Has Anyone Heard of Smoking Marijuana for Bipolar Symtoms?

Oh, wow. No wonder!

LOL, I didn't even look at the date of the OP. Well that'll teach me. But my PM still stands.

Schizophrenia is not bipolar. I have seen schizophrenia up close through the struggles of two good friends - one committed suicide - the other has been living in a group home for many years. So their conditions are/were quite severe. Marijuana was clearly not beneficial to either of them.

Both of them had a lot of difficulty separating their ideas from reality. Marijuana was not helpful, but LSD was a real problem. Marijuana is a mild hallucinogen, LSD is not. I can see how using that drug even once could be a big negative when dealing with schizophrenia.

Bipolar I have personal experience with. I used Lithium in doses from 300-1200mg for 5 years+ also used Zoloft and something called Manerix (moclobemide?). I gave up those meds almost 10 years ago now. I medicate purely with marijuana.

When I have a manic run it slows my thoughts down enough that I do not act on all my grandiose notions, spend money recklessly or act recklessly. When I am really depressed it lets me dissociate from the pain for long enough to get some exercise or do something else to help me break out of it.

It is clearly not for everyone, but I can speak for myself and others who have experienced benefits from marijuana. There are downsides - smoked marijuana can lead to throat irritation, dry mouth, coughing. For me that is a better choice than the hand tremors and stomach problems lithium gave me.

You do not have to ingest marijuana by smoking, but if eaten you need approximately 4 times the amount to have the same therapeutic effect. I would love to ingest it that way all the time, but it is too expensive for me.

In nearly 10 years of using marijuana to treat my bipolar I have; never lost a job, never had a problem with the law, never failed a drug test, and I maintain a relationship with a non-bipolar mate who understands my marijuana use.

She did not accept it at first. It took her seeing what it has done for me, and meeting others through support groups who have experienced what I have. Now she can see for herself how it can help SOME people.

If you are going to use marijuana to treat bipolar TALK TO YOUR DOCTOR FIRST.

Rejecting ideas without enough information is a much more dangerous path then seeing if marijuana helps with bipolar.

Somebody mentioned nutritional treatment to accompany medical treatment. I am looking for any and all information that will assist in coping with the illnes. The only nutritional advice I have heard of is - no caffeine. I would desparately appreciate any direction provided for resources. I live in the southwest.
Thanks in advance.

What it all comes down to is one thing is Pot is not addictive so there is no harm in trying it you also don't have to smoke it to get the effects its actually a lot better to consume it through eating it will also last longer. Plus who do you trust a bunch of scientists who get paid so much money to come out with a pill or something that has been around on earth since the dawn of time. Also let see how many pills are there their are quite a few common sense tells me they obviously are not very effective and the fact all i ever read anywhere is how they do not work. Lets not forget pills also have side effects that primarily will kill you. Its up to you now to choose which path you go down Are o so good scientists who "Make pills out of the kindness of there hearts definitely not the paycheck." Or a plant.

This is a fairly old post but keeps reviving so I'll add my tuppenth.
All my claims are anecdotal.

Chronic and heavy use of cannabis alone will 99% lead to psychosis with little chance (>0.001%) of relief.

Chronic but not heavy use alone can lead to a dependence on cannabis as a mood enhancer. Without it, a chronic user will often suffer mood instability - anxiety, depression.

Infrequent but heavy use alone can lead to episodic drug-induced psychosis which can often alleviate with abstinence - symptomatic treatment of the psychosis helps but doesn't always need to continue.

Infrequent light use alone generally doesn't generally lead to a long lasting problem.

However - there are times where changes of supplier or type of cannabis can cause problems; change of preparation eg switching from bush to hydro; or using concomitant illicit stimulant substances - amphets, cocaine, heroin.
On these occasions it may only take one or two uses to 'flip' into a chronically psychotic state.

There are some people who seem hypersensitive and can 'flip' from just a few uses - or using cannabis on top of extreme levels of stress.

There is no way to know if someone is not predisposed to psychoses from just one toke - so my rule is that everyone is potentially at risk.

But for someone already in a chronic state of psychoses or extremes of mood dysregulation - apart from the fact it's illegal - I sometimes wonder why cannabis is not used in moderation for it's relaxation properties.

My teenage son is bipolar. We have had very good results with a combination of Geodon and lithium for mood stabilization. He also takes Luvox for OCD and Concerta for ADHD. This combination has been working well for a couple of years. The Geodon was very sedating in the beginning, but brought great symptom relief. My mother, who is also bipolar, takes a combination of Geodon and Zyprexa.

About the testimonials: It is good to remember that bipolar people are not very good objective judges of their own behavior. What feels good and normal to them can appear very differently to an observer. I agree with the other posters that cannabis use will most likely lead to substance dependence and thus a dual diagnosis.

I do want to reach out to you, one parent to another. It can be very, very hard to see your child so sick and not getting relief. It doesn't seem fair that they should have to deal with so much when they are so young. As a parent you just want to make it better, no matter what it takes. I encourage you to look up the Child and Adolescent Bipolar Foundation. They have a great website with many interactive features. I think it is very important for you to have a support system as your family deals with this. Feel free to message me privately if you would like. My thoughts are with you.

Those who give opinon as to the theurpetic affects of cannabis for the treatment of bp must first experience the extreme misery of the disease to give TRUE accurate account. Cannabis obviously doesn't work for everyone just as certain commercialized"prescription drugs" does not work for everyone with the same diagnosis. Most "prescription drugs" are measured doses of poison with sometimes chronic or fatal side affects. When "something(s)" works for a particular individual-- by all means keep using it til the adverse side affects are greater than theurpetic value. That "something(s)" includes the theurpetic use of cannabis--- provided all other measures have failed----- but if you are really adventerous you could try the commercialized "shock therapy" which essentially induces controlled seizures as a means of treating bp--- but you can rule this one out if you don't have some type of medical coverage to fork over the big bucks.Bottom line: If "something(s)" TRULY helps you to no committ suicide, homicide, isolated, anxious, anti-social, maniac, depressed, embarrassed, humiliated, lethargic, in physical pain, confused and psychotic-- then by all means use it til the adverse side affects are greater than theurpetic value. Anyone who thinks otherwise is selfish.