Ask Lemmy

My take: If you are at a low point in life, have a mental disorder or are depressed, your chances of getting addicted over time is greatly increased and you probably shouldn't consume without medical supervision (even then, THC-less weed might be better for you). It's really hard to get out of the habit once smoking weed slowly becomes the only thing that can give you joy/relaxation, and your mental situation worsens long-term.

In most other cases your risks are very small and you definitely should try it sometime. Every person reacts a little differently, hence the many opinions out there. I say just try it, see how it makes you feel and if you decide to consume regularly, try to be mindful of any negative habitual/bodily changes that long-term use may cause.

As the other person pointed out, weed is not physically addictive. But almost anything can be mentally addictive

Its not particularly dangerous when compared to alcohol, but its definitely not harmless. It isn't addictive in the sense that it causes a chemical dependency, but its very easy to over rely on because its simply a cheap easy way to feel good. There was a period in my life where I would say I was addicted to it. Any other pleasure in my life wasn't relevant unless I was combining it with marijuana, and despite what I believed at the time it didn't make me creative or productive. I was a walking stereotype of a lazy stoner. I only quit because I was forced to after losing my job for a surprisingly unrelated reason. I felt like garbage for days on end after stopping and only then did I realize it was a problem. At this point I have a much healthier relationship with the drug, I usually only partake in social situations with some rare exceptions. How bad the drug is really just depends on who's using it and how they're using it.

I'd say you should take what people tell you at face value unless they're a close friend. There was a commenter here who said they had to stop reading book because it was addictive to them. Anything can mess up someone's day. Weed makes some people not feel okay. It makes some people want to smoke it (or eat gummies or whatever) way too often. Plenty of other people have totally fine relationships with it.

Unless you really have a view into someone's life I wouldn't worry about trying to decide if they're lying and if something like an intervention is necessary.