Fear and anxiety are completely natural responses to dangerous external stimuli, and absolutely paramount to survival. You do not want to be the guy who feels no impending need to run away from a lion charging at him… cause then you’re fucked, and he eats you, and you die.
However, our bodies were not created to handle and thrive in a perpetual state of panic, like our modern lives are conditioning us to. Chronically high levels of stress hormones — particularly cortisol — are linked to an ever expanding range of issues, including weight gain, heart disease, depression, poor immunity and muscular tension – and these are just the tip of the iceberg.
And yet, an ever-expanding number of people experience excessive and unnecessary fear and anxiety, including PTSD, Social Anxiety Disorder (SAD), OCD, Panic Disorder (PD) and Generalized Anxiety Disorder (GAD). These anxiety-related disorders are associated with poorer quality of life and a diminished sense of well-being, which can lead to bad relationships, low self esteem, and higher rates of unemployment, addictive behaviour and suicide risk.
Enters CBD
Cannabidiol (CBD) is a phytocannabinoid constituent of Cannabis Sativa that lacks the psychoactive effects of ∆ 9- tetrahydrocannabinol (THC), which is basically the stuff that makes you trip.
Preclinical and clinical studies recently published in this article in the Journal Of Medicine show CBD possesses a wide range of wonderful therapeutic properties, including antipsychotic, analgesic, anticonvulsant, antioxidant, anti-inflammatory and antiarthritic – which makes this a pretty cool, and virtually side-effect free product. But other than the amazing reviews from people, what guarantee do people have that CBD really works?
Well, more and more studies are being rolled out to both study CBD by itself, and to study effects on the brain in conjunction with anxiety and stress specifically. Though the majority of studies still only test on rats (testing humans is expensive and time consuming), one major point has been confirmed: CBD counters anxiety by stimulating neurotransmitter systems and neural regeneration.
Helping your brain out
CBD interacts with several receptors known to regulate fear and anxiety-related behaviours, so they don’t fire off the signals that trigger your fight, flight or freeze responses. One of the most beneficial ways in which CBD works with our neurotransmitters, is by binding to the Serotonin receptor 5-HT1A, which (despite the word Serotonin making us thinking of happiness and joy) is thought to have the biggest role in anxiety disorders.
The endocannabinoid system
The endocannabinoid system is a molecular system in the body responsible for regulating some of the most important bodily functions, including sleep, mood, sexual stimuli, reproduction, appetite and memory, to name a few. Studies have shown that an endocannabinoid system that’s subject to continuous and repetitive stress is often unable to carry out the functions it is built to do, and this is where CBD can enter and help out.
CBD has been found to help reduce the overstimulation of some of the 65 receptors in the cannabinoid system (specifically CB1 and CB2), which can in turn mean better regulated, and even optimal functions like sleep, mood and stress management.
Different from conventional drugs
In this other really interesting paper, researchers have shown that – unlike traditional anti-depressants and anti-anxiety medications, CBD oils and tinctures have the advantage of not producing side-effects at higher or prolonged doses, and it may even help with minimising persistent fear memories – like in PTSD patients.
A natural ally
Let’s be honest – life can be a bit crap sometimes, and whether you get overly stressed over small things, or you’ve been diagnosed with an anxiety-based, disorder, Moxmilk CBD can be your drug-free way to get a helping hand.
You’re already putting in the work, and this can help you maximise it and reap the benefits even quicker, in a way that is both sustainable and long-lasting.
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