Marijuana Mental Illness And Violence

Marijuana Tsunami

I recommend anyone who is interested in the effects of marijuana on society to read Alex Berenson’s book “Tell Your Children: The Truth About Marijuana, Mental Illness and Violence.” This book opened my eyes to the stories of marijuana causing psychosis in people who had no symptoms prior to smoking and the violence and murders committed while under the influence!

The legalization of marijuana is great from a social perspective: no more government telling us what we can put in our body, no more hiding weed in the closet, no more arrests secondary to racial discrimination and no more jail time!

But what the legalization movement and the National Organization for the Reform of Marijuana Laws (norml) are not emphasizing are the increased mental illness rates and violence that come with consuming marijuana. Just take a look at this article from Psychology Today.

It is no secret that consuming marijuana increases one’s risk of developing a psychotic disorder! But proponents of legalization are not directing much attention to these facts because they have an agenda: to legalize marijuana, smoke in peace and make money via cannabis-related businesses!

The victims of marijuana violence are not usually the users themselves, as opposed to alcohol; they are family members and friends! Individuals who are prone to developing a psychotic episode secondary to marijuana consumption literally lose touch with reality; they may become paranoid and experience auditory hallucinations telling them to kill their wife or neighbor!

Not to mention that the legalization of marijuana will increase the psychological addiction rate to the substance even more than is currently prevalent. By having cannabis stores available on every street corner, it will be very easy and tempting for adults and teens to buy some flower; adolescents will just get their older peers to purchase it for them.

Everyone should always think twice about the pros and cons of such an important event happening in our society; always ready between the lines and do your own research! Do not blatantly accept one side of the story without diving into the details of the other; there are always two sides worth learning about.

Are you Ready? (This is Defeating Stigma Mindfully)