Did you know, anxiety disorders are one of the most common disorders in the US. There’s no surprise that lots of people are looking for ways to treat this condition.

Some advocate for using substances like cannabis or CBD to relieve the effects of excessive anxiety. This article tells you everything you need to know about using CBD and cannabis for anxiety issues.

What Is Anxiety?

Anxiety is essentially an evolutionary feature of human psychology that has allowed us to survive this long. Unfortunately, human anxiety often isn’t compatible with the modern world. Excessive worry can often become rehabilitating, leading people to seek help.

Anxiety can be both rational and irrational, but it is often based on things that haven’t happened yet. People with severe anxiety tend to focus on the “what ifs” in life to the point that it interferes with their normal life.

Sometimes anxiety comes about because of things that have happened in your life. For example, if your house is burgled, you might find yourself anxious to leave the house in case it happens again.

Anxiety isn’t just related to the mind. People with anxiety symptoms might also experience a physiological response to the stress. For instance, they might experience elevated heart rates.

It’s normal to have a certain amount of anxiety, but when it becomes too much, you might start looking for a solution. Some people suggest that cannabis might be an effective treatment for easing anxious feelings.

The Effects of Cannabis

Cannabis is a plant that gives psychoactive effects when it is smoked, vaporized, or eaten. One of the main reasons that people consume cannabis is because it gives a sense of relaxation, happiness, and wellbeing.

Consuming cannabis can enhance the senses. For example, many cannabis users report that music sounds much better after they’ve consumed the drug. Using cannabis for anxiety without a prescription is not a good idea at all.

Of course, no drug is without negative side effects. Cannabis is quite a paradoxical drug. While it can produce effects of tranquility, it can also cause you to feel paranoia.

Everyone reacts to cannabis differently, so it’s hard to know how it will affect you until you take it. Some people only ever feel good from it, and others feel nothing but paranoia.

When it is consumed in excess, cannabis can have a negative effect on your motivation. This means that using a lot of cannabis could negatively impact your life as it interferes with your ability to live up to your goals and aspirations.

With that said, cannabis is not particularly addictive in comparison to other drugs. Some people may become dependant on the drug, but there are no dangerous withdrawal symptoms like you get with alcohol or heroin.

Cannabis for Anxiety

Given cannabis’s propensity for making people feel relaxed and happy, many people recommend it for dealing with anxiety. It’s certainly true that cannabis can help you to relax and unwind. It might not be the best treatment for a serious anxiety problem.

People with anxiety offer suffer from “intrusive thoughts” that they can’t shut out. When you consume cannabis, these kinds of thoughts can be exacerbated. Smoking too much cannabis can even result in panic attacks.

Certain strains of cannabis are better suited to treating anxiety than others. If a strain has large amounts of THC, it’s more likely that you’ll suffer negative effects such as paranoia.

If you’re going to try using cannabis for anxiety, you should do some research into the specific strains available in your area. Using cannabis for anxiety isn’t too uncommon, so you’re likely to find plenty of information out there.

The first time you use cannabis for anxiety, you should use it in a setting where you’re in control. This means it should be at your house or at a trusted friend’s house. If you try using cannabis for the first time in a crowded public area, the negative effects might be more pronounced.

Once you’re aware of how cannabis affects you, you might be able to use it to treat your everyday anxiety.

Consider CBD

Unfortunately, a significant number of people find that cannabis isn’t suitable for treating their anxiety. For many, the negative effects are simply too much. This is where CBD comes in. CBD is derived from the cannabis plant, but the psychoactive elements are removed.

This means you won’t experience a “high” from taking CBD, but you will experience some of the other beneficial effects of cannabis. CBD for anxiety is a great choice because you can get the health benefits of cannabis with much less risk.

Many people who suffer from anxiety report fantastic results from using products like CBD oil for anxiety. There are also hardly any users out there who describe negative effects.

Given the lack of serious side effects, there’s no reason not to try CBD for anxiety. Check out this ultimate CBD guide to learn more.

Consider Therapy

If you have anxiety that is so severe that it interferes with your day-to-day life, you may want to consider getting therapy. A “miracle cure” might certain seem appealing, but chances are, you need to properly address the issues that are causing you to feel anxious.

Using cannabis for anxiety without treating the underlying symptoms could potentially make your anxiety worse. Trying to handle mental issues on your own is always potentially counterproductive. If you really want to be proactive and address your issues, you should consider working with a professional therapist.

Deal With Your Anxiety

While it’s certainly possible that using cannabis for anxiety could be beneficial, there are also risks. In some cases consuming cannabis could actually make your anxiety worse. You might want to consider using CBD for anxiety instead, as you’ll avoid the negative effects associated with cannabis.

If you want to learn more about other lifestyle-related topics, take a look at some of our other blog posts.