Can You Combine Xanax (alprazolam) and Cannabis?

This article was originally published on Veriheal.com

In today’s fast-paced world, managing stress, anxiety, and pain is a priority for many. As a result, a growing number of individuals are exploring alternative methods. This includes combining prescribed medications like Xanax (alprazolam) with natural remedies like cannabis. While this combination has proved effective in stress and anxiety management, it has its downsides – which could be very harmful.

Here’s the million-dollar question – Should You Combine Xanax and Cannabis? Is it a match made in heaven or a recipe for disaster? This article answers these questions by providing deep insight into the complexities of combining the two substances. It also suggests alternative and potentially safer practices for stress and anxiety management. Take a look!

How Xanax and Cannabis Interact in the Body?

Before downing a combination of Xanax and Cannabis, it is essential to understand how these substances interact within the human body.

Xanax, also known as alprazolam, is a benzodiazepine – a class of drugs often used as tranquilizers. Now we all know what tranquilizers do: slow down brain and nervous system activity. As such, Xanax is often prescribed to manage anxiety disorders and panic attacks. In a true tranquilizer style, the drug enhances the effects of a neurotransmitter called gamma-aminobutyric acid (GABA), consequently reducing brain activity intensity.

Cannabis, on the other hand, should be familiar to most readers. It’s a plant rich in many compounds, particularly cannabidiol (CBD) and tetrahydrocannabinol (THC). While THC is notorious for producing psychoactive effects responsible for the “high” associated with cannabis, CBD offers therapeutic benefits without the high. Cannabis interacts with the body’s endocannabinoid system, regulating several physiological processes and inducing a wide range of effects such as euphoria, relaxation, and pain relief.

Potential Interaction

How Xanax and Cannabis interact is entirely dependent on your body’s metabolism. This is why some people will experience enhanced sedative effects, while others will have impaired cognitive functions and diminished decision-making abilities due to the combination. Essentially, what is good for the geese may not always be good for the gander.

Risks of Combining Xanax and Cannabis

As already stated, the interaction of Xanax and Cannabis in the body can be very harmful, with potential damage ranging from mild to severe. So, what are the risks associated with this combination?

Enhanced Sedation and Drowsiness

Have you ever wondered what it feels like to be hit with a truckload of tranquilizers? That’s the siesta syndrome that comes with combining Xanax and Cannabis. Both substances were individually designed to depress the central nervous system, and when used together, they can magnify the calming effect. Your sedation levels get cranked up, leaving you in excessive bliss. Things around you begin to move at lightning speed, and even a sloth seems to move as fast as Usain Bolt. And in this state, certain activities like driving become dangerous.

Impaired Cognitive Functions

While Xanax impairs memory and concentration and enhances drowsiness, Cannabis affects short-term memory. This can cause you to forget the simplest things like where you left your car keys or the way to your room. It could worsen if you consume this combo before carrying out important tasks or activities. You might be left standing for hours ogling at a glass of water or pondering the mysteries of the universe instead of doing what needs to be done.

Respiratory Depression and Health Concerns

Now, here’s where things get serious. Xanax and Cannabis can depress respiratory function. This means that they can restrict a person’s regular breathing pattern. And in cases of individuals with pre-existing respiratory conditions, it can lead to dangerous consequences and medical emergencies.

Anxiety and Panic

The irony of combining Xanax and Cannabis is that it can cause anxiety and panic. While Xanax is supposed to be an anxiety-buster, sometimes it cranks up pre-existing anxiety. Adding Cannabis to the mix doesn’t help matters. You might just be inviting more unwanted guests to the party.

Factors To Consider When Combining Xanax and Cannabis

If you’re still keen on combining Xanax and Cannabis, here are a few things to keep in mind to ensure your safety and well-being:

• Seek Medical Advice: As much as you’d like to live life by your own rules, be sure to request and follow the guidance of a medical practitioner. A medical practitioner will look at your medical history and current condition and provide personalized advice on whether or not to combine these compounds.
• Personal Tolerance: Like Cannabis and alcohol, our tolerances and sensitivities differ. While some individuals react badly to Xanax and Cannabis, others have a high tolerance for it. So find what suits you.
• Dosages and Timing: Don’t be in a hurry to play doctor or chemist. While taking too much Xanax and Cannabis is dangerous, taking them at the wrong time is not without its consequences. So again, please seek the advice of a chemist or pharmacist on how and when to take them.
• Play It Safe: Xanax and Cannabis interact poorly or effectively depending on the presence or absence of contradictory chemical compounds in your body. In essence, certain drugs interact negatively with these substances. Seek advice from a healthcare provider to prevent harmful and life-threatening reactions.

Alternatives and Safer Practices

There are several options ways to deal with anxiety, insomnia, and panic attacks — that are both more practical and safer — than mixing Xanax and Cannabis. Try out non-pharmaceutical measures such as mindful meditation, yoga, dietary changes, acupuncture, herbs, tea, and other relaxation techniques.

Conclusion

Whenever you find yourself at the crossroads of Xanax and Cannabis, remember there is no straightforward answer. While some have found the combination very effective, others have experienced the downsides. What’s best is to keep in mind that your health and safety is top priority. So, ensure that you weigh the risks and consequences. Speak to a medical practitioner and be open to exploring non-pharmaceutical measures that may better suit your needs.