How Healthy is Your Relationship with Weed?
Are you smoking your weed, or is your weed smoking you?
If you feel like your relationship status with weed is more along the lines of “it’s complicated,” you aren’t alone. Not at all.
In fact, according to the CDC, 1 in 10 people who smoke weed become addicted to it. There are plenty of outside factors that contribute to this stat, we’re convinced that one of the main reasons for this addiction is a lack of education, awareness and intention.
Since cannabis is still only legal in some states, and not legal on a federal level (v confusing, yes??) there haven’t been many conversations about what a healthy relationship with weed looks like.
We’ve got to fix this.
It’s time for us to have a conscious relationship with cannabis. Today we’re taking a look at what a healthy relationship with weed looks like, and outlining how to be mindful of your consumption.
Do You Have a High Cannabis Tolerance?
If back-to-back bong rips aren’t getting you high anymore, you more than likely have a high cannabis tolerance.
The higher your cannabis tolerance, the more you have to smoke, which can lead to overconsumption. A high tolerance is your brain's way of telling you it may be time to take a little break.
Are You Smoking to Escape or Numb?
If weed is the first thing you think about when faced with a stressful/sad/tough scenario, take note of it. When marijuana becomes your main coping mechanism, it’s a good sign to take a step back.
Weed may help some of your problems, but it probably won’t solve them–so, it’s best to have different ways of dealing with stress such as exercising, reading, and meditation. When you don’t depend as much on THC to escape your life, you can better use it to enhance your life.
How to Use Marijuana in a Healthy Way
✺ Take Regular Tolerance Breaks
It’s genius: don’t get high now, so you can get higher later.
Tolerance breaks reset your brain's sensitivity to THC so that afterward, you no longer need as large of a dose to get high as you did before. If you go too long without a tolerance break, you will have to consistently increase your dose which can lead to overconsumption. CBD may help with tolerance breaks too. While THC damages and depletes your cannabinoid receptors, CBD has been observed to have the opposite effect.
✺ Mitigate the “Munchies”
One of the crummy parts of cannabis culture is the idea that you’re supposed to eat like crap when you’re stoned. The appetite increase triggered by THC can be managed in a much more fruitful and healthy way, if you plan for it.
We suggest having a healthy option ready to go before your sesh, and clearing your space of any junk food to avoid temptation. You can make it fun, like veggie spring rolls, gluten-free pancakes, A nutritionally rich munch can do wonders for your high and leave you feeling much better the next day.
✺ Stay Active
Research tells us that 70% of people enjoy working out more when they’re high. Cannabis habits are much more effective when they’re in addition to a greater set of self care habits. Incorporating exercises like yoga, runs, and walks into your cannabis routine can help keep you more grounded, aware, and healthy.
✺ Dose Yourself Accurately
Dose matters. So much so that a Harvard professor said this about marijuana consumption, “It can worsen depression. It can worsen anxiety. But all of those consequences depend upon the dose.” Start as small as possible if you haven’t found what dose is right for you yet and observe, adjust, observe, and adjust some more.
The most important thing to avoid is over indulging. Research suggests that most negative effects of THC are associated with overconsumption, while most positive effects are found at lower doses.
✺ Trust Your Gut
You and your body know what’s best for you. If you feel like you may be smoking too much, or that it’s having a negative impact on your life, listen!
Even though research and strategies can help, at the end of the day it’s on you to become aware of what works best for you.
