Monday, December 6, 2010

Cannabis and Severe Vomiting


Pot can make you puke.

For those of you who missed this, as I did, here is a belated account of a rare but altogether curious side effect of heavy marijuana use: cyclical vomiting.

Nice, eh? And yes, it goes completely against the grain of what we think we know about marijuana: Ironically, cannabis is frequently employed to prevent the nausea and vomiting frequently associated with chemotherapy.

So what gives? The answer is that, so far, nobody really knows.

First things first: It appears to be a very rare side effect of regular marijuana use, and it was not documented in the medical literature until 2004. Given the long history of pot-smoking the world over, it is reasonable to ask where the cannabis emesis syndrome has been hiding all these years.  A fair question, but one which, at this stage, has no satisfying answer.

Cannabinoid hyperemesis, as it's known, was first brought to wider attention earlier this year by the anonymous biomedical researcher who calls himself Drugmonkey. Posting on his eponymous blog, Drugmonkey documented cases of hyperemesis that had been reported in Australia and New Zealand, as well as Omaha and Boston in the U.S.

"There were two striking similarities across all these cases," Drugmonkey reported. "The first is that patients had discovered on their own that taking a hot bath or shower alleviated their symptoms. So afflicted individuals were taking multiple hot showers or baths per day to obtain symptom relief. The second similarity is, as you will have guessed, they were all cannabis users."

Heavy, regular cannabis users, most of them. And hot baths? Where did THAT come from?

More evidence was not long in coming. In February, researchers in the Division of Gastroenterology at William Beaumont Hospital in Royal Oak, Michigan, identified eight patients in their gastroenterology wards who were suffering from "otherwise unexplained refractory, recurrent vomiting." As the researchers reported in the journal Digestive Diseases and Sciences, there were two other significant features the eight patients shared: They were all chronic cannabis smokers--and they were all compulsive bathers.

The connection between uncontrolled vomiting and heavy toking seemed unequivocal: "Four out of five patients who discontinued cannabis use recovered from the syndrome," according to the published report, "while the other three patients who continued cannabis use, despite recommendations for cessation, continued to have this syndrome."

There is precious little anecdotal evidence to support this surprising finding. Occasionally, naive marijuana smokers will ingest too much and become sick to their stomach. And it is possible to incur the (brief) wrath of cyclic vomiting by eating way too many marijuana brownies, or other cannabis foodstuffs. Short of that, I am not familiar with vomiting as a documented side effect of regular cannabis use, and I venture to guess that most readers aren't, either.

However, the reports haven't stopped. This summer, an intriguing account appeared in Clinical Correlations, the official blog of New York University's Division of General Internal Medicine. Sarah A. Buckley and Nicholas M. Mark, 4th year medical students at the NYU School of Medicine, speculated on the cannabis hyperemesis phenomenon, and offered a formal definition: "A clinical syndrome characterized by intractable vomiting and abdominal pain associated with the unusual learned behavior of compulsive hot water bathing, occurring in the setting of long-term heavy marijuana use."

After reviewing 16 published papers on the syndrome, Buckley and Mark asked the obvious question: "How can marijuana, which is used in cancer clinics as an anti-emetic, cause intractable vomiting? And why would symptoms abate in response to high temperature?"

One possible mechanism involves marijuana's penchant for fats. Theoretically, this "lipophilicity" could cause increasingly toxic concentrations of THC over time, in susceptible people. "The abdominal pain and vomiting are explained by the effect of cannabinoids on CB-1 receptors in the intestinal nerve plexus," they write, "causing relaxation of the lower esophageal sphincter and inhibition of gastrointestinal motility." The authors speculate that low doses of THC might be anti-emetic, whereas in certain people, the high concentrations produced by long-term use could have the opposite effect.

As for the hot baths, Buckley and Mark note that "cannabis disrupts autonomic and thermoregulatory functions of the hippocampal-hypothalamic-pituitary system," which is loaded with CB-1 receptors. The researchers conclude, however, that the link between marijuana and thermoregulation "does not provide a causal relationship" for what they refer to as "this bizarre learned behavior."

These questions, like many questions having to do with regular marijuana use, are not likely to be answered definitively anytime soon, for a number of good reasons, some of which are delineated by the authors:

--"The legal status of marijuana makes eliciting an accurate drug history challenging."

--"The bizarre hot water bathing is likely often attributed to psychological conditions such as obsessive-compulsive behavior."

--"The knowledge of the anti-emetic effects of cannabis likely disguise cases of cannabinoid hyperemesis, leading to the erroneous belief that cannabis is treating cyclic vomiting rather than causing it."

--"The fact that this syndrome is so recently described and relatively unknown outside an esoteric subset of the GI [gastrointestinal] literature means that most clinicians are unaware of its existence."


58 comments:

Anonymous said...

Talking about f...ed up things! Nonsense like this and other scare tactics are partially responsible for the incarceration of thousands of Americans. Stop giving our somewhat stupid lawmakers and voters silly info. that simply is not true. 60 years of use and I've never had a side effect other then becoming a bit tired!

Dirk Hanson said...

I'm a journalist, I didn't do the research, and I don't have a betting interest in the outcome. Unless you are accusing me of specific inaccuracies, your beef is with the researchers, not me.

rachelrachel said...

A friend of mine used to vomit when he was smoking pot and drinking booze at the same time. Either one alone didn't do it to him, but the combination did.

Unknown said...

@StartlingSmith:

Dude, calm down. No one is trying to use scare tactics or take your weed away. This syndrome is real, it is discussed in a medical diagnosis book I just read called "Every Patient Tells A Story." I think it's fascinating. In the book, the patient reacts with similar paranoid disbelief and anger, and refuses treatment. I myself enjoy a jazz cigarette from time to time, doesn't mean I can't believe in the existence (albeit rare) of a weed intolerance syndrome. People's bodies are different. Open your mind a bit, a toke might help. ;)

Unknown said...

It has been postulsted that this mechanism is in fact...cannabis withdrawal. Symptoms occur after a period of abtenence overnight. If this was cannabis toxicity, one would expect the symptoms to coincide with peak blood level of THC rather than at a trough level. The showering, always with hot water, increases blood flow to the skin and subcutaneous fat and as a result increases blood THC levels from that stored in subcutaneous fat. It will settle with abstenence as any withdrawal syndrome does!

Anonymous said...

Hey everyone who reads this.... Its true! My boyfriend and I were potheads to the max! day in and day out. He was a pothead for 10years straight and me only four. He was hopitalized three times in 6months for excessive vomitting but everytime it went undiagnosed. he had mulitple extensive gi testing and everything kept coming back perfect and no doctors or anyone could explain this and when he would bring up the fact he was a regular user they would ignore him by stating "No. Pot relieves nausea." till november when he was hospitalized for 5days straight and once again it went w out diagnosis. finally his mom found an artical on the internet and told him to read about cannibanoid hyperemesis. He looked it up in the hospital bed on his phone and while we read it together it dawned on both of us and we said "F*** no way! weed is doing this! we couldnt believe it but it was true, sad but true(we love weed). The bathing the uncontrolable vomitting and the severe abdominal cramping was text book to his symptoms. He has then since quit our joyous habbit and no more puking! it was exactly weed... It is on the rise because it doesnt come from just a casual smoker it comes from long term abuse of the substance... use it but dont abuse it...

MageYouLook said...

This is actually really simply explained. Education of scientists and even doctors is really years behind in education about the human body.

cannabis acts on the neurotransmitter dopamine. Dopamine plays a role in regulating nausea. So low dopamine causes nausea. Chronic cannabis users will undergo downregulation of their dopamine production since dopamine resources are in excess from externally adding cannabis into the system.

As you build a tolerance the high you experience lasts less time as well as inhibiting your ability to get relief from smoking(without needing more and more). So before all the effects seem to be over you will experience the lack of dopamine causing increased nausea while seemingly still under some or all of the other effects of weed.

MageYouLook said...

also the bathing helps because dopamine is released anytime there is any kind of reward.

So naturally any novelty increases dopamine. Going from not submerged in warm water to being submerged in warm water stimulates your whole body at once.

Taking a warm bath was something i did to relieve these symptoms too. I was well aware of this before doing it though haha.

Another interesting note is that bathing as well only works for a short period of time. once the novelty wears off and you adjust to the water the problems will come back. It helps a lot to deal with the symptoms when they become overwhelming though. Such as depression called from really heavy use and withdrawl.

My experience i was high for about 4-5 months for like 12 hours a day.

it took maybe about a week to return to a pretty normal level.

I bet it would be about the same time for any chronic users.

Some great advice is to only use weed for antinausea in small amounts and only when necessary. this allows your body to regulate itself properly since there will be minimal outside influence.

Anonymous said...

I seldom leave comments on blog, but I have been to this post which was recommend by my friend, lots of valuable details, thanks again.

Anonymous said...

Listen, doubters. My son has this. He has been cyclical vomiting and spending hours in boiling hot baths since last Autumn. It's getting worse and he has lost a hell of a lot of weight. He is 21 and an addicted, heavy cannabis user who started at 15. He has tried cutting down but every other joint of weed brings on the obsession. He refuses to co operate with medical staff who try to treat him.
He has been taken to numerous hospitals as an emergency for non-stop vomiting and begs medical staff to let him sit in a very hot bath. They try the best anti-vomiting drugs instead, to no effect, and then some let him go in a hot shower for an hour plus. He always ends up on a drip and as soon as he feels well enough, discharges himself, often the same day.
At the weekend he went to a sports event in the city with friends, realised on the way he was going to have an episode, so left friends and blagged his way into a hotel room and locked himself in. Police were called and got him out of a boiling hot bath against his will. Cue vomiting attack so bad police called ambulance. Once again discharged himself from hospital, demanding drip be removed or he would do it himself. Has sat in bath at house he shares with girlfriend for at least 12 hours today, she tells me. She says water is so hot she has no idea how he bears it.
He says he has no pain in stomach, just a sensation that drives his head mad and he KNOWS it will not go, or the vomiting stop, until he gets in boiling hot bath and stays there.
He has even done this while abroad on holiday and ended up on a drip before being flown home.
All of this is true. A mother.

Anonymous said...

Yeah. It's a lot more common than you might think. Attaching a name to the syndrome allows docs to recognize the pattern.

Anonymous said...

Subsequently, after spending many hours on the internet at last We've uncovered an individual that definitely does know what they are discussing many thanks a great deal wonderful post

Anonymous said...

23 / M / Smoked for 7 years, Defiantly explane a lot, Just been thinking about things recently, looking up cannabis and find this I wasn't even drawing the link!!!!! it could well be very true I wonder what it is? its a Crying shame the legal status of cannabis, there needs to be much =more research on this and much more on cannabis. I I'am going to stop smoking as much, it lowers your inhibition and decreases learning rate and memory. 7 YEARS pfffft. Just got blazed to.... 420...

Anonymous said...

i have been a heavy user of cannibas for about 12 years and every single symptom including the hot bathing explains my case perfectly. it may not affect all long term users but in my case this is the only thing that even comes close to explaining my illness. to those who doubt nothing absolutley nothing that the docs prescribed or shot me full of worked. Getting off the shit has brought it to an abrupt stop. I hold a firm belief that the amount of shit that goes into pot tese days also doesnt help. So if you suffer these symptoms ignore the doubtrs getting off wacky weed WILL stop it in its tracks!!!!!!

Spence said...

I'm a 21 year old male and have been smoking pot for about 2 years now. Started smoking very low grade pot and then after about 6 months I moved onto chronic and started smoking everyday, more than once a day. I only ever smoked joints and would smoke 3 a day on average, often more.

For the past year, at least twice a month, I will be awakened by unbearable stomach cramps and then vomiting for about 2 hours. The strangest thing is that it happens at 6am every time I have an episode.

For the past 2months now I've only been smoking indoor, and 5 days ago i admitted myself into hospital because the vomiting and nausea were so persistent. I'm back home now, with having nothing surgically wrong with me- according to scopes and x-rays. So its been 4 days clean of pot and the vomiting and nausea is still the end of me.

Does anyone know why the vomiting and cramps start at 6am, like clockwork. And if this is definitely directly related to the use of pot?

Thanks

Unknown said...

In reply to Spence:

The only other thing I can imagine could be making you vomit like clockwork at 6am would be a severe undiagnosed food allergy. I saw a program where a young man would vomit every morning and have severe cramps for a couple of years before figuring out that he had a severe casein allergy (milk protein) as a result of eating pizza for almost every meal. It might be worth getting a blood allergy panel to rule out that you have developed a severe allergy to something in your diet. Good luck!

Anonymous said...

@Spence
Maybe it's due to what "MageYouLook" said, about dopamine. Maybe during the day you're doing things that increase your dopamine levels like moving around and eating stuff you enjoy and when you're sleeping you're not getting these increases so it hits you worse in the morning. Just a guess.

Anonymous said...

I took 2 very strong pot brownies a couple nights ago and became so high that I began puking later that night, and then again in the morning. I had just chalked it up to the psychosomatic symptoms of seeing the matrix, but in any case I feel better now despite the bizarre experience of vomiting while being extremely stoned.

Anonymous said...

Wow this hits home for me. My husband is experiencing the puking, hot baths, and plenty of pot smoking right now. He suffered with this for 10 years and was fine for awhile when he was not smoking but now he is smoking again and suffering this very thing again. This past year we have both been smoking several times per day. I experienced this episode for about a 12 hour period but then quickly recovered. My husband on the other hand is suffering with this horribly right now. He like many others has been in and out of the hospital with no diagnosis. It is puzzling. I sit here tonight depressed that he is so sick so I google "chronic puking" and find all of this. It is right on what I am witnessing and have witnessed in the past. I never would believe marijuana would do this but in reality it doesn't unless you abuse it. I would like to bring more awareness to this because this has stolen over 10 years of my husband's life and is now affecting our family. I have not had anyone but his mother to talk about this to because it is so bizarre what he was doing. We thought the marijuana was helping him eat but in reality it is causing all this.

Anonymous said...

im a 18 y/male.
im not a heavy pot smoker, I use to smoke a bit when i was 13/14ish but decided i wouldn't do it anymore, but between then and not so long ago i'd have the odd toke. I actually became body stoned one night after being offered a sesh, both of our faults but where extended family anyway so I knew was safe...anyway I started getting strobe like vision and that grad. went faster. my heart was beating harder n faster and it got hotter. I went inside to get a drink, but the effects got worse so i laid on the mattress hoping it'll wear off but no. about 5-7 mins later the crew came inside and found me murmuring (coz i couldn't talk properly no matter how much i tried) and I had chucked up all of dinner (which was really nice, such a waste). i was fully body stoned and i hated every moment of being in the state that i was...I could hear perfectly, my speech was better after spewing up a bit. lesson learnt big time...i fully understand how weed is illegal in most countries if not becoming.

Anonymous said...

Have any of you who have quit smoking marijuana because of this started smoking again? If so after how long did you start and have you felt any of these symptoms? I love weed and really want to return to smoking but not if im going to go through the same unbearable pain. :,(

Anonymous said...

This is real.... I'm stuck in the hospital with my little dumbass nephew for the second time in 6 months cause he won't stop smokin it? He does not believe the docs... Little idiot

Anonymous said...

This is very real for those of us who suffer from this condition. I have been a heavy daily user since I was twelve years old. I am now 50. Until now I smoked every two to four hours daily.
I have been having episodes of vomiting for the last 2years. Numerous hospitalizations and frequent trips to the ER have been the norm. I do get some relief from showering but it is only temporary. I have had so many xrays, cat scans, ultrasounds, Dysydia scan endoscopy and many more i cant recall
I was diagnosed about 6 months ago but didn't quit until
yesterday. I am hopeful quiting will resolve the symptoms.

Anonymous said...

I sit in an emerg room with my 18 year old son as I write this. He has had 5 episodes of violent vomitting over the last year which could not be relieved with conventional methods. In each case, we required a visit to the hospital. The nurse this evening mentioned cannabinoid hyperemesis syndrome. While waiting, I did some Internet research. This explains everything we have been dealing with over the past year. He states he is quitting, as feeling like this is not worth it...we shall see.

Dirk Hanson said...

I'm very glad this information is getting out, so that people like you can find it when you go looking to make sense of these confusing symptoms.

Ryan Walsh said...

Im going through this right now.

Here is my story.

I got fired from a job right before christmas. And I was pretty sad about it. Moved out of my place, shacked up with one of my buddies who sells weed.

So of course, there was alot of weed to be smoked along with some really good oil'

For 2 months, and being on EI. I did fuck all but play world of tanks mostly and smoke weed or oil.

I found the oil to be really strong almost every hoot you were coughing. but soon the caughing became gaging. and when sometimes I cough I had vomitted alittle in my mouth. This happened 3-4 times.

So.. I wasnt really eating well at all. maybe one a day sometimes' and my stomach would hurt. and this progressed. But the weed made me feel better. although i stopped smoking oil. I decided weed was less gaging and vomiting

My sleeping patterns become out of control as well. during the night im smoking alot, doing blades to be specific.

some days i wouldnt get more than 3-4 hours sleep. although still feeling tired.

After leaving my friends place becuause I was getting soo wound up. Although he wished for me to stay. I had to leave..

So. Next day when I left, I didnt smoke at all. my stomach feeling really sich and painful. My throat feels vary condensed. Very tickelly at back of throat. Lots of Flemish through out the day.

My eyes sometimes get watery. and have been tearing up alot on and off weed.

My pooping has really slowed down. Even when I feel I need to poop im not pooping except farting. Obviously bloated.

But im pooping very little.

So, I have been having hard time trying to sleep. Along with sudden bursts of rough coughing and abit of headache and feel a slight swollen at the eyes. watery'

past 2 days. I only had 1 joint. Ive noticed getting alot of heartburn too. After when I cough there is Flem which i spit out.. not sure if that helps.

My head dose feel little clouded.

And I have been getting excessive chills. And the baths kinda help but, then I getting to hot!

So tonight im thinking about remedies. or natural ones.

Im thinking my immune system is very low right now. becuase of the excessive chills. I believe this is triggering something in the brain for the body to react in this way. I think the build up of resin in my system is not helping this at all.

Although. tonight, feeling those chills. I decided to boil hot water. And sure enough it helps, even with the caughing. And I feel slightly less chilled'

I plan to go buy a cleansing kit to remove alot of the toxins, in hopes of recovery at this stage. And will look into vitamins as well to boost my immune system to fight off the asphixiation from smoking weed. or like rumors suggest' swollowing smoke that may have also triggered this unbalance.

And alot of my muscles feel tense escpecially around my neck area from coughing badly.

I hope its a simple fix as boosting the immune system for your system to get back on track and heal damaged areas.

Also my eating habits have decrease dramatically. Im 5'8. 230 pound guy. Today I only had a small sub. ate half of it at lunch and the rest of it for supper.

Im thinking a cleansing kit will do the trick along with a good 30 minute job. which i probably will only do 5 minutes of.

Either way I think the system is down and you need to boost/ recharge it'

You definently have to really slow it down.

Ryan Walsh said...

Also. Becuase im not pooping, and am bloated. I feel my stomach making grumbling and shifting around.
when I fart feels good. but at same time it feels like I want to poop. The feeling of poopin is just farting. I cant tell if its a fart or if im going to poop.

So at this point I think I need a reliever. So I will use a Laxative to test if this helps.



So a bunch of things im going to try. for real quick relief'

Vitamins - To boost immune system
Laxative - To help me shit and remove things that are making me feel sick.
Cleaning Kit - To cleans the body of garbage and toxins.
working out (*45mins a day)- to help sweat out and strengthen ur body.

Ryan Walsh said...

Also another thing I should mention is that I have been feeling really thirsty. Even when I drink alot. Mouth is super dry.

Ryan Walsh said...

Also!!! Might I add that "HALLS" coughing supplement seemed to make my cough less. Also try putting tiger balm may help with the harsh caughing. if you put it on your chest and throat.

Jhonny cozza said...

Hi im an 18 italian boy and i am a heavy cannabis smoker for 4 years and from 2 years i have these terrible syptmoms..
I have been hospitalized like 4 time from last christmas to now,the last was on last monday.. I have all the syptmoms excluding the compulsive bath beahavior(maybe beacuse i never tried).
I really want to thank all of you peeps beacuse now i know what my problem is,and i'll not create any more worries and problems to my parents..
I smoked like 17 bongs a day but from last thursday(the day after my last episode) i quitted with thoose and i started smoking 1 joint a day,is it still too much?
What do you think about that? Should i quit At all? I think so,but i hope not..
Wait answers.
This blog has been one of the best discovers for me,that i can't talk to my parents about my weed passion,and they still don't know anything about my "health problem".

Thank you again. ;)

Jhonny cozza said...

Hi im an 18 italian boy and i am a heavy cannabis smoker for 4 years and from 2 years i have these terrible syptmoms..
I have been hospitalized like 4 time from last christmas to now,the last was on last monday.. I have all the syptmoms excluding the compulsive bath beahavior(maybe beacuse i never tried).
I really want to thank all of you peeps beacuse now i know what my problem is,and i'll not create any more worries and problems to my parents..
I smoked like 17 bongs a day but from last thursday(the day after my last episode) i quitted with thoose and i started smoking 1 joint a day,is it still too much?
What do you think about that? Should i quit At all? I think so,but i hope not..
Wait answers.
This blog has been one of the best discovers for me,that i can't talk to my parents about my weed passion,and they still don't know anything about my "health problem".
I can't write my name,i don't know why,anyway for the answers Its JHONNY.
Thank you again. ;)


Dirk Hanson said...

I don't know if any cases where this disorder went away on its own. It's like being weirdly allergic to weed. If you're going to get sick when you smoke, then it's time to stop smoking.

Jhonny cozza said...

i mean...the article talks about heavy weed smokers,if i smoke 1 J a day or 1 J evry 3\4 days is it consider heavy smoking? thank you

Anonymous said...

My husband finally got diagnosed with this syndrom last year after suffeting for three years. He started smoking in his teens and has been smoking for about 18 yrs. He cut back quite a bit and went almost an entire year without having a severe attack. While quitting altogether would be Your best bet it might not be necessary. I think the key is to figure out what your body can tolerate. If my husband smokes too much for too long he will get sick but if he keeps it in moderation he's fine. I would say cut back a LOT first and slowly see how much your body can handle. Good luck!

Anonymous said...

Well said. I like smoking but I've noticed the morning stomach pain and nausea. Every time I take a few weeks break from smoking, those side effects disappear until the next time I smoke heavily. 1 joint won't trigger them back, but frequent use will.

Anonymous said...

Omg, this is so spooky! I'm 32yrs/o I started smoking joints when I was 13 would always smoke loads and different, weed and hash.
I grew up in Amsterdam, I'm used to very high thc daily intake. I probably had one or two periods I'm my life when I quit for 3-6months
Always coughed loads when smoked, but no side effects, ever! Until I was about 27 when mad and uncontrollable coughing was causing me to puke sometimes. I have abdominal pains, lack of appetite and I smoke about 10 fags a day, drink regularly. Not heavy, maybe 3 cans a day (4.5%), everyday...
I also do take quite few hot showers in a day, not always soaping, just standing there. It's relaxing me, always thought it helps me dealing with stress. I did find this article very interesting. Maybe I should change my smoking habits...:(((

Anonymous said...

My 27 yr. Old daughter has had this same thing for around 6 months or so. Has went to emergency room 5 times in that period with severe vomiting and dehydration. Each time gets IVs and her potassium levels are low. Has no appetite, can't keep anything on her stomach sometimes, not even water. Is going days or a week or more at a time not being able to eat anything. She is a chronic pot smoker for 10 years, and will steady smoke non stop for hours on end. Also chronic bath taker. Sometimes gets in tub 4 or 5 times in a day and stays in for hours. She will get some better for a month or two, then the sickness starts again. Has lost tons of weight. First time hospital said it was stomach flu or virus, then urinary track infection. The strange thing is, she will get miraculously better, the 2 or 3 days later, she's sick again. Anybody out there with any comments on this would be appreciated.

Anonymous said...

I am a heavy marijuana user. I love it and fully support legalization. But I do suffer from everything described in this article. I don't want to quit because I love weed so much but its hurting me more and more. So no sir you are totally wrong. Maybe you aren't affected by this but others most certainly are.

Anonymous said...

I suffer from this condition and I too always wake up around 5 or 6 am w nausea. I think its because I smoke right before I go to sleep and while high the symptoms are lower. Not cured just masked. When my body sobers up I feel it and it wakes me up

Anonymous said...

Just get her to stop. Its tough and I haven't managed to yet but I've accepted that's the only way I'll get better

Anonymous said...

Normally i would never post on these but now I feel like i have to!!! This is very real!! I was just released from the hospital for a 3 day puking binge which they are saying is caused by excessive marijuana smoking. I have been smoking for 17 yrs and for the last 5-6 yrs have smoked 4 joints a day pretty much. I never in my wildest dreams would have thought weed would be the reason for me puking for the last 6 yrs with no answer!!! I have been hospitalized more times than I can count!! The puking for me comes out of nowhere, but usually when I haven't had much sleep. It always gets so violent and painful puking every 10 min to the point where I can't talk, or lie down, or even think! I've had hundreds of tests ran from MRIs to cat scans, GI scans, blood work, my gull bladder removed, pancreas tests, so many I can't remember and they all show nothing!!!!! Its so crazy! I have felt like a crazy woman for so long, and now even with a most likely answer I don't want to stop smoking. I love weed...more than most and I had thought smoking would make me feel better but obviously that's not the case! I am glad I might have an answer even if its not the one I want. I will be cutting back with the intent to stop...I'll let ya know if it works lol thinking about doing a detox as well to start :)

Anonymous said...

Also I do take excessive hot showers but I wasn't doing it to relieve any symptoms I just like it lol but maybe subconsciously I was...who knows?!?!?

Anonymous said...

Hi im a 41 yr old female from the uk, searching like all you for sickness within the context of MJ use.

Recently ive been permanently stoned after a trip to amsterdam, rekindling my love of the plant :-) So Ive been buying an 1/8 sometimes 3 times a week, at the bare minimum i think ive smoked half ounce a week for 3 months.

Im fine when im stoned/high/had a pull on a joint, but when i wake up the next day i heave and feel sick to my stomach! of course i feel better when ive had my first joint, or when ive had my morning hot shower!

What ive read here about it sounds right to be honest even though ive not experienced it to the severe extent some have.

Just more reasons to legalize it, more research pls!

Anonymous said...

I am too, and now can no longer smoke it. It is very definitely real.

Josie said...

make me #3 . And I'm only 17 . 7 years of smoking and suddenly I'm puking every morning from 5 am till seven. Still love pot just wish it didn't do this? Doesn't help it's the only thing to take the pain away as we'll

Anonymous said...

I learned of the existence of CHS the hard way a few years back in college after going to the hospital multiple times with nausea/constant vomiting they gave me some pink liquid to drink and pretty much every time I just ended up throwing up bile bc there was nothing left..as with others everything checked out no issues whatsoever or at least from what they could tell, I decided to research this myself and I found the medical studies that had been done overseas regarding CHS and it couldnt have been more spot on..started smoking at 13 im 26 now definitely qualify as a chronic chronic user lol no joke though CHS blows big time but its real..

Dirk Hanson said...

As you can see from this comment thread, it's real all right.

Anonymous said...

My brother has this. He's had it for around 5-7 years. In and out of the hospital with no doctors figuring out what's wrong with him. He's had CT scans, motility studies, ultrasounds etc., even had his gallbladder removed and surgery for sphincter of oddi dysfunction. But his symptoms still remain. He has been a chronic marijuana user for ~15 years. He is in denial that it's the marijuana because he doesn't understand why the syndrome would take so long to develop. His symptoms are classic: severe stomach pain and nausea and constant retching and vomiting and a compulsive need for hot baths, in a cyclic pattern. I'm not against marijuana, in fact it's helpful to many people, but you can't deny that in some people there is a very rare occurrence of toxicity and intolerance with chronic use. Look up all the case reports on PubMed! Medical literature people! I am a pharmacist and my mother a nurse and neither of us can convince my brother that CHS is the problem. I have an extensive knowledge of pharmacokinetics and pharmacodynamics and never learned about this syndrome while obtaining my doctorate, that's how rare it is. How do I wake my brother up from his denial?!

Unknown said...

God bless you marijuana has ruined my life ever time I get my period I throw up all the way till I get off the doctors told me its from the pot and it is I was fine in till I started smoking pot its a horrible feeling

Anonymous said...

This is a very real syndrome if you have you know it

Anonymous said...

I sometimes wretch in the morning which can make me sick, this is a decent explanation...outwardly discrediting a scientific study of any kind due to personal experiences is detrimental to science. Remember you can always have too much of anything that can disrupt the chemistry in your body and brain

Anonymous said...

I think it just goes along with the saying too much of anything is bad for you. Im 21 almost 22 and have smoked since I was 10. I have anxiety and smoking always helped but when I started heavily smoking at age 16, I was in my friends apartment and I got dizzy and ran outside vomiting everywhere. After that I slowed down and at age 20 quit and started taking prescribed anxiety medication but still struggled with my anxiety, I didnt start smoking until recently and a few weeks ago I was feeling nautious when I woke up, since then Ive slowed down and havent felt nautious. I think that its a very real condition but if you choose to smoke weed whether it be recreationally or for medical reasons just do it in moderation.

Anonymous said...

Juat wondering, are any of the people suffering from vomiting overweight? I know someone suffering from this who is overweight, very top heavy and has a gut, so just wondering if weight may also be playing a big factor

Dirk Hanson said...

I don't know the answer to that. I wonder whether there are any metabolic factors in common among people who suffer from this.

Anonymous said...

For those who dont believe this, its because of the way you guys smoke and how much you eat and exercise. I was smoking everyday for years, but i was consistently exercising or playing football so its impossible to feel any effects because the thc exists the system the more you sweat. Once i stopped playing sports and even sometimes smoked less than i used too i started getting nauseous in the mornings and couldn't eat for hours unless i smoked. My friends who are heavier smokers than also had the effects but much worse to the point where they went to a doctor.

The thing is we were smoking bongs thoughout the years whereas most older generation smokers who claim to be smoking for years smoke joints and where smoking a much softer grade of dope back then. Ive found that by exercising daily and drinking a shit ton of water (atleast 4L) a day will help within days. Ive never had it to the point where ive been puking for hours, but the nausea and weight loss is for real.

Anonymous said...

I smoked a lot as a teenager and stopped once in college. I used opiates heavily for years and stopped for obvious reasons, very painfully, about 6 months ago. So nearly 10 years later I start smoking pot again and In the last 4 months, by myself, I've smoked over 1/4 of a pound of some of the highest the content marijuana in all existence. I ran out a couple of days ago and suddenly became more ill than I have ever felt in my entire life. Couldn't eat for 3 days not a single bite. Puked every glass of water or any beverage I tried within a couple of hours. Can't speculate on a bath as I was truly too ill to leave bed so showering just wasn't going to happen. I'm still not feeling well as I write this but I did eat some soup and haven't thrown up yet. My advise is to not smoke all day every day for any reason. If you must smoke every day for some reason, keep it to a pipe every few hours don't just burn them down one after another especially if you have extreme high grade or pure shatter oil.

Anonymous said...

Simple dont smoke in the mornings. I used to wake and bake all the time but bong hits induce gag reflex. Then you lose what was left of your dinner

Unknown said...

Theres enough stories here which i believe to all be true. What's happening for some reason is one of the marijuana compounds messes with your hypothalamus. Its your brains themostat. While smoking being sick losing jobs and friends i noticed my temp was always low 97.1. The effects of a bad thermostat in the body have all the same side effects as this condition. Five days no bud and I'm running 98.1 to 99.1 and feeling better. Oh the fake shit spice gets at those same receptors and is realy not safe. I am so happy to have hope that i wont go through that hell again. I rather kick heroin. Yes its that bad. And Dr's no help. Talk to a pharmacist.. Good luck.

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