CIP AND ME: How Cannabis-Induced Psychosis Ruined My Mind and My Life…And How I Came Out the Other Side
The nonprofit Johnny’s Ambassadors Youth THC Prevention is looking for young adults age 18-30, who have experienced Cannabis-Induced Psychosis (CIP) to tell their stories. So many people do not believe THC can trigger psychotic episodes. They blame it on genetics or schizophrenia.
Johnny Stack told his mother Laura Stack, “Marijuana ruined my mind and my life.” We are looking for people who will help us save lives by sharing their story and telling other young people CIP is indeed real, because it happened to you. What is your story? How did you start using THC? What happened to you when you used it? What did you experience while in psychosis? How did you come out of it? What is your recovery story? Do you still experience depression, anxiety, mental illness, or need antipsychotics as a result? How will you use your story for good to save others?
Your story will give the details from YOUR perspective on what happened when you used THC and how it harmed you. These stories will be ANONYMOUS to protect your privacy. (Parents can certainly help the author write, but stories must be written in the first person from the point of view of having CIP personally.)
If you are willing to share, we invite you to be a co-author in a new printed book, CIP AND ME: How Cannabis-Induced Psychosis Ruined My Mind and My Life…and How I Came Out the Other Side, to be published in winter 2025 or spring 2026 (depending how long it takes us to gather the chapters).
The book will be sent to media outlets all over the U.S., so we get more press about the dangers of youth THC use. You can also purchase inexpensive printed copies of the book from Amazon share with others and distribute to your community (school administrators, libraries, coalitions, hospitals, psychiatry and counseling offices, legislators, parents, law enforcement, etc.).
Writing Guidelines
1. Stories are due October 1, 2025.
2. In general, they should be between 1000-2500 words, but there is no set length.
3. You can use a fake name (pseudonym) if you wish if that makes it easier to write your story.
4. You will get writing help! Each author will be assigned five volunteer editors to ask questions and advise on style, content, flow, and grammar. You can also ask friends and family members to read your story.
5. When your editors have approved your draft, you will send it to Laura Stack, and the professional copyeditor will then review it.
6. Your submission should only be your story. You don’t need to cite research, because the book will contain its own research section as an Appendix.
7. Each submission should accompany the release form below.
Email [email protected] to indicate your interest in participating, so we can save you space in the book and get started!
Editorial Guidelines
- Use APA style. I’m particularly fond of using serial commas (two commas with three items in a sentence).Use exclamation marks if desired.
- Indent and punctuate bulleted lists.
- Apply Calibri 11.
- Use headings and subheadings if desired, but it’s not required. Each story may be in a slightly different format, and that’s okay.
- Use an intimate tone, as if you are telling me the story 1-on-1 over a cup of coffee.
- Don’t use any images or photos.
Writing Process
The process goes like this:
- You start writing your story.
- When you have a rough draft, email [email protected] to let me know you’re ready for input on your story.
- You will be assigned five volunteer editors, who will read it and send you suggestions. You will make the final decisions on your chapter.
- Once everyone is happy with it, you’ll copy/paste your final draft to [email protected] with your release form below (where it says MATERIAL below your signature at the very bottom of the page).
- Johnny’s Ambassadors will send your draft to the professional copyeditor for final review. You will receive the final version.
- It’s published! 😊
Permission Release Agreement
- Copy/paste this text below and save it to your computer.
- Fill in the blanks.
- Send your story as a Word document and ALSO copy/paste your story on the bottom of this form.
- Sign the document and either scan it and send to [email protected] or take a photo of the signature and text it to Laura at 720-334-1856.
Author: (Your name)
Materials: Included at the bottom of this document
My Story: Life Rights
Book Inclusion: CIP AND ME: How Cannabis-Induced Psychosis Ruined My Mind and My Life
Payment: None
Copyright Date: 2025 or 2026
TERMS AND CONDITIONS
- I hereby grant to Laura Stack and Johnny’s Ambassadors Publishing and your successors, assigns and licensees forever, the non-exclusive, irrevocable and unconditional right to describe, relate, publish, and/or exploit, in such manner as you shall elect, any literary materials or text owned by me or under my control, described above (“Materials”), and/or my likeness; personality, actions, and incidents related to, based upon or adapted from or suggested by my story (“Life Rights”) in the Book listed above and in or in connection with any exploitation thereof in any manner and in any medium whatsoever, now known or hereafter devised, throughout the universe in perpetuity, and in any advertising and publicity related thereto.
- In granting the foregoing rights, I warrant that I have not been induced or persuaded to do so by any representation or assurance made by you relative to the way you propose to exercise the rights granted hereunder.
- I represent and warrant that the Materials are non-fiction and that I have the right to enter into this agreement and to grant, without the consent of third parties, all the rights herein granted insofar as you are concerned; that I have not exclusively granted or assigned or otherwise transferred such rights to any others; and that there are no claims, litigation or other proceedings pending or threatened which could in any way impair, limit or diminish the rights granted to you hereunder. I, on behalf of myself, my successors, heirs and assigns, hereby irrevocably covenant that I will not assert a claim or maintain an action or suit and will not consent to the assertion or maintenance by others of any claim, action or suit (including, but not limited to claims, actions or suits for invasion of my rights of privacy, rights of publicity, defamation or rights in the nature of “droit moral”) of any kind on account of the exercise by you or your transferees, successors, heirs, licensees, employees or assigns of any of the rights herein granted or agreed to be granted to you. I agree to indemnify you and your successors, assigns, heirs and licensees, and hold all such persons or companies harmless from and against all liability, losses, damages, costs, expenses (including but not limited to attorney’s fees), judgments and penalties arising out of, resulting from, based upon or incurred because of the breach of any warranty, representation or agreement made by me hereunder. Specifically, I agree that I will have no rights to enjoin the publication, exhibition or distribution or exploitation of any book or derivative work based thereon or to terminate or rescind any rights granted to you hereunder.
- I agree that you shall have the right to edit, change, add to, take from, rearrange, vary, embellish, alter, modify, revise, translate, reformat and/or reprocess the Materials and/or the Life Rights in any manner you may in your sole discretion determine and to use them in a book, or other materials including websites, or social media.
- Nothing in this document shall be construed in any way to remove my rights to use the material published in the Book elsewhere as I wish.
- My story will not contain any commercial promotion. My story will not mention any websites or organizations.
- I attest that I have the right to consent to this agreement not only for myself but also on behalf of anyone else mentioned in the story.
- I agree that this instrument constitutes my entire agreement and complete understanding and that all prior or contemporaneous promises, understandings, and agreements, oral or written, are merged into, and included in this written instrument. I agree also that you are under no obligation to make use of any right or privilege that I have granted to you.
- This agreement shall bind my heirs, administrators, executors and assigns forever. You shall have the right to assign any or all your rights hereunder to any person, firm, or entity.
- I give you the foregoing consent and release with the knowledge and understanding that you will incur substantial expense in reliance thereon.
I agree to all the terms and conditions with my signature below.
______________________________________________________
Your Signature
Date Signed:
Full Printed Legal Name:
Email:
Phone Number:
Street Address:
City/State/ZIP:
MATERIAL
(COPY/PASTE YOUR STORY BELOW HERE)