Different people have different experiences, but that’s not to say some things are not generally true. In order to make this readable I will avoid using phrases like “for me” or “in my experience”. You should feel free to mentally sprinkle them through the piece as you read. But first, as Jennifer Aniston was once known to say, “here comes the science”.
The Effects of Marijuana on the Brain: How Weed Gets You High
When ingesting marijuana, the active ingredients of THC and CBD found in the cannabis plant start to interact with our bodies in a variety of ways. When cannabis is consumed, THC binds to receptors in the brain called CB1 receptors. This action stimulates the release of dopamine and endocannabinoids, which are neurotransmitters associated with pleasure, relaxation, and pain relief. Marijuana use has also been found to increase blood flow within the brain, creating a state of increased awareness and alertness.
This video is a great watch to learn more about what is physically happening in the brain and body.
But What Does It Feel Like?
Talk of CB1 receptors is all well and good, but it doesn’t communicate anything of the actual marijuana use experience. I’m going to focus on smoked and vaporized cannabis as opposed to marijuana edibles. If edibles seem more tempting to you rest assured – it’s not that different, just slower.
You won’t feel anything immediately after your first hit if you’re smoking marijuana. It comes on you slowly. If you’re new you should pause between hits so you can evaluate how you feel before taking more – there’s nothing worse than realizing you should have stopped smoking 20 minutes ago, but you didn’t. You’ll quickly learn what a good amount is for you even if you don’t smoke marijuana frequently.
How To Buy Weed from a Dispensary: A User’s Guide
So, weed has just been legalized in your state. You’ve never really smoked, indeed never really been around it. You don’t even know anyone who has (to your knowledge). But you’re curious. It seems like something you might like to…
After a few minutes, you’ll start to feel a kind of relaxation spreading through your body and brain. If you were stressed you may experience some euphoria as it lifts. The world becomes a little softer and fuzzier. You slow down.
The best way to describe the emotional state is that it feels like everything is ok. Everything is fine. There’s no need to worry. It’s not an aggressive cheerfulness, a mind-blowing euphoria, or a crazy hallucinatory state as you may get from other drugs. It is relaxed and easygoing. You have metaphorically done something we often ask of each other: you have taken a chill pill.
This is not to say it’s a sedative. It’s not like taking an opioid. You may find that after a bit of a session you have basically passed out, but that is not the experience of being high. You have just become so relaxed you cannot muster the motivation to keep your eyes open.
Marijuana for Meditation
This is not an article about meditating while stoned. It’s about leveraging the state of altered consciousness that cannabis can induce to meditate deeply and look inwards to learn more about yourself and help sort through issues that may be…
Moving Through The World
Feeling like everything is ok is great, but sometimes things are not ok, and feeling like they are isn’t helpful. For this reason, you should hold off on marijuana use until you’re in a situation where things are likely to actually be ok so you don’t make any bad decisions, or fail to make important decisions.
This doesn’t mean you have to be wrapped in cotton wool in your home. You can be walking down the street or watching a concert. But you probably shouldn’t be driving Formula One or walking through the bad part of town wearing a bunch of diamond rings. Do it in a time and place that is pretty predictable and safe, and you will be golden.
Being High vs Being Drunk
If you’ve never tried cannabis and are considering it due to its now being legal for you, you probably want to know what to expect. I have written before about what it’s like to be high, but it occurred to…
(And of course, restricting your marijuana use to home is no guarantee that something won’t happen – one time I was very high on my own in my apartment at midnight and I got a call from the CEO of the company I was working for needing me to troubleshoot a demo that he was in the middle of in China – thankfully, we got through it.)
Conversations after smoking weed with other marijuana users can be very entertaining. Your inhibitions have been weakened, but not in the alcohol way where you have essentially removed your good judgment. It’s more like the part of your brain that would say “that’s silly” or is generally concerned with wanting to seem smart and capable in front of other people has taken a back seat, and your unfiltered meanderings can come out to play.
Importantly, you have not lost your sense of what is ridiculous – you just probably won’t notice until after you’ve spoken. Other people will also say ridiculous things which you will find very amusing. Smoking weed with friends will often involve a fit of the giggles. And who doesn’t like giggling?
Another effect of a marijuana high can be a state of perfectly balanced focus, right on the knife edge where you feel relaxed and calm but still together enough to engage in an activity. Some people like smoking before playing an online first-person shooter because it gets them in the zone. I myself have a fond memory of getting a perfect score on Slow Ride by Foghat in Guitar Hero 3 while completely baked.
Weed and Creativity
This is a tricky one. Marijuana can to some extent unlock your mind and help you see things in a new way, but you probably won’t remember. And if your creativity involves a physical skill (like playing an instrument) you may be more frustrated than inspired by the hard time you’re having getting it right. Having said that, depending on what you want to do it might be exactly what you need to kick it up a notch.
Are There Any Negative Effects To Watch Out For?
You might have a bad reaction or smoke too much too fast. Marijuana use isn’t for everybody, and it is always possible to have a bad time. This is something you can control and you are in no actual danger – marijuana’s effects are not physically harmful. To read more about when it goes bad and ways to mitigate that check out this article: How To Get Unhigh.
How To Get Unhigh
A weed high is great, but as with other drugs too much THC can be bad (that’s what “too much” means!) It can make a person feel worse, not better, if too much cannabis is taken, whatever the consumption method.…
But even when things are going well and you’re having a blast there are still downsides.
Impaired Cognitive Ability
You are just not as smart when you are stoned as when you are not. If you suddenly need to engage your intelligence to do some problem solving you will find it hard.
Short-Term Memory Loss
This is a cliche, but very true. You simply do not form memories well when you are stoned. If you have a great idea, write it down! Although you probably won’t remember to do that. Do not have important conversations while high – you very likely will not recall exactly what was said. And don’t watch something you care deeply about. Often I have watched a movie while vaping cannabis and then a couple of days later could not remember anything about it. And it becomes really hard to follow a complicated plot if you’re always a little hazy about what happened in the previous scene.
Loss of Motivation
The downside of feeling like everything is fine is that it kills your motivation to change anything. You better wash those dishes and take out the trash before smoking up.
Increased Appetite
If you are taking medical marijuana to help relieve nausea or because your appetite is otherwise suppressed then this is a good thing. If you’re trying to stick to a diet, not so much.
Conclusion
This is an experience you really have to have yourself – all the words in the world won’t substitute for a marijuana high. Cannabis Sativa is a fairly benign drug and experimenting with it is very low risk. There is no danger of overdose and you won’t get addicted. Enjoy the smoke!
