Have you cooked dinner for 20 people? Bought presents for everyone? Don’t forget about decorating your entire house and cleaning up before everybody comes over. Among the many holiday parties, events, shopping, cooking and cleaning that most people need to do during the holiday season, many people also experience elevated levels of stress during what’s supposed to be an otherwise lovely time of the year to enjoy with friends and family. While you might feel too busy for a quick smoke or vape sesh this season, read on to see why medical marijuana might be one of the best things you can do for yourself this month.
Stress
Of course, how could we not mention this one? As you know, marijuana is incredibly soothing, whether you’re looking to just fall asleep or need something to calm your emotions. THC and CBD are wonderful for reducing stress and treating sleep disorders. Whether it’s using your best dry herb vape or a classic hand pipe, devoting time to your self care and having a smoke sesh can be a powerful therapeutic method during the holidays. For something that’s quick and easy to use for busy people, think of a small vape pen that’s easy to carry around with you like the Cloud Pen 3.0 Vaporizer, which you can use with concentrates or dry herbs.
Pain management
One of the biggest reasons why patients are prescribed medical marijuana is pain management, whether it’s acute pain resulting from a surgery or accident, or chronic pain from inflammation or daily aches. When the weather gets colder, many people find that aches and pains worsen–yet another reason to not leave your warm bed on a cold winter morning to get to work! A quick vape sesh every day can really help patients feel better fast. Are you used to taking Non-steroidal anti inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) like ibuprofen to help manage your pain? Best of all, medical marijuana doesn’t contain many of the deleterious side effects that common NSAIDs over the counter have, and medical marijuana doesn’t have the same dangerously addictive properties of potent opioids. You have enough to worry about in the holiday season: don’t let pain jump onto your already busy schedule.
Depression
While you might not associate marijuana with treating depression, multiple studies have found that marijuana helps reduce and prevent depression when taken in small doses. Although it is considered a downer, when used medically, cannabis is a powerful serotonin regulator that can help stabilize serotonin levels. Some are even considering CBD in particular as the next powerful antidepressant. While you might not feel particularly motivated or maybe too stressed to add another item to your todo list, a quick smoke or vape sesh could be just the thing to help you stay afloat this holiday season.
Lower cholesterol and cardiovascular disease
If it’s the holiday season, you’re eating well (we hope). From holiday parties where everybody brings 20 desserts to big family meals, food is generally richer in the winter, and we tend to eat more foods that could cause cardiovascular disease in the long term. Now is the best time of the year to bring out your favorite pipe: cannabis has been shown to lower cholesterol, which decreases one’s risk of cardiovascular disease. While of course this is not the best solution for somebody who is already taking prescribe medicine for managing a preexisting cardiovascular disease, it can be a wonderful preventative measure in the wintertime.
Spending time together
Although the holidays is all about spending time with the ones you love, often it can feel like the loneliest time of the year. You might be so busy and feel like there’s not enough to see friends or family. There’s also often a feeling that you need to be surrounded by people, and this expectation of constant socialization can be isolating. Smoking with just one or two special friends can be a great way of connecting. Parties might be too big, but a smoke sesh is the perfect way to really deepen or establish a connection. Just like sharing food, sharing a pipe can be a special way to connect and spend quality time together. A great option for both small and large smoke seshes is the classic Gravity Bong, also known as a Gravitron. This beautiful pipe is great at filtering smoke and transforming it into sweet, milky clouds for you and your friends to enjoy and connect over.
Immune Boosting
If there’s one thing that usually happens during the holidays, it’s getting sick. While of course it’s important to eat healthy, exercise, and get plenty of rest to prevent getting sick, a nice vape sesh can actually bolster your immune system too: the relaxing properties combined with better sleep will leave your feeling well-rested and ready to live life with energy and health. Of course, we don’t recommend smoking if you’re looking to protect your immune system, especially for people with asthma. However, vapes are perfect for those with asthma or other conditions where your lungs might be irritated by smoke, as you can absorb the benefits of medical marijuana without the noxious smoke. A great vape option for medical marijuana is the Mighty Vaporizer from Storz and Bickel: you can easily put in dry herbs or concentrates, and there’s a big LED display that shows you the temperature inside, which you can control with two large up or down arrows.
Downtime
If there’s one thing there’s not enough of during the holidays, it’s some me-time! Now more than ever, you need to consider some time to yourself to just chill. Just like your phone, you can’t always be running–you need to recharge, otherwise your battery will run out. In fact, burnout is one the most common issues during the holiday season due to the numerous demands placed on us at both home and work. Ensuring that you are relaxing and practicing self-care is essential to keep going. Having a little smoke sesh is the perfect time to regroup, reflect and relax.
