Q&A

When I smoke cannabis I get really anxious and my heart starts to race. Is this normal?

"When I check my heart beat it’s normal and my face gets hot and I feel really panicky like I am about to die. Is this normal or should I be doing something to prevent this?"


Cannabis can cause anxiety in certain situations. It will also cause an increase in heart rate and often we feel more aware of our heartbeat. Make sure that you are using cannabis in a conscious manner (don’t overdo it, enough is as good as a feast) and that the set and setting are comfortable and you are surrounded by people you trust. You might want to back down on the dose a little bit, or switch to a different strain or method of utilizing it. Inhaling cannabis has a very rapid onset, which can be too rapid. Tinctures and edibles have a much more gentle gradual onset, but be careful with dosing. You may even decide to take a break from cannabis altogether, or use a strain with a low level of THC and a high level of CBD. CBD has anti-anxiety properties and will decrease the effects of THC, but make them last longer. If you feel really anxious focus on your breathing and try repeating a mantra such as "fear isn’t real, fear isn’t real, fear isn’t real". Try to decrease the stimulating inputs and find a nice comfortable place with soothing music or enjoy some peace and quiet.

andrewvanmd


I love CBD cannabis because it stops anxiety but you have to take it twice today for three weeks before you feel the full effect of CBD cannabis. Since CBD cannabis does not make you high you can use it twice today when you don’t want to be high. I encourage patients to take a dose of CBD in the morning and if you are using a Sativa in the afternoon, don’t do an Indica after the Sativa or you just bump up your THC again and you won’t be able to sleep but if you take a healthy dose of CBD Cannabis it will join with the THC you have onboard to create an Indica and you will go to sleep. If you are having anxiety and rapid heartbeat, it is a sign that your THC is too high, so either ask your bud master to take it easy on the THC or you can put a couple drops of CBD under your tongue to nullify the side effect. Have you oversaturated your THC receptors and you just keep doing more THC and having side effects? Then do a super concentrate CBD, at a low dose, three times a day for 5 to 7 days to clean out your THC receptors so when you come back to your THC it’s like brand-new again. You can overcome these symptoms of THC overload and panic and you will be happy you did so you can continue to enjoy your cannabis awarefully.

drolson


We highly recommend for you to stay away from high THC flowers and explore high-CBD content flowers such as Harlequin instead.

We recommend vaporizing the flowers for optimal delivery. If smoking/vaping is not an option, a lot of our patients have done really well on tinctures.

greendoorwest

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