CBD for Anxiety & Depression

According to the NHS, 5% of the population in the UK suffer from anxiety. Everyone could have feelings of anxiety at some point in life, whether it’s meeting new people, social settings or workplaces. 

What is Anxiety?

Anxiety is the feeling of feeling nervous, worried and uneasy at certain situations. Anxiety could be triggered by a number of different things such as:

• Panic disorders – having panic attacks due to feeling constantly afraid
• Phobias – such as agoraphobia or claustrophobia
• Post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) – After going through something traumatic 
• Social anxiety disorder (social phobia) – Fear of social situations, parties, workplace where you have to talk to another person
• Generalised Anxiety Disorder (GAD) – Having regular uncontrollable worries about everyday life. A broad diagnosis.

Signs of anxiety

Some of the most common signs of anxiety are:

• Headaches
• Grinding teeth
• Feeling Sick
• Faster Breath
• Problems sleeping
• Nausea
• Feeling restless

Treating anxiety

Anxiety can have a lasting and significant impact on your life if unmanaged. There are various treatments available for anxiety, which include:

Self-Help Resources for Anxiety 

There are various resources available that you can try without requiring medical help. This may be a good first point for people who want to treat anxiety without requiring the help of other methods.

There are various workbooks available on the Reading Well website or apps on the NHS website.

Psychological therapies for Anxiety

There are two types of psychological therapies or talking treatment for anxiety, which the doctor can help with.

1. Cognitive Behavioural Therapy  – which is designed to help you talk about how you can manage your problems, behaviours in a way that helps control anxiety by dealing with the overwhelming problems by breaking them down.
2. Applied Relaxation Therapy –  Is a way of learning how to program your body to relax to help manage situations where you would normally suffer anxiety.  

Medication

There are various medications that your doctor can prescribe to you to help manage anxiety, which include:

• SSRI – an antidepressant which can be prescribed by the doctor
• Pregabalin – commonly prescribed for GAD
• Beta Blockers – to treat physical anxiety such as a rapid heartbeat
• Benzodiazepine tranquillisers – to help manage severe anxiety

CBD for Anxiety

CBD Oil has been used to help manage and control anxiety. 

CBD or Cannabidiol is a type of cannabinoid, a chemical found naturally in cannabis plants.

It works by interacting with the CB1 & CB2 receptors, which are found in the central and peripheral nervous system to help alter the serotonin signals. 

Serotonin plays an important factor for your mental health. Having low levels of serotonin is associated with people who suffer from depression and may also cause anxiety.

The conventional treatment for low levels of serotonin is a Selective Serotonin Reuptake Inhibitor (SSRI) which is prescribed by your doctor. 

CBD has been used instead of SSRI to manage this condition and studies have shown that CBD has helped with people suffering from anxiety, PTSD and social anxiety disorder (SAD).

Does CBD oil help you relax?

There are various studies that say that CBD has shown to reduce stress levels. A report carried out by the National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA) reports how CBD has helped to reduce the heart rate in rats during tests.

CBD Oil is commonly associated with getting ‘high’, however, high quality THC FREE CBD Oils remove the ‘High’, providing the benefits within the body.

How soon does CBD oil work for anxiety?

A 2018 report showed that it took male subjects 90 minutes from a 300mg dose to help improve anxiety of the subjects. 

If you’ve been diagnosed with an anxiety disorder, talk to your doctor before you consider using CBD or any other supplement or medication as a treatment.