Government shutdown, election nonsense, the end of summer, the news if full of all sorts of negative information. Plus, autumn is here along with cuffing season, the  time of year where many short-term relationships happen. It usually begins in the fall around October and ending in the spring around April—so there’s time to get cuffed and uncuffed. And while a short-term relationship which expires with spring, swimsuits and sunbathing may sound odd, some love it. It provides a cozy atmosphere and cuddle buddy for the long dark months and the holiday season.  Cannabis can help you with stress of news, searches and just life in general.

While marijuana can be a great escape mechanism, it can also be a constructive way of grounding yourself in the present and curbing other coping mechanisms that are more harmful.

It can curb your drinking

Fall starts up many social events with work and family life.  The darker evenings give us a free pass to drink earlier every day. While drinking might help you feel better in the short term, marijuana might play a more effective role in the long term, eliminating hangovers, treating your body more kindly and preventing sad drunken episodes. Next time you feel yourself itching to reach for that bottle of wine or that whisky you’ve been saving for a special occasion (the end of the world counts), reach for an edible instead. Your body can tell the difference.

It can help you eat

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If you’re someone who feels anxiety in the pit of your stomach, hindering the desire to eat, marijuana might help; THC, the psychoactive component in marijuana, has been shown to stimulate appetite.

According to a 2015 Yale study, neurons in the brain that are normally involved in suppressing appetite were being tricked by THC. Lead author Tamas Horvath of the study explains it this way:

“It’s like pressing a car’s brakes and accelerating instead. We were surprised to find that the neurons we thought were responsible for shutting down eating, were suddenly being activated and promoting hunger, even when you are full. It fools the brain’s central feeding system.”

The government agrees it is a way to help you overcome anxiety and move toward a normal eating pattern.

It can help you feel more present

Marijuana is an interesting compound; while it makes a lot of people feel good, it also makes a lot of people feel paranoid.  Manage your intake and have a talk with your budtender. As long as you keep an eye on your dosage, you’re likely to avoid bad reactions. Marijuana can help you have engaging conversations with friends, enjoy the outdoors , or help you get lost in a video game, book or movie. When used correctly, it’ll rein in your brain when it feels like going to the doom and gloom place.

If you’ve had bad experiences with marijuana, try to remember what happened that day that triggered it. Was it the strain? Was it your mood? Were you with people who triggered you? Keep in mind these variables whenever you’re planning on toking up and limit your amount of stressors. Start off slow, preferably with something you’ve tried before and increase or experiment as you go.

Manage anxiety

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The right strain and dosage of marijuana can help you relax — something you might be needing after the very intense week we’ve all had. Consider the method of consumption: If you’re having an edible, be patient and eat it during the earlier. If you’re smoking, pace yourself through the night and keep yourself hydrated. The idea is to relax, not to knock yourself out. Unless that’s what you want, in which case, go for it.

Much needed sleep

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Perhaps the most common ailment affecting many of us is insomnia. After a week of staying up and watching the news, it might be difficult to get back to your normal sleep schedule. While marijuana can do a lot of the work for you, another thing you can use to your advantage is devising a sleep routine and avoiding screens while in bed. Difficult, but not impossible. Here are 5 more tips to help you fall asleep faster.

One of the activities that people first recommend when discussing conditions like depression and anxiety is exercise. The suggestion is so pervasive that it’s almost a cliche by now. Still, evidence shows that exercise is incredibly helpful for your mental health, decreasing muscle tension, promoting the production of serotonin, and more.

A British study suggests that people with depression and anxiety are twice as likely to reap the benefits of exercise when compared to people who don’t suffer from these conditions.

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The data was obtained by tracking the exercise patterns of over 50,000 people in their late fifties. About a third of them were affected by health conditions like depression and anxiety. While everyone experienced benefits from moderate amounts of exercise, people who had a mental health condition experienced 22 percent less risk of having a heart attack or a blocked coronary artery. For reference purposes, the majority of candidates only experienced a 17 percent decrease in their odds of suffering from a cardiac condition.

“The effect of physical activity on the brain’s stress response may be particularly relevant in those with stress-related psychiatric conditions. This is not to suggest that exercise is only effective in those with depression or anxiety, but we found that these patients seem to derive a greater cardiovascular benefit from physical activity,” said the lead researcher of the study, Hadil Zureigat.

Anxiety and other forms of stress can result in inflammation, a condition that creates risks for people’s circulatory systems. The effect of exercise targets different risk factors for people with an existing mental health condition, reducing the cortisol in their bodies and increasing cardiovascular health, all the while producing serotonin and boosting their moods.

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Introducing a workout routine into your life when you don’t have one isn’t easy, but it’s often suggested to start off slow, taking your time to find an activity you find enjoyable. Just one exercise session can make you feel better, but the more you commit to it, the easier it gets to create a habit. Try working out with friends, outdoors, signing up to sports or classes — whatever keeps you accountable, and returning to your activity.

It’s estimated that 18.1% of Americans are dealing with an anxiety disorder of some kind, including generalized anxiety disorder, post traumatic stress syndrome, or obsessive compulsive disorder. Unfortunately, less than half of individuals with an anxiety disorder are seeking treatment, according to the Anxiety and Depression Association of America. Can CBD help anxiety about seeing a therapist?

Why aren’t people in therapy or at least seeing a doctor about medication? Anecdotally, there seems to be a wide variety of preventative factors, including the expense and the ability to admit there’s something wrong in the first place. Being a man seems to come with even more hesitancy about spending time with a mental health professional because of social norms that encourage men to avoid asking for help even when they need it the most.

When Anxiety Keeps You From Seeing a Therapist

It seems that for some, the very idea of sharing their struggle and personal life, even with a doctor, is anxiety inducing. For example, individuals with social anxiety might struggle to see a professional because they’re fearful of being judged. Those who have trauma in their past could very well be avoidant of therapy because they’re uncomfortable with the idea of revisiting those events or worry that talking about them might make it worse.

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These concerns are completely understandable; it can be incredibly difficult to talk honestly about the most difficult things in your life. However, anxiety shouldn’t keep you from getting the help you need to live a healthy and happy life.

Using CBD to Manage Pre-Therapy Anxiety

While some report that getting stoned before therapy has helped them manage their anxiety and open up about what is going on inside their head, that’s a practice that won’t work well for everyone and might be discouraged by your therapist.

Cannabidoil, or CBD, is a cannabis product that shares many beneficial properties with marijuana without the high. It’s also legal in all 50 states. Among the many benefits of CBD is its ability to lessen anxiety, which might make it a better option for use before visiting a therapist’s office.

Although many of the studies up to this point have looked at how CBD oil effects animals with anxiety symptoms, a preliminary study in 2010 looked at CBD use in individuals with social anxiety disorder. Some participants were given 400mg of CBD while others were treated with a placebo. Those given CBD appeared to experience less anxiety based on imaging taken of their brains.

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In 2011, the journal Nature published a similar study looking at the effects of CBD on anxiety about public speaking. In this study, participants were treated with 600mg of CBD and experienced quick and significant relief from their symptoms of anxiety.

Hopefully, more research will be coming our way soon, but since CBD oil has been deemed safe by the World Health Organization and has few side effects, there’s no reason to avoid giving it a try to see if it works for you.

How to Start Using CBD for Anxiety

If you’re looking for a creative way to manage the discomfort or nervousness you feel before heading into the therapist’s office, here’s a few tips for consuming CBD. There isn’t a one-size-fits-all approach to CBD oil dosages; people respond differently to this cannabis product based on their metabolism and body weight. For this reason, we recommend starting slow and working your way up from there until you experience relief from your anxiety symptoms.

For example, many CBD products have a suggested dosage of 25mg, twice a day. Start there for a few days and then increase a little at a time until you start to feel better. If you begin to experience side effects, like fatigue or diarrhea, that might indicate you’re taking too much. Since you want to be in good shape before seeing a therapist, it might be a good idea to give yourself some time to adjust to the product instead of taking it for the first time right before any appointment.