Weed Watch Blog

5 ways to get to sleep without weed

Do you use cannabis when you can’t sleep? Here are some reasons to reconsider.

Good science vs bad science: weeding out fact from fiction

There's a lot of 'research' and 'evidence' out there, but how can you tell the difference between real research, which is the result of a proper scientific study, and poor research, which sometimes produces big claims but is actually meaningless?

Parenting and drugs: ultimatums aren't everything

Parenting teenagers when drug use is an issue can be challenging and emotional. In this blog, we look at one of the most common calls to our cannabis helpline and provide some small insights that may go a long way.

‘I’m so fancy’ – how weed can affect your looks

Don’t smoke away your looks! Why quitting weed is a great natural beauty tip.

Top 5 reasons bongs aren't cool

Respiratory diseases, chronic coughs and petrochemicals - just a few reasons why bongs aren’t cool.

Monthly media wrap up: medicinal cannabis again front of mind

February saw the quiet of previous months fade into a new year of debate about medicinal cannabis, more drug driving crashes and interesting new research.

The truth about trying to quit weed: one young man’s experience

Trying to quit weed is not always easy. One of our NCPIC team sat down with one of his closest mates to talk about his mate's decision to quit weed and how he is progressing two weeks in.

How to be happy: is weed a short-term “pleasure” or a long-term solution?

The key to being truly happy is finding the right kind of happiness, which means cultivating meaning and purpose in your life.

Why do you smoke weed? 5 key questions to ask yourself

These 5 questions will get you thinking about your weed use.

Top 5 things I’d like to say to my friend about smoking weed

The effects of weed can go beyond your health

When your partner is dealing with cannabis addiction

What do you do if your partner is addicted to weed?

Addiction: small ‘rewards’ that can become big luxuries

It can be surprising how often small indulgences can build up into addictions.

A friend with weed is a friend indeed?

If you want to help a mate with a cannabis problem, having a conversation with them is a good place to start.

Cannabis: an historic love-hate story

A brief history of how our relationship with cannabis has changed over the years.

Why do people use weed?

Here are a few thoughts on a very big question.

Monthly media wrap up – synthetic cannabis claims more lives

In January the media covered articles on the growing concern around synthetic cannabis use, medical cannabis, and weed taking on a persona of its own on Twitter.

Starting high school: how to talk to kids about 'high school issues'

Knowing how to talk to kids starting their first year of high school about 'high school issues' is important in preparing them for the year ahead.

New Year’s resolutions: February is the new January

Do you want to turn your New Year's resolutions into lasting habits? Starting your resolutions in February instead of January could be the answer.

The challenge of drug education in schools

The importance of engaging students in interactive drug education.

Aim high, don't get high – is weed affecting your career or study?

Aiming high is a great way to ensure you achieve your goals, but smoking weed may get in your way.

New Year, new inductees: getting workplace drug education right from day one

New employee induction is the ideal time to educate your employees about your workplace drug and alcohol policy.

Going abroad: the drug conversation you must have with your kids

As a parent with a teen who is looking to go overseas for end-of-year break or even a gap year, a big part of your job in helping to increase your child’s safety is making sure they are informed. Unfortunately, ignorance is no excuse for breaking the law.

Moving out of home: tips for your new joint

Moving out of home for the first time is a lot of things – scary, exciting, freeing, messy… and just a little bit awesome. For the first time in your life, there will be no one to tell you to clean your room, asking where you were the night before, or bugging you about studying. Here are the collective things we’ve learned about first time moving.

Mixing weed with summer holidays: road trip or dead end?

The summer holidays are here and it is time to relax, take it easy and freshen up before you launch into the new year. With many of us looking at taking a road trip around Australia or sporting holidays, it's important to remember the short-term effects of cannabis on your physical and mental abilities and how this can affect your safety.

Positive parenting: should you wrap kids in cotton wool?

With school holidays in full swing, it can be difficult to keep track of what your kids are doing and who they are doing it with. But could knowing more actually make a big impact on their future and safety?

Clearing out clutter for a fresh start to the New Year

The New Year is the perfect time to 'declutter' bad habits from your life.

Music festival season: hey, do you smell weed?

The summer music festival season is off to a flying start - but could flying too 'high' bring it to an abrupt halt?

Kronic mistakes being made with synthetic cannabis

Synthetic cannabis took the Australian market by storm a few years ago - so why is it a drug you should really aim to avoid?

Naughty or nice? Dealing with cannabis-related family conflict

Christmas can be a stressful time of year for some families, so if you decide to bring up tricky conversation topics like cannabis use, here's some tips on how best to approach it.

Christmas, parties and getting loose in the silly season

Christmas can be a fun, crazy and electric time of the year when we get it right – but can come with some nasty consequences when we get it wrong. To get you ready for Chrissy, here are our five tips on substance use during the silly season.

The twelve days 'til Quitmas!

This year, try a novel approach to quitting weed - grab an Advent Calendar and practice a daily abstain and reward routine.

Can't seem to find your Christmas cheer this year?

Christmas can be a tricky time - for a lot of us, we look forward to the fun, festivities and food, but for others it can mean depression, anxiety and just feeling alone.

Monthly mainstream media wrap up – medicine, mining and manufacturing

A wrap up of cannabis media stories for the month of November, including the cannabis legalisation debate, the police cracking down on stoned miners and synthetic drugs importation on the rise.

Could the voices of your ancestors be trying to tell you something?

Using weed, especially a lot of it and from a young age, has been linked to the onset of mental illness in vulnerable people. So it's important to have the 'mental health family history' talk to find out if your mental health could be vulnerable to the effects of weed.                                                                                                                                                                                                    

Should I quit weed? Having ‘that' conversation with yourself

If you smoke weed and you have a close support network, it’s not unlikely that you’ve heard their opinion on your drug of choice, what it can do to you and why you should give it up ‘now, before it’s too late’. And while all of this may actually be good advice, do you really want to hear it?...

Quitting weed is easy, isn't it?

Is weed addictive?

People often comment on our blogs or Facebook that cannabis isn’t addictive and they’ve quit plenty of times without a problem, they just choose to use it... 

Why won't they just give up weed?

Tough love
Sometimes being a friend means having to dole out a bit of tough love. Encouraging a mate to get fit, ease off the grog or party drugs, quit that dead end job and aim higher, or give up weed...

Quitting weed: Banish bad habits with a mate

Quitting weed: Are your mates friends or foes?

Have you ever tried to change some bad habits only to slip up every time you’re around your mates? Maybe it’s signing up for going ‘Dry in July’ or implementing a training program...

A quickie for guys on cannabis and trying to conceive

Stop what you’re doing. We see you…standing in the kitchen waiting for your boxer shorts to freeze before you slip them on and shake your way back to the bedroom.

So you’re trying to get pregnant...

Media exposés: drug education or an advertisement?

Every now and then, when the medicinal cannabis stories start to temporarily thin, Australian media look to something a little more alarming or downright scary  to fill the gap, such as the ‘potentially life-saving shocking truth’ stories about drugs, how easy they are to get and the real damage they may be doing...

Weed vs alcohol: which is more dangerous?

In January this year, when US President Barack Obama apparently made the statement that he doesn’t believe cannabis is more dangerous than alcohol, he sent media into a spin – especially because the US at that time was heavily debating further legalisation of cannabis for medicinal and recreational purposes...

Parenting teenagers: what do our kids need to know about cannabis?

If you look at the recently released ‘sneak peak’ results from the 2013 National Drug Strategy Household Survey, you’ll see that we’ve been successful in stemming an increase in cannabis use since 2010...

Marijuana movies and media: is cannabis being trivialised?

After recently attending a university welcome back function and talking to a lot of students, our NCPIC team was left wondering where a lot of young people are getting their marijuana information and education. With heaps of questions about whether cannabis is legal...

Do uni students know enough about the effects of drugs?

Last week, the NCPIC team had a new experience, finding ourselves amid the foot traffic of 5000 young students at an event for one of Australia’s largest university campuses. With an interactive stall, themed ‘keep off the grass’...

A quick look at the UN World Drug Report

In the first week of July there was a lot of publicity about the release of the United Nations (UN) World Drug Report 2014. The mainstream media really latched onto the figures presented in the drug report, which essentially showcased the changing face of drug problems around the globe...