How to Handle an Uncomfortable High

When you watch movies, the idea of getting “too high” is depicted as a funny thing. But if you have experienced the result of taking too much cannabis, it is anything but fun. In fact, for most people, consuming an excessive amount of medical marijuana leads to some pretty unpleasant side effects.

Even if you are cautious about the amount of medical cannabis that you use, there is always the potential to feel overly impaired. Whether you are smoking cannabis, taking edibles, or using tinctures, there are some things you should know about what is going on inside your bodily systems when consuming THC.

What Does a Balanced Cannabis High Feel Like?

Patients use medical cannabis for a variety of reasons and symptoms. Medical cannabis consumption can help reduce symptoms of pain, one of the most common uses. For others, the effect of THC, combined with minor cannabinoids and terpenes, can help with other symptoms, including inflammation, edema, anxiety, insomnia, muscle spasms, and more.

The goal of using medical cannabis should never be complete impairment. Patients should aim for the minimal amount required to provide some relief. Taking enough cannabis so that debilitating symptoms are moderated. Just what that means to each patient will differ.

Ideally, you want to use medical cannabis sparingly. That ensures that your body metabolizes THC in a way that can provide some symptom relief without the unwanted side effects, where you feel functional relief, where you are capable of functioning uninhibited while getting that valuable temporary relief from symptoms of pain, anxiety, muscle tremors, or other problems.

How Do You Know If You’ve Taken Too Much Cannabis?

If you consume too much THC, you may feel some very uncomfortable symptoms. While the results of THC are usually pleasant, and cannabis can provide a calming effect, taking too much THC can result in unpleasant side effects.

There are a few different circumstances where you can consume too much THC and not realize it. You may accidentally take too much. Often, when people are getting used to medical cannabis, they do not realize that it can take time to feel the full effects. And the amount of time that takes depends on a number of factors, including THC potency, whether you have had a light snack, or the type of medical cannabis product you have taken.

While the time it takes to feel the psychoactive effects and physical sensations of medical cannabis varies, on average, edibles may take up to 90 minutes. Smokable cannabis products (vape and whole flower or bud) can provide sensations in under ten minutes but continue to escalate and peak after sixty minutes.

If you do not wait to see what the result is after you consume cannabis, you could take too much. And then experience some uncomfortable and unexpected side effects of THC. This most commonly happens for patients who are taking consuming edibles, as the digested THC takes longer to metabolize.

Common Side-Effects of Too Much THC

Once you have had an unpleasant experience after taking too much THC, chances are you won’t want to make the same mistake twice. While an overdose (taking more than your body can comfortably process) is not life-threatening, it can make you feel unwell.

The most common side effects of taking too much THC include:

• Dry mouth (cotton mouth).
• Dry eyes.
• Nausea.
• Vomiting.
• Increased heart rate.
• Anxiety (feeling anxious or having racing thoughts).
• Paranoia.
• Heavy sedation.
• Poor mobility and muscle coordination.

The good news is that the adverse effects of THC will eventually pass. When experiencing severe intoxicating effects, getting comfortable, hydrating, and riding it out is a good idea. Some people find that eating food or smelling black peppercorns (which contain pinene and caryophyllene) may help with nausea. Inhaling lemon peel (limonene) may also help.

A cold shower won’t help your body metabolize THC faster, but it can make you feel better. Stay calm, take deep breaths, get some fresh air if you can, reduce physical activity, and monitor your symptoms. If you are concerned, try to call a family member or friend to sit with you and seek medical assistance if your symptoms worsen.

Learning Appropriate THC Potency Levels

During the 1970s and before states began legalizing medical marijuana, the average potency of illicit cannabis was 3% to 7%. Today, those low-level medical cannabis strains and products are harder to find. The average potency in licensed dispensaries is approximately 20% THC.

Most strains and products in a medical dispensary will average between 15% to 25% THC. You may hear that the cannabis plant has a biological maximum of 35%, which means THC, which is naturally occurring in some of the most potent strains.

What that also means is that cannabis products over 35% are enhanced. That means they have been augmented with additional THC. And it is considered excessively high THC content, which doesn’t necessarily work better to address symptoms like pain, muscle spasms, or anxiety.

If you are new to using medical cannabis, the rule is to start with a lower potency. That is because low tolerance levels for THC mean a little can go a long way. The higher the THC level, such as in smokable cannabis concentrates, the more likely you are to experience adverse effects.

Your local dispensary can provide valuable advice about suitable strains and potencies for your needs. Patients may benefit from choosing strains that have a high cannabidiol (CBD) ratio. Cannabidiol helps reduce some of the impairing effects of THC.

How Long Does It Take to Return to Normal?

One of the things you may be thinking of after realizing you are “too high” is how long the psychoactive effects are going to last. It can feel frustrating, particularly if you have things to do and feel immobilized or nauseous.

Sobering up from cannabis or “coming back down” is not a process you can speed up, unfortunately. The body metabolizes Tetrahydrocannabinol (THC). It would be great if we could speed up our metabolism and get back to normal as soon as possible. But unfortunately, it doesn’t work that way.

The amount of time it takes to sober up depends on the individual, starting with the speed of your own metabolism. People with high metabolic rates will recover more quickly than those with slower metabolisms.

Passed through the human endocannabinoid system, THC enters every cell of your body. Tissues and organs that have the highest concentration of CB1 and CB2 cannabinoid receptors (brain, immune system, and central nervous system) are most sensitive to THC. And that’s why the psychoactive effects are felt so strongly there.

It can take anywhere from 2 to 5 hours for the psychoactive effects of THC to subside. However, THC can remain in the body for days or weeks afterward, depending on the quantity you consume and how regularly you use medical cannabis. After thirty days of no cannabis consumption, most individuals can pass a drug test without THC detected in the body.

Can You Get a Hangover from Medical Cannabis?

Yes, you can experience residual effects of THC (the psychoactive compound in cannabis). But how your body recovers after using medical cannabis is very different from the symptoms you may experience after drinking too much alcohol.

The cannabis “high” is short-term THC intoxication. It can cause sensations of altered perception, increased appetite, and impairment of motor skills and cognitive abilities (focus and concentration). Cannabis can also cause the sensation of euphoria, which provides a calming effect. Some strains may also provide a light sedative effect which can cause you to fall asleep.

You may hear people talking about a “weed hangover,” but the after-effects of using cannabis are nowhere as severe as an alcohol hangover. Both alcohol and cannabis can cause fatigue, mild nausea, headaches, dry eyes, and brain fog post-consumption.

Alcohol hangovers are made more severe by the dehydration caused by alcoholic beverages. Dehydration from consuming too much alcohol can persist for eight to twenty-four hours. And the symptoms are more severe in comparison to cannabis.

Smoking weed (vape or flower) can lead to dry mouth, but it does not cause dehydration. Even though it feels identical to the dehydration you may experience with an alcohol hangover. The dry mouth symptoms are the result of cannabinoids binding to endogenous cannabinoid receptor sites, which include the submandibular saliva glands.

What Can You Do If You Feel Uncomfortably Impaired?

Many people believe that drinking water (a lot of it) will help the effects pass more quickly. That is not the case. However, if you are experiencing nausea, it may help settle your stomach. Fresh fruit is another option because it is loaded with natural terpenes that can help reduce the effects of THC.

Choose fruits, herbs, and vegetables that are high in the terpene limonene, which include:

• Citrus fruits.
• Juniper berries.
• Fresh dill.
• Fennel.
• Celery.
• Spearmint.
• Black currants.

When you have a light snack, it may help you lessen the psychoactive effects of cannabis. Make sure it is a lower-fat snack, however. Because THC is fat-soluble, eating a high-fat meal can exacerbate your symptoms.

Avoid alcohol if you feel uncomfortably impaired by cannabis. Alcohol has sedative and depressant qualities, which can exacerbate symptoms when you are “too high” and trying to sober up. Breathing exercises can also be helpful, as they can reduce nausea and help you stay calm.

One of the best ways to help snap out of heavy cannabinoid effects is a simple household ingredient found in your kitchen. Black peppercorns. Do some deep breathing and inhale the black pepper to activate the terpene beta-caryophyllene. It may help you recover more quickly.

The two greatest potentials for injury while you are impaired from cannabis are trip and fall incidents or vomiting while asleep. It is possible to die from inhaling or choking on vomit if you are alone in your home and feel like sleeping, prop yourself in an upright position.

Marijuana can cause a racing heartbeat and an increase in blood pressure. Those two effects generally pass within 1-2 hours and may not cause harm to your health; however, if you have cardiovascular problems or hypertension, cannabis misuse can increase your risk of having an adverse event, such as a heart attack or stroke.

When Should You Seek Medical Attention?

Responsible use of medical marijuana means paying close attention to the potency you use, the frequency, and how much you consume. While an overdose of cannabis may not be life-threatening compared to other controlled substances, it can cause a reaction called cannabis hyperemesis syndrome or CHS.

If you are vomiting persistently and feeling intense waves of nausea, you should seek medical attention as soon as possible. Ensure you share how much cannabis you consumed and the potency and type of medical marijuana product you used.

People who routinely use concentrated cannabis with THC levels of 50% or higher are most at risk of developing CHS. The symptoms include stomach pain and persistent, involuntary, or uncontrollable vomiting, and it can last up to twenty-four hours after consumption. While the condition is very rare, people who develop CHS are unable to consume any cannabinoids, as the uncontrollable symptoms will return.

Dehydration and gastrointestinal damage result from persistent vomiting associated with CHS. Over-the-counter antinauseants are often not effective, and you should seek immediate medical care.

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