Marijuana has been in the news a lot recently. In the United States, medical use has been made legal in over 10 states. Around the world, governments are debating whether or not they should legalize this drug.
It is only natural for people to wonder if this is a wise move. After all, everybody has been warned of the dangers of drugs. Conflicting messages about whether pot is bad or not may have people wondering if weed is addictive.
The short answer to this question is yes. Although rare, marijuana addiction is real. Some groups of people are more susceptible to this type of addiction than others.
The people most at risk are those with problems like stress, mental illness or a genetic predisposition to addiction. The majority of marijuana users will find that quitting is no problem. When they experience health problems, financial difficulties or simply lose interest, they will stop using the drug.
Studies have shown that around 9% of marijuana users will abuse the drug. If studies included those dependent on marijuana, this figure could be as high as 20%. Unfortunately, only a very small percentage of these people seek help.
Like other addictions, marijuana addiction can negatively impact a person's life. Addicts will find that they are less emotionally connected to their work, studies, families and friends. This could cause them to drop things that were once important to them in order to consume marijuana.
Eventually, addicts realize that they do have a problem. It is at this point that they seek help. In the case of marijuana addiction, inpatient therapy is highly recommended.
Inpatient programs offer patients intensive therapy. This will help them determine which factors contributed to their addiction and find ways to manage them without abusing drugs. For instance, people with mental illness may be prescribed antidepressants.