How to NOT Smoke Weed

There are tutorials and posts all over the internet that teach people the best or most effective ways to smoke weed. There are articles on how to make bongs, choosing the perfect vaporizer, best dabbing practices, and even cannabis cocktail tutorials. But what we don’t often see are guides on how to not smoke weed.

Such guides may not seem necessary to most people. After all, we hear the argument all the time that marijuana is not an addictive substance, but that doesn’t mean it’s not habit-forming. In fact, the National Institute on Drug Abuse notes that 9% of marijuana users develop some sort of marijuana dependency.

If you are someone who has developed a dependency on marijuana (perhaps you can’t sleep without toking before bed, or you’ve found that you rely on a puff or two to elevate your mood), you may be thinking about quitting. Or perhaps you’re in the market for a new job, and you want to clean out your system for any drug tests that might be coming up. But giving up a regular habit can be very difficult, and added to the fact that you may even experience some symptoms of withdrawal, it may seem nearly impossible to stop smoking weed.

Whatever your reasons for quitting marijuana consumption, we at Leafbuyer want to help. Too much of a good thing can turn it sour, and we want to do our part to make sure marijuana users are consuming in safe and enjoyable ways. So without much further ado, I present to you.

How to NOT smoke weed

Get rid of your marijuana, edibles, tinctures

First thing’s first: if you want to stop using marijuana, you will find it much simpler if you remove it from your immediate access. Take any and all marijuana products that you have in your home and get rid of them. Throw them out, or give them to a friend who consumes cannabis. It may not put you directly into an “out of sight, out of mind” perspective, but it will be easier to resist any urges if you do not have marijuana available to you.

Offload your smoking paraphernalia

Just like the first step, getting rid of your bowls, bongs, pipes, rolling papers, grinders, and anything else that you own that encourages marijuana consumption will most likely help you to think about it less. After all, imagine what accidentally stumbling upon your trusty one-hitter when you’re feeling particularly low might do to your resolve to stop smoking.

Talk about your decision with those close to you

As with most major life decisions, having a support system when you decide to stop smoking weed can be enormously beneficial. Whether you’re quitting to make a deliberate lifestyle change or to ace an upcoming drug test, it can be difficult to give up a marijuana habit. In addition to providing you with encouragement and understanding, your supporters can also be helpful in actively distracting you from smoking as you normally would.

Make new friends

If you’re letting go of a habit, you may find it refreshing to start hanging out with people who don’t associate you with the habit in question. I’m not saying you should ditch your friends who still smoke weed, or the ones who know that you smoke. But it can be helpful to meet new people and get to know them. Putting your energies towards getting to know new people gives you less time to think about what you might normally be doing otherwise if you were with people around whom you already feel fully comfortable.

Replace the activity of smoking

Do you usually smoke right before bed? Try picking up a new book and making this your designated reading time. Maybe you like to spark up when you go on walks around your neighborhood. Why not download Pokemon Go and add some fun to your meanderings? Or if you’re the kind of person who lights a doobie at the top of a mountain after a hike, give meditation a try instead. You’ll find that replacing a habit is much easier to do than cutting it out with nothing to fill the void.

Stay busy

Finally, one of the most effective ways to stop smoking marijuana is to keep yourself busy. Take up new hobbies, take on new work projects, or take a free class at your local community center. Explore new areas of your town, meet new people, and find new ways to relax and enjoy your life without marijuana.

Keep with it

If you make the decision to not smoke weed, whether for health, lifestyle, or work-related reasons, the best thing that you can do for yourself is to stick with it. Regardless of whether this is a short-term or long-term change, you will feel all the better knowing that you persevered and succeeded in your smoking cessation.

Article by: Daphne Eccleston