Why Does Cannabis Cause You To Dream Less? (1 Viewer)

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Lorna Wilson

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Cannabis is a teacher medicine plant, although in the west we mostly abuse it.

It is known that cannabis is effective in helping individuals that suffer from insomnia; of the many medicinal applications of cannabis, sleep aid is certainly one of them. What is strange, however, is that many of those that use cannabis as a regular sleep aid report having a loss of dream activity or an inability recollect any dreams at all. Considering how cannabis effects normal, waking consciousness, why is it that the ability to dream is dulled while sleeping under its effects?

To address this question, a study was conducted which analyzed the sleeping patterns of experienced marijuana users while under the effects of both tetrahydrocannabinol (THC) and a placebo substance. The findings demonstrated a reduction in eye movement and less time spent in REM sleep while under the effects of THC. It was also noted that THC withdrawal demonstrated significant REM rebound effects, drastically increasing the amount of time spent in REM sleep for a short while after abstaining from cannabis use. These findings were the first conclusive evidence that THC does interfere with REM sleep.

REM sleep is the stage of sleep in which our dreams manifest and our brain begins to function almost as if you are awake, only your surroundings are produced by your mind. These dream states, when experienced excessively, can exhaust the mind much like normal consciousness, which will result in grogginess and irritability, even after a sufficient amount of time spent sleeping. Since cannabis drastically reduces the time spent in the REM stage of sleep, it actually lengthens the time spent in deep sleep, or the slow wave sleep stage, when used as a sleep aid. In this deep stage of sleep, the body is able to devote itself to healing and rejuvenating from the physical and emotional exhaustion of the day before.

Experts have said that the most damaging effects associated with sleep deprivation are caused by insufficient amounts of slow-wave sleep. Research conducted on individuals that suffer from sleep deprivation has found that reduced amounts of slow-wave sleep has a direct correlation with high blood pressure in older individuals. Thus, individuals who feel deprived of sleep, despite how much time they actually spend sleeping, could likely benefit from somehow incorporating cannabis into their nightly routine.

Full article: http://timewheel.net/tome-why-does-cannabis-cause-you-to-dream-less/
 
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Vickie

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That's very interesting. I knew it prevented dreams but I didn't know that stopping dreams could benefit a person and give them better rest. Unfortunately cannabis is illegal where I live because I sure could use a good nights sleep :(
 

Pucksterguy

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The hat article seems to correlate with my experiences. When I don't smoke I have more and more lucid dreams. When I do smoke I don't always get a full nights sleep but I don't recall as many dreams.
 
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Maryann

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I always figured it cleared out the cache, like you do on your computer :D
 
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