Imagine walking into a work interview. Right in front of you there are six professionals ready to decide if you are the ideal fit. Your hands start to sweat, your heart accelerates, and your body begins to tremble. As the interview takes its course, you start to feel relaxed and are capable of standing out and getting the job.
Initially your body had a natural response to the stressing factors and discharged them once you reached a comfortable emotional state. The accumulation of stressors and the integration of the different emotions surfacing at the moment lead to anxiety. Thus, the physiological response is reflected on your body.
We can see these physiological effects, but what happens at a neuronal level? The above scenario gives birth to sweaty hands and trembling of the voice and body, but what regulated the stress and made way to a successful interview? Stress causes anxiety so let’s take a look inside the human brain to see how stress is modulated.
It starts at the Hypothalamus which controls the release of hormones from the pituitary gland. Here we find the Hypothalamic-Pituitary-Adrenal (HPA) Axis. HPA regulates stress responses, so when you reached the interview office your Hypothalamus released Corticotropin Releasing Hormone (CRH). Then, CRH signaled the Pituitary Gland to secrete Adrenocorticotropic hormone (ACTH). CRH and ACTH are hormones that communicate with our neurons. ACTH travels to the Adrenal Gland where it prompts the secretion of steroid hormones called glucocorticoid. One important glucocorticoid is called cortisol, a major stress regulator.
Our bodies have a special mechanism to regulate stress when cortisol accumulates, and levels become too high. Signaling to the hypothalamus stops the release of stress related hormones. Once this process happened in your brain you start to progressively feel comfortable. You stop shaking your leg. It was making an uncomfortable noise in the office, anyways. Once the stress subdues, you end up killing your interview.
Stress response system
So now we know what happens in order for you to make an outstanding interview and get the job. Wujuuu! The only problem is that this system doesn’t always run smoothly. One example of this are people diagnosed with Anxiety Disorder. Here anxiety goes to a whole new level. It includes panic attacks, chest pain and the felling of terror. If you would feel symptoms of anxiety during your job interview you would probably end up at the hospital and not with a contract in your hands.
For Anxiety Disorder there are prescribed anxiolytics and antidepressants which attenuate excitatory functions of the brain and leave you at a constant relaxed or sedated state. These pharmacological results tend to push people to look for natural ways of medication and in result, self-medication of marijuana.
Marijuana induces the release of ACTH and corticosterone via CRF, the same effect we just saw in the stress regulation system. The main problem is that chronic use of THC (cannabis chemical compound) produces excessive cortisol by impeding communication with the hypothalamus. In other words, the stress system has no stop button. Cortisol keeps accumulating with no end in sight. Excessive cortisol produces a hormonal imbalance which results in anxiety and depression. So, getting too high might result in full panic attacks or mild feelings of anxiety. You know that friend who gets extremely nervous after just one hit. Truly, as a person struggling with anxiety you may end up provoking what you are trying to prevent.
It narrows down to the understanding of oneself and body, and searching for the most optimal solution. Population studies have shown a wide range of people self-medicate with marijuana in order to treat anxiety. Studies report positive results, as well as negative outcomes. There are many factors which contribute to marijuana’s effect on anxiety like strain composition, drug tolerance, environmental factors and pre-existing conditions. All of which influence whether you feel panicked or relaxed after using marijuana. These are all things to keep in mind when deciding which type of treatment to go for. Of course, it’s always recommended to talk to your doctor beforehand.
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