r/leaves: Why would anyone want to quit cannabis?

“It was nice to know I wasn’t the only person struggling to quit. Weed has become so normalized in British Columbia that I was embarrassed to tell my friends what I was going through because half of them didn’t even believe it was a drug.”

Gerald* talks about the online community at r/leaves, a subreddit of the popular forum-of-forums Reddit. A community of more than 220,000 members, r/leaves has become the online hub for anyone looking for support when stopping the use of cannabis or related products like Delta-8.

Cannabis has long been a valid recreational substance and legitimate medical treatment, but it’s far from benign. Although cannabis is not as addictive as strong drugs like cocaine and methamphetamine, it can still be addictive.

The Center for Addiction and Mental Health notes that “People can develop physical addiction after using cannabis regularly over a long period of time. If they stop using, they may experience mild withdrawal.”

Cannabis users tend to have a strong community and groups like r/leaves let people gain a new support system.

Members regularly report the struggles they experience when attempting to kick their cannabis habits. They often ask for advice on how to overcome the week-long hurdle, for example, when cravings are trying to pull them out of abstinence.

For Gerald, who is now 9 months sober, his first and only post on r/leaves gave him an opportunity to express his fight against drugs, which he explained in his writing: “Before this subreddit I don’t think I would have I’ve personally told someone I’m struggling and I’m eternally grateful I took this armor off and admitted I needed help.”

He didn’t necessarily dampen his cravings with the pep comments on his post, but rather what others wrote on the subreddit. “I checked on the group whenever I felt a need,” he says.

“They are like waves and I had to learn to ride them properly. In the past, I’ve always indulged my cravings when it came up after checking r/sheets to remind myself what I stopped for and why it was worth it.

Quitting cannabis doesn’t have to be a mess

A look through the top posts of all time on r/leaves shows just how brazenly honest (and cheeky) this community has become a haven for cannabis fans looking to ditch the joints for good.

One post is captioned, “My sober self is trying to convince me to get high while my high self is convincing me to get sober,” and another is, “46 days clean and I’ve pulled my bong to celebrate never going back!”

A top post on the cuter side features photos of puppies that members bought because they have more money since they stopped spending it on weed.

Within the support community, the comments are refreshingly troll-free and encouraging, with statements like “You got this!” peppering many posts where pot givers started their arduous journey to becoming weed-free.

Others use the comments section to ask for advice, such as one person inquiring about how other people deal with the boredom of sobriety (answer: trips to the beach, playing sports, finding a new hobby).

When long-time smoker Nancy* wanted to hang up the rolling papers after 10 years of daily smoking, she didn’t realize how difficult it was going to be. Then she found r/leaves.

“Reading how others have successfully quit also reassured me that I could quit too,” she says. “When I posted my progress, the group supported me and told me to keep going. It was nice to hear from those who understood what it’s like to quit and how they dealt with it.”

The 52-year-old, who lives in Moncton, Nancy, has been sober for nearly four months, and in one of her posts, she explained why she made that decision: “I’ve allowed weed to cloud my judgment and mask things that I feel like.” didn’t want to pose too long. and it’s time to get my life back.”

The online community has come a long way since its beginnings 11 years ago. On the first day, around 12 posts populated the forum. Today, the forum averages 1,300 posts and comments daily and attracts approximately 302,000 unique visitors monthly.

As one of the mods wrote last year, the site’s popularity is only due to the changing views of society.

“When we started there was little to no acceptance that cannabis could cause addiction problems for anyone and I absolutely appreciate any of you who are open about your experiences as a huge factor in spreading awareness and understanding of addiction that we have today.”

*Names have been changed for anonymity reasons

David Silberberg

David Silverberg is a freelance journalist who writes for The Toronto Star, BBC News, The Washington Post, Business Insider, Cannabis Health, Merry Jane, High Times and many other outlets. He is also a writing coach, helping freelance journalists and creatives to advance their careers.

Check out David Silverberg’s articles

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