mixing Cannabis and legal herbs

When I was younger I loved roaming around our garden, and when I got older, I discovered both GNC and Vitamin Shoppe….places I had a difficult time easily leaving!

Every day feels different.  Some days you’re tired, other days you’re sore, others you feel down, other days you feel amazing.  I realized early on when I was ~ 9-10 years old after I drank an entire can of “JOLT” soda for the first time (“pop” for those of us from western NY), that what you put into your body can actually affect the way you feel and operate later on in the day.  Before then, food to me was just something that you consumed so you weren’t hungry any longer and it allowed you in a very basic sense to “Survive.” I should also note that the feeling of my first JOLT drink was AMAZING at first, but then quickly turned sour once the caffeine levels took a nose-dive later on. 

After drinking JOLT, I realized that what you ingest affects how you feel and realized that plants assist with those changes.  From there, my interest in plant synergy with the human body’s natural hardware systems took off and I was hooked.

Later I would find myself in deeper conversation with those that had interest in botany and understanding how certain vitamins, nutrients, etc, affected how we as humans operate on a day-to-day basis.  GNC and Vitamin Shoppe were places that I couldn’t easily pull myself out of, and researching these different ways to shift your mind and body became easier once the internet became a common tool for conducting research.  Being able to stay alert on command and not seemingly at the mercy of the amount of hours slept the night before with little/no crash later was intriguing to me (even though I do believe that everyone should get plenty of sleep when possible!).  Being able to sleep on command if needed without feeling grogginess the next day was intriguing.  Being able to stay calm and collected during tense moments of my day with seemingly no side effects later on was intriguing as well.

From there, my interest in understanding how our natural external world can interact with our internal one grew further into a passion of mine, one that I shared very with very few friends of my own when I was younger.  

But before utilizing cannabis, this is where I was able to experience several other herbal supplements and their effects on an individual basis.  It allowed me to get a better understanding as to how each of them performed on their own, and to be honest, the experience would have been subpar at that time since I could have been sourcing from better places for higher quality ingredients, however I would always search and purchase the highest quality that I could find of the herb.  

Valerian Root, damiana, Passionflower, Gotu Kola, Ginko Biloba, Blue Lotus, Kava Kava, and so many more were just a few that I can name, but many are medically effective and even recreationally enjoyable when consumed on their own.

However, once I discovered cannabis, this dance between the “legal” herbs and my “illegal” cannabis use had begun!  At first, I would try cannabis exclusively to also understand those effects, but eventually started to add different tea mixes, wild flowers, etc, into my cannabis to create specific mixes that catered to what I was looking for (i.e.- I wouldn’t typically use a green tea mix and cannabis at night, but in the morning is something I use often!).  

I find that the high when mixing herbal supplements into my cannabis is extends whatever high I’m experiencing and is always enjoyable.  When mixing cannabis with other herbs such as damiana and blue lotus, I will always get a blast of instant “chillness” that is often more potent/effective than just cannabis alone.  I generally feel lighter throughout the day, the high feels “clean”…not like a narcotic-high at all, and the “come-down” is so light that it feels non-existent (unlike alcohol the next day, or other “hard” drugs).  

In my opinion, if you are fortunate to live in an area where you can find safe natural edible/vapable plants at your disposal, this would be ideal (use a field guide so you don’t pick anything that is poisonous!)!

If not, there are a TON of herbal kits that you can order online to vape with just a simple Google search, and unlike cannabis, are incredibly cheap to purchase.  

So why not give it a try? Let me know if you do! Stay safe and have fun!

Being a Cannasseur (legally!) Without Breaking the Bank!

This certainly isn’t easy to do nowadays, but I’d given it a shot recently and it hasn’t gone that poorly in my opinion! 

This article is going to be all about how to be most efficient with your cannabis use…or…how to use less, but get more!

As alway with cannabis, I need to preface this with the “everybody is different” mantra, so we can get that part out of the way!

However, there are some commonalities for us all, and I’ve described them below.  

THC tends to be pricier than CBD, and that is mainly due to access.  With the passing of the 2018 farm bill, hemp products, which are basically EVERYTHING except for THC, are almost identical in nature besides this one piece (which YES, makes a HUUUUGE difference to your effects as well!).  Otherwise, you can use CBD products the same way that you can use THC products as far as their functionality is concerned (again, the EFFECTS you will feel will certainly be different).  

This actually works out well, since in my humble opinion even though THC is more fun, my life didn’t start to change for the better with cannabis until I started heavily dipping into the hemp CBD cultivars.  This is where I found the most relief both physically and mentally.  Before CBD, I was ONLY using THC, which was great recreationally and sometimes for pain, but otherwise was left for mostly nighttime usage without having the anchoring effects of CBD available.  Once hemp walked into my life, everything changed!

For starters, CBD tends to extend ONLY THE GOOD effects of THC…so not only do you get MORE out of your THC, but those effects that you’re feeling are more pleasant as well.  

Also, for myself anyways, using hemp alone with no THC is effective for daily maintenance, but you miss a little of that “oomph” and power you get out of the THC!  It’s really the two coming together that creates the magic that us cannasseurs all love so much!  

So to extend your usage and use less of your products and thus get the best of both worlds…trying using both!  Take a 1:1 ratio if available by mixing some hemp flower that you can buy off of the internet with your THC flower…or add a CBD tablet with your THC tablet next time as well!  There are a bunch of options, but the main point being that they will both synergistically work together to elongate the effects of both as well, which is PLUS for your wallet!

After considering how much CBD/THC to utilize, next to consider is HOW will you consume your cannabis?  Will you vape flower? Concentrates?  Edibles? A little combo of everything? This will also determine how quickly you will work through your stash.

For starters, I like to sustain my elevation with some kind of dosed edible or gummy.  These are easy to take, and you know exactly how much you’re getting.  This is a great way to add a baseline of cannabinoids to your daily use.  Next, I also like the fast-acting options of vaporizing either flower or oil. 

Delta-9 vapes at the dispensary are NOT cheap, but the terpenes often are important to get my day going in the right direction in the way I want (or help SHIFT my day/mindset if desired!), so I often will do this with a delta-8 vaporizer utilizing the desired strain since delta-8 strains are more attainable/affordable.  This gives me the Jack Herer Terpenes with a light kick due to the less psychoactive delta-8 THC, and is actually a nice and smooth way to get the day going.  When the terpenes of this strain combine the the delta-9 THC edible that I just took (often also with a CBD gummy to create a 1:1 ratio), this gives me a delta-9 level kick via edibles, but with Jack Herer Terpenes through the delta-8 vape…which I guess is kind of like vaping Jack Herer delta-9 in the end (kind of 🤷‍♂️)!!

This is MUCH cheaper than utilizing delta-9 vapes.  Don’t get me wrong…a delta-9 vape is fantastic and is best kept for myself on the weekends.  But adding these two saves some money and also gives you a very nice functional high that can be varied easily with several delta-8 strains available on the market.  

For flower, this is a similar concept, except you can have even MORE customization which can lead to even more savings when it comes to not blowing through your stash! Utilizing hemp flower can help vary and stretch your high (which can be delta-8 sprayed as well for maximum synergy!).  Hemp flower is SIGNIFICANTLY cheaper than THC flower, so instead of spending the 100 dollars next time on 7 grams of a 1:1 strain at the dispensary, consider buying a smaller amount of a hybrid THC flower (1 or 3.5 grams), and mix that with a larger portion of your hemp flower to make your own 1:1 strain.  Combining your flower in this way makes it easier to create ratios…whether it’s a 1:1 ratio, or a high-CBD 20:1 ratio…or anything in-between!  You can even go the other way and add a little CBD to your THC…up to you! Given that hemp flower is almost always 50-70% cheaper than THC flower, this is a great way to get ALL of your cannabinoids in one sitting for a fraction of the cost of utilizing a high-THC Strain.  

Sometimes I like to change that up, however, and buy an indica and sativa strain for my hemp, and combining that with a hybrid high-THC flower.  This way I can have something for nighttime AND daytime if I choose…the combinations are endless!

Lastly, you tend to take multiple hits from a vaporizer bowl, not just one, so it seems that the flower lasts a bit longer as well since I normally will run through the session twice with the same flower buds inside (after this, the taste becomes charred/popcorn like, and is no longer worth vaping).  With a CO2 cartridge vaporizer, it’s so easy and convenient to keep hitting your vape, so you have to be careful to not go too hard on those to save your money.  

Sooooo THAT’S IT! Allllll the different ways to utilize cannabis in the cheapest way possible from what I can see so far.  For terpenes and easy access to various strains, delta-8 carts are great to add with your favorite gummy/capsules.  For a more nuanced and customized high, you can’t beat flower, and combining your THC flower with hemp flower is the best way to increase your variations while stretching your dollar, IMO!  

So head over to Industrial Hemp Farms or 10 Dollar Cart, grab your goodies, then head to the dispensary finish off your errands! Be safe, responsible, and ENJOY!!

Have Hiccups Or Other Muscle Spasms? Try Cannabis!

Weird to admit, but I’ve been wanting to write about this for a long time! For years growing up, I tried to find ways to get rid of the hiccups…whether it was drinking water upside down at the sink (super awkward looking!), holding my breath repeatedly for as many times as I could, having someone scare me, which usually meant I was expecting it so was never scared, etc.

It wasn’t until later in life when I would realize that yes, AGAIN….cannabis would score another win here!  I found that cannabis was incredibly effective with muscle spasms, but for myself, mainly high-CBD vaporized or tincture-based solutions were most effective when dealing with hiccups.  

This is all due to the fact that cannabis has, in general, been highly linked to assist with pain, inflammation, muscle spasms, etc.  

So one day during a very annoying and persistent hiccup-fit, I decided to give cannabis a try due to it’s calming properties dealing with muscle spasms…and as with just about everything else I’ve tried with cannabis so far, I’m thankful I did!

For myself as mentioned already, high-THC cannabis doesn’t appear to usually assist with my muscle spasms, or at least I haven’t been able to find a high-THC strain so far that can. 

Balanced or high-CBD strains however have shown to be VERY effective for my hiccup-fits! Specifically, I think hemp products are too low of THC, and products that have more THC than a 1:1 ratio may be too high in THC to be effective, but I found that a high-CBD ratio between 2:1 and 20:1 has been incredibly effective for these moments, and I’ve leaned on those ratios ever since I realized the effectiveness of them.  

Tinctures that are alcohol-based tend to shoot faster into the bloodstream when holding the liquid under your tongue, so I tend to prefer this mode opposed to an oil-based method that tends to hit a little bit slower.  However, some may say that the alcohol “burns” a bit, which the oil-based tincture is very “smooth” and you almost don’t feel (it literally just tastes like coconut oil).  

Other than that, if I have a bad case of the hiccups and don’t have one of these options handy, I do get a bit annoyed since drinking an entire glass of water upside-down (option #2!) sometimes isn’t as effective, and when that happens, I need to drink more water! That means more bathroom breaks as well, which is just another inconvenience for my day.😳😳😳

Not the worst thing in the world to deal with, but if any of you find that you get a case of the hiccups or other types of spasms easily, don’t rule out a high-CBD cannabis option as a possible effective solution!

Let me know what you think! Random topic for sure, but helpful! Otherwise, thanks for reading, reach out with any questions at thecannabisc@gmail.com, and looking forward to another episode and blog writing soon!

Vaping Cannabis: Flower vs. Oils!

Back in the day, we didn’t even have this as an option obviously.  But now we do, which is great, since it gives us a CHOICE between how we’d like consume our cannabis given the convenience level that we need.

Recently I’ve begun to debate this in my head as well.  Forever, my gut instinct/popular culture has told me that vaping the full flower is obviously the absolute best way to inhale your cannabis.  It’s whole, it’s terpy, it’s ritualistic almost as well (maybe not as much as a joint, obviously!).  Vaping flower when you have the correct tool is fantastic (I use the Crafty+ from Storz and Bickel).  In the beginning, I would knock the use of oils as inferior to vaping flower….but I eventually realized that I wasn’t looking at the whole picture.

Vaping flower as mentioned above, provides a wonderful holistic experience.  You open the jar and first have a blast of terpenes flying into your olfactory senses which immediately lights you up and gets you excited to get the next step of the process going!  You then perfectly grind the flower and load it into your device in any way you see fit and in whatever perfect amount that makes sense for you!  You let it heat up to the chosen temperature, begin to smell a bit of the terpenes seeping out of the air piece and BOOM! You begin your session!  This can take all-in ~5-15 minutes depending on your device and session length, but it’s not simply a 15 second pause as utilizing your 510 thread cartridge would be.

….And so this is where the debate begins! Some may say that the convenience of utilizing an oil cartridge is quicker and just as effective, and that may be true!  The other day in a rush wanting to leave the house, I wanted a CBD hit before I walked out to blunt the inflammation I was feeling from my run earlier (pun kinda intended).  I found myself almost annoyed at thinking of loading another bowl in my vaporizer due to the estimated time it would take, only to remember that I have my cartridges as well!  I found the correct strain for the moment, screwed it into my battery, hit it, and went about my day…all in 15 seconds!  

So…unfortunately for those that hate ties and those games where everyone receives a trophy, this is (unfortunately for you!) where come to our conclusion in the dreaded “it depends” category, but it’s also true!

For example, if you’re always on the run, heading out the door in-and-out of appointments, most likely utilizing your flower vape will be a messier, more time-consuming, and slightly smellier experience (although the smell is almost trivial with vaping flower, it’s still not something that I would want to consider for in-person meetings during the work-week if that’s your situation).  This is when your 510 thread battery carts work wonders to help medicate during the day.

However if you’re home more often with more time on your hands as well, utilizing your flower vape can be an amazing way to uplift your day and really obtain all of the benefits of the cannabinoids and terpenes from the full-plant.  

Recently, this was my revelation as well.  I’ve gone back and forth over the years between my preferences, times when I’ve been hustling in NYC with 5 meetings per day, and then with remote work during the pandemic and almost rarely leaving the house.  My flower consumption increased dramatically during the pandemic, needless to say! 

If I could somehow combine the convenience of my 510 carts with the tasty and holistic experience of vaping flower, then we would be in a fantastic spot!  And who knows…the way things have been rolling recently in the cannabis world, this is certainly an opportunity and maybe we’re already there and I just don’t know about it (please let me know if that’s the case!).   

Do you have a preference? Does it change like mine has?  Let me know!  Enjoy! 🙂

~Ryan

Thecannabisc@gmail.com

Cannabis vs Alcohol: Why Beer Drinkers Should Light Up With Cannabis As Well!

This is a topic that you may have heard on our show, and one that is near and dear to myself as well.  And I will start by saying this up-front now and explain below: Anyone who is ok with drinking a beer, should also be ok with utilizing cannabis.  You don’t need to smoke it and you can use other forms if you’d like, but unless cannabis is still illegal in your area, you should 100% add it to your recreational activities as well.

This is something I’m more passionate about now than I was years ago, and mainly because I now realize how cannabis would have helped me avoid most or all of the troubles that alcohol would bring my way in my early drinking days.  

To start, the reason why many of us drink is not really due to the great taste of alcohol, but because it makes use feel better…at least for the given length of time that it’s in our system.  I would say that for most people, they may not realize that they’re using alcohol for mental/emotional issues.  Personally, I did understand that I was, I just didn’t care at the time since it appeared to be what was most effective at numbing my anxiety…and the fact that everyone else was doing it too!  When you drink it enough, alcohol starts to taste better, and when you add in company social hours after work, birthday parties and celebratory events that drive you to stock up on it to keep you and your guests happy throughout the event…you eventually just don’t really notice how much drinking may be impacting a big part of your productivity.  

Again, this didn’t bother me since alcohol appeared to be very effective for both making me happy, not caring about my worries for the night, and also is available on every corner in NYC at almost any hour of the day, further normalizing the practice. For the most part, alcohol seemed to keep me social and active, allowed me to build networking opportunities with my colleagues by creating fantastic happy hour memories, etc.  It was everything that I actually expected out of a life from a young professional, so I naturally bought into the idea and jumped hook, line, and sinker into indulging as well.  

For the quick and legal euphoric swings that alcohol can bring, it can also be an incredible hamper to your well-being and overall productivity.  Alcohol causes you to forget what you did, and not understand what you are doing while you are doing it.  It can decrease your stress and anxiety all while you may be in the middle of something that can be seriously ruining your life.  You see people all of the time drink one-too-many and lose their careers, family, etc.  You lose control of your actions, and you no longer are living a conscious moment when you’re drinking, and that’s the problem AND the point.  

We all want to be in social situations where we are feeling our best and on-top of our game …while keeping our sanity at the same time as well.  This is what I found cannabis can assist us with…but it several different ways.  

For myself, I found that cannabis, and more specifically high-CBD cannabis, has been the only option that has allowed me to continue drinking without going off the rails.  In the past I’ve tried prescription medications, and although they stopped me from binge-drinking, I felt horrible a few days later since my endorphins were depleted…so it wasn’t something that I wanted to continue utilzing as it didn’t feel right.  

I’ve found that since cannabis assists with balancing your system in all respects (mainly high CBD cannabis), that it has also done a nice job with my cravings as well.  High-CBD is not psychoactive, but will definitely assist with general mental/physical relaxation, and from my experience, is more effective at doing that than alcohol is.  When you’re not stressed or anxious, you think clearer and you simply are content and don’t need anything more, including another drink (unless it’s a flavored water!!)….and that’s just how it works!  By taking a high-CBD tablet before indulging in your next happy hour (when it happens again!), you may not only find that your drinking will slow down as I did, but that since you are relieving even more anxiety now, your overall drinking experience is more enjoyable as well.

I typically now will always utilize high-CBD before drinking for this reason.  Since doing that…I’ve never once have had an issue with over-indulging with alcohol, and my next day is MUCH better as well!   I.e.- I no longer “blackout” when I drink….YAY!!! 

Furthermore…you have more nighttime options with cannabis that you don’t have with alcohol…why? TERPENES!!!!  If I want to go the club and be amazingly peppy and crushing the dance party…BOOM!!! I’m going with a high-energy THC sativa for the night (but I’m still adding my CBD base via tablet as well!).  If I’m going to a bar to chill with friends, I’m still taking the hybrid sativa-dominant high-THC vape with me to sustain lively conversation throughout the night, but still with a bit of indica-chillness, just good energy. If I’m heading to dinner, I want to taste my food more and have a bit more of an appetite, so a hybrid with both sativa and indica effects can do the trick with that.  And if I’m at home and just want to “Netflix and chill”….an indica-leaning hybrid is the way to go for me.  

For the most part when operating this way, I only drink at most ~2-3 drinks in a 4-6 hour timeframe…when I used to drink in the past, it would be somewhere in the double-digits in the same timeframe.  By utilizing cannabis, I’ve saved a ton of money and have way better nights out that I can actually remember…along with even better mornings!  

So as I’ve said in the beginning…if you’re the type of person who lives in a cannabis-friendly state and you’re on the fence with trying cannabis itself, but will totally sit down with your buddies and have a beer at nights/weekends…it’s time to elevate your life and grab some cannabis as well…and when YOUR life improves because of it, those positive benefits have a trickle-effect that will travel farther than your social circle…and when EVERYONE who drinks in legal cannabis states starts adding a little high-CBD before their nights out….I think eventually we’ll have a better place to live for everyone!  So that’s the point!  Stop being a bottleneck in making the world a better place, and pick up some cannabis the next time you hit the bar scene!!! ☺️😎☺️😎

CBD or THC…or both!?

“CBD is the ‘good’ cannabinoid, and THC the ‘bad.’”  Have you heard this before? Of course!  I used to believe it as well, but not anymore. There’s room at the work-party for both, and probably good reason for both as well :)

I will either depending on what is going on physically, the general mood I’m in related to where I need to go.  A few blogs back I wrote about my morning routine and how cannabis plays a part there as well for productivity.  

To be productive, you have to feel good, or rather, you certainly can’t feel bad.  This is the first step of being productive typically.  Do you have a headache?  Body-aches?  Upset stomach?  Wonky-mood?  Lack of sleep?  All of these and more can decrease your overall productivity.  In the past I may take some asprin or that chalky pink stuff that you can drink (I sometimes hated pepto, sometimes loved it depending on the time I guess…weird!).  Now if I have aches and pains, I don’t even think about the cabinet anymore, but the stash-box instead.  And why not?  It’s more natural and WAAAAAAY more fun as well!  So in order for us to be productive, we NEED to feel good. 

With this, given that making you feel good is exactly what cannabis does in a natural state, it can be a perfect a perfect solution for whether you have or acute or chronic issues with focus and productivity. 

THC for me nowadays is always fun…but that doesn’t necessarily mean that it; always offers the most relief depending on the situation. 

In the mornings, I’m typically slightly stiff, a bit sore, a tad groggy, basically in that general “waking up” state.  Often in the morning is when I will have stomach issues if I do, but vaping a bowl of good high-CBD flower always puts me at ease first thing.  I use my Crafty+ vaporizer and fill each capsule with hemp flower mixed with some THC flower (both Sativas, and I typically try to find the same strains as well).  After this session, my body feels good, and this is when I will typically take an extra hit from a high-THC sativa vape pen (whether it’s delta-8 or delta-9, and usually the Jack Herer strain if possible).  

Without the CBD, and only using the THC, I still find myself with a bit of that body-discomfort…adding both to my morning regimen increases the synergistic effects and amplifies the good vibes, and I’m ready for my first real productive activity…my workout!  From here, I press all the way down on the gas and am working with only a high-THC sativa strain at this point.  These terpenes put me in an optimal state of focused-awareness and motivation.  I don’t tend to get tired as easily and am not bothered by hard workouts.  Sometimes people may think that this makes the workout “artificial” with enhancing effects, but all I really believe is happening at this time is that we are consciously tapping into a better part of ourself that is new and allows us to drive forward and work harder than we normally could.  I can do my HIIT workouts without my high-THC energizing sativas, but they always feel more productive with them, so that’s what I prefer and go with!

After I beat my body down a bit, stretching and yoga is a great way to smooth things out afterwards.  Additionally, I will vape a bit more CBD/THC Hybrid (a 1:1 hybrid is great here!).  This starts directing my body more quickly and efficiently to come down to a resting state.  My meditations take place in this space as well.  Here, instead of struggling to hold a pose or stretch, I enjoy and relish in that moment instead all the way through to the end of my session.

Breakfast/socializing- I don’t want to be a focused work-a-holic here, but I want to be focused on having a productively-relaxing breakfast with my family.  The CBD from before has calmed me down, cheered me up a bit, and the hybrid has put me in a less “type-A” state than the Jack Herer does (usually anything with more of the terpene “limonene”), so I am happier and more social during this period.  Here I have a productive morning bonding-time with my family where I am present and happy…everything I want for that moment!

Workday- Productivity for the workday while using THC has really become an art…so many people do it wrong and can mess up their careers…don’t be that person!  To not be that person, that will take some CBD 😂

That will also take a focusing/calming sativa-leaning blend.  Sometimes Indicas work as well due to the terpene make-up, and some people are just more productive on Indicas…who knows!  For the majority and rest of us who can’t drink coffee before bed but only in the morning/work-day, sativas tend to be great options for these folks as well during that time.  By making sure you aren’t burning out by using too-much THC, adding CBD throughout your day in vape form, or taking a tablet in the morning can be helpful for this.  If I am only utilizing THC for focus and productivity, I will eventually feel burned out and fuzzy…which is the opposite of what I’m looking for!  You need a bit of both here, and this is that part that is totally up to your preference and what your body likes/dislikes.  

After work, I want to play with the kids and have fun.  This requires me coming off my sativas that turn me into the Incredible hulk during the workday (which is a real strain as well, btw!), and turn to something that will soften me up a bit.  Here, I’m also a bit stiff from working all day in my chair, a little tense (even though I do occasional stretch breaks), so CBD is great to smooth a lot of this out.  However, CBD sometimes can blunt the effects of the THC and “dull” you a bit.  This is fine in some scenarios (very intense work situations), but not so much if I’m trying to have a dance party and turn up with my kids before bath time. Here, having a sativa-leaning hybrid, high THC, is perfect.  I am awake but not too serious, and a lot of fun.  Later for early evening I can shift to something more relaxing like an indica-leaning hybrid, high-THC….something to keep my mind going but starts to relax the body and get ready for evening.  And at night, I love either an indica-dominant 1:1 blend, or a high-THC sativa.  Both make for great, productive nighttime activities and A VERY productive and sound sleep!

THC is your gas, while CBD is the oil in your car…and terpenes/flavinoids/other cannabinoids are your roadmap and GPS.  Based on how you feel, they can ALL be a part of your life.  I don’t always follow the above as a daily script, but really just depending on how I feel and where I want to direct my body, feelings, actions, etc, if at all for that moment.  This is the beauty that I love about cannabis…it can (if you want), help you be as conscious and productive in your life as you want, at any moment of your day and at any part of your life.  

My Morning Routine…The Best Part of My Day!

I’ve always been a night owl and have never been able to get up early in the morning, and still never naturally gravitate towards that outcome if I don’t set the right guardrails in place from keeping myself from over-sleeping.  The problem with this natural tendency is that if you don’t have the right will-power…you can very easily find yourself sleeping in until 10…11….or even until the AFTERNOON!!! This was too uncommon for me back in the day, but now?  Even though my body would LOVE it…my mind would HATE it if I slept in now to any of those hours (and I can’t remember the last time I have!).  Eventually though, it just came to a point where it was just inconvenient and depressing to be missing that much of the day...I also felt as though I didn’t really have control of my mornings…and wanted to change that.

So I did!  I used to wake up “early”…7-7:30 to get up and go jogging.  Maybe I would “run a mile” and then come back, do some shoddy pushups/sit-ups, then feel good about the fact that I actually put on some workout clothes to sweat in and called it a day. I never really felt that great after my workouts, and if I did make it to the gym, I would spend so much time socializing and “prepping” my lifts…it just was a very unproductive way to try and feel productive, I suppose!

I had no “why” as to why I actually wanted to workout…so it was easy not too.  That’s a concept that’s no different regardless of what you’re referencing, if you don’t have a genuine “why” as to why you’re doing something, you won’t follow-through.  If you’re never really willing to find your “why”…none of what I’m writing after this really matters.  In the end, I didn’t really care about getting up early, or having a strong workout…I much more preferred to “enjoy” my morning…that meant being lazy out of bed, NEVER working out on the weekends since those were “my days off.”….really anything I could do to NOT be productive, again, I would gravitate to…and again, that is because I felt no need at the time to actually DO something productive…so I didn’t.

Now that we have that idea drilled into our head, what changed?  You can probably imagine…MY “WHY” CHANGED!!!  It didn’t really change at first the way you think it probably did.  

I didn’t all-of-the-sudden have this huge surge of wanting to get up early and take over the world.  Nope…originally, I just wanted to have a six-pack again and be in shape and knew that I needed better direction/discipline, so started working out at a CrossFit gym down the street.  At this point, my “why” was strictly for the activity of camaraderie and having something productive and new in my life.  It gave me new purpose to get up every day and brag about how I already ran 5 miles, pumped out 100 pull-ups, 200 pushups, 300 sit-ups and 400 air-squats before most New Yorkers were getting out of their beds in the morning…I loved that feeling of being COMPLETELY exhausted at the end of my workout…but knowing that the hardest part of my day was over…nothing would get harder than what I just did…because every other part of my life was just routine and easy at that point.  I learned how to stretch and that meditation and mind-support really was something that you needed to do in order to always keep progressing in life…so a true mind-body development began to happen during this period at CrossFit.  

Even though it was mainly for the social aspects initially, stumbling across my CrossFit gym was possibly one of the best things that ever happened to me.  I found a new kind of cannabis crowd there (healthy-“stoners”!!), and I realized that even though it hurt every day…after ~3-4 years…I really did enjoy getting up and taking on the world before the sun-rose.  In the winter when I would walk into a 40-50 degree gym with no heat (that means it was ~20 degrees outside?), it was an even BETTER feeling when we were done with our WODs.  This social support to keep my morning routine firing on all cylinders would eventually come to an end.  Personally, my family started to grow and we needed to move, and there was no way that I could take a 30 minute subway ride every morning to the earliest class to make it on-time later to work….I had to figure out a new routine ON MY OWN…this was the biggest challenge I had faced yet, but I felt equipped and ready to figure it out…eventually, just not in the immediate aftermath once I left CrossFit!  

No longer having a structured morning routine, within about 1.5 years later I found my health deteriorating along with my financials, and I needed a needed to change things around quickly.  First however, I find it notable that once my WHY departed (social interactions at CrossFit), I couldn’t really figure out how to get fired up enough to effectively do the same on my own.  Eventually after my health deteriorated enough and my work performance took a dip (which also =$$$ lost), I was slapped in the face with NEEDING to turn things around…WANTING to live better every day…so that became my very easy “why”, and the rest was HISTORY!  

I describe the next part of the story with better commentary on episode #85 in more detail if you’re interested :)

NIGHT BEFORE:

Your morning starts the night before.  Prep everything that you need in order to ensure that you aren’t fumbling around with ANYTHING in the morning except for what you want to do (get motivated/workout/meditate).  Get the dishes done, laundry, put clothes out that you want to wear, clean the space that you’ll be using so you don’t have to do it the morning of, etc.  You’ll walk into your morning MUCH more clear-headed if you aren’t worrying about chores, etc. 

FIRST THING IN THE A.M.- WATER!- I try to wake up at least one-hour before everyone else….2 hours is best though!

-I over-hydrate first thing in the AM…this gets your brain going more than anything IMO.  I have a huge beer mug that I only use for this morning purpose nowadays (10 years ago it had it’s more-traditional purpose!).  It’s about ~4 full cups of water first thing in the morning.  I also add my creatine (basic powder) and my protein powder as well (I use Bulletproof).  

MOTIVATION-INFORMATION

-From here, I turn on my morning podcast The Daily Boost (about 7 minutes) and crush the entire mug of water in ~3-4 minutes. This actually use to make me sick (gross!), but now I’m used to it for the most part. Just after I finish hydrating, I will often fire up my Crafy+ vaporizer, grab my favorite High-CBD sativa strain (recently has been a sour diesel CBD strain, mixed with actual high-THC sour diesel), and hang out and under the kitchen vent while listening to my morning motivation.  

CAFFEINE

-From here, I’ll fill a glass with ice and add my favorite cold brew, and get started with choosing my workouts if I didn’t do it the night before (I used to try and schedule workouts the night before, but sometimes morning-me is entirely different than nighttime-me…so I usually just wait to see what I’m feeling the morning of.  I.e.- sometimes the night before I’ll pick a workout that is light, but once the morning comes, I want something more intense, or vice-versa.  

SWEAT

-All parts of my morning routine are critical, but if I don’t sweat a little first thing in the morning, my day ends up being entirely different...and not always for the better. This part is important as it gets my heart pumping and brain-gears going.  HIIT workouts are great, as one of my favorite things to do in the morning is really challenge myself (especially when I’m feeling slumber-y and lazy!). If I challenge myself and am successful first thing, I find that I’m better able to push through my other non-workout related issues throughout the day.  It’s a great way to set the tone for my day.  To further get fired-up for this part of my workout, I will often grab a high-energizing sativa to supplement (I love the Jack Herer strain for this…energy and focus!).  I am already hydrated from earlier, so now I am able to sip occasionally on my cold-brew both for energy and refreshment throughout my workout. 

STRETCH

-Recovery, whether yoga, stretching, etc, is now something I will make sure I do more religiously than even working out every day…and that was never anything that I would ever consider 10 years ago!  Working on your recovery in itself will make you stronger simply by allowing you to workout harder the next time by being more mobile, less sore, etc.  I do this in the morning and often again every night, 7-days/week…I don’t know how I ever skipped it when I was younger, but I don’t now!  For cannabis use here, I will switch to a hybrid and add some CBD…both help with the inflammation, recovery, but now will start to shift me to a more “zen” mindset, great to get the most out of these types of recovery workouts.  

MEDITATE

-For at least 10 minutes in the morning (I try to get in 10 more minutes at least through mindful stretching/yoga, or through another sitting meditation).  This is where everything I’ve done in the past ~60 minutes come to fruition, I get to a complete sense of calm, and because I’m doing this after I just crushed myself with a HIIT/Yoga sessions, I’m often very balanced at this point, and my mind is more still opposed to if I were to start with a meditation first thing and start fighting all of those pesky thoughts flying in (“I should check my email” “What did Trump Tweet again?!” “Did my client say in the text they sent me again?”).  Everyone is different in this respect, I just find that my meditations are better after I first do some mind-clearing via working out/yoga…also never turning on the news or reading emails until I’m ready to later in the day helps with not adding any riff-raff to your thoughts first thing in the A.M.  If you want a good meditation, give yourself a chance and keep your mind clean from news/social media before you meditate.  

AFFIRMATION

-This is fairly new for me, but I love ending all of this with just a quick 2 minute affirmation…I usually am doing it in “mountain pose,” as I find that your posture allows you to elicit different emotions, and pulling emotion out of your morning routine is what makes it effective.  You are often doing this while in other parts of your workout as well, but I also like dedicating a short piece now to this.  

Giving yourself time in the morning will allow you to eventually to be grateful just for getting up and doing something good for yourself first thing.  Grateful energy is infectious, and often we find that when we’re filled with this type of energy, our days start in a much better place, and often end that way as well.  One good day leads to the next, and before you know it, you’re just much happier and content with your life overall.

My morning routine has been life-changing for me, and although cannabis plays a role, it’s only a small and supporting one.  THIS IS HOW CANNABIS WAS MEANT TO BE USED…work to be your best self, and allow cannabis to assist you with getting there if needed/desired.  

I hate getting up early in the morning, but look forward to my routine every day once I do, and yes, a revitalizing wake n’ bake is often part of that :) 

FIND YOUR ROUTINE AND UPGRADE YOUR LIFE!  Thanks for reading, and let me know if you have any questions as always!

My Delta-8 THC Experience Thus Far…

The great thing about delta-8 THC is that it’s 100% LEGAL on a federal level (state depending).  

The 2018 Farm bill seemed to open the floodgates when it came to figuring out how to maximize the proper extraction of desired cannabinoids within the hemp plant.  There were no rules federally, and everything technically was deemed illegal on a federal level, even hemp depending on your state.

This would lead to ridiculous situations, such as grandmothers getting arrested for carrying CBD oil in Texas. Considering how popular cannabis was becoming, arresting anyone who was carrying cannabis oil on them wasn’t sustainable or a good use of any public funds as we already know.

The 2018 Farm Bill states that any cannabis plant that contains under .3% delta-9 THC would be considered a federally legal substance, and can be sold within all 50 states.

This is where the cannabis world got creative. 

Delta-9 THC is the most common psychoactive component within the cannabis plant, but not the only one.  Terpenes, THCV, Delta-10, and of course now delta-8 can all contribute to that psychoactive shift you feel, but delta-8 THC has now become the closest cousin that we have to THC that can be sold nation-wide.  

Delta-8 THC is psychoactive, but just not as psychoactive as delta-9 THC.  Think of it as the middle-man between Hemp and Delta-9…which is really awesome for people that like CBD…but want a bit more of a kick…but not TOO much of a kick.  As a result, delta-8 THC can be great training-wheels for those that are looking to dip their toes into something a bit heavier than CBD.   

In my opinion, a great CBD high feels like I am 100% sober, but I am also 100% calm, cool, and confident.  There’s nothing bad about it (unless at that time I’d prefer to be at a party raging), and that’s often how I want to feel, and specifically why most of my products I’ll carry on me “to go” when I’m out-and-about are high-CBD products.  I will add THC if I am trying to relax a bit more, or if I want to zone-in on an activity…whether it’s exercise, sleep, reading, studying, watching a moving, playing with my kids, etc.  I don’t always do this, and at least half of my cannabis regimen is CBD-based.  However, when I am looking to shift into a different activity, THC provides the gas to drive me in the direction I’m looking to go, with CBD being the brakes if needed, dulling the intensity of the high, while the terpenes provide the road map.  

I often alternate between CBD and delta-9 THC to find just the right dose (will titrate lightly through vape-pens). Finding the perfect high (the way I like it at least!) requires a calibration back-and-forth until I get to my desired place. 

Delta-8 has given me the ability to not have to go back-and-forth trying to figure out the perfect cannabinoid balance between delta-9 and CBD.  Sometimes this is easy if I’ll be out-and-about and only want a clear-headed CBD-high, and if I’m home on Saturday night, maybe I’ll want the opposite!  

Most of the time, however, I want that middle-ground.  When I was younger, I loved feeling the extremes.  Being where I’m at in life now…the balanced-life is the way to go!  This is what delta-8 provides.  It 100% is psychoactive and you will feel the hit (I actually think the vapor is harsher than delta-9), but the chances of you staying in control and operating at your daily best are MUCH MUCH better with delta-8 use, while assisting with all of the ailments that you’re looking to cure (inflammation, pain, anxiety, insomnia, etc).  Don’t get me wrong, I love my delta-9 as well, but delta-8 use provides a bit more sustainability for those of us that have daily responsibilities/families that we need to tend to as well.  

The great thing about delta-8 is that it’s showing us a lot of what we will get (product-wise) with a nation-wide delta-9 rollout once that’s legal.  

Delta-8 THC bath-bombs, flower, creams, capsules, drinks, gummies vapes, distillate, etc. They are making everything delta-8 now, and the great thing is that you can buy nationwide and there are several great retailers to choose from.  

My favorite products are the gummies and vape carts.  For vape carts, which are my ultimate favorite, you can find the exact strains that you’d also get with delta-9, and the effects are similar but just a tad less intense (I love the buzz from my Jack Herer and King Louis XIII carts!).  For carts, you can also get them feeling-specific as well (I really enjoy the calm, focus, and energy vape carts).  The other thing I like with delta-8, is that once you hit a delta-9 pen again after only working on your delta-8 carts for a few days/weeks, your delta-9 high will be AWESOME afterwards…so it can also be a cool way to slow-down and lower tolerance and just leave your delta-9 for the weekends (cheaper too!!).  

For gummies, I have a high tolerance, but can easily take 50-75 mg of delta-8 THC gummies in one shot and still hang with my kids and with a clear-mind, which is something I’d only seldom reserve to do with delta-9 THC gummies (vacations maybe?).  I’m just much happier and goofier if I decide to do this with delta-8, so typically a few times/month at most is when I’d take this much delta-8 in gummy form…otherwise I stick to one 25mg gummy.  

If you’ve been loving CBD and are ready to try something a bit more on the weekend to start, give delta-8 a try!  It’s the stepping-stone to delta-9, is much cheaper, and has plenty of products available to keep you entertained, healthy, and happy!  I’ve attached a link here to my favorite delta-8/CBD website, and just type “hemp15” for the code for 15%!!  Lots of cool products, so enjoy and let me know if you have any issues thecannabisc@gmail.com.  

********* CLICK HERE FOR DELTA-8/CBD..ALL TESTED WITH COA’S- hemp15 for 15% off at checkout *******

Other Delta-8 Vendors to check out: 3chi, Koi Naturals, 10 Dollar Carts, Hempire Direct….enjoy!! :)

Get Over Your Cannabis Anxiety and Conquer Life!

Today we’ll talk about anxious cannabis users who ironically (maybe not?) have a hard time jumping into cannabis and giving it a chance to assist with their anxiety.  Strange idea, I know, but I can explain using the greatest example I know for this topic…ME!!! :)

Being raised in a strict household, our actions were not only closely scrutinized, but were influenced with false ideas surrounding drugs and cannabis in particular.  Cannabis was the most common “dangerous” drug that we could come across, so it just makes sense that that is the “drug” that I most often associated with illegal activities, so we all became very weary/nervous about it in general (my siblings and I).  At that point, I knew that cannabis could fry your brain, and that just by being AROUND people that were smoking it meant that I could go to prison also.  In all fairness, this was just sound parenting on my parents part that was influenced by the current federal laws…nothing that I can blame them for and would certainly implement with my own kids assuming that that was still the case in America today (Yay!!!…because it’s NOT….kind of….).

Cannabis wasn’t prevalent in my early life, but later in high school/college it became more available, and whenever I smelled it in my vicinity, I made sure to RUNNNNN (since I was one of the “good” kids!)!!!

…But here’s the weird thing…I didn’t have much intrigue with cocaine, Molly, X (all kind of the same thing I guess?), never with any of the “party drugs.”  I could party all night as it was, and I needed no assistance with that (10 gin and tonics would typically help!).  I eventually realized, however, that I had a very strange fascination with cannabis.  I saw that yes, for some people it made them look dopey and dumb, and I can’t stop thinking of some white stoner-kid with long dreads, walking around sporting a Mexican poncho and reeking of crappy weed…that’s not obviously what impressed me…but it was allll the other guys!  The former star athlete at school that didn’t play football anymore, but was in great shape and lit up routinely after classes and aced all bio tests. Another friend that although “was high” frequently and even during class, got straight A’s with almost no effort, was active, in good shape, social, and well liked.  There were other similar celebrity stories that you can easily find online as well…THIS is what impressed me and what ultimately drew my interest in cannabis…since cannabis seemed to POSITIVELY impact all of these people.  

But at the time, I knew cannabis was WRONG….right?  I started to struggle with this idea, which naturally drew me to wanting to experiment more.  I knew that it was illegal…but in my circles fortunately, we were not routinely probed for illegal activity, so I felt comfortable knowing that if my friends were doing it routinely with no issues, I should have no issue to believe that I would either if I tried it…so that part was settled!  I didn’t care about getting caught and going to jail since fortunately for me that was not a concern (unfortunately NOT the case for everyone).

But my health!?  Now there’s the risk!  All of those commercials about how cannabis would destroy your brain/body got me eventually…ugh…remember this one?  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Rh8GbPnoqCI

PAINFUL!!!! (And also now kind of hilarious).  But this is what got me…should I really risk my health?  It is a “risk,” isn’t it?  All these doctors who are unsure of it…always influencing away from it typically due to “lack of research” which is fine…but I’m seeing no issues with my friends now, and cannot find a single online factual story of someone dying directly from cannabis, so why should I be concerned really?  

So this was the seesaw that I kept teetering on.  I had growing external anxieties at this time as well.  It was around 2008, and I was laid off and unemployed/underemployed for years.  I became grossly overweight, was managing a serious long-distance relationship, and drank much more than anyone ever needed to (oh 20’s!!!!).  Anxieties in all directions of my life were popping up all around me, and when I decided to tackle my health (crossfit) is when I finally and ironically bumped into a consistent source of black market cannabis supply, possibly one of the best things that has happened to me.  Of course, that curiosity was raised before-hand while watching all of my successful pothead friends grow-up and use cannabis the RIGHT way.  So here…I took the plunge!

I had no idea what I was doing, but I was determined to start figuring it out now that I had a consistent source.  I was consistently practicing meditation also at this time and becoming much more mindful of my actions, so felt ready to start practicing a mindful cannabis practice as well.  At this point, I felt ready to “push through the pain,” or so I thought, of pushing past the paranoia that I was certain came with cannabis, and get to the other side of that cannabis-filled utopia where all of my cannabis-friends were living!! For a few years, I certainly dabbled in the “THC-only” world…trying to figure out which strains made me happy, goofy, focused, sleepy, etc.  How many puffs get me high?  How many until I get paranoid?  Etc.  

To make a long story short, during this period of time only one of my friends (not me, yay!!!), ended up going to the emergency room for a cannabis-induced panic attack that ended with the doctors giving her sandwiches and Dasani water bottles in the waiting room, along with a few funny voicemails from her while she was there chillen 😂😂😂.  Once I found NYS’s Medical Marijuana Program, implementing CBD into my regimen was a game-changer, and for all the reasons mentioned in future/past posts! :)

But for now, this jump…this leap of faith of just TRUSTING my gut…going against doctors orders, government orders, KNOWING that there’s SOMETHING on the other side that is better (along with an obsessive amount of research) is the type of faith that has lead me to new, better, and unknown experiences afterwards throughout my life.  This leap of faith into the unknown was the same jump that I also took afterwards that lead to learning new instruments, getting back into philosophy, writing, yoga, meditation, and anything really that enriched my inner-self.  I was willing to try new experiences that I previously was more hesitant to try due to any level of anxiety, or be in social situations that I typically would hide from, simply because I was more comfortable and confident with taking those jumps into new activities, seeing progress, and adding more wins from there.  

In short, I was terrified to try cannabis, as I didn’t know what the outcome could be, but I had a strong sense of confidence that it could only be good for me in the end based on everything I actually saw with my own eyes…MY OWN EVIDENCE!!!  That leap of faith was then verified, and because it was, I have been more likely to go with my gut-instincts in regards to what I feel may be right or wrong for me, not mind other’s perception of me, experience new experiences, and am noticing that I am right more and more of the time as well!  Trusting cannabis allows you to trust yourself. Once this newfound confidence is found just due to simple experimentation, a lot more goodness is found from there.  As you hear others typically say, this is why conscious cannabis use will “open you up” and is beneficial for the soul.  

TIME TO TAKE THE PLUNGE INTO THE GOOD-LIFE!!   

Cannabis as a tool for Mindful practice

Mindfulness is a practice of being completely present and aware in whatever you are doing in your current moment.  

When you think about what you still need to make for breakfast, for example, you aren’t necessarily having a mindful moment.  

When you’re thinking about the fight you got into with your co-worker yesterday, you also are not being mindful at that moment as well.

In this same manner, think about what happens when you mindlessly open Facebook?  What happens when you open the news?  Your emails? Where does your mind go?  Does it stay with you and your morning cup of coffee?  Or does it analyze a stream of angry tweets from politicians you saw from the night before, and then dreading what they will add later that day?  

When trying to fall asleep at night, do you remind yourself that tonight may or may not be a good night of rest?  If you toss and turn too much throughout the night, will I feel well enough tomorrow to perform at my best?  

All of these types of thoughts keep us from enjoying the present moment…i.e.- LIFE as it’s happening.  And if you aren’t paying attention to life as it’s happening, I would argue (and so would many others!), that you may not be experiencing life in the fullest extent.  

So…for me, and many others, mindfulness is figuring out how to minimize all of the above distractions as much as possible, and this takes practice.

If you want to increase your 3-point shot, you go to the courts and shoot some hoops.  If you want to increase your bench press, you go lift weights at the gym.

If you want to increase your test scores, you study.

If you want to be more mindful in life and do everything we just talked about, you meditate!!

…”But meditation is so hard….I can never focus!!!”  I hear this a lot, but bench presses are also hard as well when attempting them for the first time, and so are hitting 3-point shots, etc.

So to get better at being mindful on a day-to-day basis, and to thus get better at minding your LIFE….you should practice being better at minding your life, and meditate more (preferably daily).  

For meditation, most get frustrated in the beginning due to easily losing “focus” and concentration, and that’s where cannabis can help.

Cannabis can assist your meditation practice in so many ways.  For myself, the first thing cannabis does is allow me to take my mind off of anything that is not currently happening at the present.  The reason cannabis is able to do this affectively is because shortly after taking a vape hit (my mode of choice when utilizing cannabis before meditating), I become acutely aware of how the hit is making me feeling.

By simply taking notice as to how the hit is making me feel, I am instantly being present in that moment.  From there, I am already in position, or setup and ready to meditate (I personally use a meditation bench).  I typically also pair this with the Wim Hoff method, which is a practice that assist with releasing your endocannabinoids into your system at the same time. At this point, my mind is focused on my body and how I’m feeling, which at this point in the meditation feels as though I can actually feel my blood pumping throughout, hands and legs tingling, and the feeling of weightlessness beginning to set in.  

At this moment, I’m done with my Wim Hof Breaths, and am 100% aware of everything that is happening both outside, and inside, but I am particularly now interested in what is happening internally.  Externally, I care about how the rug may feel on the tops of my feet, or how the breeze from the window is hitting my bare skin, but I’m not thinking about anything that has happened in the past, or anything that could possibly happen in the future…I’m simply at that point in the moment, just being.  

I can sit here with this feeling forever, but this feeling eventually wares off, and once it does, I may pick back up with another set of Wim Hof breaths again, or if I feel balanced and satisfied, I’ll just start/carry-on with my day, which is always better after doing this.  

In our episode on Flow states, we talk about the Steven Kotler’s Hippie Speedball, and how pairing cannabis, caffeine, and a quick sweat first thing in the morning is the best way to enter a strong flow state with whatever you are trying to accomplish after that time.  For my own mornings, I’m trying to accomplish a strong sense of peace and gratitude…why start my day angry and anxious?  If I can CHOOSE to start differently, I will.  And the point of this entire post, is that yes, YOU CAN CHOOSE.  

For many, they believe that being able to choose your mindset in the morning is almost impossible, and that we are mostly at the mercy of our impulses.  This is exactly why we need to practice, and thus, meditate.  

To get to the point that you even WANT to put in this time to work on yourself takes the correct mindset right from the beginning, a little push, and cannabis allows us to settle into that meditative space very quickly…and that’s really all it does!  It doesn’t control our thoughts or make us think weird things, it just allows our minds and bodies to settle into a meditative state, to be present and aware of now (i.e.- life!) and to start our practice AND day off right!

Make your day more mindful with cannabis!  Here are some ways that I like to incorporate cannabis for my mindfulness practice throughout the days:

First thing in the Morning: 

-CBD hemp flower vape hit with my crafty vaporizer combined with a little sativa first thing in the morning is fantastic.  It’s fresh, it’s natural, therapeutic, and a great daily morning ritual to start, I love it.  More specifically, I find some sour diesel CBD flower online, pair that with some THC sativa flower in the dispensary to get my desired ratios (I personally like a ~4:1 CBD:THC ratio, but everyone is different and you will want to use a higher CBD ratio if you are trying cannabis for the first time). Ultimately, this puts my mind and body in a great place first thing for a workout and meditation.  

-Coffee- I get a cold brew ready to sip throughout my HIIT workout afterwards, allowing me to incorporate all aspects of Steven Kotler’s Hippie Speedball for flow! 

-Take multi-vitamins and CBD tablets for daily wellness maintenance 

-Morning HIIT Workout Combined with Jack Herer Sativa Vape or another focus/energy high THC blend.  

-Yoga/Meditation following HIIT- Balanced Hybrid vape with another CBD hit (oil vapes this time for simplicity of the morning).  

So that’s it!  Get into a meditative routine, and allow cannabis to put you in the right mindset to get there…Enjoy!

Cannabis, Endocannabinoid System, and Getting High On Your Own Supply

Once I understood how my body naturally is designed to integrate with cannabis, my views on cannabis begin to change. In the beginning however, everything about cannabis was “doom and gloom.” This commercial seemed to emulate that correctly and hilariously: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Rh8GbPnoqCI.

Once you understand how the endocannabinoid system generally operates, using cannabis becomes so much more interesting, useful/impactful, and this is something that famous mindfulness speaker Wim Hof has also discovered through his breathing techniques, helping to bring the body’s naturally occurring system to recent spotlight.

In short, the system controls all other major bodily systems in the human body. Below, many of those systems are demonstrated, along with the major receptor sites that you will find in those regions and thus the affinity for either CBD or THC.

*Greenleaf Solutions Website for visual*

When you see all of the regions that the ECS can influence, you start to realize the power of cannabis. When I personally realized this was also when I began to experience with cannabis in different ways to create my own anecdotal evidence that works for me. So I started experimenting with cannabis in a few different ways. For example, one time I thought that during a fit of the super-annoying “hiccups,” that “Hey!…wait a minute….hiccups are just muscle spasms of the diaphragm, and a mixed ratio of THC/CBD will ease muscle spasms, so let’s give THAT a try!” Two minutes later and 2 puffs of a 1:1 ratio of CBD critical cure, and the spasms ceased!

For years, I would go to the orthopedic surgeon because of a randomly sporadic pain I would get in my knee. The surgeon was very reputable, but couldn’t figure it out, and I could tell even to the point of frustration. A good friend of mine had a mother who was a long-standing nurse practitioner and herbalist, and she mentioned that inflammation could be the issue. My knees would stiffen suddenly, and if I was standing for a while, it was hard to bend it. If I was sitting for a while, it was hard to stand up and straighten my leg after a few minutes. It made no sense at the time, but now, once I’m older and better understand these things (I was 15 at the time), I understand that this symptom could definitely just have been inflammation in the knee. Once I realized this, I also tried a lotion for a my knee and a high-CBD strain, and within minutes the problem didn’t exist any longer. In fact, the I seldom receive that feeling any more ever since I have started with cannabis use on a regular basis.

I later found that with cannabis my blood pressure seemed to normalize (or maybe it just influenced healthier practices), my sleep was more balance, my mood certainly was, my raging appetite that would occur after a few beers on Sunday football would cool off, mainly because my drinking was being moderated as well. My bruxism at night (tooth-grinding) seemed to slow down considerably, my heartburn was gone, because my immune system was balanced I haven’t felt cold-symptoms in years as well, etc, cannabis just seemed to totally balance me out every time that my body seemed to be out of balance. To be honest, any hormonal imbalance that I can possibly think of that I have experienced since my start of utilizing medical cannabis has been almost completely normalized at this point.

Although cannabis has been incredibly helpful in all of these respects, coming across Wim Hof’s breathing method only seemed to amplify my body’s internal balancing act. If you haven’t heard of the Wim Hof breathing method, you should check it out here: https://www.wimhofmethod.com/breathing-exercises.

Yes, he appears crazy a few minutes into his videos at first, but trust me, once you do the exercises a few times the impact is real, and Wim is incredibly genuine in his overall demeanor which is refreshing in today’s age. Wim is really revolutionizing how we view fitness, the body, the whole thing in one big holistic way, and it includes the ECS! One of Wim’s rallying cries with his method is to “Get High On Your Own Supply!” He acknowledges that this occurs through the bodies own ECS. When you go through the breathing method, at first it can be a little off-putting if you’re not ready for it, since you start to feel tingly, light, etc. I do this laying down, and at the end of the rounds of breaths, there’s a huge release that washes over your body, that feels a bit like a cannabis high, but a tad different. I think this makes since, as Wim states, you’re using your body’s own supply to get high! The high here is incredibly relaxing, clear-headed, but also energizing at the same time. You have an enormous sense of peace afterwards, and it’s a great way to start the day. Afterwards, you use this state of complete awareness to jump in a cold shower!…yes, also strange, but the benefits prove pretty significant. Wim explains the significance of endocannabinoids in this excerpt on his website:

“The significant activation of the cognitive cortical areas indicates a release of endogenous opiates/cannabinoids. These endocannabinoids are known to promote the feeling of euphoria and well-being, pleasurable feelings which can be often observed after stress-induced activities or which can explain the absence of pain during high-stress situations. The rise in the release of endocannabinoids could possibly constitute a mechanism to mediate decreased sensitivity to cold exposure, since another key property of endocannabinoids is their analgesic action. Interestingly, endocannabinoids are known to inhibit edema and inflammation, which is in accordance to the reported reduction of the immune response associated with the WHM practice [1].” https://www.wimhofmethod.com/blog/ongoing-research

So the point of this article is that your endocannabinoid system is real, and you can influence it whether or not you decide to partake in cannabis. My take is, if I already have a natural system to optimize my body, why not utilize it! Once I acted on that take, positive results in my health soon followed. You won’t hear this likely from your doctor, as most aren’t taught this in medical school (however it’s possible that that is starting to change as well). So check out the links below and intuitively see for yourself how cannabis may be able to assist in positively influence a system for YOU that could use a little balancing!

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2241751/

https://www.healthline.com/health/endocannabinoid-system#how-it-works

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4789136/

https://www.leafly.com/news/science-tech/what-is-the-endocannabinoid-system

https://norml.org/library/item/introduction-to-the-endocannabinoid-system

Cannabis for Stress Reduction and Sleep

Good morning Cannaseurs! If you’re not feeling as chipper as I am this morning, maybe we can fix that! Below is what I did in order to come off of ambien completely, along with shelving my xanax as well.

Self-care the for a good day tends to start the night before during evening preparations. We need to feel good before we go to sleep in order to not have our minds race and be able to sleep soundly. If we are stressed out and have a hard time “turning it off,” we will not be able to sleep well and thus not function at our best ability the next day.

There are several ways that we can do this, with mindfulness always being the best option (followed by moving-mindfulness i.e.- yoga). Mindfulness allows us to not focus on the past, because we cannot do anything about it…when it’s over, it’s OVER (no matter WHAT it is!!). Mindfulness also allows us to forget about the future (because we can only guess what is coming next but can never truly know…so why worry!).

*Now, let’s pull off to the side of the road for a minute and consider this: You know the idea that when you’re high you’re also forgetful? I’ve personally come to believe that this is true to a degree, but I don’t believe that the person becomes absent minded completely, but just becomes incredibly focused on one idea, conversation, concept, playing with kids, friends, etc. SO focused, in fact, that you completely forget anything else that may be happening in the world around you. This is not always, good, but sometimes it is (especially to reduce stress, which I will get back to in a minute). This is similar to how time may appear to pass more slowly when you’re high…we all know that that is not what is really happening, but my take from this, is that we are just getting incredibly focused second-by-second on what you are doing, paying intense attention to every moment, so it feels longer. Conversely, when someone drinks and “blacks-out,” they wake up the next morning not knowing how they got where they ended up often, remembering one moment of the night and then POOF! The next moment they are awake with what feels like a hammer tapping on their head over and over…I definitely don’t miss those days!*

So BACK ON THE ROAD! Stress at night. You come home from work, have a long day, whatever it may be, and we have a plethora of chores to complete. Kids have to be fed, bathed, put to bed, homework, dishes, cleaning, maybe prepping for tomorrow’s meeting, and omg THE NEWS!!!! WHAT IS HAPPENING WITH CORONAVIRUS!?!

So you’re evening begins, and then BOOM. It’s 11pm, and all you’ve done are chores, chores, chores, and then filled your head with anxiety on TV, or with your latest drama show. As soon as you turn the lights off an quiet your outside space, that is when the internal party starts!! Your mind is racing, you thoughts, feelings, emotions from earlier in the day bubbling up, thinking about tomorrow and what needs to be done at work, but first you need to make sure you get the kids to school and they need to be there early tomorrow, so make sure that you make note of that also, and the list goes on and on. You toss on and off throughout the night, the 7am alarm goes off, and away we go again.

OOOF! Not good. So, how an cannabis help? CANNABIS TURNS IT OFF! Yes, I call it my “loop-breaker” and “going for a spin.” If I get locked in, can’t turn it of with breathing techniques alone or through changing the environment, cannabis can always change the environment for you!

My goal at night is to be productive with my tasks and prepping, while also accomplishing a podcast, or some other audible achievement during that time (whether that’s an audio book, other podcasts, news updates, etc). If I use the wrong cannabis strain, I will end up just sitting on the couch and mindlessly watching TV for the rest of the night as well. With the correct strain, however, I be productive, get what I need done, but do it without that “coffee” buzz, and with lower anxiety and a better overall body-feel as well.

After I am done with nightly chores, I then switch to a more relaxation routine, which I try to change every night. This can include creative tasks (music), physical (stretching), or reading/watching TV. Watching TV isn’t the devil, just don’t do it every night and give yourself a break. I also change strains at this time as well. I still want to be productive and not sleep…at this point, I am just trying to wind down my mind. If you’re driving a car, you stop and get out, you don’t jump out when the car is still moving. To be going through your chores and MOVE! MOVE! MOVE!, and then abruptly try to sleep, is akin to jumping out of the car when it is still moving…so SLOW DOWN…then park! Here is where I will grab an indica-leaning hybrid…something that will start to settle me, but allow me to still hang-out.

Then, we SLEEP! This is the easiest part at this point also. Here, I will change strains again to a pure indica. I often occasionally will do a 1:1 strain as well if I am experiencing more anxiety, or if I’m finding that the heavy indica is making me drowsy the next day.

Occasionally I will also do a sleep meditation concurrently, but if I do, I am usually out before we are 5 minutes into it.

For me, getting better sleep and reducing my anxiety essentially comes down to being present in the moment so you are no longer worried about what you cannot change in the past, and also what you cannot control in the unforeseeable future. Once you are able to do this, your sleep hygiene becomes bulletproof, and I seldom wake up complaining about energy levels, even if I only get 5-6 hours of sleep. Once you can create this positive-loop in your routine, then you will eventually start to see the compounding effects that this will have on your life, and for the better. Routines are hard to start, but if used wisely and correctly, cannabis can actually help make your life easier to accomplish that as well!

Here are some strains that I like to use for the above activities:

***note…some strains are repeated in different stages due to their versatility, but I try to change terpenes when going from one stage to the next, and everyone will feel differently about these options also…but below is at least some guidance***

Being productive at night, prepping for sleep, all vapes: Anything that is a balanced hybrid, or even sativa-leaning hybrids.

-OG Kush

-Jack Herer

-Sour Jack

-Headband

-Tangie

-CBD Critical Cure

-Blue Dream

-sour kush.

Wind-down, creative/relaxation time, all vapes:

-OG kush

-Granddaddy purple

-sour kush

-sherbet

-gelato

-frankenberry

-do-si-do

-zkittles

-platinum OG

-skywalker OG

-CBD Critical Cure

-any strains with “cookies” in it

-any other strains with “kush” in it.

Here, I also start shifting my terpenes to more myrcene/linolol if possible. If I am mentally anxious, I will stick with higher CBD strains. If I’m generally feeling good and want to really relax, I stick with THC.

Sleep (combination of vapes, edibles, tinctures, sprays, and lotions):

-Lotion- I will rub this on my muscles to repair at night, and also a CBD balm over my sinuses and throat to make sure they stay clear throughout the night and I don’t wake up because my nose is stuffy (yes it helps!).

-Jedi-OG kush

-blueberry strains

-kush and afghani strains

-Bubba kush

-Grape Ape

Getting over cannabis anxiety

This writing is going to be about how other’s anxieties over cannabis keeps them from ever being able to utilize cannabis to cope with their issues…strange I know, but I can explain using the greatest example I know for this topic…ME!!! :)

Being raised in a conservative-ish and strict household, our actions were not only closely scrutinized, but were influenced with false ideas surrounding drugs and cannabis in particular. Cannabis was the most common “dangerous” drug that we could come across, so it just makes sense that that is the “drug” that I most often associated with illegal activities, so we all became very weary/nervous about it in general (my siblings and I). I knew that it could fry your brain, and that just by being AROUND people that were smoking it meant that I could go to prison also. In all fairness, this was just sound parenting on my parents part that was influenced by the current federal laws…nothing that I can blame them for and would certainly implement with my own kids assuming that that was still the case in America today (Yay!!!…because it’s NOT….kinda!).

Cannabis wasn’t prevalent in my early life, but later in high school/college it became more available, and whenever I smelled it in my vicinity, I made sure to RUNNNNN!!!

…But here’s the weird thing…I didn’t have much intrigue with cocaine, Molly, X (all kind of the same thing I guess), never with any of the “party drugs.” I could party all night as it was, and I needed no assistance with that (10 gin and tonics would typically help, however!). I eventually realized, however, that I had a very strange fascination with cannabis. I saw that yes, for some people it made them look dopey and dumb, and I can’t stop thinking of some white stoner-kid with long dreads, walking around sporting a Mexican poncho and reeking of crappy weed…that’s not obviously what impressed me…but it was allll the other guys! The former star athlete at school that didn’t play football anymore, but was in great shape and lit up routinely after classes and aced all bio tests. Another friend that although “was high” frequently and even during class, got straight A’s with almost no effort, was active, in good shape, social, and well liked. There were other similar celebrity stories that you can easily find online as well…THIS is what impressed me and what ultimately drew my interest in cannabis.

But at the time, I knew cannabis was WRONG….right? I started to struggle with this idea, which naturally drew me to wanting to experiment more. I knew that it was illegal…but in my circles fortunately, we were not routinely probed for illegal activity, so I felt comfortable knowing that if my friends were doing it routinely with no issues, I should have no issue to believe that I would either if I tried it…so that part was settled! I didn’t care about getting caught and going to jail and fortunately for me was not a concern (unfortunately NOT the case for everyone).

But my health? Now here’s the risk! All of those commercials…ugh…remember this one? https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Rh8GbPnoqCI

PAINFUL!!!! (And also now kind of hilarious). But this is what got me…should I really risk my health? It is a “risk,” isn’t it? All these doctors who are unsure of it…always influencing away from it typically due to “lack of research” which is fine…but I’m seeing no issues with my friends now, and cannot find a single online factual story of someone dying directly from cannabis, so why should I be concerned really?

So this was the seesaw that I kept teetering on. I had growing external anxieties at this time as well. It was around 2008, and I was laid off and unemployed/underemployed for years. I became grossly overweight, was managing a serious long-distance relationship, and drank much more than anyone ever needed to (oh 20’s!!!!). Anxieties in all directions of my life were popping up all around me, and when I decided to tackle my health (crossfit) is when I finally and ironically bumped into a consistent source of black market cannabis supply, possibly one of the best things that has happened to me, but of course that curiosity was raised before-hand, watching all of my successful pothead friends grow-up and use cannabis the RIGHT way. So here…I took the plunge!

I had no idea what I was doing, but I was determined to start figuring it out now that I had a consistent source. I was consistently practicing meditation also at this time and becoming much more mindful of my actions, so felt ready to start practicing a mindful cannabis practice as well, and was therefore ready to “push through the pain,” or so I thought, of pushing past the paranoia that I was certain came with cannabis, and get to the other side of that cannabis-filled utopia where all of my friends were living!! For a few years, I certainly dabbled in the “THC-only” world…trying to figure out which strains made me happy, sad, focused, sleepy, etc. How many puffs get me high? How many until I get paranoid? Etc.

To make a long story short, during this period of time only one of my friends (not me, yay!!!), ended up going to the emergency room for a cannabis-induced panic attack that ended with the doctors giving her sandwiches and Dasani-bottles in the emergency room, and many funny phone calls . Once I found NYS’s Medical Marijuana Program, implementing CBD into my regimen was a game-changer, and for all the reasons mentioned in future posts! :)

But for now, this jump…this leap of faith of just TRUSTING my gut…going against doctors orders, government orders, KNOWING that there’s SOMETHING on the other side that is better, is the type of faith that has lead me to new, better, and unknown experiences afterwards throughout my life. This leap of faith was the same jump that I also took afterwards that lead learning new instruments, getting back into philosophy, writing, yoga, meditation, and anything really that enriches your inner-self. I was willing to try new experiences that I typically was more hesitant to try due to any level of anxiety, or be in social situations that I typically would hide from, simply because I was more comfortable and confident with taking those jumps into new activities, seeing progress, and adding more wins from there.

In short, I was terrified to try cannabis, as I didn’t know what the outcome could be, but I had a strong sense of confidence that it could only be good for me in the end. That leap of faith was then verified, and because it was, I have been more likely to go with my gut in regards to what I felt is right or wrong for me, listen to less people, experience new experiences, and am noticing that I am right more and more of the time as well! Trusting cannabis allows you to trust yourself as well. Once that happens, a lot more good will be en route!

Why I use different strains? To get me into different flow states!

This was one thing that I couldn’t understand about cannabis…the plant looked the same…and when I would use it, sometimes I got sleepy, sometimes I got excited. Sometimes I LOVED the high…but other times? I’ve had better seshes I suppose. All of this eventually brought me to realize that with cannabis, STRAIN MATTERS. “Weed is weed is weed” is 100% not accurate, and I’ll explain why.

To begin, I don’t necessarily NEED cannabis to start, end, or function throughout my day. I am perfectly capable, and have done it plenty of times in the recent past (within the past few months), where I am not utilizing at all. So after months and months and months of using cannabis daily, what happens if I stop all of the sudden? First, yes, you CAN stop if you want to, as I have no physical addiction and again, have gone days in the past recently without utilizing already. Secondly, you simply just go back to your body’s baseline that you experienced before you started utilizing cannabis as a regular user. So all that means is that holistically, I would then be performing subpar to what I was before when I was supplementing with cannabis. If I am to do this, it means that my sleep is a little off, my anxiety is a little higher, I may binge-eat a little more throughout the day, my muscles don’t recover as quickly after workouts, I may put the weight back on, my immune system may be weaker again, I do not hold attention as well as I typically would, my digestive problems would return, as would my heartburn, increased blood pressure, inflammation in my knees would come back, grinding my teeth at night may return, heart palpitations could come back, workouts may not be as efficient, meditations may not be as efficient, and much more. I also find that my social connections/interactions are weakened, which affects both my family and business relationships.

All of these things will worsen back to the state that it was at before I started utilizing cannabis, and as a result, will have a life that’s very similar to how the majority of Americans live their lives today, and much less healthy at that. So do I “need” cannabis? I don’t know really, but when I want to be my best self and shift into a particular flow state, cannabis allows me to choose which flow state I want to shift into, and the different terpenes that you find in cannabis will assist with allowing you to tap into different flow states.

First, however, what is a “flow state”? A flow state, in short, is when you have that feeling of being “in the zone.” You hear it with athletes all the time, “the zone.” Being “in the zone” means you are 100% devoted to what is happening in front of you and are happily engaged. Time may become altered because of this as well, and we experience this all the time…it’s not just with athletes! To be our best selves every day, we all need to tap into this flow state as well in all aspects of our lives. Lebron James becomes unstoppable when he taps into a flow state and gets “in the zone.” Every part of his game is elevated and unmatched by any prior performance he’s had before for the most part. Similarly, my sleep becomes unstoppable when I also tap into the right flow state when my head hits the pillow at night and “get into the zone”…the SLEEP zone that is! When I’m working on a project at work and find myself occasionally immersed with what I’m doing, enjoying it, AND just being really, really comfortably efficient, that’s flow. When I’m with a group of people and find myself very easily engaging with the others around me, and with an infectious energy that everyone else around me also latches onto, that’s also flow! When I’m in the gym and am comfortably pushing the weight, feeling good, striding to one exercise to the next and just KNOWING that I’m getting a great workout and feeling “unstoppable”, THAT is flow. Flow = peak-productivity and an optimal state of consciousness, and we all want to be our most productive selves as often as possible, and is where cannabis can assist!

Why is it important to be in flow? The benefits of being in a flow state allow people to report higher levels of creativity, productivity and happiness up to three days after being in a deep flow state.

Benefits of flow state:

“According to positive psychologist Mihály Csíkszentmihályi, what you experience in that moment is known as flow state, defined as an “optimal state of consciousness where we feel our best and perform our best.” Csíkszentmihályi, who popularized the term in his 1990 book, the mental state of flow involves “being completely involved in an activity for its own sake. The ego falls away. Time flies. Every action, movement, and thought follows inevitably from the previous one, like playing jazz. Your whole being is involved, and you’re using your skills to the utmost.” The ten factors that can accompany this state of flow are:

1. Having clear goals about what you want to achieve

2. Concentration and focus

3. Participating in an intrinsically rewarding activity

4. Losing feelings of self-consciousness

5. Timelessness; losing track of time passing

6. Being able to immediately judge your own progress; instant feedback on your performance

7. Knowing that your skills align with the goals of the task

8. Feeling control over the situation and the outcome

9. Lack of awareness of physical needs

10. Complete focus on the activity itself”

https://www.huffpost.com/entry/flow-state-what-it-is-and_b_9607084

It’s important to remember that our skillset also needs to just barely not align with your activity in order to achieve flow, and shouldn’t be too hard or too easy, which will put you out of flow. When you are in a situation of being highly skilled, and also highly challenged, is when you can achieve flow. I find most that I achieve flow in my job (highly challenged and skilled) and when I am doing activities when I control the skill-level (i.e.- creating music, writing, creative endeavors). Creativity seems to encourage flow because you are always being encourage to push this boundary.

What brain waves can we use to get into flow? I personally find that on the border of theta and alpha ~7hz is the sweet spot for me in achieving flow (especially mental). To learn more about the science on this, Steven Kotler wrote the book The Rise of Superman: Decoding the Science of Ultimate Human Performance where he describes how this occurs scientifically within the body. One thing that you’ll find during this process is that anandamide is one of the leading chemicals that the body naturally releases during the process of getting into flow, which is the body’s own endocannabinoid, i.e.- THC….so yes, cannabis scientifically allows us to get into flow as well!

So how do I use cannabis to get into flow? A few different ways! It typically depends not on the activity but below is a run-down of my day and how I use cannabis to shift from one flow state to another. This could change from day-to-day, but this is pretty typically for me I would say. I can also break this down by one-off activities…which I will do also below.

Morning

For the first 1-2 hours of my day, I am the only one awake, and am able to be very productive. Here, I work on myself, where I do a small HIIT workout, yoga, and then meditate over a ~45 minute span, prep the kitchen for the circus that is about to begin, and also listen to a panel from my app Wellness Coach.

Shift #1: First thing in the morning typically, I like the vape a high CBD medical oil from one of my dispensaries here in NYC. The ratios will usually range here from 1:1 to 20:1 CBD:THC, and I’m just trying to prime my body, lowering the immediate morning anxiety, calm the stomach that starts up around that time as well, and just get my morning CALIBRATED.

Shift #2: After slamming my 40oz of secret speciality water, I shift to a strain that will assist with high energy production and focus. For me, this is usually Jack Herer, but can be various high-THC, energy-producing sativas. This gets me ready for the workout, focused, and I’m able to power through any challenges that come my way. Any soreness that usually bothers me before a workout starts also begins to fade at this time, so I can focus on just crushing the next 10 precious minutes that I have!

Shift #3: After my HIIT workout, I like to dial it back down to a 1:1, balanced CBD:THC ratio strain during they weekdays, or a high-THC hybrid on the weekends (for fun!!). This is when I’ll start my 10-15 minute yoga yoga-practice.

Shift #4: Back to high-CBD for the weekdays, 1:1 during the weekend days! Possibly light supplementation with high-THC vapes depending on what kind of shift I’m feeling like I’m going to be in the mood for!

Afternoon

Shift #5: Stay with high-THC energizing sativa if needed, or start to shift back down to balanced, 1:1 ratio during the late afternoon/early evening.

Evening

Shift #6: stick with the 1:1 ratio at night usually during the weekdays, go to high-thc for relaxation on the weekends.

That’s my usual routine, where I shift a few times/day. But there are also situational times as well. What if I’m going out to socialize? What if I feel like I’m getting sick? What If….

Cannabis allows me to shift instantly into flow states that are needed to perform at an optimal level. Yes, it would be lovely to do this ourselves effortlessly without cannabis, but that may not always be feasible. There are vitamins and minerals that our bodies need to survive, just as we have a system that can has requirements for cannabinoids as well. So cannabis is helpful for all of this, and for allowing us to SHIFT into becoming our best selves throughout the day, months, years, and lives!

Activities where cannabis helps achieve flow

-Making music

-Studying

-Working

-Socializing

-Parenting

-Exercising

-Meditating

-Yoga

-Boxing