In recent years, the use of medical cannabis has become popular for treating many health conditions including anxiety and depression. Additionally, many people who suffer with anxiety and depression self-medicate with cannabis.
So, can cannabis really help you with mental health conditions including anxiety and depression? Read on to find out how cannabis can be used for anxiety and depression.
How Does Cannabis Work?
When you take cannabis, endocannabinoids are released which influence your brain’s neurotransmitters. Your brain uses neurotransmitters to affect your senses, moods, and feelings. When these levels drop you may experience anxiety as well low moods, sadness, and irritability which are the main symptoms of depression and other mental health conditions. According to a recent medical study, half of the people who use medical cannabis for anxiety while a third of medical cannabis users use it for depression.
According to medical cannabis research, the CB1 and CB2 brain receptors as well as cannabinoids, such as THC and CBD, alter your brain chemistry and lowers stress and anxiety symptoms. Chronic stress and anxiety issues often happen hand in hand with depression and it is possible to make these symptoms worse with recreational overuse of cannabis.
Can Cannabis Help with Anxiety?
Many people use cannabis, including THC, CBD, or both, to reduce anxiety. If you use marijuana for anxiety, go with a strain of cannabis which has only CBD or a high ratio of CBD to THC content. This is because high levels of THC have been linked to increased anxiety symptoms and panic attacks as well as racing thoughts and increased heart rate.
You will also need to make lifestyle changes and engage in spiritual practices, such as energy healing and shadow work, to improve your overall mental health. if your anxiety triggers don’t go away then your anxiety will continue to surface and may get worse. Also, the use of medical cannabis helps with anxiety in the short term but unless the underlying issues and causes of your anxiety are addressed, continued long term use may make you feel worse.
Various medical studies have shown that CBD may help to treat anxiety including post-traumatic stress disorder and social anxiety. Also, low doses of THC can help to relieve anxiety. The benefits of medical use of cannabis and CBD includes better sleep, peace of mind, calmness, and increased relaxation. Also, there is a lowering of the feeling of anxiety and symptoms of social anxiety, phobias, less sleep disruption, agoraphobia, and post-traumatic stress disorder.
Can Cannabis Help with Depression?
Scientific research has focussed largely on CBD for treating depression. Animal studies have shown that THC, CBD, and other cannabinoids can lower stress levels and minimise depression in animals. The trend is for CBD to be more effective although treatments with small doses of THC can also help. Early human studies show this is so, but more research is needed especially for long-term treatment.
In 2014, medical researchers discovered that CBD affects the 5-HT1A receptors which produce serotonin. Reduced amounts of serotonin often lead to a degree of anxiety and depression. This means that CBD can help with depression. Also, in 2019 a medical review says that CBD may act as an antidepressant. CBD increases the amount of brain-derived neurotrophic factor in the human body. Lowered amounts of this can cause depression.
Research using mice shows that linalool, a terpene found in cannabis, activates 5-HT1A neurotransmitter receptors. This alters the levels of serotonin in the brain. Linalool is already one of the chemicals proven to work in prescription anti-depressants. Controlled random human trials are needed to prove these benefits and determine if cannabis works with long-term treatments. In 2020, one study showed that cannabis has a huge impact on human depression when over 95% of over 1800 depressed patients experienced immediate symptom relief after cannabis consumption.
Is Cannabis Safe to Use?
For the effective treatment of depression and anxiety marijuana can be used as part of a multi-pronged treatment for improving mental health. A tailored medical treatment plan is key and having too much reliance on cannabis may backfire with increased symptoms and addiction. There are other approaches to help with depression including CBT and energy healing. Also, meditation and yoga can help you to manage your thoughts and feelings so that people and environments stop triggering you.
The danger of consuming cannabis regularly is dependence on cannabis and the development of cannabis use disorder. If you have clinical depression or bipolar disorder, then you are more likely to become dependent on cannabis. Also, if you suffer from clinical depression where you feel low and lose interest in normal daily life, or generalized anxiety disorder, you are three times more likely to develop cannabis use disorder.
Some anxiety and depression medications can interact with cannabis with uncomfortable side effects. If you want to use cannabis and cannabis products for self-medication you should speak to a sympathetic doctor and your psychiatrist if you have one. This is essential if you are on a medical prescription to take other drugs to prevent serious physical and mental health issues caused by drug interactions.
Remember that there are also alternative treatments for anxiety and depression. These include meditation, energy healing, yoga, and breathing and mindfulness practices. You may choose to use cannabis and meditate or do yoga and find that your anxiety and depression disappear sooner because many spiritual activities circulate your vital energy around your body and mindfulness and meditation can clear your mind of any disturbing thoughts.
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