MGU 58 | Celebrating 4/20

 

It’s 4/20, and what better time to talk about how far CBD has come since the beginning of its consumption than now? Jason Wrobel and Whitney Lauritsen dive into a discussion about the evolution of the 4/20 celebration along with the usage of CBD and how it differs from THC. Going deeper into the breakthroughs CBD has made in the health and wellness world, they then talk about its many health benefits, particularly how it can help with chronic pain and inflammation. They also share their top brand recommendations as well as some key pointers on how to choose which products to buy. Plus, giving us more in this special episode, Jason and Whitney tell their experiences with marijuana/THC and how things have changed in their lives.

Listen to the podcast here


 

Celebrating 4/20: In Praise Of CBD

Jason, do you know what this day is?

I’m well-aware of what this day is because the neighbors are partying. I can smell them partying.

Which is what?

It is 4/20 and what a time to be celebrating in the City of Los Angeles. They’re celebrating in general because everyone’s energy has been so pent up with everything and everyone being locked indoors for so long. I walk around my neighborhood taking Bella out and it’s a waft of the sweet herbs everywhere here in LA.

Is this something that you’ve celebrated much in your lifetime?

It’s not really. Even when I was younger and smoked a lot more marijuana in my twenties, especially singing in rock bands and imbibing the things that we did, it was never a thing. I never put it on the calendar and said, “Everyone, come over,” and have a platter of different types of marijuana like, “Welcome to the feast.” It was never anything that I officially celebrated. Even at the peak of my marijuana usage, I don’t think that I would ever have classified myself as a major league stoner.

When was the peak?

In my early to mid-twenties, when I had moved back from Chicago. I had spent about three and a half years in Chicago going to school, getting my Bachelor’s degree at Columbia, doing theater, singing in rock bands there. I came back to Detroit. Between the years of 2002 and 2004, I would say that period was major ganja usage by virtue of singing in rock bands, garage bands, hanging out with my musician buddies. Somebody I dated at the time was a heavy user. I think ‘02 to ‘04 was my peak.

It’s interesting now because each of us is old enough to have the perspective of a time when we had to be very sneaky about it. When I think about 4/20, I think about being in high school or college. Back then, it was this illegal no-no thing. I felt 4/20 was a day where people would feel rebellious. It feels it’s not that big of a deal anymore because at least in California and a lot of states in the US. I wonder if this day has lost some significance for that reason.

I think that it’s because of the lack of the forbidden nature of it. My home state now of Michigan has had legal marijuana for years now. California for a long time, Colorado, Oregon and in so many states, you can now get either a medical card or even in some places, it’s fully recreational. I was talking to my mom, Susan, about this. My mom was a teenager and in her twenties in the heyday like the ‘60s and ‘70s when LSD was coming into the mainstream consciousness, psilocybin mushrooms, marijuana and all that stuff were illegal. I was telling her how odd it is for me at least, Whitney, to walk around the streets of Los Angeles and see somebody lighting up a marijuana cigarette and it’s legal and no one even bats an eye. I’m still getting used to that. It’s so weird. I remember the days of we’d play a rock show and we’d have to sneak around to the side of the venue like a dark alleyway and everyone’s passing the joint around. We don’t have to do that anymore. I’m still not used to it. It’s a weird adjustment to be like, “It’s fully legal and totally socially accepted now.”

It's an important thing to seek out products that make you feel good because everyone's body responds differently. Click To Tweet

With the rise of popularity, it’s shifted things where you drive down the street and there’s one dispensary, smoke shop and now, there are tons of CBD stores opening up. I want to make the focus of this episode about CBD more than THC because THC is something that is still a bit controversial just like drinking alcohol. It might be socially and politically more acceptable, but it still comes down to personal preference and being comfortable with something that’s going to give you a different state of mind and that psychoactive experience is something that a lot of people choose not to have. I still view THC as something that you do for fun and pleasure. It’s something that you do with your friends or something that you’re doing to numb some feelings just like you might with alcohol. CBD is a completely different thing and a very important thing to discuss in the health world but also very confusing.

It is a cousin to THC because CBD does not produce a psychoactive high effect but it does help act as a catalyst for many types of health benefits. It’s an interesting thing to discuss because it’s popular. We’re at this time now where the THC usage is not as exciting as it used to be in some ways because it’s now acceptable. On the other hand, both THC and CBD products have changed a lot for the good. Meaning that you can go into all these different stores and have a comfortable experience. One of the big benefits of THC on the legal side of things is because you can walk into a store, you don’t even need a license or a medical card like you used to in certain States. You can now go in and buy all these different varieties of both THC and CBD for whatever reason you have. That’s been fascinating from a health standpoint. For years in places California, you could get these medical cards to use as a way to legally buy THC. You’d have to present this card when you walked into a store. At least in Los Angeles, anybody over a certain age can go into these medical stores or these dispensaries or whatever they’re called and present their license, walk-in and shop like you would at any other store. That’s fascinating.

It’s been an interesting thing that I’ve monitored over the many years of me being so passionate about wellness and health, much like you, Whitney. CBD is such a phenomenon compared to the usage and the length of people using marijuana and THC. I want to make a distinction quickly. You mentioned that that THC is the psychoactive compound in marijuana. It stands for Tetrahydrocannabinol and there are a Delta-9 and Delta-8. They are different molecules of Tetrahydrocannabinoids that one can get a psychoactive effect from. CBD stands cannabidiol. Cannabidiol is a chemical compound from the Sativa plant.

People use it for relaxation, for calm, for helping to defeat nausea and muscle aches. I’ve also heard of some interesting research and I saw a documentary years ago. There’s a YouTube video of some researchers up at the University of California, San Francisco that were juicing. We hear about green juices all the time. People making kale and celery juices and things like that. They took the actual raw leaves of the cannabis plant, juiced them, and we’re using them in cancer research to see if they had any anticancer or anti-mutagenic properties. There’s some fascinating stuff that’s been done with the raw green juice made from the cannabis leaves.

There are many benefits. I was looking up to see some of the research. I found a great website. This is a great in-depth article that shares a lot about the benefits of CBD as well as a lot of product recommendations which we’ll get into. They had a nice succinct list. A few of the things that I wanted to bring up in terms of CBD is how it can help with chronic pain by working with the immune system. It’s also nice for inflammation because the anti-inflammatory benefits are widely documented and can help with a broad range of health conditions from Alzheimer’s to arthritis and even some conditions that can lead to cancer. To your point, Jason, the inflammation side of CBD is one of its greatest benefits. It’s also helpful for insomnia because it’s been proven in multiple trials to assist with regular restful sleep. This is a huge thing for us here at the show is that it can help with anxiety. It’s able to deliver these anti-anxiety health benefits and people that have suffered from mild to extreme anxiety can manage their condition more when taking CBD.

I’ve used a lot of different kinds of CBD. Whitney and I are fortunate enough to connect with a lot of different wellness brands and people in the health and wellness industry. We have both been exposed to a lot of different products containing CBD. Some are the straight extract and products that contain CBD in it. I’ve found a massive distinction for my body. When I have taken something that is from a full-spectrum extract because there is a partial extract or from a certain part of the plant.

There’s also a broad-spectrum. Is that the same as full-spectrum?

Those are two different. Broad-spectrum is not the same as full-spectrum. I have noticed that for me there are two things when I’ve taken CBD products. One is that across the board when I’ve taken labeled as full-spectrum which to my understanding is utilizing all parts of the plant that are usable that I’m feeling a much more potent effect from taking that. The other thing that I’ve noticed too for my body and perhaps it’s because the endocannabinoid receptors in my body are more tolerant. I’m trying to figure out the right words to say it, but I need a much higher dosage than whatever they recommend. A couple of the brands that I’ve been enjoying say they might recommend a twenty-milliliter dosage know in a liquid dropper. I don’t start to feel the anti-anxiety, anti-stress or muscle relaxation benefits until I get up between 80 to 100 milliliters. Normally it would say, one liquid dropper is twenty milliliters. I will need to quadruple that dosage to feel it. That’s my body.

MGU 58 | Celebrating 4/20

Celebrating 4/20: CBD delivers anti-anxiety health benefits, and people that have suffered from mild to extreme anxiety can manage their condition more.

 

What about your experience with broad-spectrum? I don’t know if that’s specifically for hemp. There is a hemp extract in CBD which are from my knowledge, are they the exact same thing or are they very similar? I’m still to this day, incredibly confused by it. Can those words be used interchangeably? Do you know at the top of your head, Jason?

From my understanding, having talked to a couple of different CBD brands, I do know that the CBD is typically extracted directly from the hemp plant and because of certain legality issues, they call it hemp extract because certain state laws or federal law, I’m not an expert by any means. As far as I know, the hemp extract is an interchangeable thing between that and CBD oil. If you were to take hemp seeds and press them, it’s high in antioxidants, amino acids and Omega fatty acids, that’s very different than hemp extract/CBD oil. Think about it in two camps. The CBD hemp extract used interchangeably but then if you see hemp oil on the shelves, that’s something you would make a salad dressing out of or drizzle on some grilled bread or something like that. As far as I know, those are the differences.

This is where CBD can get incredibly confusing. The broad-spectrum hemp extract is derived from the whole hemp plant and contains a wide variety of phytocannabinoids and terpenes. The extraction process for broad-spectrum hemp extract goes one step further by attempting to wholly remove the THC molecule from the extract. As a result of this step, the processing of broad-spectrum hemp extract results in an even lower THC content than present in full-spectrum hemp extracts in which percentages may be significantly reduced below the 0.3% THC limit.

That’s interesting and that explains why when I talked about feeling it that I didn’t feel it as much with the broad spectrum. If their refinement process is taking out nearly all of the THC, that would make sense that as I’ve mostly tried full-spectrum products, there are more ruminants because they’re using the full plant and not so much concerned about extracting all the THC. With the full-spectrum, they’re using all of the cannabinoids, flavonoids, terpenes and aromatics. The full plant also means that a higher trace amount of THC might be included, which of course I don’t care about, but that might explain why I feel it differently than something that’s a broad spectrum.

It might also impact the taste because I’ve noticed with some CBD products, I taste something reminiscent of THC products I’ve tried before. Some CBD products, I’ll smell them and taste them and think, “This tastes or smells like marijuana.” I’ll start to question like, “Am I sure this is CBD?” I wonder if that has to do with it because the extraction process is resulting in the flavor and the smell of it.

It’s such an interesting market because, Whitney, as you and I go to our food and wellness trade shows, the market for CBD products is unbelievable. Since 2016, it has exploded. As we are educating ourselves and the readers sharing information with you, it’s an important thing to seek out products that make you feel good because as I said, everyone’s body is going to respond differently to these products depending on the sensitivity of your endocannabinoid receptors in your body. The human body has natural endocannabinoid receptor sites, which means if you take a CBD or THC product, the body responds to it. It’s almost as if getting spiritual for a second that our bodies were set up to have a relationship with this plant.

I believe that. I wanted to piggyback quickly on some of the benefits that you mentioned and some of the wonderful reasons to take this. There has been a lot of research already done on this. There was a 2012 study in the journal of experimental medicine and a 2016 study in the European Journal of Pain that found that CBD reduced chronic pain and arthritis pain levels when users took CBD. Forty-two percent of CBD users in that second study reported giving up traditional medications like Tylenol or prescription drugs like Vicodin in favor of a CBD extract. They were extremely effective. We’re not here on the show suggesting that you give up any medications. We are not medical doctors or medical professionals that are licensed, but it is interesting to dig into the research, which is published online. See how some people have swapped out CBD extract for some medications and found a lot of benefit as a result.

With anything in this category whether it’s a supplement, a body care product or food, there are many different things that we can purchase and try for our wellbeing. It does take a lot of experimenting with CBD. To your point, Jason, it’s not always easy to tell how something is going to work for you by reading the label. You can go, compare things and there are many factors involved. One thing I like when it comes to something as complex as CBD is to go onto the websites, check out the social media accounts for the brands because you can start to instinctually get a feel for it and the quality, the passion behind it. You can read the stories about why this was created. You can find out where things are grown and what processes they go into. The more information that they include, the better. There are also some websites for products that feel a little salesy or scammy.

They don’t feel like they’re infusing their love into it and that might be a judgment. Over the years that Jason and I have both been trying a lot of products, not just in CBD but in wellness products in general. There seems to be a correlation between the branding, the information available, the research. You can subscribe to newsletters as well. I find that’s helpful. I’m bringing this up now because there is an overwhelming amount of companies out there creating CBD products. It is a growing market. It’s been going on for years and years. The first time I started to become curious about CBD was in 2013, when somebody I know from the natural products industry named Matthew reached out to me saying he had started a new company called Foria, which has remained one of my favorite CBD companies. Jason likes them as well. They were making products for sexual health at that time and now they’ve expanded. They have a variety of different products.

At that time, they were very focused on THC. Now, they have CBD products. They were doing products for arousal, for sexual pleasure and experience. They started making products to relieve menstrual cramps and they’ve made a few other things. I do remember that because, at that time, I was thinking, “What is this?” When they first reached out to me, I’m like, “What do you mean you make these health products from THC?” A few years later, they started doing CBD. They were ahead of the trend a lot because it wasn’t until a year or so after that, I started even learning about other products that were made from CBD.

CBD products are not all created equal. You have to experiment and find things that work for you. Click To Tweet

Since 2017, 2018, you see the rapid expansion and now it seems CBD is put into a ton of different things. We talked about the Mad Tasty sparkling water that we love. There’s a great body care line called Winged that I fell in love with and I’ve done some work with. There’s a great herbal tea line called mood33 that’s hemp-infused and they have THC products. There is a juice company called Plant Magic that makes these little shots with CBD. There are even pet products out there. Jason and I have each experimented with CBD for our dogs and seeing some good benefits there too. What are some other products and brands that you like, Jason?

There are a couple. One is a product from a Vermont company called Sunsoil. They grow, process and bottle everything on-site. To me, that’s a very rare thing that I’ve noticed in the CBD industry. If a company owns the crops, they’re growing the cannabis plants. They’re extracting the CBD and they’re bottling it at the same location. That is an extremely rare thing. They classify it as farm to bottle. That’s not their terminology. At least that’s what I call it. I have noticed that the flavor and the potency of this Sunsoil brand are unique. From a lot of the different and I’ve tried so many, a few stand-out. Another one that I have been taking for sleep. It’s a small company, Medicine Box, there is a wonderful plant medicine company and it’s a sleep tincture. It’s something that I have struggled with for a long time with sleep. It’s a cannabis tincture that is made in Nevada County but it’s not cannabis. They have one product and it’s called Equanimity. In this, it’s a synergistic blend of herbs and botanicals along with the CBD and THC. It’s cool because it has Valerian roots, Skullcap, Catnip, Lemon Balm, Chamomile, Licorice and Hawthorne Berry. It’s all of these amazing powerful herbs along with THC, CBD and different terpenes. For sleep, that is one of the best things.

Can you clarify what terpenes are? I know I’ve tried them and they’re in some products but I’m not that aware of what they are. It has something to do with culinary usage. Is it a flavor thing or what’s the deal with them?

As far as I know, terpenes are not necessarily something that people necessarily pay attention to on labels. They’re aromatic oils that color different cannabis varieties with different distinctive flavors. If you hear people talk about the flavors of hemp extract or CBD, sometimes they’ll say that has a citrus overtone, that has a little bit of berry, or that tastes mint or pine. The terpenes have chemical adaptive purposes to repel predators and lure pollinators. There’s not a lot of ton of research but different kinds of terpenes might promote relaxation and stress relief. Others promote things focus and acuity. There’s not as much research about terpenes, but as far as I know, they’re one of the compounds in cannabis that give it its color and also its flavor profile or its smell.

What about products for animals like cats and dogs, Jason? We both tried some. I haven’t found any that immediately come to mind that I’m able to recommend. I’m racking my brain because I’ve tried a few but, to be honest, the results of them haven’t been extraordinary. I’m curious if you’ve had found any that you’ve used in your dog, Bella, or if you’ve ever tried them with the cats?

First of all, it makes me think of the local pet store that I go here in LA called The Urban Pet. They have pre-rolled joints that are filled with catnip and CBD. You can give your cat a joint filled with catnip and CBD that they will rip open and get high off of.

That would be a fun product for 4/20. If you’re going to celebrate 4/20, that would be very amusing.

I’ve been tempted, don’t get me wrong but the price, it’s mostly catnip with a little bit of CBD and it’s mostly for Instagram of, “You’ve got your cat a joint, film this and be Instagram famous.”

What about for Bella? Having you tried CBD products for her? There was that one brand that sent us each product. I feel so bad. I can’t even remember their name.

That’s how many CBD brands there are. We can’t even remember the damn brand names.

MGU 58 | Celebrating 4/20

Celebrating 4/20: It is an extremely rare thing when a company owns the crops, grows the cannabis plants, extracts the CBD, and bottles it at the same location.

 

Each of us got sent products. I know for sure I got sent some for the dog. It’s tough when it comes to your dog. I know somebody who is using it very actively for an older dog and swore by it but then eventually stopped using it. I don’t know if they weren’t convinced. It can certainly help with inflammation. It’s tricky. I even feel like for humans, it’s hard to tell what effects CBD is having. Going back to what I was saying earlier, it does require a lot of experimenting and trying with a number of different brands just like a lot of health changes. The effects of it can take a while and sometimes it feels like it’s in my head and it’s a placebo effect. It’s making a big difference. You have to do a lot of research. Choose a company that resonates with you, try it for a while and see how you feel. A lot of these brands that I’ve mentioned and Jason has mentioned are brands that we have met the owners.

We know their story. We have gotten deep in their worlds that we trust them so much and we use their products enough. A lot of the times, it’s a product that I like even if I don’t feel a huge difference specifically from CBD, I just like their products. Like Mad Tasty, I love the way that their water tastes. I love that they donate water. When you buy a can of Mad Tasty, they give water to somebody in need. I love Ryan Tedder’s work as a musician, so it’s great to support him. There are a lot of other sparkling waters out there with CBD but overall, Mad Tasty is my favorite. I’m very passionate about the missions and the company, the same as Foria. As I mentioned, I’ve known the guy that runs Foria for many years. I trust him. He is so passionate about this. That’s what influences me in buying a product, sometimes more so than whether I can tell if the CBD is making a difference for you.

Jason, it sounds like with the two brands you mentioned, Sunsoil and Medicine Box, that you’ve felt a noticeable difference from the CBD. This is part of the reason neither one of us can’t think of a CBD product for our animals, our companions because it’s hard to tell if it’s working on them. RESCUE Remedy, even though it’s not a CBD product, they are worth mentioning because there is a noticeable difference when you give an animal RESCUE Remedy. They do seem to be more relaxed. There’s a noticeable difference when you give a catnip, they get very hyper. I haven’t tried a CBD product for my dog, Evie that has been super noticeable. It would be if they’re having major inflammation, you could track it over time to see if it was working.

It goes back to individuation and how one of the health mantras that Whitney and I are aligned with is the individual biochemistry of not only our human bodies but of course our companion animals. The idea of conscientious, consistent experimentation certainly holds water when we’re talking about any cannabis products because if I had to guess, I have tried over 100 between CBD-infused cookies, candies, chocolates, drinks and actual extract. I rarely find a palpable mental, physical, spiritual difference. There’s a small number of them but I find it’s the same way though when I’ve tried new superfoods or new super herbs. They’re not all created equal and you have to experiment and find things that work for you. When you find something that works, you stick with it.

Something else that’s helped determine what CBD products I’m going to try are trying their THC products. When I mentioned Foria, they started with making in my recollection back in 2013 was that it was primarily THC products and you can feel the benefit. THC is very easy to tell if something is having an effect on you. Foria, in general, they have a wide variety of different products. I’ve tried a lot of them. It’s not always the CBD, it might be the other ingredients. The other product that comes to mind is mood33. When I think about them, I’ve tried them a few times. I remember the very first time I was at a party. It was a book launch party or something that they were at. The most memorable time was when Jason and I went to the best party that either one of us can recall off the top of our heads. It was for this delivery company called Tokr.

I don’t know if they deliver outside of Los Angeles but if you’re in LA, definitely check them out. If not, see if they’re available in your area. Tokr had this phenomenal party in 2019. Jason and I have said ever since, that it’s the best party either one of us has been to and mood33 was doing snow cones. They were doing snow cones and you could do THC or CBD. One little snow cone with their THC syrup had a drastic effect. I want to talk more about that party because it was great. It was a fusion of CBD and THC products. There were a lot of brands that offer both. If I could tell a big difference from the THC, I felt good and I read their ingredients. It made me feel more inclined to try their CBD products that might be more subtle. I made this assumption in my head that if I felt good with the strength of their THC, then their CBD formulations were pretty legit as well. I don’t know if you think that way, Jason or not.

I necessarily have not had that correlation before although I try a product, if I find that the quality and the feel in my body of the product is good, I do make a reasonable assumption that their other products are also going to be good. This is how a brand builds equity in my mind. There are brands that I am brand loyal to. We’re not just talking about CBD and THC products. We’re talking about the power of branding. In general, when I try something and I have a wonderful experience, I’m apt to believe that all of their products are going to be that great too.

Let’s talk about the Tokr party. Just as a fun little story time moment. I got invited to them somehow in some influencer mailing list that I was added to. I invited Jason as a guest. It was the most wonderful experience. It was up in this loft in downtown LA. I don’t know if it was because they were serving all of these THC products, but it was the energy of the people there and all of the amazing brands. I mentioned mood33 was there, Plant Magic was there. Who else was memorable for you? What other brands do you remember being there, Jason?

They had a cool company called Vessel that made these cool modern vaporizers. There was a woman there who was making truffles. I don’t remember but the truffles were amazing. They had an amazing tattooer there. The first time I’ve ever been to a party, I got a new tattoo.

If you're getting something that's a little too good to be true at a price point, it probably is. Click To Tweet

Jason got a free tattoo at this Tokr party, but it was so cool. They had a DJ, live music, cool lighting, and all these different things that sit on. They had joint-rolling glasses that you could go in. Didn’t you do that, Jason, or is that my imagination?

No, it was too full.

They had all these experiences that you could do. 

It was the combination of the mood. It was at an amazing loft in downtown LA. The music was incredible, free tattoos, amazing drinks and food. It seemed all of the elements that you would want in a great party converged that evening.

It doesn’t hurt that you were feeling so free because you were in a safe space with great people and atmosphere. You were well-fed and there was so much generosity to it. The brands were letting you try everything which makes for a great experience. To be able to have this psychoactive experience there, feel relaxed, happy and laid-back. Coming back to the topic of 4/20, if I could have that experience on 4/20, I would start to look forward to.

It’s something though that we talk a lot about how we wish every party could be as great as that. The reason it was special is that not all parties are that great. There’s that part of, “Why can’t all of these brand parties we go to be that generous, vibrant, energized and all the great connections with people there?” It stands out because it was uniquely wonderful, especially during this quarantine and shelter in place, it makes me crave that kind of gathering even more. I’m yearning for it the more we’re talking about it.

In Los Angeles, we are blessed with many incredible options. In the neighborhood that I’m in, there are several that are a stone’s throw away. I wonder how they’re even going to stay in business. There are CBD shops specifically and there are shops that are more focused on THC products. I would say there are five off the top of my head that I can think of in this area. They’re all high-quality. I don’t know how they’re all going to stay in business, but it’s like the new coffee shop. I remember, when I was in college, I studied abroad in the Netherlands. That’s what they had out there. The cafes were places that you could get alcohol and/or marijuana joints. You could sit there and smoke. I remember, as a college student thinking it was the greatest thing in the world and I wasn’t even into marijuana. It was that freedom of experience. I don’t think that you can partake in the products within the stores unless you go to a bar, you can’t drink inside the liquor shop.

You can’t open up a can of beer and drink it in the middle of the liquor store. I guess this dispensary is of the same way but they do create an experience there. I would say the second best to that Tokr party that we went to is going into a great dispensary where they have super nice people. They have all these different products to choose from. There are a few in Los Angeles where you go in and they feel bright, welcoming, warm and the employees are passionate. It’s a lot going to a store like the Apple Store where I used to work, where they pride themselves on an upscale experience, where everybody feels valued, important, listened to and taken care of. You can go and experience all the products and look at them in cases. I don’t know if they can give you samples but you can get this interactive experience with something before you purchase it and learn about it. That’s one of the big benefits of the governmental policies that have happened in the US.

It’s regulated and it’s a better, safer experience and more enjoyable too. Even when I had the option to get a medical marijuana card, I never felt that inclined. I was curious, I wanted to go into some of the shops because I like trying and seeing new products. I didn’t feel called to it. It felt a big barrier to entry and a little bit sketchy. I was doing something I shouldn’t be doing and being able to walk into these shops. Jason and I did this when we were traveling in Colorado in August 2019. It was neat to be able to go into a store and have somebody recommend products to you. You tell them what experience you want, how you want to feel and have a kind person give you something legitimate was nice. I’m feeling blessed that we have access to that in Los Angeles.

I want to give a quick shout-out to a couple of the places that I love going to. My favorite dispensary that has amazing, well-curated CBD and THC products is Gen!us. It’s worth going to. I love Gen!us. I love MedMen. They’re a chain. They have some in Vegas and also LA. The third one that I like is BARC. It’s a Beverly Hills collective but by far, my favorite is Gen!us. When I walk in there, I can feel my theme music and your hands go to the side notes and it’s like, “Beep.” I feel that when I walk in.

That’s funny. I haven’t been in there yet, but it’s also not too far from me. There’s another place down the street called Cookies. There’s one called AEON Wellness that had been I don’t know if they’ve officially opened yet but they look cool. They’re trying to make it this whole wellness experience in there. It’s exciting and interesting. There are so many developments happening and if you’re feeling overwhelmed about CBD, my suggestion would be to allow yourself to experiment over time. Products can be expensive. I would say it’s important to at least spend a moderate amount of money. The cheaper products just like anything else. You get what you paid for. If you’re getting something a little too good to be true at a price point, it probably is. Spending a little extra money, sometimes a few extra dollars, you can get much better quality. Be open to trying something else. Try something new every month. Try a food product, drink product or supplement. If the dropper of CBD products, the liquid drops fall into the supplement category, Jason, is that a supplement? 

I hesitate to answer this because the classification of food and a supplement is such a sticky thing federally. The regulations vary so differently if it’s classified as a food or a supplement.

MGU 58 | Celebrating 4/20

Celebrating 4/20: The more educated you can become about CBD and the more that you surround yourself with educated people, the easier it is to make decisions because you’re guided.

 

Whatever it is. We’re talking about the liquid droppers or the capsules. Make sure that you’re reading up on what the capsules are made from. If you’re plant-based like Jason and I are, you don’t want to have anything with gelatin and sometimes the added ingredients can be a little bit sneaky. As I was saying earlier, before you purchase something, go on their website and read it. Read the FAQ sections, read the story about why they created the products, where do they come from, who’s behind the brand? This is true with any product out there.

If you have them accessible, go into the stores or the dispensaries that we mentioned and talk to them. Get to know the employees and ask a few people just like you would at a grocery store. If you have that luxury, it depends on where you live. The more educated you can become and the more that you surround yourself with educated people, the easier it is to make decisions because you’re guided. I would also continue to do some research and some non-biased research as helpful as the websites of a specific brand might be. They’re, of course, trying to convince you to buy their product. If you can go and read reviews from other people if you can listen to other podcast episodes beyond us, and subscribe to newsletters. One of my favorites is the Living Maxwell newsletter. Max Goldberg is a good friend of ours and he does a lot of in-depth research specifically on Organic Living. He is a phenomenal, very trusted resource because he digs into the backstory and the production of most brands. When I looked him up, he was talking about some great organic CBD brands. I have not tried yet. Becoming informed is key. I know that it can be overwhelming with a category like this when there are many options. In most cases, there’s not a lot of harm in trying things. 

If you’re willing to spend the money and take the time to experiment and give things a few weeks if you’re willing to buy something that might be not as great as you thought it was going to be. That’s a lot of what Jason and I do. We continue to try products. We get a lot of them for free from brands in full transparency with that. That’s how we try many things. One of our goals is to continue to be able to recommend products to you because that’s important to us. Jason is also going into these stores himself. I’m curious, are there any specific brands that you’d like to buy from Gen!us? Is there something that you keep going back to over and over again? How do you make a decision even when it’s a THC product? How do you decide what you’re going to buy because that can be expensive?

I don’t have any specific brands that I could recommend off the top of my head. When I go in, I’m looking for products that are going to meet this specific functional benefit that I need at that time. If I’m having trouble sleeping or having insomnia, I’m going to ask the people working what they would recommend to help with insomnia. If I have a high-level writing project, I’m writing a bunch of blog posts, working on my next book. I’m writing new music, something that requires a lot of creative power, then I’m going to ask them for a different strain. The different strains contain different energetic properties and activate the endocannabinoid receptors differently in your system. It is about what is the functional benefit I’m looking for that specific day and then having the questions that help lead me to those products.

That’s about as in-depth as we can go on CBD. I hope that it gave you some things to think about and some eye-opening information on this. We’d love to continue the conversation in a few different ways. One is that you can reach out to us through social media. Our username is @Wellevatr. You can find us on Instagram, Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest, etc. Even on TikTok, we’re doing some content on there. You can connect with us. You can send us direct messages if you want to be in touch. We would love to hear from you. We would love to know what brands you’re trying.

Do you take CBD? Why or why not? Would you like to talk about your THC experience? Why you choose to consume it or not? Just keeping that conversation going is a great way to stay informed. If you want to email us, you can reach us at [email protected]. If you’d like to support this podcast, get some special perks, benefits as being part of the This Might Get Uncomfortable Community. We are on Patreon. If you go to Patreon.com/wellevatr, you will find a lot of different ways that you can get some benefits for supporting us for as little as a couple of dollars a month. We would love to have your support there because that helps us invest in more equipment, expand or retweet this and pay for all the costs involved like the websites and the maintenance of everything.

There’s so much that goes into this show and we love to find ways to give back to you. We’ve been working on merchandise, we have bonus episodes there, we have all sorts of cool little perks like sending you special voice memos, videos or whatever else. We’re open to other perks too. If there are things that you want from us, if you want to suggest future episodes, there’s so much that you can do. Patreon is a great way to give back. We often give back to other people on Patreon as well. We get to pass it on, pay it forward. We’d love to be in touch with you in one of those ways so that you can be part of the This Might Get Uncomfortable experience and conversation.

We appreciate you supporting small businesses including ours and the brands that we know and love, because it helps us and the people that we love behind these products continue to put out good, healthy foods and supplements into a world that very much needs them.

Thank you so much for reading. Stay tuned for another episode coming out very soon. 

 

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