Do you feel discomfort when you interact with people you don’t’ know? How about making eye contact? Or attending parties and other social events? Do you cringe at the thought of starting conversations with people? What about using a public restroom? If you answered yes to most of these, you may be suffering from social anxiety.
When challenged, does your breathing become fast? Does your blood pressure spike? Your heart pulse? How about your muscles? Do they get tense? If you answered mostly yes, then you experience stress. Stress is our body’s fight or flight response to stressful events. When we respond negatively, that feeling of downtime we have is called distress.
If you have been a marijuana user for some time and you plan to stop, you have to know certain things. Weed, or cannabis, is an herb known to have both recreational and medical value to people. People who smoke weed experience relaxation and ease. It can be addictive. Once the addiction is fed, it may be difficult for you to stop using. Why so? Withdrawal from marijuana can cause anxiety, as shown by numerous researches. That means that even if you didn’t have anxiety prior to your use, you may develop it when you stop using.
The extent of anxiety and stress depends ultimately on your previous usage—it depends on how long you used weed and how regular. The simple logic is that the heavier and longer the use, the more severe the withdrawal. The moment you stop, you will experience all sorts of distress: fear, anxiety, even pain. Not only will your body writhe in pain, your mind will, too!
Now back to the question, will quitting smoking weed cause stress and social anxiety? The answer is yes. Studies show that smoking weed increases the risk of anxiety and depression. The US study shows that users of marijuana react less to dopamine as compared to those non-users. Dopamine is the chemical that regulates the brain’s reward and pleasure areas. Its functions relate to our memory, cognition, attention, sleep, mood, learning, and more importantly, motivation among others.
A 2013 study conducted by the Imperial College of London discovered that prolonged use of marijuana kills dopamine. What does this imply? This implies that upon withdrawal, one may experience a range of feelings of discomfort, apathy, awkwardness, and discomposure. Lack of dopamine may affect a person in many negative ways and has the potential to destroy one’s daily routine.
Stress and anxiety can be read as symptoms of marijuana withdrawal. These should not be taken lightly. The longer it is before one is treated for the addiction, the longer he/she has to endure the pain that comes with the withdrawal. Other common symptoms of withdrawal are: depression, irritability, mood changes, loss of appetite, stomach pains, and nausea.
Remember, however, that social anxiety and stress are treatable. With the help of a doctor, various therapies may be availed of, tailored to the physical and psychological needs of the former user.
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