Dope Tips II
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Tips for safer use
Remember, the best way to avoid harm from using drugs is to not use them at all. If you or someone you know does choose to use cannabis here are some tips that can help reduce the harms.
- Breathing in cannabis smoke causes the most harm because it contains carcinogens (which cause cancer), a lot more tar than cigarettes, and burns at a higher temperature - which is hotter on the throat and lungs.
When smoking cannabis, some people inhale really hard and hold the smoke down for as long as possible. THC (tetrahydrocannabinol - which is the chemical in cannabis that makes you stoned) is absorbed really quickly. Holding smoke down for longer won't actually make you more stoned- it'll only do more damage.
If smoking, only inhale small breaths and avoid holding the smoke in your lungs. - If using cardboard filters (tips) in your joints, use plain cardboard because the printed material can be toxic when heated.
- If rolling joints avoid using heaps of papers. The burning paper is bad for your lungs.
- There's lots of disagreement about whether or not bongs are a safer way to smoke. Smoking through water cools the smoke and filters out some things like ash and embers. But smoking through a bong takes out a lot of the THC but not a lot of the tar. This might mean that some people smoke more to get stoned and at the same time smoke more tar.
Using a vaporiser, which heats the cannabis rather than burns it, might be better for removing tar and toxins and not taking out so much THC.
If you do choose to use a bong, cleaning it after each session will kill bugs like Hepatitis A. Same with pipes.
Never drink bong water - it's full of rubbish and bugs and won't make you stoned. Make sure you don't breathe it in either - keep about 20cm between your mouth and the water level in the bong. - Avoid using plastic bottles, rubber hoses, foil, and plastic or wooden pipes as they can give off poisonous fumes when heated.
- Avoid spotting cannabis oil as the smoke is really hot and does a lot of damage to your lungs and throat.
- Avoid adding tobacco to pot as it adds to the tar and carcinogens going into your lungs. Nicotine is really addictive and some people develop a cigarette habit from using tobacco with cannabis.
- Avoid smoking seeds and stems - they have hardy any THC and are harsh to smoke. They also give some people a headache.
- Eating cannabis in food is better for your lungs than smoking it. Be aware that the effects tend to kick in slower and last longer and the stoning can be really different. The effects can be really full-on and sometimes unpleasant. Some people hallucinate where they see or hear things that aren't really there.
- When you share a joint you share spit and therefore bugs like Hep A and meningitis.
Cup your hands around the unlit end of the joint to form a vacuum and prevent your lips from touching the joint.
- Fungi and bacteria gets onto cannabis plants and can make some sensitive people sick. Heating your stash in the oven at 66-930 C for 10 minutes will kill most bugs.
- The munchies
Cannabis can make you really hungry. Plan ahead so that you eat decent healthy food. If you need to go to the shops for eats, walk there and watch how much you spend -
Passive smoking
Don't smoke around children - you can choose to get stoned, they can't. Smoke outside and away from people who aren't smoking. -
Sex
Some people find that cannabis makes them more into sex, and they end up doing something they hadn't planned on. If you have sex, make sure it's safe - use condoms to help avoid pregnancy and STIs. -
Mixing with other drugs
Mixing any drugs is risky. The effects can change and be powerful and unpredictable.
Mixing cannabis with alcohol is dodgy because they are both depressants. This means that they slow down your Central Nervous System.
If you do choose to use do your head and body a favour and stick to one drug at a time.
Avoid using cannabis to lessen the bad feelings of a come down from other drugs. You are better to rest, eat and let your head and body recover naturally. -
Feeling vague
After using cannabis a lot of people feel sleepy and vague. Using more might get rid of the feelings in the mean time, but it only puts it off until you're straight again.
If you need to be on form for school, work or socialising, avoid smoking the day/night before. -
Spin-outs
Cannabis affects everyone differently and some people can spin-out. If this happens it can usually be sorted by their friends helping them.
Sit the person somewhere comfortable and give them something to eat or drink (preferably sweet). A cool cloth on their forehead and the back of the neck can be helpful.
Reassure the person that these feelings won't last forever and that they will go away when they straighten-up.
If this happens to you or a friend often, it's a really good idea to stop using cannabis.
If the feelings don't go away and you feel strange, are having strange thoughts, or think that you can see or hear things that aren't there, it's really important that you tell an adult you trust. Your family, a doctor, a counsellor, whoever.
Is using cannabis causing problems for you or those you know?
Do you or someone you know;
- find it difficult to get through the day without getting stoned?
- prefer being stoned to being straight?
- want to give up but don't feel that you can?
- feel guilty about how much cannabis you use?
- have low energy and don't follow through with ideas?
- get forgetful?
- smoke at risky times and places?
- feel paranoid or nervous?
- need more and more cannabis to get the same effect?
If you or a friend answered yes to any of these questions, it could be a problem with using too much cannabis. Cutting down or stopping can be hard. It's useful to have someone to give a hand - a friend, family member or a counsellor.
Some people get withdrawal symptoms when they stop using cannabis. These can include feeling angry, sad, nervous, sweating, sleeplessness, headaches, nausea, shakes, and chills.
These symptoms can last from a week to a month.
To get more information on tips for cutting down contact your local Alcohol and Drug Service, a GP, school guidance counsellor or the alcoholhelpline.
Contacts in Nelson
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Nelson Alcohol and Drug Clinic: 03 5461994
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Te Makatea Hauora Alcohol and Drug Service: 03 5280933
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Ngati Koata Social Services: 03 5469643
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The Alcoholhelpline: 0800 787 797
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Nelson Bays Community Law Service: 03 5481288 or 0800 246 146
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YouthLaw: 09 309 6967 ( you can call collect through the operator).
It's also a good idea to talk to a GP, a school guidance counsellor or a counsellor. Check out Health Action's Youth Services Directory for more contacts.
See our Links page for Websites for more info
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