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- Before you fully immerse yourself in the world of cannabis and start trying everything that comes your way, it is a good idea to find out a few basic facts and prepare sensibly for your experience with cannabis
Have you become interested in the increasingly famous medical cannabis and would you like to know how best to start reaping the benefits of this versatile herb without negatively disrupting your current lifestyle in any way? Medical cannabis can become your carer, your best friend and your spiritual guide. All of this is hidden in the flowers of this immensely interesting and medicinal plant.
With medical cannabis you can have a wide spectrum of different experiences, which you can adapt to your own style if you approach them consciously and with the right kind of curiosity. In general, cannabis is a very generous and friendly plant; however, if you are a mere beginner and have no experience with its use, it is better to approach this powerful potion of cannabinoids with caution.
Here are a few tips and tricks for maintaining a healthy and mindful approach while building your potentially lifelong relationship with cannabis.
Clarify your intention
Even before you start using cannabis, it is very important to clarify your own intention. By focusing the experience yourself, you may succeed in steering it in the right direction.
Imagine you are going on a trip. Before you set off, it is crucial to plan the whole trip, including the destination, properly. If you want to drive to the ocean and set off in an arbitrary direction, it is quite possible that instead of a beach you will end up at the end of a street in some backwater. So, before you start using cannabis, honestly ask yourself what it can actually do for you. Do you want to be more creative, laugh and experience euphoria, or would you rather calm down and meditate or relieve pain?
Whether you affirm your intention out loud or only in your mind, try to be as clear as possible in this respect. The clearer your intention, the greater your chance of realising it.
Choosing the right cannabis strain
“The absolute best way to choose a strain is to take a jar of medical cannabis, put your nose in it and have a good sniff. Notice for yourself which combination of terpenes attracts you the most.“ advises yogi Dee Dussault in her book “Ganja Yoga“. Our bodies hold deep intuitive knowledge of what is good for us, and our nose works much like a chemical detector. If a given strain smells pleasant to you, it can automatically be assumed that it contains precisely the combination of cannabinoids and terpenes that your body needs. Furthermore, it is advisable to test a newly chosen strain in small doses and work your way towards your ideal in slow, small steps.“
Vaporisation and microdosing
If you are a beginner in the field of medical cannabis and want to adopt a mindful approach, a quality vaporiser could suit you very well. Inhaling cannabis vapour is not only tastier, it is also much gentler on the lungs, and the vapour retains a much greater amount of medicinal cannabinoids.
Moreover, thanks to the adjustable temperature, vaporising is easy to control – you can enjoy your strain from the most delicate terpenes right up to the classic vaporisation of THC, CBD and others.
In this way you can gradually and smoothly treat yourself to the experience you long for before you commit to a complete change of consciousness with a higher dose. “The beauty of vaporisation lies in the easily adjustable temperature, the cool vapour, the robust flavour and the clarity of the state it induces.” says Joe Dolce of Brave New Weed.
Natural, medical cannabis
It may seem to you that we are exaggerating, but the quality of your herb can be compared with the quality of your food. Before you cheerfully start “vaping“, find out where your herb comes from and how it was grown.
Outdoor cannabis, like fruit and vegetables grown directly on a farm, is fragrant and flavourful. Yogi Dussault sees it as follows: „…since outdoor cannabis grows for a full eight months under the complete solar spectrum, the plants are able to produce many more medicinal cannabinoids and terpenes. Outdoor cultivation also usually does not require the use of large amounts of pesticides and fungicides.“
Choose a comfortable setting
Choosing a setting in which you feel comfortable is undoubtedly one of the most important factors that will ultimately noticeably affect your experience. You can stay at home and invite a few close friends round, or you can go for a walk in the woods and be in touch with nature. Dolce gives the following advice: “The true art of being under the influence of cannabis is knowing not only what you like and what makes you feel good, but also knowing exactly what you do not like.” Wherever you find yourself and with whomever, it is always good to have enough water and something to snack on with you.
Listen to your body
Listening to your body is not all that complicated. It is enough to stay honest with yourself and know when you feel good and when you do not. Each of us has slightly different body chemistry, and it is entirely reasonable to expect that different strains will affect different people in different ways.
It is fine to take recommendations from friends, but stick to what you yourself perceive as positive - when trying a new strain, notice the changes in your body and emotions. Budtenders can be helpful to a certain extent in this situation, but not all of them have the same level of knowledge. Do not forget that your body knows you best and vice versa.
Keep a journal
If you are feeling really extra scientific, start keeping a journal. “…writing down dreams can be a good way of integrating everyday life. In the same way, writing down insights from states under the influence of cannabis can be an excellent way to revive, spice up and enrich your inner life.” is how Dolce describes his view of the matter.
By writing things down you will map the whole state and the psychological processes better – you will know what suits you and what bothers you.
The medical approach here would be to record your states before, during and after the use of a given cannabis strain. As a result, you should be able to determine exactly which mix of cannabinoids suits you. Moreover, different mixes may suit you more or less depending on the situation, so there are plenty of possibilities and you can really have fun with it.
Laughter is the best medicine
„Smile. You have just decided to take your self-care to a new level and may well have found a lifelong friend,“ says the cannabis guru from the farm Swami of Swami Select. „Enjoy this plant friend just as you would enjoy a glass of good wine, and get ready for a wave of inspiration. Start exploring life with this new friend, listen to your favourite music with it, go out into nature, make love, paint, sing, exercise or take an afternoon nap. In short, do what brings you happiness. In that case, cannabis will certainly serve you as an unmistakable plant companion and medicinal aid.“
Translation: Filip Maral
Source: leafly.com