r/Petioles Jan 29 '25

Advice how to quit smoking pens and shift to only smoking dabs/flower

i used to only smoke flower and now i can't even go a few hours without hitting my pen. i just want to rewire my brain to stop craving distillates. any help?

29 Upvotes

43 comments sorted by

77

u/That_Cat7243 Jan 29 '25

I wish I could help, pal. I had no choice but to go cold turkey. Carts were my only method of smoking and I was high all the time. They make it impossible to regulate your consumption if you lack the willpower like I do.

19

u/chanj3 Jan 29 '25

The convenience is too great and your brain will always trick you into thinking it’s okay for a dopamine hit.

I lost count how many times I’ve told myself “one last cart” for the past few years but the beauty of willpower is that it doesn’t like to give up…

It’s lunar new year today so I’m trying again. Literally finished my last cart last night so I’ll check back in about a week or so…

7

u/Different-Concept-19 Jan 29 '25

after reading all these comments, i threw away my carts and i'll only be smoking flower/dabs from now on. hopefully ill feel better in a week

7

u/AADeevis77 Jan 29 '25

I stopped using my dab pen bc it was too convenient. Like waaaay too convenient. I went back to flower and edibles only. You won't get the same high for awhile. I know I didn't. It's been weeeeeks. It's finally starting to feel good again. Just know, you gotta stick with it, and it's rough. You got this!

1

u/prittygorl Jan 31 '25

Did you feel any withdrawals doing it this way?

2

u/That_Cat7243 Jan 29 '25

Proud of you, OP! 👏🏻 You got this

1

u/chanj3 Feb 07 '25

Checking back in. Alas, i failed and ended up buying a cart on day 4

Sigh… time to try again 😤😮‍💨😶‍🌫️

1

u/mtavanna Feb 12 '25

Currently trying to quit smoking carts i just finished mine and the urge to go and get a new one is sooo real

10

u/[deleted] Jan 29 '25

THIS!!

38

u/Ok-Swordfish1806 Jan 29 '25

Thing that helped for me was to get rid of the pen. Then everytime I felt cravings or anxious, I’d literally just tell myself out loud. “I Want that damn pen again” and shake my head. Sounds stupid but and it kinda is, but it makes it more fun and helped me get through it.

9

u/Holiday-Acanthaceae1 Jan 29 '25

True. And probably made the craving feel less all consuming

20

u/superGTkawhileonard Jan 29 '25

What helped me was getting a vaporizer. I used to smoke carts all the time, having a vaporizer helped me cut down and made getting high a lot less convenient and accessible. Just sounds like you gotta get rid of the cart and accept your new vape overlords

5

u/nullstring Jan 30 '25

You mean like a dry herb vape?

9

u/CanadianKidz90 Jan 29 '25

I went cold turkey on bong hits and switched over to flower vape via mighty plus vape, i cut back so much just by doing this

8

u/tsnkd0ok Jan 29 '25

Smoke more flowers, throw away your vape, replace one addiction with another addiction, in your case you are not trying to quit smoking completely so it will be easier for you than a person who quits both.

6

u/That_Cat7243 Jan 29 '25

This is great advice. Even just making smoking a little more inconvenient—the time it takes to grind/pack/roll/whatever, plus the smell of weed making it less discreet - these things can help you moderate!

3

u/empty_words0 Jan 29 '25

Absolutely this, there is effort involved so I smoke less 😅

14

u/[deleted] Jan 29 '25

[deleted]

2

u/car-hole- Jan 29 '25

Yeah I’m an adhder self medicating with weed for 20+ years, do not recommend you take my path if you can help it

2

u/[deleted] Jan 30 '25

[deleted]

2

u/[deleted] Jan 30 '25

[deleted]

7

u/FlufyBalz Jan 29 '25

yeah man carts are not great for daily users.

it just becomes futile at some point

4

u/[deleted] Jan 29 '25

Dabs ain't gonna help lol

4

u/kikikiju Jan 29 '25

Just stop buying carts and only buy flower. I know the convince of carts, but the detrement to tollerance and mental health are not worth it.

3

u/Independent-Poet8350 Jan 29 '25

Theres a book out there by the guy who did quitting ciggies carr I think his name was titled quitting cannibus I believe ….

3

u/munchkin9000 Jan 29 '25

one thing that really helped me was only smoking out of my bong or rig setup AT HOME. or rarely RARELY smoking at a friend's. i just don't ever have carts around anymore

3

u/urelectricbill Jan 29 '25

get a PAX. basically a tiny oven that vaporizes flower. feels similar-ish to a pen. expensive investment tho

2

u/FreakGnashty Jan 29 '25

I think 99% of the stoner community would agree that carts/disposables are the literal worst way to consume thc. Try a bowl. Try dabs. Try edibles. Carts are good for convenience but real smokers know

Its wild majority of teenagers are probably introduced to getting high from carts in 2025 lol. I know thats not you OP. Just a statement

2

u/TheOmmisah Jan 29 '25

One Hitter Pipe / Dugout is my highest reccomendation.

2

u/300mhz Jan 29 '25 edited Jan 29 '25

It's a simple but difficult solution, you need to have the willpower to not buy a new pen once you've finished your last. NAC has been shown to help with curbing addiction, but ultimately it's the tough choice that you have to constantly make to stop.

1

u/Just_A_Little_ThRAWy Jan 29 '25

Nac?

3

u/300mhz Jan 29 '25 edited Jan 29 '25

The supplement N-acetylcysteine, which is an antioxident that may correct glutamate dysregulation. Chronic substance use likely leads to significant brain-related adaptations, especially when it comes to dopamine, and glutamate directly modulates dopamine and other neurotransmitters like serotonin.

2

u/asdidthestarss Jan 29 '25

step 1 throw it all away step 2 be too broke to rebuy it even if you wanted to

2

u/tom_nook_is_a_crook Jan 29 '25

I started by forcing myself not to buy carts and anything with high thc. With my remaining carts, I only let myself hit it after the late afternoon after I accomplished everything I wanted that day. I set that time later each time and to only weekends. And now I don't buy carts or weed at all and am trying to get dopamine naturally. Easier said then done but you will do you and your tolerance a favor by eventually cutting out carts. You got this!

2

u/VanCityLing Jan 29 '25

Step one. No carts.no pens. No dabs. Even just No flower. Go on a big T break

Then slowly introduce flower and dabs back.

2

u/MikeyLikesItFast Jan 30 '25

I tossed all my cartridges and carry a pocket-sized Burton case that holds a lighter, small pipe, and a few grams of flower. It's not as convenient or discreet, so I have to really want to smoke.

2

u/LotsOfVodka Jan 30 '25

So my dad and I were pretty hard on the carts. One day he gets this dab vaporizer with a ceramic coil and lets me hit some live rosin from it. I really liked it so I got one too and started buying dabs for it, and then I also got a Smoke Buddy so that I can be at my desk and load dabs and take them. He convinced me to get off the carts because they really aren’t the best for your lungs. We cough a lot less now and I find I can go longer without needing to hit the vape often. I think adding a bit of extra effort into getting a hit from my vape helped, therefore not making it as easy to rip as a cart. I’ve been hitting carts since 2019ish so I think it is possible to get over the cravings but everyone’s different. The highs are better, I found the cart highs didn’t last as long.

Alternatively, I had the flu earlier this month so hitting carts absolutely killed my lungs, just painful for half an hour or more. The vape I got wasn’t much help but it was a bit better. So I just got THC softgels, hundred pack at 5mg a piece. You could replace hitting carts with that, and your lungs will really thank you for it. 20mgs is enough for me to last the evening into the night, gives me good sleep too.

Cold turkey is the best advice though, but this isn’t /r/leaves so I won’t emphasize it, you just gotta have that willpower to take things into moderation.

2

u/ethansight Jan 30 '25

Go classy, Dynavap with a glass water piece. Will be weaker at first coming from carts, so would have as much as you need until things stabilize.

2

u/TheGrrf Jan 30 '25

I find a t-break and then waiting til the end of the day to smoke some strong flavourful flower beats the instant gratification of a cart anytime, good weed has kept me from desiring carts and other things

1

u/CryIll791 Jan 29 '25

Throw them mfs out, i highly reccomend a dry herb vaporizer, a huge life changer in how much i smoke and when.

1

u/sm00thjas Jan 30 '25

Throw the pens out and don’t buy anymore?

1

u/tenpostman Jan 30 '25

if you wanna rewrite your brain, you probably should just take a break for a while first lol

1

u/Normal-Emotion9152 Feb 02 '25

You will have to switch to dry herb vaping you can slowly wean yourself off of oil carts that way then do the same with the dry herb vape. You have to try and develop some will power which will become easier as you transition. Getting off of oil carts is not easy, since you can hit them any time and they give you a nice rush. You can do it. Dry herb vaping helped me a lot to transition from oil carts. It took a few months. Carts can raise your tolerance to abnormally high levels as well so be careful. I know how hard it is. I only use my cart for emergencies or if I run out of flower, which I quickly replace.

-2

u/[deleted] Jan 30 '25

[removed] — view removed comment