You may need to help your boyfriend quit smoking weed if you want something better out of your relationship. Where addiction is concerned, it’s important to take a careful approach while providing help. You want to make sure you’re helping your loved one with the weed addiction in the best possible way.

This article is your comprehensive guide to help your boyfriend quit smoking weed. Here, we’ll explore the symptoms of weed addiction and how to discuss the topic with your boyfriend.

What to do to Help Boyfriend Quit Smoking Weed

It’s difficult for smokers to stop smoking without external help or influence. Helping smokers quit their addiction is a sensitive role fit for family, friends or partners. Romantic partners, in particular, often have the strongest role to play. The basic idea about relationships is growing together, and one way to do that is to help your boyfriend quit smoking weed.

Most people claim weed smoking has advantages like boosting creativity at their jobs or careers. Others say it helps them relax. However, smoking weed comes with many mental, physical and emotional side effects. In time, it’ll start to weigh on your relationship.

If you’re in such a position and want to help your boyfriend stop smoking weed, there are steps to follow. You need to know the symptoms to look out for, how to approach the issue with the person and the ideal addiction recovery program.

Identifying Marijuana Abuse

The euphoric effects of using marijuana make it addictive and difficult to quit, even when it negatively affects the abuser. The following symptoms are indicators your boyfriend has weed addiction problems.

Social Changes

Marijuana abuse may come with certain changes in your partner’s social lifestyle. Your boyfriend may now have a disinterest in previous friends or hobbies. They may start to pick up questionable new habits.

For instance, contemporary weed smoking culture currently has a connection to the Rastafarian lifestyle, pictures of a marijuana leaf, and a particular dress pattern. Your boyfriend may start getting items that carry any of these signs or a new dress pattern that reeks of unseriousness.

Such weed-induced changes can affect a relationship negatively because the other party may not be down with it. However, instead of replying aggressively, you need to calmly talk things over with your loved one. They may be going through a difficult phase that requires tender care and attention.

Academic or Employment Struggles

Research shows marijuana abuse is dominant among Canadian youths, and it’s steadily on the increase. Your boyfriend may be struggling with his academics or job, which may be a sign of constant marijuana abuse.

Marijuana use affects a person’s thinking and coordination abilities, causing problems with sensitive tasks. For instance, the person may have difficulties understanding simple explanations during lectures in school.

Weed smoking reduces a person’s IQ and may cause your boyfriend to have problems at his job. He may have difficulty executing office tasks, making him a weak link in the team. These problems can be destructive, and it’s a major reason to help your boyfriend quit smoking weed.

Reduced Cognitive and Physical Abilities

Excess weed abuse affects a person’s ability to collect and retain information. Marijuana alters how the hippocampus (a part of the brain responsible for memory formation) processes information. If your boyfriend has problems retaining information, it may be a sign they’re smoking weed excessively.

As people age, the neurons in the hippocampus lessens, affecting the ability to learn new information. Long-term exposure to THC may speed-up age-related loss of hippocampal neurons, causing information processing and retention problems. It’s an important reason to get your boyfriend to stop smoking weed.

Legal Troubles

Residing in a province yet to approve marijuana use can cause your boyfriend to have one or two cop cases, now and then. The cops may arrest him for using the drug without a prescription, causing him to face possible jail terms.

Smoking weed affects the frontal cortex, the part of the brain responsible for decision-making. Therefore, recurrent weed-related problems with the law may be a sign of constant marijuana abuse. You have to help your loved one down the road to recovery.

Restlessness

Cannabis abuse comes with many symptoms, including a change in behaviour and personality. Smoking weed may cause your boyfriend to become restless. If your boyfriend suddenly becomes mostly restless, it’s time to get him help.

Financial Issues

Financial and legal issues go hand-in-hand with marijuana abuse. Weed dependency can cause an individual to go any length to purchase it. Some people may borrow and never get to pay it back. Others may go to the extent of stealing to ensure they get ‘high.’ These are all situations that can lead to serious financial problems.

Approaching and Discussing the Issue with Your Boyfriend

The first aspect of how to help your boyfriend quit smoking weed is your manner of approach. Talking to your partner forcefully or in a harsh tone will only complicate things. You must understand the person’s mood before raising such a topic.

Like most drugs, the euphoric feeling that weed provides makes it difficult to quit using it. The smoker may feel they can’t cope without the drug. It may be difficult to convince such a person. Therefore, it’s important to start the discussion on a tender note. You don’t want to lose your partner’s audience because it’s the main element you need to help him.

Even when you get your boyfriend to listen, you have to present the topic in a manner that won’t irritate him. It may be a good idea to invite one family member or friend to help you remind him of the way things were before he started smoking.

You can convince him that his dreams and plans are still valid, and he can achieve all of them. Try to make him understand that weed smoking ruins your relationship and has many negative effects, including deteriorating health.

Related Article: What Happens When You Quit Smoking Weed

Tips To Help Your Boyfriend Stop Smoking Weed

Stopping marijuana abuse isn’t a one-day journey. Your boyfriend needs to consistently observe multiple practices to stop marijuana abuse without suffering a relapse. Here’s how you can help

Discourage Him From Purchasing It

As the closest person to your boyfriend, you can help him quit smoking weed by advising him to stop purchasing it. He may feel a strong urge to restock once his stash is down. But, you can encourage him to do the right thing using your position as the special person in his life.

You can distract your boyfriend by talking to him and advising him to go out with non-smoking friends. He can also partake in fun activities that don’t involve getting ‘high.’

Rid His Apartment of Triggers

Triggers can be anything that makes a former smoker want to pick up his old smoking habit. Triggers can include ashtray, lighters, and other kits that make smoking weed easier and “fun.” Since triggers can make your boyfriend regress in his recovery, it’s important to clear the house of such accessories.

Some smoking accessories may be expensive or hold a sentimental value. Your boyfriend can give such accessories away to avoid seeing them every day.

Help Him Avoid Idleness

Idleness is a major factor that contributes to smoking weed. When a person has nothing to do, the brain tends to tilt towards relaxation options, like sleeping. For weed smokers, the next thought is usually getting high.

To avoid such issues, you can advise your boyfriend to pick a hobby that he loves. He can engage in his new hobby anytime he’s done with work or idle and likely to smoke. This hobby can help take his mind away from smoking.

Be His Support System

When your boyfriend is trying to quit smoking weed, he needs all the help he can get. Generally, people need to have a person they can reach out to in critical situations. You have to be that person for your boyfriend at this point.

Your communication lines need to be reachable at all times. Sometimes he may just need to hear your voice for reassurance that he’s doing the right thing.

Treatment Programs To Help Your Boyfriend Quit Smoking Weed

After you convince your boyfriend to stop smoking weed, the next step is suggesting marijuana addiction treatment programs to combat the issue. Depending on the severity of the issue, he may either have to stay in an inpatient treatment facility or outpatient treatment program.

Detoxification

Detox is the curative removal of toxic substances from the human body. The detox process may come with intense side effects for intense weed addiction issues. Consequently, your boyfriend may be scared of detox, which may hinder him from going for it.

You need to remind him it’s a medically supervised process, making it one of the safest approaches. The medical expert in charge may also prescribe some drugs to make the whole process easier.

Inpatient Treatment Program

As the name suggests, the inpatient treatment program consists of intense and overall medical care 24/7. This type of treatment program is best for severe weed addiction cases. Your boyfriend will have to stay within the confines of the facility until treatment becomes significantly effective.

Typically, the inpatient treatment program lasts for about 30 to 90 days or as scheduled by the medical professional. This treatment type also costs more than outpatient programs due to the facility’s running costs. However, it’s also very effective in combating weed addiction.

Your loved one will have to sacrifice that period so he can get better. You may need to convince him to undergo the treatment strongly. Assure him that he’ll get better by the time he concludes treatment and be with him every step of the way.

Outpatient Treatment Program

The outpatient program is more suitable for people with jobs that don’t want a disruption in their daily routines. The outpatient treatment program also costs less, but it has a major disadvantage.

Smokers who maintain their normal daily routine risk a relapse because they still get to meet with their plugs and smoker friends, all of which are triggers. However, it doesn’t nullify the effectiveness of the treatment plan. The major component of most outpatient treatment programs is group therapy sessions which can guide your boyfriend to stop smoking.

Negative Effects of Weed Addiction

It’s essential to help your boyfriend quit smoking weed due to the numerous negative effects. See some of these effects below:

Memory Problems

Depending on how much weed your boyfriend smokes, he may experience problems with his memory as time passes. When a person consumes weed, it affects how their brain operates. Weed may cause the brain to stop forming new memories and picking up recent information.

Erectile Dysfunction

Medical experts suggest that smoking weed may affect a man’s libido negatively. Excessive smoking may inhibit erectile tissue receptors, causing the body to respond weakly to sexual urges.

Also, men who smoke weed chronically may have difficulty reaching orgasm during sex with their partners. In other cases, some chronic smokers can have problems getting a proper erection.

Mental Health

Your loved one is at risk of mental health problems, especially if he started smoking at a young age.

Other Health Issues

Part of the reasons you need to help your boyfriend quit smoking weed is the several health effects it carries. A smoker’s lungs and small blood vessels suffer damage quickly due to the elements in the smoke entering the body system. The smoke from weed has carcinogens, irritants and other dangerous toxins that can shorten lifespan.

Related Article: What is the Easiest Way to Quit Smoking Weed?

Final Thoughts

Your relationship gets better when you help your boyfriend quit smoking weed. It’s all about how you table the discourse. It’s important to plan your approach properly to avoid ruining the chances of discussing the issue with him again.

Start by explaining the adverse effects of smoking weed on your relationship — as discussed above.

Once he succumbs, you can tell him about the different treatment plans that can help him get better. Suggest to him that the earlier he commences treatment, the faster his body recovers from the negative effects.

Our specialists at Inspire Change Wellness Centre can design a unique marijuana recovery plan for your boyfriend. Call us today to discuss your options!