Anxiety and stress are the most common reasons people seek out CBD. CBD helps with other conditions like pain, sleep management, and even hunger, but relief from stress and anxiety are the most important effects of CBD. Here at Elements of Green, we want to help you with any anxiety you may be feeling. Depending on the level of your anxiety and your own preferences, there are several CBD formulations which might help you.
What are Anxiety and Stress?
Let’s start by defining anxiety and stress. Stress a normal human response to external events. A looming deadline, difficulties at work or in a marriage, and financial pressures are all things which can induce stress. Anxiety is a person’s reaction to stress. When anxiety levels are too high for too long, you may even acquire a stress disorder which might need medical treatment. When anxiety occurs without a specific cause, but it is persistent and over a number of different stresses, that is called Generalized Anxiety Disorder. Other anxiety disorders include
- Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder
- Panic Disorder
- Social Anxiety Disorder
It will come as no surprise that anxiety levels have increased greatly over the past year, as the COVID-19 crisis and associated lockdowns, economic disruption, and a general feeling of helplessness have weighed on people’s minds. A study early in the first lockdown found that 57 percent of people reported symptoms of anxiety and 64 percent said they had common signs of depression. Nearly half of those people had symptoms which the National Health Service would characterize as moderate to severe.
According to the Mental Health Foundation, 6.6% of people in England experienced generalized anxiety prior to the spring of 2020, so you can see that the coronavirus is taking a toll on the mental health of Britons. ‘
If you believe you are experiencing severe anxiety, you should see your doctor. She can help you diagnose your symptoms to see if further medical intervention will help you. The NHS recommends seeing your doctor about anxiety if
- Your worrying significantly affects your daily life, including your job and social life
- Your worries are extremely stressful and upsetting
- You worry about all sorts of things and have a tendency to think the worst
- Your worrying is uncontrollable
- You have felt worried nearly every day for at least 6 months
Many people confuse anxiety and depression. Clinical depression is often more serious and requires medical treatment.
Most cases of anxiety are not quite so severe, and many people experiencing anxiety benefit from self-care. Self-care might include quitting smoking and drinking, beginning or continuing an exercise regimen, avoiding caffeine, and learning to relax through breathing exercises, yoga, or meditation. There are any number of books which might be able to help you learn new habits which will help with anxiety. An increasing body of evidence indicates that CBD may be a helpful part of anxiety self-help.
What is CBD? And How Does It Work?
To understand how CBD can help with anxiety we have to go over a little science. CBD is a naturally occurring substance found in the hemp plant. It interacts with your endocannabinoid system primarily through two receptors you have in your cells called the CB1 and CB2 receptors, though it reaches other parts of the cells, too. The CB1 receptor is located mostly in your central nervous system, while the CB2 receptor is more common in your peripheral cells, including the ones which govern your immune system. Interaction with the CB2 receptors is the mechanism by which CBD might relieve pain, help the immune system, and relieve bad inflammation. For stress and anxiety, we focus on how CBD reacts with CB1 receptors, along with other receptors like one of your serotonin receptors.
When CBD interacts with the CB1 or the serotonin receptors, it basically gives your brain cells new instructions. CBD creates what is called an anxiolytic effect; your anxiety decreases.
What else should you know about CBD? CBD is formally known as cannabidiol. It occurs in the hemp plant and in the cannabis plant. In fact, hemp and cannabis are the same species of plant. The key difference is that hemp has very low levels of another cannabinoid called THC. THC is the part of the cannabis plant which can make you high. CBD products will not make you high and you can engage in any activities such as driving while using CBD. Most CBD formulations include other beneficial cannabinoids, including small amounts of THC. Most CBD users like a variety of cannabinoids as they work together to increase their usefulness, something called the “entourage effect.” Some CBD formulations are guaranteed to have no THC at all, and others have no other cannabinoids for those users who prefer CBD alone. Many other plants also contain cannabinoids, but in very low levels.
Taking CBD for Anxiety
You can purchase CBD yourself. Doctors rarely prescribe CBD since its effects are demonstrated mostly in smaller studies. Doctors like to have large clinical trials and government approval before suggesting something specific for any ailment, including anxiety. However, as we mentioned, most people suffering anxiety can benefit from a regimen of self-care. If you do see your doctor about anxiety, be sure to ask about CBD and to tell the doctor if you are taking CBD or any medication. Before you purchase CBD as part of your self-care regimen, you have to answer a few questions. Here are some of those questions along with some ways you can find the answers appropriate for you.
What Else Are You Doing?
CBD’s anti-anxiety properties are well known, but CBD is not magic. If you are engaging in behaviours which tend to increase anxiety such as smoking and drinking, CBD will not help you very much if at all. The NHS has a page about self-care for anxiety which may be helpful to you. Integrating CBD into a self-help program will benefit you much more than taking CBD alone.
How Will You Take Your CBD?
You can choose any of several ways to take your CBD. For anxiety, most people like a form of ingestible or inhalable CBD. Products like creams and balms are great for applications like pain relief but if you really want your CBD to go talk to those nerve cells, the best way is to get the CBD inside your body. Most people use a CBD oil, which they place under their tongue and allow to dissolve. This puts CBD right into the bloodstream, where it finds those CB1 receptors and goes to work. Similarly, CBD capsules deliver the CBD to your digestive system. The CBD enters the liver and moves on from there.
For a long time, oils and capsules were about the only way to take CBD. More recently, there are other methods and some of them might fit right into your self-care routine. Elements of Green offers a variety of CBD edibles. Gummies are a more palatable way of taking CBD you might otherwise take by capsule. But how about a nice cup of tea? Or perhaps a brownie as a way to treat yourself kindly, or some protein powder for that exercise you’ve started?
Another way to engage in self-care and take your CBD at the same time is to use a bath bomb. The Janus Organics Relax CBD Bath Bomb adds lavender and other essential oils to the CBD to make your bath the most relaxing it has ever been.
An increasingly popular way to take CBD is to vape it. CBD vapes have no nicotine; just CBD, a carrier oil to make the CBD easy to inhale, and natural, beneficial flavours. Our Haitus CBD Vape Pen: “Rest” has a smooth blackcurrant and blueberry aroma and flavour which will help the CBD to help you relax. Vaping is a good way to get the CBD to your brain very quickly.
How Much CBD Should You Use?
Deciding how much CBD to use is the next decision you must make. The right amount for you will depend on your size, how much anxiety you are experiencing, and several factors which you can’t know until you start taking CBD. The UK Food Standards Agency (FSA) recommends taking a maximum of 70 mg per day for ingested CBD products. All the products we sell through Elements of Green comply with this recommendation when taken according to the package direction. Many people choose to start with a low amount of CBD and increase it over time as the effects become apparent. For healthy adults, CBD even at the maximum amount recommended is well tolerated with few or no negative side effects.
Do You Trust Your Source?
Once you’ve decided how to take your CBD and what your initial amount should be, it’s time to choose a product. And it is here that you must be most careful. CBD regulation has been spotty and slow, and many producers of so-called CBD products have taken advantage. A study in the UK found that two thirds of the CBD products the scientists tested had less CBD than advertised. One product had no CBD at all. In Germany, a survey found that nearly a quarter of the CBD products on the market had an illegal amount of THC. Because CBD comes naturally from the hemp plant, there is also the possibility of picking up pesticides, heavy metals, mould, and other contaminants.
Testing and transparency are the key to choosing the right CBD product. At Elements of Green, we choose our partners carefully, working only with those who have a high standard for their products. We insist that all of the brands we present to you put all of their products to lab testing. Every batch needs a separate test, and if a batch comes up short, we don’t sell it and our brand partners don’t sell it anywhere else, either. Often the test results are right on the product page.
The Ultimate CBD Package for Anxiety
Perhaps by now you’ve got a better idea of which CBD product you will choose for your anxiety. If not, we’ve got a suggestion. Our CBD Stress Relief Bundle has many of the ways to take CBD that we’ve discussed. It has CBD Vital/CBD Vital Premium 5% CBD, which is a full-spectrum CBD product to bring about the entourage effect. It also has elevated levels of another cannabinoid, CBG. You can customize how much CBD you take by taking more or fewer droplets. The bundle also includes Janus CBD capsules. These vegan and organic capsules contain 10 mg CBD each, so one or two capsules per day will give you a moderate amount of CBD. Next, there are some NatureCan Double Chocolate CBD brownies. If you want a delicious treat as you take your CBD, these brownies are for you. Each brownie has 25 mg of CBD, so two brownies will get you close to the maximum amount of CBD recommended by the FSA. Each brownie also contains 11 grams of protein and while there are other beneficial cannabinoids, the brownies are guaranteed to have no THC at all. Finally, there is a luxurious bath bomb. The Janus CBD Bath Bomb Relax comes with 100 mg of CBD and lavender and essential oils which also produce a calming effect. By the time you work your way through our Stress Relief Bundle you will have a better idea of which CBD is right for you over the longer haul.
All of those choices can be overwhelming, so you might want to choose a bundle of products. Elements of Green offers bundles for people who just want to try CBD to see what it can do for them, for athletes, for pain and recovery, for stress and anxiety, and for sleep. Each bundle includes at least one oil so you can try that out. After that, the products in the bundle are customized to allow you to try the best solutions for you. For example, the stress relief bundle includes a soothing bath bomb and some delicious brownies so you can treat yourself as part of the self-care regimen you are undertaking. The pain and recovery bundle includes a cream which contains CBD but also menthol, eucalyptus oil, peppermint oil and other additions which give you instant relief from sore muscles.
If you still need help, you can ask us about any product at Elements of Green and a well-trained customer service specialist will get back to you quickly. And after you order, you can have confidence in our contact-free postal delivery and our follow-up customer service.
