CBD, short for “cannabidiol”, is a natural, plant-based molecule that has helped many people live a better quality of life, but many are concerned about CBD withdrawal.
Everyone who is using CBD products must have wondered about its withdrawal at some point, and raises questions like, what will happen if you stop taking CBD?
According to a study, CBD is a safe compound that has no risk of overdose and dependency, additionally, there was no evidence of CBD withdrawal found in healthy volunteers with abrupt discontinuation of CBD use.
Nevertheless, a few people around the CBD community are reporting that they are experiencing symptoms like headache, fatigue, constipation, and irritability after they stop using CBD.
So, how are some people experiencing CBD withdrawal when there is no potential for it? To understand this, you have to know how CBD works.
How does CBD work?
CBD is a non-psychoactive cannabinoid that is found in hemp plants and is known for its many therapeutic benefits, including ease of stress, anxiety, insomnia, PTSD, pain, seizures, and depression.
However, these multifold benefits of CBD are the result of just one process that CBD does in your body. CBD interacts with and regulates your body’s endocannabinoid system (ECS).
ECS is a complex cell signaling system within your body that is made up of CB or cannabinoid receptors. The CB receptors, majorly CB1 and CB2 receptors, are scattered throughout your body and are responsible for managing various functions.
The CB1 receptor, which is concentrated mostly in your brain and central nervous system, is responsible for managing neurotransmitters like serotonin, dopamine, and glutamate.
Additionally, the CB1 receptor is also involved in carrying signals of various functions of your body like pain, memory, balance, appetite, stress, and emotions. While CB2 receptors are concentrated in your immune system and involved in anti-inflammatory and immunosuppressive actions of your body.
When you consume CBD, it interacts with these receptors and helps regulate and balance them. It also balances the functions they were involved in, which puts your body’s endocannabinoid system into a state of homeostasis and creates a variety of positive effects including relief from pain, stress, anxiety, inflammation, and insomnia.
In short, CBD does not cure your issues, rather it minimizes the feeling of the problem by interacting with the receptors that were carrying the signals, so stopping CBD will just put you back to your old self.
However, to truly solve the problem you have to address the underlying base condition, which is creating the issue in the first place.
Many people think they are using CBD for a particular reason and it’s going to help with just that, but CBD is not a medicine and does not work like that. The multifold benefits of CBD are a given with every quality CBD product.
What happens when you stop taking CBD?
CBD does not cause withdrawal. However, the issue that CBD was helping you with is going to come back, you will just become like how you were before you were using CBD.
For example, if you are taking CBD, and it was helping manage your stress and anxiety, but you stopped taking it. After a few days, you may feel that your stress and anxiety are coming back.
You are feeling anxious, and you might think that it is happening because of CBD withdrawal, but you are just becoming your old self.
For some people, the coming back of old symptoms can be a big issue, because before your body was used to the stress and anxiety, but once it experienced the effects of CBD and the benefits it can provide, going back to the old self will not feel right, and the same stress and anxiety are going to be a lot to handle.
People spend years getting used to the issues like anxiety, pain, and insomnia in their daily lives, which may be caused by poor diet or lifestyle choices.
Then came CBD, and it wiped out all these feelings and we got used to this new “normal”. Now take the CBD away without addressing the underlying concern that was causing these problems, and you go back to the old self.
Call it CBD withdrawal, but once you have tasted life without constant issues living as your base condition, going back to the old self is going to be much more difficult.
Why do some people experience CBD withdrawal?
There could be one of three reasons why you experienced withdrawal symptoms after you have stopped using CBD:
The CBD product you are using could be at fault
The CBD industry is still unregulated by the FDA (Food and Drug Association), and many over-the-counter (OTC) CBD products might contain unwanted compounds that could create a dependency, which when stopped could give you symptoms that can feel like you are experiencing CBD withdrawal.
It is always advised that you purchase CBD products online and from a reputable company that is transparent about the ingredients used in their CBD products and also provides COA (certificate of analysis) of their product from a reputable third party.
A hidden symptom may crop up
For example, if someone is suffering from pain, taking CBD relieves that pain, but what if a person is suffering from more than one issue and the major issue is masking all the little ailments that were insignificant in comparison, and with time a person gets used to it.
When this person takes CBD, he gets relief from all the issues (even the ones he is not aware of), but stopping the use of CBD could bring the masked, insignificant ailments back into the light, so it might feel like a result of CBD withdrawal, but it was there all along and your body is properly processing it now.
If this is the case with you then give your body some time, it will adjust like before in a couple of weeks. However, you can continue using CBD daily to avoid feeling like this altogether.
CBD might have interacted with medicines
CBD is a safe molecule with little to no side effects. However, CBD has the potential to interact with other medicines, especially the one with the “grapefruit warning”.
If you have been using CBD with other medications for quite some time and stopped using CBD then there is a chance that you might feel discomfort because CBD can alter the effects of other medicines.
It is advised that you consult a doctor before using CBD, especially with other medications.
The dosage of CBD is not adequate
Sometimes the wrong dosage of CBD could be a reason for discomfort. CBD works differently for everyone, and dosage is also going to differ depending on people and ailments.
You have to find the right dosage that works for you, which might take some trial and error.
Check out this article on how to find your correct CBD dosage.
Final thoughts
Our lifestyle choices are the main reason for so many health issues, but it’s difficult to change that. However, we can manage it better by taking CBD.
CBD is a plant-based compound that does not cause any withdrawal, but stopping CBD will bring back the old symptoms.
CBD also helps manage cannabis withdrawal. However, you should consult a healthcare professional before using CBD, especially if you are taking certain medications.
CBD is still unregulated, so avoid using CBD products from your local shop. Purchase CBD online from a reputable brand that is transparent about the ingredients used in their products and provides lab reports from an authentic third-party lab.
Read more: Top 5 CBD Companies
Disclosure:
The information in this article is intended for general use only and may not always be appropriate for everyone’s needs. Your health and wellness are unique to you, so before acting on anything we say, seek personalized advice from a medical professional.
We value the accuracy and editorial integrity of all our articles, and we strive to ensure that the content we publish is accurate and up-to-date to the best of our knowledge.