As cannabis consumption becomes more normalized and we learn more about the plant’s effects on the mind and body, we also are learning that the cannabis pioneers of the past may have been speaking truth, even when it was stoner speak telling the uptight normies to “mellow out, man.”
Firing up a joint, enjoying an edible or other ways to partake remains a good idea, whether for fun or as a way to get rid of stress.
Certain weed strains can not only help you feel good but reduce your overall anxiety, especially those high in CBD, one of the main compounds in the plant.
Maybe you can step out for a smoke break in the middle of a busy day, or give yourself a relaxing reward after a stressful day. Even a ‘wake and bake’ morning sesh can help you approach the day a little calmer rather than starting your day already fully consumed by worries and concerns.
Continue reading to learn about our recommendations for the best weed for anxiety, and which ingredients to watch out for that may not mellow you out at all, but may make you feel worse and more worrisome.
As always is the case with medical marijuana patients, if you’re partaking for purely medical reasons, be sure to check with your health care provider if it can help your anxiety or require a different ingestion method. You might get a green light to fire one up and be the one to tell yourself to do the mellowing out.
How Does Cannabis Help with Anxiety?
There’s no doubt that cannabis can help you chill, but not a lot of people know why or what’s happening in your body.
The main answer is CBD, an abbreviation for the natural compound cannabidiol. When you consume cannabis or cannabis products that include CBD, the CBD molecules interact with receptors in the endocannabinoid system, a system in our body that regulates mood, sleep, and appetite. By connecting with certain receptors in the brain and central nervous system, including serotonin, it can create temporary feelings of pleasure while reducing the body’s response to physical pain, fear, and overall stress.
Any dose of CBD can have this effect.
Interestingly, THC, another well-known compound, can reduce anxiety, but only in smaller amounts. Cannabis with high amounts of THC, such as concentrates of indica and sativa strains, can actually increase feelings of anxiety and paranoia.
(If all of this science/biology stuff is new to you and you want to learn more, Torrey Holistics has written about the different compounds in cannabis. Get started at https://torreyholistics.com/cannabis-compounds/
There are certainly other factors that can affect your ability to relax and reduce your anxieties through cannabis, including what strain you’re trying, what terpenes are included, and your current tolerance level. One of the tricky things about CBD is that you if you start to use it regularly, you’ll soon need more over time to create the same effect. But if you take a break for at least a few days or even longer, you’ll need less again.
Top 10 Best Strains for Anxiety Relief
Wondering how to get started with something that can help cut down on your fears and worries? Try our list of the best weed for anxiety. All of these products have been shown to be high in CBD but also well-balanced in other areas to deliver a satisfying experience whether you’re new to cannabis or have been partaking for years.
1. Remedy
This strain has been specially formulated to promote overall relaxation. It features 14% CBD and is non-psychoactive, which means it won’t come with other side effects or feelings of intoxication while taking effect.
2. ACDC
This high-CBD, low-THC strain is one of the more popular ones known for therapeutic benefits. CBD levels typically range around 14% which are good for taking the edge off. (It also made our list of recommended strains for good sleep!)
3. Lifter
At 16%, Lifter is helpful for reducing anxiety as well as improving overall focus any time of day. It’s sativa strains like this one that have been credited with everything from uplifting mood to reducing the frequency of panic attacks.
4. Charlotte’s Web
This non-intoxicating strain has about 13% CBD and is often recommended for those dealing with depression. It can be found around the country in different forms, including hemp-based oil without THC.
5. Cherry Wine
With CBD as high as 17%, this strain is known to reduce chronic pain and anxiety in many consumers and provide general calmness. It also has a sweet fruit flavor that some consumers enjoy.
6. Ringo’s Gift
With a 20:1 ratio of CBD to THC, this strain is optimal for people seeking stress relief. Interestingly, the cross between ACDC and Harle-Tsu isn’t named after the drummer of The Beatles but longtime Cali cannabis pioneer and CBD researcher Lawrence Ringo.
7. Harle-Tsu
Short for Harlequin-Tsunami, this strain has a great reputation of being able to improve moods while reducing anxiety. It also is non-psychoactive so you can approach daily tasks with a little more bounce, instead of being stuck on the sofa worrying about stuff.
8. Sour Tsunami
Lawrence Ringo also created this sativa-heavy hybrid blending NYC Diesel and Sour Diesel to highlight its CBD potency. With a 13:1 CBD:THC ratio, it’s especially recommended for overall anxiety and panic attacks.
9. Sour Space Candy
The 17% CBD balance helps consumers feel uplifted and calm. It’s also one of the more colorful strains: the flower has bright green, purple, and red tones.
10. Suzy Q
This strain is recommended for those battling minor anxiety. It also has a piney taste and smell, which suggests it’s strong in alpha pinene, a terpene known for anti-inflammatory properties and stress reduction.
Choosing the Right Strain: What to Consider
Beyond subjective factors like personal preferences in how a strain looks, tastes, and smells, what else should someone look for when trying to find the best weed strains for anxiety? There are some easy ways to get started.
First, find something high in CBD and low in THC. A high THC blend may feel good briefly but may be more prone to add to your anxiety.
Something without psychoactive effects is also useful especially if you’re trying to be discreet and aren’t really interested in getting high.
A strain that’s high in certain terpenes is also a good idea – terpenes are the natural flavors that provide certain effects, such as pinene or limonene, which both help relieve stress and promote relaxation.
How you choose to consume can also play a role. If you’re already stressed, you don’t want to add to your anxieties worrying that people will smell that you’ve been smoking something. So, consider a product without a noticeable odor like tinctures or topicals. Just a few drops of a tincture can be soothing all around and go right into the stomach without going through the lungs.
CBD-Dominant vs. THC-Dominant Strains for Anxiety
When shopping for the best marijuana strains for anxiety disorders, start by searching for something that’s CBD-dominant, which can provide pain and anxiety relief, but without any psychoactive side effects.
Something high in THC and low in CBD may have unpredictable results – it may give you a brief high but could also exacerbate anxiety symptoms, especially in individuals who are prone to paranoia or heightened stress responses.
A hybrid might be one option if you want the healing while experiencing the high, such as a 1:1 ratio. This might be a useful balance if the external conditions are right, such as quiet living room vs. a busy workplace.
Safety Tips for Using Cannabis to Manage Anxiety
It’s important to emphasize that cannabis affects everyone differently. At the same time, everyone has different types of anxieties. So there’s really no ‘one size fits all’ definition of the best weed for anxiety for everyone.
It might take some trial and error to find what strains and ratios work optimally for you in the short term and long term.
But you can start with what’s called microdosing: try a small amount of a cannabis product, see how you feel once it wears off, and then increase dosage at a future sesh.
Avoiding high THC also is a sensible step, especially if you’re susceptible to feeling paranoid.
Part of your experimentation can also include trying different ways to consume to see what has the best effect for you. For instance, if you’ve never liked smoking, you might like a few drops from a tincture. If you’re a food fan, try edibles or infused oil in your recipes.
And just because cannabis is legal in California doesn’t mean that you might run afoul of the law. Smoking in public or even private places like restaurants or bars can still attract unwanted attention or even break some laws. Make sure you’re familiar with the laws in your city and state.
Other Natural Remedies to Complement Cannabis
When trying to search for other ways to reduce anxiety and improve mental health, cannabis doesn’t have to be the only option. You can combine some of the best weed strains for anxiety with other de-stressing tools to hopefully increase your sense of relaxation.
For instance, meditation, yoga, and cultivating an attitude of general mindfulness can all complement your cannabis. Perhaps your cannabis can help start the process of calming, making it easier to pause and try other methods.
Dietary changes are also a good step in looking for ways to reduce stress, such as cutting back or cutting out sugar, caffeine, or energy drinks. Essential oils like lavender in your ‘safe space’ like your bedroom or living room can promote relaxation.
You also should avoid alcohol when trying to purge anxieties: while it’s a legal sedative that our society has been conditioned to go to when things get crazy, it also has a reputation of being unpredictable when mixed with cannabis.
Finally, consider looking for what’s causing anxieties in the first place with the help of a therapist or counselor.
Finding the Right Relief
Torrey Holistics is proud to be a full-service dispensary. We’ve been helping medical patients in the southern end of the state since 2015 and general adult-use customers since 2017.
Whether you’re looking for indica strains or a quality hybrid strain, our budtenders and managers have extensive knowledge to help you find exactly what you need from our inventory of quality products. We’re willing to work with you in your journey to find what works best for you – we think personal experimentation is the best way to find the right weed to help your anxiety, rather than just sharing what we like or dislike or what’s on sale.
We are proud to offer a good selection of products designed to relieve anxiety, and help you in other related ways, such as better sleep. Because our roots are in the medical marijuana movement, we have compassion for all of our customers and want to provide them expert advice to help improve their lives.
Shop High-CBD Strains at Torrey Holistics
If your anxiety makes you a little uncomfortable with the idea of shopping and talking to budtenders you may not know, especially if you don’t quite know what kind of cannabis you want or need, that’s OK! We understand. We also know that it’s difficult to talk to people about anxiety, even though so many of us deal with it.
That’s why we try to make it easy to shop at Torrey Holistics, whether it’s giving you time and space to browse the actual store for anxiety-relief products or spending all the time you want online. Our site offers plenty of resources, including high-CBD strains and a large variety of products intended to help promote calm and reduce stress.
You can also feel free to look at the site and then come in to pick up that particular item or take the opportunity to ask specific questions.
We hope you’ll become a regular customer and feel comfortable finding helpful products, helpful people, and helpful answers to your anxiety.
FAQs
What strain of weed is best for anxiety?
The above list offers 10 strains our budtenders recommend. Generally, we suggest getting something that has a high percentage of CBD, one of the main compounds in cannabis. This provides natural relaxation, pain reduction and stress relief, without any mental or physical changes.
How do I know if a strain will worsen my anxiety?
One way is to experiment with different brands and percentages. Generally, the higher the THC, the increased possibility of increased anxiety. Higher CBD, on the other hand, doesn’t have this risk.
Can I use cannabis for anxiety during the day?
Cannabis that’s high in CBD is usually less psychoactive, meaning you won’t get the ‘high’ that other types of cannabis with increased THC may offer. But you still need to be aware of your surroundings. There are still rules against smoking in public places or in some buildings and workplaces, regardless of THC/CBD ratios.
What is the best method of consuming cannabis for anxiety?
If you’re trying to be discreet, consider tinctures, which are drops that go on or under the tongue. You also can consider high-CBD edibles or topicals.
Is CBD or THC better for anxiety?
CBD is most recommended for anxiety since it doesn’t change your mental or physical perception – it simply reduces pain and stress. While THC can provide a ‘high’ and may briefly feel good, it also has a risk of making some people feel more anxious and paranoid, especially at high doses.
Are there non-smoking cannabis products for anxiety relief?
Besides tinctures, high-CBD edibles are also not noticeable. Topicals can go on the skin, like a lotion, and let the CBD go right into the bloodstream.
These statements have not been evaluated by the FDA. Nothing said, done, typed, printed or reproduced by Torrey Holistics is intended to diagnose, prescribe, treat or take the place of a licensed physician.
