The argument for CBD and getting that pesky coursework done. Say goodbye to procrastination and hello to efficiency.
With the autumn term just around the corner, you may be wondering: can CBD help you tackle your uni workload? Can it help you beat procrastination, or stave off performance-related anxiety?
In this article, we’ll be delving into the science behind how CBD can help you work more efficiently and creatively, and how it can help with any uni-related anxiety.
But first…
Author’s note: Our articles are not a substitute for medical advice. Please consult your GP or pharmacist with any questions about CBD use. This article is for informational purposes only.
Personal Anecdote
It’s August of 2021. My dissertation is due in just a few weeks, and setback after pandemic-related setback has slowed my progress. I’d spend 4 to 5 hours each day working at the library, accomplishing just 300 words at a time, with a required word count of 10,000 words. I simply couldn’t get the work done fast enough to meet the deadline.
It wasn’t that I didn’t have anything to say—I had the opposite problem, in fact. I simply couldn’t put my arguments into words (ironic for a writer, I know). It’s like the ideas were flying past my head with no discernible common thread, too small and distant for me to grasp and articulate.
Then, I had an idea of something that might help me finish my schoolwork in the last two weeks before the due date. I decided to get a high-strength CBD disposable vape, which I would use before going to the library in the morning, and periodically every hour or so in the breaks I took from looking at my laptop screen.
The initial few puffs in the morning made my body feel lax, my eyelids just a touch heavier than usual (I wasn’t tired, just deeply relaxed), but there was a clarity in my mind that I hadn’t felt since before I’d started my Masters degree.
Suddenly, the blinking cursor on my Word document wasn’t so daunting anymore. I could put words on the digital page—and not just jumbled, senseless words, but the words I’d wanted to write all along. I was suddenly churning out 2,000 words per day at the library over a course of 4-5 hours, and before I knew it, I was actually over the required word count, with a week left until the deadline.
It was truly an incredible feat, and I have CBD to thank for my success.
I’m not just saying this as someone who writes for a CBD blog—although, in fact, this very experience is what has made me such a huge proponent of CBD. I only partly believed the hype before discovering what it could do for me when it came to writing my coursework.
Of course, one could argue that the pressure is what pushed me to work better—but in all honesty, the pressure was what made me falter. I often joke that I’m the reason teachers give maximum word counts, yet for some reason, the stress of not meeting the deadline was really affecting me. I’m certain it was the CBD that ultimately led to me achieving my goal.
It helped me find a sense of calm which did wonders for my work and my critical thinking, and you’ll be pleased to learn that I earned a First on that dissertation. It was some of my best writing to date.
Let’s get into some of the ways CBD can help you get that pesky coursework done.
Does CBD help with coursework?
Yes, it most definitely can.
Now, how is it that CBD can help us work? Does it work for everyone? The answer to the latter is decidedly no—for some people, CBD just doesn’t work this way.
In fact, I had a friend come work alongside me one day during that period, and I gave her the CBD to try, insisting that it helped me more than coffee ever could. She tried it, and after several hours of working, she said that it helped clear her head and calm her nerves a little, but it didn’t affect her in the way it seemed to help me. This is a running theme with CBD: that some people may see a remarkable benefit, while others see little to none.
But if there’s one thing I’ve learned from using CBD (and researching and writing about CBD), it’s that there really is no harm in trying it, so long as your GP says it’s okay. It has such a good safety profile that the worst that can happen is that you experience nothing.
However, if you’re someone who struggles with getting your coursework done efficiently, like me, or if you struggle to work under tight deadlines, then you may benefit from using CBD to help you work.
Let’s break down the science behind how CBD helps you get your work done.
CBD & Performance Anxiety
A study was carried out on subjects with social anxiety, where the participants were tasked with a simulated public speaking test. Some participants were given CBD, while the placebo group was not. The test was repeated and achieved the same results each time.
Participants who were given the CBD before the public speaking test experienced significantly reduced levels of anxiety, cognitive impairment, and discomfort during their performance, and they also had significantly fewer speech errors caused by “anticipatory speech”—which means, in essence, that the participants made fewer stumbles over their planned words. In contrast, the placebo group experienced elevated levels of anxiety, cognitive impairment, discomfort, and speech errors.
So, one thing we know about CBD is that it can lessen performance anxiety. And since performance anxiety often leads to mistakes and cognitive impairment, the participants performed better as a result of taking the CBD.
If we translate this information to my experience with CBD and writing my dissertation, paired with what we know about how CBD affects anxiety, it would explain the experience I had—even though my “performance” was not a public one. I had significant anxiety about not being able to finish on time, which led to cognitive impairment and an inability to formulate arguments on paper.
When I used the CBD vape, I felt clear-headed and logical and was suddenly able to, yes, perform.
My friend, on the other hand, was not as anxious about completing her paper on time, and had a regimented working schedule that made me terribly jealous. She was on track to finish within a few days. This could explain why the CBD helped me more than it helped her.
Still, if this doesn’t sound like your experience with coursework, fear not. CBD can help in other ways, too.
CBD & Creativity in the Brain
Studies have shown that when you use CBD, blood flow to your brain’s frontal lobe is increased.
The frontal lobe is responsible for a number of our most important cognitive functions, including language, emotional expression, problem-solving, logic, memory, and judgement. Some experts suggest that human creativity stems from the frontal lobe.
Increased blood flow to the frontal lobe has been recorded in individuals with greater than average levels of creativity and creative expression. So, it’s safe to assume that CBD, while increasing blood flow to this vital area of the brain, is assisting in creative function.
Plus, it’s important to remember that the way that our brain communicates with itself is through the use of chemical compounds—which are primarily carried through the blood—and via connections between neurotransmitters.
CBD supports your body’s endocannabinoid system, which helps to regulate the information your cells and transmitters send to one another. CBD effectively enhances the efficiency of this signalling system, which leads to quicker connections and more flexibility in your cognitive functions. This is why so many CBD users report an increase in creativity when using CBD.
So, if your problem when it comes to coursework is making new connections and arguments, or threading logical thoughts together in an essay, then CBD may help you significantly in this respect by improving the efficiency of the communication in your frontal lobe.
While it’s difficult to effectively define and measure human creativity, we know from both anecdotal reports and a select few scientific studies that CBD can affect functioning in the frontal lobe and, in turn, enhance your creative processes, which can lead to better performance in written exams, papers, and essays.
These types of assignments are often judged or graded on their logical thinking and their ability to make unique arguments—and these facets are directly related to functioning in the frontal lobe.
How to Take CBD for Coursework
The delivery method you choose for taking your dose of CBD can affect how much it will help with your coursework.
In my personal experience, I’ve found that the more immediate, shorter-acting methods for taking CBD work best when confronting a work session. This means using a form of CBD that “kicks in” quickly, such as a CBD vape or CBD E-Liquid. You can also try smoking CBD flower. I’ve found success in all of these methods, personally.
Inhaling CBD in any of these forms allows for high bioavailability and a very quick onset time. The only downside is that CBD taken in this form wears off quickly—in just a few hours—so if you’re pulling a long work session, you may need to re-up with a few puffs periodically to ensure that the CBD stays active in your system.
Alternatively, if you’re not into vaping or smoking your CBD, you can opt instead for a sublingual CBD oil, which also has a quick onset time. This method has a longer duration than the inhaled method, but I haven’t tried it personally to know how well it works in this specific scenario.
Still, CBD is CBD, and as long as there’s enough of it for your body to absorb and process, it should help you tackle that looming coursework of yours.
Conclusion: Beat Those Uni Blues
So, you should now have a better understanding of how CBD can help you work, especially when it comes to written assignments and even public speaking. It’s shown to improve performance and increase blood flow to the regions of the brain responsible for logical thinking and problem-solving, and it can reduce any anxiety that’s contributing to poor performance—which I learned firsthand from my own experience with it.
The best way to take CBD to help with your coursework is to try a short-acting, fast-onset delivery method, such as inhaled CBD (in the form of vaping or smoking) or sublingual CBD (via CBD tincture or oral drops). Still, even your daily dose of a CBD supplement should help increase performance and lessen any anxiety related to your coursework.
As for me, any time I have a looming deadline, I know what’ll help me get it done fast. A few puffs of a high-strength CBD vape and I’m back to churning out essays like a madwoman.
