The Truth About Weed: Is It a Depressant?

Weed has often been portrayed as a depressant. You might have heard that weed makes you sluggish or slow. Although weed can indeed cause you to feel blue temporarily, not all the effects of weed are depressive. Smoking marijuana use can lead to experience paranoia or anxiety after smoking or vaping. Those feelings are short-lived and provide the user with an insightful experience. As a psychoactive drug, marijuana surely alters mental functioning. Smoking weed brings about uplifting effects that lead to more happiness and less stress, although it may not seem like it at the moment. The question remains: Does weed make you depressed? Here’s everything you need to know, before making a final decision.

What is Depression?

Depression is a serious medical condition that causes intense feelings of sadness and hopelessness. It’s more than just a passing blue mood, and it’s not something you can just “snap out of.” Depression is a biological condition that can be treated, but it cannot be cured. When someone is depressed, they might feel like they have no joy in their life, no energy, and no interest in anything. Depression often leads to a drop in productivity at work, school, or in other important areas of life. Depression also can lead to other mental illnesses, like anxiety and suicidal thoughts. It’s important to get help if you think you might be depressed.

What Does Weed Do to Your Brain?

Depressants affect your nervous system and slow brain function. The chemical makeup of weed includes over 400 compounds, but only a few have psychoactive effects. These compounds are the ones that get you high. The effects of weed on the human brain include an increase in dopamine levels, an altered state of consciousness, an elevated mood, and a music appreciation. Marijuana also brings about an increase in our creativity, which is why it is often used by authors and musicians to enhance their work. Marijuana users also display a slowed reaction time. The effects of smoking weed on your brain include a heightened sense of smell, and sense of calm. Because psychoactive drugs are rewarding, they can reinforce drug-seeking behaviors that can lead to dependence or addiction.

Weed and Depressant Causing Chemicals

The federal government, the DEA, and the National Institute on Drug Abuse all classify cannabis, or marijuana, as a highly psychoactive substance with hallucinogenic effects. But they do not consider weed as a depressant. When we consume weed, it releases serotonin, which is a neurotransmitter that makes us feel happy. It also releases anandamide, which is a chemical compound that decreases feelings of stress. The effects of weed on our brain include a release dopamine, an important chemical that makes us feel good. While this is all well and good, some studies have concluded that smoking weed can lead to a short-term decrease in serotonin levels. However, this is not a cause for concern since serotonin levels bounce back quickly after smoking weed. It can also help to treat mental health conditions, such as anxiety and depression, in some people.

Why Does Weed Make You Feel Blue?

So, you’ve smoked some weed and now you are feeling a tad bit blue. What are the reasons for this? Well, to start, you’ve just ingested a large amount of THC, which is the psychoactive compound found in marijuana. THC is what gets you high, and it is what causes the altered sense of time. Additionally, weed might make you feel blue because you are experiencing a heightened state of self-awareness. With weed, you suddenly see the world and your place in it more clearly. This sudden burst of clarity, paired with the short-term drop in serotonin levels, can make you feel more self-critical, which can cause you to feel blue. marijuana affects every person differently so please take caution!

How to Beat the Blues When You’re Stoned

If you are already feeling blue, there are a few things you can do to feel better.

• Breathe: Taking a deep breath can help increase serotonin levels by almost 50%.
• Move Your Body: Physical activity also increases serotonin levels.
• Reach Out to a Friend: Socializing with loved ones can help you feel better.
• Write about Your Feelings: Research suggests that writing about your feelings can help release pent-up emotions.
• Try a Creative Hobby: Doing something creative has been proven to decrease feelings of depression.
• Get Some Sleep: Getting proper rest can help reduce the feelings of depressionPlease reach out for help. You don’t have to suffer alone.

The Bottom Line

No Weed is not a Depressant.  While weed makes you feel good in the short term, it also has long-term effects on your brain. It can make you feel more creatively inspired and give you a clarity of thought that you might not usually have. However, smoking weed can also make you feel more distant and depressed. This is not a normal reaction to weed and can be avoided if you choose to abstain. All in all, the effects of weed on your brain can be either positive or negative. Lots of research is being done about the applications of medical marijuana, such as in reducing anxiety, reducing inflammation, pain relief. please reach out for help. You don’t have to suffer alone.