Depression changes the way you feel, think, eat, work and function in your daily life. It’s more than sadness as a response to the life’s setbacks and struggles. This mood disorder is debilitating that can interfere with happiness, making sufferers feel as if they’re living in a black hole. Feelings worthlessness, helplessness and hopelessness are also common.
If you’re suffering from depression, the solution you might be looking for might just be at a medical dispensary.
Main Symptoms of Depression
Depression is a mood disorder that has symptoms including a bleak outlook in life that can leave sufferers feeling as if they cannot do anything to change the situation for the better.
Another common symptom is weight or appetite change. In some cases, patients experience a weight change reaching up to five percent in just one month.
Losing interest in daily activities and performing normal routines is another sign of depression. Patients tend not to care anymore about their social activities, pastimes, sex and hobbies because they lost their ability to gain pleasure from those activities.
In addition to those signs is insomnia because sufferers tend to experience trouble sleeping. They either oversleep or wake up in the early hours of the morning. And with lack of sleep comes irritability or mood swings.
Depression sufferers feel restless, agitated and sometimes hostile. They have a short temper and low tolerance. Plus, they have a reckless behavior, sometimes engaging in compulsive gambling and substance abuse.
Depression also makes patients feel sluggish and fatigued as if they’re whole body is too heavy to carry.
Aside from those symptoms, depression also causes concentration problems. Sufferers have trouble in making a decision and focusing in many cases.
They also suffer from unexplained pains and aches. They tend to complain more about aching muscles, back pain and headaches. Finally, some of them also criticize themselves for perceived mistakes and faults.
CBD vs THC: Mental and Physical Benefits
Now, you’re probably asking, “how can medical marijuana help deal you with depression?” If you’re suffering from any of those symptoms and deciding whether MMJ is right for you or not, know about the benefits of CBD and THC, two of the active compounds in marijuana, in the following to help you make an informed decision.
CBD Mental and Physical Benefits
- Pain relief: This benefit is one of the most celebrated regarding CBD that has analgesic properties, which can help relieve pain. It has the ability to interact with the immune system and brain receptor to alleviate pain and reduce inflammation.
- Anti-seizure: Based on a study published in The New England Journal of Medicine, patients with Dravet syndrome who had CBD medications experienced reduced seizure frequency episodes by an average of 38.9%.
- Anti-anxiety and depression: CBD is a powerful aid when it comes to treating physiological symptoms, so it is a promising solution as a therapy for a range of mood disorders, including anxiety, because it positively affects the paralimbic and limbic brain area activities.
- Anti-cancer: Certain studies had it that CBD has antitumor effects that can escalate the death of tumor cells in leukemia and colon cancer. And in cervical cancer, CBD may aid in stopping the spread of cancer cells.
CBD also offers the following help on
- Inflammation
- Mental disorders
- Migraine
- Inflammatory bowel disease
- Pain relief
- Psychosis
THC Mental and Physical Benefits
- Pain relief: It is a safer painkiller than mainstream pain medications are. It works by activating certain central nervous system pathways, which are blocking the pain signals going to the brain.
- Vomiting and nausea relief: A 1995 study indicated that THC-8, which has lower psychotropic effects than regular THC has, worked effectively in relieving cancer symptoms, including chemotherapy-induced nausea and vomiting.
- Brain protection: Another celebrated benefit of THC is on brain protection according to a 2014 study that reported those who consumed THC were 80% less likely to die from a head trauma.
- PTSD treatment: THC can reduce PTSD symptoms, including flashbacks, insomnia, agitation and nightmares.
Other conditions THC can help with are,
- Insomnia
- Low appetite
- Anxiety
- Glaucoma
- Muscle spasticity
Depression Treatment
Electroconvulsive therapy (ECT) is a treatment route for depression, especially for suicidal patients who do not also respond well to oral medications.
Antidepressants are a common treatment for depression. However, they don’t come without side effects and risks especially among children and adolescents. They’re not usually the first treatment for young adults and not prescribed in children. These medications can cause agitation especially among those taking it the first time before it takes effect. Some people might also attempt suicide or have suicidal thoughts. For this reason, individuals taking antidepressants must be monitored closely.
Interpersonal therapy (IPT): This therapy aims at helping patients with medical marijuan card improve their social and interpersonal relations functioning.
Cognitive-Behavioral Therapy (CBT): This therapy is didactic and structured, focusing on helping people change their behavior and thinking patterns.
There you have what to know about the benefits of medical marijuana for mental and physical health, and finally its potentials for depression treatment.