Speeding up weed metabolism

[Sadus]

Hey folks, longtime lurker thought i'd pop in for a question. I work a pretty high demanding job and I also love weed. I have a routine where as long as I stop smoking at a certain time the evening before I'm mostly unaffected the day after. Trouble is, it varies depending on what I smoke, and I've always been sensitive to differences from one medium (hash, weed, concentrates) or strain to another.

For most of this year I've been smoking hash made from unknown landraces from Morrocco, which usually has a hybrid/indica effect. Now, a couple of weeks ago I managed to score a few ounces of great amnesia haze weed, which is quite uncommon here. Anyway, and I should preface by saying that I love the general "sativa" effect of higher energy, creativity and all that jazz, but it's messing with my sleep. Even if I stop smoking within my usual timeframe I'll wake up earlier than I should the day after unable to fall back to sleep. I don't really feel tired when I wake up as such, and I'll generally lie awake until my alarm goes off thinking about all sorts of stuff, but I know I haven't gotten enough sleep and it always starts showing later in the day.

This isn't really a new effect for me, strong sativa strains usually do this but I thought I'd check if anyone else has the same experience? Any idea for a remedy, short of smoking less? I've been considering valerian or melatonin supplements but I'm a little reluctant to supplement for sleep when it's the weed causing it, I never have sleep issues otherwise. Is there any way to speed up the weed metabolism so it doesn't affect my sleep in the same way? I already drink shittons of water to keep hydrated so I'm kinda running out of ideas. I have a theory that when I switch weed mediums and get a different "high" profile I'll overconsume the new stuff just to scratch the same itch as the previous strain, so I'm considering taking a tolerance break to see if I can get by on less of the amnesia. But I'm all ears for suggestions!

Stoked to post here for the first time! Hope everyone's having a great weekend

 

[Egzoset]

...it's messing with my sleep. ... ...it's the weed causing it... ...I'm considering taking a tolerance break...

That sounds like an ultimatum between zero intake and the elusive/non-satisfying buzz while schedules seem like an additional anxiogenic (aggravating) factor. IMO "irritation" doesn't heal by "scratching" any deeper, much less on the long run anyway...

 

[Jabberwocky]

Taking CBD could help, as well eating sugary foods particularly mango has been shown to reduce the high.

Valerian and melatonin could help and both are safe, except melatonin should not be used daily for long periods.

But ultimately the most practical and easiest thing here will simply be to smoke less, or only smoke sativa strains during the day time, if that's the issue.

If you are tolerant to cannabis usually it's supposed to help with sleep, but everyone is different. It's entirely possible your sleeping issue is due to something other than cannabis.

 

[thujone]

welcome @Sadus,

in that situation what i'd do is stick to mellower strains during the week, keep some hash oil in the stash - it's more cerebral than indica strains but doesn't bork your sleep - and save the sativa for weekend when you can enjoy it earlier in the day.

 

[sekio]

THC reduces the amount of REM and increases the amount of short wave sleep, but generally decreases sleep quality. [ref]
On the other hand high dose CBD may improve sleep quality.
[ref]
Unfortunately there is no effective way to speed up metabolism or elimination. Drinking water won't do much as even 11-nor-9-carboxy-THC (metabolite) is not very water soluble and leaves your body mostly in poo I thought.

So, sadly, the only answer is... take less.

 

[Sadus]

Thanks for replies guys! I've picked up some valerian to demo tonight and probably gonna try some mango as well! :D We're having a hot period here which always messes with my sleep a bit, but this particular morning wakefulness is something I've come to expect from strongly energising stuff like the Haze variants. This last year I've been trying to keep my use below the point where dreaming goes away, which does away with most of the short-sighted "weed brain" after effects I get otherwise. But I've always had trouble adjusting to new strains to get the kick I want, probably have a sensitive cannabinoid system or something.

That sounds like an ultimatum between zero intake and the elusive/non-satisfying buzz while schedules seem like an additional anxiogenic (aggravating) factor. IMO "irritation" doesn't heal by "scratching" any deeper, much less on the long run anyway...

I suppose what I meant to say is that I use weed mostly as an enhancer when composing/writing, which gives me a standard performance to sort of "benchmark". Sativa strains will fuel these activities greatly which is why I love them so much, but at the same time whatever strain I'm stuck with tends to ultimately mold into this use (I guess I force it), even if more marked indica effects will result in shorter creative sessions and more nonproductive munching/snoozing. You're not entirely off though, I put the schedules in place because I love the feeling of being able to consume freely without consequence, and that generally works well as long as I stick to it. If I didn't have to rely on black market supply I'd definitely just find a standard strain and stick to it forever, maybe something Haze like but with more hybrid effects.

Got a pretty big store of already-vaped-bud/hash that I've been meaning to turn into oil or edibles. Might give that a shot and see if I can conjure up some sort of sleep potion! I'm more and more starting to suspect the lack of CBD is the cuprit- I've been having some unwarranted muscle soreness ever since switching to the amnesia a couple of days ago and today I woke up with really painful neck stiffness. Amnesia is a pretty low CBD strain so perhaps that's the reason. Really tempted to switch back to the hash and see if it fixes it, but then these last couple of days of acclimatisation will have been for nothing.

 

[Sadus]

THC reduces the amount of REM and increases the amount of short wave sleep, but generally decreases sleep quality. [ref]
On the other hand high dose CBD may improve sleep quality.
[ref]
Unfortunately there is no effective way to speed up metabolism or elimination. Drinking water won't do much as even 11-nor-9-carboxy-THC (metabolite) is not very water soluble and leaves your body mostly in poo I thought.

So, sadly, the only answer is... take less.

Sorry for the double post but I just wanted to say I fukken love your posts sekio!!!! Always with the sources and the nuggets of pharmacological insight I just drink water to counter the dehydration from weed but I know I've read about overconsuming water hurrying up metabolism of other drugs. Thanks again!

 

[sekio]

I try my best to set a good example.

 

[Egzoset]

I suppose what I meant to say is that I use weed mostly as an enhancer when composing/writing...

Somehow i seem compelled to find paradoxal contradiction in your statements as formulated, about waking up for a 2nd toke session, which sort of gave me an impression your 1st wasn't all that satisfactory - with « T-Breaks » as part of a possible ultimatum context.

When a young man i remember temporarily solving such escalating "tolerance" challenge by sampling LSD, for a change... Which i feel no regrets about, besides nostalgia (...), and yet it was no permanent fix for cannabis issues anyway, so i ain't going to conclude that's even a suggestion and nor should you. It's just an observation. But that thing sure solved my desire for satisfaction, beyond the next few days actually.

My guess is i've interpreted your text in a way that could evoke stress and frustration trying to fight time while seeking the ultimate buzz. The one that is productive, satisfying, etc.

...I love the feeling of being able to consume freely without consequence...

Yeah. Well, we still don't know the subject's age and weight, for example. Plus his hypothetical dosing profile, monthly bills, domestic workload trying to accomodate a 9-to-5 (job) schedule... Whatever. If family is also involved on top of taking a dog outside everyday then i figure this hypothetical man won't be OKay to go before 21h30 or so, ready to light up in front of his TV monitor to watch a couple pro-alcohol propaganda Sci-Fi episodes of Star Trek or else. So that's an evening program assuming it's time to land in a bed near 1 A.M., e.g. before the "effects" completely vanish. The alarm clock being set for 5h45.

If I didn't have to rely on black market supply I'd definitely just find a standard strain and stick to it forever...

Good luck with that too. It turns out the « legal=safer » dogma does nothing to make it better in Québec where we're either officially declared "sick" all year long with "legal" papers as proof, even a few signatures since it's "medical". Otherwise we're either invisible and/or a social "deviant risk" at best, halloween stuff all year long if you look at screens for entertainment... You see, there's the idealization and its realization, with bigot self-serving politi¢ian$ on the path.

...see if I can conjure up some sort of sleep potion!

Remember my initial point about « ...it's the weed causing it... »?

No matter its THC:CBD ratio + « entourage » effects, if it's all got to take place during a same lapse of 3 ~ 4 hours i find the nuggets alone would fail to explain your paradoxal situation opposing a desire to sleep better vs one for personal enhancement. Or maybe you've already smoked on the job too?

...

 

[SpiralusSancti]

Ime weeds effect of making you fogy lasts a lot longer than real high and persists day after, even days after and so makes certain work harder. It’s not like that for everyone I guess. Many years passed since I first heard friends stopping weed for that same reason and moment I too really noticed it (partly cuz I smoked all the time and when not I was usually high from something else). I think it gets worse as you get older.

 

[w01fg4ng]

It takes me 5-10 minutes to feel the initial effects of an edible, specifically delta 8 thc.

It wasn't always this way.

My tolerance also dropped where I only need half of what I took a year ago.

Pretty cool.

 

[Jerry Atrick]

@Sadus IMHO I think your main problem is that you got so much of just a single strain. A few oz of one strain means you are stuck smoking only that for a good while. What I do is always buy at least two, sometimes three, different strains each time I replenish my stash, with weight distributed between the strains evenly.

What I do is alternate between the different strains. Like break up maybe a nug of one variety and smoke it till it's gone. Then switch to a different strain for the next one. Doing that allows the high to stay fresh since normally if I smoke a single strain day in and day out that I start to lose tolerance for it. Rotating strains seems to mean I don't lose tolerance for any one strain because I'm always changing things up.

I wouldn't try to find ways to alleviate the symptoms, like taking melatonin or other substances. Instead, I would try to solve whatever it is that is causing the symptoms. And I think what is causing your symptoms is too much sativa. Are you unable to find an indica or indica hybrid to help you even things out? Like smoke the sativa in the morning or afternoon but switch to indica at night? I would try that first. Just my .02

 

[Sadus]

Yeah the foggyness has definitely gotten worse with age, in my 20s I'd consider the weed afterglow a pleasant enhancer in itself but nowadays it just messes with my short term memory and occasionally my articulation. I'm stubbornly sticking to the amnesia and still having muscle tightness and wakefulness, valerian works to prevent the wakefulness somewhat but I still aint feeling well rested when I wake up. I've been smoking hybrids for such a long time now I figure I need to give it at least 1-2 weeks to readjust my CB system, but I'm starting to doubt my persistence. What with summer coming around and the weather being great I'm not really stoked about being sleep deprived, so I might just switch back to the hash after all.

Mixing strains usually worsens the aftereffects for me but I've done it successfully in the past. The only problem is that eventually one of the strains run out, and with the nature of the market here I won't be able to get something similar enough that I effectively end up with a period of lower quality highs until my body readjusts to only the one strain/new strain combo. But I think you're right @Jerry Atrick , it's most likely just too much sativa causing it. It also aint the most well cured bud either and compared to the hash I need to smoke something like 4x the amount in weight for an equivalent high, even getting some throat congestion when I binge on it. I still have a couple of grams of hash left fortunately so should be an easy switch.

 

[fastandbulbous]

Taking CBD could help, as well eating sugary foods particularly mango has been shown to reduce the high.

Valerian and melatonin could help and both are safe, except melatonin should not be used daily for long periods.

But ultimately the most practical and easiest thing here will simply be to smoke less, or only smoke sativa strains during the day time, if that's the issue.

If you are tolerant to cannabis usually it's supposed to help with sleep, but everyone is different. It's entirely possible your sleeping issue is due to something other than cannabis.

Ye CBD. Doesn't speed it up, but makes it managable

 

[Sadus]

So yeah, I switched back to the hash wednesday and it solved all my issues. So I guess the next time I'm in a situation like this I'll just have to do a proper taper instead. Didn't think it would be necessary as I've done these kinda switches before without issue, but the near complete lack of CBD in the amnesia seemingly made a huge difference. Thanks for the input everyone!