How to Incorporate Cannabis Into Your Lifestyle

Introduction

Living a healthy and active lifestyle is a dream for most of us but also a struggle for the vast majority. The day to day grind of everyday life can certainly seem to hold us back from achieving our potential.

Thankfully, there are certain things we can incorporate into our lifestyle to allow us to live our life to the fullest. For many, achieving that dream is a simple matter of finding purpose in everyday life.

This could be making money doing something they love, keeping their body and mind healthy by working out and participating in stimulating activities, or any number of things.

On the other hand, many of us suffer from some form of mental illness, which is often due to chemical imbalances in our brain, at least according to medical science. This can seemingly hold us back from taking even simple actions in our lives.

For many, we end up turning to antidepressants or other drugs to try and take back control of our lives. However, antidepressants or other drugs aren’t the magic bullet for everyone. For some of us they work, and for others, they simply do not.

But if you’ve tried everything under the sun including antidepressants and still can’t get your life on track, perhaps it is time to consider cannabis, if you haven’t already that is. Yes, cannabis!

With the help of this ancient medicinal herb, many have found the spirit they need to get themselves out of their funk and back into the swing of life. But like antidepressants, cannabis is also not for everyone. Though, it certainly works for many (myself included!).

Let’s take a look at how and why you may want to incorporate cannabis into your lifestyle. But first, let’s take a look at marijuana’s impact on the brain.

Marijuana’s Impact on the Brain

While there is no evidence as of yet that supports the clinical use of cannabis for depression, the effects of cannabis on the brain is generally positive.

This is because cannabis stimulates dopamine and serotonin production (feel good chemicals) in our brains, which ultimately improves mood.

For instance, the intake of an Indica flower strain of cannabis can make you feel sedated, relaxed and calm. It alters the activity of the brain and can help put stress and anxiety at ease. Sativa strains can spark creativity, boost mood, and induce euphoria.

Cannabis can often help you see things from a clearer perspective. The use of weed for creative purposes is also notable. People often experiment with different strains of cannabis to see which one of them helps produce the best output for the desired need.

Here’s the thing, though. Cannabis isn’t for everyone, and abuse of cannabis can be counterproductive. You also shouldn’t mix cannabis with antidepressants or stop the latter abruptly and replace with the former.

I highly recommend you consult with your doctor before giving cannabis a go, and also extensively read up on cannabis so you know what you are getting into. This is very important if cannabis is totally new to you.

From personal experience, cannabis in moderation has helped me to keep my depression at bay, for the most part, but there are still days where nothing seems to lift my spirits. It also took me some years to properly utilize cannabis in my life.

In the early days I abused it. I’m not going to sugar coat my experience. It’s easy to get carried away. It ultimately became counterproductive to my health and well-being. But as time went on I learned what worked and what didn’t work.

But I want to be clear, cannabis alone wasn’t the magic bullet for me. I also eventually paired my moderate usage with weekly counseling and daily mediation. This combination has worked wonders for my depression and overall spirit.

Now that my depression is in check, I am more inclined to participate in daily activities and now can’t wait to get to the gym or hangout with friends, for example. Cannabis has been life changing for me overall.

If you’re ready or considering giving cannabis a try to see if it can help you improve your lifestyle as well, we’re going to take a look at some steps you will want to take to incorporate cannabis into your lifestyle.

But first, let’s take a gander into the relationship between your appetite and weed…

The Relationship Between Your Appetite and Weed

There is a strong relationship between your appetite and weed intake. For this reason I would like to touch base on this topic some. It’s actually one of my favorite topics since I love eating! ?

You might have heard the term “The Munchies.” This is because some specific strains of weed can increase your appetite and it’s the reason why marijuana is a great aid for anorexic sufferers, for example.

This increase in appetite can help you to maintain robust digestive health as well. Many people around the world still are struggling with an eating disorder. They can easily make use of the weed to enhance their eating habits for a healthier living.

Also, maintaining a fair amount of exercise and fitness routine along with your weed intake will help you reap the best benefits. Good digestive health along with an effective fitness routine, is all you need to stay healthy and fit.

Here’s one thing worth noting, though. If eating is your go to crutch, proceed with caution, especially if you have an addictive personality on top of this and poor eating habits to begin with.

It’s easy to go overboard with cannabis consumption, especially with newbies because cannabis makes most people feel great. When getting carried away with overconsumption it’s easy to slip back into poor eating habits.

Cannabis is quite paradoxical in a sense that overuse can actually exasperate old unhealthy habits. Weed can become a de-motivator and many fall into the trap and get lazy, go inward into their own head and even spiral back into a deeper depression.

So the key here is to use cannabis only in moderation and never get to the point where you rely on it for your happiness. This pretty much goes for anything whether it’s sex, relationships, food, or money. Many people use it like a Band-Aid and that only ends badly.

Be smart and follow the tips in this guide so it doesn’t become counterproductive to a healthy lifestyle. Think of cannabis as a tool or supplement versus a Band-Aid or magic pill, because it certainly can feel like the latter.

In a nutshell, you don’t want to overdue it and fall back into old poor lifestyle habits like eating unhealthy foods or wallowing in depression, and you definitely don’t want to introduce new unhealthy habits counterproductive to healthy living.

The key to avoid the pitfalls above is to simply use cannabis in moderation. With that said, let’s now move onto some tips to help you incorporate cannabis into your lifestyle…

Tips to Incorporate Cannabis Into Your Lifestyle

Here are some tips to help you incorporate cannabis into your lifestyle. I bring you this advice from two decades of cannabis consumption experience.

Tip #1: Do Your Research

Don’t just jump into cannabis without proper preparation. There are many resources on the Internet to learn all about this amazing plant. So do it! Learn all that you can. Knowledge is power. This will allow you to potentially avoid the many pitfalls that newbies often experience. You can also best take advantage of cannabis for your unique needs by knowing what strains to seek out and what consumption methods will work best for you.

Tip #2: Consult With Your Doctor

I know this is status quo advice, but it isn’t a bad idea. If you feel you want to skip this step, go right ahead. But I do recommend it, especially if you are on antidepressants and want to transition to cannabis to see if it works better for you. Also, if you have health problems, cannabis may exasperate them. For example, anxiety can increase tenfold if you smoke certain strains. This is why tip 1 is so important. By being informed you can avoid strains that will ruin your experience or exasperate an existing health issue.

Tip #3: Take Things Slow

The best advice I can give you when it comes to incorporating cannabis into your lifestyle, is to start slow. Slow and steady wins the race! Many jump in too fast and ultimately ruin their experience. For example, my sister didn’t do her research and took a 15MG edible which triggered temporary psychosis. Yes, that’s an actual side effect many experience. She could have avoided this simply by starting out at 5MG. Unfortunately, she now is afraid and said she would never use cannabis again. This is why it’s so important to not skip tip 1. Do your research and take things slow.

Tip #4: Use In Moderation

It’s easy to get carried away with cannabis. The feelings you can experience are quite amazing and many get sucked into the lifestyle and become full-blown stoners or addicts. Sure, marijuana addiction isn’t like opiate addiction or even alcohol addiction, but it can become addictive. Marijuana addiction is more of a mental addiction versus a physical, although, it does impact both to some degree. Moderation is key. For example, try treating yourself to some cannabis on the weekends versus making it an everyday thing. That’s my advice to you and I have over two decades of experience. This is great too because you won’t build up so much tolerance, which makes the weekly experience quite pleasing and not to mention you’ll save quite a bit of money.

Tip #5: Don’t Freak Out

One final tip that I think is important to cover is to let you know that no matter what happens, don’t freak out. Cannabis is a very versatile plant and how powerful the experience is, depends on how much and how you consume it. Just about everyone at some point consumes too much and paranoia and anxiety hits them hard. The experience or “high” from cannabis is something you can always control to some degree. Just breathe and relax into the experience. Remember this, nobody has ever died from cannabis consumption. I repeat, nobody has ever died from cannabis consumption. Even if you experience the unfortunate side effect of temporary psychosis and the fear of death, just constantly remind yourself of this fact and it will ease the anxiety. Find yourself a nice comfy bed or sofa and just focus on your breath and enjoy the ride. You will come out on the other end with some new found respect for this amazing plant. Heck, you may even just fall asleep. There is nothing to fear but fear itself.

Ways to Consume Cannabis to Incorporate it Into Your Lifestyle

There are many ways and forms as to which you can consume cannabis for a significant result. Gone are the days when smoking marijuana was the only option available.

Knowing which concern needs the most attention from the cannabis will help you determine which medium will work best for you.

Also, you get a chance to choose within a wide range of cannabis-infused products designed intricately to help serve your every need.

Types of Marijuana Products Available

There is a whole spectrum of marijuana products available. Here are some popular ones:

• Hemp Oil
• Concentrates and Tinctures
• CBD skin care Products
• Weed Edibles
• Cannabis Beverages
• Marijuana Capsules

But check out this awesome guide from the experts at Leafly to learn more – https://www.leafly.com/news/cannabis-101/the-complete-list-of-cannabis-delivery-methods

Conclusion

Many people use cannabis to aid their lifestyle. If you use cannabis in moderation, it can be a wonderful enhancer for everyday life.

If you are looking to go all-natural for your health, you can even start growing your own weed. Many states and countries have legalized the production of cannabis for personal use.

All you need to do is abide by the norms of the respective state and country and enjoy fresh and local weed produce. The homegrown marijuana will be filled with all the good nutrients and help your body function better.

But the ultimate takeaway here is that cannabis like anything in life must not become your primary motivator. Many get carried away and cannabis ultimately becomes counterproductive to healthy living.

However, if you use it wisely and as a supplement to other things such as counseling or meditation, it can be a great addition to your life.

Do you currently use cannabis? What was your motivation to start? How does it help or not help your lifestyle? Let me know in the comments below…

About Theresa Duncan

Originally from Detroit, MI, Theresa has been offering health and fitness advice for the last 30 years while working as an engineer. She decided to turn her passion into a profession, and finds nothing more satisfying than helping others reach their health and fitness goals.