Does CBD oil help you with your depression and/or anxiety?

Posted by lalyfa @lalyfa, Feb 24, 2018

I am curious to know if anyone has had success with CBD or Hemp oil helping with depression/anxiety? I’ve been reading a lot about it and am curious.
I've been reading about this and am very interested but would like thoughts/opinions from anyone who has actually tried it or knows someone who has. TIA

Thank you,
Laura

Interested in more discussions like this? Go to the Depression & Anxiety Support Group.

@mamacita

Dear Merry, Volunteer Mentor, I have been on Cymbalta for years, for depression as well as fibromyalgia. I will share with you that I was having breakthrough depression, night terrors, and dreams that were too horrendous to mention. My good doctor put me on Wellbutrin and a low dose of Xanex, for anxiety. I am doing very well, thriving even. Chronic, debilitating pain changes a person. I have lost friends over this. But now I have a new purpose here on Mayo Clinic Connect. A community where we can share our stories and be encouraged. To feel that there is hope, and that one is not alone. I was given amphetamines by my doctor when I was only 11 or 12 years old. The doctor put me on a strict diet that was very low calorie. I feel in my heart that those pills did a number on my brain circuitry. I was too young to be given such strong medication. All medications have side effects. Guess I will never know for sure the effect those pills had on me. But that is the past. I look forward to what the future will bring. Health and healing for us all is my prayer! Mamacita

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Hello Mama- I agree with you that Mayo Connect shows that there is hope- there always is hope and it's horrible when we feel like there isn't any. All medicines have side effects and I also agree that they can change a person't chemical makeup-does it ever go back to normal? I don't know. Chemical intervention is a blunt instrument. They can be very dangerous so we know that we have to stand up for ourselves and really research and question our doctors. You are a success story Mama-an an inspiration to us all.

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@thmbonz- Tinctures work the fastest. Like other medicines when you eat, swallow something they take longer. I am so glad that you have found relief.

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@parus

To change how we eat is well worth the effort and in time it becomes our normal.

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Parus- I agree with this completely. I know that after I gained weight from quitting smoking I became very depressed. I felt like a blimp. I'm petite and I weighed too much. I finally went to an exercise trainer who gave me a strict menu and exercise schedule. Although I had many issues that held on to my stress, anxiety and depression, losing weight was no longer one of them.

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Is a tincture and an oil the same ? I have reflux (GERD) and wonder if swallowing this would upset it. Thanks!

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@merpreb I did not realize I am a hand to mouth type. Once I realized thus I started changing my habits in many ways. I was once 5’8” and now 5’4” due to scoliosis. Once I went off all of the psych meds the weight went off quickly. I ended up on them again do to threats from a new family member. I would like to think I would not allow someone to intimidate or threaten me again to do what is harmful to me or suffer the consequences. It has been a new way for me as I have always wanted to please others. I came to the place where I knew I had to stop or destroy what life I have left. It just was no longer worth it for me.

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@merpreb

Hello Mama- I agree with you that Mayo Connect shows that there is hope- there always is hope and it's horrible when we feel like there isn't any. All medicines have side effects and I also agree that they can change a person't chemical makeup-does it ever go back to normal? I don't know. Chemical intervention is a blunt instrument. They can be very dangerous so we know that we have to stand up for ourselves and really research and question our doctors. You are a success story Mama-an an inspiration to us all.

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@merpreb so well stated!!

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@stephanieann

Hi Mammacita Great news that it has helped you with your health issues. and thank you s much for your kind words My son although verbal does not seem to understand that he perseverates on internal thoughts which seem to make him very frustrated and irritable. I am grateful that so far he has had less behavioral issues, with the CBD ie irritability and anxiety but the perseverative thoughts I think make him miserable at times. Additionally people just ignore him and don't engage him when he keeps asking the same questions or repeating the same phrases like " I am sad because the internet is lying about making Avatar 2. " These things that may seem trivial to us are very important to him and interfere with his ability to focus or concentrate on other things. . He may talk about the same thing obsessively throughout the day. How did the CBD help with OCD like behaviors and how did you figure out the dosing ?

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@stephanieann, good morning from Sweet Home Alabama! Wonderful to "hear" from you. Forgive me if there are small errors here and there, as my phone is charging, and this computer has been worked on so many times. But, here I go. Bless your sweet boy! You might be interested to know that I have a small one, a grandson, who was diagnosed Autistic last year. We recently spent the Thanksgiving holidays with him and his family. Since I am Autistic myself, my perspective on the subject of perseverative thoughts, looping, and constantly repeating the same thing over and over is way different than my kiddos, his Mommy and Daddy. When the little one repeats to me the same scenario, over and over, I engage him in it and talk with him about it. It is like a "stim" to him. It relaxes him, makes him feel more comfortable in his own skin, and is his way of trying to communicate with his family and friends. His parents on one hand, order him to stop talking about it. They are concerned that he won't "fit in" with his friends and classmates. They want him to appear more "normal." While that may be a worthy goal, I really do believe that Autistics are the "norm", and not the other way around. At the same time, I want him to have friends, and the behavior in question tends to put people off. My Grandson needs to process his feelings without getting in trouble. I try to help him with that. I am pretty sure his teachers at school attempt to redirect him, yet also try to determine what he is actually concerned about. We are all on the same team, and we really do work better together. I used to do the very same thing your son does. I know all too clearly how it feels. Permit me to say that in my case, I would repeat until someone hit on the idea I was trying to convey. When I felt listened to, understood, accepted for my attempts to communicate, I stopped. I believe that as we get older, we understand these things more in depth. Your son, I believe, is trying his best to communicate. Thank the heavens above he has a Mom who desires the best path for him, and listens to him! More later....have a wonderful day today!
Mamacita

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@rascal1

Is a tincture and an oil the same ? I have reflux (GERD) and wonder if swallowing this would upset it. Thanks!

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Yes rascal.

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@stephanieann

Hi Mammacita Great news that it has helped you with your health issues. and thank you s much for your kind words My son although verbal does not seem to understand that he perseverates on internal thoughts which seem to make him very frustrated and irritable. I am grateful that so far he has had less behavioral issues, with the CBD ie irritability and anxiety but the perseverative thoughts I think make him miserable at times. Additionally people just ignore him and don't engage him when he keeps asking the same questions or repeating the same phrases like " I am sad because the internet is lying about making Avatar 2. " These things that may seem trivial to us are very important to him and interfere with his ability to focus or concentrate on other things. . He may talk about the same thing obsessively throughout the day. How did the CBD help with OCD like behaviors and how did you figure out the dosing ?

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@stephanieann, I do not have any experience at all with using any CBD product. I used to be vehemently against their usage for anything at all until I started reading about all these children with seizures all day long going down to maybe three or four a day, thanks to CBD oil. I was indeed very skeptical, and thought it was a ploy to get harmful drugs into mainstream acceptance. Time passed, and the more I studied about the serious side effects of some of our common medications, I began to lean more towards the usage of CBD oil in certain instances. In my state I believe it is entirely legal with a health card from a physician, even for the conditions I experience on a daily basis. I have not discussed this yet with my PCP, but I do know that the side effects of commonly issued pain relievers can damage a person for life, depending on their particular situation. My husband, for example, cannot take anything at all for pain. I am wondering if he also would be a prime candidate for CBD oil. I have much to learn about all of this. I am anxious to learn all I can about it. Talk with you later? Love and light,

Mamacita

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@parus

@merpreb I did not realize I am a hand to mouth type. Once I realized thus I started changing my habits in many ways. I was once 5’8” and now 5’4” due to scoliosis. Once I went off all of the psych meds the weight went off quickly. I ended up on them again do to threats from a new family member. I would like to think I would not allow someone to intimidate or threaten me again to do what is harmful to me or suffer the consequences. It has been a new way for me as I have always wanted to please others. I came to the place where I knew I had to stop or destroy what life I have left. It just was no longer worth it for me.

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Oh Parus- I can't tell you how proud I am that you stopped all of that for your own sake. Stay with us! And of course we are here for you if you feel that coming on again!

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