- CBD Works In a Very Specific Way
- What Is CBD?
- How It's Created
- How It Works
- Mental Health Shaming and Social Stigma
- Depression Treatments
- Why CBD Treatment?
- If You Need Immediate Intervention Seek Help
- Taking CBD For Depression
- CBD for Anxiety Disorders
- How to Use CBD To Treat Depression
- Safety and Side Effects From CBD Products
- Sources
CBD is now legal in all fifty states across the U.S. And with research finding that CBD (cannabidiol) induces rapid and sustained antidepressant-like effects, while also potentially helping reduce reliance on antidepressant medication, people are scrambling to try it.
CBD Works In a Very Specific Way
When CBD enters the body, it looks for cannabinoid receptors to bind to. CBD wakes these receptors up and kicks them into overdrive. This help them go right to work blocking some of the negative information that is sent through neural pathways that cause you to feel anxiety, nervousness, pain, hunger, and depression.
That isn’t the only way that CBD can help with depression, however. CBD is known to interact with serotonin receptors as well. Because serotonin levels are low in those with depression, this means that it can absolutely have an impact on the mental health of anyone who is suffering. CBD oil for anxiety and depression has already been life-changing for many people and it is just getting mainstream attention.
CBD has gotten a bad rap by some because of its relationship to marijuana, but if you don’t understand this relationship, then you can’t fairly make your mind up regarding CBD oil.
In fact, CBD oil can’t get you high. Nor do people use it to feel high or get stoned. Because you can’t get stoned by using CBD oil. CBD is also not addictive and you cannot overdose on it either. CBD oil can be used in the amount that you need, and that amount is up to you.
You don’t need to see a doctor to use CBD, as it is not a prescription drug. This makes CBD accessible for those who don’t have insurance or money to pay a lot for prescription drugs and copays.
What Is CBD?
Before you can completely grasp how CBD works, or even how the receptors work, you’ll need some other details.
CBD is a chemical compound (phytocompound) that is found in hemp derived CBD products. Hemp is a variety of cannabis and is legally grown across the U.S.
How It's Created
These plants are specifically chosen and cultivated because of the low amount of THC (tetrahydrocannabinol) they contain. THC is another chemical compound that is found in hemp. There are hundreds of phytocompounds in the plant, but these are the two we are concerned with for purposes of this explanation and CBD production.
To extract the CBD oil from the plant, the plant is mashed and grounded to break the strands and fibers up. Once this happens, a solvent such as alcohol or carbon dioxide is added to the material.
A trace amount of the THC will still be present in the CBD extract, but this is acceptable if the amount of overall THC is no more than 0.3% in any production batch of CBD oil. Each batch must be tested, and the more reputable makers of CBD oil will have their products tested by third-party labs and make these test results public.
How It Works
CBD is a cannabinoid, and you have receptors in your body, like locks that wait on a key to come and unlock them. These receptors are called cannabinoid receptors. That’s right, they are for bonding with cannabinoids, like CBD. This information puts using CBD oil for depression in a whole new light!
There are two types of receptors: CB1 and CB2 receptors. When CBD engages these receptors, it influences the dulling of pain and becomes an anti-inflammatory, going to the place of inflammation within your body to ward off potential bacteria and risks of infection. CBD may help block intrusive thoughts, especially the ones that aren’t important to the present moment. This helps people with depression, anxiety, bipolar, schizophrenia, PTSD, and potentially other mental health issues.
When you use weed for depression, the cannabinoids, such as THC, also bind with the receptors stronger than normal, engendering things like paranoia. As you may imagine, this isn’t a positive outcome for those who already have mental well-being concerns. THC and marijuana can exacerbate the symptoms of depression, schizophrenia, and other psychotic disorders.
CBD can also help regulate appetite because it interacts with the serotonin receptors.
Serotonin receptors also control cortisol production. Cortisol is the stress hormone that can cause weight gain, particularly in the midsection. Cortisol also interacts with moods and anxieties. When cortisol levels are out of sync, you may find yourself doing nervous eating. CBD can help with that, and it all seems to play a role for people who are experiencing depression.
Serotonin levels specifically affect mood. When you are happy, serotonin is coursing through you. When it is not freely flowing within your body, then you can become sad and depressed.
Mental Health Shaming and Social Stigma
For those who are suffering from mental wellness issues, asking for help is often the most difficult part of the problem. Sometimes, when in the throes of depression, people don’t even realize that they are depressed. When others point out that you seem depressed, you can withdraw even further from your normal life activities, spending more time alone. This is a typical symptom of depression.
Those who suffer profoundly serious issues, like bipolar or schizophrenia, are often denied medical assistance to help pay for seeing a doctor or getting prescriptions. Mental healthcare in the United States often leaves a lot to be desired. Counseling, doctors, and medications are often out of reach for many who truly suffer.
If you have a mental health condition, then looking for information and hunting down resources is quite possibly beyond your scope of ability. And without help, managing your way through the medical red tape or seeking help through social services is just more than most can manage.
Getting help with depression is hard, and the hardest part can be just asking for help in the first place. Realizing that you need help is a step in the right direction, and CBD oil might be the thing that is easiest for you to use while you figure it all out. In fact, CBD oil may give you more help than some prescription medications for depression.
Depression Treatments
Some psychotropic medications are extremely hard on your kidneys, liver, and pancreas. You will have to be monitored by a doctor, frequently having blood drawn to check for toxic blood levels of medications to make sure that your kidneys are still functioning properly.
Some medications have horrible side effects and interact with other medications. Mental health is a tricky thing, and the medical community is constantly learning more, but accessible care for those who are in the throes of a mental breakdown, are often left to fall through the cracks.
CBD oil for anxiety and depression may be exactly the thing that works best. You won’t need to ask anyone for help, and for those with depression, this is important. The nature of mental wellness and health issues is that those who are affected will not ask for help. Being able to go buy something for yourself is a huge plus.
You can take as much as you need until you feel better. Experimenting with dosage amounts and different strengths that are available is left completely to you. You’ll want to start small and build up slowly until you find the magic amount that leaves you suddenly whistling while you work. Too much too soon can potentially cause headaches and stomach discomfort.
Lack of sleep is a side-effect of depression and not getting enough sleep will only make depression worse -- yet when your thoughts are racing, it is hard to sleep. Replaying something in your head that happened years before is common.
CBD oil for depression helps to block these onslaughts of thoughts that make you spiral deeper into depression and keep you up all night long.
CBD also has the wonderful side effect of making you sleep more soundly. You should wake feeling better rested and this will go an exceptionally long way toward having a better mood for the day.
CBD can simply enhance your life if you have been feeling depressed. Seeking help with depression needn’t be embarrassing or humiliating in any way. Rare is a person who hasn’t suffered from situational depression at some point in their life. When we lose a loved one, we all suffer depression as we mourn our loss.
Be kind to yourself and know that while it may seem that you are the only one in the world feeling what you are feeling, but there are millions of people who are experiencing the same thing, right this very second. Isolating yourself in thoughts and physically is a normal symptom of depression.
Social anxiety can be alleviated when using CBD oil for depression and you should notice that you are calmer and able to handle things like shopping at the grocery store with less stress. Dark thoughts will give way to happier moments and thinking about the things that you enjoy, rather than dwelling in the past or on your grief.
Why CBD Treatment?
Extracted from the cannabis plant, evidence suggests CBD products may help treat anxiety and depression disorders by providing anti-anxiety effects. Research suggests "cannabidiol induces rapid and sustained antidepressant-like effects" allowing it to potentially help treat depression and seemingly all anxiety disorders.
Derived from the cannabis sativa hemp plant, the health benefits of hemp-derived CBD products extend far beyond their therapeutic potential for reducing anxiety levels and treating depression. Other possible benefits from CBD include help with chronic pain, appetite regulation, and excessive inflammation.
The World Health Organization has found CBD to be a potential treatment for a number of illnesses.
If You Need Immediate Intervention Seek Help
Depression is a spectrum of sorts. How you feel daily is a number on a scale of one through ten. Grief is normal. Depression is also a part of life, but you don’t have to let yourself dwell on it and let it turn into a major depressive disorder.
Taking CBD For Depression
CBD oil may help you feel better, but if you have a profoundly serious issue going on that makes you feel suicidal, know that you can seek help at any emergency room. You can walk right in the door and tell them that you are thinking about harming yourself, and they will help you. That one lucid moment can save your life, and it is important that you know there are always options.
When using CBD, depression symptoms can be managed more readily than without. Just taking that sharp edge and dulling it a bit can be the difference it takes for you to get some much-needed relief. Understanding your situation is half of the battle to getting better.
CBD oil is the missing link that can help you through daily events and be able to sort out your thoughts by filtering out the excess and allowing you to breathe and relax more. Breaking the cycle of depression can be difficult, but CBD is the weapon in your arsenal that can help you more than anything else.
CBD for Anxiety Disorders
CBD is a relatively new product available to the public. Its uses are still being discovered and the potential is genuinely exciting. CBD may play an important role in the eventual treatment of those suffering from PTSD, agoraphobia, social anxiety, bipolar, schizophrenia, and much more. Through a better understanding of how CBD works with CB1 and CB2 receptors work in the brain and the body, scientists can better understand the processes that cause depression and psychiatric disorders.
By understanding the chemical reactions that take place and how they are triggered to begin with, cures for these issues can be eventually discovered so that no one else ever needs to feel suicidal or horribly sad and depressed ever again. CBD is opening doors for those who have dealt with their issues in the shadows for too long. It’s time to step out into the sunshine again and let CBD help bridge the gap between the way you are feeling now and the way you want to feel tomorrow.
How to Use CBD To Treat Depression
CBD oil has a flavor that is reminiscent of the taste of marijuana. If you’ve ever smoked that before, you will recognize the flavor. Some CBD, by way of which it is manufactured, tastes strong while other brands are milder in flavor.
You can use CBD oil for anxiety or depression by vaping it and purchasing CBD oil made specifically for vaping. You can add drops of the oil to coffee or to the food that you are eating, and you will barely notice a taste at all. CBD can be used as a dressing on salads if you care to try it.
CBD oils come in flavors and can also be purchased in heavier syrups for adding to smoothies, cocktails, or in tea, as honey.
If taken sublingually, CBD oil hits the bloodstream within twenty minutes. If you want a faster absorption rate, vaping your CBD is the fastest way to feel the effect of relief.
Safety and Side Effects From CBD Products
If you suffer sudden onset anxiety attacks and extreme panic, as with PTSD, then vaping and sublingual administration may be the best methods for you.
Once you decide on the method, you get to choose how much you use. You should start with a small dose and taper up as you need to. When you feel better, you’ve hit your mark.
If you start with too much, CBD can make you feel sleepy and can also give you some diarrhea that will clear as soon as you lower your dose. Bear this in mind when you are deciding where to start. You can take it on demand when you want more or need more, just take more.