What effect does the world's most widely used illicit drug have on the world's most common mental disorder? When people smoke marijuana to calm their anxiety, the result might not be what they're hoping for.
From Vice:
Read Full Article »While some research points to the positive mental health effects of marijuana, there is growing evidence that suggests the popular perception of the drug's ameliorating effects on anxiety and panic aren't the full story. A 2009 study in the Human Psychopharmacology Clinical and Experimental Journal actually found that anxiety reactions and panic attacks are the acute symptoms most frequently associated with cannabis use. "When talking about brain science and cannabis, it's easy to be swept away by anecdotal evidence and sound bites," says Dr. Ruben Baler, a health scientist at the National Institute on Drug Abuse. But the brain is complex, and the slightest difference in a person's brain chemistry can cause significant differences in how our mind and body respond to cannabis, says Dr. Baler.
