CBD What Now?
Walking down Bedford Avenue, it seems that every second storefront is hawking CBD this and CBD that. The checkout counter at the bodega invites us to purchase CBD everything from brownies to energy shots, not to mention Sephora, which is basically half pot-based skincare all of a sudden. The New York Times has covered the recent craze in several great articles, and I encourage the curious among us to read them as it’s pretty much the Wild West out there for this nascent industry.
As you probably know, I make CBD Muscle Melt to accompany the stretches and self-myofascial release practices of CBD Stretch, my very chill stretch workshop. While there are a lot of people out there who know a lot more than I do about this apparently magical substance, given its recent prevalence and meteoric popularity, I thought it might be useful to at least talk a little about what it is and why I use it.
What is CBD?
CBD stands for cannabidiol, a compound found in cannabis plants that is responsible for the relaxing, chill-out benefits of weed without the psychotropic effects (aka getting stoned) from THC, another type of cannabinoid in marijuana. Interestingly, these compounds work on humans because we have something called an endocannabinoid system that, in addition to ruling all kinds of functions in the body, has certain receptors to which CBD (and THC) bind. In a way, CBD meets you where you are to help your nervous system relax, which helps you calm down, focus, find peace, and otherwise chill.
Muscle rub + foam roller = heaven!
The most popular form of CBD is CBD isolate (extracted from hemp with no THC present) and full-spectrum CBD oil, which includes all 113 cannibinoids and a super teensy amount of THC, less than .3%. My favorite way to use it is topically, in conjunction with relaxing stretches and simple release techniques. I started using a CBD rub a few months after Diego was born to help with new mama shoulder tension and back pain from breastfeeding, and I would put it on before yoga and stretch sessions. It helped me literally relax, taking the grip right out of my tired traps, focus on myself (which can be challenging at first when tasked with keeping a squirmy, screaming human alive 24/7), and seemed to help me listen to my body. I also noticed it deepened the effects of my stretches and helped them last.
Salve-ation
I began to piece together the series of foam roller releases, simple stretches, and massage ball work that comprise CBD Stretch from all my therapeutic movement studies and went looking for a CBD rub to feature in class. I wasn’t all that stoked on most of the ones I could buy because they either didn’t work dependably or contained what I felt were semi-whack ingredients like lanolin and gelatin. So, having dabbled in making my own lotions and potions, I decided to try my hand at making it myself.
A behind-the-scenes look at how the magic’s made.
Using homemade CBD-infused coconut butter, skin-healing African shea butter, almond oil (which soothed my skin through pregnancy and kept it supple and stretch mark-free), and essential oils I knew to be effective in pain relief, I managed to make the little magical pots of pot I now use for sore muscles, achy joints, headaches, and even period cramps. The CBD works best with the essential oils and even better when combined with stretching, self-myofascial release, or meditation. I believe CBD increases interoception, which is our ability to feel and understand what is going on inside our bodies, thereby connecting us more deeply with our physical selves and helping us to listen. And since nothing makes me feel better than helping others feel better, I consider it to be a success already :)
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