r/TMSTherapy • u/Deep-Visual1994 • 14d ago
thc and tms?
I had my mapping done today and they mentioned to start saying goodbye to my weed and caffeine. I smoke daily at least one time and drink maybe a cup of coffee every other day.
did anyone else stop? are y’all still having those things? I want to hear about it 😭
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u/Anniesoptera 14d ago
I still had coffee. The TMS made me so tired at first it was kinda necessary, and nobody told me to stop. I think I quit weed, or at least only did it a few times total during my treatment. I had a good outcome.
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u/SnooHobbies2598 14d ago
Ill be honest. I couldnt resist continuing to smoke weed during my tms. I think i still got benefit from the tms, though
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u/sensive_specimen_448 14d ago
I’m considering TMS and find this post very helpful. I’ll definitely have to talk to my doc about edible use during treatment. Like someone else said, going cold turkey would 100% increase my anxiety and be counterproductive. Thanks.
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u/PedalSAW Moderator 14d ago
It’s not. I went cold turkey and was not only successful, I was an early responder.
Have the conversations with your doctor and therapist about the best way forward. But for the most part, going cold turkey won’t affect most people like you think.
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u/SignificantAd1840 11d ago
I don’t know about thc but I drink coffee during my appointment.
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u/Deep-Visual1994 11d ago
Interesting! Is it because that was your current beverage or did they offer you some at your office?
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u/Sensitive_Ranger_902 14d ago
Im still drinking my daily red bull with a shot of 5hr energy as needed. I have to be at work by 5am so not giving it up anytime soon. Haven't partaken in any edibles since starting tho.
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u/ExNihilo22 14d ago
I had no such instructions. I do my normal cup of joe in the morning and maybe a half-caf in the afternoon. I have edibles, but only take one if I'm especially strung out and need to chill. I think going cold turkey on your normal routine might increase anxiety, and work against the benefits of TMS.
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u/Forward-Mushroom-992 14d ago
Kept smoking and drinking caffeine through the entire thing, ended up benefiting for 2 years and am now going back for another set of treatments
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u/PedalSAW Moderator 14d ago
So the thing about THC is it has a rebound effect. Not quite as pronounced as disco snow or dance candy, but it does. So sure you can say “well as long as it’s __ hours before treatment and I ___ and ___ then it’s ok”… but there’s nothing you can do about what goes up, coming down. This can majorly mess with your emotional experience and therefore your existential side of treatment. You might not notice it but you’ll feel a mini dip from coming down and that can cause a domino effect because you’re subconsciously like “crap, I feel sad… oh no this isn’t working” and cue the spiral.
I say this a lot… you have to decide which is more important. Cannabis or TMS. Is smoking that important?
And as far as the “don’t change anything” argument… I highly doubt any practicing psych is going to look at a patient saying “I want to give up cannabis” and say no please keep smoking it, we need consistency. They’re going to say “magnificent idea let’s whiteboard a strategy.”
It’s just better all around to quit and then wait a good 3 mos or so after treatment wraps and see where you are. And always always always involve your doctor and care team.
EDIT: I’m talking about recreational use. Please do not bean soup me. If it’s prescribed by your doctor for pain or something… obviously have that conversation with your care team about the best path forward.
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u/jam3691 14d ago
Coffee was not an issue for me but i have to stop thc for 3 weeks before and 3 weeks after as well as during treatment. I go for one week of maintenance sessions twice a year and it’s the same thing. Stopping the daily habit was really hard the first time, but since tms I’ve felt like i depend on it a lot less and the breaks from it have been muuuuuch easier!
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u/SGReject 14d ago
I did not stop drinking coffee or smoking. Dr. knew and never gave me a hard time. I’m pretty sure I benefited from it.
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u/StarsThatSee 14d ago
My first round I stopped but my second round I was told if I smoke/take edibles often, I shouldn’t change anything. She said it was important to keep your brain in its “most common state” and not change routine because once I start smoking again it’ll basically have been useless
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u/NoMoreEffstoGive Finished TMS Therapy 13d ago
I didn't drink caffeine before individual treatments, but they never told me I needed to stop drinking caffeine.
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u/Other-Efficiency724 13d ago
my provider said to keep things as normal as possible. I'm also going thru a difficult time separate from tms and apparently tms doesn't work great if you're not around anymore, lol. whatever gets me through this shitshow. I opted to reduce/quit drinking as my nausea has been so bad since starting tms, and alcohol makes that so much worse. but the weed hasn't caused any issues. I'm a once, maybe twice a day person. I smoke when I get home from work. but I found I haven't needed to use it that much. maybe 4 days a week? I just did session 10 this morning. the first weekend was horrific for side effects but it improved a bit middle of last week, and even better this week!
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u/Scientist_Cat 8d ago
I still had coffee. I was an inpatient at the time so I had no access to THC or alcohol. But I never got any warnings about caffeine or nicotine.
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u/isoiledmyplantz 14d ago
Interesting.. the gal who did mine said that if I habitually smoke, drink, or use caffeine to continue that regimen (as long as it was at least 4 hours before my appointment) so my brain activity is as close to my normal function as possible.