The hype surrounding CBD can make it difficult for prospective buyers to get straight answers to their most basic questions. Customers often learn that CBD is closely related to THC and wonder: “Does CBD make you feel spacey?”
The short answer is no: CBD doesn’t make you feel spacey. While CBD is psychoactive (meaning it can pass the blood/brain barrier), it is not psychotropic, which means it will not impact your ability to function cognitively.
This is not to say that CBD will have zero impact on your brain or mood. It’s just that the effects are subtle, short-lived and won’t impact your judgement or ability to function. It should not make you feel spacey or high.
Research into how CBD interacts with the body is different from advice on how much to use. Not noticing an effect does not by itself mean you should increase your CBD intake. Check the amount in each serving and the current FSA advice before changing how much you use.
In short, CBD should not make you feel spacey, foggy or “out of it”. CBD cannot produce a “high” due to how it interacts with the body. Provided your CBD is from a reliable source, it shouldn’t leave you feeling spacey or high.
There are instances where an inexperienced CBD user might take far too much CBD, and this could leave them feeling the side effects.
(This writer has experienced this once after misreading the CBD contents of a CBD snack bar and devouring the entire bar in one go. Far from feeling spacey, I simply enjoyed a deeply restful night’s sleep.)
There is also the risk that CBD could be sourced from a less reputable supplier, and it could contain higher-than-advertised levels of THC.
CBD is also capable of interacting with other medications. So, if CBD makes you feel spacey, it could be worth exploring if your other medications could be to blame.
But if you are new to CBD and are concerned that your daily CBD serving is going to leave you unable to concentrate at work, let us reassure you that CBD won’t make you feel spacey or out of it.
To understand why CBD cannot make you feel spacey, we first need to understand what it does inside the body. While THC binds to CB1 and CB2 receptor sites throughout the body and blocks messages getting through, CBD has a low affinity for these receptor sites.
CBD supports the endocannabinoid system in very different ways, but much research remains to understand how it achieves this. One theory is that it serves as a reuptake and breakdown inhibitor for anandamide, essential for a healthy endocannabinoid system.
A common mistake made in CBD marketing is to describe it as non-psychoactive. This is inaccurate, as psychoactive means that it is capable of passing the blood/brain barrier and impacting your mood, behaviour, emotions or cognition.
In fact, CBD has a positive psychoactive effect. What marketers really mean is that it is non-psychotropic. Psychotropic means that it can alter your mental state. Examples of prescription psychotropic drugs include painkillers like gabapentinoids and sedatives like benzodiazepines. This is why these drugs are heavily restricted.
There are many reasons individuals might feel out of sorts after taking CBD. Those who want CBD to work for them might feel something of a placebo effect. In short, if you expect CBD to make you feel spacey, you’ll produce this effect.
Those who are inexperienced with CBD might take too much, and this can lead to some less pleasant side effects. CBD offers a biphasic effect, which means that the impact on your body can vary depending on how much you have taken. You really can have too much of a good thing.
Another example of a substance with a biphasic effect would be alcohol. In small amounts, it can elevate your mood. But in larger amounts, alcohol serves as a depressant.
The effects described in research do not establish a personal serving size or schedule. The Food Standards Agency advises healthy adults to limit their total CBD intake from food to 10 mg a day as a precaution.
CBD itself is non-intoxicating, but products and individual responses vary. If CBD makes you feel out of sorts, stop using it and check the product information; if you take medication or are concerned, speak with a pharmacist or GP.
If you feel that CBD does make you feel out of sorts, stop taking it until you have investigated further. Start by checking the certificate of analysis for your CBD product to confirm it does not contain high levels of THC. Stop using the product if you can’t find a Certificate of Analysis (CoA) and the seller won’t provide one.
Next, consider your other medications and how they might interact with your CBD. Please speak to a pharmacist or your GP before you continue using CBD, as it might be unsafe and could impact the efficacy of your medications.
Do not assume that taking more CBD will produce a more useful effect.
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Laura Howarth
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