The Art of Deep Breathing
This is my first post on this weeks topic of relaxation. Stress management is an important part of the marijuana addiction recovery process.
Many people, myself included, do not breathe properly, and hold tension in their body while breathing. Nerves and anxiety are often the cause of this. We want to be breathing full, deep breaths from our lower abdomen. An icon of the buddha with a fat belly, is a symbol of his breathing techniques among other things.
If you feel nervous, anxious, or catch yourself breathing high in the chest, you can follow this simple 4 step technique to “vacuum your lungs” and reset your diaphragm back to a deep breathing pattern.
Resetting your Diaphragm
1. Exhale completely, blow out every single bit of air from your lungs as best you can.
2. Bend over. I like to fold my arms in front of my stomach when I bend to get that extra little bit of air out. Bending over expels the last bits of air from your lungs. When you’re totally out of air make sure you hold you breath, so you don’t accidentally let any air in.
3. Stand up while holding your breath. This increases lung volume, so air will want to flow into your lungs, but don’t breathe. Wait about 10 seconds until your body really needs a breath.
4. Then, when you can’t take much more, Breathe! Your body will have moved over from your normal, everyday breathing to unregulated, autonomic “response breathing.” You should feel your breathing has switched to deep and rhythmic breathing.
That’s all there is to it. Once you let your body take that unregulated breath in step 4, your nervous system reboots your lungs, and your previous tense and anxious breath becomes a thing of the past.
I recommend performing this technique, then breathing deeply for a couple of minutes to ingrain the positive feeling of breathing deeply and fully. Hope this helps.
Loading ...
{ 69 comments… read them below or add one }
← Previous Comments
Colin, all I can say is keep it in check. Keep an eye on it. Life has a funny way of throwing curves at you. And that once oh so casual escape can quickly turn into a crutch. An obscession if you will for some. Statiscally they say 10% of all pot smokers will get a form of addition or dependancey on it. Not may, but will!
I am 43 years old, have smoked it since I was 15. Today, I faced it. I need help to overcome this dependenc. I spoke to my husband through the tears, and asked him, to help me find the right people to help with me with the right coping tools to beat this.
I am tired of life passing me by….I am tired of wasting my time, money and putting my family through a form of isolation, because I put myself through isolation. I am becoming despressed, which is showing physical signs. And lately, I have very high anxiety.
I can ready feek what is going to happen to me once I start counting on day 1 (again) and I start going through all the withdrawls I get.
I’ve noticed that no one mentions loss of appetite. When I quit pot, I don’t feel like eating, sleeping, I’m cold, I’m angry, irritable, and just quite frankly a bitch. (sorry, I don’t mean to offend anyone) but even I don’t like being around me when I’m on day 5 or 6 of no pot.
I have tried many, many times to quit. This time, I am going for help with a professional support. I just want it to stop. I just want to stop turning to it cause it’s easy. I want to have money in my pocket, I want to be free of worry if people are coming by to visit, won’t worry if I smell, can I find any?
Enough. I’m done. I just need help.
When I read that schizophrenia can happen to people that are chronic pot smokers. That make up my mind. I don’t mean to offend anyone, but I want to keep my mind intact and working normally for whatever life I have left. I don’t want to be in some lonely paranoid state of mind.
I have dreams and aspirations that I fantasize about while I’m stoned. Enough with being stoned on my ass, and start DOING..
Nike says it best…..JUST DO IT!
Everyday will get better. I need to find a new focus. Find a new fous, and you’ll make it through. At least that’s the consensous that I’m getting from what I’m reading.
Begin by taking a hike Jim!
I love getting high as much as the next man, but that stuff is a drug. With ANY drug, they are taken by SICK people. When you dont need to take the medication, your cured. If your still taking it, your still sick, even if the symptoms disappear for a short while. The trick is to get off drugs. Anyone who is saying weed isnt addictive is either ill informed, in denial, or just talking out the hoo-haa. ANYTHING can be addictive. Booze, food, sex, t.v., gambling, excercise, etc. Tell all those gamblers that lost their homes, families and money that gambling isnt addictive, that it hasnt been “proven” yet.
It paralyzes your spirit in the long run. It kills will power. Once upon a time, I was sober and didnt even know what weed was. And I was happy. I just want to go back there again.
@Claudia
Thanks. I will keep an eye on it.
I think I’m alright. It’s hard to say anything without sounding like someone who is in denial hehe.
All I know is I’ve been at that level of smoking for about 3-4 years and if I find myself smoking more I make a (most of the time successful) effort to cut down. There are periods where I’ll smoke a bit more for 2 weeks or so, but no more than that.
I found it a lot easier when I quit the bong. I did used to have a problem I think. I’d get extremely pissed off at not having any when I was on the bong, but once I moved onto joints only I find I don’t really mind. Sure life can be a bit boring but other than that it’s cool. I don’t get any physical symptoms when I stop either.
In fact I haven’t smoked for 2 weeks (only because I don’t have any though to be honest) I know what you mean about the isolation and being cut off from people. It’s weird though because it’s in a way that you don’t really notice or see as a problem until you get off it for a period of time and look back. It’s amost as if weed blinds you to it’s downsides. I made a substantial effort about a year ago to not smoke around people who don’t smoke as I realised what it was like for them. Now I don’t. I reserve my smoking for times when it’s just me (usually after 11pm ) or I’m with other smokers.
I also try and stay off weed to be honest, which isn’t too hard as I feel burned out on it after about 2 weeks of smoking it (I get uncomfortable with the level of detatchment that comes with it) I prefer pollen in all honesty. It’s more mellow and I find myself still able to think straight.
I hope you manage to get your problems sorted out and I appreciate the advice. Good luck.
I really enjoy reading these comments. I am a smart dude with a good job, but I struggle so bad with this. Whenever I try to stop I feel fear at putting myself in situations where I kno after them I will feel like smoking. For example if a friend offers me to go for a beer I am absolutely terrified. I kno wen I drink my defense lowers. Also, my emotional defense is lowered and thoughts of past girlfriends or pain or regrets press down on me. I feel like smoking is the only escape. Something that can make tears turn into laughter. I am going through this struggle now. I hope that you all managed to get to the hard times, and I hope that if you did, maybe I can join you soon
Actually I meant I hope you get *Through* the hard times, not to the hard times… haha!
I am 46 years old and a grandfather. I have been smoking since I was 16 and smoking daily for about 10 years or more. I know I need to quit and I really want to but its hard to imagine life without it. I am not a drinker and quit cigerettes when I was 23, so its really been my only real vice and only way to relax. Today is my 1st day trying to quit and I am afraid if I get the call from my dealer I will give in and go see him. I am glad I am not alone and I really wish someone would invent the patch for marijuana addiction. lol.
yeap weed sucks
This really does help! In any kind of stressful/anxious situation, it’ll completely clear you mind and calm all your nerves. I recommend having fsh air, I’ll do my breathing in an open doorway to fill my lungs with good,clean crisp air. because of the coolness it really soothes and calms my body idk makes a really profound difference for me:) good luck everyone!
I am 43 yo male athletic and relatively fit.I have been smoking for 20 years.Occasionally i would get mild panic attacks if i smoked too much.Now i get severe attacks and my heart is beating at maximum rate for up to an hour.I am fearful this will lead to a stroke or heart attack.The pot is so strong these days i was forced to mix in mostly tobacco.However,I decided to quit a few days back and am getting dizzy spells,tunnel vision and feel faint.Tonight i feel better.Pot causes me to skip the gym,isolate my self from my girlfriends and kill my motivation.I will never touch it again
Hey. I’ve been a marijuana addict for like 3 years now. I love to get high but I just feel really shitty all the time low self esteem and just plain have no energy. I came back to my home town so I could try and quit smoking but when I got here I came to find out that EVERYONE her smokes up. As when I left there were only a select few. Me and my buddy have spoken about quitting I really want to quit and he says he does as well but all of our good buddies from highschool smoke up and our town only has about 1400 people in it so there is a small variety of friends here. The last few weeks I’ve found myself stressed to the max all the time and I then just smoke more and more. Before it used to help but now I think it just makes it worse. If you have any tidbits of information to help a guy out it’d be awesome.
The thing that scared me the most was a confession from an pot smoker how it made her get schizophrenia..that’s just whack!! I would seriously hate to get that. I already hate the paranoia it causes. The reason why weed makes is so addictive is that it really relaxes you in a very simple way. I found out when I was really stressed I’d light up..the more the stress I light up..soon the slightest trigger of stress would make me light up. It leads to escapism. I believe people who use drugs as a sort of escape are not meant to enjoy it. I have a lot of respect for my friends who are able to drink. Party And smoke in proper moderation. It was very easy for me to quit drinking because I couldn’t control it. I’d wake up with bruises losing a lot of expensive things because I was drunk or blacked out. Nothing really bad happened to me because my friends always watch out for each other. One day I mentally pictured the way I must look drunk out of my mind and felt the hangover over and over. And just like that it was easy to quit. Smoking cigarettes was the same for me. I’d literally feel like they were burning up my lungs and eventually it wasn’t that hard. I haven’t fully quit weed yet. Am moving to a new country and I dnt want to go so am stressed out and it’s my release. But the more I read up on the effects and people’s struggle to quit the more enlightened I get and the more shocked. My friends sometimes ask me to store their weed and that’s encouraging the use. It’s very important to distance yourself from company that makes u do stuff like drugs. It’s very tempting. It’s been a week since I smoked. I last smoked at this rocking reggae concert where u could smell the weed a mile away. South Africa is crazy like that. Heads up to all who’ve managed to quit and those trying and reading up on this site, let’s do it. It’s not impossible!!
Ok here we go- I’m 34 now and have been smoking since I was 18. I smoke and 8th a day (3-4grams) and have been doing so since about a year into it. I love weed and would not even want to quit except it is making me insane. At about 5 years smoking I started to feel the parinoia. Couldn’t go outside by myself without being self conscience. It felt like everyone was looking at me and knew I was stoned. but if I was with a friend outside, I was fine. I’d tell people and they’d just say “oh it’s nothing, everyone get’s parinoid smoking sometimes” So watever, I just stayed home when I didn’t have a friend with me. I still had a job, boyfriend (also a smoker, been together 15 years now and he’s still smoking with no regrets) so I kept on smoking. But fast forward 16 years and I’ve got big problems. I think I’m getting psycosis or agoraphobia(can’t leave the house). I went from being the center of attention with a gang of friends to not having a friend in the world (that’s a lie but I won’t/can’t see them it just feels that way). My phone rings and I just stare at it! I can’t pick it up, even if it’s my best friend, mother,son whoever. I don’t leave the house anymore. My bf makes all our income now. It actually drives me nuts that he can smoke eveyday for 18+ years and seems to be just fine. Why am I going nuts? Anyways the point is, I need to quit or I’m gonna end up in a mental hospital. I had no idea weed could make me so parinoid and anti-social. I’ve been told for years and years that there are no dangerous side affects and it’s not addictive. Ya right! Being broke, losing your family, friends and MIND are some pretty harsh side effects if you ask me. Plus of course I can barely breathe or walk up a hill. Talk about scared out of my mind! So I am quitting. Today is day one. I can’t/won’t go to a doctor and get help quitting because I can’t seem to leave my house or look anyone in the eye. I did quit once before for a total of 30 days and on the anniversary of my one month free, I celebrated by smoking just one. For me there’s no such thing as just one. I went right back to it. I’m trying to remember how I quit for that month. It was only two years ago. I remember I was mad. Angry my life was shit, angry all my $$ was going up in smoke, angry I had no self control. Maybe that was my motivation-anger. I remember for 3 weeks I couldn’t eat, sleep, poop (yes poop) My hands were sweaty 24 hours a day for a solid three weeks. Mood swings, nightmares, jonesing bad ect. A month wasn’t long enough obviously. But I do remember that after 3 weeks or so I started feeling better! The sweats went away, slept at night, no more napping in the day, I could taste things and smell things like I hadn’t since I was a kid. My head was clear and most important I was able to go out and talk to people without that parinoid ‘they’re talking about me behind my back’ or they don’t like me feeling. So that is my motivation THIS time. The memory that it DID get so much better! Plus my infinate lonelyness. I hate being alone! So here we go, day one (ugh) . I wish I could get some councling and some sleeping meds or something to help me but I am so far past parinoid I just can’t go out. I’m fearing it may be a perminate mental disorder now. (there’s no history in my family, I’m 100% sure it’s the chronic weed use.) I know this post is very long and bless you if you read the whole thing. I guess this is my first step. Write it annonoymously on the net. Good to get it out there at least. Knowing I’m not alone in quitting helps so much, even if I seem to be on the extreme end of the spectrum. To others thinking of quitting- It’s shitty but not THAT bad, a hard-liquer hangover hurts way worse. It DOES get better and if you don’t quit…you may be f*#ked in a way you never imagined was possible. Like me. NOW I’m angry. I am so over this shit. You are not my friend Mary Jane. You’ve been lying to me for half my life. This realationship is over! Do you hear me?? OVER! I am going to get my life back! DO YOU HEAR ME? No of couse not, but I can hear myself loud and clear. There, now I may be angry enough to quit. Day one. Sigh. At least I have something to look forward to. I can’t wait til the day I can answer that phone. Hello world, I’m back.
IVE BEEN SMOKIN WEED STRONG GOING ON 5 YEARS.I CAN REMEMBER WHEN PPL WOULD SMOKE I MIGHT WOULD HIT IT AND IT BECAME NOTHING TO ME.THEN I BOUGHT SUM ON MY 19TH BIRTHDAY I BOUGHT A DIME AND IVE BEEN SMOKING EVER SINCE.I GOT IN A REAL BAD RELATIONSHIP AND I WOULD SMOKE MYSELF THROUGH THE PROBLEMS.TEMP SOLUTION BECAUSE THE PROBLEMS WAS STILL THERE. I HAVE LOST SO MUCH WEIGHT I FEEL DISGUSTED WITH MYSELF IDK HOW I ALLOWED MY SELF TO GO DOWN THIS ROAD.BEFORE SMOKING I HAD A NICE SHAPE I WAS ALWAYS HAPPY I JUST HAD FULL CONFIDENCE.SMOKING WEED HAS TOOKEN EVERYTHING FROM ME MY PEACE I AM ALWAYS NERVOUS LIKE I HAVE KNOTS IN MY STOMACH.WHEN I CANT GET IT I HAVE AN ATTITUDE W/EVERYONE AROUND ME.I LOOK FORWARD TO SMOKING TO RELAX MY BODY.IT RELAXES ME SO MUCH THAT THE IMPORTANT THINGS BECOME UNIMPORTANT.ITS LIKE ITS ALL I WANT TO DO BUT Y?RELAX MY BODY BUT IT TAKES THE PEACE OUTTA MY MIND.I CANT DO THIS NOMORE I WANT MY LIFE BACK.I FEEL LIKE A LONERM SO DEPRESSED LOW SELF ESTEEM..CONFUSED…WHAT ARE THE POSITIVE AFFECTS OF THIS?OK U GET RELAXED BUT THEN U DONT GET SHIT DONE ITS JUST A WAY OF A SUBSTANCE CONTROLLING YOU.I DONT WANT NETHING TO HAVE CONTROL OVER MY FEELING AND MY MIND…I KNOW I CAN DO IT BECAUSE I AM SO MUCH BETTER THAN THIS….PRAY FOR STRENGTH YOU GUYS I WISH YOU ALL THE BEST OF LUCK ON YOUR JOURNEY
I’ve been smoking marijuana for close to 20 years. everyday smoker. I recently found out i was allergic to it. I have been in and out of ER with crazy symptoms. I was having flu like symptoms, fatigue, shortness of breath, chest pains, Phlegm and sinus problems, Throat closing to the point where i could breath, anxiety and panic attacks. All the doctors i have seen and all ER doctors could not find out whats wrong with me. All my vitals signs are completely fine and i am very healthy guy other then the weed symptoms!!!! My mom came across a website about being allergic to weed. All of my symptoms i was having were on this site and I read about other people going through the same things i was feeling. (Its was almost like i wrote all those comments about what was happening to me) As of today i am 48 hours sober. I’m already starting to feel better and my symptoms are fading
I was wanting to know what to expect with the withdrawal symptoms and how to deal with them. I’m having a lot of anxiety about not being able to smoke. How long will this feeling last? How long before it will be completely out of my system? My family and Girlfriend are being very supportive in the decisions I’m making and understand a little bit about what to expect. It’s all i can think about right now since I’m not able to smoke it. I do realize that Love and life is more important then any high. If anyone could please help me understand what i might go through and how I’m going to be feeling i would greatly appreciate it.. Its nice to know I’m not the only one out there going through this.. I look forward to find support from others on this site and being able to help others myself understand they aren’t alone in letting go of the weed.. 
Hi! Im 23. I have found a lots of common things about smoking and quitting that i have, but not this. I’ve been smoking 2 years all most daily (last 6six months more than ever). You guys have smoking 20years longer than I. Is it normal i feel same things all ready? Did you after few years?or-and just fell to smoke again?
I’ve been sober now 1 week and my head is just fuck’d up. I’m afraid even to listen metal music (all i know in my life) coz it remains me old times.
Me too don’t have any non-smokers (sucks ass to being alone in real life when all they do is get high).
Its hard but i will get fucking through this. And finally the MAIN QUESTION: How long this mental battle will last? week or two? maybe three? or month? Please answer thanks!
Im 32 now and its my second day without smoking after 16 years. I guess my 2012 resolution, Im not anti-social, Im overdose with confidence( weed take you to exciting places and is not bad for you, no one has died from smoking mariguana do your research). I can manage to leave it because it does not govern my mind. I used to smoke hydroponic weed wich is 10 times stronger than regular weed since its grown under water…..I used to go high when at the gym or even at work and people wont notice since I always had my eye drops (people cant tell if you act normal)….
Second day seems different Im not going to lie, I think Im more silly and people notice that fresh look on me. The only con about not smoking right now-like one of the comments above, it feels time flu by like it was just yesterday, my hours at work seem now to be longer, I used to go out a lot then when I used to smoke, now I dont even want to be home. Life its beautiful guys, Im doing this for my kids and mainly because of my father he had 3 bypass surgeries within 8 months and I thank God everyday he let me see him alive….find your reason to stop smoking and stop putting excuses infront of you, look around yourself there is someone who have love to give and is waiting for you to change : ) **like the creator of this website** thumbs up for you!
Best of luck for everyone who wishes to quit, its not easy, but I make it easy. Cant wait to get that extra $400 dlrs a month I used to exhale in my pockets!!! might be able to put that into a new car….
I am 19 and I’ve been smoking pot since age 15. I don’t think I’ve gone more than a week without getting high since then. I find myself scraping every last bit of rez out of my bowl until my fingers are covered in a nasty tar-like substance. I get this excitement like I can rule the world if I buy a bag, but once I hand that crisp 20 bill over, I feel terrible and so stupid! I’ve been smoking heavily now for 4 years and it is definitely time to move on.
← Previous Comments