I think I ask people to smoke a little too often.
When I’m nervous or in a new situation with unfamiliar people, it’s my first thought. This may be a crutch but it’s also a really quick way to bond—a shared experience, action, and altered mental state can really do wonders.
Today, it’s been reported that more women are consuming cannabis than ever before, and we make up one of the largest demographics of smokers. Eaze has even predicted equal gender representation among cannabis consumers by 2022. Yet we’re still often objectified in cannabis advertising and the number of C-Suite positions in the cannabis industry occupied by women has been dropping year to year. We’re generally underrepresented as real people that use cannabis for recreation, healing, personal growth, and frankly whatever the f*ck we feel like.
Cannabis use as a habitual practice was introduced to me by a less-than-positive male figure in my life. Surveying my femme coworkers and friends, I realized I wasn’t the only one. Many of us faced similar experiences—pressured to smoke, shamed for not smoking a certain way or not smoking “enough”, and feeling unsafe in our intoxicated state around men we knew deep down weren’t trustworthy.
These experiences could be attributed to a number of things but a lot of us agree: “weed” was originally presented to us as a boys club.
In college, I tried to change this in my circles by introducing a ton of girls to cannabis. I taught many girlfriends the ins and outs, from how to inhale properly to how to dab. This was often followed by great conversations and them passing out care-free and content in my bed, unbothered and safe as hell. Though of course there is an abundance of cool male cannabis users, there is nothing quite like a big smoke circle with your gals and an array of snacks.
Nowadays, there are retreats, clubs, conferences, meetups, and more, all for women that work with cannabis and want a safe and comfortable space to consume it with fellow women. Check one out, start your own, and remember: only female plants produce buds.
Photo credit: Vonecia Carswell on Unsplash
