A question to the PTSD crowd

[Jackalope]

Heady highs and PTSD. One of the main uses of my weed is to keep my mind off the nerve pain. Heady highs do this really well for me. They keep my mind busy on random stupid shit LOL.

I was wondering if this same effect is a good thing or a bad thing for people with PTSD? I am used to random thoughts bouncing around in my head. I just don't know if this is a good thing for people that have issues with what is bouncing around in their head.

I damn sure don't want to be suggesting the wrong strains.

 

[TurboBucket]

No idea with PTSD but some highs increase my anxiety while most help it.

Reactions can be pretty personal. I have a strain that usually makes most people quite sleepy and is great for aches and pains. There are a couple of people that say it's great for helping them focus.

You almost have to try individually to really know.

 

[Jackalope]

Yeah that was my thinking. Picking strains is hard enough with out that LOL.

I always enjoy helping others with strain choices. Hell I have studied them for 30 years. I just would hate to send someone in the wrong direction.

Think is. As much as some strains can help. There are going to be others that will make things far worse. I have hybrids that put you down but not out. Tired as hell but your mind just won't go to sleep. As much as I like these on rainy afternoons. They are terrible at night time.

I grow lots of strains at once. I can find a place for all of them. Not all people do it this way. If someone is going to grow one strain. It is hard to make the wrong choice then have to wait 6 months figuring that out.

 

[No Pain]

I don't have PTSD . But I would say that any strain that aids in reducing anxiety , provides focus and happiness with a dash of chill ...like ummm say Ak47 picked with 10% amber would be a winner .
But as stated earlier sometimes its different for people just like some are more sensitive to thc than others no matter how long they have been smoking . Unfortunately its a trail by error kinda thing .

I can tell you this much I sent a relative some oil (true rso made from WW) that did have ptsd bad ( Vietnam bad) and well I was told that even though he didn't say they could tell he enjoyed it by the look on his face as he daydreamed flicking the ashes of the cigarette that he did not have in his had (he had stopped smoking some time back) and the smile on his face . Not to mention that until that point in his life he had never tried cannabis in any form as he was totally against it.
May he rest in peace .

 

[Jackalope]

Most of the strains I "Really" like put a smile on your face. Like you mentioned it just seems to appear LOL. Because of this I thought they might be good for PTSD.

Those strains can also be very introspective. Letting thoughts bounce around your head. In lots of PTSD cases "What" is in the mind is the problem. That is my biggest worry. I would hate to suggest someone grow a strain I thought would work. That ends up trapping them in a mind they are trying to get away from

 

[No Pain]

Most of the strains I "Really" like put a smile on your face. Like you mentioned it just seems to appear LOL. Because of this I thought they might be good for PTSD.

Those strains can also be very introspective. Letting thoughts bounce around your head. In lots of PTSD cases "What" is in the mind is the problem. That is my biggest worry. I would hate to suggest someone grow a strain I thought would work. That ends up trapping them in a mind they are trying to get away from

I understand completely . I do know that when you harvest them makes a difference and there is also a paper out there about it . If I can find it again I will pm you a link or post it here . Now for those to understand what a mean ..when you take a strain that is uplifting and heady and harvest it to early (clear and cloudy ) you still have a smoke that is energetic but it causes racing thoughts (more paranoia). Now that type of high would definitely not help someone with ptsd .

Now take that same strain and harvest it when it is truly ripe in my opinion ( at least 10%amber ) you still get / feel some energy but not like you are on speed ..it more on the level of motivation along with a peaceful calming feeling now throwing in some introspection into that ride you are now calmly processing thought and events in a state of calm and gives you the ability to diffuse negative thought's and that is healing ..where in the other senario you are combating thoughts that are zipping by, without the ability to focus and they are generally filled with negative energy so it just keeps building .

So we must ask ourselves and hopefully someone that is dealing with this can shed more light ...is the cause of your anxiety due to you combating the negative thoughts ( trying to push them away) because you are being flooded with them or the are so loud that you cant focus on processing it and filing it away properly . So in the end it keeps reoccurring at the same level or a higher level because it has only been pushed back and hasn't been defused and filed .

Also given the same train of thought as above . If given the ability to calmly address and defuse these great balls of negative energy ,when they come back into your mind when triggered is it softer and becomes easier and easier to deal with each and every time thereafter given the correct mindset to so.

See just attempting to do the best I can in filling the shoes of someone dealing with this monster . I cant help that cannabis that aids in introspection being a key . The difference being rapid and negative versus a slow flow and positive .

 

[Orlando Scout]

I have ptsd and have noticed some heady strains work and some don’t. The more extreme Sativas give me such bad anxiety I get in my own head and everything goes wrong. The old man tried to warn me, but like an idiot I had to learn that lesson the hard way lol. I like a nice heady buzz but it’s hit and miss on what will help or hurt. For me it seems Sativa dom with a touch of Indica checks all the right boxes.
So I guess really it’s up to the individual and the severity of the ptsd. Hope this helps you somewhat.

 

[No Pain]

I have ptsd and have noticed some heady strains work and some don’t. The more extreme Sativas give me such bad anxiety I get in my own head and everything goes wrong. The old man tried to warn me, but like an idiot I had to learn that lesson the hard way lol. I like a nice heady buzz but it’s hit and miss on what will help or hurt. For me it seems Sativa dom with a touch of Indica checks all the right boxes.
So I guess really it’s up to the individual and the severity of the ptsd. Hope this helps you somewhat.

Yes it does help . Ak47 is a hybrid .
Question in regards to the Sativa did you grow it yourself ? If so do you know when you harvested ? See I didn’t think to mention that I was referring to a hybrid when I recommended a harvest time . I would think that a pure Sativa may be found to be helpful when harvested at closer to 40% amber giving it a balance . But it’s just a theory .

 

[Orlando Scout]

Yes it does help . Ak47 is a hybrid .
Question in regards to the Sativa did you grow it yourself ? If so do you know when you harvested ? See I didn’t think to mention that I was referring to a hybrid when I recommended a harvest time . I would think that a pure Sativa may be found to be helpful when harvested at closer to 40% amber giving it a balance . But it’s just a theory .

I grow all of my own meds and have tried at different harvest windows. I have also grown a few Sativas that never turned amber so that trick doesn’t always work. Normally with ptsd comes anxiety so most people are going to need some type of Indica in there to help with calming. That of course is just my opinion after living with ptsd, anxiety and depression.

 

[No Pain]

I grow all of my own meds and have tried at different harvest windows. I have also grown a few Sativas that never turned amber so that trick doesn’t always work. Normally with ptsd comes anxiety so most people are going to need some type of Indica in there to help with calming. That of course is just my opinion after living with ptsd, anxiety and depression.

Thank you for your input and may you be free of it all ... I can relate to anxiety and depression .

 

[Weaselcracker]

I was told by a couple doctors that I have PTSD. This was immediately followed in both cases by them trying to push antidepressants up on me at which points I left and didn’t pursue the subject.
It just has to be specific to the person. Sativas are what work for me, and indicas are just awful for me. I like being able to think clearly. Feeling confused, forgetful, paranoid or otherwise mentally crippled is a major downward spiral for me.
I recently revisited trying smoking some indica and the experience was truly terrible as usual. What were just normal background stresses of the day became huge and overwhelming, blown out of all proportion. Major paranoia and a whole bunch of other nasty side effects. Yuck.
But some people smoke that same stuff and slip into a peaceful happy state.

I think you can’t go too far wrong with a mild sativa dominant strain. 70 or 80% sativa with enough indica to take some of the speediness away, and a fairly low thc level.

 

[Orlando Scout]

I was told by a couple doctors that I have PTSD. This was immediately followed in both cases by them trying to push antidepressants up on me at which points I left and didn’t pursue the subject.
It just has to be specific to the person. Sativas are what work for me, and indicas are just awful for me. I like being able to think clearly. Feeling confused, forgetful, paranoid or otherwise mentally crippled is a major downward spiral for me.
I recently revisited trying smoking some indica and the experience was truly terrible as usual. What were just normal background stresses of the day became huge and overwhelming, blown out of all proportion. Major paranoia and a whole bunch of other nasty side effects. Yuck.
But some people smoke that same stuff and slip into a peaceful happy state.

I think you can’t go too far wrong with a mild sativa dominant strain. 70 or 80% sativa with enough indica to take some of the speediness away, and a fairly low thc level.

That’s about the same for me except I use Indicas to sleep at night.

 

[Weaselcracker]

Yeh just reading back now and I see you came to the same conclusion.
About the only allegedly indica dominant strain that I smoke and like is Peyote Purple. It’s very mild and doesn’t give me many unwanted side effects.

 

[No Pain]

Im not the OP . But Thank you both for sharing . I prefer a hybrid leaning to the sativa side myself , for anxiety and to combat depression and one that also provides pain relief . I may not have PTSD but I do have fibromyalgia and the more anxiety I have the worse the flair up and then the vicious circle begins .

 

[Jackalope]

Great info coming out here. Just what I wanted to see. Yes some of it is stuff we all know from basic grow info. 2 things pop up regularly.

1 Each strain effects people differently
2 Harvest time can change the high of lots of strains.

Still no Exact answers. That is the reason for the whole conversation. The longer we look into it the more we will find out. The biggest "Key" is now real research is being done into it.

I know there are lots of medical use's for marijuana. Taking nothing away from the other medical use's. The one that interests me the most are issues with the mind. Depression PTSD and lots of other things have been treated with chemicals for a long time. In lots cases one drug is there to combat the effects of another drug they are giving you.

I have seen so much of what marijuana can do to the mind and a persons thoughts. It is really nice to see it finally being used for problems in the mind.

 

[No Pain]

brining what came to mind when I was replying to another thread non related to this one. I wanted to ask if you knew the rating (THC content ) of the pure Sativas that you have tried that did not function very well and I am taking into consideration that everyone is different as to how strains affect them . However currently the common denominator is a hybrid leaning to the sativa side is more effective . So im wondering if we will find yet another common denominator. so I would love to here what the strain was rated to have if you have the info be that info from the breeder or dispensary.

 

[Simon Limon]

I have serious PTSD from military service in the mid to late Sixties. I eventually gave up marijuana as it was only making my condition worse. Thirty years later, with CBD so much in the news -- and very easily available here in WA, I tried a mild CBD oil, under the tongue. (This was as a result of having a bad, scary eruption of PTSD.)

To fast forward, I'm now growing my own: Critical Mass (indica) and Danish Hawaiian (sativa) clones. I've been given oil made with DanishH and find that I really like it, but only in small doses. I'm now making my own oil, which is even more concentrated. I prefer a strong concentrate as I can measure out small doses quite easily with an eye dropper. 1/4 to 1/3 ml works for me but a test dose of 1 ml sent my mind racing and I couldn't relax or sleep.

I haven't yet tried Critical Mass but bought it specifically because of reviews and high CBD content. It is an indica, however, so after reading the comments here I'm really hoping I find it useable. (I have 6 CM plants and 2 of the Danish.)

 

[Newfun]

Just this week I tried CBD for PTSD. 1ml help (store bought) think I would need a little more. Going to grow my own CBD when seeds come. Also, tried some homemade oil from random plant trimming. Did it as a fun dry run. These have high THC low CBD. At first made me uncomfortable. Did notice hand tremors were gone. PTSD affects each person different. I get self conscious, tense muscles, tremors etc. Cannabis that lets me be clear, non paranoid, and relaxed muscles hits it for me. Someone else could try the same and their effect could be different. I think our brains are do conditioned to be PTSD the chemistry is by the individual. Try anything 1 time in a safe environment also small amount so it can wear off quick if not good.

 

[Newfun]

Cannabis can make me introspective. Times I need to be totally clear headed. Times I need to clear out emotional baggage. Cannabis can heighten those types of things for me. See why I would avoid social situations with one type over the other. It gets very uncomfortable

 

[Jackalope]

Cool imput.

Let me add a couple things to stuff that has been mentioned.

One person asked about the THC content of sativa's that caused reactions. The highs from sativa's change so much it is hard to tell. That is also why it is hard to say some this type of weed is what you want. The buzz or high from one sativa can be alert but relaxing. When another of the same strength will have you bouncing off the walls.

CBD content may be one of the reasons. I know the land race stuff I have grown, while not as strong as the new bred sativa's had a much more rounded high. For example. A 16% Chocolate Thai will bake when you when a 25% Tangie treats you like you just drank 2 pots of coffee.

I always thought the body part of smash weed came from CBD do to bad care after harvest. Now I am not so sure. Maybe it is just in the genetics.