Page 4 | To let my son smoke weed due to stress

Marblessolveeverything · 19/02/2023 09:02

No, he is peak age where severe mental health issues can begin. There is a million other methods to relax.

Sorry for your loss I would assume it is grief underlying the anxiety? So perhaps support that is bereavement led and age specific would be a starting point.

NewDogOwner · 19/02/2023 09:03

Don't teach a child to manage his emotions with substances. This is how lifelong habits start.

sanabria · 19/02/2023 09:10

This is basically teaching a child that illegal substances are an appropriate way to deal with stress/difficult emotions.
Your son will have many stressful days and emotional upheavals in his life, and he can't get high as a way of dealing with it everytime. He needs to learn healthy coping mechanisms.
Letting him continue down this path will be an enormous disservice to your son and could have life ruining consequences. Intervene.

Whydoitry · 19/02/2023 09:13

I'm sorry but I wouldn't allow it. I saw my uni friend who also had tragic family circumstances get hooked on weed. He doesn't do anything now except sit at home smoking.

Nimbostratus100 · 19/02/2023 09:20

Sotiredmjmmy · 19/02/2023 09:01

Don’t, just don’t let him justify it, it really will be best to encourage him to stop sooner rather than later. In 15-20 years time it will still be an issue, even if not still smoking it by then,
long term it will likely be far far worse for his mental health than the stress and anxiety he has now, smoking weed as teenager is a big factor in men’s mental health later on

exactly, this is the worst possible route for him to be going down. My cousin started about this age, and now he is nearly 30 no one except his mum has seen his in the last 10 years because he wont come out of his bedroom, except to pick up his weed

KimberleyClark · 19/02/2023 09:20

I’m so sorry for your loss. My father died when I was 17. It’s hard. But I do think you should help him find other ways to cope.

LlynTegid · 19/02/2023 09:22

Sorry for your loss.

No, I don't want to see any more young men stabbed to death or killings in Mexico and other countries, which partaking in illegal drugs is supporting.

Using substances can also as noted be the start of lifelong issues.

Dibbydoos · 19/02/2023 09:22

Gosh, he's lost his dad and smokes a bit of weed and the anti drug brigade is out. Take a chill pill. I used to think the same but a psychiatrist told me it's medicine, so that helped me adust my thinking - I am anti drugs btw. But what's the option, alcohol? I'd rather go with weed.
If you dont want the smell, it can be bought in a vape. Get his counselling, it will help too.

Just like alcohol, weed can be addictive so talk about how much.

If you want to see the diff between havibg a drink abd weed, look up football match behaviour - those in Holland are much calmer cos weed is lehal there, just saying....!

Bionesque · 19/02/2023 09:30

Movielover71 · 19/02/2023 00:10

Ds(16) dad has passed away recently and it has been a very hard time for us. I have noticed the smell of weed in the house and we have talked about it, he has told me he is very stressed and I feel bad to sanction him at such a difficult time in our lives. AIBU to let him be and just let him smoke?

I have a feeling that, if you were being entirely honest with yourself @Movielover71, letting him do his own thing is help you rather than your son. Perhaps it's too painful to acknowledge the grief together. Perhaps you feel that in some way you'll get it wrong, or that he will get angry.

Whatever the reason, and as hard as it might be, you need to step up and be a hands-on, involved parent now that he only has one left.

PugInTheHouse · 19/02/2023 09:31

Dibbydoos · 19/02/2023 09:22

Gosh, he's lost his dad and smokes a bit of weed and the anti drug brigade is out. Take a chill pill. I used to think the same but a psychiatrist told me it's medicine, so that helped me adust my thinking - I am anti drugs btw. But what's the option, alcohol? I'd rather go with weed.
If you dont want the smell, it can be bought in a vape. Get his counselling, it will help too.

Just like alcohol, weed can be addictive so talk about how much.

If you want to see the diff between havibg a drink abd weed, look up football match behaviour - those in Holland are much calmer cos weed is lehal there, just saying....!

My friends DC dud the same and it made his stress and anxiety levels so much worse. If its in a vape presumably you mean CBD oil? That's very different. Weed is not medicine and is illegal. CBD oil is legal and helps many people.

I'm not particularly anti drug, I used lots of drugs for social purposes when I was young, never for stress or medicinal purposes though, just instead of alcohol when partying. I would be really concerned if young people were using it in place of counselling or actual medication. I feel the same about replacing these things with alcohol, I don't agree with this either (after having close relationships with alcoholics). I have never come home from work stressed and had a drink. I feel like it's a slippery slope, and have seen it 1st hand.

Karwomannghia · 19/02/2023 09:31

Dibbydoos · 19/02/2023 09:22

Gosh, he's lost his dad and smokes a bit of weed and the anti drug brigade is out. Take a chill pill. I used to think the same but a psychiatrist told me it's medicine, so that helped me adust my thinking - I am anti drugs btw. But what's the option, alcohol? I'd rather go with weed.
If you dont want the smell, it can be bought in a vape. Get his counselling, it will help too.

Just like alcohol, weed can be addictive so talk about how much.

If you want to see the diff between havibg a drink abd weed, look up football match behaviour - those in Holland are much calmer cos weed is lehal there, just saying....!

Anti drug for a reason and where did one person say alcohol is a recommended alternative?
Do you know many Dutch people? Because the ones I know don’t think weed is a good idea either and see parts of Amsterdam as the place for drug addled tourists.

Nimbostratus100 · 19/02/2023 09:33

Dibbydoos · 19/02/2023 09:22

Gosh, he's lost his dad and smokes a bit of weed and the anti drug brigade is out. Take a chill pill. I used to think the same but a psychiatrist told me it's medicine, so that helped me adust my thinking - I am anti drugs btw. But what's the option, alcohol? I'd rather go with weed.
If you dont want the smell, it can be bought in a vape. Get his counselling, it will help too.

Just like alcohol, weed can be addictive so talk about how much.

If you want to see the diff between havibg a drink abd weed, look up football match behaviour - those in Holland are much calmer cos weed is lehal there, just saying....!

A psychiatrist that supports child slavery

yeah, right

I think this guy has an eye on his private practice, and knows the best investment in the future in encouraging mental illness through trauma and drugs

Hope551 · 19/02/2023 09:36

@wiltshirelass1418

I know, it's £50 for the assessment for prescription. I was only suggesting as for a teen you can't really control what they do. But isn't weed made and prescribed surely a better option than going to dealers on the streets? I did advise no but I also know how hard it is to monitor teens and would try damage limitation 😬

Karwomannghia · 19/02/2023 09:36

Yes funny that the many psychiatrists that I’ve spoken to re psychosis of 2 family members had absolutely no doubts about the cause and said it is extremely common. When my Dbro was first ill 30 years ago there was less certainty to be fair, but not anymore.

blippyissilly · 19/02/2023 09:49

I used to work with a guy in his forties who had smoked weed most of his life and was still a daily user

His head and mind were completely gone

DillDanding · 19/02/2023 09:52

No way. There are other ways to manage stress without risking psychotic illness.

FatAgainItsLettuceTime · 19/02/2023 13:58

Dibbydoos · 19/02/2023 09:22

Gosh, he's lost his dad and smokes a bit of weed and the anti drug brigade is out. Take a chill pill. I used to think the same but a psychiatrist told me it's medicine, so that helped me adust my thinking - I am anti drugs btw. But what's the option, alcohol? I'd rather go with weed.
If you dont want the smell, it can be bought in a vape. Get his counselling, it will help too.

Just like alcohol, weed can be addictive so talk about how much.

If you want to see the diff between havibg a drink abd weed, look up football match behaviour - those in Holland are much calmer cos weed is lehal there, just saying....!

Why is the choice weed or alcohol.

He's a 16 yr old bereaved child, he needs to be given appropriate outlets for his feelings not substances to dull them.

SignOnTheWindow · 19/02/2023 14:00

Jesus christ, no. My aunt is a psychiatrist and sees an enormous number of people in their 20s who have developed psychosis from smoking too much weed.

Survey99 · 19/02/2023 14:15

Smoking weed does not help teens MH, quite the opposite so never condone or enable, but go easy on sanctions during such a difficult time.

Spend time, talk to him, find positive things to engage him and get him away from the weed.

HRTQueen · 19/02/2023 14:17

Dibbydoos · 19/02/2023 09:22

Gosh, he's lost his dad and smokes a bit of weed and the anti drug brigade is out. Take a chill pill. I used to think the same but a psychiatrist told me it's medicine, so that helped me adust my thinking - I am anti drugs btw. But what's the option, alcohol? I'd rather go with weed.
If you dont want the smell, it can be bought in a vape. Get his counselling, it will help too.

Just like alcohol, weed can be addictive so talk about how much.

If you want to see the diff between havibg a drink abd weed, look up football match behaviour - those in Holland are much calmer cos weed is lehal there, just saying....!

A psychiatrist will not be telling you cannabis that is sold on the streets that now is mainly skunk that has extremely high levels of THC in is medicine becuase it’s not

heroin is used in medicine what you buy from the local dealer is not the same

Nightynightnight · 19/02/2023 14:20

Echoing what others have said. Please do all that you can to nip this in the bud now. I worked in mental health for years and ALL of the young men I've worked with used weed through their late teens either as a way of dealing with difficult emotions or self medicating underlying mental illness. It aggravated all of the original problems and for many led onto other addictions, particularly heroin and alcohol. Even for those who didn't end up with other addictions their use of weed at such a crucial stage in brain growth and learning completely stunted their development. The result being grown men who had no ability to make appropriate or healthy decisions leading to problematic relationships and for some criminal activity. This might all sound ott but the fact that your son is dealing with stress and grief makes it even more unreasonable if you don't help him find other ways to relieve it.

Take him to the GP - get him some grief counselling, get him to the gym or get out walking together, and if absolutely necessary get him on anti-depressants but whatever you do, don't let him develop a drug addiction. It will affect his whole life.

JimmyGrimble · 19/02/2023 15:14

Dibbydoos · 19/02/2023 09:22

Gosh, he's lost his dad and smokes a bit of weed and the anti drug brigade is out. Take a chill pill. I used to think the same but a psychiatrist told me it's medicine, so that helped me adust my thinking - I am anti drugs btw. But what's the option, alcohol? I'd rather go with weed.
If you dont want the smell, it can be bought in a vape. Get his counselling, it will help too.

Just like alcohol, weed can be addictive so talk about how much.

If you want to see the diff between havibg a drink abd weed, look up football match behaviour - those in Holland are much calmer cos weed is lehal there, just saying....!

It’s. Not. Medicine.
My lovely, clever, funny son is now in a psychiatric intensive care ward 300 miles away because in the midst of his psychosis he thought someone was going to attack his dad so he had a knife to ‘protect him’. We had to watch as he was repeatedly tasered in our kitchen …
During the week leading up to this latest section he kept having terrible shouting arguments threatening to kill someone who wasn’t even there. We would wake up to find him watching us from the foot of our bed…
He punched walls with his bare fists and put his guitar through one of the walls in his room…
Drugs started this but self medicating made it so much worse. You can think what you like and of course there is no way of knowing if your child will be the one affected. But what if it is?

Mythicalcreatures · 19/02/2023 15:21

As someone whose df died when they were a teen, your ds needs his other parent ( I know how hard this is my dc's father died when they were younger) and not just let him get on with smoking weed. I'm not particular anti drug but a 16 Yr old using it to help him cope is a bad idea.

Aphrathestorm · 19/02/2023 23:17

It's a very dangerous drug.

No no way never.

sairbair · 19/02/2023 23:34

I am in exactly the same position as you at the moment and it is terribly difficult. If you need any support please feel free to message me. I agree it really is a a bad idea and I am trying to guide mine away from weed but not that easy. They will not consider bereavement counselling so steering them to dog walking, small meals out together etc... I am sorry for your loss.