after reading these posts I feel a little better. I quit mj for 3 weeks and had terrible horrible headaches but they went away as time went on. Then out of nowhere I had huge stomach pains and my bowel pattern went completely out of wack. Is there a link to mj withdrawal and these weird stomach issues? I think they should do a study cuz seriously its horrible. I tried to look it up online and see if scientists documented it and I couldn't find much about stomache pains and bowel problems but it seems to be linked somehow because when I stop smoking it always comes back.

I quit smoking on Thursday. It is now Monday, and I feel like absolute hell (coming down with a cold on Friday didn't help). The nausea, chills, insomnia, anxiety, and suicidal thoughts had me thinking of calling dear old mom and dad. This forum allowed me to spare them some serious worry and/or annoyance. I thought I would just quit for a job once I graduate school (Respiratory Therapy, ironically), but after this experience so far and whatever's to come, I think I'm done for good.

Hey. Congrats on making the first step!
The first week will be tough but then it will get easier. 4 weeks and the marijuana is completely out of your system. So start counting the days. (it's not really that many when you think about it
Remember mind over matter. strength and endurance.
Those thought of suicide are worrying me though... When you start thinking of suicide determin whether it's just a passien though where you're certain you'd neveet ake action, a lot of ppl have those But if you would actually consider it and you are having a lot of those thoughts a trip to the doctor and some anti depressents will be really helpful for you until you get over this addiction.

Just wanted to say congrats to all quitting not an easy step but one you will be glad about in the future. I'm an addictions counselor of 13 yrs and work mainly with teenagers now but have experience with all populations/age groups. figured I'd through my experience out there for anyone reading because I see more and more misleading information out there. first off thank god you picked Marijuana because that seems to be the most frequent successful "I quit drug" you could have picked. I have worked with people who gave up marijuana and caffeine and the caffeine people complain of more withdrawal than the weed smokers do.
what I have seen...
Marijuana withdrawal.
for up to 4 week but usually only lasts from 3 to 7 days in what I would estimate with 90 percent of my clients:
headaches, grouchy, rough time concentrating, overwhelmingly bored, cant fall asleep, wake up during the night, dreams that they are smoking and some wake up and think they are high for a couple minutes, cotton mouth for no reason, some complain of depression but it is mild depression but it is rare and mild, smelling weed though no one else does, lack of appetite (for less than 5 blunts a day smokers), increased appetite (for more than 5 blunts a day smokers). now don't get me wrong, though 90 percent of my clients experience one or more of these things for 3-7 days they do pop out for no reason at various times for about a 6 month period maybe even longer depending how many triggers the person is exposed to. but I have notice that my clients are able to laugh about it when they do pop out after the first 7 days.
good luck to all and remember quitting weed is mostly a mind over matter thing, very little physical to do with it.

didnt sign up but wanted to help you with this

this is completely normal, alot of people dont get withdrawl because they dont smoke alot, I do and after 4-5 days of no smoking I completely blank out, or I feel like I am high again randomly this is completely normal and it will go away in 2-3 weeks after the thc has COMPLETELY cleared of your system (ie: cant show up on a drug test).
dw about it dude nothings going wrong and itll go away soon it sucks i know.
light one up itll go away

one must not forget the possibility that their weed is laced. iv seen dealers with their tree laced with anything from crack to heroin, to "keep em comin back for more" and to give it the "this is the gud s***" effect. after not smoking there is a possibility the withdrawal symptoms are caused by that

Umm. your symptoms of suicide and insomnia may be because you were suppressing issues with your MJ use, I mean that's what I use to do, you may what to talk to a doctor about some anti-depressants or something along those lines, that's what i had to do. I can't afford insurance so I have to self medicate. So that's how I took care of my Issues, I smoked MJ. I just recently quit also and have had the same issues as you. So talk to your doctor.

I only tried this once but it did make me feel better. I was in withdraw, not because of quitting but because of running out of money for weed, and I hadn't eaten solid food in 18 hours and I was going on 4 hours of sleep, basically feeling awful. But when I get in my car to drive home, I think that maybe some very familiar music will make me feel better. By that I meant the kind of album that you know all the words to. It starts to help a little, then I turn, with the sun now in front of me and in my face, and all of a sudden I instantly felt better - not all the way better, but enough. I only got through 4 songs, but after I got home, I could tell that I felt mildly better than before my drive. I think this could probably be used as a therapy. Try one day walking out into your yard, or go to the park with an iPod, put on a familiar, loved album (the one I was listening to was Rancid's "...And Out Come the Wolves"), and just chill back in the sun. If it works, do it regularly. If not, you lost 1 hour out of your day at most.

I have been smoking pot every day all day for the past 3 years. I have quit before and had serious headaches. this time I have flu symptoms Chills, Hot flashes, fever, I wake up soaking wet from sweating and im coughing up yellow/green lung funk. I feel super crappy! My hopes are that it will soon be over. Ill hold on but i have no energy to live like i used to.

Symptoms will pass! hang in there.
You will become a new person and you'll like it.
That's why you quit in the first place...isn't it? I smoked for over 20 years, quit over 1 yr. ago and it seems like a bad dream now.
Good luck!

my story is so long i will try to cut it short

Using marijuana for 6 years
Stopped using Drugs, 2008.
Past year been using nothing but THC.

i used marijuana as a relief from withdrawl symptoms of oxy pain killers, and became dependent on marijuana, and eventually got my medical marijuana license here in california, mainly because the potency of street pot is inconsistant to my needs.

i am 48 hours into not having any marijuana, or any kind of THC.
The first 24 hours without THC i experienced:

Vivid flashbacks of the day i quit the DRUGS, and picked up using only marijuana.

BAD Memories i thought i forgotten.

appetite, sleep, irritable... extremely altered.

after that, all ive been experiencing is restlessness and boredom. (nothing compared to suicide intentions brught on by Oxycontin.)

my story is so long i will try to cut it short

Using marijuana for 6 years
Stopped using Drugs, 2008.
Past year been using nothing but THC.

i used marijuana as a relief from withdrawl symptoms of oxy pain killers, and became dependent on marijuana, and eventually got my medical marijuana license here in california, mainly because the potency of street pot is inconsistant to my needs.

i am 48 hours into not having any marijuana, or any kind of THC.
The first 24 hours without THC i experienced:

Vivid flashbacks of the day i quit the DRUGS, and picked up using only marijuana.

BAD Memories i thought i forgotten.

appetite, sleep, irritable... extremely altered.

after that, all ive been experiencing is restlessness and boredom. (nothing compared to suicide intentions brught on by Oxycontin.)

I think you guys who say your suffering are all drama queens. All the "symptoms" you say you have are things you can just ignore. It doesn't take much to talk and get a social life back. It also doesn't take much to take an advil to help with the nausea. You make the problem worse by admiting you feel those things. Go see what a person who does hard drugs goes through when they stop. Those are real withdrawals. The things you claim you go through are things everyone goes through when they quit something they are addicted to. Ex. When a Fat person is addicted to food and they go on a diet, they feel like crap, have nausea, they get grumpy. These symptoms can be related to any addiction to anything.
P.s. to the lady who claims she can't take care of her baby now, your pathetic.

I still look on this site for one reason. To try to help others that are having withdraw. There may be a drama queen or two in any chat room for addiction and recovery but most everyone writing has been through tough times.
I can tell you that Marijuana use especially long term constant use will have consequenses for many people who use. It certainly is no coincidence that a week after I quit smoking pot (25 years of it) that I went thru withdraw. Some people may get lucky and not suffer much in the terms of withdraw, others go thru a month or even longer of pure hell.

The worse part is anxiety. One other bad part is the night sweating. I would wake up sweating and it was so bad that I had to change cloths and sheets. You could actually smell the pot odor from my sweat. My wife (non smoker) was absoluetly appalled by the whole thing. Try to stay off the meds because that will mess with you mind. Yes they help calm you down, but I am telling you be very careful. People you will get through it but dont make the mistake of going back to Pot.

So throwing up bile isn't a symptom of withdrawal. You know, we recognize the fact that marijuana isn't as bad as other drugs. But that doesn't mean that you have to be a dick about it to those that are obviously suffering. And in regards to your comment about the lady being unable to take care of her child, she admitted it, but is quitting to take care of the kid now. I guess you just like to think that just because it isn't as bad as it could be with other drugs, that it just isn't worth talking about. What a freaking jerk. Obviously I am irritated because of withdrawal, but it has always irritated me to see people that enjoy making others feel bad for no reason. This forum is here to help people; you are not one of those people that need help, so get out. Nobody experiencing any form of withdrawal enjoys hearing somebody talk down on them when all they are doing is seeking help, and in their own minds, experiencing a pain that they have never felt before. I know I am rambling on, but it doesn't matter, I feel a lot better now just getting that out of my system. And btw, I use to smoke stuff that was approximately 25% thc (the best stuff you could get), adding hash oil on top of it. I just want to let everybody know, that I was the biggest advocate for smoking, I never went to my university classes and still passed my classes, although not as well as I would have liked. Smoked before tests and finals, thinking I was so great for being able to function while high. But the reality is, after being clean for 5 days so far, I still feel nauseous as hell, but I also feel optimistic about what the future has in store for me.

i am 32 years old have been smoking pot for 12 years as the years went on i smoked more and more. i have quit several times during this 12 years and the usual symptoms were pissed off irritable and a little bit of depression. this time i quit symptoms are much different. the worst and really only one is anxiety sometimes it feels like someone is sitting on my chest and that i am having a hard time breathing. so i went to the hospital thought i was dying and they did every test known to man i am healthy as a horse. this nurse tells me i am having anxiety and i am like what? i am 6'3" 240 and in shape and one of the most confident guys you will ever meet what do you mean anxiety i have quit before and never felt this symptom so something has to be wrong. well its been a month and still feeling anxiety but the funny thing is when i am concentrated on something like writing this i feel completely fine but when i feel it comming on it somtimes i just cant stop thinking about it then when grab ahold of my self i become fine. the deal is that i screwed my self up for the passed 12 years and guess what it came with a price but i am done with it and i dont know how long the anxiety will last but i know it will go away. just remeber that you got yourself into this mess and you can get yourself out you just have to want it bad enough

Drugs, namely dopamine affecting drugs, have adverse affects on your neurons. Drugs as Im sure you know increase the intensity and frequency of neurotransmitter firings, making you "happy" or high. Your brain sees this as some abnormality, and to try to balance you out, it will decrease your natural neurotransmitter firings, or close many of the neurotransmitter receptors, so when you stop doing the drug, you suddenly have an abnormally low neurotransmitter fire/reception. This will cause feelings of depression, suicide, anxiety etc. What you have to remember is IT IS NOT YOU IT IS THE DRUG you have to hemmer this into your head, because then every health problem you over analyze, though it may seem like the truth at the time, it is just a response to the drugs and you have to look at it logically and factor in the fact that you may have drug indiced anxiety. With drug use comes the tendency to overthink and overanalyze, because drugs tend to open your mind, and you adopt your thinking style to fit a different view of the world. It is scary, but the effects do not have to be permanent. You have to be strong willed in convincing yourself that the depression/anxiety is not real, it is not true, it is a side effect, as would be drowsiness from cough medicine. You are not actually tired, you are just feeling the effects of something you have taken. Stay positive, and look at the way other people live, and draw from your inner strength the will to change your state of mind.

Yea especially MJ it opens up your brain, you have to be strong and you may think about MJ but remember that if you go a few days without and smoke again it will only prolong the side effects. I have smoked for a good six months every night, the first time I quit for about two weeks. The first 3-5 days were hell couldn't sleep, no appetite, depressed, and thinking there was something wrong with me. I tried quitting a second time and went only about 5 days. Now on my third time and with the help of bupropion I am trying to quit. I am approaching two weeks and the medicine is helping with cravings.

Anyone who says weed withdrawals are all mental has never been through it. I used to be addicted to heroin, and suffered withdrawals from it several times. While weed isn't anywhere near as bad, the withdrawals are similar.

It always annoys me when I see people say, "don't be a wuss, it's no big deal". The symptoms don't sound that bad, but when you're in that situation, it's a whole 'nother story. To a normal person, not sleeping well for a few nights is annoying. To an addict, it's torture. Combined with the anxiety that comes from weed withdrawals, those hours awake are filled by constantly overanalyzing every symptom, and being able to focus on nothing else. Every minute drags on forever. So don't tell an addict "don't be a wuss". The very act of submitting yourself to withdrawals is very courageous, and don't let anyone mitigate that.

I have recently given up weed after over adecade of use and had none of these issues! I couldnt sleep the first night but then it was far easier than giving up ciggies!

I wonder at the people who give up weed only to take tranquillizers or carry on smoking tho!