Cognitive Impairments

[Icebags210]

After 10 months of abstaining from weed, cognitive impairment is my biggest issue. My wit has not returned to me. I find it difficult to joke around with my co-workers, or resolve conflicts with customers at work. I know I used to be much more funny and charming, but that part of my personality has remained lost to me. I feel like my mind is blank a lot of the time. Normally throughout the day I'd be entertaining thoughts about interests of mine, plans I'd like to make, or just something a friend said that made me smile, but this past year I feel so foggy most of the time. I'll go about most of my days with very little running through my mind.

My thought processes has been severely dulled, and I find myself stumbling through conversions with people. I just have so much trouble forming and maintaining thoughts. I also struggle to visualize things in my mind's eye. I often can't get a clear picture of what I'm thinking of in my head, and when I can the image is fleeting. I'm a lot less irritable than at the one month mark, and for the most part my mood hasn't been gloomy the past couple of months, but I'm not seeing steady improvements to my cognitive functioning. I know the healing process can take a long time, but it's really disheartening to not see your old self emerge after nearly a year.

[Nemochaken]

Basically the same.. Brain fog, lost of sense of humour... Can someone comment on that?
I was always funny, charismatic person, now i can hardly speak.. Will it improve over time?

[tokeless]

Perhaps weed made you both more relaxed around people, which enabled you to make humour more easily. I've met people who thought they were hugely entertaining when high on cocaine but they weren't really. They were just high and full of themselves... they complained of lack of confidence when they didn't use.

[biggiesize]

when I successfully quit 12 years ago,it took me a year to feel somewhat normal and about a year and a half before My brain felt completely recvovered.I had headaches,blurred vision,and felt like parts of my brain were dead for the longest time but i returned to normal and have had no more issues.

[tokes]

2 years and 4 months in and my extremely quick wit has just recently began to rear it's head but only slightly.

Nothing of how I previously was with being able to leave a room in laughter and respond to quick banter. Real shame really. I don't know your backstory but I started smoking at 16 and continued on for almost 8 years daily.

It's without a doubt I've effected the development of my brain and haven't been able to upgrade my wit and humour in compliance with a changing adult world.

I've tried to find studies based on whether long term effects are reversible and that hasn't been a long enough study to figure that out yet. But some studies suggest the brain can repair previous damage made. In layman's terms the our receptors have dulled, resulting in slower response times of information being passed along the synapses. By the time I've thought of a good enough come back in office banter it's already too late to say it, so staying quiet or saying something generic and superficial is usually how such a convo goes down.

I'm just generally more serious than I was. Has it been due to life experiences along the way, the anxiety and panic attacks which has just put a rain cloud over my head or is it actual damage from cannabis due to smoking before the age of 21. Probably both. But whatever the case just recently I've felt a difference in the way my brain responds to jokes, banter and quick comebacks...i feel quicker and my responses are smarter.

I can't say anything that has specifically helped me to that point so there's not much I can say it that area. All the general stuff really, gym, eating well, cutting alcohol, cigarettes and all the rest of it.

Ill be keeping my thread updated and I will make sure to mention any updates or progress in that area.

[tokeless]

Why do you feel it's important to have quick banter and humour when with others? Does it matter and if so what is saying about you if you can't get back your razor sharp wit?

[Candid]

Most of us live around 80 years now, and what we do to our bodies and brains has a cumulative impact. I've been a smoker (cigarettes) for the better part of five decades, I've taken in loads of drugs legal and otherwise, and five years ago I suffered a brain injury. How can you expect these things not to take their toll?

In lockdown I got the habit of being at my desk all day, smoking and boozing like there's no tomorrow and taking ever-larger doses of a prescribed drug in order to get a few hours' sleep. I interrupt this only by going to the kitchen for something to eat or outside for a smoke. That's my exercise. I'm struggling to get into my clothes.

Some things are reversible and some aren't. I expect to lose some weight when (if?) life gets back to normal. I get scared when I realise I'm forgetting words and names I once knew well. I've long had the idea that I'll be able to 'speak' in writing long after other faculties have shut down.

There's no point complaining about the effects of the things we've done to ourselves. All of our long-term habits eventually take their toll. I've been to more funerals than I can count in the past few years, made lots of nursing-home visits and seen all the horrifying effects of dementia.

The deal is, you get a body with a brain in it so you can have the adventures of your choice. As you would be aware, some people start out with compromised brains, bodies, or both. Medical advances mean they stay alive with those conditions.

I've tried to find studies based on whether long term effects are reversible and that hasn't been a long enough study to figure that out yet. But some studies suggest the brain can repair previous damage made. In layman's terms the our receptors have dulled, resulting in slower response times of information being passed along the synapses.

I'd take the road of optimism if I were you. There are always stories of people who defy the medical prognosis. There are also people who think their way into premature old age. If you don't believe you can get well, you probably won't. This is why I invariably have a pop at people who come here listing their symptoms and counting the days since they last used their drug of choice. Look for what's going right. Order your mind to get well and stay well.

My thought processes has been severely dulled, and I find myself stumbling through conversions with people. I just have so much trouble forming and maintaining thoughts. I also struggle to visualize things in my mind's eye.

Whether you realise it or not, these are all affirmations. They're instructions to your brain. If that isn't what you want, start telling a different story. Look for what's going right instead of what's going wrong.

I know that all seems like hippy-dippy new-age bs, but take the grain of truth in it. Do the experiment and prove it to yourself.

[Icebags210]

Hey Biggiesize

Actually stumbled across your posts a couple days after I posted. Appreciate the response buddy. I’m hopeful I’ll feel completely normal within a year or so. I’m coming up on a year now, and I’ve definitely been seeing improvements with my mood and physical fatigue the last couple of months. Just waiting on my mind to catch up.

Tokes sorry your recovery has dragged on so long. Seems like you’ve been coping well though. Hope you continue to see your wit return and yes please keep us posted if you can.

[Bombadil]

After 10 months of abstaining from weed, cognitive impairment is my biggest issue. My wit has not returned to me. I find it difficult to joke around with my co-workers, or resolve conflicts with customers at work. I know I used to be much more funny and charming, but that part of my personality has remained lost to me. I feel like my mind is blank a lot of the time. Normally throughout the day I'd be entertaining thoughts about interests of mine, plans I'd like to make, or just something a friend said that made me smile, but this past year I feel so foggy most of the time. I'll go about most of my days with very little running through my mind.

My thought processes has been severely dulled, and I find myself stumbling through conversions with people. I just have so much trouble forming and maintaining thoughts. I also struggle to visualize things in my mind's eye. I often can't get a clear picture of what I'm thinking of in my head, and when I can the image is fleeting. I'm a lot less irritable than at the one month mark, and for the most part my mood hasn't been gloomy the past couple of months, but I'm not seeing steady improvements to my cognitive functioning. I know the healing process can take a long time, but it's really disheartening to not see your old self emerge after nearly a year.

Hi Icebags,

I actually experienced some similar symptoms like mentioned above. It's hard to explain, but on top of the initial anxiety and insomnia, there was a general brain fog and slower mental speed and overall thought processing for the first 8 or 9 months. It was most noticeable when trying to engage in conversation which required attention and comprehension. I am just over 13 months THC free, and I can say that I started to notice significant improvements here around the 11-12 month mark. I still do not feel 100%, but after getting ample sleep, I can feel noticeable improvement in my overall attention span and general cognition. My belief is that this will continue to normalize over the course of my second year of abstinence. It sounds like you are starting to notice some improvement which is good to hear, hopefully this will progress for you quickly so that you can bounce back to your former baseline.

Best of luck in your recovery.

[leavepawsbehind]

Even without starting and stopping smoking, going through difficult and hard experiences changes you. My initial withdrawal was hellish, and the resulting health anxiety in the months to follow with all of the tests for MS, autoimmune disorders, MRIs, etc messed me up. No wonder my sense of humor was gone for a year after I quit smoking . Whether it's physiological or psychological, or a little bit of both, you gotta just give yourself time and keep a positive mindset when you can, because it's the only way you can claw your way back to normalcy. Easier said than done, I know, but I'm at 30 months sober and it's working out well for me so far.

[LondonScouse]

2 years and 4 months in and my extremely quick wit has just recently began to rear it's head but only slightly.

Nothing of how I previously was with being able to leave a room in laughter and respond to quick banter. Real shame really. I don't know your backstory but I started smoking at 16 and continued on for almost 8 years daily.

It's without a doubt I've effected the development of my brain and haven't been able to upgrade my wit and humour in compliance with a changing adult world.

I've tried to find studies based on whether long term effects are reversible and that hasn't been a long enough study to figure that out yet. But some studies suggest the brain can repair previous damage made. In layman's terms the our receptors have dulled, resulting in slower response times of information being passed along the synapses. By the time I've thought of a good enough come back in office banter it's already too late to say it, so staying quiet or saying something generic and superficial is usually how such a convo goes down.

I'm just generally more serious than I was. Has it been due to life experiences along the way, the anxiety and panic attacks which has just put a rain cloud over my head or is it actual damage from cannabis due to smoking before the age of 21. Probably both. But whatever the case just recently I've felt a difference in the way my brain responds to jokes, banter and quick comebacks...i feel quicker and my responses are smarter.

I can't say anything that has specifically helped me to that point so there's not much I can say it that area. All the general stuff really, gym, eating well, cutting alcohol, cigarettes and all the rest of it.

Ill be keeping my thread updated and I will make sure to mention any updates or progress in that area.

I think you've hit the nail on the head mate. I've highlighted the parts which are EXACTLY the same for me.

[LondonScouse]

Perhaps weed made you both more relaxed around people, which enabled you to make humour more easily. I've met people who thought they were hugely entertaining when high on cocaine but they weren't really. They were just high and full of themselves... they complained of lack of confidence when they didn't use.

Why do you feel it's important to have quick banter and humour when with others? Does it matter and if so what is saying about you if you can't get back your razor sharp wit?

Hi Tokeless,
I thought I'd make a response to your previous posts.

I can only speak for myself, and for my experiances.

I was very witty/humorous as a child all the way until a few years smoking daily. I never actually felt more relaxed with others whilst high unless they were close friends. It was the opposite. Weed actually game me social anxiety when I used haha. So, like me, I think some of the guys that complain of this symptom were "funny", "witty" etc prior to actually smoking weed religiously.

Regarding your second point, it actually is important to be witty with others. Wit is a sign of intelligence, something that people find very attractive in others. It's something that enables you to form social connections, generate laughter in others, generate likability and can be used in a variety of situations, such as easing tensions between aggressive individuals.

I understand you've been posting on this forum for years. I've also been reviewing the forum for years. I'm sure you have your own reasons for participating on this forum, such as helping others. My reason is because I would like to find other people like me, who have maybe suffered a similar set of symptoms. The starter of this thread is one such example of somebody who I feel suffers in a similar capacity, and I wish him all the best in his recovery.

[SparkleFly12]

For me, it took 6-8 months for my thinking ability to come back to what I considered normal pre-PAWS levels. But I have other symptoms that are still ongoing at the 14 month mark.

Everyone's different. Only time can tell. And for the most part, if you scour the internet and this forum, you see that time usually tells a good story.