Dear Stoner: I’m in the midst of a devastating family situation and am so blindsided by grief and stress that I need something to calm me down and help me fall asleep. I don’t wish to smoke, but am open to other suggestions.
Elizabeth
Dear Elizabeth: If this situation is temporary, using cannabis to help you calm down and sleep is a great idea. Sometimes exercise, hobbies and self-reflection just aren’t enough to send you to sleep, and when you’re wide awake at night trying to hold back tears, something as simple as a pot cookie can help you fall asleep, regroup and move forward.
Vaporizing, though not technically smoking, makes you feel as if you just smoked. It’s not quite as bad for your lungs or throat, but it’s not good for them, either. Still, smoking and vaping are the best ways to consume when dealing with stress, in my opinion. The euphoria and relaxation hit you immediately, and a strong indica will knock a new toker out with ease. If you can’t handle a vaporizer, though, edibles are a logical choice — but start slow until you know your tolerance. Expect stress relief and possible giggles in anywhere from thirty minutes to two hours, followed by a strong night’s sleep. If you’ve never eaten edibles, start with ten milligrams, see how you feel in two hours, then go from there. Hope you feel better soon.
Dear Stoner: I’ve noticed that I’m paying around $50 to $60 for an eighth these days. I remember paying $50 to $75 a quarter from people who took pride. Is it greed in the marijuana industry, or the government?
Shawn
Dear Shawn: Where are you buying your pot? Do you go to shops filled with people that basically scream “I’m a yuppie fucking tourist”? Because I rarely see eighths that cost that much for Colorado residents at dispensaries nowadays. Several months ago, I wrote a piece using data from BDS Analytics that listed the average price for a gram of flower (including single grams, eighths, quarters and so on) at $5.77 the week of 4/20 this year and $6.67 during the rest of April, down from an average of $8.86 in the first quarter of 2014.
Pot prices aren’t what they were at the beginning of legalization, and street prices (from those people who took pride) never went up. If your dealer won’t sell you a good quarter-ounce of pot for $75, find a new one. I’m not saying that greed and inflated prices don’t exist in the industry, but the market has largely shifted to the consumer.