CBD is often touted as a superhero for mental and psychological ailments alike, but just how does it make you feel? How closely does it mimic marijuana?
CBD usually causes calming, pain-relieving effects that last for several hours or more. These effects can be very powerful and act as a form of medical treatment. It’s unusual to experience side effects from CBD, but if you do, they’re generally mild (drowsiness, nausea) and resolve on their own.
It can be hard to put into words how powerful substances like CBD make us feel, but those who are skeptical can rest assured that CBD poses very minimal risk to your health and is unlikely to cause a negative experience.
Understanding how you might feel after taking CBD oil can better prepare you for implementing it into your routine and finding the best product for you.
Does CBD oil actually do anything?
CBD oil can successfully target inflammation and pain in the body and is known to create euphoric relaxation for its users. Depending on how you decide to use your CBD oil, you’re likely to feel its effects within an hour.
CBD, or cannabidiol, is a compound that is found in the Cannabis sativa species of plants. It’s purported to have great effects on anxiety, mood, pain, and may even have potential as an incredible therapeutic compound for a variety of chronic ailments.
CBD works by binding to receptors in the endocannabinoid system within the body. This system is responsible for regulating a variety of bodily functions, including immune responses, appetite, and more.
When CBD enters the bloodstream and binds to receptors, it can directly tackle inflammation and work with the central nervous system to minimize pain and anxiety.
Taking an appropriate dose of CBD oil should produce noticeable effects, especially if you’ve never used it before.
Do you feel anything from CBD?
CBD produces real effects that can make a significant difference in one’s day-to-day wellbeing, mood, and physical health.
Even if you’re not using CBD to experience health benefits, you can still benefit from its mood-stabilizing and insomnia-fighting qualities.
What does CBD feel like?
CBD is most well known for having these effects on users:
- Feelings of relaxation
- Anxiety relief
- Pain relief
- At high enough doses, feelings of sedation and worsened motor control
CBD does not have any psychoactive effects, meaning that it doesn’t get you high like its sister compound, THC, can. CBD is not an inebriant and does not impair decision-making or cognitive processes.
Really, beyond a few side effects, it generally just calms and soothes users and provides a bit of a mood boost. It can provide great relief to sufferers of anxiety and chronic pain, too. Sometimes CBD-users compare the feeling to taking an Advil or Ibuprofen pill: you forget that you took one until 20-40 minutes later when you suddenly are not in pain anymore.
However, while it would be great to have one uniform experience that applies to all CBD users, the truth is that the subjective effects of CBD can vary in limited amounts from person to person and usage to usage.
Does CBD oil calm you down?
Most people who use CBD report that it makes them feel more relaxed, comfortable, and more able to let go of stress. In that sense, CBD oil can indeed calm you down, especially if you live with frequent anxiety.
Though tranquility is commonly experienced, CBD products can have qualitatively different effects depending on:
- THC content
- Method of consumption
- Dosage
THC content
CBD is one compound, and THC is another. However, they are both harvested from the plant Cannabis sativa, and there can be trace amounts of both compounds in some CBD products.
THC is the psychoactive component in marijuana and marijuana products that gets you “high.” While this can be a pleasant experience for many people, some people may have adverse reactions to THC.
Getting high is not a worry while taking CBD products, even ones that have some amount of THC — generally, most states only allow for the sale of CBD products with less than 0.3% THC, which is not nearly enough to get you high. However, that doesn’t mean that THC content doesn’t have an effect on the subjective experience of taking CBD.
When combined, the two compounds actually have a potentiating effect called the Entourage Effect, which is thought to amplify and intensify the feelings of relaxation and drowsiness one might feel while taking CBD, while counteracting some of the more negative side effects of THC like anxiety or paranoia.
Method of consumption
The way that you’re using or applying CBD products can have an impact on your experience, too.
Consuming CBD oil orally or vaping or smoking it will generally give users that full-body relaxation and mood boost that CBD is known for.
By contrast, CBD that is applied topically in the form of lotions, rubs, or salves will only have pain-relief and relaxation effects in the part of the body that has been specifically targeted. It will generally not boost mood or provide full-body relaxation, as the product is not being absorbed into the bloodstream.
Dosages
As with any other drug or supplement, the doses you take of it can have an effect on the experience of taking it — most effects of CBD will be heightened and intensified at higher doses.
CBD is not a regulated substance, and there is no uniform or medically accepted dosing guideline for its use. Take it slow at first and slowly work your way up if you intend to begin a CBD regimen, and consider consulting your doctor first.
How does full spectrum CBD oil make you feel?
Full spectrum CBD oil is likely to make you feel the same way other oils might – relaxed, inflammation- and pain-free, and happy – but in a much more intense, long-lasting way.
Full spectrum oil may also give you more specific effects that you don’t notice with other products or isolate oils thanks to the presence of terpenes, each of which can produce unique benefits.
Will full spectrum CBD oil make you high?
Full spectrum CBD oil that is derived from hemp will not make you high because hemp, at least as it is legally sold in the U.S., must contain only trace amounts (0.3% or less by weight) of THC.
THC, not CBD, is the cannabinoid responsible for creating a high. So, no THC means no high, even if CBD and terpenes are still present.
What are the side effects of CBD oil?
While CBD has a relatively low side effect profile, it can still impact you in ways you may not expect. Some CBD users may experience:
- Dry mouth
- Nausea or diarrhea
- Lowered blood pressure
- Feelings of drowsiness
Experiencing these side effects may impact your experience with CBD, so it’s important to start at relatively low doses and work your way up so you know how CBD affects you individually.
That being said, CBD is still an incredibly safe supplement to take, and while these side effects might be occasionally unpleasant, the risk is relatively low that you would have a particularly unpleasant experience while using CBD if you are being cautious about dosing and mixing drugs.
How long does it take CBD oil to work?
Unfortunately, the speed at which CBD oil will work varies from user to user and method of consumption.
Inhalation of CBD, either through smoking CBD flowers or taking a hit from a CBD oil vape, can be a very rapid method of delivery. Though it can vary, CBD that is inhaled can work as fast as within three minutes of inhalation.
When applied topically, a safe estimate is that you’ll feel peak effects within 90 minutes of application.
When ingested, it may take anywhere between 1-6 hours for you to feel peak effects. Ingesting your CBD products sublingually (under the tongue) may speed up this process.
How long do the effects of CBD last?
The effects of CBD generally last 2-6 hours, but CBD generally leaves your system entirely within 2-5 days. However — and you may be sensing a theme here — individual factors like the user’s weight, doses, and frequency of usage can have an effect on how long it works and how fast it’s flushed out.
Conclusion
While CBD’s intensity and side effects can vary depending on a number of different factors, CBD is generally a compound that with a fair amount of consistency will provide users a sense of calm, focus, and relief from pain and worry without impairing or inebriating them.
If you feel as though you may benefit from the introduction of CBD into your own daily routine, it’s important to source your products from high quality vendors who value your health, money, and time. CBD Facilitator can help connect you with a variety of sellers offering a variety of CBD products, including full spectrum, broad spectrum, isolates, edibles, and topical creams.
Make sure that you get the right CBD products, certified pure and with no contaminants, by buying from a trusted source.
