> maybe dosage matters, maybe strain matters

Yes, absolutely. For a first timer, a single drag from a joint is enough. If it's a spliff (weed mixed with tobacco, IMO makes the taste better), then maybe two drags, and you're all set for the evening.

If you had that reaction several times you should probably stay away from all psychedelics. Large majority of people has no such reaction.

Dosage and strain certainly matter but it's also possible that you're just one of those people who don't react well to weed.

If you saw how Germany legalised it, you might not be so hopeful. It’s decriminalisation by another name.

https://allaboutberlin.com/guides/is-marijuana-legal

I'll take decriminalisation any day of the week over illegal.

Definitely! The biggest difference being that smoking in the wrong place doesn't endanger your livelihood. It just gets you fined.

"maybe dosage matters" .... rofl... YES, IT DOES!

Same as with other medicine, alchocol including. Water can kill you too, btw.

Next time try one small puff & dont keep it in you too much and see where it takes you, if nothing for 30min, try one more.

Another thing- it might be possible you already have preconditioned yourself mentally in a way that might be hard to get outside of, that'll cause anxiety even when thinking about smoking marijuana. I'd recommend trying "medicinal" first (ie. mostly CBD (ie. 20%), THC <0.5%) and then only progress to strains with higher THC content.

Also, you probably should see therapist anyways. Having psychosis is not a good sign. Most likely you have some other issues you need to work on.

"If you have problems using weed, weed is not the problem!" (c) :D

> So maybe my first attempts at marijuana weren't a "glass of beer" but a "bottle of vodka" as an allegory.

Uh, whoah there. I'm just gonna say, you're describing a general lack of impulse control and risk assessment here. This is a significant contraindication to inebriants of any kind.

Its not about impulse control as much as it is about lack of knowledge/experience.

(Entirely my opinion)

Its important to note that alcohol and weed have exactly opposite effect on brain: where alcohol dulls you and make things matter less, weed can make you overly focus on your thoughts, more than a sober you would consider appropriate. This can lead to paranoia, because the first whif of it sends you on a spiral where you think about it, and that usually makes you even more paranoid. It is a form of mild psychosis. "The cur" is you have to realize that while your thoughts are valid and about real things (something real made you paranoid in the first time), the magnitude of your reaction is currently being altered by a drug. This allows you to take control of your emotions/feelings and allows you to logically reason about your current mind state.

This skill you _have to_ learn to overcome paranoia/psychosis on weed, and it is much harder to effectively practice while under weed influence. But on the other side, once you do, you can practice it while sober too, and that alone improved my mental health long term.

It is a psychoactive, and with high doses you can even start seeing your vision pulsate and shapes morphing. If you were hearing things and had psychosis, you definetly had way higher dose than you should have. If you try again, give yourself 15 mins between single puffs.

Well I was aware I am intoxicated, in the same way I'm aware I am drunk. But like with drunkenness, it's not much I can do to "shake it off" as it's clear that something chemical is messing with my body and it's not just an idea or fixation which can be dismissed by free will. The good part is that weed intoxication wanes off much quicker than alcohol, having experienced that the first few times seemed almost miraculous. With alcohol and a similar level of perceived intoxication, I would have suffered for two days, a "I don't wanna live" initial hangover, followed by "I just don't feel well" second day. Weed intoxication, after 3-4 hours starts to dissipate rapidly and in half hour I'm back to normal like nothing ever happened.

Do you have any relative with a mental illness? Because if you have that in your genes, marijuana may trigger full on psychosis so better to just avoid it and other psychedelics. My gf and I smoked a lot for 2 years due to her chronic pain (half a joint almost every evening), then she experienced psychosis, had to be institutionalized for a month, was recovering for half a year and she still needs to take anti-psychotics. Her grandmother had schizophrenia so it was in her genes. We didn't know it worked like that at the time.

I'm not aware, but I do know that large amounts of alcohol tend to 'tip me over' into 'delusion of grandeur' style of thinking. I have to be especially cautious not to have money in my wallet or accessible on my card as I become overly generous in my spending. So I tend to avoid drinking at all or strictly limit the quantity, especially in a corporate setting. My friends, who know me, think I'm amusing in those situations but I prefer not to show that side of me to my boss and colleagues.

In my experience, if cannabis gives you a bad time like that you _should_ avoid it, as it's those people that I've seen go mad and never really come back. Not everyone has the same THC experience, and I'm convinced there are people for whom it's really harmful.

It's great for me though, helps with the suffering associated with chronic nerve pain.