Yo, what’s up fam? It’s ya boy Dan here, and today we gonna talk about some realness when it comes to depression and cannabis use among young adults. So, there’s this study that recently dropped in the Journal of Affective Disorders saying that depression rates among young adults are rising because of increased weed consumption due to legalization. But hold up, let me tell you why this study is straight up bogus and missing the point.
First off, the authors of this study are just trying to push anti-cannabis propaganda. They ain’t interested in exploring the real reasons behind the spike in depression rates. They out here tryna make weed look bad, but they ain’t considering the bigger picture.
Now, don’t get me wrong, I ain’t saying social media don’t play a role in depression among young adults. It definitely does. But these researchers be tryna blame social media alone for the rise in depression rates. They say that kids these days are all isolated ’cause they spend too much time on their phones instead of interactin’ with each other. And yeah, I can see where they comin’ from. Back in the day, we didn’t have all this social media stuff, so we had to actually hang out with each other and have real social interaction. But yo, it’s not just social media’s fault.
Let me break it down for ya. Back in them ancient times, being exiled from society was considered the worst punishment ever. You’d be all alone in the wilderness, cut off from your peeps and your home. And now, we out here self-imposing our own emotional exile through social media. We create these perfect personas online, showin’ off our seemingly flawless lives. But deep down, we feel more alone than ever before. We got all these ways to connect with people instantly, but we forgot how to actually connect on a meaningful level. We just hiding behind our filtered avatars, chasing after validation and likes.
Loneliness is hittin’ epidemic levels, bruh. We yearnin’ for what technology promises, but it ain’t deliverin’. We miss that human intimacy, nature, and stillness. Look at them influencers with millions of followers. They seem like they got it all, but many of ’em are feelin’ empty inside. Some even takin’ their own lives. It’s like we livin’ in some disconnected dystopia where we only see the palm trees and paradise on the surface, but ignore the inner wastelands.
So yeah, social media plays a part, but it’s not the only reason for the rise in depression among young adults. We also gotta consider the state of society that these millennials grew up in. They got endless war, climate change messin’ things up, corrupt leaders runnin’ the show, corporations doin’ whatever they want, and communities crumblin’. The stability and opportunities that older generations had are disintegratin’ right before their eyes. How can we expect ’em not to be stressed out and depressed?
And don’t even get me started on this whole cannabis blame game. The researchers in this study talk about how increased access to weed from legalization is enabling “self-medication” for depression. But they fail to see how prohibition itself created a messed up environment for cannabis use. There were unsafe products and no guidance on how to use it properly. Legalization actually helps by educatin’ people about cannabis, regulatin’ it, and settin’ product standards. It takes away the stigma and makes responsible use possible.
If these researchers are really worried ’bout young people self-medicatin’, then they should be pushin’ for better access to professional cannabis therapy. Legalization is just the first step, but we still got barriers around studyin’ and prescribin’ cannabis. Patients deserve proper guidance from clinicians to use it responsibly.
And let’s not forget about how the majority of cannabis users ain’t “problem users” or depressed. These researchers usin’ outdated models to measure consumption and depression rates. We need to update our understanding of what “typical consumption” looks like, ’cause most users are functional and ain’t depressed. We can’t make fair assessments if we ain’t usin’ the right metrics.
Also, correlation don’t equal causation, my dudes. Just ’cause depression rates and cannabis use are both goin’ up don’t mean one is causin’ the other. There could be other factors at play, like the messed up state of society. We gotta address the real issues instead of pointin’ fingers at social media or cannabis.
So, in conclusion, this study tryna push anti-weed propaganda and ignore the real reasons behind the rise in depression among young adults. Social media definitely plays a part, but it ain’t the only thing to blame. We also gotta consider the state of society and how prohibition messed up the cannabis scene. Let’s focus on makin’ professional cannabis therapy more accessible and usin’ the right metrics to understand consumption and depression rates. It’s time for some real talk and open minds, y’all. Stay woke and keep it real!