Sure, weed offers a great recreational experience, but what is on the flip side of the coin? What causes you to trip on weed, and what does that feel like?
A bad weed trip makes you paranoid, anxious, or otherwise uncomfortable.
Weed can make you feel different depending on the strain and mood. Some people love being high because it makes them feel relaxed and happy; others might experience anxiety or paranoia when they’re high.
Good thing there are ways to avoid these unpleasant experiences. In this article, we cover these in detail.
What Is a Bad Weed Trip?
When sober, the mind is like a bouncing ball. Thoughts enter the mind and are almost immediately replaced as we become distracted or disinterested.
Smoking weed can be a stressful experience, especially when you are new to it or in a bad mental place. It can make you feel deeply introspective and thoughtful or fearful.
When you smoke cannabis, you have access to all the thoughts and feelings held back by your frontal cortex. This state of mind is often what one desires, but it can also bring to the surface negative thoughts.
When you take a hit, feelings like fear, depression, shame, and anger can flood your mind, sometimes before you even realize it.
A subtle yet effective technique for combating this negative experience is to use something visual to occupy your attention, preferably something calming like the ocean or a tranquil scene.
If your weed experience makes you uncomfortable, talk to your friends about it! They may help you figure out what caused you to have bad trips and how to avoid them next time.
Is Weed a Psychedelic?
Cannabis can also be psychedelic, but differently than other classical psychedelics. Known to stimulate the imagination, change ideas or perceptions and inspire thoughts of joy and relaxation, cannabis is not a hallucinogen like LSD, psilocybin, or mescaline.
Rather, it produces more physical effects like euphoria and relaxation rather than causing profound hallucinations.
Psychedelics influence the functioning of certain neurotransmitter systems in the brain. They induce their effects by acting as agonists (activators) on specific serotonin receptor subtypes, namely 5-HT receptors.
In addition to their psychedelic effects, these substances produce a range of diverse cognitive, perceptual and emotional changes.
In contrast, weed high is about the interaction between THC and the endocannabinoid system.
When you smoke weed, it takes advantage of your body’s natural cannabinoid receptors and produces a psychotropic high. The specific combination of cannabinoids and terpenes in cannabis may affect the quality of your high.
Many people claim their experience of eating cannabis is more psychedelic than smoking it. This is because when you ingest cannabis, the THC first passes through the stomach, which converts it to a more powerful, longer-lasting chemical called 11-hydroxy-THC.
This is also why edible cannabis experiences are often more intense than smoking; when you smoke cannabis, you’ll only get a small amount of THC into your bloodstream before it begins to break down in your liver.
However, hallucinations with cannabis are rare, and weed does not act as a true psychedelic drug.
Factors Leading to a Bad Trip on Weed
If you’re new to weed, or even a veteran smoker, many factors could contribute to a bad weed trip. There are many reasons, from overindulging in edibles to smoking too much to experiencing a negative state of mind before smoking weed.
Set and setting are two very important factors that influence the experience of using marijuana. Stoned people may have different experiences depending on their frame of mind when they use marijuana and where they are.
The set refers to how you feel about marijuana, your expectations about it, your personal history with it, and your expectations for how you will feel after using it.
Setting refers to factors in the environment around you when you use marijuana, such as who you are with, where you are and what is going on at that time.
Here are some of the main reasons that can put you in a state of bad high.
Weed Strength
The higher the potency of cannabis strains, so does the risk of bad weed trips. One reason is that these potent strains can contain more THC than users expect.
Delta-9-tetrahydrocannabinol (THC) is the main psychoactive compound that causes weed’s effects in the brain. You can find varying amounts depending on how much weed you smoke. A high THC level can mean stronger and more intense effects, like feeling “high” or euphoric.
Overconsumption can lead to unpleasant experiences and even panic attacks, especially when consumed with other substances.
The THC levels in marijuana have risen dramatically since 1995. Sometime in the 60s, grandparents were smoking poorly grown cannabis with a low dose of THC. Then, things changed for the better when enough people started to demand quality weed.
Growers started to invest in quality seeds and techniques, and soon we had licensed growers producing high-quality joints. With strong THC levels reaching up to 30%, inexperienced smokers can find themselves uncomfortable.
Moreover, the potency of illegal marijuana products is unknown and unreliable. Unlicensed sellers cannot verify the potency of their products, so you do not know what you are getting when you buy illegally or if it’s safe.
Mode of Administration
Marijuana can produce different results, depending on how you ingest it. Vaping and smoking marijuana show faster results than edibles, but those results are not long-lasting.
While smoking and vaping might be more intense for the first hour or two, you’ll have more THC in your bloodstream if you eat it. Not only does eating marijuana edibles produce stronger effects, but they’ll also last longer than smoking.
Dabbing Weed
Dabbing gives a pretty intense high. It may be difficult to find your way around if you’re unaccustomed to it. Smoking pot leaves, buds, and other ground cannabis are quite different from the concentrated THC from a professional rig.
However, with proper care and preparation, you’ll have a rewarding experience instead of an overwhelming one.
Edibles
Eating cannabis in its edible form is a different experience than smoking it. A full edible dose can last over 12 hours, much longer than smoking, which lasts only a couple of hours.
The high from an edible gives’ psychedelic and far less body-focused effects, making it a unique and intense way to get high on weed.
Frequent Cannabis Use
Marijuana is considered addictive by some people. However, it is not as addictive as other drugs such as cocaine, heroin, alcohol, and nicotine.
People who use marijuana frequently will likely develop a tolerance and need more of the drug to experience its effects.
This is especially true when using more potent marijuana with a higher THC concentration. Dependence on marijuana can also lead to physical withdrawal symptoms if you stop using it suddenly.
Gender
Research on marijuana use tends to focus more on male users than female users, partly because fewer women than men report using marijuana.
Studies suggest that the drug affects males differently than females. One of the external effects is aggression, while the internal effects are depression. Women are more susceptible to cannabis-induced mental health issues.
Age
THC may have a greater adverse effect on teens’ brains than on adults, particularly in executive function. These kinds of cognitive functions include attention and memory.
It’s also possible that young people who use cannabis may experience a greater impairment from memory-related tasks than adults.
How to Handle a Bad Trip on Weed?
Bad trips are a part of life, and it’s okay to feel bad sometimes. Weed doesn’t make you happy 100% of the time, so don’t feel bad if you occasionally experience a bad trip. Here is what to do in such situations.
Don’t panic. If you can’t calm down, try taking deep breaths and relaxing your muscles until you feel more at ease. If you’re in public, try to find somewhere private where you can take deep breaths and calm down. If you’re at home with friends or family, tell them something is wrong so they can help you through it.
Don’t be ashamed of what happened or try to hide it from people—this will only make things worse!
If you’re feeling anxious, try listening to calming music or watching something funny on Netflix; these activities can help distract you from the anxiety and make it easier to relax once the high wears off.
Stay hydrated by drinking lots of water throughout the day—this will help flush out any toxins affecting your mind and body during the trip, making it easier for them to leave once the high has worn off completely!
You can also take a shower or bath. This will help clear your head and wash away some of the bad vibes from your trip. Plus, it’ll make you feel clean and refreshed—which is always nice after having a bad experience.
If you don’t have time for a bath or shower now, at least splash some water on your face and rub down with a washcloth under warm running water to start clearing out any lingering effects.
Can Weed Make You Feel Anxious?
There’s been no shortage of mixed messages about marijuana and anxiety. Then again, there’s also been an inability to confirm whether marijuana causes anxiety or alleviates it.
The fact that THC impacts the brain’s endocannabinoid system, which is responsible for regulating mood and anxiety, means it can either aggravate or relieve your symptoms.
Here’s what happens: when you smoke pot, your brain releases dopamine, which causes euphoria. However, your body also releases cortisol when you smoke marijuana, a hormone that helps you deal with stress and anxiety.
So, while it might seem counterintuitive, when your body experiences that “high” feeling from smoking weed, it experiences an increase in cortisol levels as well, which can lead to anxiety and paranoia.
It’s important to remember that marijuana isn’t a panacea. If you’re suffering from anxiety and considering using marijuana, it’s worth seeing if other therapies can help you first.
What Does It Feel Like to Trip on Weed?
So, how different is cannabis from other psychedelic drugs? Well, it’s a question of many factors, as mentioned above.
Most people describe taking weed as an introspective bodily experience they can tune into. You can switch your mind off and calm down when you want to or be energized and active if you need to.
The body high is often accompanied by mellow mood changes and can make you feel more relaxed and focused on whatever you’re doing.
However, things are different about bad weed tripping. Bad trips are a little more intense than a typical high. You can get so overwhelmed with the effects of THC that you might even have scary thoughts about things in your mind. However, a bad trip is generally considered short-lived and will end on its own.
People experiencing a psychotic episode may feel scared and confused by what’s happening to them. It’s common for them to feel paranoid or anxious.
The best way to understand the experience is there can be some significant disconnection from reality. You might start feeling, hearing, or seeing things that aren’t there, like thinking people are out to get you when they aren’t. Moreover, you might start believing things that aren’t true, like aliens have taken over your mind.
If the person seems to recognize that there are no real consequences to their delusions and can call out their situation, it’s more likely to be a bad trip. If they’re so distressed, they can’t function or communicate, it may be a true psychotic episode involving hallucinations and delusions. you can also try THC gummies to get yourself with the best experience.
Following are some aspects that cannabis changes in your body:
Change in Sensory Perceptions
One of the biggest effects of getting high is heightened senses. People experience this differently, but things become more intense and colorful. Some may see patterns or hear sounds that no one else can.
The taste buds are enhanced after eating marijuana. People who eat while high often experience a more intense flavor and want to eat larger amounts of food than normal, which is why the ‘munchies’ kicks in.
It is also possible to combine foods, which normally seem strange to most people.
Altered Mental State and Mood
For some people, marijuana does not affect mood. For others, it may increase negative emotions such as anxiety and paranoia or elevate positive moods to extreme euphoria.
People also vary in how they respond to marijuana’s effects on their thinking abilities. A bad trip can be a frightening experience, particularly if the user is exposed to a lot of emotional stimulation.
In these situations, a user may try to escape by any means possible, including leaving the premises or home or imagining new surroundings. However, getting away from the situation is not always possible, and an overdose at this point can become dangerous very quickly.
While you may initially use marijuana to calm down and relax, it can have a reverse effect in the long run. Those who consume marijuana habitually often experience severe anxiety disorders after prolonged use.
Effects on Cognition
Using marijuana can affect thinking and problem-solving skills. Some studies have found that people new to marijuana use show impairment in their ability to learn and remember information.
This may be especially true for teens, as they may be more vulnerable to the effects of marijuana on their brains.
Weed and Creativity
Marijuana has also been found to stimulate imagination and improve performance. However, it’s unclear whether this is due to a direct effect of the drug or just an increase in motivation and stimulation to produce an idea.
A little bit of cannabis can make you think more creatively, but there is a limit to what you can do. Your creativity may be limited if you have used more than the recommended dose.
Stoned people may sound like they have a lot of interesting ideas and opinions, but often they don’t know what they are saying. Even if they understand, their creative ideas are hard to implement.
How Does Medical Marijuana Make You Feel?
Medical marijuana is a drug that can be used to treat symptoms of various illnesses. The most common use of medical marijuana is to treat chronic pain. However, it is also effective in treating nausea, muscle spasms, and other conditions.
Peer-reviewed studies suggested that the effects of medical marijuana vary greatly depending on the person taking it and the dosage. For example, some people experience drowsiness when they use medical marijuana, while others feel energized.
In addition, medical marijuana can have different effects on different body parts. For instance, some people may feel pain relief in their limbs but not in their heads or torso.
How Long Does a Bad Weed Trip Last?
If you smoke weed, it will affect your mind and body throughout your trip. You may experience heightened senses and feelings of euphoria, which can last anywhere from 30 minutes to two hours.
If you slip into paranoia, stress, and fear, high adrenaline levels might increase and bring you out of your high sooner than expected.
Do you ever find yourself taking large doses of edibles? If so, you may be interested to know that these can last up to six to eight hours.
This is because edibles take much longer for your body to digest, meaning that you will experience the effects of the drug for longer. The THC content in cannabis can stay in your system for up to one month after use.
What Could Prolong Your Weed High?
If you’re enjoying the relaxing effects of weed and want to extend them, the best way to do so is through edibles.
Everything from brownies and cookies to lollipops and gummies will deliver the cannabinoids that make marijuana so effective.
What Could Make You Un-Trip on Weed?
If you suddenly start to feel anxious, scared, or paranoid, don’t worry. These feelings are a real-life version of the classic “bad trip” that people experience via smoked marijuana.
The most popular methods include taking a cold shower and eating foods containing terpenoid compounds, including black pepper, pine nuts, and lemon. Other strategies to use during a weed high include pacing yourself, sitting down and waiting it out, or going outside for fresh air.
Remember that these feelings are temporary and should pass within a few hours. In case of serious distress, seek medical help.
If you feel like you’re experiencing severe paranoia, fear of death or dying, heart racing, and anxiety, get help. Seek medical attention from a physician who can prescribe drugs that help relieve symptoms of panic.
Conclusion
Bad weed trips are exactly what you think they are: bad. It’s not a trip you’ll want to repeat; it can leave you feeling drained or depressed for days afterward.
A bad weed trip happens when you smoke too much, too quickly, or both. This can cause a lot of problems, including paranoia and anxiety attacks.
Also, remember that everyone reacts differently to marijuana. You might feel nothing from one joint, while someone else could have an intense experience smoking the same amount!
It makes sense to stick to the recommended dose of edibles or smoke smaller quantities of weed, especially if you’re a beginner.
