DarkElf said:

TL;DR...

They don't know what causes Schizophrenia. No one does.

The only theories they have right now are...

1.) Genetics
2.) Chemical imbalance since birth, with life trauma's to trigger.

Doesn't sound like pot is a life trauma to cause the trigger.
3 people in my family before me were Schizophrenic. I'm Schizophrenic, so far the only theory that sounds good to me is Genetics. I didn't even do drugs until I found out I was crazy.

Don't worry about your THC.

Oh... and doesn't THC decrease dopamine? Schizophrenics have a lot more dopamine, which is another theory... too much dopamine. MJ should decrease symptoms, not bring them up.

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Quote:

People who smoke cannabis daily have a 200% increased risk of psychosis. They estimate that 14% of 15- to 34-year-olds currently suffering schizophrenia are ill because they smoked cannabis, a figure previously thought to be between 8% and 10%. According to the current diagnosis rates about 800 people would have been spared schizophrenia if they had not smoked cannabis.

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Bitter Cactus said:

OP, your story sounds exactly like mine except I actually began and still hear voices. I'm completely sane and nobody would expect it in a person like me. I believe marijuana and psychedelics induced these symptoms. Although, with sobriety I became much better. My auritory hallucinations used to consist of laughter, choirs singing, radios playing, mumbling and more. Now I just hear a low hum that converses along before sleep, but I used to have 5 of 6 voices overlapping each other at once.

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kr0nik0 said:

I don't believe that weed causes any mental illnesses.

It just exacerbates underlying ones. The perfect example is me.

I got my first panic attack 30 minutes after smoking a huge blunt of Sativa bud. Then was diagnosed with GAD the following day. I've learned to control my anxiety over the years and still smoke quite a bit of bud.

Also, I don't believe it's addictive at all. Habitual? Maybe.

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The Lizard King said:

http://www.guardian.co.uk/society/2007/jul/27/drugsandalcohol.drugs

Quote:

People who smoke cannabis daily have a 200% increased risk of psychosis. They estimate that 14% of 15- to 34-year-olds currently suffering schizophrenia are ill because they smoked cannabis, a figure previously thought to be between 8% and 10%. According to the current diagnosis rates about 800 people would have been spared schizophrenia if they had not smoked cannabis.

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I actually just got done reading about something very similar to this in my abnormal psych class.

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kr0nik0 said:

I don't believe that weed causes any mental illnesses.

It just exacerbates underlying ones. The perfect example is me.

I got my first panic attack 30 minutes after smoking a huge blunt of Sativa bud. Then was diagnosed with GAD the following day. I've learned to control my anxiety over the years and still smoke quite a bit of bud.

Also, I don't believe it's addictive at all. Habitual? Maybe.

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Quote:

"Drugs that are meant to target other serotonin receptors in the brain can have harmful off-target effects on 5-HT2B receptors, which are found abundantly on heart valves, for example," said Roth. The weight-loss drug fenfluramine and closely related dexfenfluramine were withdrawn from the US market in 1997 after being linked to heart valve disease. Roth's laboratory later showed that this side effect was mediated by heart valve 5-HT2B receptors.
Analyses of the 5-HT1B and 5-HT2B receptor structures revealed a subtle difference between them. "Although their main binding pockets look very similar, their extended binding pockets are not as similar -- the one for 5-HT2B is narrower and in a slightly different position," said Wang.

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koraks said:

Yeah, it's a multi-factor thing for sure. It's obvious that schizophrenia cannot be stuck on substance abuse alone in all (or even any) cases. Still, I personally think there's just too much support for substances such as marijuana being a compound factor to be comfortable.

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Bitter Cactus said:

Listen, if there is a substance that does indeed induce schizophrenia, marijuana or stimulants are most likely the culprit. Amphetamines release large amounts of dopamine and cause sleep deprivation, which alone leads to psychosis if one chooses not to sleep. Over time this can probably raise your odds to get schizophrenia if you are genetically predisposed.

Marijuana and synthetic cannabinoids do not mix well with me. I can trip, do MDMA and ketamine and have a lovely time. The second I smoke a few hits of high grade pot, my mind bounces around at 100 miles an hour. I become very paranoid, everything becomes surreal and my anxiety goes through the roof. I just wanna crawl out of my skin and avoid all social contact. If I try and sleep in this state I will hear voices to the extreme and will begin hallucinating and wanting to die.

For anyone who reacts to weed like me, I recommend trying kratom. This herb is fucking amazing and way better than marijuana for people like me.

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DarkElf said:

Yeah, Koraks, it's good to find those articles. My doctor brought up pretty much the same, but also said... "It might not be the drugs, it could just be a relapse in symptoms and it's blammed on the drug. Most Schizophrenics have relapses... even major ones, while on Anti-Psychotics but no one quits those. I recommend... don't do drugs."

Paraphrased...

I quit drugs about a year and half after starting them, just cause I didn't want to risk it.

Most of my MJ paranoia was that it was illegal and I was going to get caught. Nothing to do with my symptoms.

I just hope OP is smart enough that if he thinks he has Schizophrenia, or is getting it, he needs to lay off the drugs for awhile and see what happens.

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Yeah, I have quit smoking for quite a while now (although I did smoke like .2 out of a chillum on TC after I got hired), I really don't want to believe MJ turns me into a schizophrenic, it helped me cope with depression and insomnia. Now that I've put my own concerns in front of my eyes, it's easier for me to realize it may have boosted psychosis, so I'm stayin off it for now.

Quote:

Lead researcher of the study, Dr Marcus Leweke, of the University of Cologne, noted:

"There is a possibility that there are good guys and bad guys in cannabis. THC is the bad guy, but there is a small body of literature that suggested CBD may prevent the induction of psychotic symptoms. Our study supports that view."
http://www.schizophrenia.com/sznews/archives/005024.html

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Quest_ions said:

Go easy on this kid, jeez. Flip that response wasn't necessary. To the OP, IMHO, marijuana enhances schizo the less tolerance you have with MJ. If you REALLY want to smoke without negative results, just keep smoking and get that tolerance up! Its up too you though if its all worth it. Im battling the same thing as you, im about ready to tell mary-jane to go fuck herself. Its a big step in our relationship but I think it needs too be done. Good luck man.

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Quote:

but I've sure as fuck seen a lot of bud addicts.

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im sorry your buddies are addicted to this plant

its definitely addictive psychologically addictive if not physically