If you are under a doctor’s care, your doctor should offer some general advice. With or without the professional advice, you’ll likely have to find your way through some trial and error. You know your body and symptoms best. And, since regulations restrict the necessary research to identify best practices, you must consider how you might make sure you’re getting the right CBD dosage for the medical condition bothering you.
The Nature Of The Problem
To paraphrase the work of Uberto Pagotto in Endocrine Reviews, CBD helps users by feeding the endocannabinoid system. Cannabinoid receptors receive and transmit messages throughout the human systems, including major glandular systems, neurological traffic and cells and tissues. In triggering hormones, it signals sexual behavior, appetite, energy, stress and more.
Experience shows that cannabis activates those receptors. The connection corrects imbalances where they exist and affects systemic functions in positive and negative ways depending on the individual.
Your experience with CBD isn’t governed by your height, weight, gender or age. But, it may take time for you to feel its optimum effects. You must give the CBD time to affect your body and for your body to recover from problems that can be deep seated.
1. Learn To Measure
If the dropper isn’t calibrated, buy one that is. This is a progressive and maintenance program, so you don’t want to administer the CBD carelessly or inconsistently. You need to know that a single drop of liquid equals .0022 fluid ounces, .065 mL or .05 grams.
2. Distribute The Intake
Obviously, you don’t take all the drops prescribed at one time. Whatever pattern you decide on, you should follow that plan every day. In other words, if you’re taking one drop in the morning, noon and night, you should do that consistently.
3. Under The Tongue
CBD oil is administered sublingually. A drop under the tongue should show some results in 30 seconds. Under no circumstances do you want to drink it from the bottle or to use the dropper as a straw.
4. Take It Slow
Limit your intake to one drop on the first day. In addition, you must know that CBD comes in a variety of strengths. So, you want to take one drop of the weakest solution on the first day. Once you sense some impact, you can increase the volume to two drops for three to four weeks. If after four weeks, you aren’t where you want to be, consider speaking with your doctor about increasing the intake.
5. Understand What CBD Does
CBD and THC simultaneously work on the mind and body. But, because different strains of cannabis have different ratios of CBD:THC, the effects also differ. The THC is the psychoactive element and accounts for much of the pleasurable side effects of cannabis use. But, CBD counters some of the negative effects of THC like anxiety, stress and paranoia. CBD relaxes rather than inebriates. And, it lengthens the duration of the effects.
It’s the CBD that extends treatment to epileptic and spastic disorders, heart and liver problems, as well as metabolic issues. Therefore, you can assume that CBD is the key to medical marijuana and can be consumed as edibles and beverages, as well as oils and tinctures.
6. Determine What’s Best For You
Different ratios of THC:CBD treat different conditions most effectively. According to Project CBD, “For anxiety, depression, spasms, psychosis, and seizure disorders, many people report they do well starting with a small dose of a CBD-rich remedy with little THC.”
A 1:1 ratio is better for neuropathic pain and other ratios help inflammatory problems. And, this explains why some people who use cannabis oil also smoke marijuana during the day or night. If that’s your preference, you must recognize you are getting CBD through both options. That also needs to be considered when you’re measuring the dosage.
7. Understand Dosage Can Get Complicated
Project CBD warns, “Cannabis compounds have biphasic properties, which means that low and high doses of the same substance can produce opposite effects. Small doses of cannabis tend to stimulate; large doses sedate.”
So, you clearly don’t want to overdo it. CBD Oil Review recommends the following dosage for select medical conditions:
Cancer: 2.5 mg of THC by mouth daily for six weeks – with or without 1 mg of CBD
Chronic pain: 2.5 mg of CBD daily for around 25 days
Epilepsy: 200-300 mg of CBD by mouth daily for 4.5 months
Huntington’s disease: 10 mg per kilogram of CBD per day for 6 weeks
Sleep disorders: 40-160 mg by mouth as needed
Multiple Sclerosis: 2.5-120 milligrams of THC-CBD daily for 2-15 weeks
Schizophrenia: 40-1,280 mg CBD daily for up to four weeks
Glaucoma: Single dose of 20-40 mg CBD (doses over 40 mg may increase eye pressure)
8. Be Wary Of Side Effects
CBD is generally safe, but, if you’re on other medications, you need to get your doctor’s opinion on drug interactions. For example, chances are that if grapefruit is contraindicated when you’re using certain prescription medications, CBD will be ruled out, too. Your doctor may also want to periodically check your blood levels if you are following a CBD-rich protocol.
There’s no fatal dose of CBD, but it doesn’t come cheap. And, if it isn’t making you better, it’s a waste. After all, the CBD doesn’t account for your trip or buzz, so you want to put it to good use.
You are the best judge of your health, so you must measure your progress or relief. What you should look out for is how much you’re consuming on a multi-track basis. If you’re smoking, doing CBD oil and relying on edibles, you may have trouble managing your care.
