Did you know that over 50 million Americans have chronic sleep disorders? That’s nearly 15% of the entire American population. According to the American Academy of Sleep Medicine, 25% of Americans occasionally or regularly use cannabis to help them fall asleep or stay asleep.
Even though I’m not American, I relate to this statistic.If you’ve been following my canna journey for some time, you’ll know that I’ve suffered from insomnia since I was a kid.
Y’all know I’m an advocate for mindful cannabis use, but somewhere along the way, I became less mindful and more reliant with my use, specifically with using cannabis for sleep.
You might be thinking: “Is it that bad? You’re using it for a good reason?”
No, it’s not “bad” per se, but I just came to the realization that I often consumed because I was anxious about not getting sleep, where it started to become a crutch for me — a “easy way out” to get a good night’s rest.
Of course sleep is important, and if a little weed can help me with that and there's no negative impact, then why not, right?
Well, what happens when you are in a different country or place that doesn’t have cannabis? How do you fall asleep then?
That’s exactly the challenge I had to face when I recently travelled to Asia for 40 days.
One of the best sleeps of my life was in this treehouse in Mount Rokko, Kobe, Japan. I also sleep on a tatami back at home so there was minimal adjustment for me to this traditional Japanese bed.
I’ve taken tolerance breaks before, and my withdrawal symptoms were always related to my insomnia returning.
But I never tried to figure out the root cause of my insomnia, and find a solution to address it head-on.
Maybe instead of adding to my life to ease my insomnia, I was supposed to remove and simplify my life to ease my insomnia?
I’ve always taken pride in my nearly-perfect sleep hygiene routine.I got the warm lighting after dark, no blue light, magnesium supplement, cool room temperature, no phone before bed protocol dialled in.
So how come I still needed cannabis to fall asleep?! 🤯
Let’s just say my Asia trip was very eye-opening, and it helped me discover triggers that have been contributing to my insomnia.
I never thought I’d be writing a newsletter about how I stopped using weed for my insomnia.
Even though cannabis played an important role in my life and genuinely did help me get good sleep for a long time, it’s time for me to part ways with it when it comes to sleep.
Sure, I can use it once in a while if I’m really having trouble, but I feel like I have a much less reliant relationship with it now, and it gives me peace of mind knowing that I don’t have to anxious about not having weed before bed anymore.
So what changed? What did I do to get rid of my reliance on using weed for my insomnia? Well, first of all, I was on vacation… so i’m obviously I was less stressed which improved my overall anxiety and sleep.
But besides that, I discovered 3 things that I did differently in Asia that had a HUGE impact on getting rid of my insomnia…
📲 #1. I didn’t consume any short form video content.
There isn’t any science to this, but I have a theory that short form content elevates hyperactivity in the brain and is somehow rewiring our brains to be more anxious, which as a result impacts your parasympathetic nervous system. Again, this is just a hypothesis, but I’ve tested it on myself and it’s been pretty spot on. During my trip, I only consumed media and content in the form of books, magazines, audiobooks, podcasts, movies or long-form youtube videos. Not only did it help me practice extending my attention span and focus, but I strongly believe there is a correlation to how my body was able to get into the parasympathetic state much easier in the evening.
➡️ Now I’m back in Toronto, I will continue to limit my short form content consumption. Right now, I’m only scrolling on Reels 10 mins per day max, and it’s mostly for getting inspiration or content ideas.
😮💨 #2. I exhausted my mind and body by being 100% present with my days.
I barely worked out in Asia, so my main form of exercise was walking ~15km everyday (I walked the most in Singapore and Japan — clocking in nearly 25km daily). Not only was walking gentle exercise, but I would also be mentally stimulated because of all the new sights and sounds, and having to be present with what was in front of me, versus my computer or phone screen. By the end of the night, I’d be so tired that I’d fall asleep once my head hit the pillow.
➡️ Walking 15km everyday in Toronto isn’t impossible, but its not realistic. So in addition to my daily exercise, I’m going to be incorporating 30 minute walks BUT without my phone, just so I can be fully present and focus on giving my eyes and ears a break from digital media, and instead using it to look and listen to what’s around me instead (it’ll probably be just traffic noises and dogs barking to be honest lol)
🍜 #3. I gave my body WAY more time to digest food.
We all know that you’re not supposed to eat 2-3 hours before bed. However, I found that extending this to 3-4 hours and adding a post-dinner walk to be extremely helpful with helping me digest all my food, which made my stomach feel relaxed before bed resulting in better sleep. I’ve talked about it before, but I’m currently healing my body from SIBO aka small intestinal bacterial overgrowth. One of the protocols for healing SIBO and gut issues is to incorporate gentle movements after eating to get your digestion moving. ➡️ I used to go back to my desk right after eating, but now, I make it a habit to go for a 10 minute walk after each meal, and if I can’t do that, then I’ll try to do some chores at home that require standing (ie. vacuuming, cleaning up).
🌟 BONUS 🌟
I’m currently taking the following supplements to help me with digestion and rest: ginger, 5-HTP, liquid magnesium, and NAC.
This one might be specific to me, but as part of my SIBO supplementation plan from my naturopath, This is not health advice, so please consult with your health practitioner. However, I want to call out that this is temporary supplementation just to get my digestion back to normal. I suspect that I won’t be needing some of these once my protocol dwindles down.
All 3 of these discoveries seem uber simple, but it took me many years to truly figure it out.
That’s the thing with life right… you don’t really learn until you experience it first hand. So even though I’m telling you what worked for me, it might not work for you, but you also might have to just trial and error on yourself.
Honestly, I’m pretty happy that I’ve stopped using cannabis for sleep and insomnia 😬
Not only am I saving money, but I also have one less thing to think about now.I used to have to “time” when I consumed my gummy, and it became a whole “oh no I have to take my gummy at this time in order to fall asleep by this time” type of anxiety.
I’m also way more confident about travelling to countries without cannabis now.I used to lean towards some travel spots because of cannabis availability, but now I feel way more at ease about getting good sleep, wherever I am in the world 🌎
Currently dreaming about this cozy tropical room in Bali, Indonesia. Warm lighting with rattan vibes always gets me super sleepy!
Currently dreaming about this cozy tropical room in Bali, Indonesia. Warm lighting with rattan vibes always gets me super sleepy!
And btw, it’s not a bad thing to use cannabis for sleep.
At the end of the day, it’s your individual choice.I just found a few things that significantly improved my insomnia, and maybe it’ll help you too ☺️
