Weed and Anxiety: What’s the Relation?
Anxiety disorders are the most common mental illnesses in North America. They affect 40 million adults in the USA alone. In fact, the global coronavirus pandemic also has taken a major toll on the health of many people. There has been a major increase in those reporting harmful mental health symptoms. This made many people more curious about the link between weed and anxiety. Does it really helpful?
These days it’s easy to become overwhelmed with the stresses and expectations of modern life. Therefore, this leads many to try to find alternative ways to feel more grounded and at ease.
Among the ways to help manage anxiety, marijuana is one of the most widely talked about and relatively easily available. The effects, benefits and properties of weed can vary depending on the ingredients and strain. Therefore, it’s vital to ask questions such as how it should be used and what weeds work best.
How Does Weed Affect Anxiety?
Like most aspects of mental health, there’s no ‘one size fits all’ answer to this question. Cannabis can affect each individual differently. Many people find weed use beneficial in quietening the often-deafening thoughts that anxiety can bring on. However, the others have experienced the heightened paranoia.
According to a research in 2017 *, using marijuana to cope with anxiety may offer some short-term benefit. This research implies that weed use is perhaps more of a temporary tool to help cope with anxiety as opposed to a definitive cure.
In determining how weed affects anxiety, it’s important to break down the different components of weed; THC(tetrahydrocannabinol) and CBD(cannabidiol). In a nutshell, THC is the compound that produces the effect of being high. On the other hand, CBD is non-psychoactive, meaning it won’t provide a euphoric influence.
Generally speaking, THC tends to decrease anxiety at lower doses, but can potentially have the opposite affect at higher doses. This is usually a result of increased heart rate, or an increased number of thoughts racing through the mind. This can help create an anxious state.
CBD, meanwhile, can be help with anxiety at a range of doses. It can calm you down and also help alleviate any pain. If you are looking at using weed to relieve your anxiety, for most people, the best bet is probably a mix of CBD and THC. In another words, CBD may help settle any nerves, whilst THC providing a stable, uplifting feeling.
How to Use Weed for Anxiety?
The good news is, weed is now readily available in a number of forms, strains and doses. DeliveryMeds offers vide range of cannabis products helps cope with anxiety. As previously discussed, someone new to weed is best off using low doses and having a mix of THC and CBD. As you begin to understand what works for you, you may want to increase the dosage until you find a sweet spot that helps alleviate your anxiety.
The quickest way to get high or feel the benefits of weed is through smoking or vaping, whilst ingesting it may take up to three or four hours to kick in (this is worth bearing in mind once taking to ensure you don’t overdo it!). Smoking weed can be good way to adjust how much you take in over time. However, edibles provide the most accurate way of knowing exactly what dosage you’re consuming. Finding your favorite way to use weed can also help with making you feel more comfortable and less stressed out. Keep note of what terpenes (the compound responsible for the varying smells and flavours of weed) work best for you as you may find particular ones more therapeutic.
The situation and environment you are in can also sometimes play a role in how weed helps your anxiety. Unfamiliar places or people can sometimes make you feel on edge so you should always be somewhere you feel comfortable, especially when first starting out.
What is Better for Anxiety: Sativa or Indica?
The terms sativa and indica are useful for cultivators in describing a plants growth cycle or physical characteristics. For users, they generally tend to represent the kind of impact that they have on you.
Indica is traditionally linked to CBD dominant strains and often provides a relaxing, sedative, physical effect on the body.
Sativa plants are usually more associated with having a euphoric impact on your mind as opposed to the body. Certain strains can also make your mind more active, something that may be unwelcome if over thinking is the source of your anxiety.
Generally speaking, the terms sativa and indica are more useful when it comes to the taxonomy of plants as opposed to their effects. Both sativa and indica can play a role in helping with anxiety, however it’s important to do your research to determine what will work best for you. Determining the right CBD/THC ratio is likely to be a more important factor in finding what weed is most appropriate for how you are feeling.
*Susan A. Stoner, PHD, Research Consultant at the University of Washington: https://adai.uw.edu/pubs/pdf/2017mjanxiety.pdf