Transdermals: Cross Between Edibles and Topicals... Sorta
Okay, here's one that many of you may not have heard of yet: transdermals. And yes, that's different from a topical and here's how. Topicals are great for relatively surface, localized pain that is mainly caused by inflammation (arthritis, a pulled muscle, a bad back, etc.). Transdermals are much more universal. There are, like topicals, applied directly to the skin. The difference is that there is a compound in transdermals that allow the cannabinoids to pass the blood brain barrier, get into the blood stream, activate, and spread through your whole body. Because they activate and circulate, they do get you high (if they contain THC).
Right now, the company Mary's Medicinals is the leader in transdermal products. They have patches that work in a similar manner to a nicotine patch and gels that are more like lotions. These products come in a variety of cannabinoids, most of which will probably sound pretty foreign to you if you're not familiar with cannabinoids other than THC, so here's a basic rundown.
THC Indica: THC is psychoactive, so this product will make you feel high. Indicas, as discussed in a previous post, make you feel sleepy, relaxed, and happy. These patches are great for night time use, especially if you are suffering from chronic pain, seizures in your sleep, insomnia, restless leg syndrome, or just want a really good night's sleep. I used about 1/4 of one of these patches on a plane one time. Before this, I had been prescribed Klonopin for flying, which I usually washed down with two glasses of red wine. With this cocktail, I was usually able to sleep for about 10-20 minutes at a time on planes. When I used the patch, however, I was asleep for the full 3 1/2 hour plane ride from Denver to Philadelphia. I have never had such an easy flight!
THC Sativa: THC is psychoactive, so this product will make you feel high. Sativas produce more of the head high, and are more energetic so this would be ideal for daytime use. It is especially beneficial to those dealing with ADD/ADHD as it can feel similar to adderall, but without making the user feel strung out or not like themselves. It's, also, great for those who suffer from migraines. Because these patches are extended release, they can last up to 12 hours which is much longer than smoking. However, if you feel a migraine coming on, inhalation is going to be the fastest way to get relief, as you feel that within about 5 minutes. Transdermals can take 20-60 minutes to activate.
THC Hybrid: THC is psychoactive, so this product will make you feel high. This is going to be a well balanced high between body and head. It generally feels a little floaty, but very functional. This is generally used to battle nausea, anxiety, and pain during the daytime. It won't be you sleepy the way an indica can be, but it won't be overly stimulating the way a sativa can feel.
CBD:THC: THC is psychoactive, so this product will make you feel high, but CBD tends to counteract the psychoactive properties of THC, so the high will be very mild. It'll more feel like you've taken the edge off rather than really feeling high. In terms of medical benefits, CBD works best when it's used with THC. They basically have a symbiotic relationship where they enhance the effects of one another. CBD helps to increase circulation, take down inflammation, regulate bodily systems such as blood sugar and hormone levels, stop muscular and other kinds of spasms, decrease anxiety, and even fight cancer. THC also helps decrease anxiety, fight nausea, and lessen any physical pain.
CBD: CBD is non-psychoactive, so you will not feel high from this product. I do recommend the 1:1 ratio patch discussed above, but if you don't want to feel high at all, or have a pass drug screenings, then this patch might be a better choice for you. It does all of the things mentioned above under CBD (increase circulation, take down inflammation, regulate bodily systems such as blood sugar and hormone levels, stop muscular and other kinds of spasms, decrease anxiety, and even fight cancer). So if you have a bad back, knee, hip, are suffering from crohn's disease, parkinson's, MS, fibromyalgia, seizures, arthritis, or just went too hard at the gym the day before, you will feel better for using this patch, but it won't affect your headspace at all.
THCa: THCa is non-psychoactive, so you will not feel high from this product. It's very similar to CBD in what it treats, especially pains caused by inflammation. Because they're not very different, I recommend that you try each one and see which one works better for you.
CBN: CBN is mostly non-psychoactive, so you will not really feel high from this product, but you will feel a little stoney and groggy. CBN is the oxidized form of THC and retains about 10% of its psychoactive properties, which creates the groggy feeling. It is mainly recommended for those who suffer from insomnia, as it is great for sleep. It, also, has a mild anti-bacterial/anti-viral property, so it boosts your immune system to fight off infections.
These patches can be cut into smaller pieces; you don't have to use a whole patch at once. You can, also, mix and match patches. The last time I went to get a tattoo done, I used half a CBN patch and half of a CBD:THC patch. The CBD:THC patch took down my pain level, and the CBN patch helped me relax and settle into my 3 hour session. They are extended release, so you should start to feel effects after about 20-30 minutes, and full effects after an hour. Typically the patches last for 8-12 hours. You will notice that the mg level on the patches is much lower than on edibles. This is because transdermals bypass the liver, which filters out a lot of THC. Because you're losing this filtration process, more of the THC and other cannabinoids will pass into your bloodstream with transdermals than with edibles, so they can make them less potent, but they still feel just as strong. What's really nice about these is that, if after a few hours or so you don't like the effect of the patch, you can remove it and the effect will stop pretty quickly. If you've ever eaten too much of an edible and had no choice but to ride it out, you know how great this option can be!
These patches work best if you apply them, not right where the pain is, but on thin skin in proximity to the pain. You want to get the cannabinoids into your bloodstream as quickly as possible so that they can start working, so it's best to apply them to places like the tops of the feet, the inside of the wrists or hips, or behind the ears. If you have chronic headaches, behind the ears or on the back of the neck would be best as that's where you have thin skin, but it's close to the pain. If you have back pain, apply the patches to the inside of the hips for proximity, etc. I do recommend that you apply even amounts to either side of the body for the best results.
The gel is a little bit different in how you apply it, but no different in effects. The gel pen either twists or clicks at one end, and squirts out 2mg of gel. You still want to apply it to places where the skin in thin, but you do have more options as you won't be wearing a patch all day. For example, if you have a headache, you can pally the gel directly to your temples. The gel will activate in about 20-60 minutes, just like the patches, but the patches are extended release and the gels aren't, so the gel will likely wear off after about 4-5 hours. Luckily, it's physically impossible to use too much of this stuff, so reapply as necessary.
Transdermals can be a great way of medicating if you don't want to smoke, or want longer lasting relief without having to eat something. I can imagine that if you're going through chemo, you might not want to eat a whole brownie to get your medicine, and this is a wonderful alternative. It's discrete, odorless, and long lasting. You may be thinking that there's no way you could get high from a patch, but I say don't knock it til you've tried it!
