On pot, paranoia & personal growth
So it's no secret that pot makes people paranoid. But over the last years I've begun to recognize that this paranoia isn't inherently a negative experience and, when approached properly, it can actually be massively therapeutic. I recall the Rastas (or at least Bob Marley) have a saying along the lines of "ganja reveals yourself, to yourself." This never really meant much to me until yesterday when I was chatting about marijuana and humility. I said something about how it's pretty much impossible for me to be cocky or headstrong when I'm stoned because it makes you so humble. My friend's response was that marijuana makes you see and speak the truth. I realized that this is true not only in regards to the outside world, but to the inner world. I realized that pot makes me paranoid because there are things I try to hide from myself. Traumas, negative experiences, emotions, beliefs, behavior patterns that I refuse to acknowledge, etc. etc. The paranoia pe...