Psychosis, bulimia, anxiety: when cannabis shakes lives

Even today, Emma has trouble finding her words: "

I sometimes take a long time to express an idea

".

She is 27 years old and has been a business lawyer in a large law firm for several months.

And yet, when she was younger, she was one of the heaviest smokers in high school.

The use of cannabis, which began at the age of twelve, rocked her for ten years.

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To read also: Legalization of cannabis: "Dangerous rhetoric"

Like Emma, ​​1.4 million French people smoke regularly. While the issue of legalization is topical in the Assembly,

Le Figaro

has chosen to focus, through testimonies, on the effects generated by the consumption of cannabis in the long term. Eight former regular smokers confided in

Le Figaro

 : between youthful error and life experience, they tell us their story.

Lucas, 27, is a commercial. Originally from the Paris region, he started working very young. He pulled his first joint in second: “

Back then it was just for fun. We smoked with friends and we had a good time,

”he recalls. Over the years, its consumption has changed. He then goes from the firecracker between friends to the one, all alone, in his bed: “

In fact, I think everything changed when I learned to ride. I then bought my own bags and got started

”. In five years, Lucas thinks he has spent around “

50,000 euros on cigarettes and joints

”.

Louise, 26, and Gabrielle, 23, started around the age of 16: “

About

ten a day, and at its highest, as soon as you wake up,

” Louise admits. “

Usually, I started at noon,

” Gabrielle confesses: “

I was very alone, I compensated for a void by smoking, and that allowed me to think of nothing. At the beginning it's festive and recreational, then it's more complicated: you start to get high on your own, and you fall into a gear,

”she analyzes.

Like Gabrielle, many of them have used cannabis to fill a void.

Emma's parents were divorcing, Louise did not want to face a complicated family situation, they all three found refuge in this drug, called "

soft

": "it

was a bit like taking medication, it calmed me down.

», Says Emma.

Louise goes further and speaks of "

anesthetic

"

effects

: "

I think that those who consume so much of it either need to forget, or need to forget themselves

".

Read also: Cannabis, a risk of brain damage in adolescents

But not all are faced with difficulties of this type.

Lucas had no family problem.

According to him, the fact of smoking so much is rather a reflection of his mentality: "

I tend to do everything thoroughly

".

“At first you smoke a joint, then a second, then a before sleeping.

The next day, you think you won't be able to go to bed without, etc.

", He says, before adding that in the end, he found himself consuming about fifteen" firecrackers "per day:"

Two in the morning, one on the lunch break at work, one on the break. afternoon, and the rest scattered over the evening

”.

Caught in a whirlwind, they all quickly found themselves stranded.

Memory loss, bulimia, psychosis, anxiety ...

They all started because “it

was cool to smoke

”, “

cool to roll the biggest joint

”, “

we invited you to a party

”, it creates bonds when humans need it most, when of adolescence. With hindsight, all the interviewees identify a border between recreation and pure addiction, without pleasure: “

the moment you start smoking all alone at home

,” Gabrielle transcribes. If at first the effects are "

funny

", after months or even years of use, some negative effects appear. For the most part, this consists of memory loss and difficulty concentrating. “

In addition to memory loss, I had eating disorders

Reveals Louise, who wanted to eat every time she pulled on a joint.

Gabrielle, she especially noticed her changing mood: “

I was on edge all the time.

I could get angry over nothing, and my relatives blamed me.

I thought it was my character, but it was a side effect of the drug,

”she says today.

Read also: Has cannabis become a hard drug?

Others have experienced psychic effects, including anxiety, stress and psychosis. Thomas and Lucas paid the price: "

If I sent a text message to a friend or my girlfriend, and he did not answer me within half an hour, I would ask myself 10,000 questions: what am I? 'did, I said something wrong, maybe she's with another guy, he's hiding something from me ... It was really exhausting,

”he recalls. Thomas, himself, questioned each of his decisions. “

When I was smoking, I would do the whole movie in my head. Even if it means going back sometimes. However, when I woke up the next morning, everything was clear.

""

Not everyone reacts the same way,

"Gabrielle analyzes, adding that"

some even become schizophrenic

”.

Breaking

If the effects of cannabis on the organism are undeniable on the body and on the psyche, this drug can also cause ruptures with school, family, friends, but also with life.

All the interviewees noticed a decrease in their capacity during the school level: "

Already that I was disinterested in school, I was all the more in the West while smoking

", tells us Louise, who qualifies as

"Miracle"

his non-repetition.

While Emma continued to have good grades, the joint mostly affected her sleep, which prevented her from waking up many times in the morning, and therefore caused her to miss several lessons.

On the contrary, Lucas believes that cannabis has stimulated him in the professional environment. “

I worked between 10 am and 11 pm, I smoked during the lunch break, and then I would ask for a break of 30 to 40 minutes around 5 pm to go roll my joint,

” says the manager. “

I don't think they ever suspected I was high because they've always known me like that.

"

While everyone explains that cannabis has brought groups of friends together, Leon has lost a friendship because of it: “

My best friend from high school smoked a lot, I tried to help him, but he fell apart. shut up because he was ashamed.

He would steal his parents for weed and run away.

Every time I spoke to him, he would send me ball.

One day he told me so many horrors that I left

”.

If he has no news from him today, he knows in any case that he missed his medical studies because of the joint.

Read also: Cannabis: Macron's strategy parasitized

"It's not complicated to stop, what is difficult is not to start again"

After seeing all these effects, one day they woke up. Most have found a balanced rhythm of life, and others have replaced it with new occupations: “

I started to exercise intensively, it helped me a lot

,” says Gabrielle. “

I met a girl, and I want to build a life,

” says Lucas in turn. For Emma, ​​it was work: "

I no longer had time to see my friends with whom I was smoking, so it happened naturally

". While the others quit because of anxieties, psychosis and other effects. While for some it was easy enough, for others the temptation is still great. "

I remember a phrase from my grandfather: 'It is not difficult to stop, what is difficult is not to start again'.

"

Between youthful error and life experience, they are quite divided: if some would have preferred never to have started, others feel they have no remorse. “I

aspire to have a family, to have children and a country house. For that, you have to be in good health, so you have to stop one day

, ”Judge Lucas. Louise, she regrets having smoked so much: "

I link my cannabis consumption to a floating and disconnected adolescence

". "

If I could advise the twelve-year-old Emma, ​​I would surely say not to start so young and not to consume so much

", concludes Emma, ​​whereas Thomas would have simply said to himself: "

quit smoking this shit!"

"