Hawthorne Addiction Treatment Centers

The state of California legalized recreational marijuana legislation in 2016, and nine states across the U.S. legalized a form of recreational marijuana in the following 2 years.¹ California Proposition 64 allowed each city in the state to manage marijuana legislation as they see fit, which resulted in several cities in Los Angeles County choosing to keep marijuana illegal.²

One of these cities is Hawthorne, California, which decided it will not legalize marijuana for recreational use for the time being.

Although marijuana is starting to be regulated more like alcohol and tobacco in many places, changing laws around the drug means that more people will be exposed to it, which potentially increases the risk of abuse. Between 2005 and 2015, the number of hospitalizations due to marijuana abuse of some kind increased 449%. This is mostly seen in people between the ages of 18 and 25, but both younger and older age groups also abuse this drug.³

Adolescents and young adults who abuse marijuana run the risk of changing the way in which their brains develop, including long-term alterations to memory, learning, and judgment. On a short-term basis, marijuana abuse may cause mood swings and changes in sensory perception, which sometimes leads to paranoia, depression, or anxiety.⁴

The good news is that damage caused by chronic marijuana abuse may be reversible with appropriate treatment. Research some of the resources on this page for one that may be a good fit for you.

1. Governing.com. (2018). State Marijuana Laws in 2018 Map.
2. Ballotpedia. (2016). California Proposition 64, Marijuana Legalization (2016).
3. County of Los Angeles Public Health. Substance Abuse Prevention and Control (SAPC). (2017). Impact of Marijuana Use. June 2017.
4. National Institute on Drug Abuse. (2018). Marijuana: What Is Marijuana?