Cannabis withdrawal, bipolar and anxiety

Wander · ‎24-09-2018

Hi all,

I have a dx of bipolar spectrum (still not sure where I lie on it though), and generalised anxiety.

I have been smoking cannabis daily for 5 years now and it's been 3 days since I last used. I'm feeling restless and agitated, but exhausted and despondent all at the same time. My mind races and it won't stop. I'm becoming increasingly overwhelmed and I can't relax.

I've tried hot and cold showers and running. I've tried loud and gentle music but I've heard unintelligible voices in the music. I've tried meditation but it almost made things worse as I start to focus on how my body feels and that's not very pleasant right now. I have a headache, I'm nauseated, have no appetite, I feel weak and can't sleep. The physical stuff I know is likely just withdrawal and will pass but my thoughts are scaring me. I've tried to quit before but used alcohol and medication to calm me down and eventually started using again. To be honest I never believed cannabis could result in a withdrawal syndrome until I experienced it myself.

I'm looking for other tips to calm my mind and body?

Have any others had a similar experience when trying to quit smoking cannabis?

JessF · ‎25-09-2018

Hello Wander, I am not experienced with cannabis but I have had a lot of experience with racing thoughts and how to manage them. I notice that with all of the things you have tried so far, they involve struggling against the thoughts or avoidance rather than trying to calm yourself. Generally speaking, these things can end up making it worse rather than better, particularly using other drugs on top.

This part here... 'I've tried meditation but it almost made things worse as I start to focus on how my body feels and that's not very pleasant right now'. The feelings aren't pleasant, but have you tried going into them rather than avoiding them? It is hard at first, but eventually with meditation and mindfulness you get to a place where you are an observer of the feelings, both pleasant and unpleasant, without applying any judgment to them. In a way you are already doing this when you say 'The physical stuff I know is likely just withdrawal and will pass'. Can you try applying this same line of reassurance to your thoughts as well?

It goes without saying that talking to your doctor to work out a more formal plan for quitting would be a good idea, particularly if you are taking medication for your bipolar as well, it could get quite tricky.

Wander · ‎26-09-2018

Hi JessF.

Thanks for taking the time to respond. You're right, I do spend much of my time battling my thoughts and feelings, not just now with the added stress of quitting, but in my everyday life. I think I have a low distress tolerance, but I have found mindfulness meditation very difficult. I have used apps like buddify but never with a face to face guide, do you think I might have more success this way? I can recognise that I engage in avoidance behaviours everyday to my detriment but have struggled to overcome them due to my anxieties. The higher my anxiety and stress levels get, I loose sleep and become increasingly agitated.

I have an appointment to see my psychiatrist in a month. I contacted my local public health services drug and alcohol team to maybe access drug counselling to make a long term plan to abstain. My GP doesn't know but his a family doctor I really don't want to share this with. I no longer see a psychologist due to current finances. I want to stop all my medications. Obviously I'll discuss this with him prior, as I probably should have done before trying to quit smoking cannabis.

JessF · ‎26-09-2018

Hello Wander, it's a shame you don't feel comfortable talking about all your health issues with your GP, as it seems like so many things going on for you all overlap. Your GP may struggle to give you the best advice and treatment without the proper context of everything. For example, your doctor is struggling to understand why a broken arm is taking so long to heal, and you're not able to tell him you've been taking it out of the cast and trying to play tennis with it. It's the same with your poor sleep and the possible link to your cannabis use and withdrawal.

It is tough trying to learn meditation on your own, I believe there are groups you can join. Perhaps this is something you could look into?

Keep at what you're doing, Wander, make the goals small and manageable and not set too far in the future. Small steps each day add up to a big journey.