how young is too young (when it comes to smoking) ?

[CHQ Princess]

believe me when your eighteen your brain is just starting

[Uhhhhh]

I started at 16... can't say if it was a plus or minus though. High School is a great time to begin exploring; but I did notice that it it took till I was around 28 to gain any sense of responsibility... I probably should've started later... I might not have dropped out, but who knows.

[Infinite]

If I had to pick an age it would be 21, the same age you can legaly drink here but as far as at what age i will still discourage a person from doing it, i would say more like 16 or 17. I just think that younger people have a lot of shit on thier plate as far as trying to figure out how the world turns and that it would probably be a more positive thing to wait till they were older but as long as they are over 15 they can drive and therefore put others lives in danger so why not their own. so long as they're not under 15 i don't say shit to em

[XullioS]

i would say probably 18.  i didn't take my first hit of weed till i was 17 even though i had a lot of friends who had been smoking since they were like 14.  i didn't start smoking with any regularity until the summer before my first year of college, when i was 18.  any time before then felt way too young for me, which is why i didn't let myself get pressured into smoking just to be cool when i was younger hahahaha.  i would sit in on a circle with my friends and not smoke when i was 15 and 16, and looking back on it i'm actually pretty glad i didn't because mentally that age seems so young to me now (i'm 19 turning 20 in may).

[Muddy Waters]

i would say probably 18.  i didn't take my first hit of weed till i was 17 even though i had a lot of friends who had been smoking since they were like 14.  i didn't start smoking with any regularity until the summer before my first year of college, when i was 18.  any time before then felt way too young for me, which is why i didn't let myself get pressured into smoking just to be cool when i was younger hahahaha.  i would sit in on a circle with my friends and not smoke when i was 15 and 16, and looking back on it i'm actually pretty glad i didn't because mentally that age seems so young to me now (i'm 19 turning 20 in may).

Welcome to CHQ.  Good for you that were smart enough to wait until the time was right for you.  Fifteen is very young to start.  Like you, I waited and didn't have my first smoke until I was 19.

[immolation]

believe me when your eighteen your brain is just starting

                       I Do Believe You.

[puffpuffere]

My daughter came to me when she was 13 and asked if she could smoke pot.  She was a good kid and a good student so I explained to her the TRUTHS about pot.  I also explained how hard it is to not over use it at her age.  This was 15 years ago.  She did fine in school and is doing fine with her life.  Sure, she MAY have done better w/o pot in her life................but then she MAY have been a stressed out over achiever who's taking all kinds meds to control her blood pressure and stess levels.  I was raised in the SF Bay Area.  I started smoking at 11 and I did/am doing just fine.  Of course I think 11 and 13 is too young but mainly because of the lack of control and discretion at that age.

[CHQ Princess]

I think its a simple...do you understand that consequences both physically and legality of smoking....if you dont then your prolly too young.

[bestbud]

i started like a few months befor i turned forteen but only got fully into weed later on

[J R Puffnstuff]

If you can serve in the ARMY  should should be able to smoke.

[DR. Budlove]

i started when i was 12 and i'm 27 now and i still have a 140 I.Q. but if i had to set an age it would be 16 to 18

[seeanew1]

Good question! Now that my husband can legally smoke and grow I have been thinking about this.

The way I see it if we are saying that cannabis has medicinal qualities then why would we let someone with out a fully developed frontal cortex (the area the processes social/behavior) decide that it is okay? Would it be okay for them to decide that they need a Vicodine when ever they feel like it? What if they feel like it every day?

Call me a hypocrit. I started smoking when I was 12. But I can tell you that I was no where near ready to use it in a responsible way. I am currently working on my 2nd Masters Degree but know that smoking/the partying life style took me away from my full potential. My mom figured since I got all A's in high school that I was okay. But I always wonder.

I had a few friends whose parents let them smoke in High School. We all thought they were cool parents, all except for their own children. Both of those friends told me that they wished they had parents that didn't party and that had lost respect for them. Now looking back, they were not the shinning examples of parenting. However, I do believe it is how it is presented. They got high to get high, not to alleviate pain or anxiety, etc.

I smoked all through high school like nobody's business. But then again I was in counseling and taking psychotropic medication since I was 15. Now that I know that I have Bi-polar with manic episodes and an generalized anxiety disorder to boot, I now know that I was self medicating.

I'm not saying that that justifies my pot smoking at a young age but my point is that young people aren't typically growing their own and are more than likely putting themselves in dangerous positions in one way or another even if it is just going over to a dealer's house to get it. Who knows what other type of people are going over there and do you want your kids there.

Children are minors and need there parents to guide them. Letting them smoke if they are stressed does not allow them the opportunity to deal with stressful situations on their own. They may become more inclined to turn to pot when ever something comes up.

Another idea to consider. Pot is illegal for most adults to smoke. If it is rumored that someone allows their child to smoke pot they can have their kids taken away. I have worked in the State's Protective Service Unit and this would fall into child endangerment. How many teenagers do you know that wouldn't at least tell one friend that their parents are cool with them smoking?

Sorry to ramble, but I've been thinking alot about this.