April Pride: This podcast discusses cannabis and is intended for audiences 21 and over.

Michelle Waterson: For my mother-in-law, she takes it because I guess we never really thought about the effects that accident would have on her, but it took a toll on their relationship. Their life was turned upside down and in a split second. And so she went from being his wife to his wife and his caretaker and his motivator, and stressing out about the medical bills and stressing out about whether he was going to be okay. And there was a point where she couldn’t take it anymore and we suggested that she take the CBD. And so she takes CBD regularly and it definitely helps with her anxiety. It helps with her emotions because it can be overwhelming having to deal with all those problems.

April Pride: Welcome back to How to Do the Pot. I’m April Pride. And as you know, I do the pot. You just heard from an amazing athlete, mother, wife, and daughter, Michelle Waterson, a mixed martial artist and former champion in the UFC. We met Michelle in 2019 when we learned she was using CBD for pain and recovery after her professional fights. And while she was training, she is one of the first women who shared with us a personal story of how CBD helps her and her family fight something we all struggle with, stress and anxiety. This is the audio newsletter. If you’d rather read it, visit dothepot.com to subscribe to the email newsletter. And if you like how to do the pot, please share it with someone and rate and review us on Apple Podcast. It helps more people find the show.

April Pride: Ellen, the co-creator of this podcast, mentioned to me that she feels kindness is the antidote to anxiety, particularly, kindness to oneself. What does that look like for you? For me, it’s both prioritizing a daily activity and accepting that walking the dog, at a casual clip, counts as activity. Fresh air movement changed the day for me and the dog, his name’s Stewie, by the way. Yes, after Stewie, on the Family Guy. He chews on things less, and I chew people out less. Just add weed to this formula, and days feel brighter than they appear.

Michelle Waterson: Outside of training, I also have a daughter who is eight now. And so, having to take care of her, stressing about her, picking her up and dropping her off from school, taking her to gymnastics, working with her on her homework, trying to stay sane and not be so grumpy with her when I’m cutting weight, all those things, it’s amazing how it all comes into play. And I found that the CBD helps get my everything back into check.

April Pride: For today’s High Five. How to do the pot for less stress. Number one. Cannabis requires some experimentation. Consume CBD daily for two weeks, to establish your baseline dose for daily stress management. Number two. Have you heard of the endocannabinoid system or the ECS? Its job is to balance and modulate all of the other systems in our body to maintain homeostasis or balance. Listen to our audio newsletter, “Why does CBD work for women?”, for more on the ECS or check out our website, dothepot.com. Number three. A 2019 study in Washington state, tracking 11,000 patients, found a 50% reduction in depression and a 58% reduction in anxiety and stress, following use of high CBD, low THC cannabis. Number four. Patients show notable decreases in anxiety and sleep concerns after using CBD for a month.

April Pride: One-on-one dosage specialists at Equilibria can help customize CBD for you. Visit myeq.com. That’s M-Y-E-Q.com for 15% off your purchase with promo code, dothepot. Number five. Research also shows that acute anxiety can be treated with extremely high doses of CBD, like 600 milligrams high. You cannot OD on CBD, but high doses should be consumed under a doctor’s care. We trust the physicians at American Cannabinoid Clinics, and you’ve heard from Dr. Jess in past episodes, who is one of the founding doctors of this clinic. As you know, we always have three strain wrecks in these audio newsletters. And today, these recommendations are for high CBD, low THC strains, that can provide maximum chill.

April Pride: The first one is Sour Tsunami. It’s the first cannabis strain specifically bred for high CBD. Sour Tsunami offers a productive daytime high that successfully combats mental stress. Charlotte’s Web. A minimal THC strain with 15 to 20% of the CBD content of a typical strain. So, Charlotte’s Web sues anxiety and stress without getting you high. Cannatonic. This is one of the favorite strains that I’ve recommended to Ellen in the past. It’s a one-to-one strain, meaning it has equal part CBD and THC. It leaves you with a heavy body and a clear mind. Here are three podcasts that Ellen and I love, and we want to share with you. I like Wall Street Journal, Secrets Of Wealthy Women. It’s hosted by Veronica Dagher. And some of the more recent episodes have focused on how to manage pandemic induced career anxiety. Ellen likes Tara Brach, and it’s hosted by Tara Brach.

April Pride: It’s a weekly guided meditation and talk that blends Western psychology and Eastern spiritual practices. And to do the pot, we recommend that you listen to the Brave New Weed Podcast, episode number 19. Dr. Junella Chin talks dosage to treat pain, stress, anxiety, and insomnia. Thank you for listening to this audio newsletter, let us know what you think. Find us on Instagram @dothepot, and you can follow me @aprilpride. And for lots more information about cannabis and women, visit dothepot.com. Thanks to my co-founder, Ellen Scanlon, Madi Fair, our marketing manager, and our producer, Nick Patri. I’m April Pride, and we’ll be back soon with more of how to do the pot.