of his daughter, etc. He also made several comments about comtemplating suicide.
It is very sad to witness a person go through such a dramatic change. Recently, his depression has drastically improved. He signed up for school, spends time with dd everyday, and seems to be developing a positive outlook on life. He also mentioned that he has not smoked for a while because he cannot afford to.
I am just telling this story because I used to think that marijuana was this completely safe, harmless thing. I never really used it myself, but was supportive of it being legal because it seemed so "safe".
And now I can see that it has risks...like all other substances do. It IS a "pollution" that we put in our body. A little bit might not be that harmful, but when the pollution builds up, it does have negative effects. Just like if I drink a glass of wine with dinner, that is not going to have a huge negative effect on my body. But if I drink two bottles of wine every single day, that is going to harm me.
christy