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Marijuana is a green, brown, or gray mixture of dried, shredded leaves, stems, seeds, and flowers of the hemp plant. Common street names for marijuana are pot, hemp, weed, grass, ganja, boom, Mary Jane, etc. All forms of marijuana contain the powerful, addictive, and mind-altering drug, THC (delta-9- tetrahydrocannabinol). Due to its potent and intoxicating nature marijuana has been both used and abused. While medical uses of marijuana make it valuable, the abuses of marijuana by people in search of a different experience make it a dangerous drug.
Many variables influence the psychological effects of marijuana. Marijuana increases the release of dopamine, a neurotransmitter involved in the experience of euphoria. Therefore, most users report euphoria, as well as relaxation, often followed by sleepiness. Others say they develop insight. Psychological effects are subject to interpretation. What one person may view as desirable or euphoric may be undesirable to another. One study found that adolescents who used marijuana had higher rates of schizophrenia or related conditions as adults. On the perceptual level, many people report feeling more introspective and sensitive to external stimuli when they are using marijuana. Another claim they are more artistically creative although objective research does not support this. Marijuana can cause mood changes marked by anxiety, sadness, laughter, and paranoia. Some people experience panic reactions, which tend to be temporary and often are triggered by a feeling of not being in control (Goldberg, 2005)
Marijuana’s psychological effects include a sense of euphoria or well-being, relaxation, altered time sense, and perceptual distortions. At high doses, however, paranoia, hallucinations, and delusions can occur (Coon, 2005). For about a day after a person smokes marijuana, his or her attention, coordination, and short-term memory are impaired (Coon, 2005). Frequent marijuana users show small declines in learning, memory, attention, and thinking abilities (Solowji et al, 2002). When surveyed at age 29, nonusers are healthier, earn more, and are more satisfied with their lives than people who smoke marijuana regularly (Ellickson, Martino, and Collins, 2004). People who smoke five or more join a week score 4 points lower on IQ tests. In fact, many people who have stopped using marijuana say they quit because they were bothered by short-term memory loss and concentration problems.
The relation between the level of reported use of marijuana and psychological vulnerability to substance abuse has been studied by Szalay et al (1999) and the following are the findings: 71% of those who do not use marijuana show resistance whereas those who use marijuana show increased vulnerability to substance abuse; the greatest increase in vulnerability is just at the point of experimentation from no use to 1-6 times a year; highest vulnerability is found among daily users; the levels of vulnerability among marijuana users are of a much greater magnitude than those found among alcohol drinkers (Szalay et al, 1999). This shows that marijuana has a direct impact on the psychological vulnerability of a person, making him more susceptible to substance abuse.
One study of adolescents who smoked marijuana at least once a week reported that these adolescents thought about killing themselves three times more often than nonusers, felt more lonely and unloved, were six times more likely to run away from home, were six times more likely to cut classes or skip school and were five times more likely to steal (Goldberg, 2005). This indicates that psychologically, marijuana users tend to become depressive and lose track of morality codes.
Approximately 9% of a group of smokers followed for five years developed problems in four aspects of life: the negative effects of the drug, problems in controlling use, interpersonal difficulties, and unfavorable opinions about use. The negative effects of the drug included a subjective feeling of dependence. Problems controlling use consisted of 48-hour binges, use in the early morning, or an inability to limit consumption. Interpersonal difficulties involved fights with friends and loved ones. Adverse opinions included feeling that marijuana use had grown excessive, guilt-inducing, or objectionable (Earleywine, 2002). These problems indicate that marijuana does have an impact on the psychological side and marijuana users are likely to experience low self-image, addiction, substance abuse, and emotional instability.
Bibliography
Coon, Dennis (2005). Psychology: A Modular Approach to Mind and Behavior. Thomason Wadsworth Publishers. 2005.
Earleywine, Mitchell (2002). Understanding Marijuana: A New Look at the Scientific Evidence. Oxford University Press. 2002.
Ellickson PL; Martino SC; and Collins RL (2004). Marijuana use from adolescence to young adulthood: multiple developmental trajectories and their associated outcomes. Health Psychology. May 2004. Volume 23. Issue 3. Pages 299-30.
Goldberg, Ray (2005). Drugs Across the Spectrum (with Infotrac ). Thomson Brooks/Cole Publishers. 2005.
Solowji N.; Stephens RS; Roffman RA, et al.Cognitive functioning of long-term heavycannabis users seeking treatment. JAMA.2002. Volume 287. pages 1123-113.
Szalay, B. Lorand; Strohl, Bryson Jean; Doherty, T. Kathleen; and NetLibrary, Inc (1999). Psychoenvironmental Forces in Substance Abuse. Springer Publications. 1999.
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