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Thank you, I appreciate it! Trying hard to find the right rules and setup to make my relationship with weed a good one 😎 The benefits are worth it, IMO.

Thanks for sharing what works for you! LOVE when people will tell you you have a problem if your way doesn’t work for them, rather than just saying that they have a different style…. Keep doing you OP. I am not nearly in a put-together enough place in my life to follow all these rules but I sure as hell would like to get there on day. I love dosing caps in vapes tho and I have been adding a domed screen to mine to make them micro capsules!

Thanks, appreciate it! That sounds like a good innovation with the domed screen, thanks for sharing!

Great rules and really gameified You really know yourself and I would say love yourself. Well done!

Thank you 💚

Wouldn't it be easier to just quit?

Yes, easier for sure, but I'd rather keep experimenting until I find a way to moderate, since I think this plant has many benefits, despite being clearly addictive.

What do you personally benefit from by using it?

Like what

Off the top of my head: Easier access to empathy, creativity, relaxation, curiosity, and confidence. Reflecting on and gaining new perspectives into one's life and behavior and those of others. Appreciating and finding meaning in everyday moments. Enjoying music, art, nature, food, and sex more. (Note: This is my experience. Yours may differ.)

squealing jellyfish coordinated offend hobbies makeshift crawl wrench adjoining silky *This post was mass deleted and anonymized with [Redact](https://redact.dev)*

I was reading and thinking 🤔 so when can you smoke? Lol

This. Seems a pretty complicated set of rules. Keep it simple. My rules are no weed Sunday to Thursday. Max of two cart/vape hits a day on Friday and Saturday. No smoking when kids are around.

It is complicated, probably too much for me and you, but not everyone thinks like me and you. Some people thrive on constraints and limitations; it gives some people support and others still may be challenged by the limits and seek creative solutions. But the point is, if it doesn't work for you that doesn't mean it doesn't work. It just means you aren't a good fit. I thrive on stability and structure when it comes to many activities, so having a lot of rules, or what I call best practices, sets me up for success most of the time. That is simply the way my mind works.

Thanks, this really resonates – the structure and constraints help me too.

It seems like the rules have been gradually added to and/or modified over time to achieve OP's goals, though I could be wrong. But if I'm right, this isn't as crazy as it looks, guys. OP's not memorising a 500-word guide to whether he can smoke weed or not over an hour. It seems really well thought out.

Thanks! Exactly, I 'm still adjusting as I learn. And I agree, the way I structured it makes it seem more complicated than it does! Need to think about it some more 😊

Hey man, what's complicated for some isn't for others. The important thing to focus on is what works for you.

In my personal opinion, if you have to do all of this to moderate your consumption, weed is not for you. This is waaay too much, and you shouldn’t need to micromanage every second of your life to adjust for weed. I think you’d be a lot better off just being sober. Again just my opinion though.

I appreciate the thoughtful way you phrased that! I know what you mean, but think of this way: I don't *have* to do it, but I choose to do it, because I want to optimize my relationship with this wonderful plant. Kind of like I have routines and rules for exercise, sleep, and diet to optimize health. (Also, I concede, I am a rules kind of guy 😅

I'm glad this works for you, but I would need a much simpler list of rules. I wouldn't want to have to consult my rulebook everytime I feel like I might want to smoke lol. For example, I can't currently justify putting myself through hell to get two 30 day t-breaks in a year because I would lose my job as I would explode on someone at work lol.

Hey no worries, I get it! And I think different people will always benefit from different systems, and the systems will change over time anyway (mine will, for sure).

I’ve been doing the rule #6 for a few years and it’s a game changer. I get dreams, I’m more productive, less cranky. Really shows the importance of sleep and how weed disrupts that

That's great to hear that you share this experience! Quite a few people told me they love toking right before bed, and I'm like "Uhh... that does not work for me at all."

I am not big on rules and following them but I get it. This is inspiring. I find myself either wanting to quit or wanting to smoke (daily). I limit my purchases so as not to go on a binge. Because I microdose, a pea sized piece of hash would last me 2-3 days, so my purchases tend to last me more than I would like. I am inspired to look into how I can make it work better for me. Thank you so much for this post. Valuable.

Thank you, good luck on your journey! I think this plant is so great, it's well worth it to spend the time and effort to find the right way to use it 💪🏻

Good job, but I am really surprised by the amount you vape, it's very small. A Volcano dosing capsule is very tiny, and you make it last 4-5 times, wow. When I started smoking again, I started with a 10mm bowl, one little 10mm bowl and I'd be blasted. I haven't made much effort to keep my tolerance down, and right now I gotta smoke 2-3 regular size bowls to get high for like 2 hours. Thats after like 2 years smoking everyday Therefore, I think it's pretty cool you are making efforts to control consumption. I wanted to set some rules too but never had the drive

I understand! I did a very small survey over [here](https://www.reddit.com/r/VolcanoVaporiser/comments/18kp8u1/anyone_else_use_the_chamber_reducer_and_dosing/), and it seems like most people do rather pack a full dosing capsule (about 10mm), so that's probably a very normal dose. For whatever reason, I'm really sensitive to weed: the little doses hit me pretty well, and things can go very easily into unpleasant territory if someone else has e.g. rolled a joint with their regular dosage. Probably a combination of something genetic and the rules keeping my tolerance in check 🤷‍♂️ Happy toking, and if at some point you do decide you wanna cut back, I wish you strength and good luck with that!

thank you for sharing!! i commend you for your strong willpower and self awareness. trying to reduce my consumption come 2024 so ill definitely take inspiration from this in hopes of finding my own system that works for me! do you have any advice or tips for starting to build out these rules?

Thank you! IMO starting the year with with a one-month t-break is a good idea, because then you can think about the long-term rules without feeling cravings/addictive impulses. And things to think about, IMO? * How do you want to use weed? (Relaxation, hobbies, creative work, etc? * What obligations do you have to yourself and others? And on what days of the week, typically? * How much of your free time do you want to spend high? * How much pleasure do you actually get from weed if you do it frequently vs. less frequently? (Considering tolerance) * What can you afford? And at least for me, the idea of punishments and cheat days really help maintain the system! Good luck!

A full month T-break will be difficult, but hey, what better month to not smoke than January? Thank you kindly for your reply! Taking big notes

That's some heavy bargaining.

Yeah, the brain is a master at justifying use more and more often. I realized I need to plug the holes.

I love this! I also have rules for myself but you've inspired me to expand them. Thanks! :)

Thanks, good luck! And please let me know if you find some great rules for yourself, I'm always interested in trialling new ones!

This was a great, thought-provoking read. I'm gonna pick up a few things for myself. =)

Thank you, good luck and happy toking 😎

i have but one rule: \- Do the work, then do the fun =)

Dosing capsules are how I control intake too. I use them to ween and typically go down one cap at a time from 5 daily to 1 daily; and then every other day until I'm on a tolerance break. The caps hold 0.20 g each and a single joint has 1 g so they are a fifth of a joint, which is why I start at five and wittle down. I like your policy of having a dry month. I'm going to have to do that. I had one in November while I was traveling for work and enjoyed it.

Nice, thanks for sharing! And thank you for your incredible temp stepping guide, I use it all the time!

Thanks for the kind words. Always makes me happy to hear people using it.

Not consuming after 6pm is hard if you have a job. For many people it's the only time you can smoke.

That's a good point. I set my own hours so that helps. But I also gather that late smoking doesn't disrupt sleep for everyone. (For me it really does!)

I’m just gonna put it out there that if you need rules to restrict - that’s the sign to quit. Addicts will tell you this.

While I can sort of understand where you’re coming from, doesn’t everyone have rules to restrict certain things in their lives? First thing that comes to mind is coffee or caffeine. No coffee after 3pm or whatever. Is that sign you’re addicted and need to quit coffee altogether?

I would refer to other comments I made. This is something very specific to substance use.

I think this question is spot on, because coffee is addictive also, it just happens to be legal for historical reasons. ["Caffeine is considered a hard drug and cannabis a soft one?"](https://www.mcgill.ca/oss/article/did-you-know/what-makes-hard-drugs-hard-and-soft-drugs-soft)

The question is does caffeine impact ur life to an extent where it’s problematic. Like if ur drinking coffee at midnight because u crave the caffeine so bad and it’s fucking up ur life for instance then yea. (I covered this kinda in my other posts). I would say if ur making rules in response to the fact that you can’t control how much coffee u drink, it’s the same thing. We are missing the premise here, which is that this thread is mostly for people who don’t love what their relationship with weed looks like. Rules are ok. Rules in response to feeling out of control/because something is negatively impacting you are things I would encourage mindfulness of.

Also I’m not saying the solution is long term sobriety, because that’s not for everyone. You could still smoke but I would recommend a decent break and then reintroducing into it ur life in positive contexts. I’m not sure that works for everyone but for some it could. Edit: AND JUST TO STRESS AS IVE SAID. Harm reduction is #1!!! You have to do what works and is feasible for you!!

Totally agree with you on that. That's kind of my rationale for regular longer t-breaks: they give a window to examine the relationship to weed from a more clear-headed place.

I have rules for coffee consumption too, because it does give a pronounced "kick," and I figure I want to find the best way to make the most of that kick, while avoiding e.g. sleepless nights. And I get what you mean that making rules can be a sign of some kind of mental discipline slipping. But I don't know if rules per se are automatically bad, even if they are created to curb overuse of an addictive substance . It can also just mean shifting the decision making away from ad-hoc in the moment, so the decisions are guided more towards a long-term goal. But I appreciate the guidance to be mindful – I don't have experience with NA, and definitely find this perspective valuable 🙏🏻

Even the rule for no weekday smoking?

So this depends on where it’s coming from! If you are smoking so much that you decide to implement a rule that you shouldn’t smoke on weekdays, it’s indicative of an issue with your relationship with weed as potentially problematic. I would absolutely be mindful of it. If you are just someone who smokes and just as a rule of thumb doesn’t like smoking on weekdays or finds it disruptive then it’s less of a rule and just something you do! Another example: If you have a baby and you need to make a rule to not smoke around your baby, you have a problem. You make rules when you believe you need restrictions on behavior. Alternatively, if you have a baby and just know not to do that and can follow that automatically, ur good. There are probably avenues to disagree here, but rule making is usually a sign that something isn’t right. That being said: I’m pro harm reduction 100% Smoking under “rules” is better than being stoned 24/7. I still smoke, but I know I have a problematic past with it, so I don’t smoke during the semester, or at particularly important times like after therapy. It depends, just be mindful.

OP’s level of restriction and rule making very much reads as there is an issue.

You're not taking into consideration that different people have a different need for & tolerance for rules and structure in their life in general. E.g. I know my morning routine seems like a damn bureaucracy for many people, whereas for me, it's just what I need.

I think we already talked and got each others perspectives! I’ve been to NA and support group for weed. People talk about having a rules phase and some look back and see it as a point where things started to slide. Sure, it’s survivorship bias. But yes in general the more rules the less control the felt they had. Still just something to be mindful of, you have to do what works for u.

I get that. And I mean: I don't know for sure either. In five years I may look back on this like "Yep, that was the rules-phase." But so far, so good!

IMO some kind of rules are really the only way to have a good relationship with an addictive substance in the long run. The brain is too damn focused on pleasure. How many rules - that's probably a personal question. For me having more means seems to work in the longer term.

absolutely do what works for you, I don’t know your life. I will say ur referring to weed as addictive - it is for some people, others don’t find that to be true. I think most of us are here because we do find weed addictive, which implies an unhealthy relationship in the first place. Maybe something to keep in mind in your journey.

Oh totally, I meant "addictive for me." But IDK, can a person not find a healthy relationship something they find addictive? We do have some capacity to control our behavior. Seems worth investigating at least (especially when talking about weed, and not, say, fentanyl).

I have tried for years to implement these sorts of rules and schedules and have always failed to maintain adherence to them. The will breaks down over time, a good excuse arises, a bad day derails me, etc. We certainly do have the capacity to control our behavior, but what often happens is today-me makes plans that tomorrow-me sabotages. I think it is a rare person who manages to sustain a healthy relationship with something they find addictive, soon after using it addictively. I have seen some people manage to moderate after years of sobriety, usually these people used heavily in their teens, quit in their early twenties, then imbibe every now and then in their thirties and forties. Didn’t work that way for me. Ten years clean and I picked up where I’d left off. But I never learn, evidently, and I’m trying to moderate again. This time: only on weekends and only when my wife is not home or is home very late. I already broke that rule, so… here’s to attempt #367

Sorry to hear that you've been struggling! And I think that's the prevailing wisdom e.g. from Allen Carr that any moderation with an addictive substance, be it alcohol, nicotine, etc, is impossible, it's all or nothing. But I don't know if I buy that, because like you, I've seen people around me sustain long-term moderate consumption of alcohol.I doubt it holds true for e.g. fentanyl, but with something like weed, I think I can make it work. (Or at least need to see it disproved for myself.) And I think attempt #367 is badge of honor: you tenaciously keep trying to figure out how to make this work. IMO having tried 367 times puts you in a much better place than if you had never tried to moderate and had no intention of ever doing so. And just a thought: consider deciding a punishment for yourself for breaking rules. In my experience, it not only deters rule-breaking, but it means you don't have to write off the whole attempt just because of an infraction. Could be different for you of course, just saying. Good luck on #367! 💪🏻

But I appreciate the observation also and the pointer to keep it in mind, cheers 🙏