CBD and COVID-19 Anxiety: How It May Help

CBD and coronavirus

As of the time of writing this (mid March 2020), the Coronavirus (COVID-19) is in full swing in the United States and around the world. Grocery stores and supermarkets are out of many essential toiletries and cleaning supplies and, in some regions, are running low on food items, especially things like fresh fruit and meat.

Whatever you may think of the virus itself, what has happened as a result is largely unprecedented in the United States. As Americans, we are not accustomed to regular pandemics that cause major disruption to our daily lives. What’s more is that this virus may cause even more disruption as mandatory quarantines and lock downs become a reality.

Unless you live in a region of the country prone to hurricanes, you have probably never seen a run on essential items like we have in the past two weeks. You have probably never seen a state governor or president order private businesses and establishments to stop allowing customers in. This is an extraordinary time and is something you’ll likely remember forever.

As people stay home from work and supply chains become disrupted, businesses are suffering. That, coupled with investors losing faith in the market, may mean a severe economic disruption or down turn, even if only in the short term.

All of these negative things are constantly screamed at us from the media and on social media. If you are consuming all that with an uncritical eye, you may well think the world is ending and that we are heading into something worse than the Great Depression. Now, we’re not here to tell you whether the worst is going to happen or not because, frankly, we have no idea. But we can say with quite a bit of certainty that calmness, clear-headedness, and productivity go a long way.

Relax and Live Your Life the Best You Can

Obviously, this is easier said than done during a quarantine when you are confined to your home and might be going a little stir crazy. What might be a little easier is focusing on the things that you are able to directly control in your life. Virus ravaging through the population? Out of your control. Potential pending economic collapse? Definitely not in your control.

If you’re working from home, throw yourself into it. If you’re home from work but not too busy or at home and not working, focus on improving your skills. Take an online course, read a book, practice in any way that you can. Are your kids home from school and you’re home from work? Look at it as an opportunity to spend some extra time with them. You get the idea.

When there are big, scary things happening in the world, it can sometimes be a good idea to narrow your vision even more than normal and concentrate on what you can directly influence. Doing this helps ease anxiety, gives you greater confidence, and, inadvertently, can actually help you be even more ready for the big problems happening in the world around you.

Screw You, Anxiety

As someone who feels anxious at times and who is a bit of a natural worrier, I can tell you that not only does anxiety suck because it makes you feel like crap, but it is also a colossal waste of time. If you are trying to use the Coronavirus quarantine time to your advantage, or even just trying to keep your mind off of the wider chaos and focus on your own life and what you can control, that deep anxious feeling can make it extremely difficult.

I’m about to make the turn in this article to discuss CBD and its effect on anxiety. Before I do, I just wanted to emphasize the fact that we at Urban Roots are not trying to take advantage of the situation or of your fears and anxiety. This is not a cheap trick to try and sell more of our products when people are looking for any solution to the craziness.

We’re writing this because we truly believe that CBD and our products help people. We have countless stories from customers who tell us that our products have greatly reduced their feelings of anxiety and its associated effects. This has allowed them to get out of their own way and be more successful at work, to be better able to focus on the task at hand without thinking of every possible negative what-if scenario, and to generally live more comfortable, calm, and fulfilling lives.

In times of extreme stress and anxiety, like the disease and economic hardship fueled ones we currently find ourselves in, people often need a little more help to clear some of the noise and concentrate on what they need to get done. Additionally, stress and anxiety are both culprits affecting our immune systems, which is something we don't want happening during a global pandemic.

For many people, CBD may be that little more help they are searching for to calm their nerves and reduce their stress and anxiety.

CBD and Anxiety

Before you rush to buy all the CBD products you can in an attempt to relax and calm your mind, here’s a bit about what we know about CBD and anxiety so far.

Although the research is in its relative infancy, we know that CBD’s effect on anxiety is made possible by its interaction with the endocannabinoid system, a biochemical communication highway in our bodies. There is also mounting evidence that CBD interacts intimately with your body’s serotonergic system—the system of serotonin neurotransmitters. This system works to regulate mood, nausea, appetite, bone health, sleep, emotions, and even sexual function.

This last point is especially interesting because serotonin levels are linked closely with anxiety, depression, stress, and other mood disorders. There have been cannabinoid receptors found on serotonin neurons, as well as in the corresponding inhibitory receptors.

Specifically, what this means is that CBD is thought to interact with 5-HT1a receptors that control serotonin levels in the brain and body. This leads to the conclusion that cannabinoids may increase serotonin levels in certain conditions, and reduce them in others, providing the balance necessary for proper mental health.

Can CBD Help Anxiety? The Facts

So, CBD interacts with both our endocannabinoid system and serotonergic system and may help modulate and maintain balance of many different neurochemicals. But how exactly does this translate to easing anxiety? Well, here are some studies that look specifically into CBD and anxiety.

Here is a 2011 study that found that CBD helped combat social anxiety.
This 2015 review of 49 studies found evidence that CBD has strong potential as a treatment for general anxiety, panic disorder, PTSD, social anxiety, and more.
This study from 2019 found that CBD improved 80% of the subjects’ anxiety and 70% of the subjects’ sleep in the first month.

Conclusion

We are living through a tough time. Whether you know someone who has contracted COVID-19, are afraid of catching it, or fearing for the future of the economy and your long term well-being, it’s a lot to think about. Our own opinion is that you should focus on the things in your life you can control like your work, your skills, your family, and anything else, and focus a bit less on the chaos around the globe.