This is a review posted by www.reddit.com/u/anony-mousie on our subreddit /r/CBD.
Hey everyone 🙂 I’ve been taking CBD for a few months now, with about a month of regular usage. I have tried a few different brands, and I know how hard it can be to find the right kind for you. I hope this post helps other CBD beginners!
Here’s some background:
- I take CBD for general anxiety, sexual anxiety, and PTSD
- I probably take between 40 and 60mg per day
CBDISTILLERY ISOLATE POWDER
- price: excellent, $30 for 1 gram of isolate
- customer service: /u/ steelrollin responded to my questions when I messaged, and he’s also pretty active on this forum
- efficacy: I tried the isolate a few months ago, right when I started experimenting with CBD. I had just given up on Cloud 9, which sells e-juice. I was new to vaping too, and that stuff wrecked my coils and didn’t even work. I made my own vape juice with the isolate from CBDistillery, and it worked much better. I used a 50/50 PG/VG ratio and luckily didn’t experience any re-crystallization. I kept the vape on hand to manage immediate anxiety symptoms. For the most part, it was pretty helpful. However, for more intense anxiety or panic, I needed something more. I stopped vaping for a bit and tried tinctures, but only after I’d ordered some more isolate. I started taking full spectrum tinctures regularly, so I didn’t really know what to do with the isolate powder. One day I decided to put a bit of it under the tongue (really just a few granules,) and it was very intense. It wasn’t necessarily a bad experience, but it was extremely potent. I thought it might be a good idea to make a backup tincture with it. I bought a 15ml vial and some MCT oil, then dissolved ~950mg of the isolate into the oil. Since the sublingual administration is pretty immediate for me and lasts longer than vaping, keeping this isolate tincture with me provides some security. I now use it mostly when I feel my morning dose wearing off and I’m not at home to take more. Also, for the price, using this as a backup tincture is totally worth it. The effects are very noticeable and last a while. The only thing about isolate vs. full spectrum for me is that I feel that isolate makes me less focused/more fatigued. I can’t really take it and then do homework, for instance. That could just be me, though, or I might just be taking too much.
- Awesome if… you are on a budget and isolates work for you pretty well. I totally recommend making a tincture with this because it’s still effective and very affordable. I use this as my “rescue.”
- Not so great if… isolates don’t do it for you, or if you need to be super productive/alert. I find this to have a stronger sedative effect than full-spectrum tinctures. (Again, that could just be me taking too much.)
Purchase CBDistillery: https://bit.ly/CBDREVIEWS for 10% off
PALMETTO HARMONY TINCTURE
- price: honestly pretty expensive ($90 for 600mg,) but they give 30% discounts to parents of children with special needs
- customer service: Fantastic. They provide free medical consultations, and the staff is wonderful. When I called, a representative gave me recommendations on dosages based on my needs. He even tried to help me figure out how to save as much of the bottle as possible, given that it’s expensive for me. I appreciated how he took this into consideration, since a lot of companies might have been more focused on profit.
- efficacy: This was my first tincture, and really the start of my CBD journey. (Sorry, “CBD journey” sounds pretty cheesy.) I bought it after having three full-on panic attacks in three days, which is unusual for me. My anxiety seemed to be getting worse and worse. I was considering taking a prescription for it, like Paxil. I have an emergency bottle of Valium (prescribed to me,) and I needed to take it a few times that week. I really try not to do that, though, so this was kind of the last straw. I was on a vacation and noticed that the town I was in just happened to house the only hemp dispensary in my state. I told the woman about my anxiety, and she recommended Palmetto Harmony. I started by taking 12mg, and it was immediately effective. It was incredible. For the first few days, 12mg in the morning was enough to last a whole day. However, I started building tolerance. I increased the dose to 20mg sublingually in the morning, but I’d noticed later that it would start to wear off. This wouldn’t really be a problem if this stuff weren’t so expensive. I acquired another tincture (actually for free) and started alternating it with Palmetto Harmony so I wouldn’t go through it so fast. Compared to the isolate and other tincture, I think Palmetto Harmony’s leaves me with the “happiest” feeling. This lasts a few hours after I take it. Not only does it calm my anxiety, but it seems to really be a mood elevator.
- Awesome if… you’re looking for a very effective tincture and price is not an issue. This stuff is no doubt high quality. Also, this is great if you’re starting out and need some support. Their customer service team is so helpful!
- Not so great if… you’re on a budget and/or require larger doses. Price is really the only downside.
Palmetto Harmony Purchase: Palmetto Harmony redditcbd for 10% off!
CW HEMP EVERYDAY TINCTURE
- price: I actually got this for free, but it’s $74 for I think 500mg. For me, it’s probably too expensive to re-up.
- customer service: n/a
- efficacy: My parents tried this for my brother’s epilepsy but said it didn’t do anything for him. I know now that the dosage for him was just waaaaay too small, but I still wanted to try it for myself. My parents said I could keep the bottle because they wouldn’t be using it anymore, and it had been sitting on a shelf for months. The first time I took it, it didn’t do anything for me either. I only took 1 dropper, though, and I administered it orally. I learned later that you actually need 2 droppers and sublingual is the best method. When I took it sublingually, the difference was night and day. I noticeably felt calm (almost too calm–I needed to write a paper that night) and not anxious at all. I felt a little floaty, but not in a bad way. But 2 droppers is a lot of liquid. When I take this now, I leave 1 dropper under my tongue for 5 minutes, and then do the same with another dropper. It takes longer, but I think this works better for me. The other day, I did this and the effects lasted all day. I didn’t have to re-dose at all, and I felt wonderful. However, sometimes the effects are inconsistent. One definite down-side is how fast the bottle seems to go. I’ve only taken it a handful of times, and I’m already halfway through the bottle. It says there are 30 serving sizes, but it really doesn’t seem that way.
- Awesome if… your concern is how long a dose will last. I’ve found that a dose of this lasted longer than Palmetto Harmony’s tincture did.
- Not so great if… you’re on a budget and if you need your tincture to be super reliable. I really like this stuff, but the price deters me from wanting to purchase a bottle. The inconsistency is another downside. I still have about half a bottle, so I’ll have to see how the rest of it works for me.
Purchase CW Hemp: https://www.cwhemp.com/
Sorry this was so long! Hope that helps anyone trying to choose between these brands. I’ll probably refer back to this when making purchasing decisions in the future. Up next, I’ll be trying Green Mountain Capsules and Dutch Natural Healing’s CBD Active +.
edit: I should also add that CBD has not completely eradicated my anxiety, but it’s made it much easier to manage! It helps with the physical symptoms, and it seems to give me a better “thought filer.” I used to not be able to let go of intrusive thoughts, but now I’m more mindful of them and am better able to not fixate on negativity. I also think it’s made me more mindful of my breathing.
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