Hello, Johnny’s Ambassadors! Did you know in a few weeks, teens and young adults around the world will celebrate 420 DAY? Do you know what 420 Day is and why it’s meaningful in marijuana culture? And more importantly, do you know where your teen will be at 4:20 PM on Tuesday, April 20?… Read the rest
The Fodder of Lies: Marijuana Use and Mood Disorders
By Laura Stack
Despite evidence to the contrary, many marijuana users choose to believe their favorite drug works as a viable medicine for all kinds of ailments, physical and mental. Pro-marijuana web sites love to promote marijuana as an “alternative medicine,” good for whatever ails you, just as their Big Tobacco and snake oil predecessors did with their products.… Read the rest
Recognizing Cannabis Withdrawal Syndrome (CWS)
By Laura Stack
Like all Substance Use Disorders, Cannabis Use Disorder comes with a suite of telltale withdrawal symptoms. Indeed, Cannabis Withdrawal Syndrome (CWS) is a clinical indicator of CUD, and it’s one of the factors that’s convinced most health care professionals marijuana is, in fact, addictive.… Read the rest
Marijuana Usage and the COVID-19 Pandemic
By Laura Stack
In recent years, we’ve seen gradual increases in marijuana use among the younger segments of the population, including adolescents and tweens. This may be linked to the increased legalization and decriminalization of marijuana across the United States, and the associated perception that it’s not an especially dangerous drug.… Read the rest
Can My Teen Recover from a Substance Use Disorder? Part II
One result of the abuse of an addictive substance can be a Substance Use Disorder, or SUD. SUDs are primarily psychological ailments, though they may have physical effects if the user’s brain has suffered damage from the substance abused. A SUD can prove harder to recover from than a physical injury, and though they usually can’t be seen, the scars they leave are real and often permanent.… Read the rest
Recovering and Healing from a Substance Use Disorder, Part I
By Laura Stack
My last article on Cannabis Use Disorder garnered a lot of shares on social media, so I wanted to continue that thread and discuss what experts say about your child recovering and healing from a Cannabis Use Disorder.… Read the rest
Is Marijuana Truly Addictive? Let’s See What the Psychiatric Guide Says
By Laura Stack
The short answer is, “Of course it is,” though that’s way too glib.
We’ve already asked and answered this question in a previous blog; however, many people don’t understand how marijuana can be addictive. Sadly, according to recent surveys, the percentage of the population (both youth and adult) who consider marijuana harmful has decreased significantly in recent years.… Read the rest
The Increasing Prevalence of Marijuana Vaping
By Laura Stack
Vaping was supposed to be a good thing. We know better now.
Some clever person invented electronic cigarettes—little vaping pens that heated nicotine-infused liquid and released it as a vapor (technically an aerosol), rather than smoke. Initially, vaping was perceived as a safer way to ingest nicotine; indeed, it was going to help many people quit smoking cigarettes.… Read the rest
Adolescent Marijuana Use in 2019: Results from the National Survey on Drug Use and Health (NSDUH)
By Laura Stack
Since 1971, the National Survey on Drug Use and Health (NSDUH) has tracked substance use and related health issues in the United States as a whole, under the auspices of the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA).… Read the rest
Top Ten Teen Toking Tip-Offs
By Laura Stack
Is your teenager using marijuana? In this era of easy access to weed, that’s an important question.
The Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) just released the 2019 Annual National Survey on Drug Use and Health (NSDUH), the most comprehensive survey on drug use.… Read the rest