Sleep Disturbance & Insomnia
Perhaps one of the most beneficial effects of medicinal cannabis is the effect on sleep and insomnia.
Sleep is a complex physiological process that involves many factors. Sleep is set by a diurnal body clock, which involves hormonal pathways and day/night cycles. Sleep is dependant on mood, anxiety, thought processes. Fatigue is governed by both biochemical and non-organic causes.
Sleep can be disrupted by many different things, ranging from disrupted diurnal rythms, mental health conditions such as anxiety and stress, biochemical causes such as thyroid dysfunction and physiological issues such as Sleep Apneoa.
Diurnal body clock hormones, such as Melatonin, also naturally decline with age.
Sleep Disturbance Can Be Broken Into 3 Main Categories
Sleep initiation - issues with initially getting to sleep, but once you’re asleep you stay asleep.
Sleep maintenance - when you get to sleep, but then wake up and can’t get back to sleep.
Both - some people are affected by both sleep initiation and sleep maintenance issues.
The approach to managing sleep disturbance and insomnia is usually targeted to the individual and depends on any specifically identified triggers, psychosocial stressors, or obvious causative components of insomnia.
Medicinal cannabis can significantly improve sleep initiation and maintenance, as well as overall sleep quality. Medicinal cannabis can be taken in the evening or at night time in an as-needed capacity to improve insomnia, with Indica dominant strains most likely to improve sleep.
Cannabinoid Receptors
Cannabinoid receptors are found throughout the body, including peripheral and central nervous symptoms, the immune system and organs. Cannabinoid receptors are also found in the pelvis, gut lining and endometrium.
Cannabinoid receptor activity likely suppresses the inflammatory response found in Endometriosis, along with relieving complex chronic pain pathways. Cannabinoid receptor action also helps other symptoms often associated with Endometriosis, such as bowel dysfunction, sleep disturbance, anxiety and mood changes.
One of the main differences between medicinal cannabis and illicit cannabis is that the dose of CBD and THC is controlled and administered in a fashion to maximise symptom management while minimising the perceptual or cognitive changes. In this fashion, people get the best effects with minimal disruption to their day.
Medicinal cannabis is an increasingly common and relatively safe prescription medication in Australia and is used by many women for symptomatic relief of treatment-resistant Endometriosis/Adenomyosis.
To access a prescription, make an appointment through our Cannabis Clinic to see one of our Authorised Prescribing Doctors.