[Rebound]

I have tried a lot of different meds to treat my symptoms. I found I was better off on none of them.

I now self-medicate with pot. Before you dismiss it out of hand as drug abuse please take note of the following:

Normally, with recreational pot use people smoke more and more due to building tolerance. I have been smoking the same set amount for months.

I am not prone to self harm (excluding nail biting) nor have I ever abused any of the meds I have been prescribed.

It works better for my symptoms than anything I have been prescribed for bipolar.

Here's the problem. I also have issues with anxiety, OCD symptoms, and I'm pretty sure ADHD.

I only have a family doc at the moment and I am pretty sure he thinks I am a hypochondriac. How do I explain all this and be taken seriously? Up to now, I have only told him about anxiety and the bp diagnosis.

So why don't you just stick with the pot if it's working for you?

[Rebound]

Originally Posted by jupiter3

So why don't you just stick with the pot if it's working for you?

Good question. The problem is pot use itself can mimic/cause a lot of symptoms. I know I would have them whether I was smoking it or not. The problem is convincing a doctor of that so that they don't make me quit before they will help and so they don't prescribe something as a substitute. I need help with ADHD diagnosis and treatment to go along with it if possible.

[Rebound]

I guess what I'm saying is that I am pretty sure if I tell any doctor I use it, I will be told to quit and any reluctance on my part will be perceived as a desire to abuse it.

[CopperStar]

Well, try to see it from their perspective and empathize with their situation. Pot can indeed cause anxiety problems for many people, not everyone of course, but enough people that it's a known thing. I have seen it happen to several people, myself, and it happened to me, as well, and I had to quit.

Because of this, if they are to be responsible doctors, they have to rule it out. Even if a doctor believes that you are being completely honest and sincere, they can't know for sure that you know for sure whether or not the pot is contributing to anxiety. Some patients have strong self-awareness, and some patients don't. There is no way for a doctor to know which category you fall into.

So maybe consider some sort of compromise, such as being willing to take a break from pot and try medication, to see what happens, to put a doctor at ease. Then you can try to re-introduce pot, again to see what happens, to confirm whether or not it causes anxiety. Doing this under a doctor's supervision shows a willingness to empathize with their perspective and work together, but it doesn't mean that you have to give up pot for good, only that you are willing to do some experimenting.

Unfortunately stimulants can trigger mania as well. Generally doctors won't want to give stimulants alone to a BP patient because ADHD is considered a secondary concern.

Also, if you tell a doctor you're smoking pot and then you ask for a stimulant as well, they are definitely going to flag you as a substance abuser. ADHD medications are generally amphetamine (speed) based so they have a high abuse/dependence potential. I believe there is one ADHD medicine that is not a stimulant but I forget what it's called.

[TheGoatKing333]

You should be careful. Weed is a depressant.

[~Christina]

I would drop the pot and give psych meds a whirl of at least 3 months and then see how life is going.

Im not Anti pot, But it is going to raise a red flag for the Doctor.. rightfully so.

Another thing I will add.. Its virtually impossible to get the right diagnosis and treatment that will help you if your using street drugs or alcohol.

Good luck

[Shadesofdark]

Not sure what to tell you here except pot can cause anxiety and paranoia in some people and unfortunately if you live in a state that does not have medical pot most gp's will list you as a drug seeker, which can cause all kinds of problems, and will stay in your medical record for a long time. I hate to say it but most doctors will just label you a drug seeker even if you say you have it 'under control'.

I would keep my past experimenting to myself, and you should stop using it if they try you on meds cause you don't know if the effects are from the pot or the meds. Get your dx and your meds straight and then decide if you want to give small amounts of pot a try, but be careful of side effects that you might mistake are coming from the meds you are trying, or your dx itself.

[Christopher1990]

do you live in a state where it is legal? if not you most likely dont know what your getting. certain strains are better for people with bipolar. while other strains can be worse for symptoms. i found that sativas helped with depression and indicas helped sleep. i gave it up for the sake of meds. also, dont think it mixes well with the medications im on. and my last episode was induced by too much weed sent me into mania.

i love. the stuff. and I await for the day when I can use medicinal marijuana to treat bipolar. more research needs to be done. sometimes i think about moving to Cali or Colorado. one thing with marijauna, especially of its good, is it usually lifts my depression instantly. thats what I miss most about it. the way it could work as an anti-depresent. not to mention it makes everything better.

you should be careful though because it may be working for now, but down the road it may induce an episode.

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[tanto]

If you're getting your stuff from the street, you're not really self medicating. Self-medication involves a routine, however, street crap can hardly be considered routine. There are too many variants for it to be routine. Even if you're buying the GOOD stuff off the street, there's still too much variance. You need to be able to get the right strain when you need it, and understand what those particular strains are for. What happens if you're manic and you get some street stuff that is stimulating? Or if you're depressed and get some stuff that really brings you down even more? I self medicated with street stuff for 6 years, and it was really, really touch and go. I think it's a great medicine, but it needs to be administered correctly. It's like trying to self medicate with an SSRI, but taking a different SSRI every other day. It just doesn't work well at all. And unfortunately, weed has a way of convincing you you're fine without psych meds. You become calm, complacent, relaxed... but also dependent on the weed to achieve this - but to get those effects from cannabis, you have to use it continually, which brings the recreational effects that can be very undesirable in day to day life. You can get the stuff that makes you lazy, you have a hard time doing your work efficiently, keeping up with your responsibilities... Your reaction times are slower, your attention is clouded... you're more prone to workplace accidents in which you would be drug tested and not covered by workman's' comp, etc; driving becomes difficult, cognition decreases... and so on (if you can't control what strain you smoke you can't control the side effects -period). With psych meds, it's possible to be far more effective in your daily life without the haze of the high. Personally I think the only prescribed use in mental illness with pot should be to replace benzodiazapenes and nighttime tranquilizers, and PRN when you have a really bad episode. ~~~ sorry for the rambles

[Christopher1990]

Originally Posted by tanto

And unfortunately, weed has a way of convincing you you're fine without psych meds. You become calm, complacent, relaxed... but also dependent on the weed to achieve this - but to get those effects from cannabis, you have to use it continually, which brings the recreational effects that can be very undesirable in day to day life.

Thats the truth! I love the way you worded this.

a couple years ago, I got an amazing strain called blue dream, which is actually said to help treat bipolar. I thought I was cured and back to the "real me" I ditched the meds for about a week and had a pretty great hymomania while it lasted. but it didnt end too well..


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[Rebound]

Thanks for all the replies. I appreciate it and I'm forced to agree with the overall assessment. I will need to quit for a while and then visit the doctor and take it from there.

I feel I should mention I am not a young person using this as an excuse. I have been on and off it for literally decades. Nevertheless, I agree, there's no way my family doctor is going to have time to listen to decades of history when he can justifiably just insist that I quit.

It's going to be difficult, but it appears to be necessary. The problem is going to be, how severe will the symptoms get before I've been off it long enough to be sure I'm clean?

I don't think I will try any more pills for Bipolar, however. I am willing to deal with the consequences of that rather than the effects of any more pills.

On the other hand, regarding ADHD, I have no specific idea in mind for meds. I know there are at least 1 or 2 that are not stimulants. That's fine with me. Whatever works.*


*I'm pursuing that inquiry in the ADHD forum already.

[Millon's Project #5]

Originally Posted by Christopher1990

Thats the truth! I love the way you worded this.

a couple years ago, I got an amazing strain called blue dream, which is actually said to help treat bipolar. I thought I was cured and back to the "real me" I ditched the meds for about a week and had a pretty great hymomania while it lasted. but it didnt end too well..


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It is unfortunate that you did not continue your treatment with the Blue Dream... that strain is super easy to grow, and yields a lot of medicine for nearly a quarter of the cost that it costs to eat the pills the establishment wants to feed you.

I recommend running a diary for a year on cannabis, especially Blue Dream, and running a diary on the poison of the APA... see what is more beneficial to you.

For me personally, the Zyprexa, Trazodone, and Prozac were not helping me for-

sleep
eating
functioning through work while DEPRESSED
my paranoid delusions
my thirst for alcohol
anxiety
relationship stresses
work related relationships and balance
and the list goes on and on....

Cannabis, on the other hand, has not only staved many of these above stressers off, cannabis has allowed me to continue on the work force without having to gon on disability.

Conversely, while I was medicated on the three above mentioned meds- Zyprexa, Prozac and Trazodone, I was about to be fired for the tenth time because my work performance was suffering.

Guess what I was working as? A case worker for the homeless and mentally ill!! Haaaa.... the irony is so thick you could reconstruct the Empire State Building with all of the refuse.

My point is this- you never know where life will take you, but guess what?!? The stigma of mental illness is a curse that you must deal with the rest of your life once you are "diagnosed".

Now, if I want to "self-medicate" with weed, I am a "dual diagnosis" mentally ill drug abuser.

If I am not a mentally ill person that smokes weed, I am simply a "hippy".

I say to hell with the APA... it is outdated, corrupt by BIG PHARMA, and needs a revamp like no other industry in the nation.

This is only the beginning of my rant here, so bare with me... or ban me. I will never use foul language, but I will ALWAYS speak my mind, and my mind is MESSED UP lol.