[FeelingOpaque]

I've recently started seeing a psychotherapists, two sessions so far, and today I felt very uncomfortable and uneasy. I smoke marijuana, sometimes just to go to to sleep, sometimes to numb things, regardless he said I should stop and I agreed, it was a reasonable suggestion. He said marijuana clouded your perception, which of course is accurate to an extent. He also went on a little tangent on how studies have shown that marijuana can cause disease, which has been thoroughly been disproven,and how it's bad for you. Soon after this he begins talking about how he would like me to think about taking his medication. This is what put me at unease. I had told him in my first session, 4 days ago, that I was open to medication, but would first like to try to work things out on my own, and now he is basically trying to persuade me to take them right now. I find this strange because he said that when I was self medicating, weed, it was numbing certain parts of my personality and he like me to stop so that he could explore that part of my personality with me. What I do not understand is how SSRI's and anti anxiety medication would open my personality? Isn't it just a way of numbing the thoughts and behaviors I am attempting to control? He also said that I should take some Advil PM to fall asleep at night. What should I do? I feel like he is being hypocritical and I fear the prospect of taking these drugs, getting a little better, and then falling deeper into depression because I have no idea how to control my thoughts while they are going at full velocity.

[unlockingsanity]

I would ask him exactly what you asking yourself here. Tell him you don't see the difference between the two and ask him to explain how they are different.

If you don't want to take them, tell him politely that you appreciate his suggestion but that you don't want to take any medications at this time but will remain open to the idea in the future.

[FeelingOpaque]

I did say that actually, but he pushed once more in a very passive aggressive way, saying it will help make the therapy easier. I'll try to bring it up next session if I don't get to nervous.

[@nonymous]

Maybe he did not consider the effects of antidepressants and antianxiolytics on your personality.

[FeelingOpaque]

But isn't that the whole point of those drugs to begin with?

[Favorite Jeans]

Originally Posted by FeelingOpaque

I did say that actually, but he pushed once more in a very passive aggressive way, saying it will help make the therapy easier. I'll try to bring it up next session if I don't get to nervous.

Oh no. He shouldn't be pushing 2 sessions in. He should never be passive aggressive. Your medication decisions should have nothing to do with his ego. Also Advil PM isn't harmless (especially for older adults). You're only 2 sessions in so maybe it's worth waiting a bit before making your final decision about this guy but I'd be very leery. Did he at least spend some time talking to you about non-pharmacological approaches to sleep problems?

[Petra5ed]

I also use MJ, but I vaporize and cook with it and rarely actually smoke anything anymore. Smoking is bad for your health, you've got to try a vaporizer! Ironically my T has not given me any hard time about my vapeing. Only recently we've discussed my need to cut back, so I don't feel like I "need" to do it everyday. Like you I use it to sleep, also to "relax" my anxious brain after work. I was also prescribed anti-depressant and anxiety meds. I use the anti-depressants, was very desperately depressed when I began on them though, and think they are a bad idea to do long term. I've not really bothered with the anxiety meds though since all they do is mess you up and slow you down mentally. I don't want to be stoned on Xanax at work all day, just like I don't vape all day. There are a lot of hypocrites out there in my opinion, i.e. people that drink every night but think MJ use is bad. I guess there will always be differences of opinion on it. I don't think taking Xanax or some benzo over pot regularly is a triumph, in my opinion the two are both drugs that alter your perception. The really funny thing is my T seems to think therapy might be better if I was not on the anti-depressants since I would then be more in touch with my feelings. I'm not sure how pills would help therapy, but then again, I am not a doctor or a T.

[growlycat]

What is it with T's and advil pm???? My cbt guy says to use it short term to regulate my sleep. But I question how useful ssri's are too. For me, they make me aware of feeling bad, but feeling detached somehow from feeling the feelings. Seems more extreme than the mellow of a little weed.

AD's generally do not change your personality, and often do make therapy more effective because they can lift that level of depression enough that you aren't having to try to think through quicksand. You will feel differently but it is usually a difference in mood, not in personality.

[Perna]

It does not sound like this guy is a good fit for you right now? I think you are perhaps interested in giving up the marijuana, especially if therapy can help you with your anxiety and depression. But, therapy is a package and the therapist is a major part of that package and I don't hear that this particular therapist is listening very well to you and what you want? If you are uneasy and confused and not getting a good attempt at answers to your questions while this early on, I would walk.

[Sabra]

Good morning,

My psychiatrist believes using marijuana is safer than taking benzos. I agree.

Sabra

[FeelingOpaque]

I'm going stop using marijuana for the next two days until my next session, just so he could see it doesn't affect me in any possible way except getting high and going to sleep at a reasonable hour. And to the person who suggested vaping, I'm definitely looking into that, I use the waterfall method at the moment. Someone mentioned that Advil PM was not good for you, and I agree, I just found it strange he would suggest using a drug to go to sleep instead of trying to give me ways to control my obsessive thoughts.

The reason I posted this up was because i had never been to a therapist before and I just felt that we hadn't really talked about anything important yet. I told him I have obsessive thoughts, depressive moods, he pointed out that my nervous foot shaking shows anger, frustration, but we didn't talk about any of that. He kept on bringing up Pu**y, literally he kept on asking if I wanted to try to get some pu**y because I told him I was a virgin but I told him that's not really that pertinent in this moment to me, he still pushed for a little bit. The I told him I smoked and he pushed that. Then he makes a bunch of corny jokes. Maybe he thinks I'm a moron cause I'm young? I don't, I just feel like I'm being pandered to.

And someone said that SSRI's don't affect your personality just your mood, but I feel your mood has a large impact on your personality. You think and feel differently about you and your environment depending on how you feel. When I'm high I'm much more positive and likely to go out and do my chores, live my life, while when I'm sober and in a depressive state, everything seems worthless.

[feralkittymom]

OK--this post makes it all more clear: this T is neither professional, nor competent. Find another.

[IndieVisible]

Here is a fact you will never hear from pro marijuana people but is true. There is a scientific connect between marijuana and schizophrenia. If you don't believe it google it, it is an accept fact. This does not mean you will definitely become schizophrenic but the studies conducted so far and they are on going is if you smoked pot when you where a teen you have a greater chance of developing schizophrenia later on in life. It seems that schizophrenia and marijuana effect the same portion of the brain in the same way. This also means that if you have delusions, paranoia, and hallucinations without pot, smoking pot will greatly amplify that and for that I can say is true. Any one who says benzos are worst are tripping I don't care if they are pdocs or what. Benzos came out in the 60's to replace barbiturates which are indeed very dangerous and addicting and you can OD on them. Doctors at the time welcomed benzos because they were 100% safer and any addiction was much milder and guess what, it is extremely hard to OD on benzos alone. They don't cause cancer like pot, and don't have any of the side effects or risks of pot. Any doctor who claims pot is safer is smoking it and IMHO should not be promoting illegal substances.

It's along the same illogical line of saying drinking is worse for you then pot. And they will say look at all those DWIs, sure look at them, valid point, how many DWIs were there with pot? We have no way of knowing because they don't test drivers for pot. Pot impairs you driving just as much as alcohol, it is so not accurate to say acohol is worse then pot which can cause cancer, linked to schizophrenia, makes you zone out, become a pot head. No I say pot is worse.

Here is my prediction, any legalization of pot for recreational use will be short lived. Medical marijuana will eventually be taken over by pharmaceuticals and manufactured in pill form where the strength and dosage can be better monitored and will probably become a schedule II. Sorry to disappoint some people but that's the future.

[FeelingOpaque]

Cannabis May Cause Schizophrenia-Like Brain Changes | Psych Central
http://www.psychologytoday.com/blog/...story-minor-tr

Please don't give me some ******** about something you know nothing about. All 'evidence' has been correlational and inconclusive. Cannabis affects those areas of the brain, but there is no evidence that it causes one to be schizophrenic. Scientists on the government dime made these unscientific conclusions in an effort to continuing classifying the drug as level 1 and harmful. Read up, thanks.

@FeralKitty- That's what I was thinking, but I just never had a T experience before so I didn't know how it should be.

[FeelingOpaque]

And for your information, they already make it in pill form, it's apparently the most efficient way to get stoned, so yay future.

[IndieVisible]

Originally Posted by FeelingOpaque

Cannabis May Cause Schizophrenia-Like Brain Changes | Psych Central
http://www.psychologytoday.com/blog/...story-minor-tr

Please don't give me some ******** about something you know nothing about. All 'evidence' has been correlational and inconclusive. Cannabis affects those areas of the brain, but there is no evidence that it causes one to be schizophrenic. Scientists on the government dime made these unscientific conclusions in an effort to continuing classifying the drug as level 1 and harmful. Read up, thanks.

@FeralKitty- That's what I was thinking, but I just never had a T experience before so I didn't know how it should be.

Really? Unscientific. Perhaps you can link the source to scientific studies that say otherwise? I can source many that link marijuana to cancer, schizophrenia, and other health issues too. It's not manna from heaven as many pro pot people want to believe it is, why can't we be honest?

[IndieVisible]

Originally Posted by FeelingOpaque

And for your information, they already make it in pill form, it's apparently the most efficient way to get stoned, so yay future.

precisely why it will be a schedule II and only available by script from your doc. The party will be over soon, sorry.

[growlycat]

Maybe pot isn't manna from heaven, but is it truly a killer? Maybe the truth lies between.

[IndieVisible]

Originally Posted by growlycat

Maybe pot isn't manna from heaven, but is it truly a killer? Maybe the truth lies between.

is cancer a killer?

It also kills off sperms making it much harder for men to get their wives pregnant. Tho I suppose some might think that's a benefit.

[FeelingOpaque]

LINK LINK LINK, not prove. As I said before it's just a correlation. Cannabis affects the same areas as are discorded in schizophrenia, but there is no evidence that when one takes marijuana that that part of the brain stays in a dopamine induced and overactive state. That's a correlation. A correlation, A correlation. The repetition is used so you can understand the use of the word. One has not been proven to cause the other. Also another fyi, we do not yet know how or why shitzo is caused.

And most of those studies that linked cancer to cannabis were debunked years ago and have been proven irrelevant and pointless. Please stop trying to come at me with the drugs are bad agenda without actually having done your research. If you do not like it, don't use it. Don't take the anti drug crusade when you have no knowledge of what you are talking about.

[FeelingOpaque]

To be totally honest, we don't know much about cannabis's negative or positive effects. Most research done on it is usually poorly done. But it seems more evidence seems to be pointing in a more positive light than ever before. We'll see how it goes down the line.

[growlycat]

I am not convinced that there is enough evidence proving pot causes cancer. I am open to the possibility that it might. I don't smoke it often enough to find out.

[FeelingOpaque]

And this conversation, and possibly thread, is over because you're just going to come back with some vague or false claim with no evidence or thought put into it, so lets just stop now.

[IndieVisible]

Originally Posted by FeelingOpaque

LINK LINK LINK, not prove. As I said before it's just a correlation. Cannabis affects the same areas as are discorded in schizophrenia, but there is no evidence that when one takes marijuana that that part of the brain stays in a dopamine induced and overactive state. That's a correlation. A correlation, A correlation. The repetition is used so you can understand the use of the word. One has not been proven to cause the other. Also another fyi, we do not yet know how or why shitzo is caused.

And most of those studies that linked cancer to cannabis were debunked years ago and have been proven irrelevant and pointless. Please stop trying to come at me with the drugs are bad agenda without actually having done your research. If you do not like it, don't use it. Don't take the anti drug crusade when you have no knowledge of what you are talking about.

Look you can believe whatever you want, I really don't care. But I'm 58 and been around the block a few times and have done my research WITH AN OPEN MIND. Whatever you or I want to believe doesn't really matter in the big picture any way. I think the pro marijuana wave will not last once all the medical and scientific facts become more clear and known. But even then many will not believe. It will be argued it's a conspiracy further pushing the schizophrenia connection

All I can say is enjoy it while you can, it's not gonna last.