would you try drugs? (marijuana)

monseychick

Thu, Sep 04 2014, 2:45 am

FranticFrummie wrote:

Don't be silly. You can't possibly compare pot and hookers!

There's a big greenhouse near Tzfat that is working on an even more concentrated form of CBD to help treat people who have atypical epilepsy that doesn't respond to medication or surgery. It's very exciting research.

Farsinating, Captain, as Spock would say ....

Frumdoc

Thu, Sep 04 2014, 3:02 am

In Amsterdam it is mostly the tourists who smoke weed rather than the locals.

If you want, just beware of a couple of issues with non medical marijuana. Firstly, nausea and vomiting often occurs the first time, and the euphoria comes with accustomisation, it is a gentle high rather than the high of alcohol. Secondly, using the more potent skunk, which has higher thc concentrations and is now more prevalent than normal marijuana can give you paranoia, delusions and a mild psychosis on first or repeated use. It is uncommon, but recognized.

You can Google the effects of long-term use, but they will be irrelevant to you. There is an association with early onset schizophrenia, male fertility problems and other risks, but with longer term use.

Single use is unlikely to cause much harm, but also not necessarily going to be very enjoyable.

Do what you wish.

FranticFrummie

Thu, Sep 04 2014, 3:12 am

Frumdoc wrote:

All this is very true, except that most of the locals prefer to smoke small amounts at home after work, not in public. For the majority of them it's like sipping a glass of port, and not to get wasted and party all night.

Frumdoc

Thu, Sep 04 2014, 3:20 am

FranticFrummie wrote:

I bow to your greater knowledge!

amother

Thu, Sep 04 2014, 6:08 am

I smoked marijuana for a few months when I was abroad (I live in the US). I found it to be pleasant, but not amazing, and to be honest, most of the experience came from the act of smoking with friends rather than the drug itself. To me, it wouldn't be worth the potential legal and health ramifications to do it again. Sure enough, when I traveled abroad again to the same location and rejoined the same group of friends, they offered me marijuana and I politely declined, as I was job-hunting in the US at the time and I wasn't willing to risk losing a job offer over a pre-employment drug screening.

amother

Thu, Sep 04 2014, 7:21 am

DH and I smoked together while in college. He loved it and I enjoyed spending time with him, while he was high. It just made me tired.
When looking into retirement communities, finding a frum community in a state that has legalized pot is definitely a major factor for us.

Raisin

Thu, Sep 04 2014, 7:52 am

Nope. But ive never been tempted to smoke cigarettes either, and alcohol doesn't do anything much for me either. I enjoy certain alcoholic drinks, but in the same way I enjoy OJ, because I like the taste. I hate the way too much alcohol makes me feel.

mille

Thu, Sep 04 2014, 9:10 am

Like others have said, weed is really over hyped, probably in part because it is illegal in the US... But it's really not as magical or exciting as it seems to be! You're not taking LSD or shrooms and going on some magical psychological journey full of crazy hallucinations and introspection. If you react positively the first time (as others have said, first time is usually not positive), you might laugh a little easier, feel warm and fuzzy, get hungry, with maybe a side of 'deep thoughts' (which, if you wrote down and read after you come down from the high, are really stupid Tongue Out

).

If you are ever there, definitely try it! Why not? Although personally, I'd be more inclined to ingest through food or vaporizer, because smoking a joint is still smoking. Not quite the same as a cigarette, but remember that cigarettes have filters and joints don't... Smoke in your lungs is not particularly GOOD for them. If you have another method of ingesting the thc, maybe go that route.

(also, you don't have to go to Amsterdam, it's legal in colorado and washington state)

amother

Thu, Sep 04 2014, 9:51 am

Yeah I'd try something in Amsterdam.

I've smoked pot before and I think it's fun. I haven't in a very long time.

I'd recommend smoking with another person or group of people and not alone. Also, what they sell there is probably really strong, so take it easy.

There are a lot of high tourists around, and you can join the ranks. Smoke some, and then go sightseeing. Have fun!

blini

Thu, Sep 04 2014, 9:54 am

Whatever you decide, please don't be tempted to take some home as a souvenir. Most likely it's an offense (criminal or otherwise). Being hassled at the airport, even if they just confiscate it, is embarrassing.

doctorima

Thu, Sep 04 2014, 10:15 am

For what it's worth, I remember hearing that Rav Moshe Feinstein has a teshuva about this, and he writes that it's assur. I think he compared it to ben sorer u'moreh (this week's parsha!) of somebody who is just chasing after physical taivos and pleasures for no practical purpose (obviously this reasoning wouldn't apply to medical marijuana). I don't know the exact mareh makom, but maybe somebody else knows where in Igros Moshe it's printed.

aleza

Thu, Sep 04 2014, 10:19 am

mille wrote:

...with maybe a side of 'deep thoughts' (which, if you wrote down and read after you come down from the high, are really stupid Tongue Out

)...

or maybe it's the opposite... maybe we are very wise when we're high, and stupid when we're not, in fact so stupid we don't even realize how wise we were when we were high! Tongue Out

amother

Thu, Sep 04 2014, 10:46 am

I had a feeling most would say no.
I say why not, try it.
Especially if it's legal there, although I don't know what kind of "stuff" they have there, quality wise.
I do it sometimes, and like it.
There are many people I would love to see high and people who I seriously think need to chill out and do it Tongue Out

amother

Thu, Sep 04 2014, 10:47 am

aleza wrote:

Are there kosher store-bought edibles? I've heard, however, that ingesting can be dangerous... easy to get too much.

If you ingest raw weed you won't get too high. When you smoke weed, you can keep getting higher the more you smoke. When you ingest cooked weed, like brownies, you can only keep getting high to a certain point. If it were my first time trying marijuana I would stay away from brownies because the high can last 12 hours (or more) vs from smoking the high is only 2-3 hours. I would also do it in the company of others because, although most people don't feel anything the first time they smoke up, if you do feel anything it will be entirely new feelings that may come across as frightening and you would want the comfort of a familiar person to know how to deal with it. It's not like alcohol that it enhances whatever you're feeling. It gives you entirely new feelings and thoughts that you wouldn't think of otherwise.

Personally, I used to smoke it as a teenager and loved it but I stopped for a while and started tried it again a couple times and each of those times were torture. It was so scary I thought I was going to die. So I think I'm done for a lifetime.