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Timing

Pick a date to start your t-break. A 21-day stretch with some stability would be ideal. But there may never be a perfect time, and that’s ok. Give it a little thought, but just pick something.

Try to pick a date that is sooner than later- today even. Try not to have a big lead up. (That leads to procrastination.) And try not to increase your use before your T-Break.  

Stash and paraphernalia

Don’t have any cannabis around when you start. The closer it is physically, the more we desire to do it. If you can smell or see it, that’s the hardest. So get rid of it.

Same with paraphernalia. If you are quitting, get rid of it. If you are just taking a pause and you have some really nice glass, hide it away. (Or let a friend hold on to it.) If you have cheap stuff, throw it away. Consider this a tidying up.  

With a little help from my friends

Identify who may be a support and tell them that you are taking a T-Break. If other people in your life partake, they may even want to join you on this break. Most friends will understand you taking a t-break and will support you.

But there may be some people in your life who will question you and make this harder. Some friends may try and to get you back in the circle. You changing causes lowkey discomfort in them- and they will want you to go back to the routine that works for them.

Like putting away your piece, you may have to avoid them too.

A note about nicotine

Some people like to mix tobacco in with cannabis. In many places, tobacco costs less than cannabis, so it saves a little money. And, since tobacco is not great for our health… they might like that they are not using as much tobacco. Those two things are positive. But the combo also creates some not so good things.

Cannabis is a bronchodilator: it opens up the lungs. When inhaled together, the nicotine goes deeper into your lungs. (This is why people often cough when used together, even if they don’t when used separately.) The headrush that people experience may be asphyxiation: a temporary lack of oxygen. Some people come to like this feeling so much, that they want to experience it over and over.

If you just combine the two occasionally, you will probably be fine during this break. But if you combine the two often, you might also experience nicotine withdrawal. If this is holding you back from a successful tolerance break, then you might want to consider nicotine replacement supports too (like a patch or gum.)

A note about CBD

People have asked me about using CBD during their break. I would say two things:

1. It is your break. I support you doing what’s best for you.
2. If possible, try to limit or abstain from CBD during your break.

Here’s why:

Tolerance is not just chemical, it’s behavioral.  Although a person could probably use CBD during a break and still reduce their chemical tolerance to THC, that person might miss out on other aspects of tolerance.

Behavioral tolerance includes the habits, routines, and rituals that we build into cannabis use. These, in turn, come to impact our thoughts and cravings, and even the very experience of being high. As chemical tolerance goes up, we increasingly come to rely on these behavioral aspects for enjoyment. To gain perspective, it can be helpful to take a break from these too.

Here is my advice:

If possible, don’t use CBD during a break. However, if you really struggle with withdrawal and that would keep you from taking a break… use it.

If you are going to use CBD try these two practices:

First, if possible, only use CBD during the early days when physical withdrawal is strong, then try tapering off. Second, when you use CBD, use it in the most boring way possible. Take drops, an oil, or a simple edible. (Don’t use CBD flower as a replacement in your bong or joints.) Taking these steps might help reduce your behavioral tolerance too.

“The first days are the hardest days.”
 ~ Grateful Dead

Some people can go from always being high and into a T-Break with no issues. Good for them. The rest of us humans will experience some readjustment and discomfort: appetite, sleep, anxiety, irritability, etc. I hope that this guide can help and support you. Together, we will address each of these things.

The hardest moments will be the times of day when you usually partake. That is when your brain and body expect it.  You’ll get past this. But until you do… it helps to be busy.

Perhaps you have been wanting to workout or meditate more. Perhaps there is a show you’ve been looking to watch or a podcast you haven’t had the time for. Maybe there is a hobby you’ve been wanting to get better at. Now’s the time. Move, watch, learn, practice, whatever. Do something.

Some people are fine around friends who are high when they are not. That is your call. But joining them in a smoke sesh where weed is the only focus? That’s a lot to ask of yourself.

Consider having things to do that you can invite friends to. If someone invites you to smoke, invite them to a movie. It is a good idea to have things planned to do with friends. It is also a good idea to have things planned for when you are by yourself. Try returning to the things that you enjoyed before you started getting high.  For example, music: listen to some of your old favorite playlists and artists.

"Now I lay me down to sleep." 
~ a bedtime prayer (also, Metallica)

Lots of people who partake do so before bed. THC in your system during sleep impacts your sleep cycle. (More on that later.) On the upside, being high before bed helps people fall asleep. Unfortunately, some people come to have difficulty falling asleep without it.

This T-Break offers a chance to create new routines. Perhaps “bedtime” is a concept that you think is just for kids. But we all can benefit from a bedtime routine. Good sleep is as much about your routine as it is about being tired.

The quote above is mostly because I wanted to reference Metallica.   But also because it may conjure some old-timey notion of a kid going to bed. Kids tend to sleep well when they have routine: pajamas, bath, books, and bed. The whole sequence is designed to tell the body that it is time to sleep.

If you are having trouble falling asleep, look at your routine. If you  don’t have a bedtime routine, you can make one. Here are a few tips. Wear pajamas. Do something involving hot water: a bath, shower, face-wash or cup of herbal tea. Use the blue-light filter on your screen.   (Blue light is a stimulant.) And turn off devices 30 minutes prior.

Sleep experts say that your bed should be used primarily for sleep. That seems obvious… but if you live in an apartment or dorm, your bed often becomes your table, your desk, and your couch. If sleep remains an issue, consider how you use your bed. It might help to stay off your bed until it is time to sleep.

“If you want a quality, act as if you already had it.” 
~ William James

Some people experience a lack of appetite when they cut back on cannabis. This may happen if you often got high before meals. Cannabis tends to stimulate appetite. When used regularly, your appetite may have become dependent on cannabis to get it stimulated. Here are a few tips to reset….

Act as if you are hungry and eat on a schedule. (Acting “as if” is a concept from Adlerian psychology, poached by Cognitive Behavior Therapy. It’s the idea of “fake it till you make it”. You act as if something is true, until it becomes true. The fact that this works shows the power of confidence…and that confidence can be created.)

Try not to skip meals. Eat at regular times and in regular amounts. But definitely don’t beat yourself up about not finishing something. (Eating something is better than nothing.)

Even though you may not feel hungry, your body still needs the food.   If you don’t eat, you will feel more tired, irritable, and anxious. So, act as if you are hungry. Your appetite will return.

Note: cannabis stimulates appetite…until it doesn’t. For a small subset of people, after years of partaking, they develop a severe stomach pain called Hyperemesis Syndrome. This is likely due to a buildup of THC. Hot water can help with the pain in the moment. They should pause on weed and consult a doctor.

“Me can't get enough of these.”
 ~ Cookie Monster

Maybe cannabis was a big part of your life. Maybe not. Either way, it did something for you. Perhaps it helped you feel less anxious or less bored. When taking a T-Break, many people initially feel more bored/depressed, or more anxious/irritable.

It is a triple impact: you are not using a thing that once helped, you may be experiencing withdrawal, and you’re dealing with cravings.

These first days are hard. Actually, today—Day 4—may be the hardest. Some people quit at this point. Don’t. It will start getting easier.

Until it does, try these things:

When you are feeling an intense craving try to distract yourself:

• Busy your body: change location, do laundry, exercise, move
• Busy your mind: blast music, draw, create, call/text someone

When you are feeling moderate to low cravings try to center yourself:

• Mediate: ride the craving… notice it, let it go
• Reflect: what are you feeling? Physically what is happening?
• Identify: look for patterns in cravings (time, place, feelings, etc)
• Learn: what helps you ride them out?
• Plan: no blame, no shame… just plan for the next craving.

“Sleep is the best meditation.”
 ~ Dalai Lama

We sleep in stages with 90 minute cycles. REM sleep- when we dream- is a light stage. Deep sleep is physically restorative; REM sleep is mentally restorative.

THC, like alcohol, brings people to deep stage sleep quicker. That’s why people feel like cannabis helps them fall asleep. But THC holds people in deep sleep all night. Physically, this is fairly restorative. The problem is that THC disrupts REM sleep. Since THC holds people in a deep stage- and REM happens in light stage- REM cycles get skipped.

If you smoke nightly, you go into REM rebound: you dream early and inefficiently. Many people who get high before bed think that they do not dream. When starting a T-Break, you may experience vivid dreams: that’s you coming out of REM disruption.

Many people enjoy these vivid dreams. But for people who are experiencing nightmares, these vivid imagines are challenging. Hang on. It will settle soon.  

REM disruption caused by cannabis likely impacts your daytime as well. The top 3 effects of REM deprivation are 1) irritability, 2) anxiety, and   3) feeling tired. These are the same things that many people report getting in the way of success.

People often describe feeling less “cloudy” when they take a break.  That is due to better sleep and REM. Perhaps you are starting to feel these positive effects too.

“The things you own end up owning you.”
 ~ Fight Club

There is a difference between ‘getting high’ and ‘being high’. Being high is what you experience after you partake. It is chemical.

Getting high is the experience before and as you partake. It is personal and perhaps social. It develops over time. People create their own routines and preferences. Techniques can turn into art forms, and people begin to feel like a master of the cannabis craft. Since we all like to feel mastery, this can be hard to give up.

For some people, cannabis becomes an identity- their brand. They might be the connoisseur who learns every stain. Or that guy who takes the biggest bong rip. Or the girl who rolls the best joints. This is all kinda silly… but kinda real.

If you really enjoy partaking, it is ok to be good at it. But when you list the things that you are best at in life, cannabis probably shouldn’t be in your top 3. We get good and what we practice. When you get high, you spend your time on that and not other things.

Consider if you have a ‘smoke-hole’: that spot where you always sit; that little table with your stash, grinder, and favorite piece. A spot like this has gravity. Some people get sucked in so far, that their world becomes just 6 feet wide, revolving around their weed.

With the time and perspective that you gain while taking a break, measure how wide your world is. Consider what routines are worth returning to- and what routines are better left behind.

“Treat yo'self”
 ~ Parks and Rec

Week 1 complete!

You have accomplished what most people consider the hardest part. Well done! It gets easier from here.

As we addressed yesterday, getting high requires time. It also takes money. Consider the money you’ve saved this week not smoking. It is now time to spend it: treat yo’self.

After these 21 days, if you continue your break, you can save that money for something big. But during this T-Break… spend it.

What are you going to spend it on? Music, movies, food (now that your appetite is back?!) Maybe treat yourself to fancy pajamas, for your new bedtime routine. Whatever. It’s your call.

Try to reflect. If it is your style, draw or write about your experience this past week.