Sam’s father sat on the skin’s sofa in our room, head on the head. He reported to us a long and sharp story that has dropped his son’s psychosis. Sam (Name has changed to protect confidentiality), then they started 17 years using marijuana with friends in the ninth grade. It was also with other substances (Xanax, ecstasy), but cannabis was consistent.
Sam’s father told me he and his wife Cannabis used themselves A fair quantity at the university, and when they said they agreed with his son, “Don’t worry, it’s just a pot!” They struck with him to buy from cannabis stores instead of getting “on the street”.
In California, I work as a researcher and clinician who study links between cannabis and psychosis, is not difficult to achieve a medical marijuana card for a teenager.
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Sam started with a high school, quite a pretty friend as a friend. Over time, cannabis began to use it every day. He took a variety of ways, first with friends with friends, and then more and more. Parents noticed more and more curious behavior: he covered the camera on his laptop and then placed the cardboard in the windows in his room. Stopped showering. From time to time he heard laughing at himself in his room, and he began to refuse to go to school. Against his will, parents were taken to a rehabilitation facility for teenagers. The three-week program was completely abstent from cannabis, but his psychotic symptoms worsened better; Simply stopping wasn’t enough to recover Sam.
When his family came to our clinic, he has been sustainable excitement for more than six months. Sam was completely convinced that the government was following and constantly cared for. It took hours to persuade parents to enter the car that day. While we do not know that Cannabia caused Sam psychosis, it was striking when his symptoms would disappear. Cannabis may have changed his brain chemistry.
What people need to know is that cannabis simply not the same It was used between the 1960s and the 1980s as its original plant, and as much as 10 years ago. These news Kannabis tensions are very strongbecoming more addictive and potentially dangerousAnd we are still trying to understand What makes teenagers to develop brains. As a scientist and as a parent, I recommend that teenagers can avoid cannabis until at least 20 years old, but it may not be the most realistic advice. If your teenagers will use today’s cannabis, it is very important that this substance is different from what is the risk of a different mental health problem.
All Kannabis products contain Delta-9-tetrahydrocannabinololol (THC), a poisoning component of cannabis plant and cannabidiol (CBD), which can reduce the properties of anxiety. In the 1990s Marijuana was about 5 percent in a typical joint.
But genetic changes have increased thc power incredibly; From 1995 to 2015, 212 percent increase in its content Average cannabis plantAnd it’s not just joint or jar brownies; Along with the legalization and marketing of Kannabis, there are few limitations in thc levels, fast manufacturing pens and edit products. Teenagers like Sam can buy today as parents used in college.
A The risk of psychosis rises With the higher the power of THC, it is used earlier and used more often. An Canadian research team learned more than 11,000 teenagers for cannabis users 11-fold increase The risk of developing a psychotic disorder compared to non-sellers. According to such embarrassing data, some researchers have begun to make an alarm sound. But we are fighting to deal with people who need the most to listen to this information: parents, educators and legislators.
And while there is no consensus, cannedness causes psychosis, such as research that I mention, are well-designed and carefully studied, they still indicate that two things are linked.
Another big question We are trying to answer: Why is it so deep in adolescents to increase the risk of psychosis? My field investigators have reasoned something deeply occurs in teenage brainsthat continues in our early 20s. This is when psychotic disorders usually start. The Berber Molecules of Our Brain Molecules interact with THC (who know them with the name Endocannabinoid System) in the development of the brain. And more and more are the evidence of the early exposure of cannabis that can disrupt brain cells or neurons. Reply to what we have experienceAnd how they talk to each other, making memories of these memories.
So how do you speak with your kids today’s cannabis? When family come to our clinic for young people in psychosa, we wonder why children use cannabis, what are their reasons and how they feel. We ask why it can stop using, and if they could stop if they could stop. And then: Why don’t try to stop for a few days and see how do you feel? The answers help us evaluate if the adolescent is addicted to cannabis.
Some teenagers tell us that they can stop. But others are not ready. For them we consider the “reduction of damage”. That is, we recommend Avoid high-power products And for that they choose products with larger CBD-to-thc ratios.
If you have a teenager at home, or soon, there are many cannabis that they will suffer in many shapes, courts around the neighborhood. It’s never too early to have that conversation. Part of this is a good “literacy of cannabis” and encouraging your child to seek famous sources of information than to believe that friends listen or see what they will see on social media. A National Institute for Drug Abuse It’s a good start. The rules and limitations of cannabis can help implement everything that you agree and implements the consequences of what these rules are broken. Parents should encourage clear communication about use, non-non-non-non-clean and encourage children to share their questions and concerns.
For samen, we steadily recommended psychiatric treatment and family therapy that the family had helped to navigate challenges with different hopes for my children. If your child begins to be symptoms or unusual behaviors, such as isolation from others, talking to him or seeing things that others seek psychological treatment. Your family doctor or child pediatrician can refer to a specialist for assessment and treatment.
As our children this time this time, many of the landscapes of cannabis products change and their availability is that no one for us had any permission. The best we can do is try our retroactive (and our children) as possible.
This is an opinion and analysis article, and the views indicated by the author or authors are not necessarily American scientific.
