Anxiety is so common these days it seems like we all know somebody who suffers from Anxiety, or we suffer from it ourselves.   GAD or General Anxiety Disorder affects around 6.8 million people in the U.S. — or more than 3 percent of the country’s adults So where does CBD come in and how does it help? Be fore we get into that, you should know that there are three different types of CBD, and full spectrum CBD has shown the best results for most of the people I have researched for anxiety.  It contains .3% THC.  Broad spectrum  is a close second.   Click here for a refresher on the different types of CBD, and here to visit our top brands.

What is anxiety?

Anxiety is a nebulous term that covers a great deal of psychological ground. Anxiety before an exam or a job interview is both understandable and normal; it is not a cause for concern.

Anxiety becomes a problem when it extends beyond logical worry in an unreasonable, unwarranted, uncontrollable way. In situations these you are normal you feel fine one second, and all of a sudden your situation may seem life-threatening, cause dizziness, or make you feel like you are about to have a heart attack. 

At the widest end of the wedge, anxiety can arrive as a symptom of another mental illness, such as panic disorders, post-traumatic stress disorder, phobias, or obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD).

When anxiety is a person’s primary symptom, it may be referred to as generalized anxiety disorder (GAD). The National Health Service (NHS) in the United Kingdom summarize GAD neatly.

“People with GAD,” they explain, “feel anxious most days and often struggle to remember the last time they felt relaxed. As soon as one anxious thought is resolved, another may appear about a different issue.”

Another common form of anxiety is social anxiety, which affects people more specifically in social situations.

It might make someone very self-conscious, perhaps not wanting to eat or drink in front of others, fearing that people are talking about them, or worrying about being lost in a crowd. It comes in many forms.

Today, “anxiety disorders are the most common mental illness in the U.S.,” affecting around 40 million adults — almost 1 in 5 people.

Globally, the World Health Organization (WHO) say that almost 300 million people have an anxiety disorder. Interestingly, anxiety is not just a human experience, and evolution is ultimately to blame (or thank); as with other animals, humanity’s survival relies on our natural ability to feel anxious about genuinely dangerous situations and to be on guard.

It is when this life-saving mechanism is triggered at inappropriate times or gets stuck in the “on” position that it becomes a problem.

“When it’s bad, it feels like an electric current building up inside of me and like it’s going to start shooting out of me, except it doesn’t, which is worse.”

Anon.

CBD FOR ANXIETY

There is a debate as to whether CBD or THC is better for anxiety.  When taken together there is a synergistic relationship between these two cannabinoids, which can do wonders for many problems.  However, when it comes to anxiety,  CBD seems to be much more helpful.

First of all, it does not produce psychoactive effects so you won’t feel paranoid. Second, CBD is superior to THC in the sheer number of conditions it helps with. It regulates many physiological processes such as sleep and appetite and also helps the body relax. It’s also proven to reduce chronic inflammation, which can make anxiety disorders worse.

CBD relieves physical symptoms of anxiety

Anxiety is not just in the mind—it also produces a wide variety of physical symptoms, which can be difficult to stop.  Many people have reported CBD’s positive effects on their physical symptoms of anxiety, and the effects range from life-improving to life-changing.  

•   CBD relieves muscles and relieves tension that anxiety or a panic attack produces.
•   Relieves nausea that some experience with anxiety disorders
•   Relieves headaches and provides a sense of calm.

What about CBD for phobias or PTSD:

As you might know, both phobias and PTSD are marked by fear-related memories. According to a report published in 2017—titled, “Cannabidiol regulation of emotion and emotional memory processing: relevance for treating anxiety-related and substance abuse disorders”—by the British Pharmacological Society, several studies have confirmed that CBD reduces learned fear response in ways that could be helpful for patients suffering from phobias and PTSD. One study—titled, “Cannabidiol Regulation of Learned Fear: Implications for Treating Anxiety-Related Disorders”—in particular, details how CBD relieves fear response. The researchers found that it helps in three ways:

• It acutely decreases fear expression
• It disrupts memory reconsolidation
• It enhances fear extinction

The studies all point to this single fact: CBD can help reduce the impact of learned fears, whether you are suffering from phobias, PTSD or other life-changing traumatic experiences.  Here is a wonderful article on how CBD is helping our military veterans. 

CBD just makes you feel better which helps relieve your anxiety. 

The hard truth about most anxiety disorders is that they make you bummed out, even in your downtime.  CBD, when combined with THC, (Full Spectrum) has antidepressant properties, which regulate your emotional response and your general way of thinking. There are two ways for that to happen: When ingested, CBD activates 5-HT1A receptors. By doing so, it enables the brain to send more serotonin signals, thus reducing the anxiety and boosting your general mood.

Also, studies suggest that CBD can stimulate hippocampal neurogenesis—a process through which a person’s hippocampus regenerates. This is very important because people who suffer from depression and anxiety often have an underdeveloped hippocampus.

Can CBD prevent chronic anxiety and panic attacks?

According to Mental Health Daily, CBD has the ability to positively affect the nervous system during a panic attack.  What do people feel when having consistent anxiety or a panic attack?

Here are a few of the symptoms: 

• Dizziness or faintness
• Fear of dying
• Nausea or upset stomach
• Feeling of choking
• Numbness or tingling in the feet, hands, or face
• Chest pain or discomfort
• Feelings of detachment
• Fear of losing control or impending doom
• A sensation of shortness of breath or smothering
• Feelings of unreality
• Palpitations, fast heart rate, or pounding heart
• Trembling or shaking
• Sweating, chills, or hot flashes

Whenever we get that fight or flight feeling, our autonomic nervous system gets altered—the sympathetic branch becomes more active than the parasympathetic branch. When CBD is administered shortly before or after a traumatic event, the balance of our nervous system is reset, which relieves current tension and can prevent the development of chronic anxiety symptoms. This, coupled with CBD’s neuroprotective properties, can help ensure that both your nervous system and your brain remain healthy for a long time to come.

Conclusion:

While clinical trials are still ongoing, there is overwhelming evidence that CBD is helping millions of people manage their anxiety and there are thousands of reviews of people who have ditched their dangerous prescription medications in favor of natural CBD. It has helped them with their anxiety and panic attacks, and has also helped them with a variety of other issues, such as inflammation, and high blood pressure which can trigger anxiety.

As always, feel free to ask any questions you might have in the Contact us section and please follow and share with your friends.

Damon