If you are having a hard time falling asleep at night, water-soluble CBD and meditation may be able to help.
Suffering from restless nights? You definitely aren’t alone. For so many of us, a good night’s sleep is hard to come by. Between the stresses and responsibilities of everyday life, the speedy and chaotic pace of the current world, and the constant stimulation of our technological devices, it’s amazing any of us ever get a good night’s rest.
But it doesn’t have to be that way. If you are spending your nights tossing and turning instead of snoozing, it’s time for a change. There are many things you can do to help improve the quality of your sleep, from changes to diet and exercise to avoiding screens and bright lights before bed, to using doctor recommended sleep aids. But many looking for a mindful and easy to implement a strategy for relieving occasional sleeplessness are turning to the combination of CBD and meditation.
Together, meditation and CBD (particularly water-soluble CBD) can offer big benefits when it comes to relaxing into sleep and actually getting some good rest. Each one has its own helpful properties for improving sleep quality but, when combined, the benefits are even greater.
Read on to learn about water-soluble CBD, meditation, and how to use both to get some rest.
Water-soluble CBD for Sleep
Using CBD for sleep is nothing new – but water-soluble CBD is a more recent development. Still, this chemical found in the cannabis plant has been used since ancient times to help people get the rest they need. In the past, CBD was used in combination with the other chemicals in cannabis (known as cannabinoids and terpenes), rather than as an isolated chemical, because they simply used the whole cannabis plant. But the people who utilized cannabis in the past believed it had sedating properties and regularly used it as a sleep aid.
In today’s world, people are still using cannabis as a sleep aid. But these days many are looking to CBD specifically, so they can avoid side effects from other compounds in cannabis. THC, for example, can create the characteristic “high” from cannabis, so those looking to avoid this effect may opt for using CBD alone. In fact, sleep is one of the top three reasons people give when asked why they use CBD as survey results of Gallup in 2019 (based on U.S. adults using CBD products).
Water-soluble CBD isn’t as widely used yet when compared to oils or edibles, because not many people realize it’s out there, or have heard about its benefits. But using a water-soluble CBD product can make using CBD for sleep even easier. Water-soluble CBD offers a few big benefits over your average CBD oil or edible. For one thing, it is fast-acting. So, you can take it right before bed and not have to wait hours until it actually kicks in. It is also more bioavailable, which means that more of the CBD you are ingesting will actually make it into your system and trigger helpful effects. It’s also easy to use because you can just put a few drops in your mouth or mix it into anything you are already drinking before bed.
Why CBD Helps With Sleep
It makes sense that many are turning to CBD and other cannabinoids for sleep. These cannabinoids are able to interact with an important system in the human body that actually modulates how we sleep. This system, known as the endocannabinoid system, is comprised of natural chemicals called endocannabinoids, cannabinoid receptors that are triggered and activated by these endocannabinoids, and enzymes which help to clear endocannabinoids from the body. This system is charged with keeping many of the body’s natural functions in balance or homeostasis. It regulates our sleep functions, along with other aspects of our body’s functioning like hunger, mood, energy levels, and immune response.
Interestingly, the cannabinoids in cannabis are also able to activate these cannabinoid receptors, and thus impact functions like sleep. So taking a little water-soluble CBD at night may offer the endocannabinoid system a little extra support as it works to maintain balance in your functions related to healthy sleep. This could help with those occasional sleepless nights, and help you avoid that groggy tired feeling the day after.
Benefits of Water-soluble CBD and Meditation
While water-soluble CBD can offer big benefits when it comes to sleep, adding meditation as well can really deepen these benefits. The combination of the two can enhance sleep by calming the body, relaxing the mind, and adding to a general sense of balance and well-being.
How Meditation Helps With Sleep
Another way to boost your body’s natural sleep-inducing powers (beyond adding water-soluble CBD) is with meditation and mindfulness. These powerful practices have been used for centuries to help calm the body, settle the mind, and bring on a sense of deep relaxation that paves the way for restful sleep. Our bodies carry all kinds of stress and tension throughout the day, but many of us have a habit of ignoring the signals from our body as we push through the many challenges and tasks we have to get through in the day. Our busy minds may also be full of thoughts, which we just haven’t had time to process yet. And we may have unprocessed emotional energy from the day hanging around as well. So it’s not that surprising that many of us find ourselves processing all of that when our heads hit the pillow.
Even though we may be tired, we find ourselves mulling over the day’s problems, stressing over things we can’t control, feeling the tension in our body, or swimming in a sea of intense emotions. But meditation may help with these challenges because it offers a regular space and time to really tune in to what is happening internally, synchronize the body and mind, and bring a sense of ease and relaxation. Meditating right before bed, around the same time that you take your water-soluble CBD, is ideal if you are looking for benefits to your sleep. But even meditation at another time during the day may help.
The practice of meditation is relatively simple to start, although people spend lifetimes practicing going deeper and deeper into their meditation. At its core, the practice is simply noticing the present moment of your experience, whether that’s while sitting, laying down, or moving. In some traditions, you might be directed towards noticing your breath going in and out of your body.
In others, the focus may be on noticing the sensations in your body or placing your attention on a mantra spiritual prayer for well-being. Whatever meditation style you decide to go with, it can be helpful to stick with one method for a while so your body can attune to it. Finding a meditation class is a great way to get started, but you may also find meditation courses, YouTube channels, or books online that offer instructions for newcomers.
Try This CBD Meditation For Bedtime
Interested in trying water-soluble CBD and meditation? Try this simple CBD meditation before bedtime:
- Before you begin, get ready for bed and let others know not to disturb you. Then prepare yourself for meditation and sleep by taking some fast-acting, water-soluble CBD.
- Once you are comfortably seated or lying down, close your eyes and start to shift your attention onto your body. Starting at your toes and gradually moving up towards your head, notice what sensations are present in your body right now. Do you notice any discomfort or tension? Do you notice any pleasant sensations?
- Whatever you notice, just let your attention rest on the sensation without judging it or trying to change it. Simply notice what is happening in your body and then continue to move your attention further upwards on your body until you reach the top of your head.
- If you fall asleep before you finish scanning your attention over your entire body, congratulations! Enjoy your sleep. You can begin the meditation again if you find yourself waking up and unable to get back to sleep. If you are still awake after scanning your body, shift a level deeper by noticing your breath as it moves in and out of your body.
- As you notice your breath, begin to slow down your exhale while keeping your inhale at its normal pace. Let your exhale take about twice as long as your inhale. You can count to help facilitate this. Count to three on the inhale and six on the exhale, keeping an even pace that feels comfortable for you. This pattern of breathing can help the body to shift into a more sleep-inducing state and ease you into a restful sleep. As the water-soluble CBD helps from one angle, the breathing pattern can help from another, both helping to bring about relaxation and rest. Continue this pattern of breathing until you drift off to sleep, restarting the meditation if you wake up in the night.
Now that you know how to use CBD in your sleep routine, check out other creative ways to add CBD oil to your daily routine.
At Ojai Energetics, we offer a variety of CBD products that you can use to support a healthier lifestyle. In addition to our Full Spectrum Hemp Elixir, we also offer a CBD Coconut Oil that’s great for cooking and a CBD Sport Gel for those with active lifestyles.