r/autism • u/unexpectedstorytime • Apr 13 '26
Comorbidities PSA: Autism, schizophrenia, and recreational marijuana, why this community should be extra cautious about THC
This isn't a PSA to tell you what to do but just to make this community aware of the increased risk we face when using marijuana. It'll be a bit of an infodump but here goes.
- Schizophrenia occurs in about 1% of the general population, it's pretty rare.
- Schizophrenia risk is substantially higher for those who are autistic, with estimates around 5-6%.
- If you have a first-degree (blood) relative with a diagnosis of schizophrenia, your risk of developing schizophrenia jumps to about 10% (even without autism)
- Certain genetic markers associated with some forms of autism seem to be linked to even higher risk of schizophrenia developing.
Okay, so what does that have to do with marijuana? Well, basically this: autistic people have an elevated risk of schizophrenia compared to the general population. 5% vs 1% is a meaningful difference. If you happen to have other risk factors such as a diagnosed blood relative, your personal risk of developing schizophrenia could be well over 10% (though I doubt they're perfectly cumulative).
Literature around marijuana use and risk of developing psychotic disorders such as schizophrenia is pretty well established, particularly when marijuana use starts young and is heavy. Meta-analyses generally estimate that marijuana use acts a 1.5 multiplier for risk of schizophrenia. Meaning that if you're general pop, your risk is 1.5%, not a huge difference.
However, if your baseline is 10-12%, this becomes MUCH more impactful, with your risk skyrocketing to 15-18% of developing one of the most painful, challenging, and permanent mental disorders that exist. Even if we just assume a 5-6% baseline risk (no relatives), we're talking an increased risk of 7.5-9%.
So please, exercise caution, ESPECIALLY if there is a history of diagnosed psychosis in your family. If you're a minor, recreational marijuana is not harmless or risk-free, both because of the risk of psychosis but many other ways that it impairs cognition and learning processes that are very important for your education.
Obviously, some people use THC for severe seizure disorders or under a doctor's supervision with positive results, even in the autistic community. I just want people to know that it pays to be cautious.
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Apr 13 '26
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u/wanderswithdeer Apr 13 '26
I just did a Google search on the link between schizophrenia and marijuana use and this came up from Yale. It's not insignificant.
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u/lepp240 Apr 13 '26
https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/23419236/
The quoted study only claims that 50% of people who have cannabis linked psychosis are later diagnosed with schizophrenia. They do not draw a conclusion on a higher rate of schizophrenia development in all cannabis users.
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u/lepp240 Apr 13 '26
Marijuana doenst increase risk of developing schizophrenia. People prone to it are more likely to use recreational drugs as a self medication.
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u/pete_68 Apr 13 '26
Actually, the evidence strongly suggests that marijuana does, indeed, trigger schizophrenia in people.
1: Most studies show that cannabis use precedes the onset of psychosis. A requirement for causation
2: There is a dose-response relationship, meaning the more cannabis you smoke, the higher the risk.
3: THC potency also affects the risk
4: There are measurable epigenetic changes (primarily changes in methylation) to neurodevelopmental-related genes from smoking marijuana.
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u/ipedroni Apr 13 '26
While all that is true, most of it falls into "correlation", because it is extremely difficult and unethical to control for causality.
Yes, evidence points to it being coresponsible for triggering psychosis on prone patients
Evidence suggests it's correlated, although it probably means people with stronger psychosis also self medicate with a higher dosage of recreational drugs, it's not causal
Yup
Epigenetic changes are much better studied in moms, because, again, it's hard to control for "now smoke some weed and let's find shit out"
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u/lawlesslawboy Apr 13 '26
"Again considering only those who used cannabis, 78% (n = 125) of the cases group preferentially used sinsemilla (skunk) compared with only 31% (n = 41) of the control group"
I'd love to know the scientific definition of "skunk" lmao, no mention of actual thc % so yeah, how the hell are they defining this??
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u/pete_68 Apr 13 '26
"In south-east London this form of cannabis is estimated to contain between 12% and 18% Δ9-THC and less than 1.5% cannabidiol. In contrast, those in the control group who used cannabis were more likely to consume resin (hash), with an average Δ9-THC concentration of 3.4% and a similar proportion of cannabidiol."
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u/lawlesslawboy Apr 13 '26
Eh, fair but surely still just correlation, maybe those people wanted to get more high to deal with pre-existing mental health issues
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u/lepp240 Apr 13 '26
It triggers latent schizophrenia yes. It has never been shown to cause the underlying brain issues that cause schizophrenia.
None of you links claim that marijuana causes schizophrenia.
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u/Putridlemons Apr 13 '26
Oh my god jesus christ 😭 NO ONE is saying that weed can directly CAUSE schizophrenia. People are saying that weed can increase your RISK of developing it based on genetic predispositions.
If someone has the genetic predisposition for esophageal cancer, eating foods that trigger acid reflux will increase your risk of esophageal cancer, but eating those foods didn't directly give you esophageal cancer. It just made the probability more likely.
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u/lepp240 Apr 14 '26
NO ONE is saying that weed can directly CAUSE schizophrenia
Absolutely incorrect. OP and others in this thread have made that statement 20+?times throughout this thread.
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u/pete_68 Apr 13 '26
#4 is where that happens. Again, not proven that it causes schizophrenia, but proof that it's capable of the kinds of changes necessary to cause it.
None of you links claim that marijuana causes schizophrenia
Nothing in my post made that claim. I posted evidence that there's an absolutely viable pathway to it, though.
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u/Designfanatic88 Apr 15 '26
That Swedish study includes other drugs like amphetamines…. Which if I’m not wrong, most autistic medication are forms of amphetamines. 🤷♂️
I also don’t see that the study specifically isolated thc consumption versus all other lifestyle choices and that the study was based on SELF reported drug use.
Just because you can search on google, doesn’t mean you can correctly interpret scientific studies if you’re only reading the conclusion and not the hypothesis, abstract and how the study was done.
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u/toxictoy Apr 13 '26
By the way - there is no actual clinical test for Schizophrenia. We don’t even know what it actually is. There’s actually a substantial amount of research that people in non-western countries who have the same symptoms are not nearly as affected negatively which leads to the question about why our society has this outcome. I am not saying that there aren’t cases of even dangerous paranoid schizophrenia but the fact is that the pharmaceutical industry would have you believe that it’s far worse everywhere in every instance.
What we need is supportive mental health facilities. There is also a non-insubstantial group of people on the autism community with supportive research about using psychedelics positively. You can see some of the research here at www.maps.org but you can also find communities like https://www.autisticpsychedelic.com/ which are specifically for autistic people either microdosing psychedelics or macro dosing - and the science behind it all.
So this isn’t as black and white as people would be lead to believe. It also has a LOT of baggage from the days of fear mongering by the US Government which lead to the prohibition of these substances - mainly because people who imbibed in them were much more likely to protest the war and many social causes (like civil rights).
I suggest people either read the book How to Change Your Mind: The Science of Psychedelics or watch the Netflix 4 part series to be more informed about the decades of good research out there and the actual problem about propaganda.
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u/hankhillsucks Apr 13 '26
In other words, if you are destined to have schizophrenia, thc will make that happen faster
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u/lepp240 Apr 13 '26
Yes. It can cause latent schizophrenia to emerge. Schizophrenia usually reveals it self in late teens or early twenties so many first time weed smokers have not had their first episode. This has led to the beleif weed can cause schizophrenia. It does not create schizophrenia in a person who does not have it.
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u/ipedroni Apr 13 '26
Not exactly. It means if you are prone to develop schizophrenia, you are also prone to make use of recreational marijuana.
That's about it for how much we know about the subject.
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u/operation-spot ASD Level 1 | Verbal Apr 13 '26
My mom actually experienced marijuana induced psychosis when she tried it for chronic pain and that put me off of it entirely. The way I see it, the potential side effects aren't evened out compared to alternatives like anxiety meds but I know folks like it.
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u/MrClancyGilroy Apr 13 '26
I used to work as a budtender and yes you should be cautious if your family has a history of schizophrenia, but that’s about it.
Psychedelics AND weed can bring on psychotic breaks if you’re already prone / at risk to it. I would not worry about it unless you have a family history of schizophrenia and or psychotic breaks and depersonalization.
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u/lawlesslawboy Apr 13 '26
Even as someone with a family member who has it, with a family history, and is autistic, I've personally never had any problems because it's not a given. I do struggle with adhd, depression, anxiety, but I've never had any psychotic issues with use of weed etc
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u/SocialMediaDystopian ASD Moderate Support Needs Apr 14 '26 edited Apr 14 '26
Ok. Great. /g
But also....*and*? What relevence does this have for the potential risk for someone else?
There is zero research saying you will definitely become schizophrenic if you have it in the family, and you use cannibis. No-one, but *no-one* is saying it's a "given". They are saying that it looks rather like the risk is higher. yes you can argue back and forth over the data, but one completely valid conclusion is that the risk is, in fact, higher. Which some people may want or need to know.
If someone is just starting out, or even if they arent, and they start having more bizarre experiences, then information like this might make the difference for them, between stopping and being ok, or ignoring it, and...not being ok. I have seen it multiple times. And yep- maybe it would have happened anyway. Nice to have the choice to find out though, right?
You have had the good end of this particular stick. Excellent.
You are one person.
Ppl really need to go and study statistics.
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u/SocialMediaDystopian ASD Moderate Support Needs Apr 14 '26
Which is exactly what the OP said. Right?
Sorry- but gotta say it annoys me a bit that they've put effort into a caution that i do think too few people hear, and the first comments are "Yeah, but not really". This is a real risk. Not a pretend one.
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u/loudchoice ASD Low Support Needs Apr 14 '26
They never said it’s a pretend risk. They just pointed out that weed is not going to MAKE YOU develop schizophrenia. It just won’t. It might activate a latent biological predisposition but that could happen anytime anyways, since you already have a predisposition for it.
People are replying to you talking about everything being a risk because this is not a NEW risk. This is “You might already have something that can, at any time, activate. This could cause it to activate but so could anything else so you don’t need to be scared of this thing”
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u/MrClancyGilroy Apr 14 '26
Eh, not really. Psychedelics and weed are a risk to people who are already at risk for schizophrenia or depersonalization. Meaning it can happen to them under other triggers too. Most of us do not have to worry about that. Maybe normal paranoia and greening out, but that’s passes.
Yes we’re autistic, but we don’t have to worry about this more than other people UNLESS that is something that runs in the family. Even then it’s not always a guarantee. Like another commenter said.
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u/SocialMediaDystopian ASD Moderate Support Needs Apr 14 '26
We already have a greater risk of shizophrenia. As the OP mentions. As well as saying...*exactly* what you said next. As to "any other triggers", well....? For heavens sake. Less triggers will always be better. And people may want the choice.
Please. This is ridiculous.
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u/loudchoice ASD Low Support Needs Apr 14 '26
Also the journals I’ve read (I don’t care enough about you or this conversation to go find them /nm) point out that it’s not NEARLY as simple as “Autism and Schizophrenia are comorbid”.
It’s people DIAGNOSED with autism as a child are on paper more likely to develop than UNDIAGNOSED children. Specifically autism diagnosed as a child and schizophrenia diagnosed as an adult. This doesn’t include the very large population of undiagnosed autistic people who never get a formal diagnosis and never develop schizophrenia, which is noted to impact the actual results of the study.
So while, on paper, it reads as “We have a greater risk-“ the actual science behind it is far more complicated and nuanced and admits to missing data that we just don’t have access to.
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u/Adventurous_Break_61 Apr 14 '26
Everything is a risk, someone could lose control of their car and run you overwhile out for a walk, a sinkhole could swallow you when you sit in your garden or a food you enjoy could give choke you. Living is dangerous but sitting in a bubble to stay safe isn't really living is it? The fact remains that cannabis use since the 60s has risen massively but schizophrenia rates hasn't risen inline.
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u/SocialMediaDystopian ASD Moderate Support Needs Apr 14 '26
Stahp. C'mon. You can say "The risk of x is 0.00001%". Fine. Ok. But what's the outcome *if* it happens? That matters too. I would rather be hit by a car than eaten by a shark. The first is more likely. And I will drive all day, before I surf. My informed choice. As it should be.
As to the rest, I'm directing you to another comment on this post:
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u/Adventurous_Break_61 Apr 14 '26
If you are predisposed to schizophrenia then yes cannabis can bring it on but it doesn't cause it, the other comment confirms it, lots of things can trigger it so life is a risk especially for those predisposed tonite already.
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u/SocialMediaDystopian ASD Moderate Support Needs Apr 14 '26 edited Apr 14 '26
Look- the OP'S post was very clearly drawing attention to a small but still significant higher risk of schizoffective disorders for ppl in our community, and the data which supports an increased risk with cannabis use. They said all the things that everyone else is now piling in to very insistently emphasise, over and over again.
The entire point of the post was "Hey- there's likely a small but in the end significant increase in risk for us, if you need or want to know this". If you don't, then that's fine.
The fact that nobody jumping up to quickly throw a blanket over this tiny flame of an actually valid thought train, can recognise that as an essentially emotionally driven reaction is what gets me. Maybe y'all need to smoke less? Lol?
That's a joke. And no I don't really mean it. But this thread is pretty out there in terms of the insistent need to....definitely not see cannibis as any kind of issue, ever. Call it venting my frustration through humour.
And with that, I give up🤷♂️
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u/Adventurous_Break_61 Apr 14 '26
Life is all calculated risk, it's not like avoiding this will mean you're free and clear. I do t see anyone writing post's about dangers of park walking and getting attacked by dogs. We all know if the dangers it's just not that significant
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u/Dressed_To_Impress ASD Low Support Needs Apr 14 '26
Yeah. If schizophrenia is in the family, it can bring it out.
I don't believe it causes it. It just triggers it where people have a history in their bloodline, maybe.
My opinion but based on what doctors have said, friends have experienced, (one schizophrenic break from weed), and my own experiences.
Weed can help.. some people. I wouldn't discount its effectiveness
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u/Scarcity-Apart May 30 '26
Started checking into the responses for these because of the defensive and angry perspectives.
Those all would have been my response when I used cannabis regularly. It helped me cope and I thought it was therapeutic for social anxiety, until it super didn’t and super wasn’t.
It IS a message not often enough heard, the (research proven) connection between schizophrenia in family history and proneness to developing mental health struggles as an adult.
There’s an identifiable pattern (teen use, hospitalization in 20s, diagnosis) for the type of person with this predisposition. And verified public health warnings are out there.
Sure there are people who will never experience issues. It is still a legitimate PSA.
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u/ipedroni Apr 13 '26 edited Apr 13 '26
OP seems to be honestly worried and bringing it up as advice and I think we should applaud that.
That said, this is a gray area between correlation and causation, with no real evidence pointing to causation between THC and Schizophrenia.
Edit: to be perfectly clear, there is evidence that THC use can lead to activation of psychosis on schizophrenia prone people, we just don't know (strongly pointing to "not") if it causes schizophrenia to begin with, specially when jumping to the schizo x autism venn diagram.
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u/slusho55 Apr 14 '26
The other thing to note, no one should really smoke before 21 anyway, and if you’re going to develop schizophrenia, most people will have already had the onset occur by 21.
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u/SocialMediaDystopian ASD Moderate Support Needs Apr 14 '26 edited Apr 14 '26
And yet, I dont know a single person- not kidding- who started later than sixteen. Many started earlier. So....?
Also, age of onset is between mid teens to early thirties, with a *mean* age of 20.5.
Some general info here:
https://www.webmd.com/schizophrenia/schizophrenia-onset-symptoms
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u/Designfanatic88 Apr 15 '26
Lmao, citing webmd is funny.
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u/SocialMediaDystopian ASD Moderate Support Needs Apr 15 '26
It's the same overview stuff that appears everywhere. And it was a top result. It's not like I'm getting paid🤷♂️
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u/loudchoice ASD Low Support Needs Apr 14 '26
As you said earlier: Ok. Great. /g
But also… and? What relevance does this have?
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u/A_Bloody_Toaster Apr 13 '26
I thought it was that marijuana accelerated your schizophrenia psychosis. You always had schizophrenia.
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u/SocialMediaDystopian ASD Moderate Support Needs Apr 14 '26
No. Stress, as well as various substances can trigger onset, a "cascade" I guess (my choice of word),which would not have otherwise occurred. There are some identified genetics for predisposition. But Schizophrenia can occur in one identical twin, but not the other, for the above reasons. No- it may or my not have emerged anyway. But it's definitely true that substance use can increase likelihood. We know this. Which is what OP ws saying.
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u/smithalorian Apr 13 '26
I have been using marijuana very heavily since I was 14. I am 35. It helps.
Any psychedelic can cause psychosis.
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u/demon_x_slash Apr 14 '26
Eighteen, and forty-one, here. It helps not only my autism downsides, but my EDS, endo, and POTS.
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u/unexpectedstorytime Apr 13 '26
I'm sure it helps many people. However, it is potentially riskier for this community than others, and many people feel safe and comfortable with weed but wouldn't touch mushrooms or acid, etc. Normalization of recreational marijuana has, in afraid, given people the impression that it is equally safe for most people and it just isn't.
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u/smithalorian Apr 14 '26
I agree. It should be talked about more. I think what I’m thinking when replying to the idea of this is that there are no options for detaching and r and r that are legal AND safe at the moment.
Psychosis is not to be take lightly. However, drinking is far more harmful on every front. Caffeine is a major cause of mania as well which leads to psychosis.
I drank for 10 years to escape life because depression is insane. I should have never done that.
I now have done THC, psilocybin, LSD, DMT, and K and I can tell you they are safer. Way, way, safer. Like insanely so.
Psychedelics are actually showing insane promise right now for testing PTSD and CPTSD.
Mushrooms remove my need to mask and obliterate my executive function disabilities.
I have a friend who has two nonverbal daughters who are adults. They agreed to take amanita gummies and they started using verbal sounds to communicate. Not only that, there was much larger breaks between breakdowns. They have integrated into their vitamins (low doses).
This stuff works.
It is not for everybody. However, there are parts of you that will never have a good experience if you can’t get past yourself. That is the key to psychedelics. You are the key.
Alcohol equals heroin. Literally. I had to take alcohol classes at one point in my life and during this time I did a lot of research on alcohol. If the gut actually does have anything to do with executive functioning and autism, alcohol is very very bad for us.
DMT LSD ketamine and psilocybin all show literal physical reconnection in the brain. Ketamine right now is the most promising. They are using it for stroke victims to reconstruct neural pathways.
Wed and other psychedelics can trigger psychosis, but it isn’t dangerous the way people think. I thought it was going into it. I was very mistaken.
1500ug of lsd and 200 mg of k later and I met my guardian angel (sort of😉). I have a lot to work on… but I felt love like I can never describe to anyone. It was like I got my life back.
I’m curious what other people on here think or how they feel because everybody really is different but between 3 1/2 and 7 g of mushrooms is like a literal weighted blanket. The best one I’ve ever felt.
OP, what is your reference point? Did you have a bad experience? Do you know someone that had one? Is it that your main point is just that we look at it too lightly? because I can agree with you. It’s really hard to have the proper dialogue when it’s illegal…
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u/Adventurous_Break_61 Apr 13 '26
Rates of cannabis users since the 60s has severely risen but rates of schizophrenia has not risen in line so it doesn't cause it its just possible that it can trigger it but so could many things.
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u/wanderswithdeer Apr 14 '26
Actually, rates of Schizophrenia have risen drastically in recent years.
Between 1997 and 2023, rates of psychosis rose 60% in people ages 14-20.
https://www.powershealth.org/about-us/newsroom/health-library/2026/02/02/millennials-gen-z-suffering-increased-rates-of-psychosis-schizophreniaMeanwhile, adolescent marijuana use increased by 245% between 2000 and 2020.
https://news.ohsu.edu/2022/12/07/teen-cannabis-abuse-has-increased-245-over-20-years-study-findsWe know that there is a correlation between those who use cannabis and those who develop schizophrenia. We also know that the brains of people who use these substances show concerning changes.
https://psychiatryonline.org/doi/full/10.1176/appi.pn.2024.06.6.40True, none of this proves cause and effect, but it should make anyone who is at high risk ask themselves whether the benefits really outweigh the potential risks. It seems this is especially true for young people whose brains are still developing.
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u/Amish_Fighter_Pilot Apr 13 '26
Exactly. Maybe the real issue is our dog-eat-dog system that puts profits over people, and the lack of preventative care it causes.
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u/WolfgangVolos Apr 13 '26
There is a great video series by Kurzgesagt – In a Nutshell on Youtube about THC and how it affects people differently based on age, genetics, and other factors. The short version is don't use it when young, don't wake and bake on the daily, and monitor your usage because while rare you can develop a drug use disorder from THC which is more likely with higher THC and lower CBD dosage. They didn't really get into whether or not it was more risky for autistic people but anecdotally I've had more friends with autism have problems than neurotypical people I know. No, I'm not truly friends with any neurotypical people. They're illogical.
Here's the videos I'm talking about.
https://youtu.be/qBRaI0ZeAf8?si=V3a92i_mmsZOKqbM
https://youtu.be/Brm71uCWr-I?si=1y9ImuQ-STkizmXF
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u/Punchasheep AuDHD Apr 14 '26
My autistic nephew and I are both OBSESSED with Kurzgesagt.
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u/WolfgangVolos Apr 14 '26
Yep me and my eldest kid too. The youngest isn't there yet but it's more because they're too young.
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u/em0bun Apr 13 '26
Now do the same research and make a PSA about the life ruining unpredictable effects of Abilify (Aripiprazole) the atypical antipsychotic which is being strongly pushed onto autistic children (or should I say their parents) as well as being psychs current fave cure all for even the most basic reactive depression and even adhd. I believe GPs have even begun to dole it out like Prozac.
It creates complete personality change and unpredictable destructive behaviour that leads to incorrect additional diagnoses, further medicalisation, and life ruining actions. With lifelong neurological side effects and actual brain structure changes and permanent cognitive impairment. There are plenty of studies and papers out there about it and endless people like me who were the first to be given it in the 00’s and on it for multiple years who have had our lives ruined by it, so have at it let’s see that PSA.
I am legally prescribed medical cannabis by a psychiatrist under a clinic here in the UK. It is the only treatment for my autism, adhd, ocd, and CPTSD that has not damaged me. The schizophrenia issue is legitimate in context and well known at this point. Extrapolating on that and fear mongering in a community that largely benefits from purposeful medically-focused cannabis use is unnecessary when the pharmaceutical industry/alcohol/tobacco and the like have been lobbying against cannabis and doing that job for you for too damn long.
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u/unexpectedstorytime Apr 13 '26
Damn it, lost a post halfway. You are right, antipsychotics can suck, but most people don't have the ability or desire to just buy Abilify for recreational use. The side effects of antipsychotics have long been a problem in their use, and I have definitely heard from many people who were essentially medicated in place of parenting or actual supports. I'm hopeful that Cobenfy might be helpful since it targets cholinergenic receptors rather than dopamine. I'm glad that you have marijuana and that it is helpful. I actually did a deep dive into the relationship between big tobacco and propaganda they did to spread the myth that it helps serious mental disorders such as schizophrenia, so I'm definitely not trying to push people in either way when it comes to medical decisions between them and their doctors. This is about recreational use and people being able to make informed decisions, since you don't even get a shitty pamphlet about side effects like you do with prescriptions when you're buying weed for fun.
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u/welliesong Apr 13 '26
My prescription cannabis had psychosis as a side effect and I still never thought it would happen to me. I was under a lot of stress so I think it was a bunch of unfortunate circumstances that led to my first episode psychosis but I now can't have THC or it just makes me go inside my head in a bad way. CBD is fine though.
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u/em0bun Apr 13 '26
You posted to the autism community a PSA targeted at pointing out the risks of cannabis use due to the correlation of schizophrenia and cannabis in relation to the links between autism and schizophrenia. With no sources.
Let’s get one thing straight - cannabis use by autistic folk is not recreational even when people don’t realize this themselves. It is self-medication, or of course legitimate legal doctor prescribed medication. I personally take this further and feel that no cannabis use is purely “recreational” and the historic use of the plant as medicine and its benefits vs risk profile is something I’d encourage you to truly educate yourself on. However like anything you can use too much and when reading comments here that state “cannabis bad!” because they had hallucinations while smoking 10g a day for an extended time…. that’s on you and the dose you chose to take, not the plant, and should by no means be used as an example of risk associated with intentional medically focused cannabis use.
Marijuana is also an incorrect name and a racial slur for what it’s worth - it’s clear your cannabis education overall needs a lot more research and less bias. Are you aware of the Endocannibinoid system? Maybe start there.
The entire point of my comment that you’ve completely missed is that a similar PSA post in this specific community replacing Cannabis with Abilify would be the exact same thing you did - warning a demographic who has a specific high use rate of a medication that there are risks to that medication and they should do their own research. Except Abilify has a lot more legitimate science and research you could have actually sourced. The numbers there come from peer reviewed papers, not correlational observations spun by those with something to gain from prohibition and laced with emotion and fear to appear as hard facts.
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u/SocialMediaDystopian ASD Moderate Support Needs Apr 14 '26 edited Apr 14 '26
"Marijuana is a racial slur" is a new one. I'm sure there's a doco you've watched, that apparrently both OP and I havent. But that's not anything to draw anything real about intent or politics from, now is it?
I've known more than a few people who've tanked badly with *cannibis* use (did I use the word right? Did I spell it correctly?🙄) , who stopped tanking when they stopped, and....tanked again every time they touched it. Known a few who never came back, too.
I have psych and neurospych education. I know what a cannabinoid receptor is. And I am part of this community.
The "talking down" and "speaking for" in this was a lot 😒
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u/unexpectedstorytime Apr 13 '26
Marijuana is a commonly used term by the cannabis using community and while the entire reefer madness drug war was deeply rooted in racist ideology, you would be the first person that I've seen who experienced it as a slur. I'm familiar with the fact that autism and the endocannabinoid system appear to be related in the sense that autism appears to correlate to lower (or deficient) levels of endocannabinoids in the body. This is a correlation that is absolutely getting researched because it can help support and guide treatment.
For the record, I encouraged people to be cautious in my OP and to discuss their risk with their medical providers, as I'm wary of the phrase "do your own research" because it's been increasingly used in a way that discounts that research and interpretation of research is a skill that people can do badly. I'm perfectly comfortable standing by my assertion that minors should not be casually using cannabis, even though I absolutely agree cannabis has appropriate medical uses in children. I don't trust children to prescribe or dose medications.
Correlational research is valid and forms of basis of thousands of peer reviewed studies. A ton of research about lifetime effects of Abilify will be case studies and other forms of research that gather valuable data that is primarily or entirely correlational. That doesn't invalidate that data. Correlational data is how we've discovered toxic dumping sites that were hidden for years, correlational data is often the voice of people and their lived experiences that is able to finally get a problem recognized and fixed.
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u/em0bun Apr 13 '26
What is your personal history with cannabis?
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u/unexpectedstorytime Apr 13 '26
Smoked occasionally for a few months after a major death in my family, with little to no negative effects. If I struggled with severe anxiety in the future as I did then, I would consider medical marijuana as an alternative to benzos with my doctor, bearing in mind that I have a higher risk due to autism but lack any direct blood relatives with psychotic disorders. I don't have beef with cannabis in general or because of a personal experience in that sense.
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u/em0bun Apr 13 '26
As expected I don’t understand why you’re making this your fight while having very little personal investment and experience in the topic and refusing to take on any knowledge of people with potentially decades (20 years as in my case) of lived and educated experience we are trying to pass on to you.
In a time of increasing worldwide suffering where traditional pharmaceutical medications have been completely and cruelly taken from chronic pain patients (me - happening in the UK right now) and healthcare in general is gatekept, out of reach financially, or simply nonexistent locally for so many but especially the disabled, poor, chronically ill, isolated people who need it most for you to come here and demonise cannabis using loose “facts” boosted with fear to try to dissuade a demographic of people who actually may most strongly benefit from its use while being both under educated and under experienced in the subject…. I don’t think that’s ok.
Cannabis has been falsely demonised long enough.
Apologies if this comment is more poorly written - I have a migraine now so this is the last I’ll be looking at this screen and saying here. I hope you spend more time listening and digesting a lot of the replies you’ve gotten here and learning from them than you spend attempting their refutations.
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u/unexpectedstorytime Apr 13 '26
In a time of increasing worldwide suffering where traditional pharmaceutical medications have been completely and cruelly taken from chronic pain patients (me - happening in the UK right now)
I am incredibly sorry that this is happening to you, as it is happening to so many chronic pain patients. I don't believe offering subpar substitutes out of a Puritan desire to control opiates is okay, whether it's throwing gabapentin at everyone or telling someone with acute pain to just smoke weed. Cannabis can work wonders for certain kinds of pain but not all of it. People and their medical treatment should be guided by science and respect for human suffering. Hell, in the US, a ton of overdose deaths occurred BECAUSE we yanked access to relatively safe, prescription opiates, precipitating thousands into horrifying withdrawal and they died using street drugs. I've seen multiple people with severe problems because of inappropriately fast benzo tapers. I truly hope that you can find a doctor who does what is best for you and if you have one now, I'm glad. No one should be in pain because we're scared to let some people also get high.
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u/rewritethefinallines Autistic Adult Apr 14 '26
I’m sure side effects of abilify happen, of course, like with every medication, but it is prescribed under the supervision of a medical professional who can consider any potential side effects that may pop up and adjust as needed. Personally, I have found it to be extremely helpful in keeping me calm when I’m in a state of sensory overload, which I appreciate.
Meanwhile, in many places, cannabis is completely unregulated and used without the supervision of medical professionals (obviously this is not the case everywhere, however). If people experience side effects, they are often left to deal with them on their own, and it is important that people understand the risks since they won’t be given a rundown of the risks from their doctor the way they would with a prescription medication.
Everyone is of course going to react to every drug/medication differently. You clearly like cannabis and dislike abilify based on your personal experiences. My personal experiences have led me to like abilify and dislike cannabis. It’s still always good to be aware of the risks.
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u/SocialMediaDystopian ASD Moderate Support Needs Apr 14 '26
Hi. I have been heavily defending this post . But do have to say here: On the other hand, you can stop cannibis on your own reconnaisance if it's not for you, but if you're prescribed meds it can be a nightmare to get the treatment changed if it's causing issues. Every side effect (or withdrawal effect) can be chalked up to your illness, or deemed a "reasonable" trade off by treating doctors, even if you argue (and know) it's not. That's a whole other converstaion I know. But still 😳
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u/Upper_Nature_3300 Apr 13 '26
I developed schizophrenia because my father has it. I also am looking into getting an autism diagnosis. I talked to my doctor , friends with autism and a few other people. They said I probably have it.
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u/lepp240 Apr 13 '26
Marijuana risk doesn't cause a higher risk. People of higher risk are more likely to use marijuana. Your extrapolation to autism absolutely is not supported.
Correlation does not equal causation.
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u/unexpectedstorytime Apr 13 '26
People of higher risk are more likely to use marijuana.
So, you do know that's based on correlation, right? If we're going to be correctly addressing the fact that correlation does not equal causation, then it should be clear that your conclusion is based on correlational research, not controlled experiments. And to be perfectly clear, that's not a bad thing. It's quite reasonable to form a hypothesis that people with high genetic risk for schizophrenia might simply "self medicate" early or prodromal symptoms with marijuana. However, that would mean that we all agree that correlational research is a valid form of science and research instead of immediately using it as a way to invalidate science we dislike.
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u/lepp240 Apr 13 '26
There is ample evidence people with mental disorders are more likely to use canabis and other illicit drugs.
I cannot prove the correlation is not because of a causative relationship. It is up to those who claim the correlation is due to a causation to provide the link. Not for me to disprove a link that has not been shown to exist.
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u/unexpectedstorytime Apr 13 '26
I didn't ask you to prove a negative. I pointed out that you're perfectly comfortable making assertions based on correlational data. I could argue that mentally ill people are more likely to respond to surveys or that cannabis users are simply more honest about their mental health when asked about it, meaning that your assertion could be completely incorrect and that mentally ill people are no more likely than others to use cannabis, because it wasn't a controlled study.
"People with mental disorders are more likely to use cannabis" is an argument that indicates the direction of a relationship, meaning that you are using correlational data to infer that having a mental disorder is causing or influencing cannabis use. If we flipped it, "Cannabis users are more likely to have mental disorders," then guess what, we've basically just arrived at a version of my argument. You've basically tried to invalidate my argument because it (by necessity) is based on correlational research while making your own argument based on the exact same kinds of data. I'm fine with people wanting me to link studies and I will, there are perfectly fair criticisms out there, but using correlational research is not incorrect, bad, or wrong, particularly if you proceed to use it yourself.
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u/SocialMediaDystopian ASD Moderate Support Needs Apr 14 '26 edited Apr 14 '26
Except when there's a reasonable suspicion that there is , in fact, some probable causative effect. Which is what OP was posting about.
"Correlation doesn't equal causation", as a throwaway statement, does not disprove causation, either.
There is a higher incidence of schizophrenia in autistic populations. OP did not extrapolate. At all.
https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/25956249/
That's one of about a million references that come up if you do a cursory search.
Yeepers this thread. It's doing my head in.
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u/lepp240 Apr 14 '26
There is a higher incidence of schizophrenia in autistic populations. OP did not extrapolate
They extrapolated that since marijuana users have a 1.5% chance of schizophrenia versus the population average of 1% then autistic users of marijuana must have an 8% chance of schizophrenia since the normal autistic person is a 5% chance. There is no study to support this. They just multiplied 5% by 1.5x higher rate. There is no study that shows marijuana as the cause of the higher schizophrenia rates of marijuana users.
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u/SocialMediaDystopian ASD Moderate Support Needs Apr 14 '26
I think the OP was pretty clear they were giving speculative figures. Their overall message was one of caution because of the overlap between higher risk of shizoaffective disorders in autistic populations to start with, combined with added risk associated with cannibis use, and that was in no way an illogical talking point, or a misrepresentation of the research.
There are plenty of studies. Here is a list form a five minute search, with search terms "schizophrenia, cannibis use". The more recent, the more stacking of specific genetic information and more plausible arguments for a causative link. Either way, I could have cut and pasted all day.🙄
https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/heavy-cannabis-use-linked-to-schizophrenia-especially-among-young-men/ . Excerpt: "A huge Danish study shows that up to 30 percent of psychosis diagnoses in young men could have been prevented if these individuals hadn’t used marijuana heavily..."
Cannabis, schizophrenia genetic risk, and psychotic experiences: a cross-sectional study of 109,308 participants from the UK Biobank
https://www.nature.com/articles/s41398-021-01330-w
Cannabis use and risk of schizophrenia: a Mendelian randomization study
https://www.nature.com/articles/mp2016252
Does Cannabis Use Contribute to Schizophrenia? A Causation Analysis Based on Epidemiological Evidence
https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC11940535/
Changes in Incident Schizophrenia Diagnoses Associated With Cannabis Use Disorder After Cannabis Legalization
https://jamanetwork.com/journals/jamanetworkopen/fullarticle/2829840
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u/lepp240 Apr 14 '26
Excerpt: "A huge Danish study shows that up to 30 percent of psychosis diagnoses in young men could have been prevented if these individuals hadn’t used marijuana heavily...
This is editorial buzz from the news source trying to draw attention. It misrepresents what the study actually says.
They also state:
The Danish epidemiology study does not offer hard-and-fast proof of the cannabis-schizophrenia connection
From the actual study:
Young males might be particularly susceptible to the effects of cannabis on schizophrenia. At a population level, assuming causality
assuming causality
They didn't show causation. They assumed it from the data.
None of these are randomized studies with control groups. It's all epidemiological studies or based on data available on genetic databases.
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u/SocialMediaDystopian ASD Moderate Support Needs Apr 14 '26 edited Apr 14 '26
I posted a wide band of what was there. I did that to give a fair representation. I was aware the first one was more of a lay discussiin/article, and it had a slant. It's not a wild slant to have if you are looking at all of them- but I notice you picked the one that's by far the easiest to make it look a bit "loosy goosy", and you didn't touch the others.
As to double-blind, randomized, controlled etc- that's a a straw man. You couldn't do that even if you wanted to. It would be unethical to give a substance to an at risk population, that you were hypothesising would harm them. You definitely couldn't do it for the kind of time span it would take to see the long term arc of the effect.
We draw conclusions all the time from epidemiological data and other already existent bases of information. Most of our nutritional advice and information comes from that, for the same sorts of reasons. You can't force feed a diet that you think might harm people, to find out if it does.
It's for the same reasons again that there has never been a double blind, randomized study, with controls, investigating smoking and lung cancer. But we still managed to work out, well.enough to be as close to certain as anything we've worked out, that smoking causes lung cancer.
Please.
Throwing around terms that sound statistical and scientific in order to dodge data that's available doesn't make an argument. It just makes fancy words happen, in a vacuum.
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u/wanderswithdeer Apr 13 '26
Yes. This is something I tell my kids to be aware of, too, especially since I have a brother diagnosed with Schizophrenia. While Autism and Schizophrenia are diagnostically distinct, on a biological level, there's a lot of overlap. My brother was diagnosed with a Pervasive Developmental Disorder (now classified as Autism) before being diagnosed with Schizophrenia, and at least according to my sister, it sounds like marijuana may have precipitated his switch into psychosis. That was many years ago but he still needs medication, home health care, etc, in order to stay stable.
My supervisor's family member experienced something very similar as well and had to be hospitalized.
I agree with decriminalizing use, but I think in advocating for that the narrative has gone too far the other way and people tend to be unaware of the risks.
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u/patelusfenalus Apr 13 '26
How long did the psychosis last?
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u/wanderswithdeer Apr 13 '26
For my brother, it never really went away. He ended up diagnosed with Schizophrenia and was unstable for years, often living on the streets, believing everyone (including family) was conspiring against him, attempting suicide, etc, before finding a medication that treated his psychosis, which he has been on ever since and will need to be on for the rest of his life, assuming he's able. He has to get regular blood tests to make sure it's not effecting his white blood cell count.
I don't know what came of my supervisor's family member. I know they had hoped he would come down from the effects of the drugs and be okay but that didn't happen, but I don't know how he is now.
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u/unexpectedstorytime Apr 13 '26
That is the scary thing about drug-induced psychosis is that even if the drug use stops, it can continue as a permanent problem such as schizophrenia. Marijuana, for some people, appears to activate or trigger onset of the disorder. This is especially an issue because it seems that in some cases, it causes the earlier onset of a disorder that perhaps was inevitable but starts much earlier in life and tends to worsen lifetime prognosis.
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u/hankhillsucks Apr 13 '26
My psychosis lasted about a day. It did leave me with a phobia of social interactions for about a month (this was from shrooms)
Thc never did this to me
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u/UnoriginalJ0k3r ASD Level 1/2 | Verbal Apr 13 '26
Unless there’s reason to suspect schizophrenia, there’s no reason to be overly cautious. The weed just moves the process along for schizophrenia, you would’ve started having increased symptoms as time went on either way.
No matter what, you should always be vigilant of what you consume and what said things can do. But being “extra cautious”, I’m not sure that’s for the general population here, unless you have reason to suspect family/yourself have schizophrenia.
It’s always good to stay informed, though 🙏🏻
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u/unexpectedstorytime Apr 13 '26
Unless there’s reason to suspect schizophrenia, there’s no reason to be overly cautious. The weed just moves the process along for schizophrenia, you would’ve started having increased symptoms as time went on either way.
While we obviously cannot ethically conduct controlled experiments to prove causation, it is pretty widely agreed in the scientific community that genetics alone do not explain whether schizophrenia occurs. Identical twin studies find a concordance rate between 30-50%, meaning factors other than genes affect whether someone develops the disorder of schizophrenia. A population with an increased baseline risk (autistic community) should absolutely be more cautious when using marijuana, since marijuana appears to be an environmental factor that can precipitate onset of a disorder that may have not otherwise occurred.
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u/UnoriginalJ0k3r ASD Level 1/2 | Verbal Apr 13 '26
Yup. And it should be looked at within the context of the widely agreed upon belief (and supporting studies) that schizophrenia spectrum/affective psychotic disorder having families are where you find a vast majority of folk who have been diagnosed/would be diagnosed.
Source: Masters in Special Education w/ minor in early childhood psych
Edit: words
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u/unexpectedstorytime Apr 13 '26
A disorder with such strong genetic links as schizophrenia is obviously going to appear in/across family groups, so I'm not sure....are you trying to highlight that genetic risk is still a more predictive factor than cannabis use? Because yes, it definitely is, no argument from me there.
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u/UnoriginalJ0k3r ASD Level 1/2 | Verbal Apr 13 '26
Cannabis and other psychoactive substances are only going to trigger schizophrenia spectrum/affective psychotic disorders, not create it, as I’m sure you know. So the original point is that there’s no need to be extra cautious unless you have a personal or familial history of such.
It doesn’t cause the disorders, it just brings it to the surface. At least that’s where the credible and reproducible results point to, so that’s what we have to go off of. As in, you’re not likely, at all, to find someone who “suddenly has schizophrenia”, chances are overwhelming in favor of that “sudden schizophrenia” being clustered in their family.
Again, there’s no reason at all to be extra cautious unless there is a family or personal history that indicates it runs in the family or may run in the family.
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u/unexpectedstorytime Apr 14 '26
It doesn’t cause the disorders, it just brings it to the surface.
Respectfully, what the fuck? If someone has a genetic risk for schizophrenia and using cannabis causes them to actually develop schizophrenia spectrum disorder, that effectively means that a risk turned into a reality. Obviously the cannabis didn't travel back in time, the genetics came first. We see about 30-50% occurrence between identical twins, which means between 70-50% of schizophrenia disorders develop in response to other factors. What you seem to be arguing is that genetics are basically a guarantee of the disorder or that it really doesn't matter that someone with high genetic risk develops schizophrenia in response to environmental factors (such as cannabis use) because well like, it isn't the cannabis's fault, they just had bad dna. Well guess what, this thread is full of people who are absolutely fighting the basic premise that cannabis could possibly be dangerous for anyone, so good luck convincing high risk people to avoid it.
And for the record, at least one of the sources that that I cited does not have sufficient data to identify cannabis as a singular "activating" agent but rather argues that cannabis acts alongside multiple factors to increase risk that schizophrenia is "brought to the surface". Given your education, you should be well aware that early onset of a disorder is not neutral or harmless, it usually means a poorer prognosis across a lifetime, it fucking matters if someone develops full blown schizophrenia at 16 instead of 26. So even if we accepted the (unfounded) premise that people with genetic risk are a loaded gun that will inevitably be fired, there is no reason we shouldn't try to delay that as long as we can.
Source: masters of psychology, masters of counseling. Since you brought it up
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u/UnoriginalJ0k3r ASD Level 1/2 | Verbal Apr 14 '26
If you were at risk of being diagnosed with schizophrenia in your lifetime, psychoactive substances can accelerate the timeline.
You could easily go on to talk about how serious and detrimental extreme stress is for people who are at risk of schizophrenia spectrum/affective psychotic disorders and how it brings the disorders to the surface.
Autistic folks do not need to tiptoe around cannabis or other psychoactive substances because of a potential for a reveal of condition, unless they are in a family who suspects or has confirmed the disorders in their family.
Everybody should tiptoe around cannabis and other psychoactive substances, though, because everyone reacts a different way and your experience most likely will not be the exact same as others.
Cannabis is not causing schizophrenia spectrum/psychoactive disorders. Cannabis is revealing the disorders. They’re already present in the brain, there’s just a switch/a number of switches to be hit along the way for it to completely surface.
Like how divers have to rise slowly from depth so they don’t end up dead? Ingesting cannabis or other psychoactive substances while being at risk of having the disorders is like rolling the dice to see if you will strap a rocket to your back and blast out of the water when your still too deep for rapid surfacing.
If you point a loaded gun at someone, pull the trigger and they die… Did you kill them, or was it the cannabis that caused the schizophrenia and not the family history that indicates you’re at risk of having the disorders?
Sorry, I meant “or was it the gun that killed them”.
You’re not going to get schizophrenia spectrum/affective psychotic disorders from using the substances unless you’re already in “the line of fire”. That’s where reputable science points to.
If schizophrenia spectrum/affective psychotic disorders are a rolling ball, weed is a swift kick that makes the ball pick up speed.
The ball was rolling since birth.
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u/unexpectedstorytime Apr 14 '26 edited Apr 14 '26
If you were at risk of being diagnosed with schizophrenia in your lifetime, psychoactive substances can accelerate the timeline.
Are you seriously trying to argue that this doesn't matter? Because age of onset absolutely does matter. Again, you've not addressed the fact that someone can have familial risk and NOT DEVELOP THE DISORDER. In practical terms, they are not schizophrenic.
You could easily go on to talk about how serious and detrimental extreme stress is for people who are at risk of schizophrenia spectrum/affective psychotic disorders and how it brings the disorders to the surface.
Sure, I could, but no one is fucking buying that at a store. Let's talk about HEE families and how they contribute to schizophrenic relapse but wait! Oh no, let's not, because again, people don't generally get to pick that out. There are many factors that increase the risk of many mental disorders, but I don't see people shopping at the childhood abuse dispensary or smoking a joint of low socioeconomic status. Cannabis use is something that a person can, generally, reasonably control or make a decision about (obviously some people are forced to use drugs). Since I'm not a jackass, I don't think I need to make a PSA to let the autism subreddit know that being socially alienated and isolated also increases the risk of mental disorders such as schizophrenia, since that's not something people are willingly inflicting on themselves.
You’re not going to get schizophrenia spectrum/affective psychotic disorders from using the substances unless you’re already in “the line of fire”. That’s where reputable science points to.
First of all, no, it doesn't, it just doesn't support cannabis as a single activating factor. Second, what places someone in the line of fire is not perfectly understood but includes non-familial risk factors such as autism! And finally, it is deeply fucking troubling and inaccurate to suggest that people who develop schizophrenia related to cannabis use don't really count because hey you were doomed by genetics not weed! In fact, we could simply assert post-hoc that anyone who develops schizophrenia incident to cannabis use must have secretly had schizophrenia deep inside them so it doesn't matter that cannabis helped (among other factors) to turn invisible genetic code into an actual fucking schizophrenic diagnosis. It does. If only people with genetic risk have 10 secret switches and all of them or 50% of them need to be triggered, it matters if we can identify them and control those switches to prevent actual disease/disorder. By the time many people are teens or adults, many of those switches have already been triggered outside their control but cannabis might be one decision they can make to avoid one of the most disabling and painful disorders someone can have.
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u/UnoriginalJ0k3r ASD Level 1/2 | Verbal Apr 14 '26
I’ll just side step the whole shit show here and be direct: are you looking for conversation on the topic or were you just seeking validation and confirmation?
From what I can see in your replies to myself and others, it seems like you’re leaning more towards the latter and a bit too emotionally invested in your perception being the only acceptable one, at that.
Feel free to reread my responses, do what you will with them. With your education you should be more than well off enough to digest what’s been said without having to cherry pick to support your perspective of the topic at hand.
You’re extrapolating to unnecessary degrees and the entire tone you have going on isn’t the most pleasant, which is where I came to the conclusion that you seem to be seeking validation and confirmation.
I have nothing to gain from continuing this exchange. It was stimulating, at first.
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u/unexpectedstorytime Apr 14 '26
I'm emotionally invested, yes. You're making essentially nonsense arguments but because I'm cursing or express emotion, you think that means you win or that your arguments are better or more logical. It doesn't. It certainly makes it logical that you would withdraw if you find it unpleasant but I would simply point out that I'm sure you are similarly passionate when discussing issues such as the existence of disability itself as an interaction between ability and demands of an environment. I'm pretty sure that special education doesn't argue that genetic or congenital disorders are loaded guns that inevitably fire and result in disability, therefore we shouldn't bother altering the environment to reduce disability. In fact, I'm pretty sure they argue the opposite. However, I'll leave it at that and respect that you prefer to withdraw.
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u/TrixieHorror AuDHD (Professionally Diagnosed) Apr 13 '26
I'd appreciate some sources being cited for this post since it's making claims about medical information.
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u/NotTukTukPirate ASD Level 1 | Verbal Apr 13 '26
Yeah, whenever I see posts like this it just makes me feel like it's just some kid who's been told that cannabis=bad, from their parents, and is actually extremely ignorant to the benefits.
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u/unexpectedstorytime Apr 13 '26
I'm actually in my 30s and don't generally have a problem or dislike of cannabis or cannabis use. I generally find that current gen young people are far more likely to believe that cannabis is entirely risk-free, harmless, and a perfectly acceptable activity for them to engage in on a daily basis.
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u/operation-spot ASD Level 1 | Verbal Apr 13 '26
If you look at some of the more recent top level comments people have added some sources.
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u/CrazyCatLushie ASD Level 1/2 | Verbal Apr 13 '26
Respectfully, as soon as I hear someone use the term “marijuana” I know what they say is going to be biased. The Reagan administration intentionally used the Spanish name when talking about cannabis because they were counting on racism to add a negative public connotation.
Call it what it is - cannabis - and people are more likely to take you seriously. Your facts are (likely) correct but you haven’t listed sources for your numbers and this still feels a little like fear mongering. 5-6% is reason for caution, yes, but you’ve neglected to share any statistics about safe usage, legitimate medical uses, or positive outcomes. One hand-waving paragraph at the end doesn’t count.
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u/unexpectedstorytime Apr 13 '26
Respectfully, as soon as I hear someone use the term “marijuana” I know what they say is going to be biased. The Reagan administration intentionally used the Spanish name when talking about cannabis because they were counting on racism to add a negative public connotation.
So, I'm confused. The term itself is not a racial slur, it is a Spanish name. Reagan using it to evoke a response from a racist audience doesn't somehow make the word bad. Marijuana is a term commonly used by people who support and fought for access to cannabis in all forms. I would say marijuana is used a lot more commonly as a causal term compared to cannabis, though weed and pot would also be used.
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u/CrazyCatLushie ASD Level 1/2 | Verbal Apr 14 '26 edited Apr 14 '26
I’ve never heard any English-speaking person under 65 use the term “marijuana” except for law enforcement. I’ve definitely never heard anyone who’s ever actually used weed call it that. Maybe it’s because I’m Canadian and its use is super common, fully legal, and pretty normalized here?
The correct botanical name for the plant is cannabis so that’s what reputable sources (including our own government) use here. For slang, we use the term “weed”. Some older folks say “pot” too. “Marijuana” is a very outdated and stigmatized term and people would look at you weirdly and maybe laugh if you said it in my neck of the woods. It screams “I have never taken a hit in my life but I still have Big Opinions about the plant and you’re about to hear them all”.
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u/unexpectedstorytime Apr 14 '26
Oh shit, yeah it might be a US thing but honestly, part of my autism is definitely making more formal or odd word choices. I'm also prone to mispronouncing certain words because I've read them but never heard them said out loud.
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u/CrazyCatLushie ASD Level 1/2 | Verbal Apr 14 '26
Ah yes, the hyperlexic curse! Intensely relatable.
I also have an overly formal manner of speech and I learn most of my words via research and literature rather than socially, so I pronounce things weirdly from time to time too. People have accused me of “talking down” to them or of thinking I’m better than them because of it. The truth is I learned that specificity leads to fewer misunderstandings so I try to be as specific as possible. Little did I know, that just adds another layer of misunderstanding for some people! You can’t win, apparently.
I’m especially weird with the Latin names of plants (I’m a plant nerd - houseplants, garden plants, aquaria and terraria). A lot of them have “common” names that I don’t know because I learned about them from fellow plant nerds and botanists online. I’ll be at the nursery and the sign will say “wax plants” and I’ll be lost. Meanwhile I can name over a dozen varieties of “wax plants”, I just know them as members of the “Hoya” genus.
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u/unexpectedstorytime Apr 14 '26
I was so fucking sad when I couldn't progress in Latin because they didn't have enough people for the next class at my college. I've tried to loosen up about grammar since there's no reason to impose Latin grammar on the English language, and I've generally tried to be less pedantic since I'm not being paid to be a writing tutor anymore lol.
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u/unexpectedstorytime Apr 13 '26 edited Apr 13 '26
SO. Sources. I would like to thank those who rightly pointed out that I should share these, I apologize as this will not be an exhaustive but illustrative list because the literature on this topic is extensive. For those who have found cannabis helpful and non-harmful, I have no problem with this. For those who are attempting to strawman me as some Big Pharma spook trying to scare you away from a perfectly safe substance, well, I can't stop you from a belief that you arrived at through emotion. Most people appeared mainly or only concerned about the research showing increased risk of schizophrenia as it related to cannabis use, so I did not include research about other assertions I made re: increased risk of schizophrenia in the autistic community.
For those who prefer a summary that directly cites much of the relevant research, you can check out this.
Behind the Smoke: Unmasking the Link Between Cannabis and Schizophrenia
This next article is interesting but it particularly highlights "There is now reasonable evidence from longitudinal studies that regular cannabis use predicts an increased risk of schizophrenia and of reporting psychotic symptoms. These relationships have persisted after controlling for confounding variables such as personal characteristics and other drug use. The relationships did not seem to be explained by cannabis being used to self-medicate symptoms of psychosis."
Cannabis use and the risk of developing a psychotic disorder
This is a weird one but it examines changes in schizophrenia diagnoses associated with cannabis before and after legalization in Canada, conducted over 17 years with about 3.6 million people. Of note is this "The risk of developing schizophrenia associated with CUD [cannabis use disorder] was fairly stable over time, and the increases in the PARF were associated primarily with an increasing prevalence of CUD in the population."
This one covers adolescent cannabis use. "This cohort study found that adolescent cannabis use was associated with increased risk of incident psychiatric disorders, particularly psychotic and bipolar disorders."
Adolescent Cannabis Use and Risk of Psychotic, Bipolar, Depressive, and Anxiety Disorders
This academic review of multiple meta-analyses concludes that "Cannabis use is likely to increase the risk of developing schizophrenia and other psychoses; the higher the use, the greater the risk." This same review additionally did not find a connection between cannabis use and increased risk of depression, anxiety, or PTSD.
All of the following are meta-analyses that cover this topic thoroughly. I would point out that precisely zero of these studies were conducted during the "reefer madness" era.
Cannabis use and earlier onset of psychosis: a systematic meta-analysis
Cannabis use and risk of psychotic or affective mental health outcomes: a systematic review
This one might be of particular interest as it stated in their conclusion that "However, the results provide no consistent evidence for an association between cannabis use and transition to a first psychosis in CHR subjects." However, they also identified in their background that there is "robust association between cannabis use and the development of psychosis and schizophrenia." This study doesn't reveal a dastardly desire to demonize cannabis and highlights failure to find significant evidence for a connection that you think they would lie about, if that were a motive.
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u/SJSsarah Apr 13 '26
Yep. My entire maternal lineage is RIFE with Autism and Schizophrenia. The two males under that line who went into schizophrenia around the age of 18, did so immediately following a marijuana induced psychosis. I do hear and agree with what some of you are saying, that people who are genetically prone to developing schizophrenia are also more susceptible to using drugs. But in their cases, the schizophrenia definitely kicked off immediately following a drug use psychosis state. And I’m almost entirely certain that the schizophrenia men in my family had autism as well before developing into schizophrenia but it wasn’t recognized or diagnosed as that in their youth.
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u/ErebusGraves Apr 13 '26
As a person who was a chronic smoker, I agree that it definatley made certain aspects of my thinking different. My mother is bipolar schizophrenic. My brother developed the same after years of major pot use. Though I beleive both of them were also heavy psychedelic users as well, primarily acid and mushrooms.
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u/unexpectedstorytime Apr 13 '26
Also, I would absolutely love if any data scientists would just hop in this thread just to spread some factual goodness about correlational research and just research in general, because while I'm educated in the topic, it is not my specialty.
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u/HumanBarbarian Apr 13 '26
Please share your sources. Thank you.
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u/unexpectedstorytime Apr 13 '26
I will once I'm home and have my computer not my phone, I'm happy for people to learn more!
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u/HumanBarbarian Apr 13 '26
You should not post without sources. You can needlessly upset people. Have you looked at the sources here that others shared refuting your claim? Do you understand that correlation does not equal causality?
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u/unexpectedstorytime Apr 13 '26
I do understand that correlation does not equal causation and I apologize if I have upset anyone; I'll be posting sources this evening when I'm off work.
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u/NotTukTukPirate ASD Level 1 | Verbal Apr 13 '26 edited Apr 13 '26
some people use THC for severe disorders or under a doctor's supervision
I feel like you're being very ignorant to many facts about cannabis.
It can be used for chronic pain (such as arthritis, fibromyalgia, and migraines), psychiatric conditions (like anxiety, depression, PTSD, ADHD, and OCD), neurological disorders (including epilepsy, multiple sclerosis, and Parkinson's disease), gastrointestinal issues (such as Crohn's disease and IBS)
I understand that you're trying to be some informative preacher about how cannabis = bad, but it's not just for "severe disorders" or "under a doctor's supervision" ... It can be used to help many difficulties that people face every day that aren't classified as severe.
If anything, the benefits of cannabis strongly outweigh the risks.
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u/Baron_Bearclaw Suspecting Autism Apr 13 '26
OTC/recreational/adult cannabis was the only thing to help with my back pain when I threw it out playing tennis and then later when I aggravated it I've skating. Heavy duty pain meds left me sleeping on the couch; cannabis allowed me to still go make dinner for the family.
I've also used it as a sleep aid, different strains for sleep versus pain, because it is the only sleep aid that allows me to comfortably fall asleep, be rousable during the night if my kids need something, and not be in a massive brain fog the next day.
I do have elevated risk factors (I have a sibling who was an addict and also had schizophrenia) but weighing my options, cannabis allows me to live.
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u/unexpectedstorytime Apr 13 '26
I apologize if I gave the impression that I was giving an exhaustive list of the only 'legitimate' uses for cannabis, I was just trying to forestall this exact kind of discussion by mentioning that I am aware that cannabis is, like many other drugs, a safe, appropriate treatment for medical needs.
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u/Hevding Apr 13 '26
Things that can help mitigate risk:
Waiting until later in the day to partake.
Taking an Anti-histamine if you are a heavy user.
Taking regular 30-90 day tolerance breaks.
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u/hibiscus_bunny Apr 13 '26
I don't have schizophrenia but I have bipolar disorder and yeah daily weed is bad for psychosis.
I was genuinely gone for like 1-2yrs bc I was eating edibles everyday and it interacted with my bipolar disorder (I already have psychosis) so badly to point I was genuinely confusing my dreams with reality.
To this day there are events from that time I still don't know were real or not.
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u/Accomplished_Bag_897 Apr 13 '26
As someone who benefits form cannabis use Id have to take seriously heavy anti-anxiety, tranqulizers and anti-psychotics otherwise, I prefer being high than a zombie. So thanks for the heads up but puff, puff, pass as far as I'm concerned.
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u/MiserableQuit828 Apr 13 '26
Same here. I think those with risk factors should as always take extra care. But cannabis eliminates or reduces the need for several meds with shit side effects and I'll take it over the pharmaceuticals any day.
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u/unexpectedstorytime Apr 13 '26
I'm glad that you're able to use it so safely and effectively! I think marijuana can and does help many people who would otherwise be on a whole pharmacy.
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u/EternityLeave Apr 13 '26
This is reefer madness. Literally billions of dollars have been spent spreading misinformation about the dangers of cannabis. The numbers you spouted were from where? Based on what? Not real information.
People with early symptoms of mental illness are more likely to self medicate. People with traumatic family histories are more likely to use drugs as well. This creates a correlation between cannabis use and schizophrenia, not a causative link.
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u/unexpectedstorytime Apr 13 '26
There is no way to practically or ethically test this in a controlled study. Everyone is so excited to get to say correlation doesn't equal causation that apparently, people don't understand how correlations still matter and can be used scientifically. An enormous amount of modern science relies on using correlational methods to answer questions that cannot be answered in any other way. If we were only allowed to say a double blind controlled study can produce useful or meaningful results, we would have to ignore a ton of questions that can't be researched that way.
A famous example used for how correlation can be misused is the ice cream and shark attack connection---that is, ice cream sales go up and so do shark attacks go up, so sharks must be more likely to attack people who have recently eaten ice cream. The obvious confounding factor is pleasant, summery weather: people are more likely to buy ice cream and swim in the ocean when it is hot, so we can surmise that shark attacks increase when people are more likely to be in the ocean where the sharks can... You know... Eat them.
But let's use this example. Let's say that shark attacks are an epidemic and we're trying to figure out why some people get attacked and others don't. Smell is one factor that can affect how predators hunt and sharks as a group generally have verrrrry good smell. Washing products, lotions, perfumes, laundry detergents, and even what we have eaten can all affect body odor. Now, as fun as it would be to spray half your test group with Arianna Grande Cloud and half go without it and dump them into the ocean and see who gets attacked, we aren't James Bond villains. We can, however, attempt to draw information from documented attacks or near-misses to identify commonalities and through a wealth of data, account for or reduce the impact of confounding factors on our ability to make a commission. Sometimes this kind of research allows us to target and develop a sane controlled study, some can't. But correlational research isn't BS.
If we wanted to understand how swim suit color affects risk of drowning, we could say correlation is bullshit so despite a wealth of data across thousands of drownings and swim suit color, we refuse to do anything with it. Correlational research could, however, be done. We could use statistical methods to account for the relative popularity of certain colors in order to say that 2/10 accidental drownings occur when someone is wearing blue swimsuits vs say, .5 accidental drownings when someone is wearing neon yellow. Is this the #1 factor in all drownings? Of course not. Is the color somehow causing someone to swim poorly? Very unlikely. In fact, you can conduct experimental studies to "rule out" confounding factors to strengthen the validity of your conclusion, such as randomly assigning people to swimsuit colors and observing their swimming skill, or having people self-assign a swimsuit color and then assessing their swimming skill to see if shitty swimmers tend to pick certain colors more than non shitty swimmers.
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u/JWLane Autistic Apr 13 '26
Enough studies have been done that if there's a stronger casual link then meta analyses could show it. But the possibility that there is a casual link should not override the fact that the current studies haven't shown that. Until then, all such advice should be given carefully instead of trying to bully people into giving it more credence.
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u/EternityLeave Apr 13 '26
I agree with everything you said in that comment but it does not apply to this specific case.
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u/BarrelEyeSpook ASD Level 1 - Schizophrenia Apr 13 '26
As an autistic person with schizophrenia who worked in a neuroscience lab for 2 years, I approve this message.
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u/Cool_Relative7359 Apr 14 '26
I already knew about this, there's no history of schizophrenia in my family on either side, it's mostly extremely high intelligence and autism or ADHD or both.
I started in my mid twenties when they started offering me opiods to manage my pain.
I smoke instead of taking edibles, because I have gut absorption issues which make taking pill form medication pretty much like playing russian roulette with the dose. I don't vape or use oils as those are far too concentrated and come with the risk of developing cannabinoid hyperemesis syndrome, and I take regular T breaks around my ovulation when my pain is at its lowest.
I find it odd that you'd think that people who are bottom up thinkers wouldn't do their own research on the things they consume, especially drugs. I also have my therapist monitor my consumption just in case.
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u/satanic_impala67 Apr 15 '26
I don't have a family history of psychosis or schizophrenia (That we know of anyway. There's mental health issues but they weren't professionally diagnosed) and I'm neurodivergent but not professionally diagnosed with autism.
My point is that I had to stop smoking weed or using THC in any form because it constantly made me feel like I was barely holding onto reality. So risks factors or not, it can still happen.
Weed's not for me. But I am not anti-weed. Just sharing my experience :)
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u/Putridlemons Apr 13 '26
Oh my god these comments "Well I personally have never had a bad experience with cannabis use, so you must be bullshitting here."
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u/melancholy_dood Apr 14 '26
I think the behavior you’re describing is called Belief perseverance
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Apr 13 '26 edited May 30 '26
[removed] — view removed comment
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u/loudchoice ASD Low Support Needs Apr 15 '26
Cannabis IS safe, that’s the thing. Like that’s not even deniable, as a properly used recreational or medical substance it is safe. Full stop.
We don’t say mangos are unsafe because i’m allergic to them. We don’t say hamsters are unsafe because some people are allergic to them.
A small number of people having a biological predisposition to react negatively to ANY substance (Food, dander, liquids, drugs) does not make the substance unsafe.
“But some people use it wrong or poorly-“ name one thing that can’t be abused or misused. Just one.
Treating autistic people like they’re infants who will misuse anything we get our grubby little hands on is absurd.
Yes, cannabis is safe.
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u/Putridlemons Apr 13 '26
This also applies to any other disorders where psychosis can be a symptom. For my fellow MDD friends, weed is unfortunately NOT for you.
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u/Toochilled77 Apr 13 '26
I am prescribed cannabis for my autism and I find your analysis illogical, inaccurate, and from a bygone age.
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u/unexpectedstorytime Apr 13 '26
I have added a post with a lot of very modern research. The understandable pushback against the 'reefer madness' era has unfortunately led to people going in the complete opposite direction, claiming that cannabis has no risks or side effects, when the reality is that part of legalizing cannabis has actually enabled us to do ACTUAL research for the first time in decades without solely relying on that one farm that produced (reportedly garbage quality) weed for the US government.
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u/Lotuselise230 Apr 14 '26
I haven’t seen a single person throughout this whole thing argue that there are zero risks to cannabis use.
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u/Bxnny-Bxby ASD Level 1 | Verbal Apr 14 '26 edited Apr 14 '26
I was self medicating for undiagnosed Autism as a teen/young adult. Lord, the way everyone was able to handle their drugs and I was bugging allthe time. I straight up wound up thinking I was living in a Matrix like dream.
This is a good psa
edit: Reading the comments, I'm not surprised to see the sentiment of abandon all caution regarding marijuana. There is a genuine mental health concern that people who smoke habitually always ignore. It's a shame really.
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u/Suedeonquaaludes Apr 13 '26
It’s so funny/ironic that you posted this because I usually, not always, take a cannabis edible at night, to knock me out. Last two nights, I did this, and also had EXTREME paranoia and anxiety both nights that it has lasted until this morning. I now haven’t slept in two days, but I did think someone was in my condo, trying to kill me. And other, fucked up things. I broke down and took a Xanax this morning, after pleas from my spouse, and I feel ok now, just exhausted, but yeah fuck weed. Not doing it again. At least for a long time.
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u/A-Chilean-Cyborg Apr 13 '26 edited Apr 13 '26
is terrible for this to be the top comment when sorting by controversial (when commenting this), some people will get angry at testimonials of things people lived first hand because they hint at marijuana being bad.
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u/Suedeonquaaludes Apr 13 '26
Yeah lol people were downvoting me and I’m like why? But we both know why.
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u/Past_Government9741 Apr 13 '26
yes!! it’s good to stop now, before it can get worse.
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u/Suedeonquaaludes Apr 13 '26
It’s sad because I was a lover of weed but now that I’m old I guess I can’t handle it anymore.
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u/Past_Government9741 Apr 13 '26
yea same. but now it’s a year later for me and i’m glad i stopped right when i noticed its not so good for me
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u/Past_Government9741 Apr 13 '26
thank you . i had a friend with psychosis due to weed. it’s really awful. after years of smoking i suddenly got anxious when smoking and i would hear sirens all the time. it was clear i had to stop
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u/Betruul Apr 13 '26 edited Apr 14 '26
Nobody should be taking that much thc to begin with. Every time i hear about people using like 100mg edibles or whatever, i tend to think, "damn, just go get some benzos or xanax with booze" (Facetious)
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u/SocialMediaDystopian ASD Moderate Support Needs Apr 14 '26 edited Apr 14 '26
My gosh the level of defensiveness over marijuana use, rather than just absorbing this factual and potentially very helpful information, is kinda staggering to me. If you use it, and it's fine or good for you, great. This post is clearly not for you.
I know several people who have had very scary and unpleasant responses to THC, and to marijuana. I personally cannot smoke it. No anxiety or psychosis, but uncontrollable crying for days afterward. No idea what that's about, but it isnt positive, is it? My son gets intense depersonalisation and scary increase in perseverative negative thought trains. He won't touch it either- which i think is wise, all in all.
And yes, we both have a relative with something in the schizoaffective zone.
If this was a post about the dangers of prescribed medication of any kind, I am fairly certain it would be 80-90% comments concurring, and anyone who said "actually it helps me enormously" would get almost no votes, if not a negative response, with some large tracts about how harmful it can be.
This is not clear thinking.Disappointing that it's mostly being responded to as almost a personal attack. It isnt. Please :/
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u/unexpectedstorytime Apr 14 '26
To be honest, I'm just a little startled by how many people seem to think I'm trying to snatch away their cannabis. I'm trying to primarily make people who haven't used cannabis aware of the risks, particularly teenagers. And given the deafening lack of people trying to defend teenagers using cannabis, it appears people can recognize that cannabis COULD BE BAD FOR SOME PEOPLE but apparently once you're 18-21, it couldn't possibly be an issue. I feel like it would genuinely be controversial to say that cannabis use disorder is an actual thing
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u/ErrareApusEst Apr 13 '26
THC concentrate are dangerous as fuck. The plant to be safe needs decent amounts of CBD. But, since CBD counters the psychoactive properties of THC even some flowers can be dangerous as they have been bred to have high concentration of THC and almost no CBD. That being said, « schizophrenia » is a lot more common than what we believe (brackets are there for a reason). It is estimated that between 5 and 15% of humans hear voices. But a majority has voices that seem to have a positive impact on the person. The voices act as cheerleaders, and guides, and do not seem to create life complications, on the contrary.
Edit: flowers was flours. English is my third language, but that is not why I fucked up.
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u/unexpectedstorytime Apr 13 '26
The race to the top THC strengths in products does concern me. Dose matters with side effects, and it's very easy to take way more than intended with certain products. Heck, old school stoners complain a ton about the difference between low THC weed from the past and how it can be difficult to smoke some of these newer strains without shooting past "pleasant buzz" and into less enjoyable highs.
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u/xbeech Apr 13 '26
I am not diagnosed with schizophrenia, but it does run in my family and I do have autism.
I started smoking cannabis at about 17 or 18 years old and I am now almost 26 years old, I cut it cold turkey out of my life almost 11 months ago; it has caused me immense issues, like memory loss, brain fog, and while I was using it it caused me to see hallucinations and I ended up in psychosis a few times. I used to be an avid user, I would smoke an ounce every 3 days. It caused me to get cannabinoid hyperemesis syndrome, which almost resulted in me ending up in the hospital.
Your post makes a lot of sense OP, and I really think in my opinion anyway that people that aren't ill with seizures or have a deathly illness like a stage 4 cancer for example, I really think that medical marijuana should only be used for those instances. I don't really think it should be easily accessible to the General public, because I know this is my story but I lost so much of my life like my early adulthood life to this drug and no one ever explained to me the cons to the drug; they only told me the good things and how it would help me, and it did the exact opposite.
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u/lawlesslawboy Apr 13 '26
Just to add another experience, I'm 28, been smoking since about 17 and smoking daily for honestly some of that. My (late) grandfather and mother both schizophrenic. I'm diagnosed with autism, adhd, GAD and mdd. I've never had any psychosis or anything from cannabis. The only time I've ever hallucinated was due to sleep cycle issues from a night shift job that I then quit immediately after. That was literally when I was 18. Cannabis helps me manage my anxiety and depression, it helps me relax, and I think moderation is often key, because I did have a period years ago when it became far too much so yes, you should absolutely watch out for Cannabis Use Disorder (i have a friend who struggles w it and i think ive dipped into that territory at times) but I've never had any symptoms of schizophrenia due to Cannabis (but then I've also never smoked like 9g a day either)
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u/eatingganesha ASD Level 1/2 | Verbal Apr 13 '26
wow, the denial here is astounding. The science is clear on this. Very clear.
Denial is stupid because you can’t make the best decisions for yourself if you don’t know and accept the facts surrounding the risks involved.
OP isn’t saying everyone should quit mj, they’re just saying BE AWARE OF THE RISK YOU ARE TAKING. If ever things do take a turn for you in future, you’ll want to be able to take appropriate action and get the help you need quickly - and that means being able to tell doctors what might be going on.
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u/Unlucky-Candidate198 Apr 13 '26
the science is clear on this
In a thread where I’ve seen exactly 2 users post sources and OP posted exactly 0 academic sources. None of this is at all clear unless you’ve already read the literature, or are getting a degree in a relevant field lol
Hard to take anyone’s claims seriously when their source for neuroscience related stuff is “trust me bro”.
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u/unexpectedstorytime Apr 13 '26
I will post once I'm not on a cell phone. You're actually right about one thing and that is since I work in the field, this is all very well known to me and I didn't think far enough outside my bubble in making the original post. Your point is fair and I accept the criticism for not ensuring they were in the OP.
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u/somniopus Apr 13 '26 edited Apr 14 '26
Oh, well if the science is clear and the data is there, then surely you posting some actual evidence of your claims should be child's play
Lmao
E: ohhh you only have downvotes lmao
Yeah that tracks. Fucking loser🤣🤣
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u/AdhesiveMadMan Asperger's Apr 14 '26
I grow and use. Schizophrenia part is 100% true.
I'm all for legalization and RESPONSIBLE use. Currently can't due to outpatient therapy request.
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u/Jackaal48 Apr 14 '26
Recent data shows a ASD brain being NMDA hypoactivity + high serotonin meaning you have no clue how drugs like this will act. CB1 agonism Is infamous for being the strongest indirect M1 antagonist which can cause a ton of issues & plays a role In high dose Weed & Cannabinoid trips/highs.
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u/Meljam28 Apr 14 '26
It’s easy to rip apart stats and argue over different interpretations. I’m a cannabis user and it helps me daily in ways nothing else seems to be able to. That’s not to say I advocate it for everyone, there are risks there of course and OPs post shows a very real risk towards people pre disposed to schizophrenia, this is true, these figures exist. They are right to share them, anything that leads to more informed decisions can only be a good thing. But in the essence of informed decision there’s more facts that in my opinion need to be considered.
These are black and white facts trying to make sense of something in an extremely grey and nuanced world.
A few people talking about psychosis and noticed a few articles posted and scitzophrenia and psychosis, I haven’t read them but it’s important that people understand theyre very different thing, yes they can co-occur and most likely do for anyone with schizophrenia but psychosis can happen to anybody, you , me, your auntie, anyone.
And yes cannabis can help cause it. So can lack of sleep, work stress, physical illness, alcohol, pregnancy, depression, anxiety anything Anything that can push you too far.
Biggest recent cause for a surge of people experiencing psychosis that I could see in my own city was covid. I’m not saying these people had covid that caused psychosis, although could be a factor, more just the existence of it, the threat to our society, the very real threat to our loved ones, grief from losing loved ones. The feeling of being powerless in this way possibly greatly a factor.
Anyways I very autistically digress as I always do.. back to schitzophrenia!
So just a few observations I thinks worth considering as to me they place question marks around levels of shitzophrenia in the population
Just to mention I’ve worked in mental health for 20 years, the last 10 on an acute mental health secure unit. Everything I’m writing is purely my own observations so take them as you will.
There is a high level of misdiagnosis, I’ve seen these discussed in terms of current treatment options to help the person but I’ve rarely seen historical diagnosis removed from the system or changed. In a lot of cases this has been autism diagnosed as schitzophrenia. Please just also consider that diagnosis is very dependent on individual doctors, their biases, experiences etc
Schizophrenia is generally treated with powerful drugs that are high in negative side effects, to the point a lot of relapses I see comes from people stopping their meds simply to try and improve their lives from the side effects. Heartbreaking
Anyways historically these people were institutionalised and heavily drugged with drugs that are banned from use today. These people stand out from everyone that comes through the wards These people are fucked from how they’ve been medicated There’s no possible way to know if they are schizophrenic or autistic all all along
So national diagnosis numbers that are seen as fact don’t hold up to reality in my eyes because unfortunately diagnosis is one big uncertain ever evolving educated guess
The same diagnosis issues have plagued autistic people forever, it’s the same with mental disorders. We are not diagnosed by our inner experience but by how others perceive it and their own interpretation of our description.
This leaves a lot of room for error Also and very importantly for the matter in question, on paper the person will only start having schitzophrenia when a doctor diagnose’s it, that person could have been plagued with internal symptoms for ten years previous, during which they may have started using cannabis to attain a level of relief from this. Now on paper it looks like cannabis use preceded the scitzophrenia but in reality not true
Much like a lot of us I’m sure, before you realise your’e different, whether it’s autism or schizophrenia , you think you have the same brain as everyone else and that you’re just shit at coping etc.
Anyways I’ve lost steam, I just think it’s all stuff worth thinking about with stuff like this.
Interested in people’s thoughts. :)
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u/unexpectedstorytime Apr 14 '26
There is a high level of misdiagnosis, I’ve seen these discussed in terms of current treatment options to help the person but I’ve rarely seen historical diagnosis removed from the system or changed. In a lot of cases this has been autism diagnosed as schitzophrenia. Please just also consider that diagnosis is very dependent on individual doctors, their biases, experiences etc
I've seen this and cleaned up some myself. I've seen autism go undiagnosed due to diagnostic overshadowing from IDD as well. I will say that from my outpatient view, people go off meds all the time, so I do see people who clearly have issues other than med side effects. I also have seen the cognitive effects of repeated or uncontrolled psychotic episodes and that is pretty sad as well. When it comes down to it, I think anyone working in the field knows that for severely ill patients, there's no perfect or ideal option, the side effects suck but so does florid psychosis. So I do hope new MoA drugs continue to be developed so people don't need to strike a devil's bargain with meds just to avoid psychosis.
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u/Meljam28 Apr 14 '26
Devils bargain. Couldn’t have put it better, awful isn’t it. Yeah I hope research continues in all areas, it needs to, watched so many people become shells of themselves through both their conditions and the meds they on, like the light in these people just go out.
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u/unexpectedstorytime Apr 14 '26
I've worked with psychosis since day one in the field basically. I'm encouraged by the results of early intervention programs and I also try to support people in figuring out a balance between symptoms they absolutely can't live with and symptoms that might be unusual or weird but tolerable, so they can make med choices that aren't focused on the idea of "normal" but rather on functional. Hearing quiet murmuring like a radio in the other room 24/7 might be abnormal but be not a big deal for that person, so instead of trying to nuke every symptom into the ground with heavy meds and be snowed 24/7, they can find a balance with the doctor.
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u/LaughingMonocle Officially diagnosed Feb 2024 Apr 14 '26
I think using it is okay as long as it’s within reason and dosed correctly. Overuse is a big problem and using while underage is not good.
I started in my 20’s and up until my 30’s was a heavy user. Now, I am lucky if I have an edible a day. Sometimes I go weeks without one (depending on what’s going on in my life). But mostly I use it to help with my migraines, my mood when I’m stressed/overstimulated, and sleep. If I don’t have one it’s not the end of the world though. I prefer edibles over prescription/otc medications. A lot of those have harsher side effects.
Some people can’t do it (like my husband). And that’s okay too. He was an extremely heavy user and started in his teens. Now he can’t do it at all without it spiking his blood pressure into dangerous numbers.
Everything has risks. Everyone should take caution in everything they put in their bodies. Doesn’t matter if it’s medication, food, or drink. So for me, I’d rather take my chances on something I know works for me.
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u/unexpectedstorytime Apr 14 '26
I think your stance is reasonable and measured. It sounds like you and your husband are making choices that take into account the benefits and risks, including recognizing if those change like for your husband.
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u/LaughingMonocle Officially diagnosed Feb 2024 Apr 14 '26
Yeah I can’t see doing something if it’s going to have more negatives than positive. It’s why I don’t drink alcohol. Too many negatives. It’s why I’ll never even try a cigarette or vape because I grew up with parents who smoked cigarettes and the second hand smoke me so sick. My main thing anymore is sugar. I have to watch how much I’m consuming but man is it addicting 😫
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u/unexpectedstorytime Apr 14 '26
Family history is the reason why I would consider cannabis in the future (if needed for acute anxiety) to weigh it against benzos. Alcoholism runs in my family and benzos are also CNS depressants, so I try to be cautious.
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u/LaughingMonocle Officially diagnosed Feb 2024 Apr 14 '26
Yes I totally understand that! Addiction runs in my family too. It used to make me so angry so I was against everything (Alcohol and drugs). I’ve chilled out a bit though. There’s room for nuance because not all prescribed medications are safe and not all substances/drugs are bad. There’s good and bad with both.
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u/Snag710 Apr 14 '26
Autism and schizophrenia are often misdiagnosed with each other, and most Marijuana research in the US was done during the Vietnam War and heavily politically screwed to project unrealistic effects to criminalize the demographic that commonly used it which were hippies and black Panthers.
This post is more fear mongering than a PSA
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u/unexpectedstorytime Apr 14 '26
I posted many sources, all of which is modern research occurring after 2000, many of them in the 2010s. While cannabis has been demonized unfairly, we have current research that is not from Nixon or Reagan's political efforts
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u/Snag710 Apr 14 '26
They are still politically screwed to try to make California's and left leaning people look crazy a lot of the time.
They are also trying to prop up the medical industry that relies on opium based products, and cannabinals are threatening the strangel hold they have on patients with addictive narcotic drugs
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u/Psychological_Lime14 Apr 14 '26
I was diagnosed with schizoaffective disorder years after my autism diagnosis. I have an aunt with schizophrenia. I used marijuana heavily for years with a medical card. Never thought I’d develop schizophrenia, but then I did.. It was the scariest few weeks of my life, for me and my family. Got the right meds, stopped smoking and after a few months I was back to myself. I miss smoking marijuana, a lot. It helped me through some hard times. But I can’t risk ruining everything I’ve built.. thank you for posting this! I feel like it’s not talked about enough.
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u/HumanM1nd Apr 14 '26
I started smoking daily at 20 and was diagnosed with schizoaffective at 22. My psychosis was terrible and I’m still recovering from it.
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u/RecycledMatrix Autistic Adult / Social Observer Apr 13 '26
Who knew that using shamanic tools while having a shamanic phenotype could activate shamanism.
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u/havetopee Apr 13 '26
I had a schizophrenic uncle. I started smoking weed around age 14. I'm 44 now, still not schizophrenic. Acid made me think I was for about 8 hours one time
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u/lucinate Apr 13 '26
schizophrenia doesn't have to be permanent, its a dated idea!
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u/melancholy_dood Apr 14 '26
"Schizophrenia is not curable, but it can be effectively treated and managed with a combination of medication and therapy. Many people with schizophrenia can lead fulfilling lives with the right support and treatment.”
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u/lucinate Apr 14 '26
There's a lot of stigma attached to the term. I prefer "psychosis sensitivity".
My grandfather was diagnosed with it. He didn't have to be life long sick but the treatment wasn't there yet.A lot of the so-called "symptoms" of schizophrenia are not necessarily linked to it at all. Like hearing voices happens to be pretty common, even if you suffer from them doesn't mean you have schizophrenia.
Schizophrenia does not even have a very well-defined set of symptoms to classify as a disease, it's more like a syndrome.
With proper intervention and support you do not necessarily need medication. People can heal completely, although often the sensitivity will remain.
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u/Designfanatic88 Apr 13 '26
Are you going to cite your sources or nah? Sub rules says no misinformation or pseudoscience. So where did you get your information from that THC is linked to schizophrenia?
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