Does Weed Help With Anxiety

Many people are interested in marijuana’s medical properties. Thus, one of the most frequent asked questions is “does weed help with anxiety?” Marijuana is one of the magical herbs that has been used for centuries to treat different conditions. It is able to decrease pain, depression, stress. It was even used for treating throat infections. In ancient times, people used weed for both medicinal and recreational purposes.

In the 1930s, the cultivation and sale of weed were prohibited because of its psychoactive properties. In recent times, many studies and researches were conducted to make it legal. After the hard work of many years, marijuana is legalized in all the states for medicinal purposes.

Anxiety is a common mental issue in the world. In the US, approximately, 40 million adults have an anxiety disorder. This condition is treatable. Still, only 36.9% of people are treated. With the legalization of weed, there is a debate on whether weed helps anxiety or not. Some experts believe that weed aggravates anxiety while some believe that it helps in reducing anxiety.

Does weed help anxiety? Before talking about weed and anxiety, you must understand what marijuana is. Have a look!

What Is Marijuana?

Weed is an herb obtained from the cannabis plant. It consists of cannabidiol (CBD) - component that has anti-inflammatory and pain-relieving properties. It is the reason why it is useful for treating anxiety. Many proponents of weed believe that it can help treat mental disorders. They also believe marijuana can help reduce the symptoms of health conditions like cancer.

Moreover, CBD is a non-psychoactive component that does not produce the “high” feeling. This component can be taken as an extract, without ingesting marijuana. Therefore, it can be said that marijuana helps with anxiety.

However, many organizations are against the use of marijuana for medicinal purposes. This is because they believe that cannabinoids in weed bind to receptors in the brain.

When it comes to getting high, tetrahydrocannabinol (THC) is the element that contains psychoactive properties. THC contributes to worsen anxiety and develop symptoms of anxiety.

Why Does Everyone React in a Different Way?

Everyone is different. People react to medicines differently. The same goes for weed. People react to marijuana in different ways. This is the reason why marijuana has varying effects. For some people weed can help relax and sleep better. On the other hand, for some people, it can heighten anxiety and may even result in panic attacks.

For instance, if you know someone who has tried marijuana for anxiety, but it did not help him, does not mean that it will not help you too.

The effect of marijuana varies because there are different types of weeds and strains. The level of cannabinoid varies, so that is why it has a different impact on people.

Weed and Anxiety

As far as the link between weed and anxiety is concerned, it is difficult to answer the question “does marijuana help anxiety?” This is because the impact depends on various factors, including the environment, state of mind, and dosage.

Environment and State of Mind

One of the first factors that have an impact on how you react to weed is the environment. Weed is a drug that alters your perceptions, feelings, and mood. People respond to weed differently if used it in an unfamiliar or stressful atmosphere. That is why for some people, marijuana and anxiety go hand in hand, while for some it can worsen anxiety if they use it in an unpleasant atmosphere.

Dosage

Another factor that can cause the varying result is the dosage. Figuring out the dosage of marijuana for you is the only way to control your anxiety. Even if the dosage of weed is slightly increased for a regular user, it can heighten anxiety.

Usage

According to research, short-term use of marijuana can be helpful for decreasing anxiety. In the long-term, unfortunately, it can cause symptoms of anxiety and make it worse and it can even lead to other problems like memory loss and cognition issues.

Hence, more research needs to be conducted to figure out can weed help with anxiety or not.

Does Smoking Weed Help with Anxiety?

If you are wondering how weed can help with anxiety, then you are at the right place. Marijuana consists of natural anti-anxiety properties including CBD, and other terpenes. Smoking weed for anxiety helps in memory extinction. This helps in forgetting bad memories, negative experiences, and trauma. It is the reason why people believe that smoking weed for anxiety can be helpful.

Additionally, in a study at Vanderbilt University, it was shown that smoking weed gives a boost to the production rate of endocannabinoids in the amygdala part. It is the portion, which regulates emotions, anxiety, and flight or fight response. Many researchers made it evident that smoking weed for anxiety leads to a decrease in the production of endocannabinoids in patients suffering from anxiety disorder.

It is also believed that marijuana helps people get off medicines. In a Canadian study, it was found that weed helped 40% of the patients suffering from anxiety get off benzodiazepines.

Therefore, here is the answer for the most frequently asked question: “Can marijuana help anxiety?”

Will Weed Cause Anxiety? Can Weed Help with Anxiety?

If you consume weed in large doses, it can lead to paranoia or anxiety. This impact can be heightened if you are new to marijuana. When you are in a different environment, it is believed that it causes panic attacks. Moreover, frequent users might have anxiety problems when they are trying to withdraw. However, there is not much evidence to support the claim that weed causes anxiety.

Summary

Hope this article gave you an idea as well as the answer to “does marijuana help with anxiety?” In the end, it all comes down to maximizing the benefit and minimizing the side effects when using weed for anxiety. In order to determine whether marijuana can really help with anxiety, more researches need to be conducted.