#i should have just added the new version of safe & sound to my playlists instead of listening to it first

[zukkaoru]

safe & sound - taylor swift || jujutsu kaisen

[id in alt text]

[kindabraveandlittlestupid]

A love/hate review of The Division game and all the things I wish it could have been. Please note that as of this point I have not played the massive update that supposedly took place to ‘fix’ the game. This critique is opinion based and if you love (or hate) the game more then I do feel to let me know how/why. Just be respectful of your dissent of my review.

I am of two mindsets about this game in the fact I thought it was a great concept and I generally enjoyed the setting and gameplay (to some degree) but on the other hand, the storytelling was less than exceptional, they had with PVP element and RPG damage system which ruined the game.

New York City Setting (Loved) Reading up on this game I appreciated the groundwork the developer put into getting the setting right. How they contacted with real government agencies to try accurately portray the JTF accurately and took thousands of pictures of New York to capture the city. Like a winter cemetery with monolithic skyscrapers looking like dark pillars reaching towards the sky from the very beginning you knew you were in the Big Apple. There are many games that take liberties with real-world cities in games by shrinking them down to manageable sizes, you can love GTA all you want but if you lived in LA you know San Andrea is like a shadow compared to the real thing. The Division had no such issue as almost every second (save the underground/sewer levels) kept me believing that I was elite agent fighting in for New York.

Shoot First, Ask Questions Never (Hated) An aspect of the game that really bothered me was “Always Shooting” approach to the gameplay. Find a group of guys in the street with guns? Shoot them. Meet a fellow agent in the Dark Zone? Think about shooting them. Find two people over a body? Shoot them too. I understand this was a gun game but this really undercut the morality and humanity that could have made this game great. In eyes of the developer, everyone was guilty of something but by the rules of probability, not everyone in the city who was armed had to be a ‘bad guy’. Those group of men standing with guns on the corner? Neighborhood watch protecting their community. The two guys over the body in the alleyway? Found it like that and looking for ID or supplies.

Point is they could have easily put a verbal engagement into the game where you get the drop on somebody and allow them to surrender peacefully. Give a Mass Effect conversation wheel where you can get to the root of what the hell they are doing and either let them go, arrest them, rob them or even (if they do end up being bad) shoot them. I don't believe video games desensitize kids but they don't make me arguing their case for them any easier when the only option is to kill kill kill. 

Story Telling (Love/Hate) The use of the hologram playback of events was an original way of telling stories and gives you an almost interactive perspective on what transpired before. As did listening to the voice recordings, hunting down missing agents and reading the walls also helped paint the city that is in utter chaos. 

Perhaps I spoiled myself with the Brian Wood comic DMZ (totally worth the read) which really dove into a New York warzone setting but I felt like the developers took the story to a point and then just kind of stopped. No long-term plot, no secondary missions with a rich fiction to delve into or even a good use of the secondary characters who made up the JTF. This a consistent issue with most Tom Clancy games (save the Splinter Cell series which is linear but fun as hell). I would have happily given up the whole ‘Dark Zone’ for investment in more plot but most companies look to multiplayer now as the measure of success instead of having the fans keep a lasting impression in their mind like Mass Effect or other story-driven games. I think that metric of success is simply wrong.

Death By A Thousand Bullets (Hate) Probably the BIGGEST failure of the game was the DPS element to the guns. Nothing like being a firefight with a guy and pumping him with hundreds of bullets and only taking away a sliver of his health. I understand why they wanted to have a quality of weapons aspect of the game to encourage people to try/loot new weapons but going this route really just ruined the experience. They could have easily gone with a gun jamming up over time requiring maintenance or switching it out for something new to encourage alternative firearms. They did a really good job with the weapons system of Ghost Recon: Wildlands and for some reason omitted this game from that quality weapons system.

I just marvel the most at the fact that there was a probably an office somewhere full of developers creating this game and someone said “Hey shouldn't a bullet to the head kill a guy?” and someone saying “No, he is a level 13 and you’re only a level 2, therefore, your bullets do less damage!” “That doesn't make any sense...” “Shut up, Derek. No one likes you.” Did it actually play out like that but I promise you someone had a conversation like that AT LEAST once.

Missed Opportunities (Love/Hate) Getting passed the nitpicky elements above let's talk about some things it could/should have been. There was so much potential with this game for alternative missions, game modes and ways to play that I wish some developer might correct in the next version of this game.

The Convoy Mission - Seems simple enough but in a city full of cars, there should have been convoy mission where an APC or a group of Humvees needed to drive a couple blocks to help resupply one of the safe houses. Walking alongside it, dealing with the occasional attack and smashing open windows of cars that are in the way and push them to the side. Seems simple but a diversity of missions is never a bad thing.

Reclamation Tug-O-War - Would have been great to have seen a game mode where you hold your block and work to liberate surrounding areas from the various factions which sounds simple but also have those factions push back trying to reclaim blocks you control. This would have provided a replayable element where you take areas, establish a JTF presence and hold them until the city is under control.

Establishing Safe Houses - Like the Reclamation idea, when you set up a safe house it should have not simply been unlocked and then done. I would have enjoyed having missions focus on the success of these alternative safe house location away from the main base with tangible perks for doing a job well done. Could be complex like defend it from attack, find a new radio so they can keep in contact with HQ, or something simple like deliver the blankets where you keep the people happy and alive.

Zombie Mode - Lots of people shit on zombie mod mostly because they are dime a dozen but I doubt anyone could argue that this setting (the city itself) doesn't look like a setup for a zombie movie. It would be amazing to have a co-op horde mode being a separate playable game mode for players.

The Dark Zone (Hate) We know why they put this into the game but fuck me if it doesn't make any sense. “Hey! My radio stopped working over here.” *Shakes it* “Guess I can let my psychopath flag fly now and kill other agents.” This REALLY cut into the Achilles tendon and dropped the game to a new low. I already talked about how Shoot First, Ask Questions never basically was a green light for murdering anyone you came across but this game mode plays to the worse aspect of gaming culture.

Co-Op (Love) I wanted to end on two high notes after ripping into the game with so much hate. I enjoy games with a Co-Op element where 2 or more players join me in the world to set things right. There is always chance that one of my friends will flashbang me on purpose to piss me off but for the most part, it enhances the experience and the Division does this well, making Co-Op a feature and not a mandatory function for enjoyment.

Ola Strandh (Love) A special shout-out to the composer of the game's score. While I did not notice the soundtrack to much while playing the game, the score eventually popped up on my Spotify and with some easy listening, I started to appreciate the complexity of the music and the use of sounds to create an atmosphere. I would suggest giving it a listen and if you like composed movie/game scores adding this to your playlist wouldn't be all that bad.

Conclusion You’re a special agent with the license to kill murdering your way through a civilian population that was basically abandoned by their government during the quarantine. Kinda hard to have a moral footing when you think about the game like that. The story itself was unrealized and the RPG element to the game (along with PVP) killed the immersion that could have made this game epic. I leave the weapon/gear perk element in my RPG’s with the suspension of belief of ‘because fucking magic” but it has no place in the realistic shooters like this.  I will probably play it again as there was that update but I doubt they did the overhaul that this game badly needed. Regards Michael California

[cbdhn-blog]

The Pros and Cons of CBD and the Parents Who Use It

The Pros and Cons of CBD and the Parents Who Use It

Paul started taking CBD to be a better father. The New Jersey dad of two's high-pressure, high-rewards job was taking a toll. Work days left him feeling depleted and on edge. He'd get home wired and checked out, feeling like it was impossible to be patient with his boys.

“You go from one job to the next,” he said. “You go to work all day and come home to a five and a seven year old and they were at their job all day - school - and now they want to turn it up and rage.”

Paul hoped the hemp-derived product, which is said to reduce anxiety, would help him find the peace of mind he needed to be present in those moments of high-energy family time. So, on a work trip, he ducked into a store with a tie-dye banner and walked out with $40 worth of CBD gummies.

A few months later, he says he's noticed modest gains. He brings less work stress homeand stops channeling that anxiety onto his children. “I feel less inclined to give as many fucks about what they are doing and not helicopter dad as much,” he said. “I try to go with the flow.”

The hemp extract Cannabidiol, or CBD, is everywhere these days. You can find CBD-infused versions of candies, lattes, beer, bath bombs, lotions, lubes, and pretty much every product you can think of. These items aren't sitting past the beaded curtain in head shops, either. They're available online, at corner stores, and high-end boutiques. CBD will only become more ever-present. According to the cannabis industry analysis company New Frontier, the CBD market is expected to grow by 700 percent into a $2 billion industry by 2022.

These numbers are easy to understand. CBD supposedly aids sleep, relieves pain, and reduces stress. The plant-based compound also isn't habit forming and low-key enough to take around family or kids. It's becoming more and more of an option for those who want to de-stress or at the least not let their anxieties rub off on their loved ones. It's no surprise then that parents are among the most avid consumers. Hell, the only way to tailor CBD more to modern dads is to include a Beastie Boys playlist and tips for fantasy football with every purchase. But is it worth the hype? 

***

Researchers have been aware of Cannabidiol since the late 18th century when it was the first of the more than 60 natural cannabinoid compounds. Scientists were able to synthesize it as early as the mid '60s. Like all cannabinoids, CBD is derived from hemp plant resins. Unlike its more famous fellow marijuana-derived chemical compound Tetrahydrocannabinol (THC), however, CBD doesn't get you stoned. Instead, it has a calming effect.

While CBD has been used to help fight seizures and chronic pain, it's the anxiety-battling properties and lack of brain-fog that have become its big, bold selling point. A 2013 study found evidence that CBD alleviates anxiety by increasing prefrontal cortex activation and lowering activity in the amygdala, the two areas of the brain involved in anxiety while activating CB1 receptors to restore balance to GABA and glutamate levels, further reducing anxiety. THC also binds with CB1 receptors, but activates the brain's dopamine reward system while also interfering with brain mechanisms that regulate mood, memory, appetite, pain, cognition, and emotions.

  Hell, the only way to tailor CBD more to modern dads is to include a Beastie Boys playlist and tips for fantasy football with every purchase.

  “If THC is the Beyonce of cannabinoids, then CBD is the Adele,” Pittsburgh functional medicine practitioner Will Cole said. “Both you are your grandma will love it as CBD oil doesn't contain the same cannabinoids that are considered psychoactive.”

CBD does have it's concerns, however. Longstanding prohibitions on studying marijuana have only loosened recently and not entirely. For example, researchers can only study marijuana grown at the University of Mississippi, which grows marijuana under contract with the National Institute on Drug Abuse. With restrictions hampering research into hemp products overall and CBD being relatively new, researchers, while armed with convincing theories, don't yet know exactly how it operates in the brain and body.

Then there's also the issue of legality. CBD is available in most parts of the United States, but its legal status is somewhat murky. States have varying degrees of restriction. In the 10 states with legal marijuana, CBD is legal as well. Some states, like New York, allow commercial sales. Alabama, however restricts CBD use to medical purposes only. Georgia, meanwhile, only permits it to be prescribed to people with conditions such as cancer, multiple sclerosis, Parkinson's disease, and seizure disorders.

  The farm bill released by the FDA in December legalized non-THC hemp products across the board. While that should include CBD, some legal experts suggest that it may not. Nonetheless, the bill should be good news for CBD users, as it permits states to decide on laws about CBD sales and it differentiates hemp-derived products from marijuana and therefore removes CBD from the DEA's list of controlled substances.

Despite some gray areas, CBD has crossed some hurdles. A World Health Organization report on CBD determined it was safe when taken on its own but suggested that problems could arise when CBD is taken with other drugs. 

  “If THC is the Beyonce of cannabinoids, then CBD is the Adele.”

  Dr. Rachna Patel, a medical cannabis specialist and a leading expert on CBD, added that, while CBD isn't addictive or life-threatening, moderation is key. “If you take it too often [for pain relief] it's going to make your pain worse, believe it or not,” she said. Like other cannabinoids, CBD has a biphasic effect, meaning low and high doses can produce opposite results. And while someone can't overdose from CBD, taking too much leads to a bad time.

“You could feel dizzy. You could feel really groggy, you could feel really lethargic,” she said. “You're just not going to overall feel good.”

Still, by all measures, CBD seems like it was synthesized precisely for our high-stress, burn out-prone times. In fact, there's some persuasive evidence that use is high among those with kids. Dr. Patel, for instance, has found that while CBD cuts across ages, it peaks with people between 40 and 60.

“That's when humans in general start to experience a lot of pain,” Patel said. “Their body is starting to wear down on them.”

Knowing all this, why wouldn't stressed-out parents want to give CBD a try? 

***

While CBD sounds ideal for dads in theory, in practice the results seem mixed. The CBD-users with whom I spoke were reserved in their praise. Still, the consensus wasn't dismissive - the phrase “it's worth a shot” appeared just as often.

Sean, a father of one from Chicago bought a pack of CBD gummies after a friend recommended them. He enjoys the effect and says he likes the idea of popping one after a particularly long day at the office. “I wouldn't say that it's a major change; it just settles me a bit. It's nice to feel that calm and be in a good headspace for my family when I had a bad day,” he says. “It's easy to bring that stress home.”

Sean added that, around his family, he feels more comfortable popping one than he does drinking a few beers. “There's something more PG about it,” he says. “Either way, it's an occasional thing.”  (Sean was quick to add that he keeps his gummies in the locked glove compartment of his car so his toddler won't accidentally stumble upon them.)

  “It's kind of the equivalent of drinking non-alcoholic beer without knowing it's not alcoholic,”

  For some dads, however, CBD's effect is too close to that of THC. Tom, a father of two from Jersey, tried CBD when he sprained his back. While it didn't help his pain, as a regular marijuana user, it reminded him enough of smoking pot to be a disappointing and confusing tease.

“It's kind of the equivalent of drinking non-alcoholic beer without knowing it's not alcoholic,” he said. “It's not alcoholic but there's this weird psychological effect that [makes you think] you'd feel stoned even though there's nothing.”

CBD, then, may be a little counter-intuitive for anybody who first smoked marijuana after being promised it would blow their mind. That's why so many tried marijuana in the first place. If CBD doesn't induce giggling fits or make music seem transcendently face-melting, what's the point?

But many dads taking CBD aren't looking to get high. They know what marijuana's like and have generally positive feelings about it. They're looking for calm or relief from pain.

Dan, a dad of two from California, said his local coffee joint serves a cold brew with CBD. “It's a pretty good way to get hyper and de-stressed at the same time,” he said. “Wouldn't say it's life changing exactly, but it does seem good for anxiety and a bit of calm.”

Dan said he felt the advertised calm of CBD but added that “honestly it's hard to sort out whether it's a placebo or not.”

  “Alarmingly, a number of CBD products have contained toxic substances like the synthetic marijuana Spice and dextromethorphan, the ingredient in Robitussin that causes “robo tripping.”

  Chris, a New York City father of two, is a long-time CBD user. He searched out the substance several years ago after a health food store employee recommended it for his sciatica back pain.

“I wanted to feel relaxed and get my muscles to relax,” Chris said. “I didn't necessarily need to be stoned. I didn't need the euphoria necessarily. I just needed the sedation.”

CBD didn't cure his back pain but it made it far more bearable. As it did so, it also turned down the volume on his anxiety.

“I was like, Wow, okay,” he said. “I'm sedated a little bit. It's not like I'm taking a valium, but I certainly feel the edge has been taken off.”

Despite his positive experience, Chris said it's not a cure for pain, but rather a tool for managing it. Dr. Patel said this was typical for people who treat pain with CBD.

“If you're in severe pain, don't expect the CBD oil to just poof, and magically get rid of it overnight,” she said. “It'll drop down realistically, mild to moderate levels.”

***

It's a common concern to try CBD and find it doesn't do anything at all. I don't have to travel far for an example. My personal CBD experience was underwhelming. I bought a vial of oil from a smoke shop to help my lower back pain. It didn't have an effect and I ended up turning instead to my usual regimen of bourbon, heat pads, and Aleve.

When I told Dr. Patel CBD didn't work for me, she suggested that the product I took may not have contained CBD at all. The FDA has only approved one CBD product for medical use, the epilepsy seizure drug Epidiolex. Otherwise, CBD is unregulated and unpredictable. A 2017 JAMA study tested 84 CBD products and found that only about a third of them accurately reflected the CBD it contained. The Food and Drug Administration has warned several CBD companies about mislabeling their products. Alarmingly, a number of CBD products have contained toxic substances like the synthetic marijuana Spice and dextromethorphan, the ingredient in Robitussin that causes “robo tripping.”

  “I was like, Wow, okay. I'm sedated a little bit. It's not like I'm taking a valium, but I certainly feel the edge has been taken off.”

  Of course, CBD products are an unregulated market with wild west rules. People have to be very discerning about what products they choose but there's scant information to go on. Chris said he quality controls by buying CBD products made from certified organic hemp. Patel said the best indicator for CBD quality is if the packaging states the product has been laboratory tested by a third-party, independent state-licensed lab. Otherwise, there's no guarantee that the ingredients of a CBD product aren't just something you already have in your kitchen.

“The amount of CBD can vary,” Patel said. “But it's important to know the exact amount because there have been some products that the FDA has found where they had little-to-no CBD in them. You don't want to be paying ridiculous amounts of money for a one-to-two ounce bottle of basically vegetable oil.”

Buyers definitely want the product to have some CBD, but getting more specific about dosage is elusive. There's no not a one size fits all correct dose. Effective dosages seem to vary from person to person, with bodyweight driving much of the variance.

Still, CBD offers a salve for some. After using it for three months, Paul bought into the CBD hype and would recommended it to dads trying to carve out some calm. He thought it was helping but suspected there might be a placebo effect at play, particularly when he considered the unscientific methodology he used for his CBD experiments.

“To be fair, most nights there is a cold eight-percent 16 oz craft IPA making its way into my dad bod as well,” he said.

via: 

Adam Bulger Fatherly January 11, 2019 https://www.fatherly.com/love-money/cbd-pros-cons-anxiety-parents/

[lisabelkin-yahoonews]

'Our world changes today': a journey to the Women's March on Washington

When the group of a dozen women arrive at the staging spot for the Women’s March on Washington on Saturday morning – just after dawn, if all goes as planned, to grab spots up front – it will have been 24 hours since they left home.

On Friday morning they headed out of town in their white rental van, a loose knit group of friends of friends of friends. They ranged in age from 17 to 70. Some were gay, some straight, one transgender. All shades of skin, in skin tone from dark to light. They were teachers, nurses, students, restaurant workers, animal rights advocates and retirees.

All felt called to join what for most was the first organized protest of their lives. Fueled by junk food, a passionate playlist, and a belief that they needed to stand up and be counted, they spent 12 hours in a van from Louisville, KY, and a night on floors, couches and inflatable mattresses in and around Washington DC, to become a dozen individuals in a sea of what is expected to be several hundreds of thousands of others.

_____

Friday, 8 AM

The plan was to drive on Friday in order to ignore the inauguration. “Counter-programming,” joked Bridget Pitcock, chief of staff at a managed care company in Louisville. This trip was her idea. Reading about early plans for the march soon after Election Day, she called her wife of three years, Meg Hancock, and announced they would need to rent a van and fill it with others who were “outraged and in despair.”

Now they had, and once the van was filled to bursting with people, luggage and hand-drawn signs, Hancock, an assistant professor of sports administration at the University of Louisville, paused before taking the driver’s seat to offer a prayer she’d written a few days before.

“Let’s take a moment of silence for the world we knew,” she said. “If you march to say ‘fuck you’ to Trump, I get that. But if you march to say ‘fuck yeah’ for women, for people of color, for the disenfranchised, I’ll be the first to hand you a megaphone. The fact is, today we know our world changes, but it’s not because Donald Trump says it does. It’s because WE say it does. And we say how it does.”

“Because today,” Hancock continued, “is a demonstration of our commitment to each other, to our LGBT brothers and sisters. To our our black and brown brothers and sisters. To our Muslim brothers, but especially our sisters. To our Syrian refugees, to our immigrants. To our homeless, our poor, our hungry. We commit to listen, to seek to understand, to stand up, to rise up, to educate, to advocate. Our world changes today not because of Donald Trump. Our world changes today because of us. And it is an honor to be a part of that change with you.”

_____

9 AM

There was a lot of talk in the van about backpacks. And fanny packs. And charging spots. And bathroom locations. For weeks memos had been filling the official March website, and among the instructions was a restriction of the size of carry-alls, to 8x6x4. Clear plastic backpacks could be slightly bigger though, 8x8x6. There was also advice to buy Metro cards in advance by mail, followed by articles in the Washington Post saying the surge in demand for Metro cards meant many who had ordered weeks in advance would not have them in time for the march — including the dozen women in the van.

Ah, the logistics of a protest.

The conversation turned to the list of speakers that had only recently been released. “My nana fangirled over Gloria Steinem and Angela Davis,” said Blair Wilson, a 19-year-old college student who was traveling to the march with her grandmother, Linda Wilhelms. A veteran of marches – her first protest, in 1969, was against the Vietnam War – Wilhelms was excited to introduce her only granddaughter to this world. “Having her there, experiencing the emotions and energy of the event, was my motivation to attend,” Wilhelms said. “She is an amazingly strong-willed, opinionated young woman. I have worked hard to help her develop a sense of right and wrong, and she is all I ever hoped she would be. She is my hero!”

_____

10 AM

Each was marching for reasons that were the same, but slightly different.

Courtney Hardesty, a service manager at a Louisville restaurant, was marching “because of the repugnant rhetoric used in the last election” and “because there is so much to be done on the front of social justice.”

Kelsey Westbrook, the co-director of a nonprofit animal welfare agency, was marching “because each and every day since November 9, I’ve woken up with a disturbingly sullen, deep-rooted sadness that Trump will soon take over the highest office in the land. I’m going because I feel as though I’ve got to do something that particular day to stand with other women and allies in solidarity. I’m going because there are so many women who aren’t able or willing to go. I’m going because I won’t let his inauguration halt my motivation for progress and equality in our country and in my community.”

Jocelyn Duke, an artist with a background in social work and as a basketball coach, is marching because “it troubles me that we have placed a man in the White House who has openly disrespected and degraded so many people who are different from himself. I march for myself, my twin, my mother, every young woman that I’ve coached, the young women and girls I don’t know. But most of all, I march for my beautiful nieces who will grow up knowing that they are valuable and powerful because of their amazing minds and loving spirits. I pray that we get to a place where we truly love and respect one another so that our children and future generations have a better and safe world to live in.”

Kaitlin U’sellis, an analyst at a healthcare company, was marching for women’s health. In June she miscarried twins. The fetuses had to be removed with medical intervention. “I have always been pro-choice,” she said. “But since then I’m more aware of the need for women’s access to healthcare. I am marching to keep government out of my uterus and my bedroom.”

The twins’ due date was January 20. Instead she spent the day in the van.

_____

These dozen women, friends of friends of friends, drove through Inauguration Day from Louisville, KY to be in Washington for today’s Women’s March. (Photo: Lisa Belkin/Yahoo News)

11 AM

They tried to shut the world out of the white rental van with the tinted windows. No one even thought of tuning to live coverage of the swearing in. But it was impossible to keep the outside from leaking in. They read jokes aloud that they found on Twitter: “The Bible just backed out of the inauguration.” They shared a a meme, a campaign poster of Obama/Warren 2020 – Michelle, that is.

The change of administration registered to them in a bizarre time delay. They watched the video of the awkward welcome of the Trumps to the White House by the Obamas, complete with that Tiffany box no one knew what to do with. But they didn’t see it until a half an hour after it happened.

“Hillary Clinton wears suffragette white to Trump inauguration,” someone read, out of actual order.

“There’s a tweet about a plane of all women headed to the march,” said someone else.

“Did you hear Southwest Airlines has pink lighting inside all its cabins today?”

They discussed any topic but the one that loomed largest.

The closer it got to noon, the quieter the voices became, and the louder the music. Maddie Dalton, the 17-year-old transgender girl who forced the bathroom question in Louisville’s public schools and won, hooked her iPhone to the sound system and blared the Hamilton Mixtape.

“Immigrants, we get the job done,” the group sang in unison.

As Mike Pence was being sworn in as vice-president, Hancock switched the music to Beyonce’s Lemonade.

And at about the moment they knew Donald Trump was holding the Bible, Pitcock turned on the song she has specially selected for the moment, Lily Allen’s “Fuck You.” The van vibrated with sound.

“So you say, It’s not okay to be gay/Well, I think you’re just evil/You’re just some racist who can’t tie my laces/Fuck you.”

They followed that with Common’s “The Day Women Took Over.”

_____

12:30 PM

Having welcomed this Yahoo News reporter along for their ride, it was time to Skype with the team covering the Inauguration in Yahoo’s New York studio. They watched, waiting their turn, as Katie Couric talked to Matt Bai about the protests, the bottles and bricks thrown at police, the militarized response with tear gas and arrests.

The video on the Skype screen was the first they had seen. Are they worried, Couric asked. Do they condone the violence?

_____

Meg Hancock tries on a bandanna after the group, worried about tear gas, buys out the Dollar Store. (Photo: Lisa Belkin/Yahoo News)

1:30 PM

Over lunch at a quaint spot next to a gas station, not far off the highway, the women discussed whether in fact they were worried. They turned to Wilhelms, the veteran of marches, who stressed that the cause of this gathering was not violent.

But, she added, it is always helpful to have a scarf to tie around your nose and mouth in the event of tear gas. And soaking that scarf in water is even more effective.

_____

2 PM

Dalton scouted out a nearby Dollar Store for bandannas and Hancock bought a dozen for the group. They debated whether the blue and red ones made some sort of political statement.

Hancock suggested that each woman choose a “buddy” to keep track of her whereabouts should chaos break out.

_____

5 PM

As Washington neared, the traffic increased. So did the fog. The bags of pretzels, trail mix and Little Debbie Oatmeal Crème pies became less appetizing.

The Trump administration version of the new White House website contained no LGBT Rights page, a headline read. The public petition page was gone, too. And the section of the site that had been about Civil Rights was now about standing up for law enforcement.

_____

6 PM

Other cars inched along in nearby lanes, clearly headed for the march. The women spotted a license plate from Nevada with “Love Trumps Hate” written on the back window. A charter bus from St. Louis, whose passengers could be seen in the windows reading other headlines on other screens.

_____

8 PM

The group scatters to various couches and sleeping bags. They will reconvene at 7 AM, on a street corner a short walk from the start of the March, to continue their journey. _____

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  Read more from Yahoo News:

In Trump’s inaugural speech, a demand for unity and loyalty

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Protesters throng Trump inauguration route and face off with polic

[cbdhn-blog]

The Pros and Cons of CBD and the Parents Who Use It

The Pros and Cons of CBD and the Parents Who Use It

Paul started taking CBD to be a better father. The New Jersey dad of two's high-pressure, high-rewards job was taking a toll. Work days left him feeling depleted and on edge. He'd get home wired and checked out, feeling like it was impossible to be patient with his boys.

“You go from one job to the next,” he said. “You go to work all day and come home to a five and a seven year old and they were at their job all day - school - and now they want to turn it up and rage.”

Paul hoped the hemp-derived product, which is said to reduce anxiety, would help him find the peace of mind he needed to be present in those moments of high-energy family time. So, on a work trip, he ducked into a store with a tie-dye banner and walked out with $40 worth of CBD gummies.

A few months later, he says he's noticed modest gains. He brings less work stress homeand stops channeling that anxiety onto his children. “I feel less inclined to give as many fucks about what they are doing and not helicopter dad as much,” he said. “I try to go with the flow.”

The hemp extract Cannabidiol, or CBD, is everywhere these days. You can find CBD-infused versions of candies, lattes, beer, bath bombs, lotions, lubes, and pretty much every product you can think of. These items aren't sitting past the beaded curtain in head shops, either. They're available online, at corner stores, and high-end boutiques. CBD will only become more ever-present. According to the cannabis industry analysis company New Frontier, the CBD market is expected to grow by 700 percent into a $2 billion industry by 2022.

These numbers are easy to understand. CBD supposedly aids sleep, relieves pain, and reduces stress. The plant-based compound also isn't habit forming and low-key enough to take around family or kids. It's becoming more and more of an option for those who want to de-stress or at the least not let their anxieties rub off on their loved ones. It's no surprise then that parents are among the most avid consumers. Hell, the only way to tailor CBD more to modern dads is to include a Beastie Boys playlist and tips for fantasy football with every purchase. But is it worth the hype? 

***

Researchers have been aware of Cannabidiol since the late 18th century when it was the first of the more than 60 natural cannabinoid compounds. Scientists were able to synthesize it as early as the mid '60s. Like all cannabinoids, CBD is derived from hemp plant resins. Unlike its more famous fellow marijuana-derived chemical compound Tetrahydrocannabinol (THC), however, CBD doesn't get you stoned. Instead, it has a calming effect.

While CBD has been used to help fight seizures and chronic pain, it's the anxiety-battling properties and lack of brain-fog that have become its big, bold selling point. A 2013 study found evidence that CBD alleviates anxiety by increasing prefrontal cortex activation and lowering activity in the amygdala, the two areas of the brain involved in anxiety while activating CB1 receptors to restore balance to GABA and glutamate levels, further reducing anxiety. THC also binds with CB1 receptors, but activates the brain's dopamine reward system while also interfering with brain mechanisms that regulate mood, memory, appetite, pain, cognition, and emotions.

  Hell, the only way to tailor CBD more to modern dads is to include a Beastie Boys playlist and tips for fantasy football with every purchase.

  “If THC is the Beyonce of cannabinoids, then CBD is the Adele,” Pittsburgh functional medicine practitioner Will Cole said. “Both you are your grandma will love it as CBD oil doesn't contain the same cannabinoids that are considered psychoactive.”

CBD does have it's concerns, however. Longstanding prohibitions on studying marijuana have only loosened recently and not entirely. For example, researchers can only study marijuana grown at the University of Mississippi, which grows marijuana under contract with the National Institute on Drug Abuse. With restrictions hampering research into hemp products overall and CBD being relatively new, researchers, while armed with convincing theories, don't yet know exactly how it operates in the brain and body.

Then there's also the issue of legality. CBD is available in most parts of the United States, but its legal status is somewhat murky. States have varying degrees of restriction. In the 10 states with legal marijuana, CBD is legal as well. Some states, like New York, allow commercial sales. Alabama, however restricts CBD use to medical purposes only. Georgia, meanwhile, only permits it to be prescribed to people with conditions such as cancer, multiple sclerosis, Parkinson's disease, and seizure disorders.

  The farm bill released by the FDA in December legalized non-THC hemp products across the board. While that should include CBD, some legal experts suggest that it may not. Nonetheless, the bill should be good news for CBD users, as it permits states to decide on laws about CBD sales and it differentiates hemp-derived products from marijuana and therefore removes CBD from the DEA's list of controlled substances.

Despite some gray areas, CBD has crossed some hurdles. A World Health Organization report on CBD determined it was safe when taken on its own but suggested that problems could arise when CBD is taken with other drugs. 

  “If THC is the Beyonce of cannabinoids, then CBD is the Adele.”

  Dr. Rachna Patel, a medical cannabis specialist and a leading expert on CBD, added that, while CBD isn't addictive or life-threatening, moderation is key. “If you take it too often [for pain relief] it's going to make your pain worse, believe it or not,” she said. Like other cannabinoids, CBD has a biphasic effect, meaning low and high doses can produce opposite results. And while someone can't overdose from CBD, taking too much leads to a bad time.

“You could feel dizzy. You could feel really groggy, you could feel really lethargic,” she said. “You're just not going to overall feel good.”

Still, by all measures, CBD seems like it was synthesized precisely for our high-stress, burn out-prone times. In fact, there's some persuasive evidence that use is high among those with kids. Dr. Patel, for instance, has found that while CBD cuts across ages, it peaks with people between 40 and 60.

“That's when humans in general start to experience a lot of pain,” Patel said. “Their body is starting to wear down on them.”

Knowing all this, why wouldn't stressed-out parents want to give CBD a try? 

***

While CBD sounds ideal for dads in theory, in practice the results seem mixed. The CBD-users with whom I spoke were reserved in their praise. Still, the consensus wasn't dismissive - the phrase “it's worth a shot” appeared just as often.

Sean, a father of one from Chicago bought a pack of CBD gummies after a friend recommended them. He enjoys the effect and says he likes the idea of popping one after a particularly long day at the office. “I wouldn't say that it's a major change; it just settles me a bit. It's nice to feel that calm and be in a good headspace for my family when I had a bad day,” he says. “It's easy to bring that stress home.”

Sean added that, around his family, he feels more comfortable popping one than he does drinking a few beers. “There's something more PG about it,” he says. “Either way, it's an occasional thing.”  (Sean was quick to add that he keeps his gummies in the locked glove compartment of his car so his toddler won't accidentally stumble upon them.)

  “It's kind of the equivalent of drinking non-alcoholic beer without knowing it's not alcoholic,”

  For some dads, however, CBD's effect is too close to that of THC. Tom, a father of two from Jersey, tried CBD when he sprained his back. While it didn't help his pain, as a regular marijuana user, it reminded him enough of smoking pot to be a disappointing and confusing tease.

“It's kind of the equivalent of drinking non-alcoholic beer without knowing it's not alcoholic,” he said. “It's not alcoholic but there's this weird psychological effect that [makes you think] you'd feel stoned even though there's nothing.”

CBD, then, may be a little counter-intuitive for anybody who first smoked marijuana after being promised it would blow their mind. That's why so many tried marijuana in the first place. If CBD doesn't induce giggling fits or make music seem transcendently face-melting, what's the point?

But many dads taking CBD aren't looking to get high. They know what marijuana's like and have generally positive feelings about it. They're looking for calm or relief from pain.

Dan, a dad of two from California, said his local coffee joint serves a cold brew with CBD. “It's a pretty good way to get hyper and de-stressed at the same time,” he said. “Wouldn't say it's life changing exactly, but it does seem good for anxiety and a bit of calm.”

Dan said he felt the advertised calm of CBD but added that “honestly it's hard to sort out whether it's a placebo or not.”

  “Alarmingly, a number of CBD products have contained toxic substances like the synthetic marijuana Spice and dextromethorphan, the ingredient in Robitussin that causes “robo tripping.”

  Chris, a New York City father of two, is a long-time CBD user. He searched out the substance several years ago after a health food store employee recommended it for his sciatica back pain.

“I wanted to feel relaxed and get my muscles to relax,” Chris said. “I didn't necessarily need to be stoned. I didn't need the euphoria necessarily. I just needed the sedation.”

CBD didn't cure his back pain but it made it far more bearable. As it did so, it also turned down the volume on his anxiety.

“I was like, Wow, okay,” he said. “I'm sedated a little bit. It's not like I'm taking a valium, but I certainly feel the edge has been taken off.”

Despite his positive experience, Chris said it's not a cure for pain, but rather a tool for managing it. Dr. Patel said this was typical for people who treat pain with CBD.

“If you're in severe pain, don't expect the CBD oil to just poof, and magically get rid of it overnight,” she said. “It'll drop down realistically, mild to moderate levels.”

***

It's a common concern to try CBD and find it doesn't do anything at all. I don't have to travel far for an example. My personal CBD experience was underwhelming. I bought a vial of oil from a smoke shop to help my lower back pain. It didn't have an effect and I ended up turning instead to my usual regimen of bourbon, heat pads, and Aleve.

When I told Dr. Patel CBD didn't work for me, she suggested that the product I took may not have contained CBD at all. The FDA has only approved one CBD product for medical use, the epilepsy seizure drug Epidiolex. Otherwise, CBD is unregulated and unpredictable. A 2017 JAMA study tested 84 CBD products and found that only about a third of them accurately reflected the CBD it contained. The Food and Drug Administration has warned several CBD companies about mislabeling their products. Alarmingly, a number of CBD products have contained toxic substances like the synthetic marijuana Spice and dextromethorphan, the ingredient in Robitussin that causes “robo tripping.”

  “I was like, Wow, okay. I'm sedated a little bit. It's not like I'm taking a valium, but I certainly feel the edge has been taken off.”

  Of course, CBD products are an unregulated market with wild west rules. People have to be very discerning about what products they choose but there's scant information to go on. Chris said he quality controls by buying CBD products made from certified organic hemp. Patel said the best indicator for CBD quality is if the packaging states the product has been laboratory tested by a third-party, independent state-licensed lab. Otherwise, there's no guarantee that the ingredients of a CBD product aren't just something you already have in your kitchen.

“The amount of CBD can vary,” Patel said. “But it's important to know the exact amount because there have been some products that the FDA has found where they had little-to-no CBD in them. You don't want to be paying ridiculous amounts of money for a one-to-two ounce bottle of basically vegetable oil.”

Buyers definitely want the product to have some CBD, but getting more specific about dosage is elusive. There's no not a one size fits all correct dose. Effective dosages seem to vary from person to person, with bodyweight driving much of the variance.

Still, CBD offers a salve for some. After using it for three months, Paul bought into the CBD hype and would recommended it to dads trying to carve out some calm. He thought it was helping but suspected there might be a placebo effect at play, particularly when he considered the unscientific methodology he used for his CBD experiments.

“To be fair, most nights there is a cold eight-percent 16 oz craft IPA making its way into my dad bod as well,” he said.

via: 

Adam Bulger Fatherly January 11, 2019 https://www.fatherly.com/love-money/cbd-pros-cons-anxiety-parents/

[cbdhn-blog]

The Pros and Cons of CBD and the Parents Who Use It

The Pros and Cons of CBD and the Parents Who Use It

Paul started taking CBD to be a better father. The New Jersey dad of two's high-pressure, high-rewards job was taking a toll. Work days left him feeling depleted and on edge. He'd get home wired and checked out, feeling like it was impossible to be patient with his boys.

“You go from one job to the next,” he said. “You go to work all day and come home to a five and a seven year old and they were at their job all day - school - and now they want to turn it up and rage.”

Paul hoped the hemp-derived product, which is said to reduce anxiety, would help him find the peace of mind he needed to be present in those moments of high-energy family time. So, on a work trip, he ducked into a store with a tie-dye banner and walked out with $40 worth of CBD gummies.

A few months later, he says he's noticed modest gains. He brings less work stress homeand stops channeling that anxiety onto his children. “I feel less inclined to give as many fucks about what they are doing and not helicopter dad as much,” he said. “I try to go with the flow.”

The hemp extract Cannabidiol, or CBD, is everywhere these days. You can find CBD-infused versions of candies, lattes, beer, bath bombs, lotions, lubes, and pretty much every product you can think of. These items aren't sitting past the beaded curtain in head shops, either. They're available online, at corner stores, and high-end boutiques. CBD will only become more ever-present. According to the cannabis industry analysis company New Frontier, the CBD market is expected to grow by 700 percent into a $2 billion industry by 2022.

These numbers are easy to understand. CBD supposedly aids sleep, relieves pain, and reduces stress. The plant-based compound also isn't habit forming and low-key enough to take around family or kids. It's becoming more and more of an option for those who want to de-stress or at the least not let their anxieties rub off on their loved ones. It's no surprise then that parents are among the most avid consumers. Hell, the only way to tailor CBD more to modern dads is to include a Beastie Boys playlist and tips for fantasy football with every purchase. But is it worth the hype? 

***

Researchers have been aware of Cannabidiol since the late 18th century when it was the first of the more than 60 natural cannabinoid compounds. Scientists were able to synthesize it as early as the mid '60s. Like all cannabinoids, CBD is derived from hemp plant resins. Unlike its more famous fellow marijuana-derived chemical compound Tetrahydrocannabinol (THC), however, CBD doesn't get you stoned. Instead, it has a calming effect.

While CBD has been used to help fight seizures and chronic pain, it's the anxiety-battling properties and lack of brain-fog that have become its big, bold selling point. A 2013 study found evidence that CBD alleviates anxiety by increasing prefrontal cortex activation and lowering activity in the amygdala, the two areas of the brain involved in anxiety while activating CB1 receptors to restore balance to GABA and glutamate levels, further reducing anxiety. THC also binds with CB1 receptors, but activates the brain's dopamine reward system while also interfering with brain mechanisms that regulate mood, memory, appetite, pain, cognition, and emotions.

  Hell, the only way to tailor CBD more to modern dads is to include a Beastie Boys playlist and tips for fantasy football with every purchase.

  “If THC is the Beyonce of cannabinoids, then CBD is the Adele,” Pittsburgh functional medicine practitioner Will Cole said. “Both you are your grandma will love it as CBD oil doesn't contain the same cannabinoids that are considered psychoactive.”

CBD does have it's concerns, however. Longstanding prohibitions on studying marijuana have only loosened recently and not entirely. For example, researchers can only study marijuana grown at the University of Mississippi, which grows marijuana under contract with the National Institute on Drug Abuse. With restrictions hampering research into hemp products overall and CBD being relatively new, researchers, while armed with convincing theories, don't yet know exactly how it operates in the brain and body.

Then there's also the issue of legality. CBD is available in most parts of the United States, but its legal status is somewhat murky. States have varying degrees of restriction. In the 10 states with legal marijuana, CBD is legal as well. Some states, like New York, allow commercial sales. Alabama, however restricts CBD use to medical purposes only. Georgia, meanwhile, only permits it to be prescribed to people with conditions such as cancer, multiple sclerosis, Parkinson's disease, and seizure disorders.

  The farm bill released by the FDA in December legalized non-THC hemp products across the board. While that should include CBD, some legal experts suggest that it may not. Nonetheless, the bill should be good news for CBD users, as it permits states to decide on laws about CBD sales and it differentiates hemp-derived products from marijuana and therefore removes CBD from the DEA's list of controlled substances.

Despite some gray areas, CBD has crossed some hurdles. A World Health Organization report on CBD determined it was safe when taken on its own but suggested that problems could arise when CBD is taken with other drugs. 

  “If THC is the Beyonce of cannabinoids, then CBD is the Adele.”

  Dr. Rachna Patel, a medical cannabis specialist and a leading expert on CBD, added that, while CBD isn't addictive or life-threatening, moderation is key. “If you take it too often [for pain relief] it's going to make your pain worse, believe it or not,” she said. Like other cannabinoids, CBD has a biphasic effect, meaning low and high doses can produce opposite results. And while someone can't overdose from CBD, taking too much leads to a bad time.

“You could feel dizzy. You could feel really groggy, you could feel really lethargic,” she said. “You're just not going to overall feel good.”

Still, by all measures, CBD seems like it was synthesized precisely for our high-stress, burn out-prone times. In fact, there's some persuasive evidence that use is high among those with kids. Dr. Patel, for instance, has found that while CBD cuts across ages, it peaks with people between 40 and 60.

“That's when humans in general start to experience a lot of pain,” Patel said. “Their body is starting to wear down on them.”

Knowing all this, why wouldn't stressed-out parents want to give CBD a try? 

***

While CBD sounds ideal for dads in theory, in practice the results seem mixed. The CBD-users with whom I spoke were reserved in their praise. Still, the consensus wasn't dismissive - the phrase “it's worth a shot” appeared just as often.

Sean, a father of one from Chicago bought a pack of CBD gummies after a friend recommended them. He enjoys the effect and says he likes the idea of popping one after a particularly long day at the office. “I wouldn't say that it's a major change; it just settles me a bit. It's nice to feel that calm and be in a good headspace for my family when I had a bad day,” he says. “It's easy to bring that stress home.”

Sean added that, around his family, he feels more comfortable popping one than he does drinking a few beers. “There's something more PG about it,” he says. “Either way, it's an occasional thing.”  (Sean was quick to add that he keeps his gummies in the locked glove compartment of his car so his toddler won't accidentally stumble upon them.)

  “It's kind of the equivalent of drinking non-alcoholic beer without knowing it's not alcoholic,”

  For some dads, however, CBD's effect is too close to that of THC. Tom, a father of two from Jersey, tried CBD when he sprained his back. While it didn't help his pain, as a regular marijuana user, it reminded him enough of smoking pot to be a disappointing and confusing tease.

“It's kind of the equivalent of drinking non-alcoholic beer without knowing it's not alcoholic,” he said. “It's not alcoholic but there's this weird psychological effect that [makes you think] you'd feel stoned even though there's nothing.”

CBD, then, may be a little counter-intuitive for anybody who first smoked marijuana after being promised it would blow their mind. That's why so many tried marijuana in the first place. If CBD doesn't induce giggling fits or make music seem transcendently face-melting, what's the point?

But many dads taking CBD aren't looking to get high. They know what marijuana's like and have generally positive feelings about it. They're looking for calm or relief from pain.

Dan, a dad of two from California, said his local coffee joint serves a cold brew with CBD. “It's a pretty good way to get hyper and de-stressed at the same time,” he said. “Wouldn't say it's life changing exactly, but it does seem good for anxiety and a bit of calm.”

Dan said he felt the advertised calm of CBD but added that “honestly it's hard to sort out whether it's a placebo or not.”

  “Alarmingly, a number of CBD products have contained toxic substances like the synthetic marijuana Spice and dextromethorphan, the ingredient in Robitussin that causes “robo tripping.”

  Chris, a New York City father of two, is a long-time CBD user. He searched out the substance several years ago after a health food store employee recommended it for his sciatica back pain.

“I wanted to feel relaxed and get my muscles to relax,” Chris said. “I didn't necessarily need to be stoned. I didn't need the euphoria necessarily. I just needed the sedation.”

CBD didn't cure his back pain but it made it far more bearable. As it did so, it also turned down the volume on his anxiety.

“I was like, Wow, okay,” he said. “I'm sedated a little bit. It's not like I'm taking a valium, but I certainly feel the edge has been taken off.”

Despite his positive experience, Chris said it's not a cure for pain, but rather a tool for managing it. Dr. Patel said this was typical for people who treat pain with CBD.

“If you're in severe pain, don't expect the CBD oil to just poof, and magically get rid of it overnight,” she said. “It'll drop down realistically, mild to moderate levels.”

***

It's a common concern to try CBD and find it doesn't do anything at all. I don't have to travel far for an example. My personal CBD experience was underwhelming. I bought a vial of oil from a smoke shop to help my lower back pain. It didn't have an effect and I ended up turning instead to my usual regimen of bourbon, heat pads, and Aleve.

When I told Dr. Patel CBD didn't work for me, she suggested that the product I took may not have contained CBD at all. The FDA has only approved one CBD product for medical use, the epilepsy seizure drug Epidiolex. Otherwise, CBD is unregulated and unpredictable. A 2017 JAMA study tested 84 CBD products and found that only about a third of them accurately reflected the CBD it contained. The Food and Drug Administration has warned several CBD companies about mislabeling their products. Alarmingly, a number of CBD products have contained toxic substances like the synthetic marijuana Spice and dextromethorphan, the ingredient in Robitussin that causes “robo tripping.”

  “I was like, Wow, okay. I'm sedated a little bit. It's not like I'm taking a valium, but I certainly feel the edge has been taken off.”

  Of course, CBD products are an unregulated market with wild west rules. People have to be very discerning about what products they choose but there's scant information to go on. Chris said he quality controls by buying CBD products made from certified organic hemp. Patel said the best indicator for CBD quality is if the packaging states the product has been laboratory tested by a third-party, independent state-licensed lab. Otherwise, there's no guarantee that the ingredients of a CBD product aren't just something you already have in your kitchen.

“The amount of CBD can vary,” Patel said. “But it's important to know the exact amount because there have been some products that the FDA has found where they had little-to-no CBD in them. You don't want to be paying ridiculous amounts of money for a one-to-two ounce bottle of basically vegetable oil.”

Buyers definitely want the product to have some CBD, but getting more specific about dosage is elusive. There's no not a one size fits all correct dose. Effective dosages seem to vary from person to person, with bodyweight driving much of the variance.

Still, CBD offers a salve for some. After using it for three months, Paul bought into the CBD hype and would recommended it to dads trying to carve out some calm. He thought it was helping but suspected there might be a placebo effect at play, particularly when he considered the unscientific methodology he used for his CBD experiments.

“To be fair, most nights there is a cold eight-percent 16 oz craft IPA making its way into my dad bod as well,” he said.

via: 

Adam Bulger Fatherly January 11, 2019 https://www.fatherly.com/love-money/cbd-pros-cons-anxiety-parents/

[cbdhn-blog]

The Pros and Cons of CBD and the Parents Who Use It

The Pros and Cons of CBD and the Parents Who Use It

Paul started taking CBD to be a better father. The New Jersey dad of two's high-pressure, high-rewards job was taking a toll. Work days left him feeling depleted and on edge. He'd get home wired and checked out, feeling like it was impossible to be patient with his boys.

“You go from one job to the next,” he said. “You go to work all day and come home to a five and a seven year old and they were at their job all day - school - and now they want to turn it up and rage.”

Paul hoped the hemp-derived product, which is said to reduce anxiety, would help him find the peace of mind he needed to be present in those moments of high-energy family time. So, on a work trip, he ducked into a store with a tie-dye banner and walked out with $40 worth of CBD gummies.

A few months later, he says he's noticed modest gains. He brings less work stress homeand stops channeling that anxiety onto his children. “I feel less inclined to give as many fucks about what they are doing and not helicopter dad as much,” he said. “I try to go with the flow.”

The hemp extract Cannabidiol, or CBD, is everywhere these days. You can find CBD-infused versions of candies, lattes, beer, bath bombs, lotions, lubes, and pretty much every product you can think of. These items aren't sitting past the beaded curtain in head shops, either. They're available online, at corner stores, and high-end boutiques. CBD will only become more ever-present. According to the cannabis industry analysis company New Frontier, the CBD market is expected to grow by 700 percent into a $2 billion industry by 2022.

These numbers are easy to understand. CBD supposedly aids sleep, relieves pain, and reduces stress. The plant-based compound also isn't habit forming and low-key enough to take around family or kids. It's becoming more and more of an option for those who want to de-stress or at the least not let their anxieties rub off on their loved ones. It's no surprise then that parents are among the most avid consumers. Hell, the only way to tailor CBD more to modern dads is to include a Beastie Boys playlist and tips for fantasy football with every purchase. But is it worth the hype? 

***

Researchers have been aware of Cannabidiol since the late 18th century when it was the first of the more than 60 natural cannabinoid compounds. Scientists were able to synthesize it as early as the mid '60s. Like all cannabinoids, CBD is derived from hemp plant resins. Unlike its more famous fellow marijuana-derived chemical compound Tetrahydrocannabinol (THC), however, CBD doesn't get you stoned. Instead, it has a calming effect.

While CBD has been used to help fight seizures and chronic pain, it's the anxiety-battling properties and lack of brain-fog that have become its big, bold selling point. A 2013 study found evidence that CBD alleviates anxiety by increasing prefrontal cortex activation and lowering activity in the amygdala, the two areas of the brain involved in anxiety while activating CB1 receptors to restore balance to GABA and glutamate levels, further reducing anxiety. THC also binds with CB1 receptors, but activates the brain's dopamine reward system while also interfering with brain mechanisms that regulate mood, memory, appetite, pain, cognition, and emotions.

  Hell, the only way to tailor CBD more to modern dads is to include a Beastie Boys playlist and tips for fantasy football with every purchase.

  “If THC is the Beyonce of cannabinoids, then CBD is the Adele,” Pittsburgh functional medicine practitioner Will Cole said. “Both you are your grandma will love it as CBD oil doesn't contain the same cannabinoids that are considered psychoactive.”

CBD does have it's concerns, however. Longstanding prohibitions on studying marijuana have only loosened recently and not entirely. For example, researchers can only study marijuana grown at the University of Mississippi, which grows marijuana under contract with the National Institute on Drug Abuse. With restrictions hampering research into hemp products overall and CBD being relatively new, researchers, while armed with convincing theories, don't yet know exactly how it operates in the brain and body.

Then there's also the issue of legality. CBD is available in most parts of the United States, but its legal status is somewhat murky. States have varying degrees of restriction. In the 10 states with legal marijuana, CBD is legal as well. Some states, like New York, allow commercial sales. Alabama, however restricts CBD use to medical purposes only. Georgia, meanwhile, only permits it to be prescribed to people with conditions such as cancer, multiple sclerosis, Parkinson's disease, and seizure disorders.

  The farm bill released by the FDA in December legalized non-THC hemp products across the board. While that should include CBD, some legal experts suggest that it may not. Nonetheless, the bill should be good news for CBD users, as it permits states to decide on laws about CBD sales and it differentiates hemp-derived products from marijuana and therefore removes CBD from the DEA's list of controlled substances.

Despite some gray areas, CBD has crossed some hurdles. A World Health Organization report on CBD determined it was safe when taken on its own but suggested that problems could arise when CBD is taken with other drugs. 

  “If THC is the Beyonce of cannabinoids, then CBD is the Adele.”

  Dr. Rachna Patel, a medical cannabis specialist and a leading expert on CBD, added that, while CBD isn't addictive or life-threatening, moderation is key. “If you take it too often [for pain relief] it's going to make your pain worse, believe it or not,” she said. Like other cannabinoids, CBD has a biphasic effect, meaning low and high doses can produce opposite results. And while someone can't overdose from CBD, taking too much leads to a bad time.

“You could feel dizzy. You could feel really groggy, you could feel really lethargic,” she said. “You're just not going to overall feel good.”

Still, by all measures, CBD seems like it was synthesized precisely for our high-stress, burn out-prone times. In fact, there's some persuasive evidence that use is high among those with kids. Dr. Patel, for instance, has found that while CBD cuts across ages, it peaks with people between 40 and 60.

“That's when humans in general start to experience a lot of pain,” Patel said. “Their body is starting to wear down on them.”

Knowing all this, why wouldn't stressed-out parents want to give CBD a try? 

***

While CBD sounds ideal for dads in theory, in practice the results seem mixed. The CBD-users with whom I spoke were reserved in their praise. Still, the consensus wasn't dismissive - the phrase “it's worth a shot” appeared just as often.

Sean, a father of one from Chicago bought a pack of CBD gummies after a friend recommended them. He enjoys the effect and says he likes the idea of popping one after a particularly long day at the office. “I wouldn't say that it's a major change; it just settles me a bit. It's nice to feel that calm and be in a good headspace for my family when I had a bad day,” he says. “It's easy to bring that stress home.”

Sean added that, around his family, he feels more comfortable popping one than he does drinking a few beers. “There's something more PG about it,” he says. “Either way, it's an occasional thing.”  (Sean was quick to add that he keeps his gummies in the locked glove compartment of his car so his toddler won't accidentally stumble upon them.)

  “It's kind of the equivalent of drinking non-alcoholic beer without knowing it's not alcoholic,”

  For some dads, however, CBD's effect is too close to that of THC. Tom, a father of two from Jersey, tried CBD when he sprained his back. While it didn't help his pain, as a regular marijuana user, it reminded him enough of smoking pot to be a disappointing and confusing tease.

“It's kind of the equivalent of drinking non-alcoholic beer without knowing it's not alcoholic,” he said. “It's not alcoholic but there's this weird psychological effect that [makes you think] you'd feel stoned even though there's nothing.”

CBD, then, may be a little counter-intuitive for anybody who first smoked marijuana after being promised it would blow their mind. That's why so many tried marijuana in the first place. If CBD doesn't induce giggling fits or make music seem transcendently face-melting, what's the point?

But many dads taking CBD aren't looking to get high. They know what marijuana's like and have generally positive feelings about it. They're looking for calm or relief from pain.

Dan, a dad of two from California, said his local coffee joint serves a cold brew with CBD. “It's a pretty good way to get hyper and de-stressed at the same time,” he said. “Wouldn't say it's life changing exactly, but it does seem good for anxiety and a bit of calm.”

Dan said he felt the advertised calm of CBD but added that “honestly it's hard to sort out whether it's a placebo or not.”

  “Alarmingly, a number of CBD products have contained toxic substances like the synthetic marijuana Spice and dextromethorphan, the ingredient in Robitussin that causes “robo tripping.”

  Chris, a New York City father of two, is a long-time CBD user. He searched out the substance several years ago after a health food store employee recommended it for his sciatica back pain.

“I wanted to feel relaxed and get my muscles to relax,” Chris said. “I didn't necessarily need to be stoned. I didn't need the euphoria necessarily. I just needed the sedation.”

CBD didn't cure his back pain but it made it far more bearable. As it did so, it also turned down the volume on his anxiety.

“I was like, Wow, okay,” he said. “I'm sedated a little bit. It's not like I'm taking a valium, but I certainly feel the edge has been taken off.”

Despite his positive experience, Chris said it's not a cure for pain, but rather a tool for managing it. Dr. Patel said this was typical for people who treat pain with CBD.

“If you're in severe pain, don't expect the CBD oil to just poof, and magically get rid of it overnight,” she said. “It'll drop down realistically, mild to moderate levels.”

***

It's a common concern to try CBD and find it doesn't do anything at all. I don't have to travel far for an example. My personal CBD experience was underwhelming. I bought a vial of oil from a smoke shop to help my lower back pain. It didn't have an effect and I ended up turning instead to my usual regimen of bourbon, heat pads, and Aleve.

When I told Dr. Patel CBD didn't work for me, she suggested that the product I took may not have contained CBD at all. The FDA has only approved one CBD product for medical use, the epilepsy seizure drug Epidiolex. Otherwise, CBD is unregulated and unpredictable. A 2017 JAMA study tested 84 CBD products and found that only about a third of them accurately reflected the CBD it contained. The Food and Drug Administration has warned several CBD companies about mislabeling their products. Alarmingly, a number of CBD products have contained toxic substances like the synthetic marijuana Spice and dextromethorphan, the ingredient in Robitussin that causes “robo tripping.”

  “I was like, Wow, okay. I'm sedated a little bit. It's not like I'm taking a valium, but I certainly feel the edge has been taken off.”

  Of course, CBD products are an unregulated market with wild west rules. People have to be very discerning about what products they choose but there's scant information to go on. Chris said he quality controls by buying CBD products made from certified organic hemp. Patel said the best indicator for CBD quality is if the packaging states the product has been laboratory tested by a third-party, independent state-licensed lab. Otherwise, there's no guarantee that the ingredients of a CBD product aren't just something you already have in your kitchen.

“The amount of CBD can vary,” Patel said. “But it's important to know the exact amount because there have been some products that the FDA has found where they had little-to-no CBD in them. You don't want to be paying ridiculous amounts of money for a one-to-two ounce bottle of basically vegetable oil.”

Buyers definitely want the product to have some CBD, but getting more specific about dosage is elusive. There's no not a one size fits all correct dose. Effective dosages seem to vary from person to person, with bodyweight driving much of the variance.

Still, CBD offers a salve for some. After using it for three months, Paul bought into the CBD hype and would recommended it to dads trying to carve out some calm. He thought it was helping but suspected there might be a placebo effect at play, particularly when he considered the unscientific methodology he used for his CBD experiments.

“To be fair, most nights there is a cold eight-percent 16 oz craft IPA making its way into my dad bod as well,” he said.

via: 

Adam Bulger Fatherly January 11, 2019 https://www.fatherly.com/love-money/cbd-pros-cons-anxiety-parents/

[cbdhn-blog]

The Pros and Cons of CBD and the Parents Who Use It

The Pros and Cons of CBD and the Parents Who Use It

Paul started taking CBD to be a better father. The New Jersey dad of two's high-pressure, high-rewards job was taking a toll. Work days left him feeling depleted and on edge. He'd get home wired and checked out, feeling like it was impossible to be patient with his boys.

“You go from one job to the next,” he said. “You go to work all day and come home to a five and a seven year old and they were at their job all day - school - and now they want to turn it up and rage.”

Paul hoped the hemp-derived product, which is said to reduce anxiety, would help him find the peace of mind he needed to be present in those moments of high-energy family time. So, on a work trip, he ducked into a store with a tie-dye banner and walked out with $40 worth of CBD gummies.

A few months later, he says he's noticed modest gains. He brings less work stress homeand stops channeling that anxiety onto his children. “I feel less inclined to give as many fucks about what they are doing and not helicopter dad as much,” he said. “I try to go with the flow.”

The hemp extract Cannabidiol, or CBD, is everywhere these days. You can find CBD-infused versions of candies, lattes, beer, bath bombs, lotions, lubes, and pretty much every product you can think of. These items aren't sitting past the beaded curtain in head shops, either. They're available online, at corner stores, and high-end boutiques. CBD will only become more ever-present. According to the cannabis industry analysis company New Frontier, the CBD market is expected to grow by 700 percent into a $2 billion industry by 2022.

These numbers are easy to understand. CBD supposedly aids sleep, relieves pain, and reduces stress. The plant-based compound also isn't habit forming and low-key enough to take around family or kids. It's becoming more and more of an option for those who want to de-stress or at the least not let their anxieties rub off on their loved ones. It's no surprise then that parents are among the most avid consumers. Hell, the only way to tailor CBD more to modern dads is to include a Beastie Boys playlist and tips for fantasy football with every purchase. But is it worth the hype? 

***

Researchers have been aware of Cannabidiol since the late 18th century when it was the first of the more than 60 natural cannabinoid compounds. Scientists were able to synthesize it as early as the mid '60s. Like all cannabinoids, CBD is derived from hemp plant resins. Unlike its more famous fellow marijuana-derived chemical compound Tetrahydrocannabinol (THC), however, CBD doesn't get you stoned. Instead, it has a calming effect.

While CBD has been used to help fight seizures and chronic pain, it's the anxiety-battling properties and lack of brain-fog that have become its big, bold selling point. A 2013 study found evidence that CBD alleviates anxiety by increasing prefrontal cortex activation and lowering activity in the amygdala, the two areas of the brain involved in anxiety while activating CB1 receptors to restore balance to GABA and glutamate levels, further reducing anxiety. THC also binds with CB1 receptors, but activates the brain's dopamine reward system while also interfering with brain mechanisms that regulate mood, memory, appetite, pain, cognition, and emotions.

  Hell, the only way to tailor CBD more to modern dads is to include a Beastie Boys playlist and tips for fantasy football with every purchase.

  “If THC is the Beyonce of cannabinoids, then CBD is the Adele,” Pittsburgh functional medicine practitioner Will Cole said. “Both you are your grandma will love it as CBD oil doesn't contain the same cannabinoids that are considered psychoactive.”

CBD does have it's concerns, however. Longstanding prohibitions on studying marijuana have only loosened recently and not entirely. For example, researchers can only study marijuana grown at the University of Mississippi, which grows marijuana under contract with the National Institute on Drug Abuse. With restrictions hampering research into hemp products overall and CBD being relatively new, researchers, while armed with convincing theories, don't yet know exactly how it operates in the brain and body.

Then there's also the issue of legality. CBD is available in most parts of the United States, but its legal status is somewhat murky. States have varying degrees of restriction. In the 10 states with legal marijuana, CBD is legal as well. Some states, like New York, allow commercial sales. Alabama, however restricts CBD use to medical purposes only. Georgia, meanwhile, only permits it to be prescribed to people with conditions such as cancer, multiple sclerosis, Parkinson's disease, and seizure disorders.

  The farm bill released by the FDA in December legalized non-THC hemp products across the board. While that should include CBD, some legal experts suggest that it may not. Nonetheless, the bill should be good news for CBD users, as it permits states to decide on laws about CBD sales and it differentiates hemp-derived products from marijuana and therefore removes CBD from the DEA's list of controlled substances.

Despite some gray areas, CBD has crossed some hurdles. A World Health Organization report on CBD determined it was safe when taken on its own but suggested that problems could arise when CBD is taken with other drugs. 

  “If THC is the Beyonce of cannabinoids, then CBD is the Adele.”

  Dr. Rachna Patel, a medical cannabis specialist and a leading expert on CBD, added that, while CBD isn't addictive or life-threatening, moderation is key. “If you take it too often [for pain relief] it's going to make your pain worse, believe it or not,” she said. Like other cannabinoids, CBD has a biphasic effect, meaning low and high doses can produce opposite results. And while someone can't overdose from CBD, taking too much leads to a bad time.

“You could feel dizzy. You could feel really groggy, you could feel really lethargic,” she said. “You're just not going to overall feel good.”

Still, by all measures, CBD seems like it was synthesized precisely for our high-stress, burn out-prone times. In fact, there's some persuasive evidence that use is high among those with kids. Dr. Patel, for instance, has found that while CBD cuts across ages, it peaks with people between 40 and 60.

“That's when humans in general start to experience a lot of pain,” Patel said. “Their body is starting to wear down on them.”

Knowing all this, why wouldn't stressed-out parents want to give CBD a try? 

***

While CBD sounds ideal for dads in theory, in practice the results seem mixed. The CBD-users with whom I spoke were reserved in their praise. Still, the consensus wasn't dismissive - the phrase “it's worth a shot” appeared just as often.

Sean, a father of one from Chicago bought a pack of CBD gummies after a friend recommended them. He enjoys the effect and says he likes the idea of popping one after a particularly long day at the office. “I wouldn't say that it's a major change; it just settles me a bit. It's nice to feel that calm and be in a good headspace for my family when I had a bad day,” he says. “It's easy to bring that stress home.”

Sean added that, around his family, he feels more comfortable popping one than he does drinking a few beers. “There's something more PG about it,” he says. “Either way, it's an occasional thing.”  (Sean was quick to add that he keeps his gummies in the locked glove compartment of his car so his toddler won't accidentally stumble upon them.)

  “It's kind of the equivalent of drinking non-alcoholic beer without knowing it's not alcoholic,”

  For some dads, however, CBD's effect is too close to that of THC. Tom, a father of two from Jersey, tried CBD when he sprained his back. While it didn't help his pain, as a regular marijuana user, it reminded him enough of smoking pot to be a disappointing and confusing tease.

“It's kind of the equivalent of drinking non-alcoholic beer without knowing it's not alcoholic,” he said. “It's not alcoholic but there's this weird psychological effect that [makes you think] you'd feel stoned even though there's nothing.”

CBD, then, may be a little counter-intuitive for anybody who first smoked marijuana after being promised it would blow their mind. That's why so many tried marijuana in the first place. If CBD doesn't induce giggling fits or make music seem transcendently face-melting, what's the point?

But many dads taking CBD aren't looking to get high. They know what marijuana's like and have generally positive feelings about it. They're looking for calm or relief from pain.

Dan, a dad of two from California, said his local coffee joint serves a cold brew with CBD. “It's a pretty good way to get hyper and de-stressed at the same time,” he said. “Wouldn't say it's life changing exactly, but it does seem good for anxiety and a bit of calm.”

Dan said he felt the advertised calm of CBD but added that “honestly it's hard to sort out whether it's a placebo or not.”

  “Alarmingly, a number of CBD products have contained toxic substances like the synthetic marijuana Spice and dextromethorphan, the ingredient in Robitussin that causes “robo tripping.”

  Chris, a New York City father of two, is a long-time CBD user. He searched out the substance several years ago after a health food store employee recommended it for his sciatica back pain.

“I wanted to feel relaxed and get my muscles to relax,” Chris said. “I didn't necessarily need to be stoned. I didn't need the euphoria necessarily. I just needed the sedation.”

CBD didn't cure his back pain but it made it far more bearable. As it did so, it also turned down the volume on his anxiety.

“I was like, Wow, okay,” he said. “I'm sedated a little bit. It's not like I'm taking a valium, but I certainly feel the edge has been taken off.”

Despite his positive experience, Chris said it's not a cure for pain, but rather a tool for managing it. Dr. Patel said this was typical for people who treat pain with CBD.

“If you're in severe pain, don't expect the CBD oil to just poof, and magically get rid of it overnight,” she said. “It'll drop down realistically, mild to moderate levels.”

***

It's a common concern to try CBD and find it doesn't do anything at all. I don't have to travel far for an example. My personal CBD experience was underwhelming. I bought a vial of oil from a smoke shop to help my lower back pain. It didn't have an effect and I ended up turning instead to my usual regimen of bourbon, heat pads, and Aleve.

When I told Dr. Patel CBD didn't work for me, she suggested that the product I took may not have contained CBD at all. The FDA has only approved one CBD product for medical use, the epilepsy seizure drug Epidiolex. Otherwise, CBD is unregulated and unpredictable. A 2017 JAMA study tested 84 CBD products and found that only about a third of them accurately reflected the CBD it contained. The Food and Drug Administration has warned several CBD companies about mislabeling their products. Alarmingly, a number of CBD products have contained toxic substances like the synthetic marijuana Spice and dextromethorphan, the ingredient in Robitussin that causes “robo tripping.”

  “I was like, Wow, okay. I'm sedated a little bit. It's not like I'm taking a valium, but I certainly feel the edge has been taken off.”

  Of course, CBD products are an unregulated market with wild west rules. People have to be very discerning about what products they choose but there's scant information to go on. Chris said he quality controls by buying CBD products made from certified organic hemp. Patel said the best indicator for CBD quality is if the packaging states the product has been laboratory tested by a third-party, independent state-licensed lab. Otherwise, there's no guarantee that the ingredients of a CBD product aren't just something you already have in your kitchen.

“The amount of CBD can vary,” Patel said. “But it's important to know the exact amount because there have been some products that the FDA has found where they had little-to-no CBD in them. You don't want to be paying ridiculous amounts of money for a one-to-two ounce bottle of basically vegetable oil.”

Buyers definitely want the product to have some CBD, but getting more specific about dosage is elusive. There's no not a one size fits all correct dose. Effective dosages seem to vary from person to person, with bodyweight driving much of the variance.

Still, CBD offers a salve for some. After using it for three months, Paul bought into the CBD hype and would recommended it to dads trying to carve out some calm. He thought it was helping but suspected there might be a placebo effect at play, particularly when he considered the unscientific methodology he used for his CBD experiments.

“To be fair, most nights there is a cold eight-percent 16 oz craft IPA making its way into my dad bod as well,” he said.

via: 

Adam Bulger Fatherly January 11, 2019 https://www.fatherly.com/love-money/cbd-pros-cons-anxiety-parents/