The real start to 2025 is here – my 90-day smoke break is finally over.
Final tally:
- 91 days without lighting
- 75 days with no inhaled cannabis
- 60 days with no THC
- 30 days full cannabinoid break
This is the long break I’ve taken from both THC and smoking since I started consuming. And while there is a part of me that feels silly for celebrating days without smoking (that catholic, D.A.R.E. influenced part) the truth is that inhaled cannabis has medical benefits for me and I enjoy it greatly. And I don’t feel bad about either of those things.
Why should I? I just celebrated 5 years in business for myself, supporting my household and my chosen van lifestyle completely with my own hands and brain.
I have been enormously successful at what I have put my mind to over the last decade, and that decade includes (sometimes heavy) cannabis consumption.
So a little smoke break is necessary now and then, as is a challenge. But full abstention? Not for me, certainly not right now.
I must say that re-discovering my Arizer Extreme Q desktop vape was a game-changer in the last month of my break. By that point, I was simply wishing to light up again for the sheer joy of the ritual (and the effects.)
I was infrequent in my THC consumption in early March because of a medical procedure. But the times I did imbibe, I enjoyed the vape much more than most of the edibles I took. When the procedure was over, the first thing I did at home was fill a bag.
Do I feel, at all, that the desktop vape was taking the easy way out? Yes and no. Yes, because of how close the two are. It absolutely satisfies the same urge in the brain. From a habit-forming or breaking perspective, the two are very similar.
No, because it didn’t replace smoking. I went 91 days without the act of lighting anything up: 30 full days on a cannabinoid break, and another 30 reintegrated non-intoxicating cannabinoids in an oral consumption method (soft gels.) I didn’t break out the desktop vape until well into March, going at least 75 days without inhaling.
What have I taken away from this smoke break?
One thing I’ve long known: THC is a friend that requires boundaries. It is very easy to become caught up in the fun part of THC and forget that while this cannabinoid is not addicting in the traditional sense, it can still be habit-forming. I didn’t need to be smoking as much as I was when I went on my break.
Another thing that surprised me. About three-ish weeks into my break in January, I realized I was back in some very old sleep habits – having a hard time falling and staying asleep. Reincorporating CBD and CBN helped reduce the time it took to shut my brain off and actually fall asleep, and reduced the number of times I woke up during the night. Having cannabinoids in my system is important to a healthy sleep cycle.
I first started consuming cannabis at night to help me sleep. In the years since I have stepped away from both that particular consumption method (distillate vape) and that time of dosing (close to bedtime.) I was surprised to find that my morning and afternoon consumption time still had a positive effect on my sleep.
My break reminded me that while I enjoy the high effects of THC, moderation is important and there are benefits I forget because the original issues fade into distant memory when I consume regularly.
When I wrote for The Cannigma, I got to chat with scientists, researchers, PhDs., and medical professionals weekly. One of the things that amazed me about talking with these people who were so informed on both the plant and the endocannabinoid system was their agreement that there is, generally, a depletion of endocannabinoids in our society, meaning the cannabinoid-like compounds, including anandamide, that our bodies naturally produce throughout our life. Bearing this in mind, it’s little wonder that cannabis can make us feel so good.
One researcher compared it like this: “Imagine that water was declared dirty, unsafe, and not for consumption. So for 100 years, people only drank milk, soda, beer, wine – anything but water. And one day someone decides to try some water, some pure, clear water. They’d call the benefits of water medicinal too. But it’s not – it’s essential.”
Letting my body fully reset to its natural levels of endocannabinoid production helped give me a clear view into what cannabis helps me most with – sleep, hunger cues and digestion, and creative inspiration. There are many other benefits I get from my consumption, but those are the core – what kept me coming back for more in the beginning.
I’ve been off my smoke break for four days and in that time I’ve enjoyed a bowl (in my Weedgets) and a joint – and a bag or two.
Where from here? Lighting up again – yes. But not every day, being more conscious of my lungs and incorporating the desktop vape as well. This break reaffirmed that edibles are quite hit-and-miss for me, and inhaled cannabis is my preferred consumption method, with or without a lighter.
