For some of us being anxious is just a part of life and so unfortunately often comes with smoking weed. For many the easiest way to avoid this is to pick the exact right strains that are calming and soft. However, for some either it’s hard to be picky about strains or you might sometimes experience anxiety no matter what you smoke. For me it’s similar to eating huge amounts of cheese. Sometimes it’ll rip my innards to shreds and sometimes it won’t, am I going to stop eating cheese just because it can occasionally have a bad effect on me? Hell no, not a chance. I mean to be fair I’m also the kind of person that occasionally gets anxious from weed for no reason even if I’ve been fine with that strain before so the cheese thing wasn’t really necessary. Anyway if you’re like me then you could benefit from a few of these tips for anxious stoners. Hopefully these will either keep the anxiety away or help you deal with it if it shows up. 

Create A Safe Space

Creating a nice space to get high in can make a huge difference to your experience. For example, if you are an anxious stoner maybe don’t get high in public, at a party, or around people you don’t know well. Personally my best set up is a couch in a familiar space, with cartoons I love on, under my fluffy weighted blanket, and with someone who can stroke my hair if I do get anxious. For some it can be somewhere bright and sunny with plenty of close friends, or a dark and cosy bedroom on their own. You know yourself better than I do, because you could literally be anyone reading this, so think of the things that make you happiest and create that space. 

I also find personally that light and scent are a big deal for my anxiety. I like soft yellow light and the warm, excotic smell of incense. Again whatever you like best, just try and personalise that space because olfactory and visual sensors can be a huge part of triggering or quelling anxiety. Hopefully creating this space for yourself will stop anxiety before it surfaces, but you do feel strange you are at least in a safe space to start dealing with those feelings. 

Grounding Exercises 

These come into play if you start to get anxious. Often the type of anxiety you feel from smoking is because you become detached from reality in a way that is strange or scary making you feel vulnerable and unsafe. This can be very similar to a run-of-the-mill panic attack and so I have found that the grounding exercises I was given are great for stoned anxiety. 

One of my favourites is carrying out a task in tiny little sections, focusing on each part of the journey. I make a cup of herbal tea so that at the end of the task I also have a lovely calming drink. You can really do this with any task that has parts. So with my tea making I isolate each part of the process and talk myself through it out loud. “I’m opening the lid of the kettle, turning the tap, filling it with water, turning off the tap”, literally that much detail. The point of this is to anchor your brain in reality whilst distracting it from the anxiety thoughts. 

Another classic if you need something more immediate is the naming your surroundings exercise. You have likely heard of this one before. You name 5 things for each of your senses to pull you back into the space around you. For example, I can currently see my computer screen, the sausage dog on my hoodie, a window across the street, a guitar and a sticky note pad covered in scribbles. You then do this for smell, taste, sound and feel. 

Eat and Hydrate

This is probably the best thing you can do if you’re feeling weird. First of all, just drink some water. Do not gulp because you feel like a thirsty dog in a desert and do not make it too cold. Sipping room temperature water is by far the fastest way to hydrate your body. At least that’s what Australian’s kept telling me in 40 degree heat and it definitely seemed to work. Eat something sensible as well, nothing that will make you feel bloated or sick because that’ll make things worse. Have some cheese and crackers or some pretzels or some toast with spread on it. Nibble, don’t guzzle it down like an insane duck that hasn’t eaten for three days. The last thing you want right now is the hiccups. 

Stretch

I find that when I’m highly anxious I feel like my whole body is tensing up. The best thing you can do is both centre your body and release that tension by having a nice stretch. Whether you prefer to do a bit of light yoga or just general stretches I guarantee it will release a lot of the anxiety being stored up in  your body. Plus stretching while high feels absolutely amazing. 

Exercise 

This isn’t a great idea for everyone but exercise can be a great way to force out those endorphins and get your brain distracted. Whether it’s doing a fun dance video game, going for a walk with someone in an empty or countryside-like area, or even doing a bit on an at home work out. Getting your blood pumping and focusing on a task can really help if you are starting to freak out. 

Smells 

This last one is great because it’s minimal effort but very effective. Your olfactory senses are extremely powerful which is why so much relaxation stuff is scent based. Light a nice candle, sniff something lavender scented, and a weirdly great one is to smell fresh ground pepper. This can be paired with breathing exercises to bring you softly and comfortably back to reality. 

Written by Tasha Porritt

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