Marijuana and Memory

[Zaknefain]

I just about got straight a's every semester at school, I didnt try at school. My memory was, and is, good I'd certainly say, managed a 91% on the math 11 final government exam. I studied for an hour, which was just reading stuff. Since I'm stopped doing english work at school, my vocabulary has kinda dropped in some ways because I randomly cant remember words and shit, which didnt really happen before. That is all im fuckin typing

 

 

 

I also have an extremely bad short term memory best proof of this imo is when im watching tv as i can be watching just about anything and the second the ad break comes on i totally forget what i was watching, the plot of the show, etc. and i wont be able to locate any memory of it until the show comes back on which is when im flooded with the memory of what i had seen before the ad break came on

 

k, damnit. Yeah, that happens to me and has always happened to me throughout my life. It doesnt always happen but sometimes it does, so I guess thats not as bad as what you are describing yourself being like. That sounds not like fun.

Edited March 9, 2007 by Zaknefain

[mull]

Was gonna hit this thread a couple of times but keep forgetting

 

IME short term memory is effected, but never lost. It's still filed away somewhere. (unlike alcohol blackout where it's completely lost, or unconsiousness)

So the reefer madness brigade can't label it 'lost'. Perhaps short term memory misplaced

Which can be very handy if you have to much on your mind and cant clear it!

 

Longterm past memory seems to be very sharp, yet in perspective. Perspective being a hazy can't care sort of bliss

 

The short term loss of the train of conversation is very common. I know other people who do this often to...

um, what was I sayin..

However this also happens to straights. It can suggest other thought is taking preference to what is being spoken of.

 

Losing the shroud of time is another. That is to feel like its been 10 minutes tho an hour has past.

However this can happen straight, when fully absorbed or focussed on some task or hobby, or anything intense etc.

 

Memory can be very selective too, just like hearing for some people. I reckon most stoners would be surprised at their memory related to cannabis. Remember the strains, how, when and with what to grow. How to dry and store and use the herb. (And most of this was 'learnt' under the influence of...)

Link that to their favourite hobbies when stoned and its all memory related.

 

e.g.

Like a kid at the footy knows all the players names and teams and their stats.

Some women know their favourite shoes and how to get you to take them there to buy them.

And some men know what aisle their hardware is in bunnings... or the hydro shop

 

So in closing its the vibe.. its um.. not raining. Wait wait, what did you say before that? No the other thing, um..

 

Older straight folk call it CRAFT, an acronym for something, cant remember what

 

Another good thread topic Budman

[pipeman]

for most people their learning and memory ability peaks in their early teens and then gradually declines as they get older. I have noticed my memory getting weaker over the years but is that the drug or just a part of getting old? I mean its not uncommon for many people as they get older to have memory lapses or lose their train of thought mid sentence. Sometimes I think cannabis is turning my brain into mush, but other times I see straights have the same type of memory problems I do and think its just a normal part of aging, and some people just naturally decline faster than others.

 

I think we all can agree that getting high will effect your memory while high. But I think the question here is does smoking damage your memory abilities even when you're not high?

 

I think the major factor is how much you exercise your brain and that could be more the problem with some people. IOW its not the drug itself that causes you to have a diminished mental capacity, its the inactivity that the drug causes you to fall into that diminishes your mental capacity.

 

If you took two people of the same level of intelligence and memory capacity and one spent most of their time sleeping and vegging in front of the telly and the other spending their time studying and working I'm sure in a few years you'd find a fair difference in their mental capacities, and it would have nothing to do with what drugs either of them took.

[nitram]

I rely on the research that says recall is mostly "state dependant".

 

You will recall stuff better if you state is simmilar to the one in which the memory was encoded. So the lesson is to remain most of my waking hours in a similar state. So stay stoned peeps !

 

(Kiack & Tulving 1979) "level of processing modle of memory"

Edited March 10, 2007 by nitram

[stonedCrow]

hello

 

I believe that this is a very, very hard question to answer (and not because I've forgotten it already).

 

One how do you judge one's future memory capacity, I as a example, I had a rotten memory (or a

slack memory) as a child and teen. Now I smoke and I still have a rotten memory, it is usually my

short term memory that is the problem.

 

My second point is around others that I know have smoked longer than I, one person mainly ( You know who you are ), they have smoked for years longer than me ( Some before I was born). These

people are regular ( everyday ) smokers and have absolutely beautiful memory capacities.

 

This makes me think that once again is this something we make ourselves believe is true, once we believe it, we then accept that if we smoke than we will have this problem. Hence, slacking off with the mind and losing our memory.

 

I, again as a example, have been a 'memory slacker' since childhood, I don't know if the dope has every effected my memory, but would it really make a difference. Unless I work on this problem and try to fix up my memory capacity ( build better habits! ), I don't think it would of made a difference whether I smoke or not.

 

Basically start learning how the others are able to improve their memories and practise it.

[Jess Stone]

I highly recommend taking Omega 3 fish oil with ginkgo supplements, daily.

Problem solved.

 

First off the ubiquitous stoner stereotype answer "what was the question again"

 

2]stonedstump I am SHOCKED !!! FISH !!!! What about HEMP SEED OIL ? for Omega 3 and 6 etc the perfect balance for humans(personally I don't think much of the taste/flavour of hemp oil)

 

3]I'm over 50y.o. and my memory is slowing a bit but I really don't think it's the MJ , I still answer more questions than most of the contestants on say Temptation and Rock Quiz and Spicks&Specks the only quiz shows I watch HOWEVER I doubt I'm as fast any more and only beat them because I blurt out the answer,sometimes I get stuck and know I know the answer but can't access it,but this is not short term memory.

 

4] do I forget stuff like my wallet or the car/house keys appointments?? I don't believe I do more than others my age but then again people getting Alzeimhers aren't aware that anything is wrong(usually) and have to be convinced by loved ones and medicos but if its to far progressed they forget that (effing HORRIBLE disease) so it's hard to judge this on yourself,my one that re-occurs the most is "did I lock the front doors?" And when I occasionally check ,it has been locked everytime but is this forgetful or a product of anxiety due to the thieving that occurs in our society? Fear of losing what pathetic possessions I own.

[bufo marinus]

Hi Budman, I was trying to answer this one last night but every reply I typed out seemed a bit off target.

I would agree with silent tokers reply and bits and pieces of most of the other funny oddities we find ourselves in from time to time. If I'm really wasted I do some silly things,... which I try not to give myself a hard time about, don't want to ruin a nice stone hehe. When I straighten up a bit my recall is pretty good and if I really have too I can think my way out of a stone and remember what I have to if I must...

And YES Jess Stone I do the exact same thing. I can lock my house or car and then go 15 feet and stress over whether I locked it or not. I get around this one by calmly asking myself to remember as I am locking and put the keys straight in my pocket and walk away happy. Just takes a few deliberate rewires off telling yourself not to do it to umm not do it I do think memory is something that can be exercised and probably needs to be exercised regardless but possibly more so if the subject at hand is a mull bowl champion etc

[stonedCrow]

just seen this and it made me think of this thread so...

 

Effect of [DELTA]-9-Tetrahydrocannabinol and Cannabidiol on Nocturnal Sleep and Early-Morning Behavior in Young Adults.

 

Original Contributions

 

Journal of Clinical Psychopharmacology. 24(3):305-313, June 2004.

Nicholson, Anthony N. MD, PhD *; Turner, Claire BSc *; Stone, Barbara M. PhD *; Robson, Philip J. MD +

Abstract:

colon; The effects of cannabis extracts on nocturnal sleep, early-morning performance, memory, and sleepiness were studied in 8 healthy volunteers (4 males, 4 females; 21 to 34 years). The study was double-blind and placebo-controlled with a 4-way crossover design. The 4 treatments were placebo, 15 mg [DELTA]-9-tetrahydrocannabinol (THC), 5 mg THC combined with 5 mg cannabidiol (CBD), and 15 mg THC combined with 15 mg CBD. These were formulated in 50:50 ethanol to propylene glycol and administered using an oromucosal spray during a 30-minute period from 10 pm. The electroencephalogram was recorded during the sleep period (11 pm to 7 am). Performance, sleep latency, and subjective assessments of sleepiness and mood were measured from 8:30 am (10 hours after drug administration). There were no effects of 15 mg THC on nocturnal sleep. With the concomitant administration of the drugs (5 mg THC and 5 mg CBD to 15 mg THC and 15 mg CBD), there was a decrease in stage 3 sleep, and with the higher dose combination, wakefulness was increased. The next day, with 15 mg THC, memory was impaired, sleep latency was reduced, and the subjects reported increased sleepiness and changes in mood. With the lower dose combination, reaction time was faster on the digit recall task, and with the higher dose combination, subjects reported increased sleepiness and changes in mood. Fifteen milligrams THC would appear to be sedative, while 15 mg CBD appears to have alerting properties as it increased awake activity during sleep and counteracted the residual sedative activity of 15 mg THC.

 

© 2004 Lippincott Williams & Wilkins, Inc.

 

 

original:

Edited May 9, 2007 by stonedCrow

[splatt]

Interesting ideas on this thread -

 

I don't know whether medically it has been proved that MJ screws memory long or short term - but as alot of users have reported they have experienced short term memory loss while stoned - personally I think anything in moderation the body can deal with - but when you start to overload the body (and mind) don't have time to repair themselves as they are being hit again before they have finished cleaning/fixing the last load.

 

So whether it be alcohol, pot or any other mind altering substance the ideal situation is to find a good medium that gives you time to recover. Unfortunately I usually feel like another toke way before my body would have detoxified itself.

[Budman2012]

Hey Thx everyone for posting this topic .. I did hope it would turn out to be an interesting one and indeed it has ..

It's an extremely complex subject given that for a start .. every single person is unique ..

There are people who can quote texts 100's of pages long to the word .. or remember Pie. R. Squared. to the 1000th decimal (not sure on the actual record) ..

Yet most of us , stoner or not , can have trouble just keeping weekly appointments etc ...

 

I think before "They" start spouting about effects on the memory caused by Cannibis they should first learn how the memory works??

Makes sense doesn't it ... they haven't the foggiest clue on how it works , same as most functions of the brain ..

How dare they cast assumptions on how the brain may function under the most untested drug of these last decades .. sheesh

 

And as Wdc mentioned about drifting off in the middle of a movie or TV or whatever .. that to me is a perfect example of the modern "Distracted Mind" ...

We may lose track of the conversation .. or have any sort of memory lapse .. but look at the amount of information (Data) we are bombarded with each and every day .. It's crazy to think we could remember even half of anything we take in ..

And also with the movies .. maybe we just have something better to think about at the time and maybe that will stay in your memory at that time even tho you may perceive it as having totally missed 10 minutes of a movie ..

 

ANd then ofc there is still the major issue of alcohol .. the majority of Stoners I know like a drink .. and thats that as far as I'm concerned .. even if It's just a glass or more of wine .. alcohol has a definite effect on memory .. and although being drunk shouldn't be an excuse for your actions .. sometimes remembering the situation can be quite impossible ..

Not to mention all the other drugs , pollution , radiation and assorted elements that we live amongst and should be taken into the equation ..

 

Hmmm , I'm very stoned atm .. I didn't really say anything in depth I know but hopefully It's enough to keep the topic rolling and evolving ..

Thx again for all the great replies ... and when ya get a spare moment on a cold rainy day .. don't forget to remember your memory

Cheerz

 

Budman

 

and P.S. .. This is a great quote on an interesting subject Nitram .. I'll use your post to finish if ya dont mind ..

I rely on the research that says recall is mostly "state dependant".

 

You will recall stuff better if you state is simmilar to the one in which the memory was encoded. So the lesson is to remain most of my waking hours in a similar state. So stay stoned peeps !

 

(Kiack & Tulving 1979) "level of processing modle of memory"

To Be Continued ...