Side effects - how to stop twitching?

[Omalley]

Swim has noticed in the past months that smoking weed makes his whole body twitch and shake a little bit, if you look at swim you can't really see the twitches because they're really quick, but it makes Swim feel a bit uncomfortable. This use to never happen to Swim, but just suddenly decided to start pissing him off. Also Swim's muscles sometimes feel stiff like all the muscles are tensing up and he can't relax them. Swim's stomach also feels like there is something sitting on top of it when he smokes now, and can't relax it either. Any SWIYs out there that have had any similiar problems? how to fix this? SWIM wants weed to feel like it use to.

[megadump5]

That happens swim sometimes when hes not moving but he doesn't know how to stop it.

[helikophis]

Sorry for the possibly unhelpful nature of this reply, but it sounds like a person in the situation the OP described should probably stop smoking cannabis! These sound like very unpleasant and possibly serious side-effects. It would be great to obtain the advice of a medical professional, but given most doctors' attitude towards drug use, they probably wouldn't have anything helpful either.

Really though, the best solution to a problem with side effects due to drug use is to discontinue the use of the drug!

[razorwiredildo]

Swim used to get this when he would get really stoned back when he first started smoking. As he continued smoking, the problem just kind of disappeared.

[Zoidberg]

Sounds a lot like SWIMs experience. SWIM smoked weed happily for a couple of years on a near-daily basis, then one day he found that it gave him muscle twitches. However, it seems that when SWIM is already on another drug, be in stimulant/depressant/whatever, the twitching doesn't seem to occur. Therefore, SWIM saves weed for parties and other special occasions only.

[Omalley]

Originally Posted by Zoidberg

Sounds a lot like SWIMs experience. SWIM smoked weed happily for a couple of years on a near-daily basis, then one day he found that it gave him muscle twitches. However, it seems that when SWIM is already on another drug, be in stimulant/depressant/whatever, the twitching doesn't seem to occur. Therefore, SWIM saves weed for parties and other special occasions only.

Yes the same is true for SWIM, it's weird because swim could do a line of coke or take some speed and not have a twitch near as bad as when he is stoned

[Zoidberg]

Originally Posted by Omalley

Yes the same is true for SWIM, it's weird because swim could do a line of coke or take some speed and not have a twitch near as bad as when he is stoned

Odd isn't it! Perhaps, then, as others have suggested, it may be more of an anxiety issue. After all, weed makes SWIM more anxious than other drugs.

Also, when SWIM was prescribed a beta blocker (propranolol) to help ease the physical effects of social anxiety he found that it also minimised twitches and muscle spasms that occurred as a result of the occasional dabble with weed. However, SWIM has no knowledge of the potential dangers of mixing cannabis and beta blockers, so he suggests further study if SWIY decides to try this method out

[Lou1024]

Hello,
Has swiy ever heard of Rhodiola rosea? Swim also gets awful twitches and spasms when he smokes. He personally finds that taking Rhodiola Rosea 30 minutes before smoking helps the spasms and removes most of the remaining anxiety that smoking brings.

Just a suggestion.

Thanks.

Reputation Comments on this post:

useful suggestion

[someone111]

swim will get twitches if he has had any tramadol that day, and later smokes some pot.... swim tells me the best way to stop it is to get up and move around, or even sometimes a cigarette or some food will help him out too

[ImSoHappy]

Well SWIM's advice... seeing as he is a naturally anxious person is to either A. drink alcohol while smoking or B. take some sort of Benzo or muscle relaxant. If swim wants to channel his "inner chi" or something of that sort it could possible work too as SWIM thinks it's anxiety related. Maybe SWIM is full of shit, thanks!

[Omalley]

Originally Posted by ImSoHappy

Well SWIM's advice... seeing as he is a naturally anxious person is to either A. drink alcohol while smoking or B. take some sort of Benzo or muscle relaxant. If swim wants to channel his "inner chi" or something of that sort it could possible work too as SWIM thinks it's anxiety related. Maybe SWIM is full of shit, thanks!

yes, problem solved, SWIM had a few mixed drinks while he was twitching and and it caused them to go away completely.

[Each Hit]

swim recently started noticing small twitches. at first, he thought maybe he had pinched a nerve in his back, since he has 2 vertebrae that are misaligned, but he has noticed it happens when he gets high. granted, swim gets high an awful lot. any idea what bodily process initiates this effect? swim's twitches happen primarily in his upper-right back and in his left calf, and they only occur in one region per occassion. it's nothing anyone would notice, but it can be bothersome to swim.

[essential]

Spasmodic twitches... mmm sounds like elevated dopamine release.

Increased dopamine in the motor circuits will tend to produce odd, involuntary movements including muscle twitching.

Excess dopamine the reason some people can be really messed up from weed.

[humdroid]

Y goes and lies down, and 'flows wiht' the twitches.
Being with them, they stop of their own accord in a few minutes.
They are trapped energy for Y, and when released as per above, the relaxed stoned feeling flows through, in all its glory.

[Omalley]

SWIM has started to twitch less now, because he realized it was all anxiety related, because every time SWIM was smoking he was anticipating the twitching reaction, so now when SWIM smokes without thinking that he is going to twitch, he twitches less....Alcohol also helps.

[ThomasRM]

SWIM has similar twitches, but only seems to get them when he is smoking in a cold environment, such as leaving his window open during the winter. The twitches arnt unpleasant for SWIM, and they go away when he gest warm. They actually seem like amplified shivers in a way, perhaps it is not the same as the above mentioned twitches

[Garethn]

Originally Posted by ThomasRM

SWIM has similar twitches, but only seems to get them when he is smoking in a cold environment, such as leaving his window open during the winter. The twitches arnt unpleasant for SWIM, and they go away when he gest warm. They actually seem like amplified shivers in a way, perhaps it is not the same as the above mentioned twitches

i think this might just be getting cold.... just amplified when stoned

[helikophis]

Originally Posted by ThomasRM

SWIM has similar twitches, but only seems to get them when he is smoking in a cold environment, such as leaving his window open during the winter. The twitches arnt unpleasant for SWIM, and they go away when he gest warm. They actually seem like amplified shivers in a way, perhaps it is not the same as the above mentioned twitches

Ah you know, this comment set something off for SWIM. He told me that he has a very similar thing happen sometimes. After he consumes cannabis, especially if he's slightly chilly, he sometimes gets uncontrollable shivers and shakes. Although it does seem to be made worse from cold, he believes that it may be something to do with blood sugar. This belief comes from the fact that if he eats a piece of candy or something else sugary, the shivering rapily diminishes and disappears.

He suggests that anyone who experiences something similar try this: when the shaking starts, have a bit of candy or chocolate, or an orange or a piece of dried fruit or sugary tea, or whatever, something with sugar. SWIM has found it quite effective!

Reputation Comments on this post:

tried this and it worked!!! good advise...

[Woodman]

I used to have that problem, too.

It's one of the reasons I stopped smoking.

I just got fed up with it.

I think caffeine had something to do with it.

Reputation Comments on this post:

self-incrimination

[Grayam]

SWIM developed 'twitches' after he began smoking pot and had been doing so frequently, throughout the day for a few months. This was when SWIM was 14 and now, 5 years later, he still experiences the same twitching. In these five years SWIM has stopped smoking pot and using other drugs (alcohol and tobacco not included) for over six months on 2 occasions and during these times the twitches did not cease.

The twitches are only momentary and a lot like some kind of shock and seem to strike all over the body except the genitals, the back and top of the head and the stomach. Sometimes the shock would seem to travel from one place to another (most commonly from the thigh to the foot). When they strike they invoke involuntary movement. They do not occur frequently (although sometimes more frequently when stoned), sometimes 7 times a day sometimes once in 2 days. SWIM does not find these twitches very discomforting, just a bit on a jolt now and then (entertains his friends as well, when it happens).

SWIM was slightly worried though and one day when visiting his doctor mentioned this. To his surprise, the doctor seemed to believe it was a quite common occurrence within the general population (not just in pot smokers or drug users) and that it was absolutely nothing to worry about. SWIM cannot remember if she gave him the name of these mystical twitches.

In the reasearch report "What are the acute effects of marajuana use?" at the NIDA (National Institute on Drug Abuse) the table states that "cannabinoid receptors are abundant" in both the cerebellum (involved in body movement coordination) and the basal ganglia (involved in movement control). It also states "THC attaches to sites called cannabinoid receptors on nerve cells in the brain, affecting the way those cells work." I have only very basic knowledge on the brain but maybe this will provide some food for thought.

*No link because I can't yet.

[TripStick]

In SWIMs experience the twitching some of you mentioned comes from smoking low grade junk. Get yourself some better chron with a mild head high and that should remedy the situation. If SWIY knows anything about growing, the longer the buds are allowed to degrade their THC into other cannaboids the more full bodied and narcotic effects SWIY will experience. This is usually the case with schwag and other low grades of cannabis because the growers only care about the amount harvested and not the quality. Shorter degrdation period = pleasant head high, longer = body high with narcotic effects.

Of course there are some people who may experience undesired effects while smoking marijuana, usually the first time or casual smokers but the main cause is usually the grade of cannabis you are inhalling.

[helikophis]

Originally Posted by TripStick

Of course there are some people who may experience undesired effects while smoking marijuana, usually the first time or casual smokers but the main cause is usually the grade of cannabis you are inhalling.

I was talking to SWIM about this again and he said he doesn't agree. He has gotten shaky/twitchy feelings from many different kinds of cannabis over the years. He also has experienced the same thing from the synthetic cannabinoids in the Spice smoking blends. He believes this is more related to individual physiology than to the curing process.

[G13-Machiaveli]

It definitely has something to do with anxiety.
swIm has massive anxiety issues therefore, swim uses a tissue. haha
ne ways, sometimes when swim smokes weed he starts to shake as if he was outside in winter naked, he sometimes barely notices it until a friend tells him & asks if he's on crack. lol
swim just stops shaking when he realizes he's shaking.