- As a child, I was filled with fear about weed after the D.A.R.E officers paid a visit to my school.
- Fast forward to now, I live in Maine where cannabis is legal, and I consume it regularly.
- As a father of two young children, I have found that consuming cannabis actually makes me more present in their lives.
When I was 10 years old, I had my first encounter with a D.A.R.E officer. I can still vividly recall his intimidating presence, with his portly figure, black cop boots, and a buzz cut that screamed “I peaked in middle school.”
He pulled out a prop joint from his pocket and said, “Smoking one of these is equivalent to smoking 10 whole packs of cigarettes. If you start down this path, your life will take a turn for the worse.” His message was crystal clear: weed made you unintelligent, weed was a gateway drug, and weed flattened you like a cartoon steamroller.
Officer Tim was just one of many D.A.R.E officers across the country who propagated their anti-weed beliefs to impressionable young kids like myself, instilling in us a deep-rooted aversion and fear towards a plant that I can now legally order to my doorstep, just like pizza.
Fast forward 26 years, and I am now a proud marijuana consumer and a father of two kids. Here’s my story.
Baby steps
I was never one of those “cool” straight-edge guys. In fact, I would often question and mock people who smoked weed or drank beer. However, in college, I finally gave in to peer pressure and tried weed for myself. To my surprise, it was underwhelming.
Maine legalized medicinal cannabis back in 1999, making it the fifth US state to embrace this controversial plant. However, it would take another 17 years before Maine residents over 21 could enjoy weed recreationally. My wife and I moved to Maine in 2020 after the birth of our pandemic baby.
Moving to a new town in a new state with a newborn during a pandemic was a challenging experience. While I didn’t fully grasp the psychological impact of isolation, fear, and uncertainty caused by COVID-19, especially with a colicky infant and a recovering wife, cannabis allowed me to view my life from a different perspective.
It helped with my anxiety
Marijuana is classified as a Schedule I drug, alongside heroin, acid, peyote, and methaqualone. This categorization prevents it from being recognized as a legitimate medication on a federal level, unlike pharmaceuticals such as Lexapro or Wellbutrin.
I had reached a dead end with SSRIs, experiencing the all-too-familiar numbness punctuated by moments of intense anxiety. Serendipity struck when I stumbled upon my first dispensary, a treasure trove of cannabis concentrates, edibles, flowers, and tinctures.
Weed offers benefits that prescribed drugs can’t
You won’t find Lexapro dispensaries where you can have a conversation with a budtender while buying cupcakes infused with SSRIs. Pharmaceuticals work behind the scenes in ways that people without depression, anxiety, or ADHD (or all three, like myself) may struggle to comprehend. The side effects can be debilitating, leaving individuals feeling like zombies in a world that has lost its allure.
However, a single puff of a sativa-dominant strain can provide the mental stimulation and mood enhancement I need, without any unwanted side effects. I treat cannabis with the same care as the prescribed medications in my medicine cabinet, keeping it out of reach from my children and ensuring it doesn’t disrupt their lives. I tend to opt for low-THC drinks, pills, gummies, and strains that won’t impair my judgment.
I love spending time with my daughter. Whether it’s stacking Magna-Tiles while enjoying a beer, doing the same after my morning coffee and Adderall, or even while sipping a cannabis-infused drink, the clarity and calmness I experience from THC (or any other legal substance) allow me to fully appreciate the little girl in front of me without being weighed down by intrusive thoughts that have plagued me since childhood. Now, I know where to find the strains that suit me in forms that won’t disrupt my family’s harmony.
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