Quick tips on how to get sober from marijuana
There are more options than ever for cannabis products in New Jersey. But if you are a new cannabis consumer, you should be aware of a few things before getting involved.
The best way to avoid getting uncomfortably high from weed use is to schedule a time to indulge in the herb and limit the amount you take.
However, if you find that you don’t understand the dosage of the cannabis product you used and want to reduce the sedative effects of consuming high levels of THC (the psychoactive chemical in cannabis), here’s what to do to get sober relatively quickly.
These tips have been scientifically or anecdotally proven to help clear the mind and focus during a sugar fog.
Dose control: Wait and see
It is important to note that there is no way to instantly sober up from cannabis use. None of these treatments will work right away. They all require time to mitigate the effects associated with large amounts of THC.
The best way to avoid these effects is to limit your THC dose from the beginning. While this can be difficult to control when smoking, limiting yourself to two to four puffs from an e-cigarette or vape pen or adopting a “wait and see” approach is a good practice to adopt.
When taking edibles (gum, hard disks, mints, caramel, pills, chocolate, tinctures, RSO concentrates), try breaking them up into smaller pieces and wait 20-40 minutes to see how effective they are and how quickly they affect you. One can use this information to judge timing and determine if the rest of the food is needed.
The right timing: Plan for it
Regardless of the strength or amount of cannabis used, it may take 2 to 12 hours to fully recover from cannabis use.
If smoking or vaping, the effects can be felt almost immediately (five to 45 minutes), but can last two to six hours. Edibles take longer for effects to begin (30-80 minutes), but can remain in the system from two to eight hours.
It’s always a good idea to make sure you set aside a chunk of time before you have to do anything important like taking care of a child, driving, or operating heavy machinery.
all of this! Black pepper, pine and citrus
What foods can help? Well, anecdotally, chewing black pepper or grinding a generous amount of it onto food can help in this process. This is one example of how terpenoids – phytochemicals found in cannabis and every plant on Earth – can be harnessed to encourage mental clarity and focus.
The peels of citrus fruits like lemons and oranges are particularly strong in limonene, a terpene that can help with concentration and combat the effects of tetrahydrocannabinol (THC). Drinking fresh lemon juice or orange juice with the peel and pulp, or just chewing the peel) can help keep the body alert.
Pine is a reliable source of both limonene and pinene, which can help restore mental clarity from symptoms of high THC intake such as short-term memory loss. Perhaps eating some pesto or eating a couple of teaspoons of ground pine nuts can help with the wakefulness process.
Balance: Countering THC with CBD
CBD products (the non-psychoactive chemical in weed) can also be an option to combat high levels of tetrahydrocannabinol (THC).
Choosing an edible with 1:1 or 1:3 ratios of THC to CBD can prevent the consumer from getting too high in the first place. Using a CBD tincture or other type of sublingual injection before or after inhalation can also balance out the uncontrolled power of THC.
CBD stores and some legal weed dispensaries have CBD hemp flower on their menus. This weed has been tested to have less than 0.03% THC content. Indulging in a joint following this or even mixing it into the first can help combat high THC levels for a balanced effect.
Be responsible: Hire a driver
Just as with alcohol, it is good practice to have at least one person in a group who is not involved in the herbal session to ensure that any emergency or risky procedure can be completed without putting people at risk.
Food, sleep and time
The quickest path to sobriety is to eat something — like pesto — drink at least two glasses of water and take a quick nap (at least 30-45 minutes) to try to wake up.
Do you have a question about consuming cannabis? ask me anything.
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Gabe Warren He is NJ.comCannabis Life Reporter. You will cover everything related to retail, trade and culture.
