Breaking Down the Basics, Benefits, and Best Practices for Cannabis

introduction

Then I came across a LinkedIn post about cannabis use and one of the commenters mentioned her own struggle maintaining a balanced relationship with cannabis. A 17-year cannabis industry veteran, Kristen Yoder has worked in roles from budtender to media maven. I spoke with Kristen about the evolution of her cannabis relationship.

“I spoke with Kristen about
the evolution of her
cannabis relationship. “

Always a recreational consumer, Kristen moved from flower to dabs looking for peak intoxication. But then she found stopping her use brought on withdrawal symptoms, like lack of appetite, insomnia, and muscle aches. While struggling with this because cannabis and the industry are such a huge part of her life, she does think cannabis use can be balanced and approached from a harm reduction perspective for people who wish to change their relationship with the plant. However, she also feels the industry should do a better job presenting the risks along with the benefits to cannabis use and should not promote mindless consumption of very high-THC product.

After speaking with Kristen, I began to think about the spectrum of the cannabis plant and how it promotes balance in its natural form. CBD offsets the effects of THC. Terpenes enhance the therapeutic and experienced benefits of the plant. Extracts and isolates of THC might do the job, but they lack the protective factors of the whole plant. Maybe the answer wasn’t to eliminate the plant, but rather to balance my own consumption by looking at how I was consuming and whether I really embraced everything the plant has to offer. After careful consideration, here are things I focused on to bring my relationship with cannabis back into balance. There is no right answer. Each consumer must create their own cannabis path and decide what a healthy relationship looks like for them.

Method of Consumption

We like efficiency. Removing all possible steps between us and our desired outcome is crucial to the development of technology. Elexa, the Clapper, and the remote control are all examples of technology that result in less effort needed to achieve results. Cannabis is no different.

There was a time when people had to roll their own joints, now pre-rolls are on the shelves all ready to go next to edibles that can be consumed literally like candy, and vape pens For most consumers this does not pose a problem, however, efficiency can also lead to mindless consumption. Take microwave ovens. Before microwaves, eating homemade cake meant buying the ingredients, mixing them together, putting them in the oven, and waiting for the result. When I Googled “microwave cake \