How CBD can help ease your Christmas stress

Christmas is feeling a little bit uncertain for many of us this year, but CBD could help ease some of the symptoms of festive stress. 

It’s the most wonderful time of the year… but it can also be the most stressful.

And with another year of ever-changing Covid restrictions, it could be more so than usual.

With the big day fast approaching, stress levels may be rising – but they don’t have to. Managing expectations, delegating and planning ahead can all take the pressure off, but sometimes, that’s just not enough.

Before cancelling Christmas, help may be at hand in the form of CBD; with its famous stress-busting properties, the plant can ease all manner of symptoms, from the mental to the physical.

Low mood

The festive season is supposed to be a joyful time, but for many people, it can also be a trigger for depression. The gloomy, cold nights, when you leave for work in the dark and come home in the dark, can lead to what is know as SAD (Seasonal Affective Disorder).

Studies have shown that CBD use can alleviate these symptoms, working in the same way as a more standard anti-depressant medication.

On the same note, cannabis has also been found to ease insomnia; another major cause of low mood over the holiday season.

Anxious thoughts

With so much to do, and the pressure for everything to be perfect, it’s no surprise that Christmas can lead to anxiety and stress. Beyond delegating and refocusing the mind, CBD could also be used as an aid to alleviate the worst of these feelings.

A major study was launched in the US earlier this year to discover quite how and why cannabis works as a stress reliever, while research from earlier this year found that individuals who received CBD treatment for stress reported improvements in their ability to perform daily functions, as well as a reduction in anxiety symptoms.

Gut feelings
It’s not just mental health that suffers over the holidays; with all that rich food and alcohol, our digestive systems can take a pounding too.

Over recent years, the use of cannabis to ease a number of gut disorders – such as gastroesophageal reflux disease (GERD), Crohn’s disease, ulcerative colitis and irritable bowel syndrome (IBS) – has risen, with many sufferers finding it alleviates their symptoms.

It is thought that the anti-inflammatory properties of CBD help calm the digestive system, while also inhibiting acid production, therefore decreasing damage to the lining of the stomach.

Pain relief

Nobody wants to be in pain, especially over Christmas, nor do they want to be reliant on painkillers if there is another, more natural way.

CBD is proven to ease symptoms of some of the more debilitating chronic pain conditions, such as fibromyalgia,  endometriosis and arthritis, allowing sufferers to improve their lives without a cocktail of prescription drugs.

So while cannabis can’t feed the family, wrap the presents or deal with the in-laws, it could definitely be worth considering as a way to take the edge off the rest.

After all, after the year we’ve had, don’t we all deserve a stress and pain-free Christmas?