Teen Vaping, Marijuana, and Anxiety: What Parents Need to Know

Vaping is often a teen’s way of coping with anxiety—but it may be doing more harm than good. At La Jolla Therapy Center, we help teens find healthier ways to manage stress and emotions.

“I need it to calm down.”

“It helps me fall asleep.”

“But then I wake up feeling worse than before.”

If any of this sounds familiar, you’re not alone. More and more parents are watching their teens pick up marijuana vaping as a way to cope with stress, anxiety, or trouble sleeping—and instead of relief, many of them feel more stuck, more anxious. In this blog, we’ll explore how vaping THC (the psychoactive part of marijuana) interacts with anxiety, why use often becomes hard to stop, and what steps parents can take to help teens find healthier ways through their anxiety without reaching for a vape.

Why Teens Turn to Marijuana Vaping for Anxiety

Vaping THC can seem like an easy fix. For some teens, it offers short moments of relaxation or escape—especially when anxiety is high or sleep is hard to come by. But those moments often mask deeper challenges.

Research shows that adolescents who vape cannabis are significantly more likely to report feelings of anxiety, depression, and psychological distress than those who don’t. In many cases, it’s not just that anxiety leads to vaping—it’s that vaping can worsen anxiety symptoms over time, especially when used regularly or in high amounts. Also, teens who use vaping devices often mix THC with nicotine or use flavored vape products, which may increase the habit-forming potential and intensify anxiety or panic.

What It Looks Like When Vaping Feeds Anxiety

Here are signs that the vaping use is becoming more than just experimentation—and may be fueling anxiety instead of easing it:

• Increased worry or racing thoughts, often worse after vaping rather than better

• Panic-like symptoms: rapid heart rate, sweating, uneasy feelings that escalate

• Sleep disturbances: hard time falling asleep, frequent waking, nightmares or more vivid dreams

• Needing more frequent doses to feel calm (tolerance)

• Feeling guilt, shame, or wanting to stop but finding it hard

• Using vaping to cope with stress, social pressure, or mood swings, even when it causes problems at school or in relationships

  
  

Why It Gets Hard to Stop

Understanding the pull is crucial. Here are some reasons a teen might feel stuck:

1. Quick “relief” loop: Anxiety can feel overwhelming, so vaping offers an escape. But once the effects wear off, anxiety often returns—or even intensifies—leading to more vaping.

2. Peer, social & identity pressures: When vaping becomes part of peer culture or social identity, quitting may feel like losing a “social safety net.”

3. Biological effects: The adolescent brain is still developing. THC interacts with emotional regulation pathways, sometimes altering how the brain processes fear, stress, and worry. Over time, this can make anxiety more frequent or intense.

4. Stressors piling up: If anxiety stems from multiple sources—family conflict, school, social media, uncertainty—vaping can become a go-to coping mechanism when healthier tools haven’t been taught or practiced.

   
   

What You Can Do: Supporting Your Teen Toward Healthier Coping

Here are practical steps and strategies you can try as a parent (or guardian) to help your teen move away from vaping as the primary way of managing anxiety:

1. Open the Conversation in a Calm, Non-Judgmental Way

Avoid accusations or scare tactics. Try something like:"I notice you vape sometimes when you seem stressed. I want to understand how it helps, because I also worry about how it might be affecting you."

Let them talk about what vaping does for them emotionally. This gives you both a starting point.

2. Explore Alternatives Together

Work with your teen to find other anxiety-relief tools. Some ideas:

• Mindfulness or breathing exercises

• Non-screen relaxation: reading, music, drawing, journaling

• Physical activity: walking, sports, yoga—movement often helps release anxiety

• A calming bedtime routine (no vaping or screens close to sleep)

  
  

3. Set Limits and Boundaries, Compassionately

This could mean limiting access to vapes with some firm house rules. This can include room checks or backpack checks, where you throw away any vapes or vape paraphernalia you find. This could also include limiting access to peers who you know our child has been vaping with, and setting firm cufews (as well as consequences for any violations). It is OK to be the bad guy here. Remind yourself (and your child) that reducing vape use will go a long way in regards to reducing anxiety use. Enforce these with consistency—while staying empathetic to how hard anxiety can be.

4. Help Them Build Resistance & Resilience

Anxiety is powerful, so strengthening resilience is key:

• Practice stress management skills

• Schedule regular check-ins to talk about what’s hard

• Help your teen build a support network (friends, counselor, trusted adults)

• Encourage healthy sleep, nutrition, screen boundaries

  
  

5. When to Seek Professional Help

If vaping is causing noticeable issues—falling grades, withdrawal if they try to quit, anxiety that escalates, panic attacks, or mood swings—talking to a therapist who specializes in teen mental health, addiction, or anxiety is important.

A trained therapist can help with:

• Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT) that addresses anxiety + substance use

• Skills for coping with cravings or urges

• Family therapy to adjust patterns at home that might be amplifying stress or vaping

  
  

Final Thoughts: Balance, Growth, Change

Watching your teen rely on vaping for relief can feel heartbreaking—and frustrating. But change is possible. It doesn’t mean they have to stop overnight or that you have to be perfect. Small shifts, honest conversations, and support can set your teen on a healthier path.

If you’re feeling stuck, or if vaping has become more than just a phase, you don’t have to do this alone. A therapist who understands teen anxiety or substance use can help guide your family toward clearer habits and healthier coping.

Our San Diego, California based counseling practice specializes in helping teens and adults who struggle with anxiety and substance use. Through counseling, we help kids and young adults overcome the negative thought cycles, the constant comparison game, and worst-case scenarios that accompany the anxious brain. Additionally, we offer other mental health services, primarily for perfectionists, overachievers or others who don’t feel like they 100% fit in. More specifically we offer treatment for anxiety/OCD, and depression at La Jolla Therapy Center. If you don’t live around San Diego or the commute makes in-person therapy impossible, all of our services are available via online therapy to anyone physically located in California. Therefore, we work with clients from Sacramento to Palo Alto or even Mountain View. You and your family deserve to finally feel less overwhelmed, so let’s get started!