[generic_hippie]

The ignorance being displayed in this thread is astounding.

It is just as statistically likely that people who are depressed use drugs as it is that drug use causes depression.

The idea that one toke on a joint will fuck you up for life though, 25+ years of introducing virgin smokers to my culture tells me its very unlikely, not to mention the notion is empirically unprovable.

Weed, if used appropriately, has the opposite effect of depression in most cases, euphoric feelings abound.

If you begin your weed usage (or any drug), as a means of escaping reality, then chances are it will fuck you up. I suggest though, it would be more appropriate to consider the pattern of and motivation for use as the problem, rather than the drug of choice.