As promised here is my story of how and why I started smoking dagga.

Please do not mention my name as I am looking for work (since being retrenched) and know the stigma against smoking.

If you wish any further info from me, please feel free to contact me.

I had only ever smoked cigarettes before in my life and have never liked alcohol at all.  Never even drank champagne for the toasts at my own wedding.

Went through a traumatic divorce during 1995.

Was not sleeping at all and went to the doctor.  He gave me a script for sleeping tablets and told me to get my kids settled for the night and to take the tablet half an hour before I went to bed.

That night I did as he instructed and landed up staying awake the entire night.  My eyes were as wide as saucers.

I eventually fell asleep in the early hours of the morning. 

My alarm went off a few hours later and I got up and walked down the passage to get the kids up and ready for school.  My vision was blurred, my mouth tasted like cotton wool and the passage walls were moving.

I felt absolutely awful.

A neighbour took my kids to school and I landed up sleeping for most of the day.  I still felt awful when I woke up.

Did not take any more sleeping pills and a few days later another neighbour came to me and he told me that he knew how I felt about any form of drugs but he had rolled me a joint and told me to only have two drags just before I went to sleep, as he was not sure how it would affect me, having never smoked dagga before.

I will never forget how nervous I was standing in my back garden having those first 2 drags of a dagga joint.  Lol.

Needless to say, that night I had a great sleep and woke up feeling wonderfully well rested.

That was in 1995 and I was 34 years old.  Having my first taste of dagga!  Late bloomer de luxe.

A year later I was diagnosed with Irritable Bowel Syndrome – being nervous or anxious in any way brought an attack on worse than giving birth.  Besides changing my diet I also came to realise that smoking a joint just made me less anxious.

I am naturally an anxious and hyperactive person. My friends do not like me drinking Red Bull as they already call me The Energizer Bunny.

I am now almost 52 years old and I smoke a joint every day. 

I am super healthy, slim, fit and supple.

I have brought my children up as a single mom – dad is an alcoholic.