Are you new to weed entirely? I have another article that might be a little more helpful for getting comfortable with the idea that smoking weed can be the right choice for you, but this one is going to outline how to get started.
Maybe this is your very first time, or maybe this is just your first time smoking alone and not just at a party passing around a joint. Or maybe it’s not even that but you want a more organized smoking sesh or ideas on how to really round out your experience. Regardless of what that experience level is, you may be able to learn a thing or two from this article!
what to expect
Well, it depends on a lot of things: the device you use, whether you’re alone or with a friend, whether or not your friend has any experience, etc. Overall, I would simply say don’t plan on doing anything too intellectual after and never operate a vehicle while under the influence. Beyond that, there are a lot of differences: it can vary between people, between methods, between strains, and even just user error in things like breathing. For some people, it can take a few sessions to get the hang of it. I know that I personally made mistakes the first time that I smoked, which we’ll address a little further down, which completely changed my experience. So while you may have some perfect picture in your mind of what this will look like, it doesn’t always turn out as you’d expect. Sometimes instead you spend ten minutes laying on the floor in front of the fan while swearing up and down that it’s been at least two hours (true story).
Now, this isn’t to scare you away from it! I’m here to make those mistakes so that you don’t have to. My goal has been and likely always will be to promote the healthy use of cannabis for relief, it’s just critical to understand what healthy use is. I can count on one hand the number of times I felt unbearably uncomfortable due to weed. The rest of the time you get a variety of pleasant feelings: Some weed has had me staring at the stars and wondering what sort of alien life exists, other strains have had me sink into the couch and watch several hours of Community without realizing time is passing, and some of the strains I smoke are the type of weed that makes me want to paint something with no prior experience or skills aside from that one time I won a prize in 2nd grade for my painting of an owl. Weed can be a magical experience, it can be grounding and transformative, or it can just take away your worries for a little bit. It’s a relatively cheap vacation from the craziness of life and when used properly, it can be a very positive experience.
how to prepare
Something you’ll want to do beforehand; make sure that you’re ready. You’ll thank yourself for it later, especially if you get the kind of high where moving from your chosen resting spot is simply not an option. The things I would suggest are pretty simple. You’re going to want something to entertain you, whether that’s endless scrolling through Pinterest, a puzzle, a tv show to binge watch (I highly recommend something with a lot of colors, like Rick and Morty or American Dad), whatever it is, I personally prefer getting it all queued up beforehand. Using search functions while high is unsurprisingly even more difficult than usual.
You’re also going to need snacks. If you have a less sensitive stomach than I do, you can choose any snack that tickles your fancy, I’m sure you already have some favorites in mind. If you’ve got a complicated stomach as I do, I find healthy snacks like fruits and vegetables are a good choice. That also applies if you’re just trying to feel a little better about your munchies. I also find two-part snacks, like pretzels and Nutella or apples and peanut butter to be helpful in slowing down your consumption. It’s easy to accidentally polish off a whole bag of potato chips, but if you have to stop every time to dip your pretzel stick in the chocolatey hazelnutty goodness, it can at least force you to slow down a little bit and recognize when you should probably put the jar away, or at least move it out of arms reach.
I would also definitely encourage taking care of all bathroom business beforehand, whether that’s skincare, brushing your teeth for the night, etc. This may sound a little weird, but speaking from experience, there is nothing worse than getting unreasonably high and then realizing you need to pee. Further than bladder comfort though, mirrors can be tricky the first few highs, or at least that has been my experience and several others I have spoken to. I have caught myself picking at imperfections mindlessly, or even beginning a mini existential crisis by gazing a little too deeply into the mirror. Though that may not be the case for anyone, if you find yourself prone to overthinking in your day-to-day life, it may be best to avoid that for a while.
The last thing that I would propose, but is entirely optional, is a blanket. Comfort is something that I personally find very important to my experience. I find it’s much easier to relax and enjoy your experience with a blanket and a pillow or two, but everyone’s a little bit different. Something I’ve started to do over the course of my smoking experience is put a little bit more effort into my ‘smoke spots.’ Even if that just means carrying a little basket back and forth with the things that you need and an extra blanket, it can really improve your experience. Just be aware that it will probably smell like weed afterward, along with your clothes.
the basics
There’s a couple of things that you’ll need in order to start, no matter which method you’re using.
Flower, something to hold it, and something to light it.
flower
Flower. Now this is what I would consider the hardest part and even then it’s pretty simple and you’ve got a couple of options, depending on where you live. I know that in SoCal, there are many, many delivery services and that was what I relied on at first. Going into a dispensary can be a little bit overwhelming, with so many options and a pressure to buy more than you came in for. For that reason, I personally enjoy getting to peruse a menu for as long as I’d like, and then making a decision based on what looks good to me. When making that decision for yourself, the important things to consider are price, THC content, and the reputability of the farm. If you’re shopping from licensed dispensaries only, that last one shouldn’t ever be an issue, but be aware of listings that don’t contain much information, or even just sites that feel a little less than professional.
If you’re looking for a good delivery service and you’re in California or Portland, Oregon, see if Eaze delivers in your area. You can use this referral link for a $20 credit on your first order!
http://eaze.com/share/L/ICICYWZ
(This is a referral link, so if you use it I will also receive a credit. Also If it’s available in your area, one of my personal favorites while starting out is Humboldt Farms!)
Now if decisions aren’t really your speed or you can’t find any delivery services near you, dispensaries can be a great option! Sometimes it’s really nice to be able to go in somewhere and say ‘I don’t know anything please help me’ and have someone with more experience give you a few easy options. If that sounds more like what you need, then absolutely look up some dispensaries in your area with good reviews and head in. They’ll also be able to give you more specific advice on the strains that they have on hand, which can be helpful.
devices
There are a lot of different options out there, and everyone has their own preference, but I wouldn’t suggest going out and spending $100 on a bong for your first try.
By far the easiest and most noncommittal way to smoke is with a purchase of prerolls, a ‘pre-rolled’ joint usually sold by itself or in a pack at most dispensaries. The only downside to these is that they are less cost-effective, as well as hard to smoke slowly. It’s a great option if you have a friend or two to share it with, but so much of the flower is wasted when you’re smoking one alone, just in the time it takes to breathe between hits, and much more if you’re actually taking your time.
My preferred method when I started was a small hand pipe. You can get glass smoking pipes in numerous places, from many dispensaries, Etsy, many online retailers for smoking accessories, amazon, and I’ve been told that even some gas stations carry them for “tobacco” purposes. The benefit of anything with a bowl, such as a hand pipe, a bong, or a bubbler, is you can take it at your own pace. It also allows you to smoke only as much as you want and easily have the rest later.
Ultimately, when it comes to your comfort, it all comes down to personal preference. Sometimes convenience outweighs the five-dollar hand pipe and waiting several days for it to ship. I get it. If you’re really wanting to feel that 90’s grunge fantasy, a strategically cut piece of fruit can even technically get the job done.
Now having some way to light it is kind of a given, but we’ll cover it anyway. Most people have a lighter or two around for various purposes (who doesn’t love a candle), but if you don’t, and you’re using a joint you can technically use a match. With a bowl, I definitely find a Bic lighter to work the best, especially when you’re starting out. As time goes on and with more experience, you can experiment with things like hemp wicks, but that’s a little more advanced than I would have been willing to try as a beginner. I had a hard enough time lighting the Bic lighter.
The other thing that is not absolutely necessary, but that I would highly recommend, is water. No matter how convinced you are that you won’t ever cough, sometimes someone says something funny mid hit and you’ll wish you had something to help that burning sensation in the back of your throat.
getting into it
Joint – I personally have had pretty rough luck with lighting joints. Just lighting the end and hoping for the best has turned into a very lop-sided burn many, many times, so what I recommend is slowly turning the joint in one hand, and carefully lighting the edge all the way around. If it lights a little too much, blow on it gently so it smolders and there you go! Now put the unlit end in your mouth and gently inhale. I find that shorter breaths work best for this, inhaling too long can burn a lot more of the joint and it’s very easy to get overwhelmed by the amount of smoke. There’s a reason they call it ‘puff, puff, pass.’
Bowl – with a bowl it’s a little bit more involved, as you have to light it for each hit. To smoke with a bowl, pack the bowl rather loosely. As tempting as it can be to pack bowls tightly, it can cause the bowl to burn a lot more like a joint, wasting a lot of your flower. So with your loosely packed bowl, bring it to your lips and breathe in while lighting the corner of the bowl with your lighter.
pace yourself
(i h a t e words rn)
As mentioned above, it’s easy to do too much too fast. It took me several slightly disappointing experiences that didn’t seem to do much before I found a better technique. Cool! Exciting! Unfortunately, due to some of the more reckless sides of my personality(Gryffindor whomst?), I was still smoking the amount I had been previously with a flawed technique. This led to a complete overload and a pretty rough experience, one that almost made me entirely step away from weed again. Don’t be like me.
What I recommend is taking your time as you smoke, pacing yourself between hits, and allowing it a little more time to hit you. It’s the same concept as eating slowly to allow your stomach time to adjust and let you know when it’s full. It allows you to keep better track of how substances affect your body personally and allows you more control over your smoking experience.
breathing
If you’ve done these things so far and have found that you’re not quite feeling it, you may need to work on your breathing technique. That was the biggest hurdle I dealt with when I was learning. My anxiety wouldn’t let me inhale too deeply for fear of damaging my lungs, however, according to a study done by Harvard, “smoking at a rate of one joint a day for as long as seven years doesn’t seem to affect lung function adversely. And then there was the really good news for pot smokers: smoking marijuana in moderation may actually improve lung function.” I don’t know about you, but for me, that was really, really good news.
So with that in mind, it’s a little bit easier to work on your technique. What changed the way I breathed while smoking was a friend’s advice. If you’re having a hard time feeling the effects, try doing your hit, and then inhaling again a little deeper before you exhale. This allows it to spread a little better, just be cautious. Any kind of smoke can have negative effects on your lungs to a certain extent, that’s why we cough.
Coughing sucks. We’ve all been there. It’s not pleasant but when it’s unavoidable, to make it a little easier, there are a few techniques I’ve started using that save me some chest pain. The first is simply having enough water throughout the day, but let’s be honest, that’s really hard to remember sometimes. If you are drinking the right amount of water for your body every day then honestly you deserve an award. If you’re like me and forget water exists until about noon or later every day, then I would recommend at least drinking a little bit before your smoking session and having some on hand for during. That has definitely helped me.
Another option is a breathing exercise that you can use along with the previous suggestion. When you feel the need to cough, first empty your lungs as far as they can go. Just exhale until there’s nothing left and then breathe in. You’ll frequently still cough, but I’ve found this can take would-be massive coughing fits down to two or three manageable little throat clearings.
If that doesn’t work, stay calm. We’ve all been there, feeling like your lungs are trying to climb out of your throat sucks. Don’t worry. Drink some water, try your best to relax, breathe as best you can, and know that this too shall pass.
etiquette
The last thing to really touch on is weed etiquette. It’s not terribly complicated but is essential to ensure your session goes smoothly.
If you’re in a group, the first thing to remember is ‘puff, puff, pass’ which is probably something you’ve heard before. What it means is don’t take more than two hits off a joint before passing it around, and with any kind of piece, it’s more common to only take one at a time. In the spirit of fairness and sharing, two things also very prominent in weed etiquette, you don’t want to hog it all, and on the flip side, you probably don’t want it all hogged either. In a similar fashion, if you’re holding the piece avoid telling stories or at least be willing to pause for your hit. It’s so easy to forget that you’ve been holding it for five minutes and haven’t taken your hit yet because the sky is so blue today. This is me and my forgetful self. Don’t be me.
Also important in maintaining a smooth experience is always pass left. Some people remember this with the phrase ‘left is law,’ some people just think of it as passing clockwise, and some people are just frequently wrong and need to have the person that just handed it to them shake their head and point at the person it’s supposed to be going to. Remember what I said earlier about being forgetful? It took a little longer than I’d like to admit getting used to a consistent left pass.
Those are really the big ones, though obviously there are some small things to keep in mind. Don’t steal lighters from your friends, it’s super easy to forget about them and accidentally pocket it, but try and be mindful. If you’re the host, it can be a little frustrating to have them go missing when you can’t find one the next time you need it. As the host, you also need to keep in mind what you’re comfortable with supplying. If you’re sharing with someone, it’s not taboo to ask them to pitch in some flower, or to alternate who packs bowls, or you can even split the cost of the flower and have a shared strain. That’s my personal favorite way to do it.
The last thing to remember is the experience afterward. Sometimes stoned antics aren’t always the most socially conscious. If you drop yourself on the couch and demolish an entire bag of chips that weren’t yours, maybe offer to buy another bag. If you know that you’re going to need to lie down for a while, maybe find a comfy spot on the floor instead of taking up the whole couch. Only you can make decisions for you, just try and be aware of others in those choices.
Now if you’re smoking alone there’s a lot less to remember in terms of etiquette, but it becomes more important to be self-aware. Make sure that you’re holding yourself accountable and not smoking too much too fast. As I said earlier, pace yourself, be aware of your body and its needs. Trying to take breaks between hits as if it were someone else’s turn is a good way to avoid that overwhelming high. It’s also a good practice to be conscious of how much you’re smoking, especially if this becomes a part of a routine for you.
get to it!
In reality, it’s all a lot less complicated than it seems. These things quickly become part of a routine and it becomes a lot more comfortable with time. You start to learn a lot about your personal preferences with time and experience so if you aren’t in love with everything about your first time, try a new flower! Try a new method! Maybe try a different activity while high! There’s always some way to mix it up and have a new experience. If you’ve got any questions let me know! If you decide to try it I would love to hear how it goes!
