[ledge]

I quit using marijuana just over 8 months ago now. It was extremely hard for me to stop. The physical withdrawals are minor -- a slight headache, trouble sleeping for a few weeks or months, crazy vivid dreams -- but psychologically it can be as addictive as anything else.

Years ago I was a daily cocaine user, tried heroin a few times, etc. but letting go of those was easy for me. When I decided to stop, it was over and I haven't touched them since. With marijuana I had wanted to quit for at least a year before I succeeded. The adverse effect on my life was clear, but the ritual was completely ingrained. I eventually managed to quit by radically changing my lifestyle so that I was no longer surrounded by the culture and the drug itself.

I still definitely have cravings, especially at night, and very occasionally I need to go have a few beers as some sort of substitution therapy (even though I don't really enjoy alcohol, and never drank before quitting).

That said, I agree that the author of the article is being ridiculously presumptuous and is wrong about the mentality of most marijuana users. (Edit: I also think this guy is totally, totally full of shit and making up the entire story.)

[corin_]

I guess your luck balanced out given you tried heroin a few times without getting hooked, and coke can be tough to give up for lots of people (out of interest, mind if I ask how much you were using daily? just curious). Congratulations on managing to kick the weed use, anyway!

[ledge]

Maybe 3 or 4 large lines (high quality) a day for around 6 months. Not a crazy amount, but enough that I was surprised how easy it was for me to stop.

Weed on the other hand I used in massive amounts, so I'm sure that was part of my fixation. It was ingrained into all of my daily routines (exercise, waking up, sleeping, eating, coursework, socializing), plus I began smoking during a rough period in life so maybe that's why it had such a hold on me. Thanks for the encouragement!