What is a cannabis 'bad trip', how to avoid it and how to get out of it

bad trip von cannabis

Cannabis is often associated with the pleasant “high” that it can provide, most often with a feeling of relaxation, good mood or the urge to laugh for nothing. However, there are times when the experience is far from pleasant. So what do you do if things go wrong? To answer that question, we'll explain the different forms of consumption, what symptoms characterize an unpleasant experience, how to prevent it and how to end a 'bad trip' of cannabis. 

With the presence of Cannareporter in the Boom Festival , an event where the reduction of harm related to substance consumption plays a crucial role, through the drug-checking service of the Kosmicare , it is pertinent to alert our readers, especially the younger ones, to the adverse effects that can result from the use of cannabis.

All cannabis lovers have experienced, at least once in their lives, a trip nasty cannabis. The paranoia is at its worst and you want so badly to get out of trip , but it won't stop for the next few hours. You're basically in your worst nightmare and you can't get out of it.   For an inexperienced user, such an event can be traumatizing. And at worst, it can lead to the wrong impression of what the cannabis experience can be like, or even a complete aversion to it.  

But it doesn't have to be that way. the bad ones trips of cannabis are both preventable and treatable. In this article, we intend to equip you with the knowledge to mitigate the situation in the best possible way and deal with it effectively, in case something bad happens to you. trip of cannabis.  

What can cause a bad trip of cannabis?

A negative experience with cannabis can be the result of many factors. To give you an idea of ​​how different types of consumption methods, as well as the environment itself, can affect your cannabis consumption experience, let's go deeper into the subject.  

Use of edibles

Everyone undoubtedly knows the legendary rapper Snoop Dogg, who after Cheech and Chong is possibly the biggest name in cannabis when it comes to famous personalities. Well then, for someone who claims to consume around 81 blunts a day, the famous rapper tries to avoid the consumption of edibles , because according to him “the edibles don't have any off button". If you basically spend most of your day smoking cannabis, this might be something to consider.  

bad trip von cannabis

Many cannabis users, both newbies and those with more experience, end up committing, with some frequency, a very basic mistake: ingesting  too much in a short period of time, instead of waiting long enough for the effects of the edible start to make themselves felt. We recommend that we all never be too zealous when it comes to edibles , especially if they are “newbies” in this type of consumption. From our own experience, we have seen too many cases where the consumption of edibles ended up in a less pleasant experience. Thus, we recommend starting small and waiting at least two to three hours before eating more.

bad trip von cannabis

So that you have more or less an idea, the amount of THC present in a single dab , that is, simply one inhalation, will be more or less the equivalent of consuming a whole joint, in a shroud like king size , all at once, without any interruption.  

For those who have never tried one dab , or even for those who have already tried it, get ready, because your endocannabinoid system will be heavily flooded with THC, which, in turn, can cause slightly more unpleasant sensations, even for the most experienced smokers. Here, too, the dosage plays a big role.  

Varieties with high levels of THC

Ask any old-school cannabis user about potency and they'll tell you that today's cannabis is much stronger than it used to be, which is completely true. In the 70s, 80s and even in the 90s, THC levels did not exceed 10% to 15%, or, at the highest of the maximums, the 20% already in the 90s. Nowadays, there are varieties that can reach 25% to 30% of THC. These are the ones that can incapacitate a less experienced user in an instant.  

Although, obviously, THC is not the only substance that defines the “high” in cannabis consumption, it turns out to be the most significant; therefore, higher levels of the substance are more likely to cause an unpleasant experience.  

Mental State

bad trip von cannabis

Social context

Similar to mental state, social context also plays a role in the outcome of your cannabis experience. If you're with a group of close friends you trust, with good music and good vibes all around, you're likely to have a good experience.   Likewise, being in a chaotic environment, with people you don't know, can trigger uncomfortable emotions. Some people feel much more anxious when this happens, while others lose their grip on reality. And that can be a scary situation.  

What are the symptoms of a bad trip of cannabis?

Although we've already described some of the effects more lightly, let's now look at the various symptoms and sensations that one can experience during a bad trip of cannabis. In addition to the typical dry mouth or some spatial and temporal dissociation, which may even be frequent, other more exacerbated symptoms may appear in some cases and in some people. 

bad trip von cannabis

Cannabis use can sometimes make people think too much. The mind and body reach higher levels of anxiety, while trying to understand whether or not the person next to you, in a public place, noticed your altered state. This can lead to the next symptom, panic, which makes the whole experience even more distressing.  

Panic attacks  

Panic attacks are indeed a frightening experience. They can cause irregular breathing, which results in shortness of breath, high anxiety, rapid heartbeat and even fainting. All of this occurs while stressful or intrusive scenarios replay over and over in your head. Cannabis can both increase and cause these symptoms in some people.  

bad trip von cannabis

Hallucinations

Although cannabis-related hallucinations are rare and have nothing to do with those experienced with psychedelic substance use, they can occur – especially with edibles . Often, those who try high doses of THC the first few times may experience what they consider to be auditory and/or visual hallucinations. This can be something that less savvy consumers in particular can be quite alarmed about.  

bad trip von cannabis

Anyone who has had a bad cannabis trip is familiar with the dizzying spell it initiates. It seems the world around you is spinning faster. Imagine being on a roller coaster nightmare. Many dizzy spells happen to novice smokers, who have already ingested much more than they should. But even in the most experienced consumers, this can also happen as a result of taking a dab or even a bongada bigger than you can handle.

Physical malaise and vomiting

Dizziness is one of a number of potentially distressing physical sensations during a bad weed trip, but you can also sweat profusely, experience stomach discomfort, vomit or have a rapid heart rate. Some people also experience episodes of tremors and numbness.  

How to recover/overcome a bad trip of cannabis?

How long can these bad experiences last? This is something that can vary greatly from person to person. If consumption has been done through the more traditional method, smoking, or even vaping, these sensations can last between 1 and 2 hours, but if it has been through the consumption of edibles , or ingested, these effects may last up to 8 hours or even longer, depending on the dose. That said, these unpleasant symptoms, as a rule, decrease in intensity over time, and may even disappear completely even before the "high" ends.

The good thing about a bad cannabis experience is that it's not exactly life-threatening, at least as far as the possibility of a fatal overdose is concerned. Often, it's about remembering that you're under the influence of a psychotropic substance and simply doing your best to relax and let it go. However, as many people may not yet know, here are some useful tips in case you find yourself in a less pleasant situation when using cannabis.  

Breathe and try to calm down

While this is easier said than done, the key here is to shift your attention to something that is more calming, or at least distracting from the situation you find yourself in. A good way to do this is to change where you are. If possible, take a short walk outside or find a quiet, relaxing place to sit for a while. You'll be surprised what a simple change of location can do for your condition in the event of a bad trip of cannabis.  

Stay hydrated

Not only can drinking water help alleviate the dry mouth feeling that cannabis tends to cause, but it will also make the “high” less catastrophic. Mixing alcohol is also a very bad idea, as it will only aggravate the symptoms. When in doubt, moisturize!  

Breathe calmly and deeply

People who go through episodes of paranoia often forget to breathe properly, which is what often leads them down the dark path of invasive or anxious thoughts, which end up turning into a panic attack.  

If you feel that cannabis is making you panic, immediately try to regulate your breathing. Inhale deeply and exhale slowly until you feel calmer. It may take some practice and persistence to develop this habit, but once you do, you'll be able to cut through the cannabis-induced panic before it takes over your entire body in earnest.  

bad trip von cannabis

Listen to music you like  

A good song can do a lot for your current mood. And listening to music you don't like can bring out the worst feelings. If you think you're about to get into trouble trip , try to put on some of your favorite songs that make you more comfortable, in a good mood and calm. Watching a movie or a comic series is also an excellent option. 

Eat something sweet

Eating something sweet, be it cakes, sweets or fruit, will raise blood sugar and divert your senses, especially if it is one of your favorite delicacies and delicacies, it is possible to turn an unpleasant situation around and feel good again. There are also those who say that chocolate or lemon help to reduce the 'high'. 

How to avoid a bad trip of cannabis?

As they say, prevention is better than cure, and with that in mind, here are some ways to avoid a bad cannabis experience.  

Consume small doses

One of the first pieces of advice you'll hear when trying cannabis, or even any other type of drug, for the first time, and regardless of the method of consumption chosen, is the old “start low and go slow”. O i.e. start slow and take it easy. Because just like eating a meal, we must eat slowly and not eat too much or too quickly, or you will quickly feel full.  

If you want to avoid a bad experience in cannabis consumption, you should follow the same ideology and send one breath at a time, in case consumption is done in the more traditional methods of smoking and/or vaping. With regard to edible, for example, start with smaller portions and wait at least two to three hours before repeating the dose, as the effects are only felt after digestion has taken place.  

Avoid using cannabis if you feel low

As we mentioned before, your pre-consumption mental and emotional state will affect the outcome of your experience. As such, avoid consuming if you are feeling low, irritable, or just not well in general. Don't waste your stock on a bad experience. After all, cannabis consumption is mostly about generating good experiences and moments and not the other way around. Therefore, consuming to run the risk of feeling worse is not advisable.  

Put yourself in a good environment  

When we talk about a good environment, we mean a comfortable place, with friends you trust, good music and a vibe fun and relaxing. Avoid places that prevent you from truly relaxing and making the most of the whole experience.  

Surround yourself with people you trust and enjoy being with.

bad trip von cannabis

With reference to the previous point, it pays to be among people you trust and with whom you feel comfortable. Whether it's your family or friends, make sure you have the right people with you.  

When you lack sleep, you feel more grumpy and unable to function properly. And if you also smoke while in this state, you may have a less pleasant experience. So make sure you've had your good dose of rest, especially before a cannabis session with friends.  

In the end, everything will be fine...

Whatever the reason and reason that led you to have a bad experience with cannabis, you can rest assured: in the end everything will return to normal! It is necessary to take into account that living a bad trip of cannabis does not mean that it will become something recurrent every time cannabis is consumed, not least because, as we explained in this article, there are several factors inherent to which this can happen. Even the most savvy consumers are bound to have a less than positive experience.  

However, if you want to minimize the risk of having a bad trip with cannabis, you can always consider these suggestions as ways to prevent this from happening. And, of course, for you to maintain a good, healthy and positive relationship with this plant.  

bad trip von cannabis

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How to Prevent a Bad Cannabis Trip

How to Prevent a Bad Cannabis Trip

People use cannabis for infinite reasons. They offer endless explanations, only some of which are true. People will say they use cannabis as a therapy for medical problems. Others look forward to an occasional relaxing chill.

Cannabis works differently than other mind-altering inebriants. It does not heighten experience like cocaine, nor does it obliterate reality like heroin. Cannabis offers escape and distraction from daily physical and mental stressors. A cannabis high depends on the individual’s brain and body specifics and the user's choice of cannabis strain. The experience may alter mood, increase clarity, trigger spatial disorientation, and heighten sense experience.

However, some users want to go further; they want to see how far the cannabis trip can take them. They want to sense paranoia and may want to touch the edge of schizophrenia. A “bad cannabis trip” can take you there, whether you pursue the experience intentionally or unintentionally. Users and their friends should know how to prevent a bad cannabis trip.

How to recognize a bad cannabis trip!

You can have a lousy cannabis event even if you use a mild strain. So much depends on an individual’s genetics, physical condition, and mental predisposition. No two cannabis users respond to the same cannabis strain in the same way. However, you or your user friends could be riding a bad trip if the following signs are present:

Delusions or hallucinations

Extreme mental anxiety and physical agitation

A frightening sense of paranoia

Increased heart rate

Pale complexion

Shortness of breath

Sudden fluctuation in blood pressure

Trembling, shaking, and cramping

Vomiting and upset stomach

There is no scientific evidence that cannabis kills − although a bad trip can kill if you are also operating a motor vehicle. Still, some cannabis users do not know how to handle their bad trips.

What is the problem?

The THC content in cannabis positively influences the nervous system by binding to neurotransmitters. It will restore the normal flow of neural messages that have been upset by pain, inflammation, disease, stress, and more. Cannabis users may benefit from this restoration and rejuvenation.

However, the THC content may agitate those same neural cells adding anxiety to the experience in some cannabis users. The THC percentage may exceed the user's level of tolerance, in adverse social conditions, too heavily or too frequently in a short time, or with alcohol in social circumstances that provide no support.

5 keys to prevent a bad cannabis trip!

If you intend to use cannabis in any form, you should learn what to expect. You should know what to avoid and how to handle a bad trip, just as you should know when to stop drinking and take responsibility for your actions. Here are five keys to preventing a bad cannabis trip:

Get your head straight.

At its best, cannabis will “normalize” your state of mind. If your head is stressed and emotions suppressed, the cannabis will magnify those influences. The advice then is to approach cannabis use with some stability if you want to optimize a pleasant experience.

You can infer that you invite an agitating experience when you use cannabis while angry, upset, or depressed. Cannabis may reduce this mindset with a mild experience, but it can heighten the negative leaving you confused, disoriented, and fearful.

Logically, it would be best if you used it when you are in a good mood, comfortable with your surroundings, and free from external pressures. Conversely, if you use cannabis to escape from significant stress, you are likely to bring those negatives on the trip with you.

Know what you are using.

Virgin users often experience agitation on their first cannabis experience because they do not know what to expect. They over- or under-estimate the expectation, so they are suckers for the worst effects.

All users must understand the influences triggered by cannabis biochemistry. They must investigate what THC and CBD can do. Depending on their experience, they can shop for cannabis strains with a preferred content and ratio.

Only experience will test your level of tolerance. With a bit of research, you can identify the strain that will provide mild euphoria and creative clarity. You may also find the strain that lifts your mood and prompts giggles and chatter. Or you may discover the cannabis that will push you towards paranoia and total escape.

Use with friends.

Using cannabis alone poses some risks. Social isolation can prove damaging if use alone becomes chronic. There is a social aspect to cannabis use that encourages use with others who share your conversation, munchies, and good humor. For example, a cannabis joint is designed for sharing.

Consuming cannabis alone poses a considerable risk for first-time users. Every consumer experience is unique, so that users may need coaching or comfort in their individual experience. Using cannabis among friends in the same mood and environment helps improve your mindset.

Avoid high-potency cannabis strains.

Many cannabis strains contain high levels of THC, more commonly than in the past. Taking too much THC in any form will challenge your level of tolerance. It may be processed relatively safely in time, but it requires building that level with measured repeated use.

Too much THC or too much THC in too short a time almost guarantees a bad trip. The legalization of cannabis has introduced accurate labeling of products which provides consumers with independently tested ingredients.

Choose the method of consumption carefully.

Discussions of cannabis consumption often assume the use involves smoking joints. Smoking a spliff as if it were a cigarette increases the dose of any strain. Smokers should take one or two drags on a joint before setting it aside or passing it to another. The effects take just a few moments, allowing the smoker to enjoy and assess the reaction. Pacing the inhalation effectively distributes the dose.

This need-to-dose applies to other methods of consumption. Dabbing and water pipes, for instance, purify the intake, thereby increasing the potency. Moreover, the significant risk in edibles follows the temptation to eat too much or too many in rapid sequence. Because edibles process more slowly, the flavors encourage users to try some more because they do not feel the effects immediately.

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manual prevent bad trip cannabis

  • Risk reduction

Manual to Prevent (or Relieve) a Bad Cannabis Trip

D. Civantos

  • Anyone can suffer a bad cannabis trip.
  • And while it is possible to control some factors that can result in a bad trip, it's not a bad idea to know how to proceed, in case you still fail to avert it.
  • Breathe, calm down and relax until the psychedelic episode passes. Those should be your top priorities.
  • But the solution is rife with nuances, which we will explain here.

Because everyone is unique, the effects people experience when using cannabis in its different forms are equally so, even in that least pleasant variant of them all: the "bad trip," also known as a "freak-out," "bad high," "downer" or "bad scene." Whatever one calls it, it´s is a psychedelic crisis that can entail a wide range of symptoms.

Some think the experience of a bad trip is a rookie mistake produced by errors like not drinking enough water, or simply the clumsiness of beginners just getting started. However, even the most seasoned cannabis consumers can suffer a bad trip on grass. In fact, it may be due to something entirely circumstantial, like one's mood when consuming, being influenced by the people you're with, the music you're listening to, or even the kind of light in the room.

Such is the variability when it comes to trips that not even the amount consumed seems to be definitive: while some attribute bad trips to the consumption of a dose that is too large, due to the high percentage of THC current cannabis strains pack, there are others who identify them as stemming from small doses too. In the latter case the amount of cannabis consumed would have a relatively weak effect, making possible some psychological resistance by the body to the trip affecting it. Thus, it is clear that even when an effort is made to control all these factors, it is still something unpredictable that can surprise anyone .

A bad trip can also be triggered, for example, by using marijuana contaminated with traces of pesticides or fertilisers, although the studies performed on the subject involve more questions than answers, and do not explain the risk in detail or in a quantifiable way.

Finally, we must bear in mind that cannabis, when ingested, has much more intense and long-lasting effects than when it is inhaled , so neophytes who eat foods containing marijuana are vulnerable to bad trips. Science has an explanation: when cannabis is eaten, rather than being smoked or vaporised, the liver breaks down THC into a new compound, called 11-hydroxy-THC.

bad trip von cannabis

This metabolite is more potent than THC and crosses the blood-brain barrier more easily, producing more psychedelic effects in the brain. For people who are just starting out, marijuana candies or light teas could be a simple way to consume cannabis safely while they are still learning how it affects their bodies.

In terms of symptoms , there is no clinical diagnosis of "cannabis psychosis." It is possible for these symptoms to appear and escalate, featuring a snowball effect. Perhaps there is someone around you who you first notice is silent and withdrawn. These signs grow and grow, and can lead to an anxiety crisis and episodes characterised by fear and paranoia.

Thus, the consumer who experiences a bad trip may notice that he loses control, as it affects his notions of time and space. There are extreme cases in which one ceases to be aware of himself or his body parts, and he can even have slight hallucinations. All this is mixed with related physical symptoms; anxiety, without going any further, which could cause problems breathing problems, or tachycardia.

However, you should not panic: having such a negative experience is rare. While it is relatively common to experience a specific moment of anxiety, or abnormal visual perceptions , only if these are prolonged or potentially serious do they require the consumer or those accompanying him to take action.

How do you prevent it?

Given the variety of factors that can come into play to produce bad trips, there is little one can do to prevent them . However, there is a little recipe that should make it possible to reduce the chances of suffering this experience.

It all has to do with controlling your surroundings as much as possible. Thus, it is advisable to be in a familiar and quiet place surrounded by people one trusts, and that will not stress him , in any case. Under such conditions it is difficult for the situation to get out of control, and any negative experience will probably have only short-term effects. In addition, being in good health, physically and mentally, can be key to preventing a bad trip, as dizziness and paling skin has a lot to do with one's blood pressure.

If your body still responds to marijuana consumption with one of these psychedelic crises, there are ways to control the bad trip to keep it from becoming truly serious. Both you and those around you can follow a series of recommendations to minimise symptoms.

First of all, the most important thing is to avoid panicking when you notice the first signs that something is wrong. Trying to stay calm is key. Popular culture, along with the personal opinions of users in various Internet forums, have produced a long list of tips, ranging from the consumption of sugary products , such as Coca-Cola, to the use of medications, like aspirin , which allegedly counteract the effects of a bad trip.

bad trip von cannabis

However, you should simply try to relax . Breathe easy, inhaling through the mouth, and exhale slowly, relaxing each and every one of your muscles, and wait for the bad trip to pass and for its effects to fade. These should be your main objectives. You can also act as you would if suffering a drop in blood pressure, with a manoeuvre that few employ when a bad trip hits: elevate your legs. The "sugar crash theory" to explain the causes of a bad trip does not identify its true origins or offer a corresponding remedy to address it.

To deal with it the best thing to do, at first, is to focus on peace and calm around us. Do not listen to music or watch television to clear the mind. In this way it will be easier for you to focus on relaxing your body. Once you have done so you can put on some music that is calming, or familiar, or even a movie that you like.

A change of scenery is also a good idea: if you're indoors, going outside helps, and vice versa. Anything that distracts you from your thoughts at the time is also helpful. Doing some stretching? Having some green tea to relax? Go right ahead. Maybe a juice? Fantastic. Hydration is an important factor to minimise the effect. All this, while keeping in mind that the best thing you can do is try to chat with a friend, who can take over the reins of the conversation and soothe you.

How can you help?

Other times you won´t be the one in trouble. Rather, you'll be with a friend who is on a bad trip after consuming cannabis. In this case it is also a good idea to know what to do to help him out and make the experience more bearable.

bad trip von cannabis

To begin with, don't repeat obvious things like "calm down." Talking is a good idea, but ask specific questions, such as what the person is feeling at the time, or if he can distinguish a particular part of his body. All this, without forgetting that when we are with someone in this situation we have to be patient and understanding .

Also, it is very useful is to remind the "traveller" about what he has consumed. This will allow him to realise that what is going on is just one of the possible effects of what he has taken , and that it is a just a question of time before everything returns to normal.

Finally, in this conversation it is helpful to discuss things that allow the user to reconnect with reality . For example, telling him what time it is may serve to mitigate the distortion of time that he could be experiencing.

In any case, both for the traveller and the companion who is a witness to his friend's psychedelic crisis, it is important to always keep in mind that, though it may involve a tachycardia, exacerbated by anxiety, it is always an experience whose intensity will vary depending on our ability to control it : breathe, calm down and wait for the bad trip to pass. It always does. And, remember that, like many other things in life, everyone is different; just because something is not pleasant for one person does not mean that it cannot be a safe and pleasant experience for others.

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Can You Trip on Weed?

fraser-horton

Written by Fraser Horton

jason-crawford

Medically Reviewed by Jason Crawford

Article Last Updated on December 25, 2022

While there haven’t been cases of cannabis overdoses, a lot of people have ended up in an emergency room as a result of increased cannabis use or combining weed with other drugs. Consuming higher doses of weed may also produce side effects such as the munchies, dry mouth, dry eyes, increased heart rate, effects on your mental health (triggering paranoia or schizophrenia in people who have a predisposition for it), and increased blood pressure – which is why first time users should take lower amounts.

This is why some users, besides having questions like how many hits does it take to get high and how to get the most out of your weed , also wonder whether smoking weed can get you tripping – which is the focus of this particular article.

So let’s get down to answering the question of how cannabis use can affect you, and whether it can make you trip.

The 411 on Bad Trips

As we’ve previously stated, consuming cannabis can cause a wide array of effects because of the presence of cannabinoids like tetrahydrocannabinol (THC) and cannabidiol (CBD). It can cause users to feel ecstatic and euphoric, but also relaxed and calm. However, smoking weed combined with other substances, going overboard with the edibles, or consuming more than you can tolerate can make you uncomfortable, anxious, and paranoid. But can it give you the effects of an acid trip?

Tripping is connected to the effects people get from consuming hallucinogens. They’re psychoactive drugs which change our perception and affect our senses. The most common ones include magic mushrooms, LSD, ecstasy, and other hallucinogens. 

When users come down from consuming psychedelics, they can experience a lot of different effects on their mental and spiritual well-being, especially when mixing weed with mushrooms, LSD, or MDMA.

Weed on its own can have hallucinogenic effects when consumed in high doses. However, pairing it with a psychedelic experience like an acid trip may affect your brain chemistry up to a point where you wouldn’t like the after-effects, so let’s figure out why people do this.

The Effects of Psychedelics

Tripping can be a positive or a negative experience, depending on the user. Some people have an insightful and relaxed experience while consuming psychedelics, while others can feel stressed out or anxious. It all depends on:

  • The level of preparation;
  • Your previous experience with hallucinogens;
  • Your current mood and environment;
  • Your mental and physical condition.

This is all true for people who have consumed psychedelics, but can you trip as a result of smoking weed?

Can You Trip on Cannabis?

Cannabis can amplify all our internal feelings, thoughts, and emotions. Therefore, people who are in a bad mental place can feel even worse after consuming weed. You can easily end up feeling anxious, paranoid, or nervous, especially if you’ve been feeling stressed out prior to smoking weed.

Does Cannabis Affect Us Similar to Psychedelics?

Even though a lot of people assume that weed acts as a psychedelic, the truth is that it acts in a different way compared to psychedelics such as DMT, LSD, psilocybin, and mescaline. 

Psychedelics induce intense and long-lasting visions as well as distorted perceptions by interfering with the serotonin in the brain. 

Smoking weed, on the other hand, produces a high by affecting the endocannabinoid system. THC and CBD bind to the CB1 and CB2 endocannabinoid receptors in the brain and mainly THC produces its psychoactive effects which are different from the effects that you get from consuming mushrooms. However, some people believe that consuming edibles is similar to having a psychedelic experience, but weed doesn’t act in the same way as true psychedelics.

Can You Have a Bad Trip on Cannabis?

There are a lot of factors that can result in you having a bad trip or a bad reaction to cannabis, and we’ll go over the most common ones below:

  • High potency strains in high doses (too much THC in your system is the fastest road to a bad trip, so if you’ve bought a strain with high THC levels from your local dispensary, make sure you start with a low dose).
  • Consuming edibles as a first-time user (edibles can be an overwhelming experience even for seasoned cannabis users, but especially for beginners, so if you’re a beginner, maybe start with smoking or vaping).
  • Dabbing (similar to consuming edibles, dabbing gives your body highly concentrated levels of THC, so make sure you don’t overdo it).
  • Your current state of mind (weed works by intensifying all our feelings and emotions, so if you’re feeling down, cannabis may worsen those feelings).

What Can You Expect From a Bad Cannabis Trip?

While there aren’t any records on cannabis overdoses, users have experienced some of the following symptoms while having a bad trip:

  • Hallucinations;
  • Anxiety or paranoia;
  • Physical sensations, including sweating, increased heart rate, stomach discomfort, numbness, and others.

On the other hand, some users who have a predisposition for mental health conditions such as psychosis or schizophrenia can trigger these conditions as a result of marijuana use.

Finally, whatever effects you may be feeling, you need to remember that they aren’t permanent. If you’ve been smoking weed, you can expect the effects to wear off after 1-2 hours, while metabolizing cannabis and ending the high from edibles can take between 6-8 hours. 

How To Prevent a Bad Cannabis Trip?

The most common reasons why people experience bad trips from weed are often a result of a bad mental state or consuming too much weed. To prevent this you can:

  • Only smoke weed when you’re in a good state of mind which will reduce the chances of having a bad experience.
  • Choose your surroundings well by smoking where you feel relaxed in order to promote good vibes when you get high.
  • Always start with a low dose and slowly increase over time if you haven’t felt any effects after a while.

Final Thoughts and Stopping a Bad Cannabis Trip

While experienced users know more about their tolerance levels compared to beginners, they too can end up on a bad cannabis trip. If you’ve consumed too much weed either as a newbie or as a seasoned marijuana user and you’re having a bad trip, you can:

  • Reassure yourself that the effects will end soon, so you have nothing to worry about;
  • Try doing some breathing techniques to calm yourself down;
  • Go out for a walk and breathe some fresh air which will clear your head and speed up the metabolization of THC;
  • Consume some CBD to take the edge off the high;
  • Drink herbal tea like rosemary or lemon balm to calm your body.

And remember, you have nothing to fear since a bad trip is just a lesson on how you should smoke (and how much weed as you can tolerate) next time.

bad trip von cannabis

A passionate advocate for the benefits of cannabis. Fraser Horton, who has a background in botany and a strong love of nature, has spent years researching how cannabis affects the body and mind. He established Leaf Nation in 2020, where he has devoted himself to educating people about the legalisation of marijuana and its safe and responsible use. Fraser is committed to highlighting cannabis’ potential for improving wellness and working to dispel the stigma associated with its use.

The information presented on this page is provided as a public service to aid in education and is derived from sources believed to be reliable. Readers are responsible for making their own assessment of the topics discussed here. In no event shall Leaf Nation be held reliable for any injury, loss or damage that could happen if using or abusing drugs.

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The information presented on this site is provided as a public service to aid in education and is derived from sources believed to be reliable. Readers are responsible for making their own assessment of the topics discussed here. In no event shall Leaf Nation be held reliable for any injury, loss or damage that could happen if using or abusing drugs.

bad trip von cannabis

Can You Trip On Weed? Signs, Symptoms, & Causes

If you want to know if you can “trip” on weed, or in other terms, hallucinate when you smoke or consume THC, this is the article for you. Many people are unsure of what they’re getting into before smoking or eating a THC-infused edible. Once you finish this brief article, you’ll know if you can trip on weed, the difference between a bad trip and a usual high, and more.

Some reports indicate that large doses of marijuana can induce acute psychosis, characterized by hallucinations, derealization, and delusions, similar to a “trip” produced by hallucinogens. 

What is “Tripping?”

When someone says they are “tripping,” it means they are feeling the effects of hallucinogens. Hallucinogens are drugs that can change how we perceive things and make us experience things that are not part of reality. Some common hallucinogens include magic mushrooms, LSD, ecstasy, and high doses of cannabis.

When taking hallucinogens, our conscious mind becomes more aware of things it wouldn’t normally notice. This can cause our senses to be distorted or create intense experiences where we might believe in visions or altered perceptions that feel real, even though the drug causes them. Hallucinations can range from mild changes in our senses to more intense experiences where we may lose awareness of what’s causing these effects.

When someone says they are "tripping," it means they are feeling the effects of hallucinogens.

Can You Trip On Weed?

Rather than feeling relaxed and euphoric, some individuals may experience anxiety, fear, distrust, or panic when using marijuana. These effects are more likely to occur when a person consumes too much marijuana, uses a strain with unexpectedly high potency, or lacks experience with its effects.

In some cases, individuals who have taken large doses of marijuana may go through  acute psychosis , which involves hallucinations, delusions, and a loss of their sense of self. It’s important to note that these unpleasant reactions are temporary and different from persistent psychotic disorders like schizophrenia.

Because cannabis affects your perception, it has the potential to amplify your thoughts and emotions, especially when you are in a bad mental state or facing a risky situation. You might become trapped in a cycle of negative thoughts, experiencing shortened breaths, widened eyes, and an increasing grip of anxiety. Unlike “tripping” on hallucinogens, anxious feelings after using marijuana are considered a “bad trip.”

Psychedelic Vs. Psychoactive

“Psychedelic” and “psychoactive” are often used interchangeably, but subtle differences exist between them.

Psychedelic substances are a specific subset of psychoactive substances. Psychedelics are known for their ability to induce altered states of consciousness, resulting in intense sensory experiences, perceptual distortions, and profound changes in thoughts, emotions, and self-awareness. Examples of classical psychedelics include LSD, psilocybin (found in magic mushrooms), DMT, and mescaline.

On the other hand, the term “psychoactive” refers to any substance that affects the brain’s functioning and alters consciousness, cognition, mood, perception, or behavior. It is a broader category that includes not only psychedelics but also other substances like stimulants, depressants, hallucinogens, caffeine, and alcohol. Psychoactive substances can affect the mind and body, from mood enhancement and relaxation to stimulation or sedation.

Read more: How To Get High Without Drugs: Releasing Natural Chemicals

Is Weed Psychedelic?

When it comes to cannabis, there is often confusion about its classification as a psychedelic and its potential for inducing a “trip.” While cannabis can lead to intense experiences, it functions differently than traditional psychedelics like DMT, LSD, psilocybin, and mescaline.

Classical psychedelics are known for their ability to produce profound and prolonged visions, emotional shifts, and distorted perceptions. They achieve this by temporarily affecting serotonin signaling in the brain.

In contrast, cannabis interacts with the endocannabinoid system to produce psychoactive effects. The active compound THC (9-tetrahydrocannabinol) binds to CB1 receptors in the brain, resulting in the desired high. Additionally, various terpenes present in cannabis contribute to energizing or relaxing effects.

However, the nature of the cannabis experience can change when consumed orally. THC undergoes conversion to a more potent and longer-lasting compound called 11-hydroxy-THC. While some users describe edible cannabis as a psychedelic experience, hallucinations are rare, and it does not function in the same way as most “true” psychedelics.

While cannabis can lead to intense experiences, it functions differently than traditional psychedelics like DMT, LSD, psilocybin, and mescaline.

Signs Of A Bad Cannabis Trip

A bad cannabis trip can include various symptoms.

  • Hallucinations:  Hallucinations from weed are rare but possible. Smoking too much weed usually doesn’t cause hallucinations, but edibles can be different. Even a small dose can make experienced users anxious, and higher doses can lead to hallucinations, mind-altering delusions, and a racing heart.
  • Intense paranoia/anxiety:  Smoking or consuming weed can make users paranoid, overthink, and feel nervous about their surroundings. A bad trip may make users think strangers are looking at them or aware they’re high.
  • Fear:  Consuming edibles or using potent cannabis concentrates can induce intense fear and anxiety in individuals who are not prepared. These feelings may arise from concerns about life responsibilities or existential questions about the nature of existence. The onset of fear can be sudden and overwhelming for some individuals.
  • Physical Sensations:  During a bad trip, individuals may also experience various physical symptoms. These can include sweating, an elevated heart rate, stomach discomfort, numbness, and shaking.

Read more: How Long Does the High from Marijuana Last?

What Causes A Bad Trip On Weed?

Several factors can contribute to a negative experience or a bad reaction to weed. These factors can range from your mental state before using cannabis to consuming excessively large amounts.

  • High-Potency Strains:  Experiencing a negative reaction to weed is often caused by consuming too much THC, the psychoactive compound in cannabis. As cannabis strains have become stronger over the years, with average THC levels reaching as high as 30%, it has become easier for beginners to unintentionally consume excessive amounts.
  • Edibles:  Consuming edibles can have a significantly different effect than smoking cannabis. Even if you have been a regular cannabis smoker for years, edibles can easily lead to an overwhelming experience. The potency, duration, and somewhat psychedelic nature of the trip are quite distinct from the effects of marijuana smoke
  • Dabbing:  Dabbing delivers high levels of THC directly to the body and mind. Concentrated forms of cannabis can significantly enhance the effects of THC, especially for those unfamiliar with them. One “dab” can provide the same amount of THC as smoking a large joint. The difference lies in the method of consumption, as you inhale all of those cannabinoids in a single hit during dabbing.
  • State of Mind:  Cannabis has a way of amplifying your existing concerns. If you have unresolved stress, financial worries, or suppressed emotions, weed can bring them to the forefront of your mind. The effects of marijuana act as a catalyst, magnifying and intensifying these underlying mental health issues.

Even if you have been a regular cannabis smoker for years, edibles can easily lead to an overwhelming experience.

Is A Bad Trip A Sign Of Marijuana Addiction?

While a bad trip can be distressing, it does not signify marijuana addiction. Addiction is characterized by compulsive drug use, loss of control, and negative consequences in various aspects of life. Experiencing a bad trip will make users question if they’re overconsuming marijuana products and rethink their cannabis use.

Contact Oasis Recovery Center

While marijuana use is more contributed to habit-forming rather than addiction, it can still cause at-risk users to neglect other responsibilities in their life. Contact Oasis Recovery Center in Asheville today if you or someone you know is struggling with marijuana or drug abuse. Our treatment center focuses on the underlying issues behind excessive marijuana use using various healing modalities and therapy methods.

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bad trip von cannabis

What Is a Bad Cannabis Trip (And How to Prevent It)

33 million people across the United States use weed on a regular basis to relax, chill out, and have a great time. Others reap the benefits of its medicinal purposes while some prefer to use it to enhance a new experience. Whatever you use it for, marijuana has been a crowd-pleaser for years – in fact, it dates all the way back to 500 BC !

But every now and then a user will experience a dreaded bad weed trip. This experience is far from relaxing and it certainly won’t chill you out. Whether you’re trying weed for the first time or have been using it for years, you aren’t immune to this experience.

Want to know more about how to recognize the signs of a bad weed trip and find out how to avoid one? Then you’re in the right place! Read on to find out everything you need to know about keeping your high a positive one.

What Happens When You Have a Bad Weed Trip? 

Having a bad marijuana trip can be an extremely stressful experience. It goes against the chilled out effects that most people associate with this drug. And this can really take you by surprise.

There are several different ways that a bad trip can affect someone.

Often it manifests itself in feelings of increased anxiety or paranoia. You may find yourself confused by your surroundings and suspicious of the people around you.

For example, if you’re in public you might start worrying that everyone around you  knows  that you’re high. In reality, even if they do, they probably won’t care. But while on a bad trip, you’ll struggle to shake this feeling.

A bad high can also manifest itself physically. You may experience numbness in your face and arms. Or you may find yourself sweating more than normal, short of breath, and pale in the face.

These kinds of symptoms can be very alarming but they don’t mean anything bad is happening inside you. It’s just another way that your anxiety shows itself.

So why can a perfectly normal weed session turn from fun and games to anything but?

What Causes a Bad Weed Trip?

A bad trip can happen to anyone and happens when you have a bad reaction to weed. But there are several factors that may increase your chances of suffering from one.

Feeling nervous or anxious before you take weed plays a big role. You don’t just have to feel anxious about taking weed, it could be about anything in your life. This means you’re already vulnerable to feelings of anxiety or paranoia.

But your physical health can play a part as well. If you’re dehydrated or sleep-deprived your body is not at its strongest. This means you may be more likely to experience a bad trip.

Where you take your weed can also have an effect. It can be really fun trying weed, say at your friend’s house, but if you do it somewhere you don’t feel comfortable this can leave you susceptible to having a bad trip.

If your environment is overstimulating this can also bombard your weed-brain and lead to a downward spiral.

Finally, the type of cannabis you use can have a big impact on the type of trip you have. You can experience a bad trip on any type of marijuana strain, but things like edibles can create a more potent high. And this also means they may create a more potent bad high.

What Can You Do to Avoid a Bad High?

Bad highs often feel like they come from nowhere, but there are a few things you can do to prep yourself that might help you avoid them. 

One of the most important things to do, whenever you take in weed, is to ensure that you feel comfortable. This means only enjoying your weed in places that you feel comfortable and being around people that make you feel comfortable. It might even be wise to arrange a safe space to go to if your high goes south.

You should also make sure that you eat properly and stay hydrated when you’re high. This might not seem like the most important thing, but it will keep your blood sugar up and ensure you have a great time throughout your high.

Knowing your limits is also absolutely key when consuming weed. If you’re trying something for the first time don’t go overboard. There’s nothing worse than feeling too high to function and this can send people spiraling fast.

What Should You Do During a Bad High?

As we’ve already mentioned, sometimes it’s hard to control when a bad high can happen, but there are things that you can do during one to help yourself ride it out.

Firstly, remove yourself from a situation. Take yourself to a quiet place where you feel comfortable and remove any unnecessary stimulation. It might be tempting to watch TV or listen to music, but in some cases, this can actually make a bad high worse. Taking it slow and resting is your best bet.

Get yourself something sugary to bring your blood sugar level up. Soda, candy bars, or some cookies will all do the trick here.

Water, drink lots of water!

As your high starts to pass, try taking yourself outside for some air to help clear your head. You may want to take a friend with you to make sure you feel secure on your wander.

It’s important to try and remember that a bad high will pass. Keep repeating this to yourself and you’ll get through just fine.

Don’t Let a Bad High Put You Off a Good Time!

Experiencing a bad weed trip can be a daunting experience but it can happen to the best of us so don’t let it put you off from enjoying your weed. For more help making the most of your cannabis experience in Las Vegas , check out our tips for new ReLeaf visitors . Here’s all the info you need to enjoy recreational weed in Las Vegas, stress-free.

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More than a bad trip: Experts warn about the risk of cannabis-induced psychosis

Er visits in ontario for cannabis-related psychosis rose 220% from 2014-21: study.

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When Kalpit Sharma started smoking cannabis, he thought it was just part of "living his life" as a university student. After all, he had been told that the drug was relatively harmless.

That all changed in the summer of 2021, when he started hearing voices in his head.

"I would bike around, and the chain of the bike, it came off. And I thought that I could speak to birds, and birds were telling me how to put the chain back on," said Sharma, who was studying at York University in Toronto at the time.

Those voices are known as auditory hallucinations — a hallmark of psychosis. When they became more frequent and insistent, he went to the Centre for Addiction and Mental Health for an assessment.

Sharma was shocked when he was told that he had been exhibiting signs of psychosis — and eventually he was diagnosed with schizophrenia.

"The ground slipped beneath my feet," he told White Coat, Black Art host Dr. Brian Goldman. "I'm going to be looked at differently. I'm going to be separated from society. I'm not going to be my parents' Kalpit ever again."

  • 5 years of legal cannabis: fewer charges, many hospitalizations and more than a few questions

Sharma, who is now 23, said that after consulting with physicians, he believes his heavy smoking of high-THC cannabis contributed to his psychosis and schizophrenia. Now he urges consumers to educate themselves as increasingly potent cannabis products become commercially available in Canada.

Researchers are also sounding the alarm that, while casual cannabis use isn't harmful for most people, possible connections are being found between using cannabis products with high-potency THC (tetrahydrocannabinol, the main psychoactive ingredient in cannabis) and harmful health effects, particularly among young men.

"I think that people remain unaware of this connection between cannabis use and potential risk of chronic psychotic disorders," said Dr. Daniel Myran, a researcher with the Ottawa Hospital Research Institute and a family physician.

Portrait photo of an adult caucasian male wearing a grey suit jacket and white shirt with slightly open collar.

According to Health Canada's 2023 Cannabis Survey , 21 per cent of 16-to-19-year-olds who use cannabis use it daily or almost daily. In the 20-to-24-year-old group, that number goes up to 23 per cent.

In 2023, Myran co-authored two studies looking into the connection between cannabis and psychosis . They found a 220 per cent increase in emergency room visits in Ontario for cannabis-induced psychosis between 2014 and 2021 — with the number rising from about 400 people to about 1,400 over that seven-year period.

  • The razzle-dazzle days of Canada's cannabis industry are over as pot industry faces downturn

"For men aged 14 to 24, the risk of developing schizophrenia rises to over 40 per cent within three years" of showing up in an ER for cannabis-induced psychosis, he said.

Myran was also lead author of a separate study released in early February that found 27.5 per cent of people who visited an emergency room for cannabis use developed an anxiety disorder for the first time within three years.

Not your grandfather's weed

Starting in 2020, Sharma's cannabis consumption "skyrocketed" — when he and everyone else were inside because of pandemic lockdowns. But it was also shortly after more, and stronger, products became available in Ontario's cannabis shops.

"I was doing, let's say, half of a joint in 2018. That bumped up to, like, three or four joints in a day in 2020, 2021," he said.

In 2018, the same year the sale of cannabis became legal in Canada, licensed cannabis stores in Ontario could sell only dried flower, cannabis seeds and some oils, Myran said. In 2020, the number of stores allowed to open expanded, and newer products like gummies — some with much higher THC content — hit store shelves.

A hand handing a marijuana joint to another hand.

"The cannabis industry calls it cannabis 2.0. What these products are is just increasingly processed cannabis," Myran said.

Even without getting into edibles, nearly all cannabis today is much stronger than it was even a decade ago.

"It's been around for centuries. True enough. But the product that we're using today that's available to our youth and young adults into the population today is completely different than even what it was 10, 15 years ago," said Dr. Philip Tibbo, a professor and director of research in the department of psychiatry at Dalhousie University in Halifax.

bad trip von cannabis

Naturally occurring cannabis plants contain one to two per cent THC; genetically modified plants are cultivated to boost the percentage. From the 1960s to the '80s, you might encounter cannabis with anywhere from one to five per cent THC.

Today, the amount in plants is much higher, and commercially available processed products can contain 20 per cent THC or more.

Those higher-THC products enticed Sharma as he smoked more products to chase higher highs. He was also drawn to products with humorous names, like a strain called Black Widow, since it reminded him of the Marvel character.

  • The pros, cons and unknowns of legal cannabis in Canada 3 years later

After his diagnosis, Sharma initially tried cognitive behavioural therapy, but he declined an anti-psychotic medication, Abilify, recommended by doctors out of fear of the stigma.

Soon after he had his worst psychotic episode, at a family wedding in India.

"I didn't follow through with it, but I was close to self-harm," he said.

bad trip von cannabis

Cannabis use and hospitalizations up 5 years after legalization, researchers say

When cannabis was first legalized, some labels on packages included warnings that regular use "can increase the risk of psychosis and schizophrenia." They were phased out in April 2019.

Health Canada told CBC News that the labels were changed to "refresh messaging to make it more reflective of population-level guidance," and included consultations with scientific experts and the public.

Health Canada does have warnings  online to "avoid cannabis completely" if you're at risk of psychosis or schizophrenia.

Ottawa researcher Myran said it was a mistake to do so and that those warnings should be put back. "I think Canadians have a right to know about this association, about this link," he said.

What to know about high-THC cannabis

Today, Sharma is working on managing his psychosis with therapy, medication — and laughter, when he performs onstage as a standup comedian.

"I was confused what to do with my life. So people told me to listen to my inner voice. And now I have schizophrenia," he begins his routine.

He's also working as a strategic adviser for the Cannabis and Psychosis Project, an online resource created by the Schizophrenia Society of Canada.

Two packages of cannabis-infused gummies are seen in front of six individual yellow and green gummies.

Sharma said he hopes his story can encourage people to take the time to research cannabis instead of lighting up and possibly putting themselves at risk — and to always start with something with a low amount of THC.

Like any other product, Dalhousie University's Tibbo said, it's always better to be an informed consumer.

He said it's important to understand that today's cannabis products are often stronger and act differently than a joint passed around in a basement in the '70s.

  • Cannabis use sending more pregnant Canadians to hospital, new study finds

Edibles take longer to kick in, for example. So if people want an immediate high, they risk eating too many too fast and getting hit harder.

If you're the parent of a youth who's thinking of trying cannabis for the first time, it's also important to know how to broach the topic, Tibbo said.

"Although difficult for parents, sometimes, [you should] be able to know how to ask those questions in kind of a non-judgmental way that will allow you to have a conversation with your child — versus that child, you know, kind of putting up the wall and not having that conversation."

Interviews produced by Jennifer Warren and Sameer Chhabra

Related Stories

  • 'The world has changed dramatically': 5 years of legal cannabis in northern Ontario

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Bad Marijuana Trips Explained By Doctor

Neurosurgeon Dr. Sanjay Gupta , whose documentary " WEED " last summer explored the effects of cannabis on our bodies, and the benefits of medical marijuana, explains why marijuana users sometimes get "bad trips."

When we interviewed Dr. Gupta back in August, he also talked about why smoking is not the best way to consume marijuana .

Produced by Kamelia Angelova and Robert Libetti.

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Call us now, experiencing a bad marijuana trip here’s what you can do.

Experiencing A Bad Marijuana Trip_ Here’s What You Can Do

Have you ever associated a bad trip with cannabis? I am sure most novice users out there must have experienced one while going overboard with a highly potent strain. You see, a bad trip happens for a myriad of reasons. It can be terrible and it is not something that you see everyday. Just like hallucinogenic drugs have a ghastly effect on you, a marijuana trip can be your worst nightmare. And the bad news is, a trip can happen because of carelessness. 

For instance, you tried a cannabis edible or you bought a highly potent strain with the help of a medical marijuana card in Los Angeles . Next, you mixed it inside an edible, and instead of eating one, you ate two because it didn’t kick in the first time. Or else, you tried cannabis concentrate for the first time. Whatever the reason, you will definitely go through a bad trip if you get super high for the above-stated or some other reason. 

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How Can I Tell I’m Having A Bad Trip 

If you are new to the cannabis world and never have tried a single THC filed product, you are likely to make mistakes. Those mistakes can lead to a terrible high and you will note the following symptoms: 

  • Nausea and vomiting
  • Shortness of breath
  • Panic attack
  • Dizzy feeling like everything around you is spinning
  • Burning sensation in the eyes
  • Increased heart rate
  • Low energy and enthusiasm

All in all, if you have any of the above-mentioned side effects, it is quite easy to say that you are undergoing a bad cannabis trip. Also, how long will the trip last? Well, that is a question for another scientific discussion because so far we do not have any concrete evidence for the same. In fact, you should consider yourself lucky if the trip lasts for 30-40 minutes. Additionally, it is also possible that you will feel a lot out of place until you fall to sleep. A very bad trip can last for several hours and there’s no going back once it starts.  

The best way to overcome or avoid a bad cannabis high is to be sensible and mindful of the dosage. If you are new, start small and make sure you try THC in a comfortable place surrounded by trustworthy friends. Even if you are an experienced user do not try to go overboard and stick to your normal routine. However, if you undergo a bad marijuana trip, here’s what you can do. 

Try Some Sugar 

Ideally, the general notion is that sugar increases the high, but we looked at a study and this is what we found. The study was published in the American Journal of Medicine in 2013 and it looked at the effect of cannabis on insulin. This study was based on more than 4,600 American adults surveyed from the National Health and Nutrition Examination. If we take a deeper look at the study, the volunteers were divided into three groups – current cannabis users, non-cannabis users, and the ones who had not consumed marijuana in the last 30 days. 

According to the research, the group who consumed cannabis more often had a high BMI index than the ones who did not. In addition to this, they also had lower rates of obesity and diabetes. So, the researchers made an interesting discovery by associating cannabis with blood sugar. The study went on to say that cannabis can be a good way to avoid type 2 diabetes and its related symptoms. However, there was a slight catch here, the low levels of blood sugar in the body of a cannabis user could develop a bad high. 

If you are on a bad trip, low sugar definitely accounts for the same. This means that you could add some honey to a glass of water when you feel you’re entering a bad trip. Also, we recommend that you do not take any artificial sugar such as chocolate. After all, chocolate is known for slowing down the absorption of sugar. In this case, natural sugars from fruit and honey will do a good job.  

Keep Your Vitamins Intact  

Vitamins are crucial for the growth of the body. Particularly, vitamin B1 because it helps in the healthy growth of the brain and the heart. There are pieces of anecdotal evidence that reveal Vitamin B can help with bad LSD trips. Not only this but, the vitamin also converts the food into energy that our body uses all day long. As it happens, this vitamin can break down food. Similarly, it can also break down the components of the cannabis plants. So, when you experience a bad high vitamin B can slow down the metabolism and release the cannabis effect out of your system. 

Additionally, calcium also works the same way. It can help counteract the THC effects. And the good news is that calcium and vitamin B are extremely good for your body. No chances of side effects of dehydration. You can easily find them and eat them to help ease the symptoms of bad THC high. 

Cold Bath With A Cup Of Ice Cream

Really? We are sure most of you have this reaction after reading the sub-heading of this blog. However, trust me, ice cream and a cold bath can go a long way. A cold bath will cool down your body from the outside while a scoop of ice cream will help decrease your body temperature form the inside. You see, some of the cannabis experienced users say that a tub of ice cream is one of the effective ways to combat a bad high. 

Although we do not have any concrete scientific theory to prove the same. These are just experiences jotted by cannabis users. And if you are wondering how does water work? Well, sitting under a shower after getting too high triggers the mammalian diving reflex. It is an old term used to describe the drop in heart rate. The bottom line is that cold water and ice cream can help reduce body temperature while preserving some energy.  

Try Sleeping               

Yes, we know that sleeping doesn’t come easy when you are tripping on a cannabis high. You must be feeling suffocated, anxious, and all over the place. However, if you just try and stay calm, sleep will be a few minutes away. Your body will release all the harmful toxins and repair itself for you to feel better when you wake up. So, this is one of the best ways to get rid of a bad high. Try to stay calm, have patience, and lie down in a safe place while trying to sleep. 

Final Thoughts 

A cannabis bad high is not good for anyone. To begin with, you should not overdose or try to be cool in front of our friends. Especially when it’s your first time. Just make sure that you avoid getting high at first. If you do get high and experience nausea, drink water and stay close to your friends. Most vitally take an optimum dose and be mindful of the strain you’re consuming. Also, get a medical marijuana card or medical cannabis card, take advice on the dosing guide, and then proceed further. 

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Having a Bad Cannabis Edibles Trip? - Follow These Steps to Get Control

Sometimes eating too much thc can cause feelings of anxiety, worry, and paranoia.

Having a Bad Cannabis Edibles Trip? Follow These Steps to Regain Control

bad cannabis trip

There are situations where cannabis users occasionally have episodes whereby they have a bad cannabis trip which could be a result of several things. They need to know what occurred and how to navigate through such times when they happen without incidence.

What is a Bad Cannabis Trip?

Knowing what exactly a bad cannabis trip is one of the first steps towards dealing with it.  A bad trip also known as a bad-high or a freak-out, is the resultant feeling that one experiences as a result of being too high on cannabis which can be so uncomfortable for the person. There are different experiences for everyone and it is dependent on the form and strain of the cannabis used. An important thing to note is that there has been no identified causal effect as anything could trigger a bad cannabis trip and it doesn’t matter whether one is an experienced user or not which is why it is important to be careful while trying any new strains or concentrates. Consuming cannabis edibles are the most common method of having a bad trip because most times the effects usually take longer to kick in than when inhaled and many usually make the mistake of taking more than necessary. Also, science is of the opinion that eating cannabis allows the creation of a new compound called 11-hydroxy-THC by the liver that is far more potent than THC

SYMPTOMS OF A BAD TRIP

Usually, symptoms indicating a bad cannabis trip vary due to the multiplicity of causal factors but some symptoms have been reported commonly. These symptoms include numbness especially on the face, sweating, shortness of breath, paleness, anxiety, loss of control and upset stomach which could result in vomiting. These symptoms are commonly psychological as the fear and nerves one has from realizing that he or she is high is what is responsible for them. Although it can be very uncomfortable for anyone to be on a bad trip, the individual should know that it is common and wait it out.

How to Prevent a Bad Cannabis Trip

Due to an abundance of reasons or factors which could lead to a bad trip, it is quite difficult to predict or prevent a case of bad trip nor say the methods to be listed are 100% effective. Despite this, here are a few trips to help prevent a bad cannabis trip from occurring when using or trying out a new form of cannabis.

Be comfortable : Being in a comfortable environment or position helps reduce the possibility of having a bad trip. This includes surrounding yourself with things/people or being in a safe place that makes you comfortable or at ease.

Eating well: Ensuring you are well filled and hydrated before taking cannabis helps keep your body under minimal stress and reduces the effects of the cannabis high.

How to Deal With a Bad Trip

There are cases where you are unable to prevent a bad trip despite having taken every precaution. At times like this, there are things you could do to minimize the effects of the bad trip.

Calm down : This can be done by relaxing and trying to focus by closing your eyes. It is also important to remember that this is quite common and you are not the first nor the last to experience this and that the feeling will only last for a while.

Hydrate Yourself: This can be done by taking cold water or consuming some soda, sugary drinks or dessert and light snacks not only to boost your blood sugar but to help you feel more grounded. Do keep away from alcohol to prevent an increase in your THC blood concentrations.

Rest : Leave the environment to find somewhere peaceful where you can be alone to take deep breaths or even sleep. Avoid TV or music to allow you to focus on yourself and help reduce stress at times like this.

Black pepper has been identified as a great ingredient at hand as it is said that chewing some can be useful in combating anxiety.

Shower : taking a shower or bath is a great way to help calm yourself down and relax while on a trip.

An experienced coffee drinker could have a cup to help with the feeling but an inexperienced person should avoid it as this might increase anxiety levels.

Having some CBD as it is a great way of fighting anxiety and counteracting the effects of THC in your system.

A cannabis high can last for a few hours while some last longer than that. This is typically dependent on the potency of the product, dosage, consumption method, experience among other things. Also, some highs still have after-effects before the person will finally sober up completely but the methods listed above will considerably help you navigate through the feeling.

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How To Avoid & Prevent A Bad Cannabis Trip

How To Avoid & Prevent A Bad Cannabis Trip

How do you get a bad trip in the first place, what does it feel like to have a bad trip, how to prevent a bad cannabis trip, how long does it last, how can you cut a bad cannabis trip short.

It’s the weekend, and you and your buddies decide to stay in at yours to binge-watch on conspiracy theory documentaries. As they all sprawled across the couch, one unearths out a tray full of brownies with a lazy grin on their face.

One brownie and 40 minutes in ‘The Family: It’s Not About Faith, It’s About Power’ on Netflix, you start to grow impatient that nothing has kicked off yet and so you consume another brownie.

Then, out of nowhere, the whole room is spinning, and you are struggling to contain this horrible dreaded feeling spreading across your chest. This carries on so intensely that you find yourself convincing one of your mates to call the ambulance as you have a heart attack.

Does this sound familiar to you? This means that you have experienced a lousy cannabis trip that can be incredibly uncomfortable and sometimes even traumatising to individuals.

In this article, we will explain how to prevent a bad trip when you are having one, and what you should do to prevent them from happening again.

Table of Contents.

  • You smoked too many hits in a short amount of time
  • You consumed cannabis concentrate for the first time
  • You ate an edible and were too impatient to feel its effects, so you ate another
  • You miscalculated the dose making homemade edibles
  • You consumed cannabis from a third-party not knowing how much amount of THC is in it
  • You weren’t in the right headspace/environment to be in
  • Shortness of breath
  • Irregular heart beat levels
  • Claustrophobia (the feeling of being trapped in your body)
  • Extreme, sudden feelings of dread

In other cases, some many experience

  • Cold sweats and clamminess
  • Shaky limbs and hands

Picture of bad cannabis trip

The best way to avoid a lousy cannabis trip is to understand and check the THC potency and dosage you are consuming. If you are making edibles, check out this Edibles Dosage Calculator.

If you’re vaping/ smoking, don’t feel obliged to repeatedly take a hit when it’s your turn or smoking the whole joint in one go. Have a breather and wait for at least 20 minutes before having your next puff.

Wait at least for an hour and half after you consumed your last edible.

It depends on the person and how much cannabis has been consumed. Some last for an hour, while some experience it for half a day.

Picture of bad cannabis trip

Be in a positive and calm environment . This can be in your room where you are comfortable, your best friend’s house, or curl up next to your dog on the couch. This will help as you’ll be less likely to freak out in a familiar setting.

Buddy up ! Be with a friend/partner (best case scenario would be a sober one) you trust. They’re the best anchor to bring you back to reality and calm the paranoia you feel.

If you are in a crowded party, try to calm yourself by leaving the area . The best thing to do is focus on being as calm as possible, which means not listening to music or surrounding yourself with noisy people.

Hydrate your body to reduce the high . You are probably experiencing severe cottonmouth (dryness of the mouth) without even realising it. Drink fruit juice or a sugary drink, splash some water on your face or use eye drops.

Take a step outside to breathe in the fresh air . The wind slapping in your face may help you jolt your senses together and feel slightly sober. Bonus points if you can feel the sunshine on a warm day!

Watch cute/wholesome videos on Youtube to cheer yourself up . Take your mind off of the fact that you are experiencing an abnormal amount of anxiety and fear. As long as you distract yourself with a friend watching goofy videos, the bad trip will quickly pass.

Sleep it off . Forget this bad trip even happened in the first place! If the dizziness wears off, you will find yourself relaxed on your bed to drift off to the next day.

Author's Bio Image Constance Williams

Constance Williams

Constance is a medical journalist that critically analyses and reports on how Australia can benefit from the cannabis industry in the future.

Disclaimer: Cannabis Place are not doctors and we recommend consulting health professionals for accurate information. This site may contain information regarding drugs. This medicinal cannabis content is designed for an 18+ audience. Click here for our full disclaimer

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What is a Bad Trip and Why are They Important?

  • Jimmy Nguyen

Those of you who have endured a psychedelic experience understand their potential to heal the mind, body, and spirit. You also probably had a very entertaining time while exploring these states of altered consciousness. However, many of you are equally nervous about the probability of becoming transfixed in what has been termed a “bad trip ” .

If you or someone you know has experienced a bad trip, this article will help you understand what you went through. But before we go any further, let’s break down what a bad trip really is, why they are important, and how to navigate one.

What is a Bad Trip?

Unfortunately, the War on Drugs in America has created a lot of misinformation when it comes to psychedelics, particularly with regards to the bad trip. You may have heard rumors that even one experience with lysergic acid diethylamide (LSD) can make you perpetually trip or permanently insane. Scare tactics like these have been used over the past several decades to demonize psychedelics and deter their use. 

Though these myths are untrue, it is important to note that individuals predisposed to mental illness, such as schizophrenia and bipolar disorder, may have adverse effects from a psychedelic experience, including psychosis, and that proper mental health screening should be conducted before engaging in any psychedelic activity. 

So what defines a bad trip? A bad trip refers to a challenging or difficult experience while being under the influence of a hallucinatory substance such as psilocybin mushrooms, LSD, ayahuasca, or even cannabis. Although it is common for occasional unpleasantness, such as nausea or bewilderment, to occur temporarily during a psychedelic experience, bad trips are defined by prolonged or seemingly uncontrollable episodes.

During these experiences, symptoms can range from unpleasant to traumatic, with some experiencing anxiety, paranoia, resurfacing of repressed memories, or overwhelming stress. Physical discomforts, such as an upset stomach, sweating, overheating, or soreness may also occur. 

To be clear, “good” and “bad” are arbitrary labels we assign to our experiences. And generally, people use “bad” to describe discomfort or pain. But like a weightlifter who endures temporary discomfort to build muscle, so too can a psychedelic explorer endure a bad trip to receive long-term benefits. The caveat is that the user must prepare in advance of the experience , exercise safety during, and take care of the body and mind well after. And just like the weightlifter, results do not happen overnight. 

What is the Likelihood of Having a Bad Trip? 

It is often difficult to predict if you will have a bad trip. In actuality, it’s not really a question of if, but when, as bad trips are actually unavoidable milestones in the psychedelic journey. When you do experience one, it may be comforting to know that you are not alone and that adverse effects are temporary. 

According to the Journal of Psychopharmacology , a study surveyed 1993 psilocybin users. Of this, 39% labeled the experience one of the most challenging of their lives. However, 84% of the total participants stated that this challenge was a positive experience in the long term. What’s more is that the study concluded that risky behavior or enduring psychological distress is extremely low when psilocybin was given to screened, prepared, and supported participants. 

Not only does this mean that bad trips are generally safe, but it further supports our belief that bad trips, though difficult to endure, are actually the most crucial part of the psychedelic experience as they result in the positive mental, physical, and spiritual growth we all desire.  

Why Bad Trips Are Important

If you ask someone experienced in psychedelics if they’ve had a bad trip, an overwhelming majority would say yes. This matters because it suggests that discomfort is part of the psychedelic journey. You are typically not in control of the events or outcome of a psychedelic experience, thus putting you outside of your comfort zone.

This often results in opening up and exploring your fears, anxieties, and analyzing unwanted aspects of our personalities. This experience is accompanied by a series of mental, physical, and emotional triggers and releases. 

Bad trips are misunderstood experiences that have a misguided social context. Many of these “bad” trips can actually lead to prolonged mental and physical healing. Though healing isn’t always comfortable, it is necessary to make a significant change in your life.

Healing requires confronting the traumas and pain that limit our lives to truly embrace and love all the facets, both the light and the shadow, the “good” and “bad” parts of ourselves. Like a lobster that molts its shell each year to grow larger, the psychedelic experience, particularly bad trips, can provide a venue to undergo this challenging, yet vital evolution.

This isn’t to say that you should be specifically seeking bad trips. These difficult trips are most common for inexperienced users and those who did not adequately prepare. A higher dosage is typically related to an increase in adverse reactions, so proper dosage and preparation are key. Psychedelic Passage offers guidance on dosage and preparation through our trip sitting program .

Even the most seasoned psychonaut has a chance of experiencing a taxing psychedelic experience. Ironically, if you are equipped with the framework to work through these difficult experiences, they turn out to be very rewarding. If you happen to undergo a “bad” trip, these 10 tips may help you navigate the trip , mitigate risks, and stay safe during these stressful episodes. 

What Should I Do If I’m Currently Having a Bad Trip? 

This is a great question, and thankfully, it’s not too late to take the edge off of your discomfort. While we always maintain the position that proper preparation is most important , there are certainly some tips you can use to make a bad trip more pleasant.

Ideally, with adequate preparation, you are in the presence of a guide or trip sitter who is knowledgeable in harm reduction and altered states of consciousness. This individual should be well prepared to help you safely and smoothly navigate a “bad” trip. 

The number one thing to keep in mind is that it is temporary—you aren’t stuck like this, you will return to your normal self with time. That said, we’ve put together a list of 10 tools to help you safely navigate a bad trip , which you can find here. 

I’ve Recently Had a Bad Trip. Now What Do I Do? 

First off, congratulate yourself for having the strength to endure a challenging and taxing experience. We understand how wild and confusing that process can be. Now the real work can begin for you to use the experience of a bad trip to positively affect your life—this work is known as psychedelic integration .

Fortunately, we are smack dab in the middle of the psychedelic renaissance where support and integration services are more available than they have ever been. If you are preparing for an upcoming experience, you may want to seek the guidance of a trip facilitator. 

And if you feel a lasting negative effect from taking psychedelics or want to discuss your trip in-depth to gain further insight, book a consultation to speak with our guides and trip sitters who are also integration specialists, have first-hand experience, and can help you integrate these powerful, profound events.

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Take the first step and book a consultation call with us today. You'll g et access to an exclusive network of pre-vetted facilitators. We'll match you with a trusted provider based on your unique needs.

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Edibles: What you need to know so you don't have a bad trip

OAKLAND, Calif. - About a week after the sale of recreational marijuana became legal in California, a woman in her 70s made this call to the poison control center in San Francisco:

I’ve just eaten a cookie. A marijuana cookie. One of my children left it behind. I didn’t realize. Until it was too late. I’ve never been high. What’s going to happen to me?

Dr. Craig Smollin, medical director of California Poison Control/San Francisco Division, relayed the gist of that call to KTVU last week as anecdotal evidence that with the legalization of edibles for anyone over the age of 21, there are likely going to be more scenarios like that. Newcomers will be ingesting edibles, and perhaps too much, for the first time, and the cannabis-infused confections might accidentally get into the wrong hands. It's especially a concern if those hands belong to children reaching for delicious-looking cookies and candies or bottles of sweet lemonade swirled with high concentrations of tetrahydrocannabinol, or THC, the psychoactive agent in marijuana.

And this situation could be exacerbated after a KTVU investigation discovered that not every dispensary, even in the pot-savvy Bay Area, has caught up with the law. Three out of nine dispensaries that were spot-checked by reporters were selling products that do not comply with state law. One dispensary in Oakland was even selling an edible brownie that contains 10 times what California's Bureau of Cannabis allows, which is 10 mg of THC per dose. 

“Am I more worried?” Smollin asked. “From a healthcare perspective there is a concern there will be an uptick of people who call the health care and poison control centers regarding marijuana.”%INLINE%

Colorado and Washington state saw increases in marijuana-related hospital visits and calls to poison centers following the legalization of weed and the permitting of dispensaries, the Cannabist  reported.

In California, the numbers of marijuana-related calls have also been going up steadily, according to statistics compiled by poison control: Last year, there were 1,274 cases, which includes calls from individuals and emergency room doctors who might need assistance; there were 922 cases in 2016 and 872 cases in 2015. Experts added however, that many of these calls are from people who took marijuana alongside another drug and the cases cannot directly be linked to overdosing on edibles.

Still, taking too much marijuana is not fun. In fact, it can feel like you're dying, even though there are no known cases of death by marijuana overdose. 

Taking too much can leave people, especially first-time cannabis users, feeling paranoid, scared and as if time is standing still. One 48-year-old Oakland mom who had never been high unknowingly ate a single chocolate candy with 50 mg of THC on New Year's Eve. She sat on the couch not moving or speaking for most of the night while clutching her wrists and reported feeling as if she was in a catatonic stupor. The effects didn't wear off completely for 28 hours.

There are more stories like that. 

Remember that viral audio call of a Michigan police officer who confiscated -- and then ate -- way too many marijuana brownies with his wife and called 911 to request someone rescue him?  And there is the now-famous story of New York Times columnist Maureen Dowd, who had an edible nightmare in a Denver hotel where she had eaten too much of her caramel-chocolate bar, which made her feel like “I had died and no one was telling me.”  And two years ago, 19 people, including children who were as young as six, all went to the hospital in San Francisco after they accidentally ate marijuana gummy  rings laid out on a tray at a quinceañera.

Medicinal and Adult-Use Cannabis Regulation and Safety Act  

There's not much anyone, even an emergency room doctor, can really do for someone who had eaten too much THC other than provide “supportive care,” Smollin said. In other words, he explained, it helps to have someone who is sober at your side, talking you down and being there for you, which is what he suggested to the 70-something woman who called poison control after she had eaten an entire edible cookie, which typically have 100 mg of THC in them.

In an effort to curb anticipated edible overdosing, California law as of Jan. 1 began mandating that edible manufacturers, and the dispensaries that sell the cannabis-infused products, properly label their products.

Servings must be sold and marked in doses that contain no more than 10 mg of THC. An entire package, say a cookie or a box of candy, can’t have more than 100 mg. Before legalization, there were no limits. Although the intoxicating effects of marijuana and alcohol are different, experts equate ingesting 5 mg of TCH to two glasses of wine. Amateurs are advised to even try less, perhaps 2.5 mg of TCH, at first and wait a full two hours for the effects to kick in.

2 Investigates set out this month to find whether Bay Area dispensaries are adhering to these new packaging requirements after one cannabis activist told KTVU it was the “Wild West out there,” in terms of the dosages that were being sold. Reporters with undercover cameras fanned out to nine dispensaries in Oakland, Berkeley, San Francisco and San Jose. All of the dispensaries had a bouncer at the door carding IDs to make sure customers were older than 21 and didn’t have felony warrants out for them. All of the dispensaries also had friendly staff.

But one third of the cannabis retailers that KTVU reporters and producers visited were selling products with too much THC. At one dispensary, for example, there was a cannabis brownie with 1,000 mg of THC – ten times the amount allowed. At another dispensary, there was an olive oil with 800 mg of THC, a fact that a customer wouldn’t know because there was no labeling on the bottle – KTVU only learned of that amount when the undercover reporter specifically asked. Another dispensary was selling candies with 25 mg of THC, more than twice the amount that’s allowed, and the employee suggested the reporter “take two” for her first time.

KTVU is not naming the dispensaries and is blurring out the faces of the employees. The point of the investigation wasn’t to specifically call out any one dispensary. It was to find out what was really being sold to consumers, and to educate people, especially who might be new to cannabis, on what they should be looking for and asking about so as not to overdose.

To be fair, while these packaging and labeling laws are now in effect, dispensaries are allowed to sell last year's higher-dose products until July 1 – as long as they are labeled at the store properly with some kind of proper label or sticker. The three dispensaries 2 Investigates found selling edibles with too much THC per dose did not have such labeling.

At Kiva Confections in Oakland, COO and co-founder Kristi Knoblich Palmer takes the new labeling laws seriously. She and her husband, Scott Palmer, have hired extra staff to relabel the company’s chocolate bars and chocolate-covered blueberries, and place them heavy-duty child-proof packaging, also required by law. It’s taking her twice as long to get the product out, she said on a recent tour of the chocolate-making factory in an industrial part of the city, where workers in white hairnets and lab coats meticulously infuse cannabis into the confections.

Palmer likened her business -- which feels part science lab, part Willy Wonka --  to a pharmaceutical company. She quality-controls her products to make sure they taste good and have just the right about of THC, which she sends off to a lab to test after each batch. “That’s how they do it with Advil,” she said, “to make sure each pill has 200 mg.”

Interactive map: Where to buy legal marijuana in California

In fact at Kiva, Palmer and her husband are choosing to dial back the dosage. They are now making doses that break off in 5 mg chunks -- even though the law requires 10 mg -- because Palmer said she’s found that smaller amount might give first-time users a “better experience.” 

It’s in her best interest to follow the dosing requirements. Not only is it the law, but she has found that recreational users, for the most part, want a little something to take the edge off, and they certainly don’t want to be calling 911 after taking a bite of her edibles.

“We make products that are easy to dose for new and existing cannabis consumers,” she said. “We make sure they're delicious and consistent with every batch that we produce. It’s all about finding your dose.”

What you need to know: Experts say that if you're trying edibles for the first time, take 2.5 mg or 5 mg of THC, the psychoactive agent in marijuana. Wait a full two hours for effects to kick in. Do not eat any more while you're waiting. If you take too much, you might feel paranoid and that time is moving very slowly. Having a friend nearby can be helpful. The effects might wear off in a few hours, but they might also take 24 or 28 hours to wear off. No one has ever died from a marijuana overdose.

KTVU's Simone Aponte, Ryan Moran and Tony Hodrick contributed to this report.

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The Billionaires’ Secret Plan to Solve California’s Housing Crisis

A company has spent hundreds of millions of dollars buying land in the bay area in the hopes of building a new city..

This transcript was created using speech recognition software. While it has been reviewed by human transcribers, it may contain errors. Please review the episode audio before quoting from this transcript and email [email protected] with any questions.

From “The New York Times,” I’m Michael Barbaro. This is The Daily.

[MUSIC PLAYING]

For years, a mysterious company has been buying farmland on the outskirts of Silicon Valley, eventually putting together a plot twice the size of San Francisco. But at every step, those behind the company kept their plans for the land shrouded in secrecy. Until my colleague, Conor Dougherty, figured out who they were and what they were up to.

It’s Monday, March 11.

So Conor, this story begins as a real estate mystery that you took it upon yourself to try to crack wide open. So tell us about where this mystery unfolds.

OK. So if you imagine you’re in San Francisco and you drive north further up into the Bay Area into an area called Solano County. And then you go way east and you end up in this very rural corner of the Bay Area that not a lot of people know about. And it’s over here, in this rural corner of Solano County, where our story takes place.

And it’s these open sort of rolling landscape of yellow hills with almost nothing on it. The largest structures there are wind turbines. And a lot of the families out there are farmers. They farm sheep, feed crops, and cows. And many of the people out there have been there since the 1860s.

This is a place where families stay in the same place for generations and pass the farms down several times. This is a place where not a lot changes, but then, in 2017, something very unusual starts to happen. A company called Flannery Associates, which nobody in the area has ever heard of, starts buying land.

And they buy more the next year, the year after that, the year after that, more and more and more and more, until pretty quickly they’re the biggest landowner in the entire county. So all these neighbors are at supermarkets, they’re at church, they’re at schools. I mean, this is a place where everyone knows everyone.

They’re all on community boards together. They all talk to each other all the time. They all sort of simultaneously get these offers for their land.

Right. And like you said, they don’t even know who the offer is coming from. All they know is that a very aggressive, as we say in New York, highly motivated buyer, is in their midst.

Exactly. Highly motivated buyer. So they not only want everyone’s farm, they start offering people these incredibly sweetheart deals, which say, OK, well, I’m going to buy your land, but you can stay there for the next decade or two, depending on how old they are. And for all that time, you can collect all the income from this land.

They don’t even want the income of the land. So one thing everyone realizes pretty quickly is, these people are not interested in farming.

[LAUGHS]: Because if they wanted to farm, they would kick the farmers off the land they had just bought.

Or they would want to make money from farming.

They don’t care about the price that reflects the income and they don’t even care about collecting the income. So they very obviously have a plan that has nothing to do with farming. And so the question is, what’s the plan? And who are these people?

So then the county starts to get curious who this is, but because this Flannery Associates is incorporated in Delaware, which has some specific rules that kind of cloak who is behind a company, nobody can figure out who they are.

And they send a bunch of letters to the company, Flannery Associates lawyer. And this lawyer kind of just puts them off and says, oh, don’t worry about it. This is a group of wealthy families who are looking to diversify their assets and they just want to park it in farmland, basically.

Local mayors, concerned citizens are going down to the libraries and pulling property records and looking up corporate LLCs and stuff to sort of try to figure out who is behind this. The county becomes very concerned about what is happening here. There’s this massive information vacuum and people start to fill it.

We’re talking about Solano County, where the single largest landowner is now an LLC based in Delaware.

The group Flannery Associates has acquired tens of thousands of acres of dry farmland, equivalent to nearly double the size of San Francisco, and no one knows why. So whatever they are, I know what they aren’t. They aren’t buying carbon credits. They have intentions that are outside of our usual land use ideas. That’s what makes it scary, I guess, is that we know nothing about them.

Now there’s an important detail here that I’ve left out, which is —

A mysterious purchase of dry farmland near Travis Air Force Base, one of the most critical military bases in the Western US, has raised serious questions.

All of this land is near and surrounds Travis Air Force Base, which is a very important strategic Air Force base, sometimes called the gateway to the Pacific. And the concern is that a foreign actor of some kind, spies basically, is buying up a bunch of land around an Air Force base.

And it may very well be Chinese money.

With a goal of surveilling it or something like that.

For an enemy to be able to be right next to the base to monitor, to listen in to the communications. It would certainly be possible to do that if you own the land adjacent to the fence line of Travis Air Force Base.

There’s never any evidence of all this, but because of where the land is situated around this base —

Right. It’s a somewhat reasonable suspicion.

Yes. So by 2023, members of Congress, all sorts of people are flipping out. The Defense Department starts investigating this. The FBI starts investigating this. The State Department starts investigating this. All of these agencies are investigating who is behind this company. Just anything you can come up with, people have thrown the idea out, except for what it turns out to be.

So I cover housing here, and this was a little off my beat, but I was very interested. So I start looking into it a little bit and made a couple calls, but I didn’t turn up much. Then one day pretty much out of the blue, I get a message, and I can’t exactly say where, or how, or from whom, but someone tells me, I know what this is.

Tantalizing.

This isn’t some group of rich families trying to park their cash in farmland, like the Flannery Associates lawyer implied. This is, at least according to this tip, some of the most powerful people in technology, venture capitalists, executives from Silicon Valley, buying this land and they’re trying to round up other investors to join them.

So now you have a theory about who is buying this land. It’s a bunch of really rich venture capital types from Silicon Valley. But at this point, you don’t really know if that’s actually true.

Totally. And as you know, you get a lot of tips as a reporter. Some of them sound quite extraordinary and turn out to be nothing, but for various reasons that I can’t get into, I sort of knew this had to be worth checking out. So I call basically everyone I’ve ever met.

I mean, I’m kidding, but I start just blitzing the phones, right? I am sitting there texting, calling, just trying to find anybody who might know anything about this in this kind of nexus.

I think the technical term is “dog with a bone.”

Yes. So then I started working with my colleague, Aaron Griffith, who covers venture capital. And eventually, through a ton of reporting, we were able to confirm that, yes, in fact, the money behind Flannery Associates was a who’s who of Silicon Valley.

Laurene Powell Jobs, the widow of Apple co-founder Steve Jobs. Marc Andreessen, very famous venture capitalist from Andreessen Horowitz. Michael Moritz, billionaire venture capitalist from a company called Sequoia Capital. Reid Hoffman, co-founder of LinkedIn.

Some of the richest people on Earth are actually the ones buying all this farmland. And the craziest thing is what I learned their plan was. To take all this land, an area about twice the size of San Francisco, on this farmland building totally from scratch a brand new city that they hoped would help solve California’s housing crisis, and beyond that, create an entirely new model for building communities in this country.

We’ll be right back.

So what do you end up learning, Conor, about the specific plan that all these rich folks have for this model city that they want to build on this farmland?

So this whole thing, I learned, is the plan of a guy named Jan Sramek.

And who’s that?

Jan Sramek is an interesting guy. He’s originally from the Czech Republic, and in his telling, he grew up in this tiny town of thousand people, but he’s this very precocious, entrepreneurial young guy. According to him, he brought internet to his town and actually cut a side deal for himself to get money for this. He’s always looking for an angle. And with the help of different scholarships, he studied at Cambridge, goes to the London School of Economics, and becomes a star trader at Goldman Sachs.

He leaves Goldman Sachs and eventually makes his way to California, where he does several startups that have a pretty mixed record of success. And one thing to know about Jan is that he’s really enamored with the culture of Silicon Valley. He loves the startup thing. He loves the feeling of the way people in Silicon Valley try to blend this kind of philanthropic message with capitalism. The “we’re saving the world and we’re going to make a bundle doing it.” Like, this whole sort of spirit of Silicon Valley, all of this appeals to him. But there’s one thing he really doesn’t like, especially being a European, he hates the place.

He likes the culture, but he hates the physical.

He hates the physical place. Now if you’ve ever spent time in Silicon Valley, it’s really not a very remarkable place. It’s very sprawled out. You go to Sand Hill Road, which is where all the biggest venture capitalists are. And it’s like this kind of crappy office complex.

There are, of course, some very beautiful wealthy neighborhoods, but a lot of the housing stock is these kind of cul-de-sacy, whatever you would stereotype is the kind of American suburb, it just feels like that. So not only is he sort of uninspired by this very low density landscape, there’s a huge housing crisis in California at this time. And not only is there a huge housing crisis, there’s just a ton of conflict over whether or not the state should build more, how it should build. It’s just a big fight over basically whether to even solve it.

So he is coming to this all very fresh. And the idea that there’s this place where people start big companies and investors give young guys millions of dollars to chase their crazy idea. I mean, this just seems like paradise to him. And allowing more people to move here, building tons more housing, building great buildings, that’s what he thinks should be happening.

So his argument basically is that a place as magnetic, and energetic, and influential as the Bay Area, as Silicon Valley, deserves a physical community worthy of all those qualities that does not exist. In fact, it’s the opposite.

Yes. 100 percent. Now that feeling that Jan’s expressing that Silicon Valley and San Francisco can do better, that it’s become too hard to build in California, that this vibrant place has gotten stuck, that feeling is shared by a lot of very rich and powerful people. In particular, in the venture capital and tech community, there is this very deep frustration in that world that as much influence as they’ve had on the digital world, they’ve had very little influence on the physical world.

I mean, these are people who grew up dreaming of flying cars, and you know, monorails through “SimCity” landscapes, that sort of thing. And yet they live in this strip mall, office complex, cul-de-sac suburb. And because of the politics of the state, it’s almost impossible for them to change that.

People talk constantly about this. And Jan, at this point, is extremely well connected. He is friends with billionaires. He’s in a book club with some pretty high-powered venture capitalists. So he puts together a plan for a new community in eastern Solano County, one that lives up to his vision and one that he brings to these people. And eventually, he’s got almost $1 billion to pursue this idea of building an entirely new city from scratch out in this rural area.

So Conor, what happens once you and “The Times” break the story and tell the world what’s really going on because it’s been so secretive and mysterious until that point?

So within an hour or two of us breaking this story, Jan’s LinkedIn page re-identifies him as CEO of California Forever.

California Forever?

Flannery Associates is dead and California Forever has taken its place. It’s a whole new company with a whole new name and a very friendly face. And not only that, it’s as public as you can be. It goes from black box that nobody can get in to a company that has opened four offices around Solano County so that you can walk in and go, hey, how are you doing? What’s this project? And learn about it, and see maps, and talk to people about it.

A company that has put billboards all over the 80 Freeway on the way up to Sacramento saying, “California Forever.” So they’ve gone from nothing to you can’t stop hearing about them.

Well, what exactly are they saying once they decide to acknowledge what they are, rebrand themselves, and start having what sounds like the beginning of a conversation with the people in this county?

So because of county law, they cannot build this city unless they get a vote of the people.

Right. California is, among other things, land of the ballot initiative.

Exactly. Solano County has a rule that says you can’t build in the rural areas, and that’s because they want to preserve these farms just as they’ve been for generations. So at the start of this year, California Forever filed a proposed ballot initiative that would undo that and pave the way for them to eventually build this city. And the hope is that this initiative would go before Solano County voters in November.

Good evening. Good evening, everyone. Thank you for being here. How’s everyone doing tonight?

Thank you for coming out.

So they have to go on this massive charm offensive because not only do they have to eventually convince elected officials and all of these people to give them permission to build —

Thank you for coming out and learning about this California Forever project. You’ve been hearing a lot about it in the media. And we’re here to get your questions answered. We know everybody’s got a lot of questions.

They have to get the whole county to vote affirmatively for this project.

So, Jan, take it away.

So Jan goes from nobody has heard of Jan to he’s everywhere in the county. He’s meeting with elected officials. He’s meeting with union leaders.

Good evening, everyone. Thank you for coming. To introduce myself, you might be asking yourself, why is this guy with a funny accent here?

And then he starts having a series of public town hall meetings in all these different cities across Solano County.

This acceleration in home prices and pushing of particularly working class families out of California has been building up since the ‘80s.

And he just begins pitching people.

Every five years, it gets worse, and it gets worse, and it gets worse, and it gets worse.

And the pitch really begins with all the huge problems California is facing right now.

And so where our project ties in together with this is that we do think that we need to revisit some of these ideas. And we need to look into if our kids are going to be able to live in California, if California is going to be a state that does something about homelessness, if California —

And he really says, I have an answer to what is ailing us. We need to build again. We need to think big again. That this is what California needs to essentially shock itself out of its current malaise.

New community, homes and safe walkable neighborhoods, good paying local jobs, locally owned shops and businesses, big employers. Make it big enough to be an economic engine for everyone. Make it big —

And he says, we’re going to build row houses with bike lanes and a dense city with a bus running around the perimeter of it where you can walk to shops, and basically describes Brooklyn, where you live or where you’re sitting.

And we went out and we found a group of investors who wanted to double down on California, and who believed that if you could purchase enough property, that you could design a project that was designed in a way that it made everyone around better.

And eventually this city, they hope, will have 400,000 people living there.

A from scratch, fully envisioned, densely constructed community where you go to work, you go to the theater, you do your grocery shopping all within walking distance of your row house, which is attached to another house, which is exactly the kind of dense style of living that urban planners say we should be having in this country. More of it, not less of it.

Conor, all of this sounds eminently reasonable that I wonder why Jan approached it from the beginning with so much secrecy and mystery because that doesn’t feel in keeping with the spirit of what he is talking about here.

Yes. Well, pretty simple answer there. Money. What Jan will tell you is that they were worried that people would jack up the prices of the land.

If they were public?

Yes. That if people out there realized that the richest people in the world had a plan to buy all this land, they would start raising the prices.

But at the same time, it created a ton of suspicion in this community. And on top of that, it’s possible some of these farmers might not have sold if they would have known what the plans were. Many of these people have a very deep connection to the idea of this as an agricultural place.

Well, to that point, what happens once the public and all the farmers who have sold their land learn precisely what the plan is and what they have sold their land off to become?

So people are incredibly unhappy about it.

So I go to the town hall and right off the bat —

My question is, where are you making your money? Because it comes across like you’re doing a big favor for all of us to build this, but I know you’re looking for a bottom line. So I’m curious.

People contend that this is just a plan to get rich. If you get your way, you will get to build this giant city, and the land you bought for not very much money will suddenly be worth an astronomical amount more. And these people who are already billionaires are just going to get richer.

I am one of the 43 individuals that has been named in the lawsuit because I own 200 acres of land.

As they acquired the land, they also used some pretty significant strong arm tactics such as suing farmers, many of whom were in a lawsuit with them during the town hall.

Will you commit to dropping the lawsuit against the local farmers who are not aligned with your vision in a goodwill attempt to change the way that you are interacting with our community, which is right now unacceptable?

At one point, this family rose up and one after the other started saying, you’re suing my family.

Flannery/California Forever’s divisiveness and deception are very well documented.

Then there’s the more obvious thing people say which is —

How do you expect anyone in this room or the county to believe what you’re saying?

How do you expect us to trust you after you’ve been basically lying to us for seven years?

I would like you to explain further why you look at farmers, whose land is more important to them than your money, why we are a problem?

This is a rural area and does not want to be a city. They have remained here because they like being farmers and they like being in a small town where everyone knows each other, and that is the way of life to which they are accustomed. And many of these people will tell you, I know California has a housing problem.

They are aware that there are big cities not too far from them and that they have significant troubles. But what they’re saying is, this is farmland. If you want to solve San Francisco housing problems, like, maybe you start in San Francisco.

No one there seemed particularly happy about it.

Right, which does not seem like a great sign if, as you said earlier, Conor, what California Forever needs most is to hear from this community that it’s willing to vote to let this city get built.

Yes, people are very skeptical of them. And I’ve even heard people who are more seasoned political people saying, it’s very hard to trust them right now. And if I’m going to give them all this affirmation in the form of a vote, I need to be pretty confident that they’re going to do what they say they’re going to do.

I mean, there’s a real irony here, which is that California Forever thought that the best way to circumvent all of the normal screaming, and yelling, and community opposition, and bureaucracy, and NIMBYism of big city California was to escape to rural California and try to build a brand new model of housing and urban living there. And they ended up unleashing a different, but it sounds like no less fierce version of all those same forces just a couple hours outside the city.

Exactly. And I think they probably knew that would happen. And I think in a weird way this is what they want.

What do you mean? Why do — what do you mean they want it?

I think in their mind, it’s almost easier to build a city than it is to build a duplex. I think they would rather have one big, gigantic, knockdown, drag-out expensive fight, and then if they get approval, just build the city. If you think about it, the problem in San Francisco is that they fight over every little duplex. They fight over every little apartment building.

And I think they’re sort of like, OK, let’s do this once. Let’s have it be as furious and expensive as it can be. And if we get over that hump, then we can build a city that they hope one day will have 400,000 people in it. And I think they’ve calculated, if we do on this scale, it’ll be too big to fail.

This is fascinating.

This project is almost ideological for Jan.

He knows that there’s a huge distrust of Silicon Valley and billionaires, and that many see his approach as hubris. He’s totally aware of all of this.

But this is a state that built the Golden Gate Bridge and went from a little frontier town to the fifth largest economy in the entire world. And I think there’s a feeling that it’s forgotten how to do those big things.

And I think what Jan would tell you, his argument, is somebody needs to revive the spirit. Somehow we need to get Californians excited about big things again. And if it’s not this, then what is it? And if it’s not them, then who?

Well, Conor, thank you very much. We appreciate it.

Thank you, Michael.

Here’s what else you need to know today. The Justice Department has begun a criminal investigation into the mid-air blowout of a panel on an Alaska Airlines Flight that forced the plane to make an emergency landing in January. Federal investigators have suggested that Boeing may have delivered the plane to Alaska Airlines without installing the bolts necessary to hold the panel in place.

And in an interview over the weekend with MSNBC, President Biden delivered some of his harshest words to date about Israel’s deadly military strategy in Gaza and about the man leading it, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.

He’s hurting — in my view, he’s hurting Israel more than helping Israel by making the rest of the world — it’s contrary to what Israel stands for. And I think it’s a big mistake. So I want to see a cease fire.

In the interview, Biden was asked if there was a point at which Netanyahu’s actions would compel the US to cut off military aid to Israel.

There’s red lines that if he crosses and — they cannot have 30,000 more Palestinians dead.

Today’s episode was produced by Rikki Novetsky, Michael Simon Johnson, Eric Krupke, and Will Reid. It was edited by Marc Georges, fact checked by Susan Lee. Contains original music by Chelsea Daniel, Marion Lozano, Diane Wong, and Rowan Niemisto, and was engineered by Chris Wood. Our theme music is by Jim Brunberg and Ben Landsverk of Wonderly.

That’s it for The Daily. I’m Michael Barbaro. See you tomorrow.

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Hosted by Michael Barbaro

Featuring Conor Dougherty

Produced by Rikki Novetsky ,  Michael Simon Johnson ,  Eric Krupke and Will Reid

Edited by Marc Georges

Original music by Chelsea Daniel ,  Marion Lozano ,  Diane Wong and Rowan Niemisto

Engineered by Chris Wood

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For years, a mysterious company has been buying farmland on the outskirts of Silicon Valley, eventually putting together a plot twice the size of San Francisco.

At every step, those behind the company kept their plans for the land shrouded in secrecy. Conor Dougherty, an economics reporter at The Times, figured out what they were up to.

On today’s episode

bad trip von cannabis

Conor Dougherty , an economics reporter for The New York Times.

On a cloudy day, a man and a women are walking through a field with red barns in the background.

Background reading

Tech industry investors spent roughly $900 million buying land to build a dream city in a rural part of the Bay Area.

In Solano County, Calif., a who’s who of tech money is trying to build a city from the ground up. But some of the locals whose families have been there for generations don’t want to sell the land .

There are a lot of ways to listen to The Daily. Here’s how.

We aim to make transcripts available the next workday after an episode’s publication. You can find them at the top of the page.

Fact-checking by Susan Lee .

The Daily is made by Rachel Quester, Lynsea Garrison, Clare Toeniskoetter, Paige Cowett, Michael Simon Johnson, Brad Fisher, Chris Wood, Jessica Cheung, Stella Tan, Alexandra Leigh Young, Lisa Chow, Eric Krupke, Marc Georges, Luke Vander Ploeg, M.J. Davis Lin, Dan Powell, Sydney Harper, Mike Benoist, Liz O. Baylen, Asthaa Chaturvedi, Rachelle Bonja, Diana Nguyen, Marion Lozano, Corey Schreppel, Rob Szypko, Elisheba Ittoop, Mooj Zadie, Patricia Willens, Rowan Niemisto, Jody Becker, Rikki Novetsky, John Ketchum, Nina Feldman, Will Reid, Carlos Prieto, Ben Calhoun, Susan Lee, Lexie Diao, Mary Wilson, Alex Stern, Dan Farrell, Sophia Lanman, Shannon Lin, Diane Wong, Devon Taylor, Alyssa Moxley, Summer Thomad, Olivia Natt, Daniel Ramirez and Brendan Klinkenberg.

Our theme music is by Jim Brunberg and Ben Landsverk of Wonderly. Special thanks to Sam Dolnick, Paula Szuchman, Lisa Tobin, Larissa Anderson, Julia Simon, Sofia Milan, Mahima Chablani, Elizabeth Davis-Moorer, Jeffrey Miranda, Renan Borelli, Maddy Masiello, Isabella Anderson and Nina Lassam.

Conor Dougherty is an economics reporter and the author of “Golden Gates: Fighting for Housing in America.” His work focuses on the West Coast, real estate and wage stagnation among U.S. workers. More about Conor Dougherty

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    However, trust me, ice cream and a cold bath can go a long way. A cold bath will cool down your body from the outside while a scoop of ice cream will help decrease your body temperature form the inside. You see, some of the cannabis experienced users say that a tub of ice cream is one of the effective ways to combat a bad high.

  17. Having a Bad Cannabis Edibles Trip?

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  18. Why Does Cannabis Give Some People a Bad Trip

    When marijuana is intaken, the amygdala's response is naturally overwhelmed as THC produces more cannabinoids than endocannabinoids. In turn, some people feel great amounts of relief while others feel overwhelming sensations of paranoia. This gives us some explanation as to why people feel like they're on a "bad trip".

  19. How To Avoid & Prevent A Bad Cannabis Trip

    How to prevent a bad cannabis trip? The best way to avoid a lousy cannabis trip is to understand and check the THC potency and dosage you are consuming. If you are making edibles, check out this Edibles Dosage Calculator. If you're vaping/ smoking, don't feel obliged to repeatedly take a hit when it's your turn or smoking the whole joint ...

  20. Bad Cannabis Trip: What It Is and How To Prevent It

    A bad trip from smoking weed will last around 1-2 hours. However, your body's response will likely reduce this time frame. If you start to become agitated and afraid, high levels of adrenaline and other hormones will sober you up sooner. Bad edible trips last a lot longer, between 6-8 hours, depending on the dose.

  21. What to do when you are having a bad cannabis trip

    IN the other hand, CBD are the brakes. If your trip goes too fast and high, it is advisable to have good brakes to stop the feeling. Try using strains with higher levels of CBD. Many banks have CBD rich strains which are genetics with the same ratio of THC and CBD. It works very well with me.

  22. What is a Bad Trip and Why are They Important?

    A bad trip refers to a challenging or difficult experience while being under the influence of a hallucinatory substance such as psilocybin mushrooms, LSD, ayahuasca, or even cannabis. Although it is common for occasional unpleasantness, such as nausea or bewilderment, to occur temporarily during a psychedelic experience, bad trips are defined ...

  23. Edibles: What you need to know so you don't have a bad trip

    What you need to know: Experts say that if you're trying edibles for the first time, take 2.5 mg or 5 mg of THC, the psychoactive agent in marijuana. Wait a full two hours for effects to kick in ...

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