Does Smoking Weed Cause Paranoid Schizophrenia

Does Marijuana Cause Schizophrenia

Because of how commonly marijuana is used, the reduction in stigma associated with it, and the increasingly legal status of the substance, people tend to be lulled into a false sense of comfort with this substance.

In general, compared to many other drugs, marijuana tends to have fewer adverse side effects and outcomes, but this doesnt mean its entirely safe. Some people may be at risk of developing serious side effects resulting from their use of marijuana.

One area of concern is marijuana and schizophrenia. People wonder if there are links between marijuana and schizophrenia, so whats the truth? Does marijuana cause schizophrenia?

Thc Causes Negative Feelings And Changes In Perception That Induce Paranoia

Results of the study revealed that among participants who were injected with THC, around 50% reported paranoid thoughts, compared with 30% of participants who received the placebo. The researchers note that as the compound left the bloodstream, feelings of paranoia reduced.

The team found that THC also induced anxiety, worry, reduced mood, negative thoughts about oneself, changes in perception including the report of louder noises and clouds being brighter and altered their perception of time. Using a statistical analysis, the researchers found that it may be these negative feelings and changes in perception that cause paranoid feelings among marijuana users.

The team says their findings not only very convincingly show that cannabis can cause short-term paranoia in some users, but they may also explain how our mind encourages paranoid feelings.

Paranoia is likely to occur when we are worried, think negatively about ourselves, and experience unsettling changes in our perceptions, says Prof. Freeman, adding:

The study identifies a number of highly plausible ways in which our mind promotes paranoid fears. Worry skews our view of the world and makes us focus on perceived threat. Thinking we are inferior means we feel vulnerable to harm. Just small differences in our perception can make us feel that something strange and even frightening is going on.

Can Heavy Use Cause Schizophrenia Or Other Syndromes

That is the big question, and so far the evidence is not strong enough to answer one way or the other. Even top scientists who specialize in marijuana research are divided, drawing opposite conclusions from the same data.

Ive been doing this research for 25 years, and its polarizing even among academics, said Margaret Haney, a professor of neurobiology at Columbia University Medical Center. This is what the marijuana field is like.

The debate centers on the distinction between correlation and causation. People with psychotic problems often use cannabis regularly this is a solid correlation, backed by numerous studies. But it is unclear which came first, the cannabis habit or the psychoses. Children who later develop schizophrenia often seem to retreat into their own world, stalked periodically by bizarre fears and fantasies well outside the range of usual childhood imagination, and well before they are exposed to cannabis. Those who go on to become regular marijuana users often use other substances as well, including alcohol and cigarettes, making it more difficult for researchers to untangle causation.

Yet nicotine attracts nowhere near the concern that cannabis does, in part because the two drugs are so different in their everyday effects: mildly stimulated versus stoned. Indeed, some scientists have studied nicotine as a partial treatment for schizophrenia, to blunt the disorders effects on thinking and memory.

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Marijuana Killed My Soul

Clay Whiting deals with a lot of parents and other family members at Scripps Mercy Health hospital in San Diego, where he is an emergency room physician. In the past month, he said, he’s had back-to-back ambulances carrying young people experiencing psychosis after trying marijuana for the first time.

Since the drug was legalized in California last year, Whiting said, “we see people every shift now” because of marijuana, including some experiencing violent vomiting known as hyperemesis. The incidents led to the term “scromiting,” to describe people screaming and vomiting at the same time.

“Greater access means great trials by younger people,” Whiting said.

USA TODAY interviewed a dozen parents whose children suffered psychotic episodes some of which led to schizophrenia related to their marijuana use. Several of the children died by suicide.

Andrew Zorn of Phoenix was 14 when he started smoking marijuana daily in high school, said his mother, Sally Schindel. He was about 25 and working on his community college degree when he told his mother something was going on in his brain. He tried to read and study, but his mind seemed to disappear on him, she said.

Zorn was diagnosed with severe cannabis use disorder,” bipolar disorder and borderline personality disorder with auditory hallucinations, paranoia and anxiety.

Zorn ended up taking his own life. In a suicide note, he wrote, I want to die. My soul is already dead. Marijuana killed my soul + ruined my brain.

Colorado Tries Hard To Convince Teens That Pot Is Bad For You

“It does look like there is an increased risk for schizophrenia” from smoking weed overall, Lisdahl says. But she also agrees with Volkow. “Some experts believe that might induce schizophrenia in someone who wasn’t vulnerable, but in my opinion that hasn’t really been proven.”

One thing to note, Lisdahl says, is that more people smoke cannabis today than ever in history. If the connection between weed and schizophrenia is solid, then the number of people with schizophrenia should also be going up. But it hasn’t. The fraction of people who have the disorder still hovers at around 1 percent.

But public health officials say they have seen an increase in the number of blazed people showing up to the emergency room in the grip of a fleeting psychotic episode. Volkow says there’s been a “very dramatic increase … that may have to do with a much more potent marijuana.” Black market, medical and recreational marijuana have all been steadily increasing their THC content over the past decade, and according to national emergency department data, visits involving cannabis increased 52 percent from 2004 to 2011.

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Can Weed Cause Psychosis

Home » Mental Health » Can Weed Cause Psychosis?

People really like marijuana. Its one of the most popular recreational drugs in the world and has an estimated 55 million monthly users in the U.S. alonea number that far outpaces the number of cigarette smokers and is second only to alcohol consumption . Even those who dont partake themselves think of the drug favorably. Over 60% of Americans are staunchly in favor of marijuanas legalization for recreational or medical use, a sentiment that has more than doubled from previous years and bypasses age, race, and even political divisions.

Pot Can Trigger Psychotic Symptoms For Some But Do The Effects Last

Angus Chen

High-end marijuana buds on sale at a Denver dispensary.hide caption

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High-end marijuana buds on sale at a Denver dispensary.

In the “American Sniper” murder trial, prosecutors successfully countered Eddie Ray Routh’s plea of not guilty by reason of insanity by saying that he just seemed psychotic because he was high. But scientists continue to argue over whether marijuana-induced psychosis is always short-lived or if there’s a deeper connection at play.

Nobody would question that marijuana can make some people temporarily experience psychotic symptoms, says Dr. Nora Volkow, the director of the National Institute for Drug Abuse at the National Institutes for Health. “But can cannabis by itself trigger the schizophrenic disease? That’s not so clear,” she says.

Volkow says it’s important to make that distinction. Drugs like marijuana or methamphetamine can make someone experience symptoms like paranoia, hostility and disorganized thinking. But that’s very different from a chronic, persistent psychotic disorder like schizophrenia. “You can have a psychotic episode from the use of marijuana without it turning into schizophrenia,” Volkow says. “It’s very distressing, but you’ll get out of it.”

Still, some researchers are convinced that marijuana contributes to the development of schizophrenia. There have been nine studies following hundreds to thousands of people for decades looking for a connection between marijuana use and psychosis.

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Cannabis Use And Schizophrenia Symptoms

Symptoms of psychosis have to do with a disconnect from reality.

For example, you may see, hear, smell, taste, or touch things that arent there. Your thoughts may not make sense, or you may experience untrue beliefs known as delusions.

For cannabis users, these experiences may sound harmless and familiar.

Higher doses of THC, a psychoactive compound in cannabis, are known for affecting regions of the brain related to sensory and time perception.

Its not uncommon for people using cannabis to experience symptoms of psychosis seen in schizophrenia, including:

• Hallucinations: characterized by false sensory experiences.
• Delusions: thoughts and beliefs that are untrue or dont match reality.
• Disorganized thinking: nonsensical thought and speech patterns ranging from subtle to difficult to understand.
• Negative symptoms: a reduction in certain function areas, such as cognitive decline.

Cannabis use may also cause a feeling of dissociation or a loss of your sense of personal identity.

Using Medical Marijuana: How Patients Can Stay Safe

Here is a rundown of what Foster suggests to the patients she works with:

• If you are going to use marijuana, its important to work with your psychiatrist and other trusted members of your mental health team who understand the dangers of THC on people vulnerable to experiencing psychosis and who can guide you in the best way.
• Understand that even if something is labeled as low THC or no-THC, this doesnt mean its true since marijuana is not currently approved by the Food and Drug Administration . The only way to know how it will impact you is to actually try it, which is not worth the risk if it could lead to psychosis.
• Keep in mind that just because its called medical marijuana doesnt mean that its safe, whether you are consuming it as a tincture, in plant form, as a topical product, or as an edible. Medical marijuana is simply a name. Only testing with your own body will let you know if something is safe.

See our full Clinicians Guide to treating schizophrenia.

NIDA. Is Marijuana Safe and Effective as Medicine? Updated June 2018. Accessed 20 September 2018.

Mammen, G et al. Association of Cannabis With Long-Term Clinical Symptoms in Anxiety and Mood Disorders: A Systematic Review of Prospective Studies. J Clin Psychiatry. June 5, 2018. 79.

Iffland, Kirsten and Grotenhermen, Franjo. An Update on Safety and Side Effects of Cannabidiol: A Review of Clinical Data and Relevant Animal Studies.Cannabis Cannabinoid Res. June 21, 2017.

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Can You Use Cannabis To Alleviate Schizophrenia Symptoms

Data from a indicates that people living with psychotic disorders may be more likely than others to turn to cannabis use.

Researchers speculate that living with a psychotic disorder could make the effects of cannabis more pleasurable.

So while you might think you feel better when youre using a cannabis product, this doesnt necessarily mean this substance is treating your schizophrenia or any other psychotic disorder.

A 2021 systematic review trials found no changes in schizophrenia symptoms and cognition for people using smoked or oral THC. The same review also found CBD results to be inconclusive.

A Study On Weed And Paranoia

Although many studies have encountered patients experiencing negative psychoactive effects such as paranoia, only one study has thus far focused on this reaction. The 2015 study, , used 121 volunteers with previous histories of paranoia. In the placebo-controlled clinical trial, participants were injected with either pure THC or saline and given a self-assessment test to rate their levels of paranoia. The study found that THC significantly increased levels of paranoia in the subjects receiving the treatment over the control group. Although brain scans were not used in this study, the authors hypothesized that the mechanism of action was due to an anomalous internal state, including changes in sensory intensity, distorted sensory experience, sensory flooding, thought echo, and hallucinations. So, although this study does lay the groundwork for an increased mechanistic understanding of how THC can cause paranoia, it is by no means conclusive and should be reiterated that it used synthetic THC and participants who were already predisposed to such mental states. Further studies using fMRI and other diagnostic techniques are needed to better understand the relationship between THC and anxiety or paranoia.

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Cbd Psychotic Symptoms Cognition And Side Effects

Controlled prospective research on the impact of CBD to date is mixed. The small study comparing 800 mg CBD to amisulpride among 42 symptomatic, unmedicated inpatients who tested negative for THC and substance use disorder demonstrated a 30 point reduction in PANSS total scores over 4 weeks and about a 9 point reduction in positive symptoms of psychosis in both groups . Although this study did not have a placebo control group, the findings strongly suggested that CBD has an antipsychotic effect. A recent paper also reported on assessments of cognition from this same study, indicating similar levels of improvement with CBD and amisulpride, but without statistical significance after correction for multiple comparisons . The four small placebo controlled studies of CBD augmentation in schizophrenia provide mixed, limited support for the ability of CBD added to an antipsychotic to further reduce symptoms of psychosis and improve cognitive impairments. In contrast to the research on THC, this research did demonstrate that CBD did not worsen psychosis or cognition compared to placebo.

The Impact Of Thc And Cbd In Schizophrenia: A Systematic Review

• 1Department of Psychiatry, Rutland Regional Medical Center, Rutland, VT, United States
• 2Vermont Hub-and-Spoke System of Care, West Ridge Center at Rutland Regional Medical Center, Rutland, VT, United States
• 3New Hampshire Hospital, Concord, NH, United States
• 4Department of Psychiatry, Dartmouth-Hitchcock Medical Center, Lebanon, NH, United States
• 5Geisel School of Medicine, Dartmouth College, Hanover, NH, United States
• 6Bureau of Mental Health Services, Concord, NH, United States

Background: People with schizophrenia are more likely to develop cannabis use disorder and experience worse outcomes with use. Yet as cannabis is legalized for medical and recreational use, there is interest in its therapeutic potential.

Objectives: To conduct a systematic review summarizing the design and results of controlled trials using defined doses of THC and CBD in schizophrenia.

Method: A keyword search of eight online literature databases identified 11 eligible reports.

Discussion: There is substantial heterogeneity across studies in dose, method of drug delivery, length of treatment, patient age, whether patients with cannabis use/CUD were included or excluded, and whether patients were using antipsychotic medication.

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Teens Who Smoke Pot At Risk For Later Schizophrenia Psychosis

• By Ann MacDonald, Contributor

ARCHIVED CONTENT: As a service to our readers, Harvard Health Publishing provides access to our library of archived content. Please note the date each article was posted or last reviewed. No content on this site, regardless of date, should ever be used as a substitute for direct medical advice from your doctor or other qualified clinician.

Teenagers and young adults who use marijuana may be messing with their heads in ways they dont intend.

Evidence is mounting that regular marijuana use increases the chance that a teenager will develop psychosis, a pattern of unusual thoughts or perceptions, such as believing the television is transmitting secret messages. It also increases the risk of developing schizophrenia, a disabling brain disorder that not only causes psychosis, but also problems concentrating and loss of emotional expression.

In one recent study that followed nearly 2,000 teenagers as they became young adults, young people who smoked marijuana at least five times were twice as likely to have developed psychosis over the next 10 years as those who didnt smoke pot.

Another new paper concluded that early marijuana use could actually hasten the onset of psychosis by three years. Those most at risk are youths who already have a mother, father, or sibling with schizophrenia or some other psychotic disorder.

Certain Genes In Your Body May Trigger The Condition If You Use Marijuana

Some recent studies have examined specific genes you may have in your body and how they may increase your risk for schizophrenia. If you have a certain type of AKTI gene and use marijuana, your risk of developing a psychotic disorder can increase according to a 2012 study of nearly 500 people experiencing psychosis, plus a control group.

The frequency of marijuana intake also comes into play with this gene. Those who use the drug every day and have this gene variant may be at a for schizophrenia than those with the variant who do not use the drug or who use it very infrequently.

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Cannabis Can Trigger A Psychotic Illness In Susceptible People

Some things can make it more likely that you will experience a psychotic disorder at some point in your life. These include your genetic make-up, your mothers health during pregnancy, complications with your birth, child abuse, some kinds of head injury and infection, drug abuse, living in urban areas and experiencing high stress and social disadvantage.

If you already have a predisposition like this, cannabis use can trigger an illness. It can also cause symptoms to occur far sooner than they would otherwise have done.

Although anyone can experience psychotic symptoms from cannabis use, it hasnt been demonstrated yet whether cannabis can cause a psychotic illness in someone who isnt otherwise susceptible.

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