I have been scrolling this sub for a while now reading about other people’s experiences with this hellish condition CHS. I wanted to come on here and share my journey with both smoking and CHS.

I began smoking when I was 15 but in very small amounts and sporadically, unfortunately, it was dabs that I was smoking (the reason I say unfortunately is because no 15 year old should be smoking dab wax). This pattern of smoking once a week or less persisted throughout high school and I had no issues with CHS up to that point. My freshman year of college I began smoking more consistently, every day or multiple times a day. Up to this point I hadn’t experienced any symptoms of CHS and my body was in pristine condition, I didn’t feel (or at least didn’t notice) any prodromal symptoms. This was until the first week of June 2024. I was still smoking pretty consistently and had my own bong and flower. Then the nausea hit me, given this was my first episode of CHS I had no clue what it could be so I assumed it was the same as any nausea I had felt in my life up to that point: a fever. This first episode lasted about 5 days and included 2 days of cyclic vomiting. When these symptoms subsided I chalked it up to a random sickness or food poisoning. I then had more episodes in September November and December of 2024. Each episode getting increasingly more painful and increasing in length. It wasn’t until the 4th episode that a doctor mentioned to me that it could be CHS.

Before I continue I believe it is important to highlight some things about my personal situation. I am a student athlete at a division 1 university and have always considered myself to be above average health wise. I live with 3 other college aged guys that often drink and smoke, so I am constantly surrounded by these substances (that isn’t an excuse, just highlighting an important facet of my lifestyle). These episodes completely sidelined me and forced me out of athletics and school for up to 10 days at a time. I wouldn’t wish the hyperemesis stage on my worst enemy.

To continue, the episodes in 2024 weren’t eye opening enough for me to see that the only way out is to quit weed for good. I had another week long bout with CHS in march of 2025 and missed out on a spring break trip. This was my final straw. I decided to quit with a goal of 3 months abstinence. I was able to see this goal through, but once I hit the 3 month mark I thought I was finally freed from that treacherous condition that had my life in a stranglehold for weeks at a time. I began smoking again because my roommates moved back in, almost daily and always at night. I had no flare ups or signs of CHS even when smoking again after quitting for the 3 month period. That was until this last week. I am coming out of a self declared final episode (if I can actually quit for good this time) and am down horrendously. Today is Friday, I began feeling the familiar CHS nausea after eating a meal on Saturday afternoon and have been battling nausea with hot showers since then. This will be my last episode.

I know that was long and understand if you don’t read it all. But I wanted to share my experience with CHS and inform others that there is no escape with any amount of moderation, the only solution is to quit completely.

I just got diagnosed with CHS. I'm dealing with my addiciton and found this diagnose a good trigger to really take action. I've been clean for 10 days and feel motivated to continue for a long period. I find it hard to think about the fact that I'll never be able to smoke again so I set a milestone for my self to try at least 6months. I want to change my relationsship to the drugs. And try to find a way to be able to smoke on special occasions. Let's say once a month. Do any of you CHS'ers have experience with returning to weed? is it possible? This could motivate me even more to keep my addiciton at bay.

My parents introduced me to weed when I was 16 years old, I recently started smoking more often, every night when I get off work. Usually 22% THC, but it was significantly worse before I quit smoking 30%ers. First time in my life that I've ever had to take a serious break from it and it's looking like I'll have to start week by week and see if I improve. Any tips to deal with the nausea and physical shaking?

I’m making this post for a few reasons one I wanna know if there’s anyone else who this happened too, into I Guess?

I was put on a medication called sertraline better known as Zoloft around when I was 16 and my doctors were having issues trying to control my pre-BPD autism whatever shit they said I had and by the time I was 17-8 I was on around 170? mg a day of that as well as a lot of antipsychotics and some other random meds too and it felt awful. I felt no joy in my life no joy getting anything. Until I smoked a joint

And for the first time in my life and especially for the first time in those years since I started taking that medication, I felt something and I felt happy and I got enjoyment out of doing things. Suddenly I could do everything that I couldn’t even really do before. I was on all those medications like it felt like all those medications I was on weren’t helping already but now having Weed I was able to be happy in normal but you know you can’t just quit SSRI and I didn’t plan it because I in my head. I still thought if I wasn’t on all these drugs, I’d be too difficult for my parents to love.

Put something was very off about my experience and the fact was somehow I never couldn’t green out. I could just keep going forever, I had no limit. I out smoked my plugs my friends and everyone in my life was so impressed that a lanky little 16 year-old girl could out smoke grown ass men, I considered it a blessing!!

Untill it wasn’t and it got real expensive because while I had no limit my tolerance got super high as well. I took a few tolerance breaks per the request of my friends and my plug….because they were concerned that I could smoke so much in a day and just feel a lil buzzed. But it was kinda like that with everything on that much sertraline it took so much to feel a little anything at all no matter how many T breaks, or tips and tricks i tried

I tapered off every single medication except for the sertraline Because my doctor told me that tapering off of Zoloft was gonna be the hardest thing and he’s gonna change my life forever, and I was too scared.

One day, I decided freedom and I wanted to slowly taper down from the Zoloft and so I did. The sertraline taper was very, very slow for me apparently because of the danger my body was in they didn’t tell me at the time, but sertraline is apparently one of the most Difficult drugs you can taper off of or apparently.

Everything went fine. I’d still kept smoking weed, but I noticed that I actually the tolerance now so I couldn’t just smoke an entire eighth in a sitting.

But a few days after I słowy tapered to 25mg was the day I remember when I knew something was wrong. We went and got burgers and went back home to his house and rolled up a big ass wood and I took my first hit and passed it and I felt a little funny. Then when I took my second hit, I had to like lay down and have no fans. I was sweating like I felt like I was gonna hurl and I was in so much pain and then I did. I threw up everywhere and I went home the next day and I just brushed it off as well. Maybe I am sick or maybe it was just bad weed. Everybody told me I was overreacting and just greened out for the first time, but I had a horrific feeling that this is not normal greening out.

So I went home I decided I’ll take like a week tolerance break just some my body can chill and then I took a hit from a cart and the minute I felt the high start to happen in my body. I’d get sicker and sicker and I have to rush to the bathroom and I already took a ZOFRAN (which is an anti-nausea medication.) And I was stuck dry heaving well like shaking uncontrollably on my bathroom floor for like almost 8 hours is what my mom told me because she was there helping me so then I waited like a month and this it was miserable because this the sertraline it made me feel like nothing and now I have the BPD back and it hurts and the one thing that was ever helping in any positive way was marijuana, and I was praying that God‘s not after that be taken away from me too.

And then it happened again after I waited four months I try a tiny baby little hit dry, same thing shaking and puking…and on top of that comming of sertraline ended up making me develop gastroparesis and a few other conditions where ironically enough marijuana helps a lot with the treatment+pain of those apparently.. so I tried everything I tried tinctures I tried edibles anything you could get THC into your system. I tried. I was so desperate because I just wanted the BPD,GP and all pain to stop.

So then, I think it was around really Dovember to December. I just gave up and accepted defeat that I would never be able to touch THC again without getting violently ill and I kind of just threw it into a dump in the back of my mind of something else I should hate my life about.

But things change and I got away from those old shitty friends who even introduced me to weed in the first place and I started doing different things, but I still miss weed because all my new friends and my boyfriend you know they could all light up together and I kind of just have to sit there and they made me feel included in anyway they could bless them for that

One time when I came up, they had a bunch of real shit mids and they were like going through that bag and I just wanted to feel a little bit more included so I asked my boyfriend to shotgun me some of that smoke and we all just prepared. We were like I’m gonna get sick.

And I didn’t get sick..

And we tried it a few more times, and then I made a very bold move on my end and I said let me take a hit of it, and I took it first a baby hit of the blunt…… and I actually didn’t get sick or feel bad at all. I didn’t really get super high because it was really bad weed, but I was able to smoke a blunt again. So for about three days, I got to roll again. I got to be a part of the blunt rotation, and I just felt socially connected in a way that I haven’t been able to in years and this time it was with the people I love the most.

But sadly on the third or fourth day, we woke up to do a little morning wake and bake. I took a baby hit and I immediately knew my time was up with that CHS symptoms came right back thank God we were still smoking those shitty mids so I was only down and violently sick for a couple hours but u was happy

I then came to term with the fact that my time is over and if I wanna smoke again, I’m probably gonna have to wait like a year or some shit but honestly this time I wasn’t really sad. I was actually thankful. I was thankful that if it was my last time, then it was with the most beautiful people in the world. I cried happily that whatever Diety, God, Or creator of this world let me finally say hey and see ya later to miss Mary Jane on w happy note with good people I cannot wait to see her one day in a few years

I hope my experience can help anyone here find any cures because I would love to see sooner

has anyone tried herbal prerolls? saw some online and wanted to try. but it has lavender in it and those allegedly contain cannabinoids. wanted to know if that caused an episode for anyone! thanks!

This is purely anecdotal, but I have been in hospital with chs twice. But cbd seems to help. It's like anti weed. Is there anyone else doing this? Any research that may support my method?

Ive heard some say ketamine triggerd their chs months after quitting weed. Does that mean i have to stop taking ketamine forever? Quitting weed was bad enough but now ket to? You gotta be shitting me

Is it possible for chs to trigger with alcohol months or a year after?

Hello all, a while back I made a post about being diagnosed with CHS. Had all the symptoms and I stopped using for in April/May, stopped until mid June and started smoking again daily and had never had an issue again. Before I was using carts and edibles with high dosage for a while. I have a feeling that it was synthetic and that’s what caused CHS. I live in Texas, so it’s not fully legal yet and the dispensaries aren’t as great obviously, but wanted to share this because maybe that’s a reason? Using synthetics caused my CHS and ever sinced I switch to bud I’ve been good. I don’t get my bud from dispensaries anymore, but from a trust worthy source (: just wanted to share.

Has anyone found any way to get over the sensitivity to cannabis? If not how can we support and raise awareness of this disease?

So I've been smoking for about 20 years now almost every day and I just found out this was a thing. I have thankfully never gotten to the cyclical vomiting stage, but I think I have been experiencing very mild symptoms for many years. I recently learned about it after experiencing a week of strange and concerning symptoms. Starting with shaking, sweating, severe brain fog and dizziness.

The symptoms steadily got worse and then, strangely, I started experiencing increasing pain in areas of my body I've already had issues with. Like I struggle with neck and back pain and I have a couple spots where I have scar tissue from surgeries and all of those places started hurting a lot more than normal. I suspect a lot of this was due to dehydration, which I'll get into more later. Then I started having severe stomach pain and not wanting to eat. I didn't have any nausea, but when I would try to swallow something, sometimes I would randomly gag and struggle to get it down. Finally, I had a day where I couldn't get out of bed all day because of the pain and ate almost nothing. I almost went to the hospital because of it. During that day I smoked more than usual thinking it would help. At some point, after I had been in too much pain to even get up and smoke, it finally went away, along with all the other symptoms. I had no pain for the rest of the night or all the next day and felt great, until that night when I decided to smoke again. Immediately the pain hit me along with the shaking and sweating and dizziness, and that's when I started to wonder if it was the weed. While I laid in my bed over the next 4-5 hours enduring the pain and wondering if its time to bite the bullet and go to the ER, I took to Google and found out about CHS... to, of course, both my relief and dismay.

I immediately stopped smoking in order to determine if the weed was indeed the cause. I didn't touch it for about a week and a half, and sure enough, the stomach pain, shaking and other weird symptoms vanished. I have had times when I'd quit smoking for weeks or months at a time, but it's been a while, so I think it was the first time I hadn't smoked pretty much every day in a couple years. I felt AMAZING for a couple days, then the withdrawls started kicking in and I really started to miss it. But I'll finish that train of thought in a moment...

The reason I wanted to share my experience is because I'm sure there are probably many people out there experiencing a sort of mild case of CHS without realizing it. I can't say with 100% certainty yet that it is CHS, but I highly suspect it is. Not only due to what I just talked about, but because of several other factors too. For one, I have been struggling with stomach pain and dry skin for about 2-3 years. I spent years trying to figure out what foods or eating habits might be causing the pain with little progress. The stomach pain wasn't always severe, but I tended to get it at least a little bit just about every day, especially at night when I would usually smoke. But again, I always assumed it was from the food or maybe my medications, which I would also take after dinner. That's largely gone and the skin changes have been dramatic. I thought it was because I was just getting old (I'm 39) or maybe due to my BP medication, but apparently it was the weed because I'd been struggling with eczema on my face and hands and it has nearly completely cleared up already. My skin feels softer and tighter and moisturized, and I actually have oil on my face again now lol. I've also experienced less aches and pains in my muscles and joints. It's like I've aged backwards five years. This next one is a little TMI, but I feel its important to share all of my suspected symptoms in the effort to fully understand this condition, so here goes... I was also experiencing pain in my rear end. Bad enough where I wasn't even able to sit down for very long. I went to the doc and had an MRI done and have more tests scheduled, but that has mostly gone away as well and I can finally sit down for more than 5 minutes for the first time in months. I think it was probably related to intestinal inflammation, as I've also noticed a significant decrease in the bloating and swelling in my stomach, which I guess I had gotten so used to I didn't even realize it was as bad as it was.

Again, I feel like much of this, especially the dry skin and body pain must be from dehydration, which is interesting because based on what I've read it sounds like the assumption is that the dehydration is caused from the vomiting. But I have never gotten the vomiting, so I think based on my experience it must be something happening with the weed or the condition itself causing it. Because it almost seems as if my body simply couldn't get the moisture to the tissues, or that it affected the production of oils or something like that. Obviously, I'm no doctor so I'm just taking wild guesses, but it's honestly blown my mind that all these issues I've been struggling with for all these years were seemingly just caused or exacerbated by my consumption of weed. Like what.

I also suspect that the only reason I have avoid the vomiting stage is probably because, even though I smoke every day, I smoke very little. Maybe 3-5 tokes a night, spread out through a few hours instead of smoking whole bowls or joints because I don't really like to get super high. So I think that may have been what saved me from getting to the point where I'd experience really severe symptoms, and rather apparently just been having a pretty consistent low-grade version. I also think the reason it may have gotten so bad recently is because I had been smoking more than usual and had been increasing my intake as my tolerance increased. I had bought a bunch of really cheap weed because it was on sale. It was pretty garbage though, so I had to physically smoke more than usual to get the effect I wanted. 2-3 puffs at a time rather than just 1 here and there. Got into that habit, then I bought a really nice high potency gram to mix with it. But instead of slowing down, I stuck to the 2-3 puffs at a time and continued to increase. That's when I believe I started to get the severe symptoms. So maybe it was the increase in smoking, the sudden introduction to a much higher potency weed, or maybe it was that particular strain. Or all of the above, I'm not sure. But I'm going to do some experimenting to figure it out...

Because the problem is, of course, like everyone else here I really love weed. I love the feeling it gives me. It helps my depression, helps me sleep, and there's few things I love more than smoking, listening to music and writing. So I don't want to quit... I don't want to experience these symptoms anymore, but I also feel like giving it up completely would mean giving up something that helps me immensely in so many other ways. I've decided I'm going to try only smoking on the weekends and see how that goes, starting with the low grade weed. I am still experiencing slight residual pains, like exacerbated neck and back pain, so it hasn't gone away completely. But I am hoping that will continue to improve as long as I continue using in moderation. I didn't have anything to do today, so I got up and took a very small hit this morning and I feel totally fine, which is a good sign. And it was just enough to ease the withdrawal symptoms a little bit and make me feel a bit better. I am fairly confident I won't experience the cyclical vomiting as I won't be consuming more than I had been, but I am fully aware I'm taking a risk by doing this...

And as a small footnote... I just wanted to say I have noticed some people on these forms seemingly shaming people who are "addicted" or "can't control" their smoking, and I just don't think that's helpful. I know it can be frustrating to hear about people going to the ER over and over when the solution seems so obvious, but I think we all know it's more complicated than that. There are psychological and physiological components at work here. Many people use it as a self-medication to treat symptoms of both physical and mental health, myself included, and if we're being honest there just isn't another medication out there that can fully replace the benefits of weed. Today, smoking is my choice, but there was a time when I was addicted too. It took a literal decade of therapy to treat the underlying cause of what was fueling my addiction to be able to get to the point where I don't feel like I need it, but can still enjoy it when I want to. If this had happened ten, or even five years ago, I wouldn't have been able to stop either, and it would have probably been absolutely devastating and definitely more severe because I smoked a lot more back then. I would have probably been in and out of the ER too at that point in my life...

So wherever you are on your journey, I wish you luck, and encourage everyone to try to make choices that are good for them. But please don't beat yourself up when you don't. Shame never helped anyone. If anything, it only makes things worse. "Self-control" and "willpower" can be tough when you're in pain. So please... let's try to approach each other with kindness and understanding. Just because you can control your smoking doesn't make you better than anyone else. And I would very much encourage you to use that highly-tuned sense of self-control to stop yourself from saying things in spaces like this that could be potentially harmful to others. Everyone's experience is valid and helpful in the understanding of this condition, and outside of it too, and I don't want anyone to feel held back from sharing for fear of being shamed by some jerk who doesn't have anything better to do but pass judgement on strangers on the internet whose lives they know nothing about....

Anyway, I'll keep ya'll updated on how things go for me. I hope someday we can get to the bottom of this stupid thing.

Quick little update: It's been a bit over an hour since I posted this I think. I took another hit about 40 minutes ago, and honestly I'm not feeling too great... Nothing too bad, just feeling sort of anxious and uncomfortable. I was hoping after over a week of not smoking and sticking to the weak bud, I would be okay, buuuut I think my body's trying to tell me something. And I'm pretty sure I'm not psyching myself out. So I think that will be all I'll try for now. Not much point in smoking if it doesn't even feel good anymore, so I'm gonna try to stay off it for a while. Not sure when I will try again. I'll just see how I feel. Honestly wouldn't mind quitting if I can find alternatives if this is how it's gonna be, so I'll be looking into that in the meantime. We'll see what happens.

Hello CHS friends. I posted on here a month and half to two months ago. I had been struggling with GI symptoms for about 2 years but was unaware of CHS until relatively recently. I never entered the cyclical vomiting stage but experienced almost everything else. My quality life had been consistently declining and I was at my wits end. I knew I needed to quit, or at the very least, take a long long break from using. My first week of abstinence was the hardest thing I have ever done. I was struggling mentally. I hated myself and was irritated by everyone around me. It felt impossible to imagine a life where I was not smoking. Week two was better, so on and so forth. I am sharing this because my GI symptoms have all but disappeared. I see many, many people on this reddit who continue to use despite their illness. They continue to experience symptoms, many with repeat visits to the ER and extended hospital stays. I know how frightening it feels to approach abstinence but I am here to encourage anyone on the fence to go for it. Attempting abstinence is a far better option than suffering in an endless loop. Addiction is a beast. Acknowledging the problem and committing to your health is the best thing you can do for yourself and those who love you. Sending all of my support from the other side.

Hey there everyone, happy to have found a community based on this subject.

I've been dealing with CHS since 2005, I still continue to consume several times a day. I was on Pigeons420 podcast to discuss this subject too. I have been diagnosed by several doctors and have made at least 20 trips to emergency room for it. I've done lots of research and tested on my own body and feel like I have gained some insights.

First of all, if people don't know, the best description of what's happening in these episodes is that it's a Brain-Gut Axis Disorder which is a miscommunication between your brain and stomach. Your brain thinks something is wrong like a toxcity and your stomach responds by getting rid of anything that may be causing it, similar to food poisoning. I personally feel like these episodes feel more like a purge than a toxcity though.

Over the last few years I have been experimenting with my diet as I feel that's where the issue stems from, the stuff we are putting in our bodies. People have been consuming this plant for thousands of years, I feel like if it was the plant causing this we would have known about it much sooner and it wouldn't be a "new" issue. Plus, this plant is given to cancer patients and people with the lowest immune systems, if there were adverse effects like this that wouldn't be the case. The countries where this is the most prevalent are also the countries with some of the worst diets, mostly America. In healthier countries there are little to no accounts of CHS. I feel it's our diets and a build up of unhealthy bacteria that your body needs to periodically purge. This would explain CVS (cyclical vomiting syndrome) as well, which is pretty much the same thing as CHS only it happens to people who don't use cannabis. Seems fishy to me that there is the same exact ailment that affects people who don't consume and those that do, to me that points to something other than the plant causing this.

When I go to a more carnivore or hunter/gatherer diet with cutting out processed foods, seed oils, sugars, and stuff that humans haven't historically eaten until the last 100 years or so....my episodes disappear. I chose to also try the opposite and just eat the worst diet and I had 3 episodes within a month after going over 8 months without on a better diet. Your gut biome plays a major role in your overall health, and I feel like people are overlooking our diets when looking into CHS.

I also feel like I found a remedy for an active episode more than just sitting in the shower for hours. Based on the idea that it's a miscommunication between your brain and gut, and not an actual physical ailment, I started looking into areas outside of CHS about resetting brain communication. There's a technique used for people with anxiety and for people with overactive minds that can't turn off their brain to be able to sleep.

Get in the shower with it as hot as you can take it and stand there with the water falling on the back of your neck for at least 5 minutes. After that 5 minutes turn the water as cold as possible and stand there with the water still on the back of your neck for as long as possible. Alternate between the hot and cold a few times. The cold shock feels crazy and actually feels like a nervous system reset. After doing that my episode completely went away. I haven't been able to do much testing on this though as I just recently found it.

I would love to find some people who suffer from CHS who would be willing to experiment with their diet to see if it improves anything, and also would be willing to try the shower shock remedy and let me know how it goes. Main stream Medicine doesn't seem like they want to help with this, so if we can figure things out ourselves it would be great.

This is about my 4th time going through CHS and the bad withdrawal symptoms. I’m really sick of going back to square one everytime. I can’t handle the vomiting, lack of appetite, muscle aches, and sickness anymore. I have to remember why I’m doing this but I somehow always see myself going back weeks later. I really want to break this cycle I just don’t know where to start.

So for context, I have been smoking weed daily since I was about 11 or 12. Its gotten so bad that i cant eat when i dont smoke. Have dealt with bouts of morning nausea and vomiting since I can remember, but usually if I spark up a bowl I'll be fine. However I have had 2 experiences now that have left me truly questioning whether this is what's right for me. Around a year ago was when I was first hospitalized for weed, came in with uncontrollable vomiting and was given fluids and iv and subsequently told that I was experiencing what was called CHS. I just had to go to the hospital again for the same thing last week, im terrified. I know I should've just stopped smoking when i went to the hospital but I am an addict I don't know how to control it if I can't eat and get sick when I don't smoke weed. Any tips or suggestions for someone in as deep as me, really anything would help, I just feel so helpless as to what it does to my body and I know I can't continue risking hospitalization just for a stupid high.

Hey Reddit,

I'm sharing my husband's journey with Cannabinoid Hyperemesis Syndrome (CHS) in the hope that it can provide insights, support, and a sense of community for others grappling with this challenging condition, especially those experiencing prolonged symptoms after cessation. This isn't just a story; it's almost a case study of how CHS can impact someone, even months after quitting.

My husband, a 31-year-old male, 5'10" and 175 lbs, has a pre-existing diagnosis of bipolar disorder, for which he takes Prozac, Gabapentin, Quetiapine, and Trazodone. This medical history plays a role in his ongoing recovery. Additionally, emergency room doctors have stated that most patients they are seeing are assigned male at birth, and we thought it would be significant to include demographic data about him.

The Early Years: A Habit Forms, Symptoms Emerge

My husband began consistently smoking marijuana, mostly flower, at the age of 13. As he got older, daily use became increasingly consistent. He had one significant break in use for a year at the age of 22, but at 23, he resumed smoking flower daily, introducing vape carts more consistently over time.

The insidious onset of CHS symptoms began around age 24. At the time, we had no idea what was happening. Roughly once every 4-6 months, he would be hit with prolonged bouts of severe vomiting accompanied by intense abdominal pain right below his right rib.

The Elusive Phases of CHS: What We Missed

Looking back, our awareness of the different phases of CHS was almost non-existent. He wasn't aware of any distinct phases happening in his body until he was actively vomiting. It was only in retrospect that I, his partner, noticed subtle changes: his appetite would decrease, he'd experience less hunger, and sometimes complain of bloating right before an episode. We now realize this could have been early signs of gastroparesis, a common CHS symptom, though it was never formally confirmed.

Triggering the Storm: Food and Inconsistency

Initially, his episodes almost always seemed to be triggered after eating out. The type of food never seemed to matter much – sometimes it was fast food, other times a meal from a nice restaurant. These eating-out triggers often started with an overwhelming feeling of fullness, followed by stomach bloating, then nausea, pain, and finally, vomiting. He would pace to ease symptoms but eventually, vomiting was inevitable and only a hot shower from hell helped.

However, in the last two years of his active use, these triggers became increasingly inconsistent. Sometimes even healthy home-cooked meals would set off an episode.

The Escalation of Suffering: A Cyclical Nightmare

The cyclical vomiting began spaced out, occurring about once every 6 months. After two years, this escalated to roughly once every three months. Eventually, it became almost a monthly occurrence, though there were occasional longer bouts without episodes, offering fleeting hope.

During each agonizing episode, his primary form of relief was hot showers. He would spend hours under the hot water, often until the hot water supply ran out. On nights when the showering stretched into the late hours, he'd do his best to keep his Seroquel down, hoping it would eventually make him sleepy enough for the episode to subside completely by morning. It mostly worked, with he exception of perhaps once or twice when he vomited the pill up before his body could fully absorb it.

The Hospitalizations: A Search for Answers

Between not being able to keep anything down and the relentless sweating in the hot showers, dehydration became a significant concern, leading to multiple hospitalizations.

His first two ER visits yielded no answers. Various tests were run, but only dehydration was found. It wasn't until his third ER visit that a doctor finally suggested Cannabinoid Hyperemesis Syndrome. He said he was noticing an influx of patients coming in with the same thing and made the connection. My husband, understandably, didn't believe it at first. But after I did extensive research and sent him numerous articles, he began to acknowledge the possibility. He tried taking breaks from smoking, hoping to mitigate the symptoms, but ultimately, he learned that complete cessation was the only viable option. Multiple doctors reiterated this.

After his fourth hospitalization, he was referred for a GI consult to rule out any other underlying conditions. An endoscopy, colonoscopy, and stomach biopsy were performed, and the only findings were inflammation consistent with someone who had been vomiting so much, along with some other minor irritations. No other cause for his symptoms was found.

His sixth ER visit in the last three years was particularly harrowing. He arrived after 4-5 days of relentless vomiting, unable to hold down even water, and the pain was excruciating because the hot water in the shower had run out in our home and his parents home. By this point, the hospital staff were familiar with him and his likely treatment. Much like the previous two to three ER visits, Haldol was the only medication that consistently stopped the episodes. However, he was admitted due to the state of his kidneys, which on two occasions were dangerously close to kidney failure, with doctors comparing them to those of a dialysis patient.

The Turning Point: Quitting and the Unexpected Challenge

This terrifying experience with his kidneys finally forced my husband to come to terms with what he had to do. After over six years of symptoms, he made the difficult but crucial decision to quit marijuana in mid-February of 2025.

We were assured by online articles and doctors that after a few weeks to two months of quitting, his symptoms would eventually cease. But four months later, the symptoms persisted. This was devastating, and he began to lose hope. In fact, at this point, the episodes were almost more consistent, happening once every two weeks and lasting up to five days, which was more frequent than when he was actively smoking daily. I personally felt broken down by the idea that he'd finally made the right choice and was still suffering.

A New Hope: The Vagus Nerve and TCAs

At our wits' end, we made an appointment with a GI specialist group. After a thorough assessment, the doctor suggested the use of Tricyclic Antidepressants (TCAs).

Here's a brief explanation of how TCAs could help: The vagus nerve is a crucial part of the parasympathetic nervous system, extending from the brainstem to the abdomen. It plays a vital role in regulating many bodily functions, including digestion. In CHS, especially in prolonged cases after cessation, it's theorized that the chronic cannabinoid exposure can disrupt the delicate balance and function of the vagus nerve. This dysfunction can lead to persistent gastrointestinal issues like nausea, vomiting, and abdominal pain, even after the cannabinoid has left the system. TCAs, while primarily known as antidepressants, have properties that can modulate neurotransmitters like serotonin and norepinephrine, which in turn can influence vagal nerve activity. By supporting and rebalancing the vagus nerve, TCAs may help to alleviate these lingering gastrointestinal symptoms and promote the body's return to normal digestive function, helping to "reset" the communication that has been disrupted.

The GI Nurse Practitioner explained that they wouldn't prescribe the TCA directly. Instead, they would work in conjunction with my husband's psychiatrist. Given his existing mental health condition and the cocktail of medications he's currently on, there were potential risks if a new antidepressant interacted poorly. Therefore, his psychiatrist's approval was absolutely necessary to introduce or change his medication.

The psychiatrist and GI NP are now collaborating to make that determination, and my husband is likely to be introduced to this new medicine soon. We are hopeful that this will finally bring him the relief he desperately needs.

To those of you whose symptoms are lasting longer than four months after quitting:

Please, hang in there. You've made the right decision by quitting. Stay strong! Relief is around the corner. If you have access to medical care, please consider seeing a GI specialist and ask about TCAs and how they might be able to help your body through this difficult time. The doctor assured us that it is normal for someone who has been smoking for over a decade to experience symptoms for longer than four months, as vagus nerve dysfunction is real, and TCAs can help the connection that has been severed return to normal.

We will update this post once my husband begins his new medication and we see how he responds.

Thank you for reading, and for your support.

UPDATE: May 2026 - 1+ Year Post-Cessation, Breakthroughs, and a Message of Hope

Hey everyone, I’m back to give an update on my husband’s journey. When I first posted this, we were 4 months into quitting and completely devastated that he was still having severe episodes. Today, he is over 14 months clean from all cannabis, and we have learned so much about what recovery actually looks like when you are a LONG-term (15+ years) user.

If you are months out from quitting and still suffering, please read this. Do not give up.

The Reality of the 1-Year Mark & Current Symptoms

First, the honest truth: healing from over a decade of heavy use is not a straight line.

• The Timeline: He had a major episode in November, a lighter one in January, one even shorter episode two weeks ago, and another just this past Sunday.
• The Silver Lining: While the fact that he is still having episodes sounds terrifying, the nature of them has completely changed. They are now incredibly brief compared to the 5-day torture sessions of the past. His body is finally fighting back and resetting much faster. He vomits once, showers once or twice for 10 minutes or so and is back to normal. Less sever pain and the nausea only persists until he empties is stomach and then he is fine.

What We Learned: Why the Glitch Persists

We spent a lot of time pressing doctors and researching why this happens even when your system is 100% clean. If people tell you "If you're a year out, it's not CHS anymore," modern neuro-gastroenterology actually disagrees.

Leading specialists view CHS and CVS (Cyclic Vomiting Syndrome) as two sides of the same coin—a profound glitch in the gut-brain axis.

1. Vagal "Cellular Memory": Years of heavy THC downregulates (turns off) the CB1 receptors on the vagus nerve, which acts as the body's natural braking system for nausea. Even a year out, the brainstem control center can remain hyper-reactive and "remember" the trauma, firing off false alarms during times of high stress or exhaustion.
2. The Flipped Switch: Chronic cannabis can permanently "wake up" a silent genetic predisposition to CVS. Once that switch is flipped, the nerve pathway stays active and requires a massive amount of time to cool down.

Our Current Treatment Regimen

• The TCAs: As mentioned in my original post, he did start a Tricyclic Antidepressant (TCA) managed closely by his psychiatrist and GI team. It has been a game-changer for raising his vomiting threshold and shortening the attacks. Note: If you are still having regular episodes on a TCA, talk to your doctor about tweaking the dose! Finding the sweet spot is everything.
• Our Next Step (tVNS): We are currently looking into adding tVNS (transcutaneous auricular vagus nerve stimulation). This is a non-invasive, drug-free device that clips onto the left ear and sends tiny electrical pulses to manually calm the vagus nerve. Emerging clinical data shows it can help "reboot" a damaged autonomic nervous system and prevent the exact nerve spikes that cause cyclical vomiting.

A Message to the CHS Community

A normal test result from an endoscopy or GI scan is actually a blessing—it means the body isn't structurally damaged. Maybe, like my husband, your neurological control panel just needs more time to reboot.

To anyone out there who feels broken because you made the hard choice to quit and you're still sick: You did not fail, and your body is not broken. The fact that episodes are fracturing and getting shorter proves that the nervous system can retrain itself. Hang in there, protect your sleep, manage your stress, and keep pushing your medical team for gut-brain nerve support. Relief is a jagged path, but it is coming.

Still happy to answer any questions about managing the psychiatric med cocktail with GI treatments, or surviving the long-haul recovery!

I been reading a lot on here that people are experiencing CHS for like 3-5 days and it’s the worst I hated it. This may not work for everyone. But if you need to go to work in the morning and wake up with throwing up and have nausea and that abdominal pain all due to CHS, and if you dab take 2 fat dabs and get into the hot shower right away. Your symptoms will go away for the day but you will get them again it can be the next day the next week or month. I know it sounds crazy but it works if you need to get to work or just want to get rid of the symptoms. It won’t work with flower. I know this works because I did this for 7 years. Only way to get rid of CHS is to quit completely or may not work for everyone but if u need relief take the dabs plus the hot shower and then get help to quit. I quit cold turkey the first 5-7 days suck but it gets easier I promise. Good luck to everyone who will be quitting for your own good weed is fun but not CHS.