There are so many assumptions that soooo many people have about weed. Even the biggest of potheads sometimes don’t even know what cannabinoids are.

I was there with them back before 2015 when I had my awakening and really understood what cannabinoids were. It wasn’t until I started to grow my own weed when I realized how diverse it could be. Of course I had smoked a decent amount of strains before, but I always wanted that OG high– such an amateur notion with the one-strain mindset. Cannabis is possibly and probably the greatest plant on earth because it is so diverse in its composition. So, what gets you high?

Phytocannabinoids, what are they?

I’m pretty sure most of us have heard the term cannabinoid at least once, whether you know what that means or not. The simple definition: they are a class of diverse chemical compounds that interact with cannabinoid receptors.

I bet most of you didn’t know that our own bodies produce cannabinoids named endocannabinoids. If you can imagine, phytocannabinoids are cannabinoids that are produced by plants, specifically by the cannabis plant.

THCA – Delta-9-Tetrahydrocannabinolic Acid

This is the most common phytocannabinoid found in the female cannabis plant, with some strains containing upwards of 30+ percent of the plants dry weight.

This is way more THCa than what the pot plants my parents and all others used to burn back in the day contained– I’ll tell you that much. THCa is not psychoactive… at all. It isn’t until it is decarboxylated [converted into THC by heating THCa to 310 degrees F for 7 minutes causing it to lose 1 carbon dioxide group] when it becomes psychoactive and gets you zooted. Psychoactivity is not THC’s only property. It also has anti-inflammatory, analgesic, and neuroprotective properties along with its ability to reduce intraocular pressure, muscle tension and spasticity. Be smart and Google those terms if you don’t already know. It might increase your respect of cannabis. 

If you’re new to smoking, there is so to speak a learning curve. This learning curve is mainly physical, though I feel that there is a big mental control element as well. Common overdose symptoms are sedation, anxiety, rapid heartbeat, and feeling like time is moving slower than you are. Even experienced users may experience some of these symptoms once in a great, and I mean great, while. The reason being: as the more you smoke, both in quantity and length of time, your body automatically responds by down-regulating your receptors that interact with THC, and all of the other cannabinoids for that matter. This also means the smoking frequency is directly correlated to tolerance. Don’t let that deter you. Just start small with super small doses. That is they key. 

CBDA – Cannabidolic Acid

The second most common phytocannabinoid produced by the female cannabis plant. CBDa too, like THCa, can be converted to CBD by heat. Although, there has been some preliminary research that indicates that high CBD blood plasma levels can be achieved more efficiently by ingesting CBDa over the decarboxylated CBD.

CBD is interesting and it wasn’t until around 2014 that I actually really appreciated it, let alone knew what it felt like to consume a copious amount of it. I had used a few outdoor Northern Lights Blue [NLB] plants that I grew to make some tincture, but my dumb high ass forgot to decarboxylate the tree – go figure. What I ended up making was a potent tincture that was high in THCa and CBDa. Once the cold brew was done, I was anxious to try it but was also conscious not to get too high. After work I proceeded to put 1 full dropper’s worth of tincture beneath my tongue and let it rest for a minute or two. While walking to my room to change into more comfortable clothes I started to feel relaxed, but not quite baked. As it grew it stayed a relaxing buzz, which was cool, but not the usual high I was akin to – so I put a few more droppers worth of tincture beneath my tongue.

Low and behold, the buzz furthered its realness and I felt even more relaxed, but still not out of my mind faded. What gives? I thought, as I was worried that I had more bud than alcohol to ensure maximum potency. I ended up grabbing my bong and took a few snaps of the indoor NLB I had harvested a few weeks prior. Boy did I get high. Not only was I zooted, but I felt this euphoric buzz throughout my body, very similar to a rolling high that one would get from MDMA. I was on weed-ecstasy and it was great. I could feel my body pulse as the euphoria continued to grow. I felt really relaxed, and pretty high as well. This is my first encounter with ingesting a grip of CBDa, and CBD in general.

There are a few other phytocannabinoids found in cannabis, but for the sake of this article, I will not go there.

I now want to bring attention to the fact that what cannabis contains goes further than what actually gets you high, especially when looking at two different strains that contain similar levels of phytocannabinoids. It is the essential oils [or terpenenoids] that make you feel different.

What I forgot to include in the last part plays much into this new idea. It is the fact that THC and CBD have an interesting relationship with each other. Kind of like a husband and wife or better yet, two partners. They will both define their own roles just as any human being does. The end relationship will ultimately depend on how many and what types of people are around. The same goes for THC and CBD. CBD helps reduce the anxiety as well as the stoned and forgetful aspects caused by smoking a copious amount of THC. So where does this leave us now?

It leaves us at, I’m going to smoke a bowl and enjoy the ride this Granddaddy P will take me on. Jk, the next article is coming soon.