Theoretically, someone can overdose on THC (the active drug in marijuana) but the amount would be way higher then could ever be obtained at one time in a persons body. Besides, they would pass out from oxygen deprivation before it happened. Now if it's injected, it might be possible! But from conventionally smoking weed, no one has ever OD or died.

Check out the scientific facts facts...

I would say that probably 90% of people my age that I know can no longer smoke the weed. Is because I guess the stuff nowadays is to strong. They say it sends them into almost panic attack. Which I have experienced sometimes my own self which had never happened before. Just a thought

Marijuana comes in different grades / strengths. The weed I smoked 55 years ago, usually a whole joint had to be smoked to get good buzz. Marijuana strains like Humboldt entered the scene and the experienced smoker knew how to smoke so they wouldnt have an uncomfortable experience.

I know numerous people that smoke marijuana, including my brother. Hes been smoking for 50 years, and he and they dont experience what you posted. Besides, what you posted isnt in the context of the topic. The context is no OD and no death from marijuana use.

You and the 90% you cite probably don't know what you're doing and / or all may have unresolved psychological issues that can manifest behind many drugs, not just weed.

Much of the stigma is from the deadly lifestyle an addict of illegal drugs must live

people can die from smoking weed, but it's not usually an overdose like other drugs. thc can lead to death if there are underlying factors that the person doesn't know about. it also can interact with other medications or drugs the person is using. because of that, the deaths will be attributed to something other than thc/marijuana. it's not really that common, though.

thc is measured in percentages. the weed that was smoked in the 60s and 70s generally came in between 1-3% thc. when i was in high school, during the 1990s, the average was around 5%. in 2008, it was about 9%. of course, that's an average of confiscated and tested marijuana. the high end of the stuff tested has recently topped 19% thc. the pot we have today is much stronger than the stuff that was smoked in the 60s - and can be MUCH MUCH stronger.

i'm sorry if i've reignited some kind of debate that people don't want to participate in. the easy answer for that is that if you don't want to participate, don't. i've only recently found this forum and do not have a lot of friends in recovery, so i don't have a lot of people to discuss the things i think about with. i was hoping this would be an outlet for me.

It should be noted that addiction effects the reward circuit but stimulant drug abuse also effects other areas of the brain. For example stimulant drugs such as amphetamine and cocaine release dopamine, and if given repetitively can cause a paranoid psychosis virtually indistinguishable from the positive symptoms of schizophrenia.

Marijuana
You can indeed get stoned without inhaling! Actions of marijuana and its active ingredient 9-tetrahydrocannabinol (THC) on reward circuits are at cannabinoid receptors, which are the sites where endogenous cannabinoids are utilized naturally as retrograde neurotransmitters. Cannabis preparations are smoked in order to deliver cannabinoids that interact with the brains own cannabinoid receptors to trigger dopamine release from the mesolimbic reward. There are two known cannabinoid receptors, CB1 (in brain, coupled via G proteins and modulate adenylate cyclase and ion channels) and CB2 (predominantly in the immune system). CB1receptors may mediate not only marijuanas reinforcing properties, but also those of alcohol and to some extent those of other psychoactive substances (including possibly some foods). Anandamide is one of the endocannabinoids and a member of a chemical class of neurotransmitter that is not a monoamine, not an amino acid, and not a peptide: it is a lipid, specifically a member of a family of fatty acid ethanolamides. Anandamide shares most but not all of the pharmacologic properties of THC, since its actions at brain cannabinoid receptors are mimicked not only by THC but are antagonized in part by the selective brain cannabinoid CB1 receptor antagonist rimonabant.
In usual intoxicating doses, marijuana produces a sense of well-being, relaxation, a sense of friendliness, a loss of temporal awareness, including confusing the past with the present, slowing of thought processes, impairment of short-term memory, and a feeling of achieving special insights. At high doses, marijuana can induce panic, toxic delirium, and, rarely, psychosis. One complication of long-term use is the amotivational syndrome in frequent users. This syndrome is seen predominantly in heavy daily users and is characterized by the emergence of decreased drive and ambition, thus amotivational. It is also associated with other socially and occupationally impairing symptoms, including a shortened attention span, poor judgment, easy distractibility, impaired communication skills, introversion, and diminished effectiveness in interpersonal situations. Personal habits may deteriorate, and there may be a loss of insight, and even feelings of depersonalization. Another downside to marijuana is that individuals vulnerable to schizophrenia might precipitate this illness, make its onset earlier, or exacerbate established illness when abusing marijuana, and to a greater extent than with any other abusable drug.

-Stahl's Essential Psychoparmacology 4th Ed.

Not everyone who takes a drug once gets addicted to it. Why? For one thing, some drugs seem to be intrinsically more addicting than others. For another, some individuals may be more impulsive by nature or have a genetically dysfunctional reward system. It seems that impulsive traits and a dysfunctional reward system may confer a propensity towards drug use and abuse, and when drugs are ingested frequently, impulsive drug use can recruit the involvement of the habit system perhaps in some individuals more readily than in others, triggering neuroplasticity in the compulsivity circuit, which hypothetically is the means by which drug ingestion eventually becomes compulsive in some individuals

- Stahl's Essential Pyscopharmacology

Drug overdose is due to organ shut down, which is bio-chemical, its physical. Thus, Ill repeat what I posted; No one has ever died from an overdose of marijuana. Yes, there have been incidents of death for psychological reasons, but it rare. However, this isnt in the context I posted. Spinning the topic out of context with hyperbole wont change the facts.

My mentor who I met many years ago at an Alcoholics Anonymous meeting was not only a neurosurgeon but also a clinical pharmacologist. He worked at Lawrence Livermore labs. He was well known in the scientific community. Hes the scientist that discovered that amphetamine helps ADHD. He and his team also studied psychoactive drugs. He corresponded with Professor Raphael Mechoulam who discovered THC and is the foremost expert on the medical uses of marijuana. For those that want to be educated on this topic, check out these links

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Raphael_Mechoulam

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oUkl0zIl72c

http://jewishbusinessnews.com/2013/09/24/professor-raphael-mechoulam-the-father-of-cannabinoid-research/

The stigma regarding marijuana in the USA in part is eco-political $$$$ having to do with hemp. Hemp and marijuana are not the same. One cannot get high from smoking hemp. Hemp has 1000 uses from fuel to food, and yes it can be eaten. E.g., Hemp is superior to cotton, wood, products. Hemp is environmentally sound, and far more renewable. Hemp doesnt deplete to soil as cotton. Hemp gives back to the soil. Hemp is far less expensive source for paper than cutting down trees. If you can't figure out why it was outlawed, just follow the money $$$! One of many examples is political pressure exerted by the forestry industry and the DuPont Corporation, which patented oil and coal based plastics production. This should answer the question.

One must remember the underlining cause in drug use. I use the term "to escape reality" Chemically we want to dopamine surge, which comes naturally when we are happy. However when we face difficulties it is not there so, we abusers a drug to get that good feeling, rather than solve out problems We get used to getting the artificial reward and no longer need to face reality. It doesn't make much difference which drug we use. Substituting marijuana for alcohol is not solving the inherent problem. It's an escape.

There is a lot of bull about marijuana on both sides. I stick with the scientific facts. You can OD on booze but not on marijuana. The doesn't mean it's a good choice.

I am one who follows the principal that recreation drugs are a no no for alcoholics.

I never was pro medical marijuana until I went through cancer/chemo. After the myriad of drugs to combat pain and nausea, I can understand why many go down the marijuana option for relief.

I don't know a lot about the science of what's going on apart from what Google offers on a search, but I do know anyone using 'mind altering' drugs in excess of safe levels risk not only harm to their own lives but innocent lives placed in their path. You can't stay within safe limits, you need help, and it's out there.

Been an interesting read. Associate Diplomas will be handed out shortly. Hope everyone has a safe New Year.

School is In..... noooo

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bMtdrKIdDgE

Here Dude!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6J8__fWphE0

i'm surprised to see how many people don't ascribe to the idea that an addiction is an addiction. the science is there. it's the addictive behavior; the good feelings we get from drugs and the reward cycle in the brain may be the reasons we keep picking up, but the addictive behaviors must be addressed. i could never pick up another drink, but i could still be an active alcoholic - or a dry drunk - if i participate in the same addictive behaviors. i think it's the same for any addiction and explains why switching addictions is so common.

hey hey hey iconoclast, If you look at the bottom of your number 27 post. You brought up the subject of nobody has o" D on weed. I was just following up on what you posted. And yes my sister could probably keep up with Willie Nelson on the smoking of the weed. But how can you say me and almost a hundred others maybe cannot figure out how to operate a joint or bowl. My name isn't Bill Clinton. By your brother smoking for 50 years he definitely has built up a tolerance. Plus I am new here I know. And I appreciate your knowledge and insight. But if you are the thought police you need to let me know. Maybe I have anger issues. So I am addicted to working out. You have to forgive me but I am not in the shit taking business. My dad who is a phycologist says I will probably die as a result of road rage. But anybody stupid enough to pull over with me deserves everything they get. If it costs me my life well fine. That's the rules going in.