The Word : Psychoactive

Psychoactive   / adj.

1. Describe a substance that alters your freaking mind ..... temporarily
2. Falling In Love
3. Your Breath

You must be thinking my joke is crap. 

Well, I'm not joking. 

Ever since our last CBD email was sent out, we keep receiving questions about CBD consumption.  No doubt, a majority of media only mentions "THC is psychoactive and CBD isn't" with no further details. This then mean we get lost in the content farms of the internets.  So TIME for clarity.

The word Psychoactive isn’t as scary as it sounds.  It means a chemical substance that activates or changes brain function and results in temporarily altered perception, mood, behavior, cognition, and consciousness. 

According to Pioneers in Endocannabinoogy - The Knox Docs,

‘When discussing cannabis, people often use “psychoactive”, but what they really mean is "intoxicating" or "psychotomimetic" (producing an effect on the mind similar to a psychotic state). Psychoactive substances are any that change our perception, mood, consciousness, cognition, or behavior - some common examples of psychoactive substances include coffee as a wake-me-up, wine as a social lubricant, CBD as a stress reducer, and THC as a mood booster. ⁠Psychoactive substances can be intoxicating and/or psychotomimetic when used at higher doses. Both THC and alcohol are prime examples of psychoactive substances that can be (reversibly) intoxicating and psychotomimetic.’‍

Psychoactive is just an umbrella term.  A common vocabulary helps to communicate effectively, and we must use language in an informed and intentional way to have productive conversations. With that said,

• The glass of wine or coffee that you enjoy is psychoactive as it alters your mental state.   
• Deeply falling in love is psychoactive, super mind-altering. 
• Tobacco is psychoactive.
• Breathing is psychoactive during a breath work training exercise such as Intermittent Hypoxic Training (IHT) which activates every cell in your body and provides a psychedelic-like trip just by the changes within your body. 
• CBD is psychoactive (but not psychotropic). 

So what psychoactive compound did you take today?