Honor YourSELF with Conscious Decisions in Cannabis Use
You are unique…and powerful. So is the cannabis you choose. So, don’t treat your choices as one-size-fits-all. The switch from smoking whatever was available to finding my way among the cannabis superstore wasn’t easy. Nowadays, discriminating cannabis users understand choosing the right strain determines your experience. And everyone has a unique reaction to the same plant medicine dependent upon body type, lifestyle, psychological profile, etc. Many factors determine how you will react and if you receive the experience you desire.
But I confess, I am an old school cannabis smoker. I vividly recall the long-haired hippie dealer unwrapping primo weed supposedly from Mendocino or Mexico, if you were lucky, and smoking you out till you got high. Your only choice was 1/8,1/4 or an ounce…none of this pre-roll, vape, or other options. Essentially, you smoked what you got, without knowing what you had. And if you got high, well, thank the lord.
From Dealers to Dispensaries
My first trip to a medical dispensary proved overwhelming. Working my way through the display of flower, creams, oils, facials, and edibles, left me shell shocked. My initial response was to run back to my dealer, where I needed to know nothing. And then…I began to smell and sample the assortment of buds in the shop. That was a turning point for me.
Initially, I chose my strains based upon the highest THC %, certain the more THC, the stronger its effects. Wrong. Asking the budtenders wasn’t the complete answer either. Most budtenders are a wealth of product-specific and personal knowledge, based on both education and their own use-experiences. But they don’t know the intricacies of ME or YOU. My assumption that what worked for them would work for me was far off base. That weed seemed to intensify anxiety and fears and triggered PTSD. Trial and error didn’t work well and left me a couch potato just when I planned a night out.
Ultimately, the message crystallized. It was time to become a conscious consumer and explore the ways the plant worked in my body. Using marijuana to create a healthy, harmonious and balanced lifestyle required a deeper understanding of the physical, mental and spiritual response.
Make Empowered Choices
To step into these 420 attitudes of positive living, take time to learn which strains harmonize with your body chemistry and give you the effect you seek. The goal is to produce repeatable, reliable effects, enabling you to use the plant confidently, without overmedicating yourself or being counter intentional.
In other words, you are in charge of your experience.
How? In the old days you went to your doctor for a pharmaceutical cure based upon your symptoms. Now, you are part of the paradigm shift. Now, you can choose your path. Armed with today’s research on cannabis, picking the right strain is part science and part anecdotal, ie dependent upon personal experience. What you ingest, and how much is now up to you, not your physician.
This is a paradigm shift, my friends, as you determine your goals and choose your medicine directly, without the middleman, the doctor. Design your strategy. What do you want to accomplish today to stay on track? Choosing the right strain can either make your day or break it. It would be a disaster if you needed to make a sales call, and literally lose your motivation and/or find yourself too tired to leave your house.
And let’s face it; you don’t want to be too chatty if you are going to yoga or sound healing. Once you know your goals, it becomes easier to choose the proper strain. So, before you shop, it helps to know if you are looking to be happy, tired, focus, energetic, or just a couch potato.
A Few Simple Steps to Elevate Your Results
What are you looking for? Are you an experienced cannabis user? This makes a difference, as strains vary in strength and psychotropic effects. Keep a journal to track the specifics of what you’re using and when and the results you’re getting. Break it down into categories. Which strains help you exercise, meditate, work, or rest? Go for predictable outcomes and actually record your results.
Honor the uniquely beautiful creation that you are. Notice as you begin to experience an energetic boost, increased vitality and a sense of balance and well-being. And then, keep doing what you are doing and enjoy the results of your conscious 420 lifestyle.