What’s Ailing You?

PAIN | ANXIETY | DEPRESSION | INSOMNIA

CBD may be a remedy for anxiety, depression, pain, and insomnia. Before starting a regimen, read our primer blog on how it works and what research is saying about its potential benefits.

No, CBD cannot cure coronavirus. We heard that question over and over while working with CBD this past year. But yes, it may mitigate the anxiety that comes with leaving the house during a highly contagious global pandemic. And it could help with an array of other mental and physical conditions that keep us from enjoying our best lives.

HOW CBD WORKS

CBD is on off more than 100 compounds in cannabis that create drug like effects in the body, including the nervous and immune systems. Called cannabinoids, these compounds mimic naturally produced compounds in our bodies called endocannabinoids that help maintain overall balance.

The endocannabinoid system (ECS) forms a major signaling network that regulates memory, mood, pain, and hunger. CBD and other cannabinoids act as keys, locking an unlocking receptors – much like how dopamine and serotonin act as messengers in the nervous system. Though most cannabinoids bind to nerve receptors, CBD does not directly trigger receptors. Instead, it binds in a different spot, leaving the normal spot free. By doing this, it makes it harder for receptors to activate. While this may seem undesirable, too much nerve activity can be a bad thing. If you are experiencing loss of sleep or heightened stress, it may be from overstimulation of cannabinoid receptors.

Unlike THC, CBD will not get you high, or arrested. It is easy to take and compares very favorably to pharmaceuticals, especially opioids: you cannot overdose or get addicted, and its side effects are rare and mild.