STRESS. Even the word can make us feel uneasy, but it serves a purpose and has helped us stay ahead in the animal world. But what about now?
Today, the modern world has become a concrete jungle that’s left many unbalanced and feeling stressed about work, home life, education… just about any and everything.
Whether it’s CBD oil, vapes, gummies, edibles, or any of the many other products, attention has turned to this on the rise natural alternative for treating stress and anxiety.
Does CBD work for stress? We want to clear up some of your questions and help you understand how CBD can be used for stress, along with some other top tips.
What is CBD?
Firstly, to answer the question ‘what is CBD?’, we must better understand the cannabis plant.
Cannabis is a flowering species containing numerous chemicals that naturally interact with our bodies, called cannabinoids.
These chemicals produce different effects through interaction with receptors in our endocannabinoid system (ECS).
CBD (or cannabidiol) is just one of these compounds which can be isolated for extraction and used in a variety of products, such as CBD drops, tea, vapes, edibles, and oral tablets.
The non-psychoactive properties of CBD are linked with physical and mental health benefits ranging from stress to inflammation, and the literature continues to grow.
What is stress and why should we manage it?
What is stress? While we all ‘know’ the feeling, it’s hard to pinpoint and manage. It boils down to our body releasing chemicals and hormones that keep us alert in the face of danger.
Stress has no medical definition, and there is debate around the cause and effect. Still, what we can say is that it relates to situations or events that put pressure on us.
Even without a definition, stress is often grouped into 3 types:
Acute stress
Acute stress may appear for short periods that subside quite quickly. This type of stress likely isn’t interfering with your relationships or career.
Episodic acute stress
Episodic acute stress can bring the same symptoms as acute stress, but these can accumulate, occur more regularly, and have a greater risk of forming unhealthy coping strategies.
Chronic stress
Chronic stress is a long-term pressure that leaves you struggling daily over many years. This can arise from trauma or serious life problems beyond our control and might leave you to accept the symptoms with no end in sight.
What these 3 types have in common is their symptoms, which will differ for everyone but have great amounts of overlap.
For stress management, it’s important to spot these symptoms. If they’re left to run wild it can lead to seriously damaging short and long-term effects, which we’ll now give you some info about.
Types and symptoms of stress
It’s true that stress can make you ill, but what are the common types and signs of stress?
Stress hits us all differently, but grouping it together can help us understand it a bit better.
Stress can manifest itself with both physical and psychological symptoms.
Firstly, our bodies release the stress hormones cortisol and adrenaline which are released when we feel anxious, and this is sometimes referred to as the ‘fight or flight’ response that induces many of the physical symptoms.
Secondly, the psychological side of stress links to mental health problems. These mental health conditions can in turn cause more stress, and even physical symptoms, creating a vicious cycle.
Symptoms of stress can be broken down into 3 major categories which include both physical and psychological elements:
| Feelings | Behaviour | Physical symptoms |
|---|---|---|
| aggressive | difficulty in making decisions | difficulty breathing/panic attacks |
| impatient | constant worrying | muscle tension |
| over-burdened | avoiding situations | blurry vision |
| anxious, nervous, or afraid | snapping at people | trouble sleeping |
| depressed | unable to concentrate | tiredness |
| uninterested | nail-biting and picking your skin | grinding your teeth |
| neglected or lonely | changed eating habits | headaches |
| smoking, drinking, or taking drugs | high blood pressure | |
| crying | indigestion/heartburn | |
| dizziness |
If you are struggling to cope with these, or any other symptoms, make sure you are trying to seek all the help you can get through professionals or friends and family. On top of this, there’s more you can do to help.
How does CBD work for stress and anxiety?
Stress is a term that is largely linked, and sometimes identical, to anxiety. Many of the symptoms are either the same or overlapping, and it’s not clear where stress stops and anxiety begins.
The science shows reason for hope in treating both of these conditions with CBD, such as this 2015 neurotherapeutics study that outlines the effectiveness of CBD in interacting with our ECS.
For stress, CBD helps by working through the ECS to regulate emotional behaviour. In particular, our ability to respond to highly aversive and emotional events.
The National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA) says that CBD has been shown to reduce stress in animals such as rats, with subjects showing lower behavioural signs of anxiety as well as physiological effects such as reduced heart rate.
Recent studies have also confirmed that CBD can alter important aspects of aversive memories in humans and promote significant improvements in the symptomatology of PTSD.
Although the results are in their early stages, it’s clear using CBD for stress already shows great potential.
Different ways to treat stress
As mentioned, CBD works with the body thanks to the ECS. So, in terms of it helping the management of stress, CBD products such as; oils, edibles, vapes, and oral tablets can provide relief from symptoms.
Relax, and have a cuppa. Hemp tea is one of the latest products to hit the high street after being part and parcel of many cultures for its medicinal properties, offering a great alternative to other CBD products.
Still containing the proven compounds, it’s another great way to keep calm and can be used with other stress treatments.
Here are 5 more top tips for dealing with stress and burnout (great for use alongside CBD):
1. Splitting up big tasks
Breaking things down into more bitesize chunks can give you mini rewards while getting you closer to your goal.
2. Challenge your thoughts and emotions
Open yourself up to more positive ideas and change. Stress will stick around if you just accept it and the thought process it brings.
3. Be more active
The benefits of being active are known to reduce stress and anxiety levels and burn off that nervous energy.
4. Talk to someone
From friends and family to professionals and helplines, there’s always someone to talk to when you’re struggling.
5. Plan ahead
Start your to-do list and declutter that brain. Planning for stressful events can help with the anticipation anxiety of not being prepared enough.
Why choose Hempika for stress relief
Hempika can provide you with a range of products for all of your stress relief needs, and we can do so with the guarantee of purity and safety so you know you get what’s on the tin.
Nobody needs the stress of worrying about the quality of a product, or not knowing which one is right for you. So, if you’re still wondering how to use CBD for stress, ask us at info@hempika.com.
Distinguished by accuracy, precision, and performance, our testing is in line with the principles and guidelines of good laboratory practice standards. This lets us analyse not just CBD, but a total of 12 cannabinoids.
Concluding thoughts
In a stressful world, we need to keep on top of our physical and mental health, with a number of ways proving popular in helping this.
As a natural alternative to over-the-counter meds, CBD is showing promising results in being a great way to tackle stress and anxiety; although it’s clear more studies need to be done, in terms of both size and human trials.
Using CBD for stress (especially when used with other stress-relieving techniques) should help leave you feeling like king of the jungle once again.
Don’t forget that you shouldn’t rely on products or tips alone, and if you’re struggling talk to those around you, seek professional help, or all of the above.
Frequently asked questions about CBD for stress
Which CBD is best for stress?
The best CBD for stress depends on which compounds work for you. Full-spectrum offers all phytochemicals that work well together with the ‘entourage effect’, and still contains less than 0.3% THC. However, this can fail some drug tests. Broad-spectrum contains all the chemicals except THC and still has this effect, and CBD isolate is the purest form with all other chemicals removed, less CBD, meaning this entourage effect is not present.
How long does it take for CBD to work for stress?
How long CBD takes to work for stress depends on the method of ingestion. E.g., a CBD vape can give faster relief on the go while CBD oil or capsules can take longer, so check out each product to be sure.
How much CBD should I take to relieve stress?
To use CBD for relieving stress you should start small, and build your way up. This depends on gender, weight, and size, but typically a low dose for someone who’s 45kg is around 10mg, and someone 110kg would require around 25mg.
How does stress affect the body?
Stress affects the body both physically and psychologically, which can result in many symptoms like headaches and depression. This can be acute stress, episodic acute stress, or chronic stress.
Can stress cause high blood pressure?
Stress can cause high blood pressure as the different types of stress can lead to physical symptoms as well as psychological ones.
Author: T. F.
Source(s):
https://www.nhs.uk/every-mind-matters/mental-health-issues/stress/
https://www.mind.org.uk/information-support/types-of-mental-health-problems/stress/what-is-stress/
https://www.apa.org/topics/stress/body
https://www.psychologytoday.com/us/blog/open-gently/201812/the-three-types-stress
https://www.healthline.com/health/stress
https://www.healthline.com/health/cbd-for-anxiety
https://cbdnhemp.com/cbd/faq/how-is-cbd-metabolized-in-our-body/
https://www.nytimes.com/2019/10/16/style/self-care/cbd-oil-benefits.html
https://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/how-to-use-cbd-for-anxiety#what-is-cbd
https://www.liebertpub.com/doi/full/10.1089/acm.2018.0437
https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fnins.2018.00502/full
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4604171/