Tag Archives: CBD

Transdermal Patches: An Introduction

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I first learned about transdermal patches from a good friend in Colorado whose son uses the CBD patches for pain management. For their privacy, we’ll call them Brenda and Will. Brenda had the patches recommended by a doctor for Will’s pain related to cerebral palsy. They are easy to apply and have much less side effects than opioids (and most other pain pills). The transdermal’s effects last up to 12 hours, so you don’t have to remember every 4 or 6 hours to administer another dose – or wake up to take them in the middle of the night. While other medications are necessary for his complete pain management, the CBD patches provide a more reliable and consistent foundation of pain relief than Will has ever had.

Brenda then shared that she had used them for pain as well, including after she had knee surgery. When she went in for her 3 month checkup after the surgery, her doctor was surprised to see that the knee had healed as well as if it had been 6 months. He asked her what she had done to accelerate her healing and she shared how the CBD patches had helped manage the pain and must had had an impact on the healing.

She wears the transdermal patches herself as needed for pain relief and other effects.

The transdermal patch is something like a nicotine patch, if you’ve ever seen one of those. It has an outer layer that often looks like a type of bandage fabric, a layer of medication in a medium designed to dispense consistently while worn, then a layer of adhesive to make sure it sticks to your skin.

Patches come in either single formula or a mix. They can comes as THC-Sativa, THC-Indica, THCa, CBD or CBN. There are slao patches with rations, such as CBD/THC 1:1.

To apply them, you find an area of your skin that is venous like the inside of your wrist or ankle. You can apply them close to a point of pain like a knee or hip as well, just try to make sure the area is free of oil, hair or scars. Use isopropyl alcohol to clean the area before applying the patch. Apply it firmly and evenly to ensure it adheres well to your skin. We like to use rubbing alcohol not only to clean the area but that it helps to remove the adhesive once you remove the patch.

Usually patches provide an even, long lasting effect as they release over time. As with edibles, the effects can be impacted by what you eat. If you feel the effects are too strong, try eating something to see if that reduces the effect. The effects can be boosted by using transdermal gels, edibles or smoking flowers. Always get to know your reactions to individual products first before combining them.

A favorite is Mary’s CBN patch, used to help you get to sleep and stay asleep. My local dispensaries often sell out of them within days whenever they get them in.

Read the Review: Mary’s CBN Transdermal Patch.

Kanha 1:1:1 THC:CBN:CBD Tranquility Blue Raspberry Flavor Gummies Review

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Kanha cannabis infused Tranquility gummies contain a 1:1:1 ration of CBD to CBN to THC. Each piece has 5mg CBD, 5mg CBN, and 5mg THC, to support relaxation and sleep. They are some of the most popular products at our local dispensaries and we understand why. Kahna Tranquility do a great job of relaxing, supporting calm and sleep. There are 10 pieces making the package total 50mg each of THC, CBN, and CBD.

These gummies are made with gelatin, so they are not vegetarian or vegan friendly. They are gluten-free. They contain no food allergens like dairy, nuts or soy. Each piece has 10 calories so the whole bag only sets you back 100 calories.

Taste & Effects

The smell from the package is a sweet blue raspberry-like berry smell. Each gummy is covered in a fine sugar coating that provides an initial sweet taste. Once that disappears, there is a semi artificial non-specific berry taste I can’t put my finger on mixed in with a slight cannabis oil taste. That taste lasts for quite a while, transitioning to something of a fake cherry aftertaste. Like other Kanha gummies I’ve tried, they are not the most pleasant tasting cbd gummies I have had, since I don’t like artificial flavors, but they are perfectly fine tasting.

Kanha gummies are robust, taking a good five minutes to dissolve in the mouth. I am willing to overlook a less-than-wonderful taste when the edible delivers the effects I like and this is a good example. As with all new edibles, I took half of my usual dose the first time to judge how strong they are. My usual dose is 10mg of THC and up to 20mg of CBD. Since these CBD gummies come in 5mg THC/CBD pieces, I started with one. I took it first one evening about an hour before I was going to bed. Within an hour I could feel the CBN start to have an effect. Yawning told me I was experiencing the relaxing and sleep inducing qualities. I was able to finish what I was reading, brush my teeth and settle in for a good sleep. I slept through the night and felt no “hangover” the next morning.

With 5mg of THC, I did not experience any of the psychoactive effects from taking higher dose THC edibles. When I take an edible with 5mg of THC, I usually get some mild psychoactive THC effects. I found the Kanha gummies to have little of those effects, although I wasn’t awake for too long to experience them. In my experience, CBD lessens the impact of THC, so that I get a stronger effect from 10mg of just THC than I do when there is 10mg of THC and 10mg of CBD in a gummy.

THC does work together with CBD, so I like the equal ratio of CBD to THC in this gummy because it helps activate the CBD. I find these work better than products that only contain CBD. If you are looking for a CBD gummy edible with an equal dose of CBD, CBN, and THC, this edible is a good choice. Many products contain only CBD and no THC, which I find much less effective.

The package suggests taking between 1 and 3 doses. Since even 3 doses would have 15mg of THC, you would have to be careful about psychoactive effects. I usually find 15mg of THC to be too much, but with the CBD reducing the impact of the THC effects, I can sometimes take a higher than usual amount without undesirable side effects. Some folks are sensitive to the CBN component – a little goes a long way for some people. Always start low and go slow with edibles and judge the impact for yourself, as we all react a little differently.

Wrap Up

For relaxation and solid sleep support plus a healthy dose of pain relief, Kanha Tranquilty CBD:CBN:THC gummies are a good choice. While I don’t love the flavor, it is not enough to prevent me from enjoying the powerful effects. Overall a good choice if you are looking for support with getting asleep and staying asleep plus the anti-inflammatory and other effects of a 1:1:1 CBD:CBN:THC gummy edible.

Now available in California, Massachusetts, Nevada, and Illinois.

Taste: 3

Strength: 8

Website: https://kanhatreats.com/high-quality-cannabis-gummies/cbd/

Kikoko Cannabis Infused Organic Teas Review

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Kikiko has a line of four tasty teas that deliver various combinations of THC, CBD and CBN. Each one is formulated to deliver specific effects, as their names indicate: Tranquili-Tea, Positivi-Tea, Sympa-Tea and Sensuali-Tea.

Kikoko TeaTranquili-Tea is for relaxing and to help  you sleep, with 5mg of CBN and 3mg of THC. Positivi-Tea is for mood lifting and pain relieving effects with 10mg THC and 5 mg CBD. Sympa-Tea is for pain management and anxiety relief with 3mg of THC and 20mg of CBD. Sensuali-Tea is described as being “for passion and play” on the website, with 7mg of THC.

Kikoko uses organic ingredients and high quality cannabis in their products, so they are a premium product. This creates a price point per dose that is higher than the average edible or beverage. I am frugal so I usually re-use the teabag once. The label clearly says that there is no increase in potency after one minute and that these are single use teabags, but they have enough good flavors that they make a nice second cup of tea even if it doesn’t deliver any cannabis effects.

Tranquili-Tea

Tranquili Tea Kikoko

The Tranquili-Tea works very well. About 45 minutes after a cup in the evening I start to feel very relaxed, after an hour I usually feel like heading to bed. I am able to fall asleep easily and stay asleep. If I do get up it is not hard to get back to sleep. I sometimes feel a little something different in the morning, but too slight to call it a hangover, let’s call it a fuzziness that dissipates quickly. I especially love the tastes of peppermint, camomile, lemon myrtle and licorice root that come across without a medicinal taste. I had a friend who has gone through cans and cans of these as he has trouble sleeping and they work like a charm for him.

I’m a tea drinker and really like the taste of Tranquli-Tea. It’s THC dose is low, but you definitely feel the calming effects of the Indica cannabis. I would surely recommend their use as part of an evening wind down or anti-anxiety routine.

Positivi-Tea

Positivi-Tea Kikoko

Positivi-Tea has the most THC of any of the Kikoko teas at 10mg. Due to that dosage, this tea has the strongest THC flavor of any of the teas we have tried. It is still barely noticeable and does not make the tea taste bad or medicinal. You have to like mint flavors if you want to like this tea as it has both peppermint and spearmint in it. Some folks are not a fan of peppermint, so this is not a taste they might like. I have fond memories of having tried teas in Amsterdam, so I was excited to try this.

While I usually take some caffeine with our edibles, the green tea in this product provides a good amount of caffeine to help boost the effect. Instead of having an edible with breakfast, I had this tea along with a medium sized breakfast. I started to feel the effects in a mild way in about an hour, which is longer than usual. Everyone is different and reacts differently to different products. Be aware that these may take longer to have the effects felt than other edibles or “drinkables”, so be patient when waiting for the effects.

After two hours I was only feeling a mild effect, what I usually expect from a 10mg THC dose when it is paired with CBD, because for me CBD reduces the impact of THC. The effect was noticeable, just weak. So many things effect how we respond on different days like the type and amount of food in our system. Whatever the reason, after two hours I felt I wanted a stronger effect so I augmented the tea with Mary’s Medicinals THC Transdermal Pen for a boost. The boost helped temporarily but soon I was back to only a mild effect. My experience is that this product is good for people who want a mild effect from a 10mg dose. It isn’t strong enough for me to use without boosting it with something else, or making a tronger batch.

Have not tried the Sensuali-tea, but the Sympa-tea has the pain relief you expect from a CBD dose.

These are one of the more expensive cannabis edibles per 10g dose that are available. For our chart of comparing your cost per 10mg THC dose, see our COst Per Dose post.

Kikoko’s teas are an excellent, high quality and unique way to elevate. Great flavor profiles and good strength make this a solid choice, especially when you want to treat yourself or those you love.

Taste: 8

Strength: 6

Website: www.kikoko.com

Korova Cannabis Infused Ginger Chew Mini Cookies Review

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Korova makes ten flavors of mini cookies, including the Ginger Chew flavor I tried. I prefer edibles that either indicate the type of cannabis used (Indica, Sativa or Hybrid) or that indicate the strain name (Sour Diesel, OG Kush, Romulan, etc.). Unfortunately Korova does not indicate either of these on their packaging or their website. This means you take a gamble on the effects you might experience. Most of the cookies simply say “Made with Hybrid Cannabis”. A good reason to start low and go slow, as with all THC edibles.

Korova Ginger Chew Mini Cookies

Most of the cookie flavors come in 100mg packages with 10mg of THC per cookie. Korova  has two a Vanilla Bean flavored mini cookies with CBD. There is a 1:1 THC to CBD ratio, with each cookie having 10mg THC & CBD and a high-CBD mini cookie that has 15mg of CBD per cookie.

Packaging is easy to read and fairly easy to open, with a child proof mechanism similar to how many of the dispensary exit bags used to work, using a thumb to grab one side while pulling open the other side. The closure is sturdy and easy to re-close. The cookies are loose inside, not individually packaged.

Korova Ginger Chew Mini Cookies package backKorova is right up front about its ingredients – literally. Right on the front they list all 12 ingredients. All of the ingredients are ones you have heard of, with no hard-to-pronounce chemicals, artificial colors or flavors. I also like how the package back comes with the reminder that with edibles you can always eat more but you can never eat less.

Taste

The cookies look, smell and taste great, like a good quality crunchy cookie. For the Ginger Chews, there is a tiny bit of chew but it is mostly a crumbly butter cookie. They have a very nice ginger cookie taste with ginger, brown sugar and butter the predominant flavors. I hardly was able to taste the cannabis, which for folks who don’t like that taste is a big positive. Even the aftertaste was butter cookie, not THC.

I can see why people are fans of Korova, since they produce a good tasting product and keep the ingredients simple.

Effects

Within 30 minutes I started to feel the effects of a mild buzz. It remained on the mild side. It was hard for me to tell from the effects if this was an Indica or Sativa. I felt a little relaxed but not a lot. I did not feel the uplift, energy or focus I normally get from a Sativa edible. These seem to be a balanced mild hybrid with a slight cerebral high and a mild relaxing body high. I tried these several times in the afternoon and they did not give me a strong head high or any significant body effect, just a slight stoned feeling.

If you are sensitive to THC, if you are new to edibles or just prefer a mild effect, these could be a good product for you in terms of effects. I prefer my effects to be more noticeable, to give me a decent strength either in the direction of energy and creativity or in the direction of relaxation or pain relief. I did not find any strong effects with these at my usual dose. These could be perfect for folks who get strong effects from a dose smaller than 10mg or who are looking for a mild buzz.

Great tasting edible using real ingredients with a mild hybrid effect.

Flavor: 8

Strength: 4

Website: http://www.korovaedibles.com/

Transdermal CBD Gel Trampled My Pain

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A good friend was sharing her positive experiences with transdermal patches, and she whipped out the Mary’s Medicinals transdermal gel pens that she uses to boost the effects of the patches. The lotion-like gel is what gave me my initial first-hand experience with a transdermal CBD application.

Besides the pens, Mary’s Medicinals also makes transdermal patches in several formulas – THC Sativa, THC Indica, CBD, and more. Mary’s makes transdermal gel pens in similar formulas. Each pen dispenses a measured amount of medicated gel, that is similar in consistency to a skin lotion.

Mary's Medicinals Transdermal Gel Pens

I was experiencing severe pain in my left wrist, unable to support any weight with it in several different positions.  Traditional pain relievers (advil, aspirin, tylenol) didn’t make much of a dent in the pain. I tried ingesting THC and CBD tinctures which provided some general relief but didn’t target the pain. It had gone on for weeks and I was about to make an appointment with my doctor to see if it was arthritis or something more serious.

My friend suggested I try the transdermal lotion. I rubbed a nickel-sized portion of the CDB lotion on my wrist and within an hour the pain was completely gone. I have had no sign of the pain since then and it has been over 6 months. From that point on, I have been an advocate for transdermal CBD application. Whether as a topical gel or in transdermal patches, it works especially well for pain that is specific to one area.

My pain was likely from inflammation, which CBD can be great at reducing. I have also used the CBD gel rubbed on my temples to reduce headache pain or on the back of my neck at the base of the skull when I feel tension built up there. The great thing about the pen is that it dispenses small portions so it easier to control how much you use.

For general aches and pains, edibles and tinctures are fantastic. For pain in specific areas, transdermal gels and patches provide more targeted relief.

Read more about Mary’s Transdermal Pens and patches, including one of our favorites for sleep, Mary’s CBN transdermal patch.

Green Hornet Sativa, Indica & Hybrid Cannabis Gummies Review

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From CheebaChew comes Green Hornet, a line of cannabis infused gummies. It’s great that they have a Sativa specific product, so consumers know what types of effect they are likely to experience. Like most adult-use edibles they come in a package of 10 pieces, each with 10mg of THC.

I found the package very difficult to open, so if you have limited mobility with your hands, arthritis or just a low boiling point, plan to get the scissors out so you can cut this bag open and store the edibles in a child-proof container that is easier to open.

Flavor – Hated It.

The Sativa gummies are Mixed fruit flavor. I am not a fan of the artificial cherry flavor that is prominent. It reminds me of cherry cough drops or that awful tasting cherry flavor some dentists use to clean your teeth. The other fruit flavors are indistinct to me, a mix of generic citrus, possibly some artificial pineapple flavor, it’s hard to tell. The dominant flavor is the cherry, which I find unappealing. It lingers as an artificial aftertaste even when the gummy dissolves. It does cover up most of the cannabis oil flavor, but I would rather taste the oil than the flavors used in this gummy.

Besides artificial flavors, these gummies contain artificial colors, carnuaba wax, and gelatin. They are free from dairy, gluten and fat, but are not all natural or vegan.

Effects

I definitely felt “stoned” with these edibles, so the strength is there. I didn’t experience most of the usual effects I expect with Sativa edibles – uplifted mood, energy and creativity. I just felt high with no impact on mood, no extra energy and without feeling especially “up”.

I found the effects to be more of a Hybrid type effect than a pure Sativa effect. It was a somewhat dreamy, spacey high. Perfect for just hanging out with friends, watching a movie or taking a bath. I was able to relax and space out. I did not have couch lock or become non functional, so it was not a heavy Indica type effect. I would not want to have to concentrate on anything while using these, I found them too spacey for that. They could be good for creative activities where you just let your mind wander. I’m not sure I would want to cook something where I had to follow a recipe as I felt too spacey for that.

I did have heightened senses and strong food cravings, aka the munchies. Food tasted great and was extra enjoyable to eat. These gummies would be great for anyone who is trying to boost their appetite. Beyond that and the stoned feeling, I did not experience much of any other effects even after repeated tests.

Conclusion

There are so many cannabis infused edible gummies on the market that taste better and provide effects I find more desirable, that these won’t make my regular rotation. If you are not put off by an artificial cherry/generic fruit taste and you are looking for a straight up stoned feeling, these gummies may be great for you.

I like the Cheeba Chews brand and like their original product line. I also do like very much that they make these Green Hornet THC gummies with specific Sativa, Indica, Hybrid types. The flavor and the effects are not a good match for me, but if the taste and effects sound good to you, consider giving them a try as they certainly have an impact.

Taste: 2

Strength : 6

Website: https://cheebachews.com