A DANGEROUS HABIT

While many believe cannabis should be legalised, others are concerned
about the dangers of the drug, especially on young minds. We speak to
former addict James Langton, who has just written a self-help book for
users and their families, about the dangers

FOR James Langton, drugs are about all or nothing. "You cross a line
when you have your first joint in the morning," he explains.

Growing up in a comfortable, middle-class, suburban home did not stop
him developing a cannabis habit which lasted for 30 years.

Neither depressed, lonely nor a thrill seeker, the young teenager
smoked because he wanted to try something different. But his
adolescent habit became an addiction.

Now, at 51, he wants to add his voice and experience to help others
from falling into the same trap that left him unable to function in
normal life.

At present there is no hard evidence to demonstrate that cannabis use
causes severe mental health problems. According to Martin Barnes,
chief executive of drug information and policy charity DrugScope,
while the amount of people smoking cannabis has risen over last 30
years, available evidence shows the number of incidences of
schizophrenia have not increased.

But a spokesman for national mental health charity Rethink said: "We
think for those with a predisposition to mental illness, statistics
show you're more likely to develop psychotic illness. We use the
peanut allergy - some eat them every day and are fine; others have an
allergic reaction.

"We don't think it's addictive, but we do think people can become
dependent."

In a recent report for the UK Government, the drugs advisory panel
concluded that cannabis did pose a "real threat to health", but said
it should still remain a class C drug, as the risks were not as
serious as those of class B substances, such as amphetamines and
barbiturates.

Earlier this month, however, the Government finally confirmed cannabis
is being restored to class B status.

James Langton is in no doubt that cannabis poses huge risks to young
minds. The author of self-help book No Need For Weed explains that
addiction to this so-called "soft drug" took over his life.

"I did it in the park after school, in my room, wherever I thought I
could get away with it," he admits.

After leaving school aged 17, James says that his life began to
revolve around cannabis. "When you start smoking as soon as you wake
up, it takes on a different perspective in your life. I'd have around
12 joints a day on my own. I'd go for walks in the park or nip home at
lunchtime. A lot of people do that."

James eventually kicked the habit aged 45, and set up Clearhead.org,
an organisation dedicated to helping those who want to leave the drug
behind. After struggling to quit for five years, he doesn't agree that
it's not addictive.

"Being stoned felt normal. If I couldn't get hold of cannabis, I'd
feel a deep emptiness. When I realised I had a problem, I was too
embarrassed to talk about it with friends, so I went to the doctor and
was told that cannabis wasn't addictive; that I didn't have a drug
problem."

Lacking support, James struggled to find a way to live his life
without cannabis.

"It was just me and the drug. There wasn't a lot of balance in my
life. All my friends smoked or were dealers. I ran a picture shop in
London because I was quite entrepreneurial, but it was always a
terrible struggle.

"If you're smoking that much then everything takes longer. Your
decision making is not good and you settle for second best. I had
difficulty managing the accounts, paying bills, being on time for
appointments and finding ways to hide my addiction.

"I tried quitting, just smoking on weekends, leaving my cannabis with
someone else so I wouldn't be tempted and not buying any. But for five
years the longest I went without was a few days. I couldn't do it alone."

From the outside, it can be difficult to understand how a drug which
prompted James to feel acutely lonely and confused could come to
control his life.

He explains: "At the start it felt really pleasurable. During the
first five years, even before the addiction really took hold, it's
unlikely that any amount of nagging would have stopped me.

"Cannabis has a subtle way of raising your senses, offering you a
slightly altered perspective on life and the everyday nine to five
routine. Music sounds better and colours are more vivid. You can see
beauty in an ugly city; things which other people are immune to.

"That perspective becomes a big part of your identity. It's hard to
give that up, and re-learn to live normally."

But James explains that the drug can also magnify other feelings.
"Weed can reflect the personality or mood of the user. I was a shy
child and became isolated and withdrawn. Those with a tendency toward
anxiety might become paranoid and if you're fairly relaxed and easy
going, it could make you less motivated."

Like other mood-altering substances such as alcohol or nicotine,
prolonged and regular use of cannabis can inevitably lead to emotional
dependency.

"One of the big myths is that this is an hippy peace drug," James
says. "All it does is dampen down feelings. If you start smoking at a
young age you end up putting a lid on normal, human feelings - like
anger, fear and sadness - and that means you never work through them.

"People who stop smoking weed have to risk those feelings bubbling up
which can be very uncomfortable. That fear stops them from quitting."

Finally James reached breaking point. Driving to Berlin, to deliver a
van full of furniture, he made a potentially catastrophic error.

"I was really in debt and needed to fulfil this contract. Having
smuggled my weed with me I set off to drive the last leg from Hamburg
to Berlin. But when I stopped at a petrol station, I accidentally
filled up with unleaded instead of diesel. That was the last straw for
me.

"It was a stupid, stoned mistake which might have cost me my business.
In the end, I was lucky and they sent someone out with a replacement
vehicle. But I made a promise to myself then and there, that nothing
like that would ever happen again."

Throwing away his cannabis, James returned home and looked for help.
With the support of help group Marijuana Anonymous
(www.marijuana-anonymous.org), who organise meetings in London, he got
his life back on track, and began helping others; but he was shocked
to discover there wasn't more help available nationwide.

"We would get referrals from the drugs helpline Frank, from people all
over the country, and it was frustrating because there was only a
limited amount we could suggest."

Two years ago James started writing his self-help book, No Need for
Weed. Hoping to reach out to users with a problem, his book and
accompanying website, www.clearhead.org, offer a variety of ways to
deal with cannabis addiction.

These include considering carefully how each joint affects you and
whether you still get real pleasure from cannabis, visualizing how you
think your life could be better after not smoking for 12 months and
distracting yourself with a new habit or activity.

He advocates choosing a quitting day and sticking to it and finding
the support of at least one person you trust to speak honestly about
what you are doing and why. Then take it one day at a time, and
acknowledge yourself for taking this positive step.

No Need For Weed by James Langton, is published by Hindsight Press,
priced UKP9.95