Welcome to Living in the Weeds, a series that explores the experiences of neurodivergent people who consume cannabis.
Today’s episode is part 2 of Lucy and Jessica’s conversation with Dr. Miyabe Shields, a queer neurodivergent scientist with a Ph.D. in endocannabinoid pharmacology.
Miyabe takes a deep dive into:
- Framing a cannabis routine through the lens of typical pharmaceutical language
- Their 40/40/20 daily cannabis routine and the steps they took to create it
- The medicinal value behind the “wake and bake”
- The benefits of getting detailed in your understanding of cannabis
- Their preferred terpenes and the effects of higher terpene concentrations in cannabis products
- The identifiers they use to tweak their daily cannabis blend based on personal needs
- The importance of creating a reproducible experience
- Why it’s necessary to constantly evaluate your cannabis routine
- The results of Project Chronic’s neurodivergent/ cannabis survey
Curious about the chemical differences in sungrown cannabis? Check out the study Miyab’e mentioned “Comparison of the Cannabinoid and Terpene Profiles in Commercial Cannabis from Natural and Artificial Cultivation“
Loved this episode with Miyabe? You can learn more! Join them at Project Chronic to learn about dosing like a scientist and be included in future research outreaches.
Ready to start tracking your cannabis consumption? Grab one of Lucy’s Tracking Journals here and save 10% off at checkout with code CANNABISWRITER.
My Favorite Points from this Episode
We take a deep dive into Miyabe’s daily cannabis routine in the episode and I am HERE for it.
Creating a Daily Cannabis Routine
Miyabe starts by explaining how their routine changes based on the demands of the day and their emotional and physical capacities. I love that they framed it this way because it highlights just how customized and personal your cannabis routine can get when you have a deeper level of knowledge about the plant and its compounds.
It also speaks to the level of introspection that cannabis can give you; a way to identify and sit with how you’re feeling internally (something that is historically challenging for neurodivergent people.)
The Medicinal Value of Wake & Bakes
For Miyabe, dosing in the morning is most useful – and I’ve found this to be true for myself as well. I first heard of this concept on Miyabe’s Instagram where they explained how endocannabinoid tone is lowest in the morning, and it completely changed how I approached daily cannabis use.
Miyabe goes on to explain why “wake and bakes” have a medicinal value, beyond the “stoner” stigma. Many pharmaceuticals are dosed in the morning as well, and when you consider cannabis as a medicine, the timing makes sense.
Miyabe names one aspect of cannabis that they find most interesting, the blanket anti-inflammatory effects. In a population with chronic inflammation (like neurodivergent people) consuming cannabis helps in the moment, but also creates lasting changes in the body, reducing inflammation-based symptoms.
The Importance of Language in Medical Cannabis Conversations
One of my favorite tidbits from this episode is when Miyabe says “When we’re talking about a cannabis routine, what we’re really talking about is a dose and dose schedule.”
There are so many things that stoners have known for years but haven’t had the language to explain in a conventional medical sense, and when Miyabe said this, something clicked in my brain. A cannabis routine is nothing more than someone creating their own medicinal schedule, and the challenging part is getting the dose and timing right for optimal effects.
The language we use to talk about cannabis (or anything) means everything. Miyabe does such a job of framing “stereotypical stoner habits” through a pharmacological lens, applying medical language and knowledge to reframe the conversation.