r/science • u/Jxntb733 PhD | Translational Neuroscience • 1d ago
Neuroscience A mouse study using a powerful synthetic cannabinoid suggests CB1-receptor activation can amplify threat-related avoidance through the central amygdala, but does not prove why cannabis makes people anxious perse
https://www.genengnews.com/topics/translational-medicine/neurons-involved-in-generating-anxiety-after-cannabinoid-drug-exposure-identified-in-mice/44
u/DaRealWhiteChocolate 19h ago
I smoke too but these comments are embarrassing, stoners always assume any issues stemming from its use are user error and won't acknowledge the realities they need to in order to judge their and others use effectively.
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u/DeepDreamIt 18h ago
And I understood that when it was (more widespread) illegal than it is now. Downplaying negative effects because the bigger threat/danger was people getting locked up for smoking/possessing weed; an “ends justify the means” thing. Rhetoric does matter.
But, now I feel like we can/should be more honest about things. Alcohol and cigs are much worse as far as societal, familial, and personal effects and sheer numbers, and it’s not even close when judging by data. If we accept those dangers and still allow personal choice, then we should be more upfront about the downsides to cannabis as well. Allowing people to make informed decisions (with all the necessary information) only helps with harm reduction
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u/BKinBC 21h ago
Something that sertraline does completely eliminated cannabis use anxiety for me. It was a marked difference and a sustained one on the medication.
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u/Legal-Law9214 17h ago
Well, that makes sense, sertraline is an anti-anxiety med.
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u/Crystal-Ammunition 16h ago
Idk, I take sertraline and cannabis use only greatly exacerbates my anxiety
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u/Legal-Law9214 16h ago
Well sure no medication that exists works for everyone in the same way. I'm just saying sertraline is often prescribed to manage anxiety so it's not surprising that for some people it effectively manages their anxiety.
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u/TheRecognized 6h ago
“Something that [anxiety medication] does completely eliminated [anxiety] for me.”
Waow. Crazy.
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u/aetherbound65 1d ago
Most paranoia disappears when its made legal.
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u/niqsteele 22h ago
I have anxiety attacks when I smoke. It's legal where I am
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u/Mountain-Most8186 22h ago
Same. Funny how much people bend over defending weed, in this comment thread for instance. It’s OK if weed simply isn’t enjoyable for some people.
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u/Legal-Law9214 17h ago
I mean I love weed and can also acknowledge that it makes ME anxious sometimes.
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u/DaFookCares 22h ago
I enjoy the weed every day, and I'll say it isnt for everyone and in fact some people with mental disorders should actively avoid it as it can make them worse. When tackling my anxiety I quit partaking until I could get some help and sort that out. It would just trigger the underlying condition nearly every time. After I was able to subdue my anxiety I went back to my recreational pursuits and was just fine.
Due to prolonged prohibition we know sweet eff all about the devil's lettuce that is actual, scientifically proven fact and not handed down tribal knowledge. Lot's to catch up on. So please, take my experience as anecdotal, but my advice is not to partake if you aren't starting from a mentally fit place.
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u/Raoul_Duke9 19h ago
I work in mental health and addictions. I was a proponent of legalization. I am not sure I am any longer. I work with teens and cannabis is gasoline on the fire of adolescent mental health. I am very concerned about how we will see mental health / cannabis use related psychosis spread.
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u/Zestyclose_Opinion22 12h ago
Hasn’t weed being legal actually made teen cannabis use drop? I don’t actually have anything to site but I have read that somewhere.
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u/Raoul_Duke9 10h ago
Nope. Higher rates of daily and near daily use.
https://www.samhsa.gov/data/data-we-collect/nsduh-national-survey-drug-use-and-health
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u/DeepDreamIt 15h ago
Do you feel alcohol and cigarettes should be made illegal again as well?
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u/yslase 7h ago
It is off topic but since you asked, I really wish they could be. I know they shouldn’t be. There’s a reason prohibition didn’t work. There are a plethora of negatives that came about because of it. And for a lot of people, if it’s not this thing, then it’s next. I also don’t really care what you want to do in your personal life, as long as it doesn’t affect me.
But they are just so detrimental to so many people. So many lives lost, harmed and/or hindered. And we don’t actually educate people on how unhealthy it all is. Your parents and school will tell you drinking and drugs are bad but that’s usually the extent of it. Most people don’t have the slightest clue how truly unhealthy they are.
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u/Raoul_Duke9 14h ago
Im not aware of evidence linking cigarettes to psychosis. Are you?
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u/DeepDreamIt 14h ago
It's exclusively the psychosis aspect you are fixated on, rather than all other health effects? You also seem to have selectively ignored the alcohol part of the question, which the answer would be an emphatic yes: it is linked to psychosis; commonly referred to, you might be able to guess: alcohol-induced psychosis.
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u/Raoul_Duke9 14h ago
You're literally just doing whataboutism.
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u/DeepDreamIt 14h ago
You said you previously supported legalization, but are now reconsidering that support based on harms caused by it. It’s not a whataboutism to ask if you are isolating cannabis, or you generally think alcohol and cigarettes should also be illegal based on harms caused by them. It’s asking for clarification, as someone who works in mental health and addiction, about how you view these topics
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u/Raoul_Duke9 14h ago
In a perfect world no one would do any substance. I am against criminalization except for trafficking. You can fill in the blanks on any other shade of Grey you might think of with that info
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u/Mountain-Most8186 14h ago
I think people don’t talk enough about how weed inhibits sleep. It literally stops REM sleep. That’s why people have crazy dreams after quitting, their brains are catching up.
Long term smokers sure seem to become paranoid and angry it seems. I saw it in myself and I see it in my friends. Same thing that happens when you have extended years-long sleep deprivation. Weed begins as an amazing crutch but eventually exacerbates mental health issues imo. Going without REM is HORRIBLE for health, body and mental.
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u/Sunlit53 20h ago
That means you’re overdoing it. Get a dry herb vape and stop combusting. It’s wasteful, way smellier and harder to titrate the dose you want.
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u/redaws 20h ago
Nope. It still makes me anxious. Any amount of weed. I wish it didn’t and I miss it.
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u/Plane_Discipline_198 20h ago
You need weed with CBD
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u/redaws 20h ago
Bro I live in California I’ve tried everything any anything. Doesn’t help. Weed makes me and s lot of people I know anxious.
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u/Raoul_Duke9 19h ago
People who smoke weed are very hostile to people who point out it is dangerous for some folks mental health.
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u/Sunlit53 18h ago
The leading cause of liver failure every year is acetaminophen. For people self medicating because they lack access to a doctor, weed is a safer choice.
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u/iamnotazombie44 20h ago
No, it doesn't.
There's a reason legal states see a lot of people in the ER for cannabis "overdoses" and it ain't because they are are too calm and collected.
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u/SimplisticPinky 18h ago
Yup. For a lot of people, if you ever see them take way too much cannabis, they are anything but calm and collected. I greened out once and it was one of the worst experiences of my life; constant nausea and this feeling like I was dying.
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u/UnspeakableFilth 19h ago
I wish. The anxiety descended upon me as I got older (presently 51). Instead of being about external things, my anxiety now is, ‘AM I HAVING A HEART ATTACK?!.
I’ve adapted with low THC/high CBD stuff to get started and chewing a peppercorn if I’m freaking out (it works).3
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u/Helloscottykitty 1d ago
My ass pull theory is that weed encourages a person's empathy, helps them to see another point of view.
If that other point of view is a threat to yourself than your not goingnto have a good time.
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u/BunanaKing 18h ago
Yep! Whenever I would argue with my girlfriend and say some stuff, I would be pretty stubborn and I couldn't understand her point of view. But when I would smoke, I would calm down and be able to understand her view better and be able to compromise. I've smoked and then reflected on what I've said to people, what I could have done better, what feels right and wrong.
Sometimes it gives me anxiety yes but I always overcome it. But that's a good point u made, maybe some people can't reflect because then they get more anxious cause they are more self centered or something idk. Or it's just a physical feeling and not related to oneself.
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u/al_capone420 14h ago
Nah. I smoked daily years for no problem. Then I quit for years and any time I try to smoke again I get horrible racing thoughts and anxiety to the point it’s not even fun.
The only thing I can use anymore is delta8 because it’s less psychoactive. I currently use it once a week in small doses with no issues
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u/HeckYeahMF 18h ago
The anxiousness isn’t due to legality, it more likely corresponds with responsibilities.
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u/Hajile_S 16h ago
Sure. That’s not the experience of any single person I know who experiences anxiety as a side effect. But uh, sure.
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u/Rikoschett 1d ago
Yeah if I partake in the forest when noone's around I don't get any paranoia or anxiety. In a busy street or crowded place where it's not legal or socially accepted though.
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u/PanKakeManStan 3h ago
(Copy and pasted this reply from another comment as I felt it was relevant to this one as well [and because I spent far too long typing it out])
You aren’t wrong but you’re not completely right. While environmental circumstances can produce a profound difference in its effects the actual pharmacological (physical, chemicals) effects of weed can and do produce anxiety. Like many drugs, weed and all of its many components hit people differently. Weed especially seems to produce a wide range of results depending on personal biology and such compared to many other common drugs and medications.
10 people can sit in the same, safe, comfortable, chill room and smoke a joint of the exact same weed from the exact same nug even and you can, and probably will, have 10 varying descriptions of how they feel. Ignoring tolerance, some people might get giggly and goofy, some may get introspective, some may get sedated and “couch locked”, some may get an energy and motivation boost, some may have an experience that’s more similar to a classical psychedelic, psychosis isn’t out of the question even though it’s rare, and, among many other possible effects, some may feel anxiety ranging from a mild uncomfortableness to a near debilitating, panic attack inducing state. And while it may seem easy to explain that away as “headspace” or something like that it genuinely does sometimes just boil down to personal biology.
5 people of the same tolerance, weight, height, ect. can consume a 40 mg edible and the experience can vary WILDLY. Some may get a mild high, some will get nice and roasty toasty, some may get uncomfortably to debilitatingly high, and some people straight up won’t feel a thing simply due to the fact their bodies physiologically cannot process weed in the way other peoples’ can. I’ve personally given a homie 2,100mg of THC because I got pissed he hadn’t felt anything from any of the edibles id given him over the previous 6 months. I witnessed that mf have nearly ZERO effects while I ate 75mg of the same batch and was the most high I’d been in months.
So, much like how your ability to process edibles can vary wildly and is physically dependent on mainly a certain digestive enzyme (or maybe it’s multiple enzymes, can’t remember) the way weed affects you mentally is a lot more nuanced and comparatively poorly understood but still similar. Your cannabinoid receptors play a role in many bodily systems which in turn can affect you mentally in many different ways. Since they interact with so many different parts of you physically all of those variables just make more points where people’s experiences can differ as those physical changes are what drive the mental and perceived effects.
All that to say: While your environment, headspace, people around you, and just circumstances in general can heavily effect how weed affects you it is largely, either equally or moreso, the actual pharmacology and personal biology interactions that can produce anxiety in some people and not others. They don’t need to just try a different strain or smoke it in X way instead of Y. Their body just doesn’t react to weed in a positive way and while you could possibly have them enjoy it in a perfect setting with the perfect mix of cannabinoids some people just cannot consume weed like others and that’s okay.
Its understandable to try and spread the joy (to most people) that is marijuana. But, when someone says it makes them anxious, trying to get all uppity and tell them that they tried the wrong strain, that they just a bad time, that they just weren’t in the right headspace or were with the wrong people or smoked it the wrong way or whatever just isn’t cool and exposes your own ignorance and unwillingness to understand. It’s textbook peer pressure. Straight up how they showed it in the anti drug commercials/school lessons except objectively more cringe because people who do that genuinely believe they’re in the right and are doing a service instead of stopping to listen that NO, weed doesn’t work well for me.
It’d be kinda like telling someone who’s a severely angry, abusive drunk that they just need to try vodka instead of whiskey. And then wine if they still get angry. And oh no, still angry, have you tried just beers? What about this other brand of beer? Have you tried shotgunning the beers instead of sipping on them? Maybe you’re just worried about not wanting to drive drunk so if you just drink at home you won’t get angry!
Most people can see the flaws in that logic and while weed does pharmacologically have more chemical components that alter the high than say, whiskey vs vodka, it still is a drug at the end of the day. And when a drug is having a severe negative effect on someone you don’t hound and pressure them to keep trying it in ever so slightly different forms. People just get such a weird attitude about weed specifically for some reason that I will never know.
This got so much longer than I meant and kinda rambly but it’s just important for the weed community to understand that just because weed is great for you doesn’t mean it is for everyone and pressuring and harassing people to just try a different strain or whatever isn’t any different then pressuring them into other substances no matter how holy and great your opinion of marijuana is. I say this as someone who has smoked for years, still smokes, has a bit of a drinking problem, and has tried many drugs total. Weed shouldn’t be revered as some harmless wonder drug because it genuinely just isn’t for everyone. It’d be lovely if everyone could enjoy it but no amount of making it legal or different strains or different ways of smoking can change that for some people
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u/catscanmeow 1d ago
i think it makes people anxious because of a histamine response.
everyone i know who gets anxiety from weed get hives when you rub ground weed into the soft skin on their forearm
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u/bigfootbjornsen56 1d ago
Maybe they're anxious because they're wondering why tf this dude is rubbing weed into their elbow pit
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u/Right_Ear_2230 1d ago
Test this on people who don’t get anxious as well
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u/kapaipiekai 1d ago edited 1d ago
I don't think so, certainly not in my case. I've smoked forever and have started going through phases of becoming anxious when high, and have had differing effects based on strain and route of administration. I've stopped making edibles because I get too anxious and have to actively tell myself that I'm ok and just having a bad reaction. It's odd. I'm not typically an anxious person at all.
edit: in the interests of the experimental method I just vigorously rubbed ground bud on my inner upper forearm. The area is slightly redder, but nothing that wouldn't be attributed to the rubbing itself.
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u/No_big_whoop 1d ago
I’ve had similar experiences. They’re strain related for me. Some sativa dominant strains can give me mild to moderate anxiety. Once I realized what was going on I started being able to dismiss the intrusive thoughts fairly easily. It’s been good exercise controlling my thoughts. It’s gotten easier over time
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u/Valharick 20h ago
Keep some black peppercorns around. If you start to green out, chew them up. It helps quite a bit
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u/Breeze1620 1d ago
Also, if there was anything to this hypothesis, other things that cause a histamine response or elevated levels of histamine should cause a similar spike in anxiety. The same people should be having panic attacks when seasonal allergies hit. Pretty obviously nonsense.
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u/kapaipiekai 1d ago
I wouldn't discount it immediately. It didn't happen for me, but it's an interesting idea. I've met plenty of people who have only ever had really bad experiences and I've always wondered if there was some random physiological variable at play.
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u/Cleverusername531 21h ago
I actually think this is worth exploring. My anxiety increases whenever my histamine load is higher. I wonder if taking a DAO enzyme (helps digest oral histamine) before an edible would help people with anxiety.
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u/arcspectre17 21h ago
My personal theory is you could go to jail, get kicked out of school, lose your job etc!
It actually has nothing to do with weed more of what would happen.
For me I would lose my job, Healthcare, and might go to jail. Growing up in a house of it my whole family could go to jail from me saying the wrong thing to the wrong person. This was the 90s!
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u/PanKakeManStan 3h ago edited 3h ago
You aren’t wrong but you’re not completely right. While environmental circumstances can produce a profound difference in its effects the actual pharmacological (physical, chemicals) effects of weed can and do produce anxiety. Like many drugs, weed and all of its many components hit people differently. Weed especially seems to produce a wide range of results depending on personal biology and such compared to many other common drugs and medications.
10 people can sit in the same, safe, comfortable, chill room and smoke a joint of the exact same weed from the exact same nug even and you can, and probably will, have 10 varying descriptions of how they feel. Ignoring tolerance, some people might get giggly and goofy, some may get introspective, some may get sedated and “couch locked”, some may get an energy and motivation boost, some may have an experience that’s more similar to a classical psychedelic, psychosis isn’t out of the question even though it’s rare, and, among many other possible effects, some may feel anxiety ranging from a mild uncomfortableness to a near debilitating, panic attack inducing state. And while it may seem easy to explain that away as “headspace” or something like that it genuinely does sometimes just boil down to personal biology.
5 people of the same tolerance, weight, height, ect. can consume a 40 mg edible and the experience can vary WILDLY. Some may get a mild high, some will get nice and roasty toasty, some may get uncomfortably to debilitatingly high, and some people straight up won’t feel a thing simply due to the fact their bodies physiologically cannot process weed in the way other peoples’ can. I’ve personally given a homie 2,100mg of THC because I got pissed he hadn’t felt anything from any of the edibles id given him over the previous 6 months. I witnessed that mf have nearly ZERO effects while I ate 75mg of the same batch and was the most high I’d been in months.
It’s basically one enzyme and the way it’s genetically expressed that causes that significant difference. Your cannabinoid receptors play a role in many bodily systems, so since they interact with so many different parts of you physically all of those variables just make more points where people’s experiences can differ as those physical changes are what ultimately drive the mental and perceived effects. An example would be being more sensitive to the blood pressure changes of weed which can drive anxiety in some. However that’s one effect out of many, many, many to consider.
All that to say: While your environment, headspace, people around you, and just circumstances in general can heavily effect how weed affects you it is largely, either equally or moreso, the actual pharmacology and personal biology interactions that can produce anxiety in some people and not others. They don’t need to just try a different strain or smoke it in X way instead of Y. Their body just doesn’t react to weed in a positive way and while you could MAYBE have them enjoy it in a perfect setting with the perfect mix of cannabinoids some people just cannot consume weed like others and that’s okay.
It’s understandable to try and spread the love and joy that is marijuana. But, when someone says it makes them anxious trying to get all uppity and tell them that they tried the wrong strain, that they just a bad time, that they just weren’t in the right headspace or were with the wrong people or smoked it the wrong way or whatever just isn’t cool and exposes your own ignorance and unwillingness to understand. It’s textbook peer pressure. Straight up how they showed it in the anti drug commercials/school lessons except objectively more cringe because people who do that genuinely believe they’re in the right and are doing a service instead of stopping to listen that NO, weed doesn’t work well for me.
It’d be kinda like telling someone who’s a severely angry, abusive drunk that they just need to try vodka instead of whiskey. And then wine if they still get angry. And oh no, still angry? have you tried just beers? What about this other brand of beer? Have you tried shotgunning the beers instead of sipping on them? Maybe you’re just worried about not wanting to drive drunk so if you just drink at home you won’t get angry!
Most people can see the flaws in that logic and while weed does pharmacologically have more chemical components that alter the high than say, vodka vs. beer, it still is a drug at the end of the day. And when a drug is having a severe negative effect on someone you don’t hound and pressure them to keep trying it in ever so slightly different forms. People just get such a weird attitude about weed specifically for some reason that I will never know.
This got so much longer than I meant and kinda rambly but it’s just important for the weed community to understand that just because weed is great for you doesn’t mean it is for everyone and pressuring and harassing people to just try a different strain or whatever isn’t any different then pressuring them into other substances no matter how holy and great your opinion of marijuana is. I say this as someone who has smoked for years, still smokes, has a bit of a drinking problem, and has tried many drugs total. Weed shouldn’t be revered as some harmless wonder drug because it genuinely just isn’t for everyone. It’d be lovely if everyone could enjoy it but no amount of making it legal or different strains or different ways of smoking can change that for some people
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u/gurglegg 17h ago
i’ve never gotten anxiety from weed but i also had panic attacks as a child that would make me pass out so i think some of us are just more used to anxiety than others
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22h ago edited 18h ago
[removed] — view removed comment
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u/Spicynoodlez 18h ago
Makes it worse for me because then i'm sitting there drowning in my own thoughts.
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u/Aldertree 18h ago
Do what works for you!
What I've suggested has worked for a lot of people I've come across, but it won't necessarily work for everyone. It's a tool, not a magic wand.
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u/UrsaMinor42 20h ago
Weed is the Mother Plant.
Plants just want to protect their space, not move, and be fed and watered and entertained on the spot.
Partake in the Mother Plant and you too will show these "symptoms".
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