CBD oil for depression has been used successfully for many years, since the discovery of the Endocannabinoid System (ECS) in the human body. CBD, also known as cannabidiol, is a phytocompound found in cannabis. This oil is extracted and used for medicinal purposes by people all over the planet. Cannabis was known to Chinese herbologists as long as 3000 years ago. With the growing market and the legalized industrial hemp industry in America, CBD products are becoming more popular, especially as people learn about all the things CBD can help them with.
What Causes Depression?
Normal emotional reactions include sadness, but depression is something more; a debilitating condition that can cause people to become so morose that they eventually take their own lives to escape the emotional pain that they feel they are trapped in.
Depression occurs as a result of chemical imbalances within the human body. Serotonin and dopamine are key components in maintaining healthy moods and outlooks. These are produced in the human body and are symbiotic; when either of them drops too low, the other one increases. When this happens, it creates an imbalance in the body which allows for messages to bombard the brain, resulting in depression. Sleep is also impacted, which causes depression to spiral to even worse levels.
Those with depression may showcase symptoms such as becoming sleep-deprived, lack appetite, or sometimes eat to feed their emotions. Depressed persons will withdraw from public events and may even stop interacting with family and friends. In fact, people who are clinically depressed are incapable of ‘snapping out of it’ as they are often told by their peers. Humans who are affected by depression have zero control over how they feel. Their hormones are working against them. People telling them to ‘smile’ and ‘just stop obsessing about things’ is not a help to them, it actually makes them feel worse and withdraw more. They can’t help it.
There are treatments on the market, prescriptions drugs designed to stimulate the body, the brain, and the serotonin uptake receptors. There are inhibitors that slow serotonin production, and also inhibitors that slow dopamine, just as there are drugs designed to increase one or the other. The problem with these medications is that they take several weeks to make any impact, which may be slow. The person who has reached-out for help and sought a doctor is most likely already at their final straw and they don’t have weeks to feel better. They are at great risk of self-harm.
How CBD Helps
Essentially, CBD and depression are polar opposites. CBD for depression works because of the way in which CBD works in the body. It actually hits depression in two ways. Firstly, CBD works within the neural pathways to block signals from reaching the brain. When negative thought patterns begin bombarding the brain with messages, the brain reacts with responses that are depression. CBD blocks these repetitive thoughts to begin breaking the cycle for the person afflicted with depression.
Secondly, CBD interacts with the Serotonin receptors, which helps to stimulate them to produce more serotonin in the body. This helps to keep levels balanced between dopamine and serotonin. Research indicates that using CBD oil also seems to stimulate the body to begin healing and balancing itself without help from CBD. More research needs to be done to understand how CBD is doing this in these patients, but it is a wonderfully positive result.
CBD effects the brain by stopping the delivery of messages that are negative thoughts, messages of pain, and much more that helps people with all sorts of chronic conditions. Those with clinical depression often complain of body aches and pains that manifest as a result of their depression. CBD blocks these pain messages with automatically make people feel better as they aren’t feeling chronic aches and pains any longer. The relief of this alone makes people begin to feel better.
When CBD enters the body, it seeks out receptors in the Endocannabinoid System, which is comprised of two types of receptors in the body that use our own naturally occurring endocannabinoids. This system helps to regulate moods, pain, and even the anti-inflammatory response of the body. Cannabidiol primarily seeks only one of the two types of receptors. CB2 receptors are located around the body, but mostly concentrated within the gut region.
When CBD bond with these receptors, a lipid is formed. This lipid travels along the neural pathways, but it doesn’t move toward the brain, like signals do. It travels in the opposite direction, looking for signals that it can intercept. CBD blocks excessive signals of pain, negative thoughts, messages that trigger the brain to respond in the form of seizures, tremors, and more. Cravings can be blocked, which has been proven to help people quit everything from cigarettes to opioids.
With CBD oil depression can be alleviated and possibly completely sent into remission. Many people tried marijuana for depression, but the results weren’t excellent because marijuana can tend to cause paranoia and anxiety in some people. This is the effect of THC in the brain. THC is tetrahydrocannabinol. It bonds primarily to the other ECS receptor, CB1. Those are nearly all located in the brain, making THC a psychoactive compound. Due to this being one of the primary compounds in marijuana, along with CBD, it can bring out negative side-effects for those with mental health issues, such as depression.
CBD is extracted from cannabis in a way that leaves only traces of THC (less than .03% in marketable CBD oil) and thereby having no negative effects such as the anxiety that can actually exacerbate depression. When you are wondering does CBD help with depression, it matters in what form it is presented to the body. In marijuana, the answer would be no, but in CBD oil alone, that answer is an astounding yes.
Why CBD and Not Prescription Medications?
Many of the medications for depression also come with a bucket-load of side-effects and take too long to begin working. Some medications can cause liver damage, some of them can cause other symptoms that are worse than the initial depression. Some of the medications on the market can cause diabetes and raise blood pressure. Constant blood tests must be conducted when you are on these types of products because it is necessary to make certain that kidneys remain healthy. That is how dangerous these drugs can be. People take them because they feel that they have no other choices, and anything is better than living with chronic, debilitating depression. As mentioned earlier, these drugs can take weeks to become effective and to top it all off, many of them are addictive. You are likely to remain on most of the medications for years and possibly for the rest of your life.
Does CBD oil help with depression without causing addiction? Absolutely. With CBD oil products, you are free to take them only as you need, and you will never suffer from any detox symptoms if you don’t take CBD oil. You may notice your depression creeps back into your life if you stop, but you won’t have sweats, shakes, headaches, hallucinations, upset stomach, or racing thoughts that can happen if quit any of the other medications for depression.
CBD is safe enough for children and it works on depression in many ways. CBD can act as a sleep aid, so taking it in the evening will ensure that you are able to fall asleep sooner and stay asleep longer. When you get more rest, serotonin levels seem to self-regulate more efficiently. CBD has a calming effect, slowing down your thoughts, giving you more focus, and the ability to relax. These things all come into play when you are battling depression. Being well-rested, more relaxed, and not getting all of those constant negative thought patterns anymore will give you all the ammunition that you need to start feeling better naturally.
Depression becomes a downward spiral that sucks its victims in with. You get caught in the patterns of spiraling downward and no amount of struggle will pull you back out without help. CBD is the life preserver that gives you the help to swim out on your own. In fact, CBD is so good at helping with mental health issues that people are finding success in using it for schizophrenia, bipolar, anxiety, post-traumatic stress disorder, and breaking the cycle of addiction that starts with constant cravings.
Getting CBD
CBD comes from industrialized hemp, a crop that is legalized across America now and regulated by the US Department of Agriculture. There are a few things that you want to be aware of when you purchase your products.
Make sure that you buy American sourced CBD oil products. Products that are being imported, especially from China) are testing positive for toxic chemicals. The USDA ensures that the soil is tested where hemp is grown. Make sure that you know where the hemp is grown that your CBD oil is coming from. Using outside sourced products cannot be guaranteed to be safe for you.
Know what CBD product labels mean. There are product names that might mean nothing if you haven’t done some reading first. Full-spectrum and broad-spectrum oils are basically the same thing. These terms mean the same thing. Why is this important? Full-spectrum CBD oil is preferable because the entire hemp plant is used to extract the oil from. This is important because the concentrations of CBD in the stem may be different than the leaves. By using the entire plant, the uniformity of the oil is best, creating an oil that is more consistently concentrated with CBD.
CBD Isolate is CBD oil products that have been extracted molecularly. This means that there is zero trace of THC, but it is also devoid of the other compounds that are found in cannabis as well. Since some of these other phytocompounds (plant compounds) are still being studied, we don’t know how important they are and what conditions they may help. It has been researched in the realm of epilepsy and proven that those who suffer with this affliction do better with full-spectrum oils. The exact reason has yet to be determined. There are more than one-hundred other phytocompounds in cannabis and at least eighty of them are cannabinoids. CBD and THC are simply the best known, and first researched. One potentially good reason to use an isolate is if you have a job that you cannot risk testing positive for THC if you had to take a drug test.
Hemp oil typically comes from hemp seeds and the seeds of the hemp plant have the lowest concentration of CBD oil, so hemp seed oil is exceptionally low in CBD, comparatively, and will not be as potent. For someone who is taking CBD as a dietary supplement, this will be fine, but it may not be the best choice for someone experiencing pain or a chronic condition like depression. This should be taken into consideration when you are looking at your initial purchase.
The other choices you have are the options for onboarding your CBD. In other words, what form shall you take your CBD in? The choices are many and range from drops of oil, gel caps, sprays, topical lotions, vaporizing it directly into your lungs. Websites that have recipes to teach you how to incorporate your CBD oil into your cooking have popped-up everywhere. Edibles can be purchased so you can skip baking with CBD and buy the products directly. Candies are made with CBD and some are even available in sugar-free versions.
For depression, you can take your CBD oil in any form that you like. If you feel yourself getting a bit down, you can increase your dose or take an additional dose. Determining your baseline dosage is completely up to you. Start small so that you have room to increase. You may decide that one dose in the morning is plenty for you, but you may need a small dose at night, before bed, so that you get a great night of sleep. The beauty of using CBD oil for depression is that you get to decide what is best for you, without having to speak to a doctor about it.
People with depression tend to withdraw and being able to take medicine to help themselves without explaining a lot to someone outside of their situation is beneficial. With CBD oil you’ll never feel judgement because no one even needs to know that you are taking it if you don’t want them to. You cannot overdose on CBD oil so there is no danger to you. If you take too much, you’ll experience diarrhea, perhaps even with blood. You may have headache or nausea, possibly even stomach cramps. As soon as you stop your CBD oil and resume after a day with lower dose, the side-effects will stop. Start low and increase gradually, as your body adjusts to the doses.
How do you know when you’ve had enough of a dose? Let how you feel be the judge. Are you calm? Relaxed? Feeling happy? Those who are taking CBD oil for mental health issues might wish to keep a journal from the start. Keep track of your doses and the times you take them. Write down how you felt that day over all, both before your dose and after. One of the most fantastic things about CBD oil is that it works almost immediately. You’ll feel the effects beginning to start as soon as fifteen minutes after your first dose, depending on the method you take your dose. Inhaling your dose works in under five minutes for most people. Ingesting takes between twenty-minutes and two hours, depending on whether taken with food or not.
You should start taking your CBD doses at the same time of day each day and see how long they last. If you increase your dose or spread it out into two smaller doses, how does that make you feel? You are totally in control and being empowered in this way will only go toward helping you feel a sense of achievement in your journey toward feeling your best.
CBD Purchases
CBD can be purchased online or in local shops. The majority of CBD products are sold on the internet. You can easily order what you want, and have it delivered directly to your home. Make sure that you order an oil that has had third-party testing done. Reputable manufacturers will typically have this information downloadable at their websites and it ensures that the oil you order has less than .03% THC, acceptable for mass marketing in the USA.
The packaging is always discreet so that nosy neighbors have no idea what you are taking, and for many people this is important. Being private about such things is acceptable. You do not need a doctor’s note to order CBD oil and you won’t need blood tests, fear an overdose or becoming addicted. CBD is totally under your control and in your hands, giving you the ability to help yourself out of your darkness.