Weed withdrawal - erectile dysfunction

[SparkleFly12]

Yeah, the headaches are gone for the most part, I only have a really mild one when my symptoms are at their worst now. I dont think they would be from bad oils, all the oils I used were from very reputable brands. The headaches also came and went along with all my other symptoms; especially brain fog. Im certain they were paws related. Oils did completely **** me up though; I went through paws without realizing it (bc the symptoms were not too intense) after smoking a lot of weed; but it was nothing compared to after using oils; after using oils I felt like I was rotting on the inside.

My problem with weed/ED is that I dont know if I had the intermittent ED before weed. I never had sex regularly until I was smoking a lot. So no idea what my normal is. Im no doctor, but I dont think using ed meds like viagra/cialis can make you dependent on them. Theyre not psychoactive; they just make it physically easier to get hard. But for me, I know that I am at least sometimes able to get hard without them so physically I have no issues; its to do with brain chemistry (low sex drive).

Yeah my sleep was terrible when I first quit and just like the headaches, got better each month and by month 8 I could finally get good sleep; then a month later I couldnt. It is different now though; my poor sleep isnt the same as it was my first 8 months. Back then I couldnt fall asleep or stay asleep; now I can fall asleep most off the time but I get up early and can never get back to sleep. When I write it out it sorta sounds the same, but it feels very different now. Better, but still bad.

[biohack9]

Thank goodness your headaches have subsided man! I can't imagine a worse torture. I had them bad for 2 weeks, but realized it wasn't from PAWS, but rather either a steroidal nasal spray I was inhaling deeply, and/or stupid herbs from a TCM practitioner I was using, or maybe even acupuncture. That pain was intense. Soon as I stopped all that nonsense they went away for good.

I'm curious though, how much of the oils were you using daily? How did you administer them, by dabbing? Even from reputable brands, unless they are solventless extracts like rosin or maybe co2 oil, they can definitely still have trace residues of butane, if it was BHO. But likely it was the amount of THC you were inhaling frequently. At my highest, I was at 1g/day! And adjusted for yield, this means about 5-6g of cannabis flower per day, which is insane. But on average I was closer to half of that, which is still a lot. My flower withdrawals were much harder to unlike you. Then again, I vaporized it exclusively which is more similar to dabbing since it's all pure THC without and plant material/smoke combusting.

I've heard that viagra isn't addictive too but perhaps psychologically? I'm also not sure if they add caffeine in those pills but they would actually cause me to buzz. Even if I use it now being clean for nearly 3 months, I do get a buzz off of them that I really enjoy. Feels like a caffeine high. They have always made a massive difference in my erection quality, but like you said about brain chemistry without the libido it's just not the same. I really think our reward centers are messed up and we have a low dopamine state which only time can bring back through neuroplasticity.

Damn that's a long time for the sleep to come back... I had another night where i'm getting 8 hours but the last few are intense vivid dream filled. It's like they are even becoming more intense now at almost 3 months. Can't wait for them to go away because even though they're not nightmares, they aren't exactly pleasant either. I would return to cannabis just to prevent dreaming I hate them so much, but I am waking up more refreshed and less depressed these days fortunately. It's almost like i'm optimistic about life now.

Better but still bad is still better... just imagine how you'll feel after the one year mark!

[SparkleFly12]

I was probably taking 150mg/day or so; the ones I bought were not BHO, they were either co2 extracts or rosin; 70-95% THC. Administered through a vape pen, which was very efficient. The thing, at least for me, with those was that the high lasted so damn long...a hit of flower gets me high for a hr and a half; buzzing for 3. A hit off the vape pen would get me high for 3 and buzzing for 6. Being high for so long, and each hit being so intense, makes the withdrawal a whole lot worse.

I mean it could be something in the vape pen oil - but I would be surprised. These symptoms are all things that I experienced when using flower too, just waaay less intense. My experience has all pointed to this...I smoked weed for many years and had many symptoms when smoking and quitting that were mild enough to ignore. Then as soon as I discovered oils, everything went to hell.

[biohack9]

Cool, definitely not butane residue then. Damn 150mg isn't even that much! That's like not even equivalent to a gram of weed. And again, THC doesn't get "stronger", it's like a shot of alcohol vs drinking a beer. I did all that stuff too, I was up to a 1gm cart a day of distillate.. but was really into the co2 oil, wax, shatter, High terp extracts, Full spectrum extracts, rosin, live rosin, etc. It was pretty intense. I tried to vape flower and felt nothing. My tolerance was pretty jacked. But unlike you my withdrawal this time was way easier than flower vaping. I think because concentrates are just cleaner and my body really responded bad to plant material. Made me gain a lot of water weight and my night sweats were insane coming off of flower for 6+ weeks. Other than that though, pretty similar I guess overall, but I never abstained for more than 3 months from flower and threw in the towel and said I would never put myself through it again because I felt like all the benefits occurred and maxed out after a month or 2 max. And here I am again, trying to break that record, which will happen on christmas. So stupid I didn't just keep going back then, 2 years ago. But i'm just a stupid human that never learns.

One thing I really think is starting to help me these days is semen retention... i'm staying the heck away from sex and orgasms for months as part of my dopamine reboot.

[SparkleFly12]

It honestly was probably closer to 300. hard to tell since Id have like 4-5 carts at any time. They got me so much higher than flower, and Id be high for a couple hours. I actually felt that taking more hits of the stuff didnt get me any higher till I started coming down. And yea, after a while flower just stopped doing anything.

Holy sh** how did you use 1g in a day??! the limiting factor for me was the cough - Id take a hit then cough for 15mins!

[biohack9]

Holy sh** how did you use 1g in a day??! the limiting factor for me was the cough - Id take a hit then cough for 15mins!

That's how THC works, you can only REALLY get medicated the more you space your sessions. So really, once a day, unless you do it in the morning and wait it out, and then again in the evening. T-breaks work like magic.

I never coughed because I used a ruby gemstone insert in my quartz banger which allows for effective vaporization at flower vaping temps, so 400f-500f. With the 1g/day it was do to globs of homemade rosin from morning until night, but that was only for a short period of time. I typically didn't use more than 500mg in a day, and then averaged about 300mg. In comparison, I used to vape about 2.5g of flower per day.

I legit woke up and got medicated, and then every 2-3 hours topped off. It turns into from being stoned, to just being normal. I needed to do it before the gym, before sex, eating, running, etc. It was just my default state.

Last night I actually had nocturnal/morning wood for the first time in a long time without cialis in my system. Also now 1 week nofap hard mode/semen retention and feeling really good. My workouts have been upping in intensity too.

It doesn't feel like great sleep, but somehow i'm still in bed for 8 hours so it's probably better now than ever has been.

I do notice that sauna use really messes up my sleep, especially not being able to fall asleep. I think I overdo it though.

[Thracian]

31 years old here. I started smoking at 15,prior to quitting i was on a 4 year daily binge. Ive been sober 15 months now which is the longest I've gone without weed. Everything you guys are describing in terms of ED happened to me as soon as I quit. For me weed and sex was a ritual. Me and my 1st girlfriend would smoke and always have sex when we were 18,so it started at a young age. I hate to break it down to you guys but the penis has CBD/THC receptors,which makes sex better and it relaxes you. Weed is a natural aphrodisiac ,sex starts in the brain. THC also effects the part of the brain that is wired for pleasure and sex.Because we've had sex for so long using marijuana our brains are not programmed to enjoy sex sober.

Like others here I have used marijuana in combination with cialis for sex,you could say I was a sex addict. Once I stopped using marijuana the desire for sex went down dramatically,Im unable to maintain or get hard erections. However it is getting better,I can now achieve hard erections but its still hard to maintain it. I do not have this issue with using ED medicine. The desire for sex is getting better but without cannabis I have performance anxiety,with weed and cialis in my system I was a beast,I could go for hours and go multiple rounds.

I'm almost at the point of trying out low edibles only to have sex.With cannabis in my system I had a crazy sex drive and desire for sex. If i'm not going to get any zest out of life whats the point of even living? Reading these forums its almost like we are beating ourselves up with our past use and trying to blame everything on the plant. Everyone is struggling with paws,ED,mood swings,depression,anxiety,suicidal thoughts.Did we have these problems while using? I didnt. So was cannabis a medicine in a way? I think it was. Were we misusing cannabis? I was. Im afraid to use cannabis even in a low dose now because of psychotic symptoms Ive gotten which was one of the major reasons why I quit ,these symptoms are there even without use,so I might be one of those genetic cases where schizophrenia may be triggered by cannabis.

[biohack9]

Damn! How long was it until you were able to have an erection without cialis? And when did your libido start returning? You may find after another year that you will be completely symptom free, and that includes your mental condition. Otherwise, i'm really starting to see cannabis in my life again if things don't improve in another 6-8 months.

Really appreciate your feedback though, helps a tonne!

[Head in loud]

One thing you should Understand is everyone are different. If you get 8 hours of sleep with less then 3 months of quit then most likely you will recover much earlier then rest of us. I’m two weeks less then 18 months and still can not get more then 6 hours of sleep and worst part is waking up few times in middle of sleep.
Just a heads up, if you use week again the withdrawal and PAW will be 10 times hardly...just read some of the post here to get an idea.

Thank goodness your headaches have subsided man! I can't imagine a worse torture. I had them bad for 2 weeks, but realized it wasn't from PAWS, but rather either a steroidal nasal spray I was inhaling deeply, and/or stupid herbs from a TCM practitioner I was using, or maybe even acupuncture. That pain was intense. Soon as I stopped all that nonsense they went away for good.

I'm curious though, how much of the oils were you using daily? How did you administer them, by dabbing? Even from reputable brands, unless they are solventless extracts like rosin or maybe co2 oil, they can definitely still have trace residues of butane, if it was BHO. But likely it was the amount of THC you were inhaling frequently. At my highest, I was at 1g/day! And adjusted for yield, this means about 5-6g of cannabis flower per day, which is insane. But on average I was closer to half of that, which is still a lot. My flower withdrawals were much harder to unlike you. Then again, I vaporized it exclusively which is more similar to dabbing since it's all pure THC without and plant material/smoke combusting.

I've heard that viagra isn't addictive too but perhaps psychologically? I'm also not sure if they add caffeine in those pills but they would actually cause me to buzz. Even if I use it now being clean for nearly 3 months, I do get a buzz off of them that I really enjoy. Feels like a caffeine high. They have always made a massive difference in my erection quality, but like you said about brain chemistry without the libido it's just not the same. I really think our reward centers are messed up and we have a low dopamine state which only time can bring back through neuroplasticity.

Damn that's a long time for the sleep to come back... I had another night where i'm getting 8 hours but the last few are intense vivid dream filled. It's like they are even becoming more intense now at almost 3 months. Can't wait for them to go away because even though they're not nightmares, they aren't exactly pleasant either. I would return to cannabis just to prevent dreaming I hate them so much, but I am waking up more refreshed and less depressed these days fortunately. It's almost like i'm optimistic about life now.

Better but still bad is still better... just imagine how you'll feel after the one year mark!

[biohack9]

One thing you should Understand is everyone are different. If you get 8 hours of sleep with less then 3 months of quit then most likely you will recover much earlier then rest of us. I’m two weeks less then 18 months and still can not get more then 6 hours of sleep and worst part is waking up few times in middle of sleep.
Just a heads up, if you use week again the withdrawal and PAW will be 10 times hardly...just read some of the post here to get an idea.

Thanks man, yeah i'm not getting 8 hours yet, but in bed for 8. I basically sleep for a few hours then get up and piss, and then go back to sleep and then constantly am awake/drift in crazy rem rebound state. It's like I can sleep for half the night, and then half awake for the rest until the morning, but it does feel like it's getting better. So yeah I realize that some will have longer and more severe paws as i've read a lot on this forum (and others). My biggest concern is my lack of libido.

I've quit weed a bunch of times and it's always sucked no matter what. This will be the first time I see passed 3 months though!

[Thracian]

Damn! How long was it until you were able to have an erection without cialis? And when did your libido start returning? You may find after another year that you will be completely symptom free, and that includes your mental condition. Otherwise, i'm really starting to see cannabis in my life again if things don't improve in another 6-8 months.

Really appreciate your feedback though, helps a tonne!

my libido starting coming back around 9+ months but erections were still weak. Im starting to get strong morning erections now. The erections also depend on your mood,if you are having a paw episode you arent going to get hard. Honestly man this is so hopeless,its been almost 16 months,you'd think youd be back to normal. Im going to give it another year or two. I hate drinking,so it never got me in the mood. None of my symptoms improved,my life isnt any better without weed. The key to cannabis is moderation,but thats for most of us on here.

[biohack9]

my libido starting coming back around 9+ months but erections were still weak. Im starting to get strong morning erections now. The erections also depend on your mood,if you are having a paw episode you arent going to get hard. Honestly man this is so hopeless,its been almost 16 months,you'd think youd be back to normal. Im going to give it another year or two. I hate drinking,so it never got me in the mood. None of my symptoms improved,my life isnt any better without weed. The key to cannabis is moderation,but thats for most of us on here.[/quote]

Thanks, that's great feedback, at least I have something to look forward to, I can handle waiting another 6 months, but I think now that i'm back on nofap/sex i'm starting to get morning wood again and it's only been a week without sex. Did you abstain from sex/fapping for those 9months? If not, perhaps you would have got those stronger morning wood sooner than now?

I dunno man, it sounds like you've actually had some decent progress so I wouldn't be so hard on yourself. But I do feel you, because if your life isn't any better now and you enjoyed it better with cannabis, then something can be said for including it in your life, especially if you do have underlying issues. The poison is always in the dose.

I think i've replaced weed with FOOD! Not too happy about it.

[Thracian]

Ive come this far,ive been trying to quit weed since i was 21. This is the longest ive gone without it,theres no other option. Im 31 now,its time to change my life around. The brain plays tricks with you thinking that you need it to perform at your best. They are many people out there that doesnt smoke weed and they live a perfectly happy life and are not experiencing any ED issues. Overtime my mood has gotten way better,i was heavily depressed and crying for no reason-that depression is gone now.

[biohack9]

Ive come this far,ive been trying to quit weed since i was 21. This is the longest ive gone without it,theres no other option. Im 31 now,its time to change my life around. The brain plays tricks with you thinking that you need it to perform at your best. They are many people out there that doesnt smoke weed and they live a perfectly happy life and are not experiencing any ED issues. Overtime my mood has gotten way better,i was heavily depressed and crying for no reason-that depression is gone now.

So there you go you DO have improvements and progress... that's huge... I find my mood is way more calm and stable now too, and i'm not even that far in yet.

Are there people that are perfectly happy without SOME addiction though? I mean 90% of the WORLD uses some form of caffeine DAILY, and look how many people drink booze, or are on some form of pharma medication... you'd be surprised man, it's a very large double digit number. Then you have all the other addictions like porn, sex, food, tv, internet, etc.

I think most people are pretty unhappy living mechanical lives and just put on an act. Society and working seems so unnatural, like it's not even in our genetic makeup, but we go along playing by "the rules" living in the "matrix".

I think weed expands the mind and makes you look at things much differently. I refuse to conform and live like a rat in the race. But like everything, it's all best in extreme moderation. We're all so addicted to the worst addiction of all: comfort.

[SparkleFly12]

At 10 months now..I can still feel some sex drive but not normal levels. On a good day (once every couple weeks) they are normal though. Im really hoping that the next two or three months will improve it and my other paws symptoms.

I also think that weed can be very beneficial to you; but as you said in moderation. And its different for everyone, so something that works for someone may not work for others. For me, weed did not affect my life (work, family, etc) negatively all that much except for the side effects (I had PAWS mild symptoms when smoking regularly). If it werent for those I wouldnt have quit. I know that once my brain heals from PAWS I wont ever abuse a drug again like I did; I dont ever want to go through paws again. Everything good needs moderation.

I agree weed has expanded my mind and I am a very different person because of it. Much better off. My favorite thing to do used to be to watch documentaries or read news. Those really opened my mind to the world and made me snap out of the "mechanical" life had been living, and I am really glad I spent the time I did getting high. I took a particular standardized exam (GRE) twice before I smoked regularly, and once after I had been smoking for a couple years. My verbal reasoning score was the same the first 2 times, but jumped dramatically the third; I know because weed changed the way I process things (not only when I was high). Im pretty sure it had to do with what I used to do when I was high - watch documentaries and read - and its possible that I could have done the same without weed. But the old me never would have. And this change has stuck with me, even now that Ive stopped smoking.