A lot of people wonder how CBD will affect their dreams, since bad dreams can be strange, disturbing and even scary.
Have you ever had a dream where all your teeth fall out? Lots of people have had it and the interpretations of what the dream actually means vary quite a bit. Some say it’s about change in your work life, others (like Carl Jung) suggest it’s related to feeling powerless. Whatever it means, it can be a pretty weird to have.
Sometimes these dreams are upsetting and, of course, unwanted. Because of its everyday association with cannabis, new users of CBD wonder about the side effects of the compound. Will it cause mind altering effects, for example? Or perhaps make you have weird dreams?
THC, CBD & DREAMS
Most of this comes down to a little confusion about CBD oil, and the differences between CBD and THC, the main active ingredient in marijuana. Because CBD does not get you high, and can even promote more restful sleep, CBD users are unlikely to experience these problems.
People mention cannabis and immediately get the wrong idea, thinking they’re going to get high from CBD. The main active ingredient in psychoactive cannabis or ‘marijuana,’ when it’s used for recreational purposes, is a chemical component in the plant called tetrahydrocannabinol or THC. Experienced users of THC products understand different strains and types of product can induce very unusual dreams.
In most reputable CBD products, you don’t get any of this because there’s no THC. That’s why the media sometimes CBD (mistakenly) refers to CBD as medical cannabis in places like the U.S.
CAN CBD OIL CAUSE WEIRD DREAMS?
Again, this is an area that generally needs a lot more research. First, it helps to know a little more about what happens when you drop off at night. Sleep has different, distinct stages. One well-known stage is REM or Rapid Eye Movement, This is where we normally dream or remember our dreams. The other stage, deep sleep, is beneficial for a lot of things including recovery and restoring the body. Think of it like recharging your batteries.
There have been some anecdotal accounts of people having weird dreams when using CBD, but these may not be down to the compound at all. Research into the effect of THC on sleep patterns found that it decreased the REM stage and increased the deep sleep phase. Subjects also reported a rebound effect when they stopped using the drug. Some people who stopped using CBD oil before bedtime also report having more vivid dreams.
Other people have noted that their recall of dreams after taking CBD oil improves. Even if we do settle into REM sleep and dream, many of us don’t normally remember anything much when we wake up. There’s no evidence, clinical or anecdotal, that suggests any worsening of dreams such as nightmares or night terrors.
CBD COULD LOWER ANXIETY & PROMOTE RESTFUL SLEEP
Studies do suggest that CBD may be involved in lowering anxiety levels and many users point out they tend to fall asleep more quickly when using the compound. Some research also suggests that sleep quality may be improved which can lead to a better sense of feeling refreshed and higher energy levels on waking.
If you are worried about taking CBD for sleep issues or simply as a health supplement, there is currently little evidence to suggest that it is going to give you strange dreams during the night.
Am a senior recently diagnosed with Alzheimer can’t do Pharma drugs. Hemp has been suggested. What is your recommendation. Hemp has been suggested. How much how often?
I am a senior who has rarely dreamed at any time in my life unless I’ve had a fever or some other physical problem. I’ve smoked pot during multiple periods in my life, and I’ve never had any dreams. I’ve decided to stop smoking and I began vaping and ingesting CBD oils and tinctures. Since I started, occasionally I’ve had unpleasant dreams, where I’ve been lost or unable to figure things out. They are NOT “bad nightmares”, but rather a bit of an unpleasant feeling upon awakening. I’m going to try to figure out if it is related to vaping oil or ingesting tincture, by only doing one at a time.
I’ve had similar dreams after taking a 25 mg dose sublingually. Not a bad dream just unpleasant – looking for someone and not able to find them.
Same exact experience with me after vaping
I too have had strange dreams ever since I started vaping CBD oil and was wondering the same thing. I dreamed I was put in jail and couldn’t get out and it was very stressful. The dream right after that dream I was driving and the road started to fall under water so I turned around and started driving the other way and then the road totally went under water. The next night I had a dream I smoke a joint that was made of wine and lemonade (no drugs in it). Then I was driving and started having hallucinations and could not see the road. In my dream my husband was in the passenger seat and would not wake up to help me. The next night I had even stranger dreams.
I took 500 mg of cbd oil for sleep ,but it didn’t give me a restful sleep it was very unpleasant feeling ,did not rest or have a deep sleep .was it maybe too much?
Well i took one capsule and sleep was not restful at all… and I had horrible nightmares….please advises friends
Have done well
I am not convinced about the innocence of CBD oil at all. I tried it now 3x and in all cases I had terrible vivid night mares causing a rather disturbed sleep. Not for me.
Same here
I’ve not had nightmares but I feel so relaxed but my mind is always thinking, all night long. But yet I feel good in the morning and not so tired during the day. Kind of weird. I have fibromyalgia and have never had a really good nights rest. But it feels so good to just relax my sore muscles even if my brain is on the go all night long.
just googled for cbd and dreams and found this. I have been taking about 5mg (plus or minus per mg scale) cbd isolate sublingual only at bedtime for maybe a few weeks. I had no luck with disolve-in-ghee,or vape,or dab, but this definitely provides a little noticeable relaxation. This morning I woke a couple times with vivid dreams – not necessarily bad but unusual for me. After a bit of reading I think my take on this is that I am simply recalling dreams that I otherwise would not be recalling, so I can use my usual dream process of “why am I dreaming about that topic, what can I learn from it,message?etc”. Info: I’m 75. never do THC stuff as I found when I was much younger that it screws up my “if/what if/then if” logic for a couple weeks. Enjoy!
Orrrrrrr, Kristi, perhaps THC was helping you “unlearn” your “if/what if/then if” mindset (like causation? Predicting events? Understanding consequences?) as a construct? The fact that this “disruption” (or “clarification”!) lasted for a couple weeks makes me think you connected neurons in new, possibly valuable ways, rather than caused something akin to a temporary psychological disorder? Maybe THC was trying to reveal that reality is highly unpredictable, and putting too much stock in your ability to foresee consequences was holding you back! Hopefully, you’re retired now, and can afford to (legally and safely) experiment with THC again, if you’re at all curious. Just be aware that modern cannabis is much stronger (2x-10x) than it was “back in the day” (as you probably know)! Alternately, if you don’t like the feeling, no peer pressure from me. Just throwing the idea out there…not a doctor 😉 You’ll probably never see this, anyway! Glad CBD is working for you, and I love that you take the time to reflect on your dreams…very cool.
From my experience. CBD oil has caused me to have very lucid dreams. I wouldn’t call them nightmares but disturbing. Odd. to say the least of real life scenarios.
I ALWAYS have weird dreams. I’m ok with that and actually kind of enjoy them. I took CBD oil for my RLS last night and had nightmares. People getting parts of their bodies sawed off kinda nightmares. and I definitely did not sleep better. I was awake every couple of hours. This doesn’t happen when I use Cannabis. I would like to add I have unusual body chemistry and react differently to “everything”!
I made cdb using coconut oil . Fusing one once into two cups of oil. I used one tablespoon in a recipe for chocolates. That is 0.125 of a tsp for each chocolate.
The pain I have in my hand and fingers from arthritis was reduced but I suffered extremely terrifying nightmares. I always, normally ,have very healthy sleep patterns and con not ever remember having extreme nightmares. I will wait one week and try again.
Please reply
I’ve used CBD twice,A few weeks apart, and different brands. Both times I had the worst nightmares of my life. That’s all the research I need.
CBD oil DID give me very intense bad vivid mentally weird bazaar dreams the very first night and I only took 10 ml, under the tounge. I will not be taking this shit.
Wrong CBS caused me to have very vivid strange dreans
For the past two nights I have smoke the CBD cannabis,and I can tell you the two dreams I had were Vivid but very pleasant. I never tried the oil and I don’t think i will now. I’ll stick to the joint. The only thing I can say is if you’re going to smoke CBD make sure you get a full eight hours of sleep because you could wake up a bit groggy in the morning but that’s just me. Other than that I’m pretty curious on tonight’s session see what it’s going to bring.