r/Petioles

hi all just want to write here to see if I can not only get some answers, but also share my experience that can maybe help others (just as reading some responses on here and other subreddits have helped me through this process)

for context- i have been smoking carts since 2017 when hanging out with friends etc. but never started buying my own and smoking daily until 2019.

i've gone on maybe 4-5 T-breaks throughout this time period, most of the time involuntary due to vacation and not having access (and never lasting longer than 2 weeks, then going right back on the horse), but this is my first time really taking an intentional break.

for context, i've smoked pre-rolls, from a bong, edibles, etc... but most of my addiction and reliance has been from high-potency carts (i want to say anywhere between 70-90%, much higher % in the last 2 years since it seems like the stuff from dispensaries have only continued to climb higher and higher in %)

i would say that between 2022-2024 i was still enjoying my time, but around 2024 and beyond is when i realized something needed to change.

i was smoking all day, as soon as the day started all the way until when the night hit. i never hit blinkers, but i would often stack back to back 5 second draws. at one point i bought a device that had a counter, and i think in the 1.5 years that i had it, i ran that thing up to nearly 1500-1600 hits before throwing it away.

i was routinely going through 1G carts in about 3 weeks, then 2.5 weeks, then 2 weeks, then at my worst i would kill half a 1G cart in 3 days... and i was chasing diminishing returns, it was no longer fun nor was i getting high really (other than the first hit of the day)... i was just smoking to run away from the feelings of feeling bad. looking at my journal jan of this year i was still crushing them: 26 days to empty, 16 days to empty. 12 days to empty in march. 14 days to empty in june. june-july destroyed 1.5g over two months, which started to be better but still not great. throughout july-august-september leading up to my T break i was really struggling, taking 1-2 hits here and there but I was already starting to feel withdrawal- i would feel my GI doing backflips and would journal about it.

so now where am i? i did have a relapse 9 days ago, when i was out with some old friends that smoke and took two hits off a cart. the "fun high feelings" rushed back in and i was extremely inebriated, and it did feel fun and good again. i could tell my tolerance has dropped significantly from this T-break given that the high lasted much longer than usual when i was abusing. i did relapse for 4 days in a row after this, with at max 2 hits per day of 2-3 second draws of 90%+ carts.

personal timelines:

day 1-5: the absolute worst. extremely moody and not feeling well. next to no appetite. flu-like symptoms, extreme GI discomfort. tons of anxiety, everything was irritating me.

day 5-8: suddenly bounced back and emotionally felt better, and libido was still somewhat intact. still some feelings of sinus and throat congestion.

day 9-30: during this time i could steadily feel like things were getting better. food was tasting better, but my GI was still going crazy. mood was still not the greatest and still irritable, but i did feel like things were going in the right direction linearly. every single day slowly did get better, and overall i can feel like i can take a deeper breath than i ever have been able to when i was smoking regularly.

day 30-present: again things have overall gotten better. still having GI issues but they are much less. of course when i relapsed then i felt really good during this time, but then the week right after the relapse i could feel the acute withdrawal symptoms again (really irritable, overall really not feeling good, and mood not great). but now i feel like i'm back on the straight and narrow and things are linearly getting better.

however, i am still having tons of issues with sleeping and libido. does anyone have any experience / idea for when my sleep and libido will return to normal? i do cardio 30 minutes a day at least and lift heavy at least 3 times a week. i used to have a rather high sex drive, but now i do feel like i have ED or something.. i'm in my mid 20s. maybe it's that my dopamine levels are still in a trough and have yet to bounce back?

this has been my experience, and while i'm still not out of the woods yet (and definitely no saint as you can see by my relapse), i hope that if you are reading this and think it's time to give it up, you take that sign seriously. aside from my libido and sleep disruptions, it has really helped me in every aspect of my life.

mental clarity, not sweating like crazy like i did when i was addicted, no anxiety when driving, being able to articulate myself better. attention span has increased. tons and tons of benefits. as you can see i am still going through the tail end of the withdrawal symptoms and still haven't had a full recovery, but it is worth it to at least prove to yourself that you can do it. your body will also thank you.

Today I felt good because I didn’t have any cravings, I still don’t feel the need to smoke, but goddamn is it hard to sleep, I even tried some lavender tea and nothing, I’m about to give up and just stay up all night

If any of you have any advice on getting to sleep faster I’d really appreciate it!

Edit: thanks to everyone for your support and advice, I will be trying the recommendations for tonight, you guys really made me feel a bit more confident about the whole break thing, cause when you’re staring at the ceiling it really makes you wonder if it’s worth it, so thank you!

April 2025 I decided to stop smoking for good because I don’t like what my life had become. I smoked a lot of weed every day. Multiple bong bowles back to back and I counted smoking like 10 times a day once or twice with an average of 6. An 1/8th oz would last me about 2 days if I was lucky. I was high all day and all night long. I could wake up in the middle of the night and go smoke just to go to bed and smoke before brushing my teeth in the morning…

Once I decided to quit I started to taper down how much I smoked and one day it made my heart feel like 10000 miles and I didn’t smoke again. But compared to the times I had taken a t break in the past, I was terrified and had really intense withdrawal symptoms. Over time, the not smoking revealed symptoms of what turns out to be irreversible spinal and nerve issues (I’m 25).

I had cravings on and off but was able to stay away from smoking until a few months after my first steroid treatment. The pain in my spine started to come back, my life got more stressful after getting laid off from two jobs and finding another one that feels like way more than I can chew, and I caved and started smoking again. It was tame at first. I’d put a bit of a preroll in a one hitter and would only smoke once a day. But I eventually bought a bong (has always been my preferred method of consumption) to make it a “cleaner” experience and I’ve quickly returned to smoking more than I would like. On a typical work day I would smoke in the morning when I wake up, maybe lunch break (sometimes I come home for lunch or work remotely), and 2 or 3 times at night. I have a very small bong and bowl of say 1/4 lasts me a week and a day or two. I try to keep the thc not higher than 20% as well.

It helps somewhat with the pain and the stress but it makes me feel guilty. Especially on the days I’m home and all I do is spend the day highly. I hate that I cough up the tar (I didn’t when I first started smoking in 2022 but after I quit last year, I started clearing that up in my phlegm and now that I picked up weed again it’s back and its lowkey scary.

I enjoy weed a lot but I have a hard time using it in moderation. My main goal was to use it when I need to manage my pain and the occasional treat, but i fear I don’t have the will to do that….

How did you find moderation and what helps you?

I’ve been trying to switch to edibles (therapist recommended to “stop the reward getting high right after you smoke gives you”. He said the edibles will create a separation between eating a gummy and then feeling it an hour or two later in hopes that removes a lot of the emotion from the impulsive behavior) but I’ve found they never really make me feel high. I had a thc drink before I bought my first preroll and I felt amazingly relaxed but I think that had to do with the bit of CBD in the drink.

I just want to feel like I’m in control of my life, cope with the pain without harder drugs like opiates or so many steroid injections into my spine (they’re also so expensive), and overall physically and emotionally healthy…. Idk how I can balance weed and all of those things but I really want to

I don’t know if it’s because I’m cutting back heavily on weed or not, but I’ve really stepped it back on smoking the last two days and I’ve been shitting water, I’m getting hot and cold sweats and my heart is beating out of my chest and stomach. I have this impending sense of doom and I can’t shake it it is so debilitating. I honestly really need someone to talk to me about this who knows more about it.

I've been smoking a small/moderate amount (4-8 hits off a pipe or joint) nightly for a couple of years. Usually ill have a few hits around 8 then a few more about 930pm. Mostly to help get to sleep and the anxiety preventing sleep onset, though I understand not great for my sleep architecture long term.

If there's anyone out there in a similar boat, how long was your sleep screwed up after taking a break? My sleep has always been crap and I have a low dose of trazodone to help, but night one i was up with restlessness an jerks for hours.

I'd like to get off the merry go round but I'd also like to be able to function at work and wonder how long the sleep effects will last.

Thanks

I’ve smoked probably everyday since I was 16 and am now 21. I am definitely feeling the effects and trying to heavily cut back. I use to smoke before work bc I get bad anxiety before going in, hit my vape on breaks, and then smoke when getting home immediately, maybe even before bed as well.

Now I am just smoking a joint before bed, I haven’t had the urge to necessarily smoke but recently before going into work my anxiety is at an all time high. My hands are shaky, heart almost pounding, and today I actually started gagging from how nervous I was.

I’m annoyed at myself, bc I have an easy ass desk job there is literally no need to be so worked up, and I know that. I guess I just didn’t realize how much my body depended on it.

Any advice for how to deal with this anxiety is appreciated- I have been doing breathing exercises and just reminding myself everything is fine, halfway into my shift and my anxiety is low/almost gone, just would hate for this feeling to get worse as it’s only day 2:/

My depression/Anendoia has not been doing good lately. I just wanted to feel something so I smoked half a CBD cigarette with half THC flower in it and the two shots whiskey. Glad I didn't smoke my carts tho. About 6 months ago I finally sat down with myself and ask myself why I smoke. I smoke cuz of my depression but then the depression gets worse it's vicious cycle. Currently y I'm not on any medication. Try two different ssris but made the symptoms worse. Haven't gone back to the doctor ever since to discuss. My doctor doesn't know I smoke. Sleep was finally gotten better too.

I’m trying to reduce my THC consumption, but am as seduced by the ritual of smoking as much as its effects. Mixing regular marijuana flower with CBD flower has worked well for me in the past for this purpose.

Unfortunately, new changes to the laws in my state mean my local CBD shop is closing down, and I’m weary of blindly online shopping this type of product. Anyone here have recommendations on trusted sources to purchase full spectrum CBD flower online?

Open to recs for additional CBD products, including broad spectrum or isolate, if I ever move past flower. Not comfy sharing my state and don’t mind vetting from the site for myself if it ships its products my way. TYIA!