Let’s face it, life can be very stressful. If you’re like so many people, your job, family and everyday life presents challenges that can really stress you out. You already know that cannabis can help you de-stress from a hard day at work or help to relieve anxiety from worries. However, there are methods to get the most out of your medical cannabis, thereby opening up the possibility of an experience that is “twice as nice”. In addition, you can work towards making lasting changes, beyond the physical high.
Opening Doorways
While we’re not going to go into the spiritual aspect of the plant, the fact remains that cannabis can enable you to open doorways and new pathways in your mind. It can help you to see things from a higher and broader perspective and gives you the power to have control over yourself. Isn’t that the key to life in general? There are things that are just out of our control, no matter how much we’d like to tell ourselves otherwise. So when you’re faced with such stressful and anxiety provoking situations, you can always turn to your inner guidance system with cannabis.
The human brain functions best in times of relaxed focus. This is also known as the Alpha wave state. In this state, you experience a deep relaxation, while at the same time experiencing a laser-sharp focus and crystal clear awareness. It takes a lot of practice to be able to get into this state on your own, and cannabis can be used as a sort of “training wheels” to help you get there.
Box Breathing Technique
So let’s cover the 4 simple steps. This is known as “box breathing” in the US military and is being used to help soldiers during times of war and trauma. (8 Weeks to SEALFIT: A Navy SEAL’s Guide to Unconventional Training for Physical and Mental Toughness by Mark Divine)
It is an excellent tool to not only help relieve stress and anxiety, but to also help ground and center yourself as well. Athletes and entertainment professionals use this method to enhance their performance.
Preliminaries: This works for those who inhale their cannabis, through their chosen method. If you’re into edibles, then you’ll want to do the following steps as soon as you feel the cannabis kick in.
- Inhale your cannabis slowly to the count of 4.
- Hold it to the count of 4.
- Exhale slowly to the count of 4.
- Count slowly to 4 before Inhaling again
Repeat this 4-fold breathing pattern for at least 25 to 45 minutes. Don’t let the simplicity of this powerful tool fool you into dismissing it. The human brain is wired to go into the Alpha-wave state when doing repetitive tasks, like this breathing pattern. Your conscious mind tends to get bored after a while and begins to quiet down. The same thing goes for your body, as it begins to relax and let go of tension. The more you practice this, the more you will begin to notice an expanded high that lasts long after the physical high of the cannabis plant. You may also begin to experience new insights into yourself and into your personal situations, which enable you to relax and work out solutions in your own gentle way.
