Does weed help with anxiety or cause it? (Article)
“Cannabis affects virtually every neural connection in the brain, even more so than stimulants such as cocaine and opioids, said Judy Grisel, a professor of psychology at Bucknell University and the author of “Never Enough: The Neuroscience and Experience of Addiction.” This, in turn, means cannabis can cause a wide array of reactions, depending on the person, she said.
“It’s going to turn up the volume on everything,” Grisel said, which is why food tastes better and music sounds better to some people when they’re high.
Many people swear by the calming effect of weed, but Grisel said there doesn’t seem to be a “molecular reason” why THC would alleviate someone’s feelings of anxiety or stress. Instead, people may feel a calming or relaxing effect because the drug can enhance how you’re already feeling. If you’re using cannabis on “a nice, sunny breezy day,” Grisel said, then the weed is going to enhance the mellow, relaxing ambiance. This also means that for those who are feeling anxious, cannabis may make them more sensitive to stress or prone to paranoia.”
My Takeaways:
Cannabis, particularly THC can have various effects depending on the person who uses it. Generally it has an amplifying effect, making your current emotions stronger and more “realer” than before.
Many people report a calming effect that helps them sleep and slow down the world around it, while others report it makes them more excited, anxious and eager to get things done. The effect researchers find varies on many things: how the drug is taken, the age, the physical and emotive state of the person.
In general taking THC chronically can lead to anxiety-like effects especially for those of younger ages. THC at the end of the day alters your brain chemistry so it's important to be aware of the changes and tolerance addiction can cause.
Full article is here!
#Cannabis #Anxiety #Addiction
How does cannabis affect your mind?
@sunnyWriting4806
Thank you for this post, I've never had cannabis and it isn't something I would use to help cope with my emotions. I totally agree with the idea of it altering the brain chemistry and causing anxiety post effects. This is something I've witness in others. 💛
Cannabis does affect your brain chemicals and when you run out of weed you get anxious for me, I know because I was addicted to weed
I agree with what all the others have said. It can have both calming effects, amplifying effects, and anxiety/paranoia. I have struggled with it for almost 15 years and I used to think that it calmed my anxiety. The truth is that it did by doing those exact things, helping me sort out my true thoughts, slowing the thoughts down so i could really focus on what i wanted to, and definitely amplified pleasure. When it comes to heart health though, it's just not worth it to me anymore. I am learning that I may have early signs of A-fib now so I am trying to quit again. I got the news today and took my last hit this afternoon. It does increase my anxiety whenever I run low or decide to go without but when it's a heart scare, it really changes my perspective and I wish to be successful this time.
Hope you’re doing well, I really relate to your post.
@sunnyWriting4806 i completely agree with what you have said so please don't take what i say as me trying to disprove or demean you. i started smoking weed at 12 and have done so for the last two years. it started as a way to escape from the reality around me and to calm me down. i'm aware of all the harmful effects of cannabis but you also have to be mindful of what exactly you're consuming. for example the two types, sativa and indica, both result in different effects on the mind and body and different strand have different amounts of both types. personally it has been a way for me to relax and make me feel "normal" but like with all things everyone has different experiences and ways to cope with certain things.
@sunnyWriting4806
There has actually been studies that show smoking increases anxiety