What It Means to Microdose Weed

What to Expect From A Cannabis Microdosing Experience

You may be the type of cannabis user to get high as fast as possible. That’s the goal, right? You unleash that THC into your body until you feel like you’re on another plane of reality.

But that kind of weed consumption can become joyless quite fast, and it can leave you with uncontrollable paranoia and a destructive case of the munchies.

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Thus, many cannabis connoisseurs have turned to micro-dosing. When weed users rely on this method of cannabis consumption, they take small doses throughout the day, rather than taking it in all at once. Think of it like caffeine: rather than chugging an energy drink to bring your heart rate to a rapid speed, you may instead choose to slowly sip a cup of coffee, bringing you energy at a more manageable pace.

You may microdose if you want to feel some of the effects of being high without the spikes of terror and paranoia.

Microdosing is very popular in the medical marijuana circle. In fact, a Rolling Stone article once referred to the process as “Cannabis 2.0,” and profiled a number of users who say their lives transformed upon learning of the process.

One woman told Rolling Stone that taking small doses of cannabis made a massive impact on her life.

“It lifts my spirits, relieves the stress and tension that build up, and allows me to approach my work with more keen interest,” she told the magazine.

How Much Weed Is Required For A Micro-dosage?

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Deciding how much of each component of weed to use is one of the trickiest parts of micro-dosing. That’s because everybody reacts to THC and CBD differently, and one person’s strong dose might seem weak to someone else.

Luckily, one doctor has made it a little easier to determine what an effective dose might be. Dr. Duston Sulak has been working with patients in Maine for nearly a decade, and over the years, he’s developed a technique to figure out a person’s ideal microdose.

“Abstain from cannabis for two days. On day three, consume one milligram of THC and one milligram of CBD, preferably in a tincture or oil where they can be measured precisely,” he tells Rolling Stone. “Before consuming, ask yourself three questions, and answer on a scale of one to 10: How easy is it to breathe, how comfortable and calm does your body feel and how easy is it for you to smile authentically, to feel content and grateful?”

After doing this, he says, take cannabis, wait 45 minutes, and ask yourself the same questions. If your answers have not changed, increase your dose by one milligram, and repeat the process. Eventually, you’ll see a change, and at that point, you will have found your “minimal effective dose”.

Sulak says that most people have a threshold for cannabis – being below it leads to a slow accumulation of health benefits, while being above it can actually diminish the positive effects,  leading to clumsiness and memory loss.