The largest review of medicinal cannabis to date found it doesn’t effectively treat anxiety, depression, or PTSD—despite millions using it for those reasons. Researchers warn it could even make mental health worse, raising risks like psychosis and addiction while delaying proven treatments. Some limited benefits were seen for conditions like insomnia and autism, but the evidence is weak. The findings are fueling calls for stricter oversight as cannabis use continues to rise.
Study: https://www.thelancet.com/journals/lanpsy/article/PIIS2215-0366(26)00015-5/fulltext
Archived version: https://archive.is/newest/https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2026/03/260319044656.htm
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There aren’t any drugs that resolve anxiety, depression, or ptsd on your behalf with nothing else. The most any drug can do is reduce feeling these things while they’re active so that the causes of the feelings may be addressed with lifestyle and cognitive changes.
Drugs are a temporary shelter from the raging storm of these issues while you re-build or build up in the first place a real shelter to experience the world from in peace and comfort. The temporary shelter blows away when the drugs wear off, and to rely on a temporary shelter permanently is no solution. That being said, plenty of people without any shelter at all don’t survive. Drugs help, but they don’t fix the problems they provide temporary relief from, you must solve those problems.
Like the study said, there needs to be more specific research in a controlled environment of these substances being used in coordination with established therapies and procedures. I have personal anecdotal experience of positive outcomes with cannabis in a robust framework addressing these issues beyond chemical means. Importantly, I may not have survived without the option to put the overwhelming desire to opt out of this planet on hold for a few hours at a time by briefly regaining my ability to feel pleasure. My psych wanted to try ketamine for this purpose, but I’m a lot more comfortable with cannabis.
smoke a weed, feel euphoria for 10 minutes, then crippling anxiety for 4 hours
worst drug ever thanks
Strange because it’s the exact opposite for me, I’ll get a huge peak of death-fearing anxiety with a quick onset, especially if I do a bit too much, but then it mellows out within 20/30min.
