

Ask HN: Does using Cannabis actually enhances focus and creativity? - hotshot


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meowface
My personal experience, which will very likely differ from others since that's
just how it seems to be with substances like cannabis:

In small to moderate quantities, it can definitely increase creativity and
generally speeds up the flow of ideas. Now, many of those ideas are bad ideas,
but some end up being good ones that may not have occurred to you otherwise.
Consume too much at once though and it may be harder to differentiate between
the good and the bad ideas, which is why it's often wise to write down what
you're thinking and read it the next day when you're sober. I've done this and
sometimes thought "oh wow, that's a good idea" and sometimes thought "what in
the hell does this even mean / this is a terrible idea".

You will definitely lose short term attention span though, and temporarily
gain symptoms similar to ADD/ADHD. You might become hyperfocused on something
for a minute or 2, but your mind will quickly wander off afterwards. In small
quantities this can actually work well for programming, but even moderate
amounts often make it impossible for me to be productive when programming.

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arisAlexis
You may become fixated with something so you can think about it in depth
sometimes in novel ways. You can't be programming stoned or your code will
suffer, it's more for relaxing/exploratory. Now I know some people program
under the influence but it has never worked for me.

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staunch
George Carlin answered this question better than anyone in the world. Here it
is:
[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oj5Sd3BRm_I](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oj5Sd3BRm_I)

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Red_Tarsius
I never used it, so take my post very lightly:

I think it's mostly a placebo effect, plus the whole cultural heritage. Much
like alcool, we give ourself permission to be more daring and out of the box.

Think about tea: when we drink it, we don't do it just for the flavor, but the
"relaxing experience" label attached to it. We think of asian monasteries or
comfy London cafè, nature and meditation. We want to shape the experience in
the same way that it's sold to us.

Cannabis means peace, nature, harmony, media representation of the "trip",
enlightenment. Also, creativity.

Placebo effect is the most powerful trick.

~~~
staunch
You're (admittedly) just making this shit up. Why would you pretend to have a
useful opinion when you have absolutely zero experience? It's just weird.

Most tea contains caffeine which is a psychoactive drug. Caffeine is absorbed
into your bloodstream and crosses into your brain. It gets you high.

~~~
Red_Tarsius
I'm not making "shit up", it's called an opinion and you should respect it. I
said "mostly" and I also wrote "There's something about it that is indeed
relaxing". However:

"Does using it actually enhances focus and creativity?" My answer is a
definitive NO, and I described a better alternative. I see people trying it
because they believe they'll become creative geniuses and it's just
delusional. There's no magic trick for getting more focused and creative
except practice and consistency.

~~~
staunch
> I'm not making "shit up"

Yes you are. Unless you're citing scientific studies you can not possibly be
drawing on your own declared lack of experience.

> it's called an opinion and you should respect it

Nothing here is "called an opinion". You should probably stop using that
phrase because it's ridiculous. I'm showing you respect by pointing out that
you're wrong. If you don't like my choice of words then perhaps you should
question your own.

> "Does using it actually enhances focus and creativity?" My answer is a
> definitive NO, and I described a better alternative.

The idea that you would _attempt_ to answer this question based on zero
experience is hilarious. That you would take an authoritative tone makes you a
bit of an idiot.

~~~
hnbro2
> Unless you're citing scientific studies you can not possibly be drawing on
> your own declared lack of experience.

what does "drawing on your own declared lack of experience" even mean? how do
you draw on a lack of experience, exactly? is this some sort of allusion to
necessity driving invention?

also, if he was "citing scientific studies" would he then necessarily be
"drawing on his own experience"? aren't the two distinct things?

> Nothing here is "called an opinion". You should probably stop using that
> phrase because it's ridiculous. I'm showing you respect by pointing out that
> you're wrong.

of course it's an opinion, it's very clearly one. it's staggeringly obvious.
what is the point of your belligerent idiocy? are you pissing yourself over
particular phrasing?

> The idea that you would attempt to answer this question based on zero
> experience is hilarious. That you would take an authoritative tone makes you
> a bit of an idiot.

what's rather amusing in this tirade is that you completely fail to understand
the implications of "placebo" in the context of "experience". just because you
"experience" something, does not make you an authority, precisely because of
(among other things) the placebo effect.

it's always amusing when fools cast stones. lol!

~~~
staunch
Oh you really showed me!

~~~
hnbro2
you make it so easy! /flex

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jordsmi
I think it changes from person to person. I have friends who get much more
work done when stoned. If I am I can't get a single thing done and just zone
out all the time.

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todd8
It enhances silly fascination with almost anything, but certainly not focus.

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ranty
Creativity and appreciation but not focus.

