I only seem to feel like my best self when I’m high on thc as I quit alcohol for the time being. I just feel as happy as a kid when I’m high. I feel very bland when I’m sober. I just can’t see being completely sober from weed too.
Give consentual pets.
Never felt any impetus to drink, and I have a personal aversion to recreational drugs.
Without thinking too hard about it, I probably get the most joy from learning stuff, especially when it’s within a topic of interest and has any level of application to my interests or skills. Bonus points when I make the connection myself.
I see other comments mentioning ADHD, so I’ll add that I have a diagnosis for it as well.
Good question, though. It’s been a while since I asked myself this, and I’m overdue for a reassessment. Thanks.
I like growing and tending to plants, painting miniatures, and working on DnD projects. All of these also generate a physical, tangible thing which is also nice (though I really wish I could use the DnD stuff more.)
I don’t drink or weed.
joy is fleeting.
rage is eternal.
accept the rage, become the rage.
Honestly breaks from instant excitement. Spending some time coding, making soap, fixing up the house. If I spend three days boozing, playing games, watching shows, etc I’ll be fucking wiped and spend some time just feeling like death afterwords.
If I instead stick to things that require some choring to get to the yippy stage I find I’m just more content.
Do you have a soap company? Perhaps on paper street?
Take a month off the chems and exercise regularly during that time
Sounds like you should be sober from weed too.
If your default state is high, you’re never sober. You’re just experiencing the hangover state between highs. Think of it as the weed version of delerium to an alchoholic. It’s not a physical hangover, so it’s not as obvious.
Stay sober for a few weeks. It’ll drag at first, but it’ll go away after a bit. You’ll even out your neurotransmitters and feel like yourself again. Then getting high on occasion will be an event, not a medication.
Anecdotally, people I’ve known who smoke everyday tend to be okay with things they shouldn’t be. The chemical joy seems to make them content with having a kind of shitty life and never actually doing anything. High activities just became their only activities when weed changed from weekends to everyday. I’m not saying this is true of everyone, but I’ve seen it happen more often than not to daily smokers.
Drugs and alcohol should be occasional modifiers to your life, not the default state. Give your chemistry a rest.
I haven’t met anyone that got high consistently (even tobacco) this didn’t apply to. You nailed it.
I drink alcohol maybe once per year and I’ve never touched weed. I feel joy when I am around people and animals whom I love.
It’s going to get worse before it gets better. But it’s worth it.
Off the top of my head, here are a few of the things that gave me joy this week…
OMG kitty!
Hey, it’s my awesome wife!
Yay, video games!
This burger tastes amazing!
Damn this chair is comfy.
Boobies!!!
I made someone smile today!
It’s a beautiful day for a bike ride!
Did I mention the kitty?
Farts are funny, I didn’t care how old I am.
I made friends with my new neighbors dog!If you aren’t getting at least a little bit of joy from life, you probably need to see someone about depression.
This list reminds me of the “reasons my wife cried” list, lol.
But seriously I love this list and think it’s great to find joy in the small things like this. And if you don’t/can’t, it’s ok to seek out help for your mental health.
Exercise & fresh air & sunshine & nutritious food. As a bonus, it costs nothing! Aside from the cost of food which we all need anyway, so might as well spend our money on healthy food instead of the other options.
I don’t even feel joy with alcohol and weed. It just shuts off the constantly simmering rage for a while so I can socialize without being a dick.
I’m not your parent, and I don’t want to take any substance away from you without your consent.
That said, feeling like you can’t experience joy while being sober and lucid is extremely sad. And I say that as someone who has experimented with substances! Without any judgement, I think a therapist will help you far more than the effects of any drug…
The problem with asking others how the heck they regulate without drugs is that they’re not you. They don’t have your brain or your hormones.
No solution from someone without the problem is likely to work and most people with the problem do not have a solution.
If i can find a sweet spot where i’m challenged but succeeding in an environment free of selfish unethical people, then i can get through the day without a toke. At the moment its bong-a-fucking-clock.
Sugar, chocolate, cookies and cakes.
