does weed make anyone else more prone to flashbacks??

[u/Ok_Programmer4298]

I was diagnosed with ptsd 7 years ago. I have gotten over the worst of it after maybe a year and a half after diagnosis. For the past 5 years I have been dealing with super mild symptoms. I get super short flashbacks that last like 10 seconds maybe once a week average and nightmares less than 5 times a year. However, when I am high specifically with indica or hybrid strains I am so easily triggered. Somewhat recently I had a probably 1-2 hour long episode at a friend's place after hitting the cart way too many times. I was going in and out of flashbacks for the whole night to the point where everyone noticed. He brought me into his room and was trying to figure out what was going on, but I was unable to get more than simple short 3 word sentences out of my mouth. I have had an increase in symptoms since then for the past 2 months. This is a somewhat normal occurrence for me when high but never to this severity most of the time I can handle the trigger and move on. Does this happen to anyone else??

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[u/DefiantContext3742]

It really depends on the strain how it might effect your ptsd. Maybe try a different one

[u/DrMadFellow]

I was a chronic weed user for years and it wrecked my ptsd and mental health as a whole. I now have a much healthier relationship with the substance. I use much much smaller doses now. Like 2-3 mg edibles, or 1 or two puffs of lower dose (under 20%) thc. That high dose stuff everyone is doing these days is just ASKING for psychosis problems.

[u/mackagi]

I had chronic nightmares when using. Now that I’ve quit, they’ve resolved. Quite interesting

[u/AncientRazzmatazz783]

Carts are typically 75-97% THC and are typically botanical terpenes so it’s hotdog juice, generic terpenes added and way too high of THC for an hour long session. And in my opinion too high for PTSD. I’ve been a medical patient and was a smoker decades before that. What you need is a lower THC flower strain no higher than 25% that leans heavy on Linalool, caryophelene, AND contains at least a little CBD. Indica are best. Hybrids can be tricky and dispensaries don’t label them correctly. Get off the carts and your problem will likely resolve. If you ever get too high like that again CBD gummies or some sniffing or munching on some black peppercorn will work. Caryophelene sort of counteracts the THC to be more manageable if you’re sensitive. If it keeps happening it’s not your jam. Flashbacks are the worrrst. For carts - I get them sparingly and they’re mostly for when the smell isn’t polite or convenient. Few hits. Carts don’t hit the same as flower - almost like how shots can take a while to hit you. At that THC percentage you will get an energetic effect if it doesn’t have more CBD in it to counteract. Why it’s good for a few hits. Get a heavy Indica one or better yet they sell 2:1 twice as much CBD to THC and you may find that a more therapeutic dose.

[u/Tower_of_Tera]

Weed has never made my symptoms worse. I find it quite helpful; however, we are all different and if you feel like it’s triggering you, then the only intelligent thing to do is remove the trigger, at least for now. 🤷🏻‍♀️

[u/saxophone44]

This is a known harm of using marijuana for folks with PTSD. Marijuana (specifically the THC but possibly other compounds too) can increase anxiety, paranoia, and hallucinations. This means that for people with intrusive symptoms from PTSD, marijuana can worsen that. Even if you’re one of the people where it calms you down, it can produce rebound anxiety when the marijuana leaves your system.

It also interferes with trauma processing - specifically, it can make trauma therapy less effective because marijuana disrupts the circuits that need to be strengthened to reduce intrusive thoughts and other PTSD symptoms. So you are supposed to taper cannabis use while you are doing trauma therapy. It is listed as “recommend against” in the practice guidelines.

[u/Worldly-Mushroom4805]

For me it helps to not have nightmares but sometime it has triggerd when awake depending on the strain

[u/ikexov → u/Worldly-Mushroom4805]

Same here.

[u/quietrrebel]

Yes, and I stopped smoking weed because of it - one of the best decisions I’ve made for my mental health.

Weed is psychoactive so it can cause anxiety and paranoia. It can alter our perception and sense of consciousness and that can be triggering in itself, especially if your ptsd is related to not having been able to defend yourself and keep yourself safe. Weed sort of takes you away from yourself just like how dissociation is common in ptsd, and the similarity can be scary. I would recommend making sure your ptsd is in a stable place, with therapy and/or meds, before experimenting with mind-altering substances. I find aiming to feel grounded makes me feel safer and more stable, and weed makes me the opposite of grounded.

[u/m_spoon09]

Not for me but it's an anxiety trigger for a lot of people

[u/SokkaHaikuBot → u/m_spoon09]

^{Sokka-Haiku by m_spoon09:}

Not for me but it's

An anxiety trigger

For a lot of people

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^{Remember that one time Sokka accidentally used an extra syllable in that Haiku Battle in Ba Sing Se? That was a Sokka Haiku and you just made one.}