Guide for beginner smokers: Do it correctly, wisely and safely! (Recreational use)

To make couple things clear:
This is directed towards the ones who have just begun, or are about to begin.

And all this is based upon my personal experience or for what I have seen with my own dear eyes. So if you disagree with something or have something to add; post it please and I will see if I should add it, and credit you for the input!

And the purpose of this guide is to make your first high as enjoyable as possible. For anyone who is unsure, but want's to try out still. It's a long one as well!

Aight! Let's get this rolled forward!

Facts blabla. Only the bolded part matters really.

Cannabis has been long around the world and the first cannabinoid receptors that have been scientifically discovered, locate in some aquatic plant.

It has been used in many cultures for many purposes, medical and shamanistical. This guide is all about recreational use, so it may relate if at all, only to the shamanistical parts.

There has been no evident deaths caused directly by cannabis, overdosing (in physical term) with cannabis is pretty much impossible. Unless you drink a liter of pure THC water. Only possibly deaths are caused of shooting cannabis into veins, don't even try that. EVER.

But it is psychoactive substance, and thus, you need to treat it carefully! If you use it recklessly like never before, don't expect anything good to happen.

The scientific blabla can be left out in this thread. Too much over that and I'm too tired of hearing out scientific arguments on a daily basis that lead to no conclusions.

Now, the first part: Getting prepaired

This section is divided into mental and physic preparations, mental is important. So we start with...

Mental preparations:

This is very important for you, if you want to minimize the risks that involve around cannabis.

First of all things;
Getting a brief view over the substance and reading other people experiences!
Erowid is the best place to gain any information about any psychoactive substance.

There are also peoples experiences (just browse around and you'll find them) which you should also read, to be somewhat prepaired. But don't take any others experiences for granted. There are too many things that can vary from ones experience to another!

Your mind is your own, harness it. And know your substance.

Be comfortable with the idea!
This means, don't do it just to "be cool" or just because someone wants you badly to try it. If you are not comfortable with the idea, the experience can easily become unpleasant or even fearful for you.

Feel happiness, not depression!
Cannabis has been claimed to be an anti-depressant, but you are in for recreational usage. Not medical. If you need medical assistance, you should visit a doctor, if not possible, you can give always a try with this guide.

But it's always important, for the best results, you should not do anything psychoactive while you are in state of anger or depression. If you suffer from any mental condition (eg. panic attacks, or personality disorders), I advise against using cannabis, especially with other prescription medicine.

Don't be under other drugs influence or drunk.
The effects can vary greatly, and for a clean experience, you should only use cannabis. Anything else in conjuction might make the experience more distorted or even worse, mess you up. That's not good. Getting drunk and stoned is not that dangerous, honestly, but it's not a way to get into touch with this herb.

You can be alone, but being with someone you trust is always better!
This is important thing. Even if you do everything stated in this guide, your mentality might not stand the psychoactive effect of cannabis. And this is where your friend can help you; he can calm you by giving peaceful thoughts or just tell you, that it's over soon. You can never be too cautious with any psychoactive substance, so be smart!

And remember, you should only bring someone you trust. Your companion for example, or a really good friend. If you are with strangers or people you don't trust, it may cause anxiety easily. You won't be comfortable and your experience won't be as pleasant.

Don't do it anywhere - be in a place that feels safe to you!
No, not that dark basement where you know nobody apart from you would ever visit.

Be at your house, or your friends house. Or be somewhere outside, like a top of some mountain (but be sure, that there is a safe way out of there, straight back to your or your friends house) or just in some park. Just try to be in a peaceful place without much if any at all visitors. You don't want outsiders to cause any stress for you, the paranoia can become a real bugger for you, unless it's legalized in your country completely.

Oh and yes, be in a place, again, that feels comfortable.

If you are in a place where you are uncomfortable, you won't get the maximized joy, again. It's all about making the best of your first experience!

Last but not least, munchies and stuff! ( The physic stuff... mostly )

When you are high, you want absolutely music with you. Does not matter if it's from a bad phone stereo or headphones. You need it. As for music, I'll have stuff of that in last major section!

And apart from music, you may also want some other stuff with ya. If you have friends with you and you like sports, both of you, then there's absolutely no reason to not to bring a frisbee to a beach or a football, or whatever, with ya! You won't be much in a competitive mood, but it can be lots of fun.

And as for munchies... Bring something to eat, rather something that isn't dry. Chips and salty nuts can taste good, indeed, but best flavors for your enhanced taste come from candies that you lick! ( No idea, what they are called in Eng. ) They last long and you'll be asking " oh god, how can these be legal??? ".

And something to drink is a MUST. You will get cotton mouth (dry mouth) and you will feel like there is a desert in your mouth. Drinking is the only solution, so bring fresh juice with ya! Or limonade, whatever you prefer. Even alcoholic beverages will do, if you like their taste.

Uhh... bong, vape, cakes or a joint?? The intaking preparations stage.

There won't be much here, because I will narrow it down only to two of these options, and explain the two others shortly for why I did not include them.

Rolled Joint
This is most commonly used form of smoking perhaps. Unfortunately, it can get quite heavy for your lungs, and it also wastes lot of THC for it. But that's not as bad as you may want to think.

It is the most "chilled out" method of enjoying cannabis honestly. Always dreamed of doing the "traditional" "Puff, puff, exhale &/ pass "? I knew it. This is the way. It gives you lot of time and no pressure. Thought, you must keep the smoke a few secs in your lungs and let the THC come into your body.

As for how much at one time, it really depends honestly. I prefer to only take little at a time. Test it out and see how it works for you!

Read others guides for how to roll a joint. And for dosage, 50/50 with tobacco and cannabis is what I prefer. Too much tobacco will make it harder to smoke and even 50% is considerably a lot. Esp. for non-cigarette smokers.

Vaporizer AKA vape
This is the absolutely best way to smoke the stuff. And most expensive, perhaps...
Vapes are fairly priced, but they waste nearly no THC, unlike the Joint does 50% (as some claim).

Vape is pretty relaxed, safe and easy way of smoking. And good news for you - if you can't afford it, there is alternative way to make your own out of everday house materials!

[ame="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RhEGp7aD-qA"]A lightbulb vaporizer![/ame] And I strongly suggest of trying it out.

Bongs and edibles.

Bongs can get quite messy, and often either they waste your "first time high" or they just give you too intense experience. They waste less THC, and for experienced users, they are great alternative for joints! But for first timers, I can't recommend.

Edibles instead will give you easily the effect, but it lasts really long. And if you don't like the effect, it can be terrible for you. And you should prepare to have whole day nothing to do, if you choose it this way. The effect is not as intense, but you can get overdosed lot more easier honestly.

Edible is another way for beginners, especially to them who don't like idea of smoking and don't want to vape it up. But if you have nothing against smoking, try it rather.

Now, you are high. What to do? Oh what to do, dear god?

If you are sitting around your house, doing nothing, you will just get wrecked by the train of thoughts. So, unless you like sitting along with your thoughts, you should do something! And I have quite good ideas for you:

Music!
Your mind is lot more opened up to music. You will have a completely revamped experience with most of the songs, but try to listen to songs according to your mood.

And even better, you are lot more open to new kind of music! Open up your Spotify and look for Bob Marley or whatever you want to try out. Or the songs which beauty you did not recognize in the past!

Movies!
Another great thing is, that you will feel movies more realistic than ever. Later on, you should actually try going to a cinema and watch 3D movie ( NO HORRORS, YOU DON'T WANT THAT IN 3D AND HIGH unless you are highly experienced. You will be screaming like a sissy in that cinema and possibly cause trauma for yourself on whatever the movie was about. )

But, if you want suggestions; any "epic" movie will do just fine. Wanted always to watch 300 again? Go ahead. LOTRO? Oh boy, are you in for fun. Epic adventure movies always are the best. Don't waste your precious stoning time with some stoner movies such as Pineapple Express or that. ( If you really want to.. Harold and Kumar 1 / 2. Rest is too generic and has the same story always. )

And... there is always some room for the child inside you. Watch Moomins for example, or even Teletubbies. You won't believe how fun it can get. Never hold back the small child inside you when you are stoned. It's not embarrasing!

Do something creative!
Write your thoughts down. Press Gmod.exe. Open photoshop. Create your own music. WHATEVER!

You won't probably be making any better stuff than when you were sober - you need some natural talent for that stuff. But cannabis can help you to get into touch with that talent.

But, even if it does not exist, you'll appreciate it still a lot for what you have done, so no worries!

Read a book!
Yes, kids, reading can be fun! ( I love that phrase )

Reading while stoning is a whole new experience. Your imagination will do wonders with that clumsy text on some random book. Trust me here.

But read something epic or happy, don't go and read Mein Kampf while high.. you don't want to relate too much with that......

Sports? Why not?
Sports while high can be just as fun as anything else. But please, keep in mind, you should not go mountain biking or climbing or anything alike on your first try. You need to get into touch with cannabis and know how well you can perform under the effects!

So, do something easy and fun. Football, frisbee, basketball. Your performance won't be probably better than sober, but it's still healthy!

( However, gym is a controversial thing. I don't recommend to go there while you are stoned for the first time. )


Last saved for the best; Making love.

This is probably the sweetest thing to do while you are stoning, making love with your companion!

But few things;

If you are a virgin, I can't recommend having sex. Feel free to try, but you should explore your sexual side with your companion while you are sober.

If you are a guy, you should know that some guys can't get a boner while stoned, while others can't get their boner down while stoned. It's relatively easy to find out which group (if even one of those two) you belong to.

And always remember, don't take yer pants straight off. Essence of healthy and great sex is the intimacy.

And for most pleasant experience; it's always better for both partners to be stoned, but don't force your partner to smoke against his/her will just because of that. And don't force it for any other sake either, actually.

Great! Thanks for the info! Any other tips?

Yes, in fact I do have!

Explore your mind while you are stoned;
This is a great way to get to know yourself. Think of your relations between other people, think of who you are and think of ways to improve your life.

Cannabis is a great way to seek answers that your mind already holds.

If you decide to try your first time with someone else.
You can get into akward situations.

Your friend asks you to play some music, and you put something on. He does not like it. He wants his own music, and you don't like it.

This is why, you should get a friend that has likes same kind of movies as you do, or activities and music for that matter.

You may find the medical purposes also suprisingly.
This herb has solid roots in history for it's medical usage for lot of things.

And thus, for example, if you have chronic migraine or troubles while sleeping, it can actually be quite a cure for it, you would be surprised.

Even if you were for the recreational use, this can be quite a nice suprise along it.

Remember, decensy for the sake of everyone!
I can't stress it enough, that there is lot of misuse for cannabis, and often, these people are the reasons behind the controversial legal status.

If you are under 20 of age, your brain has not been yet fully developed and thus, you MUST use it with caution. If you smoke cannabis on a daily basis, you can easily get bored to the high for example. And you can develop lot easier a psychological addiction along the lines as well.

And not to mention, your serotonin levels might also become unstable with heavy smoking, especially in that age. And serotonin is associated with panic attacks and depression. This specific unstability will cause you to be depressed at all times except the onset after smoking. ( Not sure exactly about how curable it is, but anti-depressants probably can help with it. )

After 20, the risks are lot less dangerous, but I can't say it's safe to use it recklessly even then.

Bottomline: Use cannabis to improve your life, not to destroy it! There is never a limit to caution or safety taken when it comes to any psychoactive substance!

And enjoy your smoke! Infact, have a nice day!