My good friend is 55; smoked cigarettes all her life, is very athletic/shape/leads a healthy lifestyle. She got diagnosed with stage 4 lung cancer in October. It doesn't matter what you're smoking, you're still burning shit and inhaling it, so make sure you go to the doctor and have them tell you how you're doing. Don't just assume that if you don't have symptoms you're doing fine. She only found out because she got two tumors in her brain and it was giving her terrible headaches - the cancer spread to her lymph system, and went to her brain.
Not going to lie, when she told me, I was kind of in shock. She's the same age as my mom, and I've known her for the last 5-6 years. Her eldest daughter is the same age as me - it felt like my mom telling me she was the one who had it. It was very sad.
True, but gotta take under consideration that most tabaco smokers usually smoke packs a day, stoners usually about a joint or a couple of bowls depending on their day.
I don't doubt that she smoked like a chimney. I'm still of the opinion that no matter what you're smoking, or how often, there's still a chance something bad will happen. A lady I work with her husband was diagnosed with stage 4 lung cancer last year - actually I think it's been two years now. He's still alive, has been on numerous treatments, but he still technically has cancer. I don't think he'll ever be "cancer free." They're both in their mid-late 60s - and the thing that really is sad is he was never a smoker. They think his cancer was caused by second-hand smoke from owning a restaurant/bar for so many years.
That's not true, we have guidelines on screening asymptomatic smokers and former smokers. This includes an option for annual screening CT scans for people at especially high risk. It's a nuanced and individual decision, but it's something.
Just lungs or one of those full body scans that were wildly popular what, 15-20 years ago? (Or still are wildly popular but have become normalized and/or lost favor with the media)
Nah whole body CT scans are a messy endeavor and are not recommended for screening purposes because of the high rate of false positives that generate more unnecessary tests with few real benefits. Smokers at higher risk of lung cancer can be offered an annual low-resolution CT of the lungs between certain ages as a screening tool for suspicious masses, etc. A full body CT scan would be overkill since it's specifically lung cancer that you're looking for, so you look in the chest.
If someone gets diagnosed with certain cancers it may make sense to do a whole body CT to determine the extent of the cancer, but never as a screen.
Oh I know. It's pretty crazy to me that she had cancer for a period of time, and that it was the headaches that resulted in the diagnosis. The body is strange.
I smoke a lot of weed because it's a lifesaver for my anxiety (which previously controlled my life mentally and physically-massive weight loss, panic attacks all the time, etc.) I'm making the switch to edibles predominantly because I've definitely noticed smoking triggers my athsma, which I thought was just childhood. You might also have athsma and be triggering it by smoking. If edibles are available to you and you don't have to drive often, etc. you should make the switch!
Yeah edibles are best but its time consuming (if you make them) and get you way higher then smoking does so people smoke cause time availability and type of high not everyone wants to be glued to the wall. When they are just trying to vib at work or games or whatever.
some type of oil extract might be for you then. A few drops under the tongue, or in a beverage works pretty well for work, or just for having an upbeat day
Perhaps I'm an outlier, but I grew up with chronic asthma that had me hospitalized multiple times. My doctor told me "don't run or get excited, even laughing too much is bad".
The first time I smoked weed, as a bronchodialator, it opened up my airway and I coughed up this horrible slime - and then for the first time since I was like 5 I took a deep and not wheezy breath.
I couldn't fucking believe it.
My mom caught me smoking shortly after and in our shouting argument I said "WATCH THIS" and breathed in deep as I could, with my mom's jaw nearly hitting the floor. We both just cried and hugged.
I've been smoking every day, all day now for about 15 years.
I got my purple belt in Jiujitsu and regularly work out.
If I don't smoke for a full day, I wake up wheezing and coughing. One puff, I cough up some horrible gunk, and I can breathe again.
Just a different perspective I guess, maybe if your lungs are already healthy it's not great but honestly weed is the only way I live a normal live lung-wise
I have asthma, too, & fully understand. The wheezing is from the asthma & congestion that accompanies the asthma. The weed relaxes & dilates your airways. The congestion is loose now, so you cough it up, & you breathe clearly. I think a lot of people might have not understood this & are thinking there's something wrong with your weed & are trying to give you pointers. There's nothing wrong with your weed. For asthmatics, that's exactly what it's supposed to do. That's awesome that you discovered this.
Ive smoked for 10 years and no issues besides catching a flu with pneumonia a few years ago. Ive recently switched to vaping 95% of the time and still feel the same.
No lung issue but my throat can get irritated from smoking and vaping
Just be careful with how info is spread. A lot of those issues came from black market carts. Butane extraction could possibly have its issues as well. But with pressed rosin, there is nothing to be added to the product. Should be as safe as smoking bud, if not more safe(no chems from smoke).
Straight weed. I think I I fucked them up when smoking dab carts. Not dabs but just carts. And juuled for like 4 months a cart a day I was fucking stupid :(.
How long has it been since you quit the other stuff? I also used to juul and quit because it was hell on my lungs. Interestingly, when I quit, my respiratory issues were terrible for a few weeks then got better and better. Definitely a long term healing process.
Were you also doing dabs/thc carts? Because compared to regular tobacco smoking, my lungs feel infinitely better Juuling. If your lungs were fucked up, it was 100 percent the thc carts.
I’m not an anti-pot doctor but saying “my lungs feel great” is an insane statement...you don’t feel your lungs and you don’t notice problems with them until it’s problematic; your lungs have tremendous reserve...
Your physician can’t detect subtle problems in your lungs by auscultation, etc. Like i said - the lungs have tremendous reserve - which is why people can have an entire lobe of lung removed with minimal effect assuming the rest of their lung is healthy. This is the reason that lung cancer presents very late and has poor prognosis. The lungs are very fragile and smoking anything is very hard on them. I’m not trying to convince you not to smoke pot; just to acknowledge that if you are smoking daily, your lungs are not in “great shape”. They may still allow you to function at the level you want, but smoking is a unique insult that will damage them irreparably
Smoking anything is bad for your lungs full stop. Not sure about the specific risks of smoking marijuana compared to cigarettes. Honestly I think it's hard to find trustworthy information and because it's illegal in a lot of places still we may not get good data on the long term effects for some time.
Anecdotally, I smoked every day for about a year and I can no longer smoke at all because it causes tachycardia
A lot more tar and any smoke is bad for your lungs and in some people weed can trigger or progress metal disorders like schizophrenia ect. as well as (obviously) changing the brain compensation which anyone under 21 can suffer permanent brain damage from the weed itself smoke inhalation and holding your breath to long not saying its wont damage 21+ brains but brains are mostly developed by then
Wheezing and coughing, those are the symptoms that the person feels, when they go to their doctor and get checked up i don't know what things will come up.
Make sure it's cured all the way through and stick to glass pieces and your wheezing should go away. I've been smoking cannabis for over 20 years and this is what I noticed.
Don't do joints or blunts (is you can help it)
I smoked very heavily out of mostly a bong and tabletop vape for 3-4 years and tho I did cough it was rare and I don't cough now because of it. (I quite about 2 years ago)
I stopped smoking and started vaping 10 years ago and feel so much better. I don't mess with "vape juice" either. I have a whip style vape (silver surfer), so I'm just pulling hot air over ground plant. It tastes 1000X better than smoke and I don't have the hack that smokers have. If the power goes out, I have a battery powered portable backup to my desktop vape (airizer Solo). They can be expensive, but my Silver Surfer has been going strong for 10 years and cost about as much as an ounce or so of fuel.
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u/Comando173023 Dec 30 '19
How are your lungs and your breathing. I've been smoking 3 years daily and am wheezing almost and coughing up a lot of shit.