People will enter our partial hospitalization program in Boston to quit everything from alcohol to prescription painkillers.

While they may be able to overcome these addictions with treatment and get sober, some people have drastically different definitions of sobriety.

Many people believe sobriety includes complete abstinence from drugs and alcohol, including cigarettes and weed, but other people are more willing to bend the rules. There are people who consider themselves sober because they stop abusing hard drugs, but they may still drink and smoke cigarettes in recovery. Some people will take this even further and smoke weed in recovery, but this could be dangerous to their other sobriety.

The Danger of Smoking Weed in Recovery

If you do decide to smoke weed in recovery, you could be putting yourself at risk for several reasons.

Contrary to popular belief, marijuana can be addictive for some people. As much as 30% of regular marijuana users are believed to have some degree of a marijuana use disorder and 8.9% are believed to be dependent.^1,2 Especially for those who are sober and looking to fill a void in recovery, this could be a dangerous risk to take. You could come to replace your drug or alcohol addiction with marijuana and reach an excessive and uncomfortable level of use.

Along with the risk of getting hooked on marijuana, smoking weed in recovery could be an addiction trigger. Especially for people who used to smoke other illicit drugs, the action of smoking may be a strong drug trigger that could lead to intense drug cravings and eventually the need for a relapse recovery program.

Many people also turn to marijuana to help cope with anxiety or deal with stress. Early recovery can be both an incredibly anxiety-ridden and stressful time. Instead of learning how to cope with these problems in a healthy and productive manner, like journaling or exercises that promote sobriety, marijuana could become a crutch that people in early recovery come to rely on too heavily.

While medicinal marijuana has been studied more extensively, the long-term effects of recreational marijuana are still largely unknown. There could be serious side effects for regular weed users of which we are not yet aware.

At our outpatient drug rehab center in Massachusetts, we are here to help people not only overcome their drug and alcohol addiction but also learn how to live life in a way that promotes long-term sobriety.

Whether you or someone you care about is struggling with an addiction, it is time to get help. To get more information about our treatment options at Banyan Massachusetts or to get started in the recovery process, reach out to us today at 888-280-4763.

Sources:

1. Jama Network - Prevalence of Marijuana Use Disorders in the United States Between 2001-2002 and 2012-2013
2. NCBI -Probability and predictors of transition from first use to dependence on nicotine, alcohol, cannabis, and cocaine: results of the National Epidemiologic Survey on Alcohol and Related Conditions (NESARC).