Can CBD Help Relieve Stress?

By Op-Ed Blogger Quinton Charles

Published July 26, 2019

Are you stressed or anxious?

Stress is common. Really common. All said, around 40 million Americans suffer from some sort of anxiety ^[1]. That’s a big number, and could very well include you. Even more concerning is the possibility that chronic stress may have irreversible impacts on the brain ^[2], permanently altering its chemistry. It can also lead to behavioral changes like smoking, drinking excessively, eating too much or too little, and loss of sleep – all of which negatively impact your quality of life.

Now I’m stressed about stress

I get it. You try not to be stressed, but this just leads you to be stressed about your stress. I’ve felt this more times than I would like to admit. So what are the ways out of this? Well, most solutions are going to take some sort of investment, whether that be time, money, or sacrificing something in your life that causes you stress.

What are my options?

You could use expensive prescription drugs and pharmaceutical remedies that have long lists of side-effects. Many people do and see great improvements and an overall better quality of life. But, when I tried this in the past, I found myself lethargic, sluggish, and having lost my vigor. I may have not been anxious, but that was because I didn’t have the energy to be!

So, if not medications, then what? Well, we at Green Wellness believe that there should always be a balance in the body and in what you do. You can’t just expect that a magic prescription will fix everything; you have to be proactive about decreasing your stress. One great and natural way to do this is to do what I call “micro-yoga.” Unlike the yoga that calls to mind sweaty mats, tight pants, and displaying your general lack of flexibility to a roomful of strangers, “micro-yoga” occurs entirely within your head, and can even be done at your desk during a slow moment at work. What you do is close your eyes (or keep them open) and pick a repeating sound from around you. Focus on this sound, and maybe identify where it comes from. Now that you have both the sound and its source, clear your mind and breathe slowly. Think of nothing more than the sound and where it comes from. You can do this for one, five, or even ten minutes. I find that it helps to center me and place everything into perspective. (Brandy also told me I HAD to insert that regular yoga is also awesome for stress. She’s a huge fan!)

But what does this have to do with CBD? Our physical health and well being is connected to our state of mind and CBD when combined with other methods of relaxation and balance can be incredibly helpful. So, I’m here to talk to you about stress and CBD. There is no panacea that has been invented that will rid you of all stress. Since most of us can’t leave our jobs or schools that cause us stress, we have to find ways of managing it. The first step in this is having the right strategies for relaxing in our day. After these stressful moments have been put in their place by stepping back and breathing we begin to talk about how CBD can help us stay in that state of calm.

So what does CBD do for you?

I can’t speak for what it will do specifically for you, but I do know how it has helped me.

I work and go to school, so you can imagine that I have a lot of stress from day to day. While my “micro-yoga” is a godsend, there are other symptoms that aren’t so easily managed as overthinking things. One such symptom is headaches. I often get them when stressed, or when stress has led me to get less sleep. What I’ll usually do (and what I find helps me the most) is to take some of my topical CBD oil and roll it onto my temples(we are giving a free sample with orders this week). Usually, my headache will disappear and I’ll be able to focus my energy on completing the tasks at hand without stress and its symptoms holding me back.

I mentioned that I sometimes lose sleep due to stress. So how do I deal with this? There isn’t a pill that gives you a full night’s rest (wouldn’t that be convenient, though?), but there are many products that help you relax and get the sleep that you need. For this, I’ll usually take the MedTerra sleeping tablets that we offer. When I remember to take them (I’m famously forgetful), I find that I can get a well-needed rest in order to face the next day.

Also a daily regimen of CBD can be beneficial in stabilizing our mood and evening out the highs and lows.  Many people report it relaxes and evens out their mood,  making the stress factors and anxiety seem more manageable.

I have found Panacea Fast Tabs or some of our MedCBDX gum or mints can act in the same fashion as a vape when your stress seems to be over the top.  These products act quickly and are not the same as a daily, oil-based CBD regimen.  We refer to them as “boosters” because they get to work more quickly than something that you have to process through your digestive system, but they won’t hang out as long in your system to keep working for you.

Don’t just take my word for it

Beyond the testimonials of people who successfully treat their anxiety with CBD oil (like me!), there is also a growing body of scientific evidence that CBD works. Most research has been done in rodents. A recent review discusses 32 different rodent studies that tested CBD’s effects on anxiety — and only one of those whiskered little fellas didn’t see useful results ^[3].  There’s certainly a lot more research that needs to happen on the whisker-less variety, but it’s a start.

It’s not just the vague term “anxiety” that CBD can help with. One of the researched ways that CBD helps is through regulating serotonin in the brain. Most people associate serotonin with happiness. However, the role of this neurotransmitter is actually very complex, and its effects depend on where it is and what it binds to. (Contrary to popular belief, more serotonin is not necessarily better — dysfunction can stem from low or high levels of serotonin, as well as from malfunctions with their receptors.) Serotonin has at least 14 different receptors, but CBD specifically binds to5-HT1A which is thought to have the strongest role in anxiety disorders. The anti-anxiety drug Buspirone also binds to this particular receptor, which explains the anti-anxiety effects of CBD on rats exposed to stressful situations ^[4].

Don’t sweat it!

If you’re reading this blog, you’ve already taken the first step to manage your stress. That’s a good thing! There are lots of additional tools out there to help you on this path.  Perhaps start off with that “micro-yoga,”  or even a more traditional yoga, then look at some CBD products that have good reviews (chances are that other people are using CBD for similar reasons); maybe even ask your friends about how they manage their stress, and if they don’t, tell them to read this blog for ideas! As always, if you have any comments or questions, feel free to send us an email or message us on social media; we’re always willing to help and share our stories.

Resources

^[1] https://www.nimh.nih.gov/health/statistics/any-anxiety-disorder.shtml

^[2] https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0014299908000277

^[3] https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4604171/

^[4] https://www.foriawellness.com/blogs/learn/how-cbd-oil-vape-helps-stress-anxiety