The 420 Scroll Spiral: How Weed and Doom scrolling Are Subtly Rewiring Our Mental Health
- Scraper
- Apr 19
- 5 min read

420 always begins with a scroll or maybe a puff
It's 420. Instagram is flooded with 'stay high', Twitter (now X ugh) is melting down about the latest celebrity scandal. Your couch is warm, your snacks are within reach, and the joint you just lit is hitting a little 'too' nice. You open up your app of choice, scroll for a bit...an hour passes. maybe two, you haven't moved unless for the lighter or another J, haven't hydrated and now you're watching a 17 part conspiracy thread about pigeons being govt drones, Sound familiar? Nope, just me then.
For Gen Z and zillennials, those of us who came of age under the shadow of tech and the normalization of weed. This kind of sensory soup is disturbingly normal. And while each act (smoking and scrolling) feels chill and low effort, the combo is sneakily potent. In fact, researchers are beginning to understand how both weed and doom scrolling, especially in tandem, might be subtly deteriorating our mental health over time.
This Isn't About Shaming. It's About Waking Up
Both marijuana and doom scrolling tap into your brain's reward system. They spike dopamine, the neurotransmitter responsible for pleasure and motivation. but here's the catch: the more we artificially stimulate dopamine release, the more our brain adapts by producing less of it naturally.
According to a 2019 CCSA report, chronic cannabis use, especially during adolescence and early adulthood, in linked to changes in the brain's dopamine system, which can lead to reduced motivation, impaired cognitive function, and anhedonia (difficulty experiencing pleasure).
Doom Scrolling works the same way. Each scroll is a micro reward. You chase the next piece of content. You chase novelty. Even if the content is negative, war, violence, existential dread, your brain craves the hit. The algorithm knows. That's why you keep scrolling.
when combined, weed and doom scrolling amplify each other's addictive loops, you get high, your inhibitions lower. you scroll longer, your brain craves more stimulation..rinse, repeat, eventually, your brain forget how to feel good on its own.
Escapism in High Defination: HIGH + Scroll = Disassociation
Let's talk coping. Life is hard. Rent's high, climate change is real, jobs are unstable, and relationships are complicated. Weed? Easy. Scrolling? Easier.
But according to a 2024 Upstate Medical University article, frequent cannabis users often use it as a tool for emotional regulation, especially those dealing with trauma or chronic stress. It can be helpful in small doses, but when overused, it becomes a crutch.
Doom scrolling acts the same way. A 2023 study in the 'Journal of Psychiatric Research' found that compulsive news consumption during crises (like the pandemic or political unrest) is linked to higher rates of anxiety and depressive symptoms.
Together, these two behaviours from a self soothing trap. You smoke to feel less, scroll to escape your thoughts, and then wake up feeling even more hollow. The feelings you tired to avoid, the grief, the fear, the loneliness. are still there, Just fuzzier, Louder. Heavier.
Cognitive Fog: Memory, Focus, and Functioning
You've probably felt it: The way your brain short circuits mid sentence. The way words escape you. The to do list that never gets done.
"Yes, focusing is harder, memory is weaker, I wasn't enough to prevent then, nor am I now." - Anonymous
That's real. Chronic marijuana use, especially combined with digital distraction overstimulation, can lead to significant cognitive issues. A comprehensive review published by the National Academies of Sciences found moderate evidence that cannabis use impairs learning, memory and attention.
Add doom scrolling to the mix and you're facing a perfect strom of distraction and dysfunction. Studies from the Mayo clinic highlight how the constant influx of information- from war updates to influencer drama. leads to fragmented thinking, poor ezmotional regulation and sleep disturbances.
In short? We're mentally overloaded, Underperforming, and too fried to realize why.
The Mental Health Loop: Anxiety, Anhedonia & Avoidance
The connection between social media use, cannabis and increased rates of depression and anxiety is well documented. Bt it's not just the volume of use, It's the intent behind it. Another user states, "Dependence is anything that keeps you going," another anonymous contributor shared. It's less about addiction and more about identity.
When you're high and doom scrolling, you're not feeling your feelings. You've bypassing them. According to a 2022 study in Frontiers in Psychiatry, this avoidance behaviour creates a feedback loop where emotional repression leads to more stress, which then fuels further avoidance.
Your mental health declines, your self worth erodes, and recovery starts to feel like a myth.
Sleep? Never Heard Of Her
Both doom scrolling and marijuana disrupts sleep cycles. While some people use weed to fall asleep, studies suggest that it can suppress REM sleep. The most restorative phase. (PMC)
Meanwhile, late night screen time delays melatonin production. You stay up later, sleep less deeply and wake up groggy. Chronic poor sleep? It's a fast track ticket to worsened mood disorders, irritability, poor focus, and decreased immune function.
TL:DR your brain needs rest. But the scroll won't let you.
So, What Do We Do About it?
This isn't about quitting weed cold turkey or deleting instagram forever. It's about being conscious of your patterns. About giving yourself permission to break up with escapism in favour of something deeper.
Track your usage: Use screen time apps. Journal your weed habits.
Create scroll free zones: Bedrooms, meals, outdoors.
Try sober scrolling: or even better, mindful breaks.
Prioritize real connections: social media is not a substitute for intimacy.
Check in with your Mental Health: Therapy helps. Community helps more.
and if you're feeling stuck, and wanna take an holistic recovery approach, Alpha Healing center offers holistic, evidence backed treatment programs rooted in compassion and personal growth.
To Ash It Off,
You deserve to feel something better than numb.
The weed and scroll life might be convenient, but convenience isn't always kind. Your mind, your creativity, your peace, they're worth protecting. This 4/20, light up if you want to. Scroll if you need to. But maybe, just maybe to it with awareness.
Because the algorithm and the plant? They'll always be there.
But your mental health? That's yours alone to protect.
Resources:
Richmond, L. M. (2024). Studies Tie Marijuana Use to Lasting Cortical Changes, Schizophrenia. Psychiatric News, 59(06). https://doi.org/10.1176/appi.pn.2024.06.6.40
De D, El Jamal M, Aydemir E, Khera A. Social Media Algorithms and Teen Addiction: Neurophysiological Impact and Ethical Considerations. Cureus. 2025 Jan 8;17(1):e77145. doi: 10.7759/cureus.77145. PMID: 39925596; PMCID: PMC11804976.
Doomscrolling: Stop the scroll, protect your mental health - Alisa Bowman
unapid geepeti
Tereshchenko SY. Neurobiological risk factors for problematic social media use as a specific form of Internet addiction: A narrative review. World J Psychiatry. 2023 May 19;13(5):160-173. doi: 10.5498/wjp.v13.i5.160. PMID: 37303928; PMCID: PMC10251362.
Syunyakov TS, Zakharov AV, Gayduk AJ, Ignatenko JS, Kuvshinova NY, Pavlichenko AV, Spikina AA, Fedotov IA, Yashikhina AA, Gonda X, Desousa A, Fountoulakis KN, Smirnova DA. Izmeneniya rezhima sna i potreblenie informatsii s negativnym kontentom v internete («dumskrolling», «dumserfing») kak upravlyaemye faktory riska razvitiya trevogi v usloviyakh stressa pandemii COVID-19 [Changes in sleep patterns and the doom-scrolling (doom-surfing) phenomenon as modifiable risk factors for anxiety due to continuous stress of the COVID-19 pandemic]. Zh Nevrol Psikhiatr Im S S Korsakova. 2023;123(10):88-96. Russian. doi: 10.17116/jnevro202312310188. PMID: 37966445.
Crean RD, Crane NA, Mason BJ. An evidence based review of acute and long-term effects of cannabis use on executive cognitive functions. J Addict Med. 2011 Mar;5(1):1-8. doi: 10.1097/ADM.0b013e31820c23fa. PMID: 21321675; PMCID: PMC3037578.
Satici SA, Gocet Tekin E, Deniz ME, Satici B. Doomscrolling Scale: its Association with Personality Traits, Psychological Distress, Social Media Use, and Wellbeing. Appl Res Qual Life. 2023;18(2):833-847. doi: 10.1007/s11482-022-10110-7. Epub 2022 Oct 19. PMID: 36275044; PMCID: PMC9580444.
Clearing the Smoke on Cannabis, Regular Use and Cognitive Functioning
コメント