Sadness is an essential human experience. We will all experience grief throughout our lives, some of us more than others.
Just as sorrow affects us all, it also permeates all aspects of our lives. When we grieve, our thoughts are consumed by our loss. Food does not taste so good. We are less motivated to do things that we used to like. Everything is needed to be able to continue with the movements, events and emotions in our daily lives.
And it's harder to sleep. When we experience sadness, it is common to experience new insomnia, or to feel exhausted, even if you sleep enough.
How does grief affect our sleep, and what can you do to sleep better during grief and grief?
What is sadness?
Grief or grief is the painful experience and symptoms associated with the loss of a loved one, such as a spouse, family member, friend, pet or other person.
Sadness itself causes intense emotional and physical symptoms: low energy, anxiety, headache, digestive problems and sleeping problems. Meanwhile, the person suddenly experiences disturbances in other parts of his daily life: he may have lost an important source of support when his loved one died, creating new stressors and feeling daily activities that are usually undertaken with the person now feeling drastically different and lonely .
- Changes in appetite or weight gain or loss
- Digestive problems
- Difficulty concentrating
- Insomnia or sleeping problems
- Fatigue during the day
- Fear
- Headache
- Low energy or motivation
- Depression
The experience of sadness
If you've ever experienced grief - whether it's the death of a pet or a loved one, the end of a relationship, or any other perceived loss - you know how devastating it can be to your brain, body, and mind. Grief is a wrecking ball that can destroy the foundation of your world and put you in a downward spiral of anger, depression, insomnia, physical pain and illness.
You may have never thought of using cannabis during any stage of the grieving process. But when you understand how marijuana — and in particular the various cannabinoids and terpenes in the plant — interacts with the human body and brain, it makes sense that it could be helpful in easing some of the emotional — and even physical — pain caused by or aggravated by grief.
How cannabis can relieve debilitating symptoms of sadness
The experience of someone with sadness:
I lost both parents in recent years. As I witnessed my father's rapid decline after a failed outpatient treatment for liver cancer, I was in shock and in the early stages of mourning. The stress hormone cortisol rushed through my veins, sending me in a continuous flight or fighting reaction, destroying my mental state and even my immune system.
At the time, I hadn't learned what I know now about cannabis and cannabidiol (CBD), so they weren't even on my radar. The grief I experienced was unlike any emotional trauma I'd ever experienced, and it gave me post-traumatic stress.
My mother's death was emotionally exhausting, but much less traumatic than my father's. I spent a year doing my business in cannabis and much more familiar with the therapeutic benefits of cannabis and CBD. I have consumed and evaporated CBD while taking care of my mother in the last weeks of her life. CBD helped me calm my nerves and get much needed sleep.
I also gave my mom CBD in the form of honey infused and rubbed her feet with CBD rich cream. I would like to think that both brought her some comfort and calm. I personally felt more balanced and centered during a very stressful time.
A story about how marijuana helps to process emotions
The death of a loved one isn't the only circumstance when we experience grief. Sally, a cannabis professional in California, experienced emotional anguish over an estrangement from her teenage son and a breast cancer diagnosis. In the beginning, Sally used cannabis to numb herself and put herself to sleep.
Then, at one point, awaiting a medical scan, she ate a cannabis-soaked gum and had a different experience.
“When I was high, I could part with my grief,” explains Sally. “I realized that terrible things had indeed happened to me, but I was surviving them. Cannabis allowed me to take a mental breath and take a look at what was really going on. ”
How cannabinoids and terpenes can address grief symptoms
Sadness is complex and different for every person, although some common effects of sadness can be:
- The release of stress hormones
- High anxiety and panic attacks
- A roller coaster of extreme emotions
- Compromised immune system
- Physical inflammation and pain
Cannabis contains chemical compounds - namely cannabinoids and terpenes - that react in specific ways on our body and brain. If you look closely at the therapeutic effects of certain cannabinoids and terpenes, you can begin to understand how and why cannabis can be useful in addressing the effects of grief.
Looking at cannabinoids, CBD appears to help with:
- Reduce physical pain and inflammation
- Anxiety relief
- Reduce panic attacks
- Promote sleep
The cannabinoid cannabinol (CBN) can act as a sedative. During stressful times and during grief, getting good sleep can be one of the most powerful, healing things we can do.
Terpenes are oils found in many plants and fruits. It is the terpenes that give the plants their taste and smell. There can be several terpenes in cannabis that can help with grieving symptoms:
- Linalool, also found in lavender, can provide anxiety relief with a calming quality and support the immune system.
- Limonene can relieve stress and improve mood.
- Both humuleen and myrcene reduce inflammation. The former relieves pain and the latter promotes relaxation.
What types of cannabis species should I choose when I mourn?
"Cannabis is absolutely beneficial for the management of many emotions," says Dr. Shivangi Amin, a registered cannabis physician for the State of Maryland, USA.
“I've seen it benefit people with grief because it helps reduce anxiety and feelings of sadness. Sativas can help people recharge their batteries during the day and add some buzz to their routine, helping them process the grief. Indicas help people deal with insomnia and pain that is often seen with sadness. ”
Sally is drawn to indica strains such as mother's milk or an indica hybrid such as Tahoe OG. She personally stays away from sativas or sativa-heavy hybrids as they cause rumination, which is something she doesn't want to experience while grieving.
Cannabis is not always a cure and the effects can be very individual for each person.
“Cannabis for grief? It doesn't make it go away, but just like physical pain, it makes it more manageable, ”says Sally.
“With cannabis I can see some light through the darkness. It reminds me that the light is always there, even when we can't see it. ”
Also read more on Tuck.com (IN), Leafly (EN) and HelloMD (EN)
