CBD Oil Keeps Me Awake at NightCBD oil is known for its potential as a safe and effective alternative option for helping with many common issues. It may help with everything from anxiety to inflammation.
But some experiences suggest it could also have negative side effects on the sleep cycle. So, you are not alone if you find yourself googling “CBD oil keeps me awake at night”. The good news is that in general you can take CBD oil and still get good sleep at night.
To do so, it’s important to understand how CBD affects your body so you can find the routine that works best for you. We’ll explain it all below.
How Does CBD Affect sleep?
Cannabidiol, or CBD, is a phytocannabinoid found in cannabis plants. Manufacturers extract CBD from industrial hemp plants that have less than .3% THC. THC is a cannabinoid known for its psychoactive effects. Unlike THC, CBD will not cause any intoxicating effects.
CBD has been found to have other effects that may be beneficial to wellbeing. For example, it has been found to reduce inflammation, help soothe soreness, and relieve stress and anxiety. Some people report that it also helps with falling and staying asleep. It may help to maintain healthy sleep cycles overall.
But, there have also been reports from some people who suspect that the CBD oil they are using is making it hard for them to fall asleep. So what’s the deal? Does CBD oil help or hinder a good night’s sleep? There are a few things to consider when answering this question for yourself.
How CBD Works With the Body
When it enters our bodies, CBD impacts the endocannabinoid system (ECS). The endocannabinoid system is a transmitter system that is responsible for most of our critical bodily functions. This includes things like learning, memory, pain control, immune responses, eating, and of course, sleep.
The system is made up of chemical signals and cellular receptors that pass messages back and forth. Cannabinoids are the chemical signals. CB1 and CB2 receptors in our brains and bodies are the cellular receptors.
The ECS regulates our bodily functions in real-time, by adjusting activity in the right spots to make us feel things like hunger, thirst, anxiety, joy, tiredness, or alertness.
Our bodies produce their own cannabinoids. They are called endocannabinoids. They are structurally similar to phytocannabinoids, which are the ones like CBD that come from plants like hemp and cannibis. This is why they can enter our bodies and have effects on our ECS.
Experts are not positive about exactly how CBD interacts with our ECS, but they do know that it doesn’t behave like other cannabinoids. It doesn’t directly bind to the CB1 and CB2 receptors in the human brain and body. Instead, it hangs around in the ECS and keeps the naturally produced endocannabinoids around for as long as possible, letting us get the best use from them before they are gone.
This is how it is able to help relieve and calm the body. It allows the ECS to find balance and maintain homeostasis.
It’s a pretty safe assumption that if CBD has any impact on sleep, chances are it will be a positive one. And this is not just anecdotal, as studies have shown that CBD oil can promote better sleep.
CBD may provide some relief from stress, depression, and anxiety. And it may be able to help manage aches and pains. By relieving some of these things, CBD may help you be able to relax enough to unwind.
Are There Negative Impacts on Sleep?
So, what about those reports where CBD may have had negative impacts on sleep?
Since CBD interacts with CB1 receptors, it can interfere with the body’s ability to produce melatonin. Melatonin is responsible for regulating the circadian rhythm, which is the natural sleep-wake cycle. This means that taking CBD oil late in the day could disrupt your normal sleeping patterns and keep you awake at night.
It is important to understand that CBD effects are dose dependent. This means you can experience different effects depending on the amount of CBD you take. Lower doses of CBD typically produce stimulating effects. Higher doses, on the other hand, produce more sedative effects.
CBD and Waking Up
In low doses, studies suggest that CBD may be wake-promoting. This means that CBD may provide enough of an energy boost that it can make it hard to fall asleep. Or, it could take away the feeling of tiredness leading to waking up sooner than normal.
Researchers think about 15 milligrams or less of CBD may increase protein synthesis in the brain. The parts of the brain where this occurs may be the areas involved in waking you up. So, the increased activity may wake you back up when you are trying to fall asleep.
This type of outcome has not been reported for those who take CBD in larger doses.
So if you take some CBD and find it hard to fall asleep later, you may want to try a little more and see if it helps you relax into sleep. Higher doses of CBD have been shown to create sedative effects on healthy adults.
Habitual Use
Some people find that CBD oil helps them to fall asleep every night. It is shown to be well tolerated with few side effects, so those who struggle with sleep may see it as a great option.
But, some people may develop a tolerance for CBD when taken regularly for long periods of time. This means your body becomes used to the amount of CBD you take every day, so it stops producing the outcomes it did before.
It is always a good idea to speak with your health care professional to find a CBD dose and routine that works best for you. Always aim to take the minimum effective dose to start and adjust from there. It can also help to cycle off CBD on regular basis to help your tolerance reset. To do this, you could try taking CBD just during the week (i.e., Monday thru Friday) and then not using it over the weekend.
Leading Sleep Issues In Adults
A leading cause of sleep issues is insomnia. This is a condition where a person struggles to fall asleep and stay asleep. Someone with insomnia may also experience sleep disturbances, night awakenings, or wake up very early in the morning and not be able to go back to sleep.
Some common causes of insomnia are stress, anxiety, depression, pain, and alcohol and drug use. CBD is not a known cause of insomnia. It is actually thought to have the opposite effect in most cases when tried in the right doses.
Sleep apnea is another leading sleep disorder. This is a breathing disorder where someone stops breathing for 10 seconds or more while sleeping. Circadian rhythm disorders are also common among adults. These disorders cause problems with the sleep and wake cycles.
It’s not entirely clear how yet, but CBD seems to help with most types of sleep disorders. Including the ones mentioned above. This is most likely because of its ability to help relieve anxiety and stress and help our bodies and minds find equilibrium. It may allow the body to relax enough to fall into sleep and stay asleep longer. And get longer, more restful sleep.
Benefits of Taking Full Spectrum CBD Oil for Sleep
People take CBD oil to experience a variety of benefits. The main ones that may have an impact on sleep are its relaxing and sedative effects.
CBD is thought to help us relax in a number of ways. It has been shown that CBD reduces the amount of cortisol in the bloodstream. This may cause calming effects for people who might be dealing with stress throughout their day.
They may be even more effective if you use a full spectrum CBD oil. CBD oil isolate is pure CBD oil with no other chemical compounds from hemp. But full-spectrum oil leaves trace amounts of other compounds (such as terpenes) and cannabinoids that are present in hemp. This is beneficial because terpenes like linalool, myrcene, and humulene are known to have their own relaxing effects.
Linalool is found in lots of other plants like mint, citrus, and lavender. It has been used for centuries as a sleep aid. It has been shown to slow the transmission of pain signals going to the brain. And it increases the brain’s levels of adenosine. This is a central nervous system depressant that is blocked by caffeine. Lowering it may aid in pain relief and sleep.
Myrcene is very prevalent all over the world. It is found in hops, lemongrass, eucalyptus, bay leaves, and thyme. It smells musky and earthy like cloves. It is thought to have pain-relieving properties which may help us to relax. And it is one of the terpenes thought to be responsible for creating sedative effects.
Humulene is also found in hops as well as black pepper, cloves, rosemary, basil, and cinnamon. It has been shown to reduce inflammation and pain. This may be another terpene that can help with sleep thanks to its relaxing properties.
Full spectrum CBD oil allows these kinds of terpenes to help make the benefits of CBD more effective. This is known as the entourage effect.
What to do for Better Sleep with CBD
If you are experiencing difficulty falling asleep after taking CBD oil there are a number of things you can try.
The golden rule when it comes to trying out CBD is to start low and slow. Take the lowest recommended dosage and then increase it as you know how your responds to it. If you have conditions that affect your sleep, you may only need a small amount of CBD to get some help falling asleep.
But a small amount of CBD is different for everyone. Research has shown that 160mg of CBD a day can increase the total sleep time and decrease the number of awakenings in the night for patients with insomnia. But for healthy adults with no sleep disorders, the necessary dosage to cause sedative effects was 300mg to 600mg a day.
It is best to take CBD 30 to 60 minutes before you plan to fall asleep. CBD takes a while to get absorbed by the body and enter the bloodstream. The time that it takes to feel its effects can vary depending on a number of different factors. Some of the most important are method of delivery, dosage, weight, and personal biology.
CBD oil that is used sublingually, like drops that are absorbed under the tongue, tends to have effects that come on a little sooner. Possibly within 15 to 30 minutes. The onset is faster because the CBD molecules absorb directly into the bloodstream through the thin sublingual tissues under the tongue. After this, they can start working right away.
CBD that is consumed via edibles doesn’t work this fast because it has to travel through the digestive tract first. It passes through the liver and gets metabolized before any of it enters the bloodstream.
The amount you take and how you take it will affect the onset time, but in any scenario, you should take CBD a minimum of 15 minutes before you want it to take effect.
Some people choose to take a small dose of CBD in the morning, which may give a boost of energy for the day. And then take a larger dose in the evening when they are getting ready to settle in for the night.
CBD is a personal journey, and what works best for you may not work best for others. It may help to to speak with your healthcare professional to figure out how CBD may best fit in with your wellness routine.
Be awared that CBD may have some negative side effects. Some of the most common are fatigue, diarrhea, dizziness, and reduced appetite. Of greatest concern is that it can interact with some medications. So be sure to consult your physician if you are currently taking any prescription drugs before starting a CBD supplement.
CBD Oil and Sleep: The Bottom Line
It is unlikely that taking CBD oil will lead to insomnia. Some people may experience a boost of energy when taking small doses of CBD, but taking a larger dose is likely to negate these effects.
The reason many people choose to use CBD oil is to help with a variety of issues that may make it hard to get quality sleep. Taking CBD may help you with these issues as well and allow you to find peace and comfort that will keep your eyelids closed through the night.
Just remember to start with the lowest recommended dose. And adjust your dosage as necessary after about a week to find what works best for you.
Our SLEEP Yummy CBD Oil is specially formulated with melatonin to help you get the best sleep possible.