Chapter 12 - Beware of Cutting Down

Many marijuana users try cutting down as a way to control their addiction or taper towards quitting. They view it as a reasonable middle ground. But cutting back is a fatal mistake - it just keeps you trapped.

Cutting down often follows failed quit attempts. After struggling to abstain completely, the addict bargains: "I can't sleep without marijuana, so I'll only use it right before bed." Or, "I'll just smoke weaker strains."

This backfires horribly by:

• Keeping addiction's hold over both mind and body.

• Wishing your life away waiting for the next smoke.

• Suffering through most days in withdrawal, becoming irritable.

Before cutting down, users relieved cravings at will. Now they endure constant torture, making getting high seem more precious.

Previously, getting high was automatic and taken for granted. But spacing it out makes each time seem more enjoyable in anticipation. It's not the high itself, but relief from craving - waiting longer amplifies this effect.

Marijuana's hook isn't just physical, but mental - feeling you need it to cope or it's a reward you deserve. Cutting down strengthens this delusion, convincing you marijuana is the most precious thing without which you can't be happy.

It's unfortunate when users think using less will make them want it less. The reverse is true - abstaining intensifies cravings and withdrawal. If urges faded with lower use, addiction wouldn't exist.

On a marijuana budget, each hit seems more special. But it's really just relief from the imposed suffering. An addict is never fully happy until satisfying their green monster, regardless of how little they partake.

So where is the actual enjoyment? Ask yourself sincerely during each smoke. Does repeating this ritual really bring you glory? Or are you just running on autopilot, reinforcing neural pathways carved out by previous use?

Nothing changes in the marijuana or buzz over time - only your corrupted receptors seeking relief. But addiction tricks you into recalling that first amazing high, which can never be replicated after tolerance builds.

Cutting down doesn't work because addiction is wanting more, not less. Fighting it requires willpower forever, ensuring failure. Stopping completely is far easier than disciplining your use over a lifetime.

The problem isn't dopamine dependence - that's easily survived during vacations, illnesses, etc. It's the illusion marijuana provides pleasure or purpose. Cutting down strengthens this brainwashing so that getting high consumes your existence.

The few who succeed after briefly cutting back do so despite it, not because of it. Cutting down just prolongs agony. Failed attempts leave marijuana users wrecked and convinced they just don't have enough willpower, or eluded into thinking there is something wrong with them that marijuana fixes.

So your options are:

• Cut down forever, self-torturing and unable to succeed.

• Increasingly torture yourself in vain.

• Be kind to yourself by quitting completely.

Cutting down also shows there's no "casual" or "occasional" smoking once addicted. Marijuana is a chain reaction that will continue unless forcefully broken.

Remember: Cutting down drags you further down.