How to use the 15 Factors to refine your cannabis experiences on the Jointly app

Are you tired of experiencing inconsistent effects from cannabis or CBD? Do you wish you could have a more reliable and consistent experience every time? Well, the good news is that there are some factors that can impact your cannabis experience, and by tracking and controlling these factors, you can better optimize your results. 

In this article, we delve into the 15 factors that can impact your cannabis experience, including everything from the specific product and ingestion method, to your hydration levels and the people you are with. By understanding the role of the endocannabinoid system and how different types of cannabis can produce varied effects, you can take control of your consumption and enjoy the experience you desire. But don't worry about memorizing all that. The Jointly app helps you track the 15 factors, and delivers personalized insights to help you reach your goals.

Where do the 15 Factors come from?

Have you ever noticed that the same cannabis product can produce different effects (or side effects) from one day to the next? Or that a weed strain that consistently makes you focused and creative has a totally different effect on your friend?

Unfortunately, due to decades of federal prohibition, there is not much scientific research into factors that affect how cannabis makes you feel. However, experts in the cannabis wellness space believe that there are at least 15 factors that can impact your cannabis experience. Jointly enables you to track those 15 factors so you can optimize your results. 

What are the 15 factors that can impact your cannabis experience?

1. The specific product
2. The type of product
3. Your ingestion method
4. Your dose
5. The time you wait between doses
6. The time of day
7. How hydrated you are
8. How full you are
9. Whether you exercise before, during or after cannabis
10. How much sleep you got last night
11. The quality of your diet
12. Whether you ate any companion foods
13. Your environment/physical surroundings
14. The people you are with
15. Your unique endocannabinoid system

Why do these 15 Factors impact your cannabis experience?

To understand why these factors might impact your cannabis experience, it is important to understand the role that the endocannabinoid system (ECS) plays in the human body and how cannabis interacts with this system. 

The ECS is made up of the CB1 (cannabinoid receptor 1) and CB2 receptors and the endogenous cannabinoids that bind to them. The CB1 receptors are found in the brain, nervous system, peripheral organs and tissue, while the CB2 receptors are found primarily on immune cells, although they are also found on bone, spleen and liver cells. The ECS modulates a wide range of biological functions like mood, sleep, pain perception, glucose metabolism, the hormones produced in the gut, cognitive function and more.

Why do different cannabinoids give different effects?

Different cannabinoids can give different effects because they interact with the body in different ways. The most well-known cannabinoids are THC and CBD, but there are many others that are present in varying levels in different strains and products. 

THC, or tetrahydrocannabinol, is the psychoactive compound in cannabis that is responsible for the "high" often associated with marijuana use. THC mimics your body’s endogenous cannabinoids and binds to the CB1 and CB2 receptors. When THC binds to cannabinoid receptors in the brain, it alters the release of neurotransmitters, leading to changes in mood, memory, and other cognitive functions. 

THC can interact with many of the biological functions that the ECS modulates, and can produce a wide range of effects and side effects as a result. For example, cannabis affects insulin and hunger hormone levels and cannabis can improve brain health in seniors. Low doses of THC can relieve stress or anxiety, but high doses may cause anxiety in some people. This is called a biphasic (two-phase) effect.

Due to the biphasic effects of cannabinoids like THC, dose is one of the most important factors to dial in when optimizing your cannabis experience. Whenever you try a new product, it is important to start with a small dose to establish the potency and add more as needed. If you find the minimum dose you need to create the effect you want, you save money and decrease your risk of side effects. 

CBD, or cannabidiol, on the other hand, does not bind to these receptors and does not produce intoxicating effects. Instead, it seems to bolster the body's own endocannabinoid system, which is involved in regulating a variety of physiological processes, and may have a range of therapeutic effects. 

CBD increases concentrations of your body’s endocannabinoid levels. As a result, the scientific literature indicates that for some purposes like healing bone fractures, it is better to consume CBD for an extended period of time to harness the cumulative effect of CBD on your body’s endocannabinoid levels. While CBD and THC are the most studied cannabinoids, cannabis contains over 500 chemical compounds, including lesser-known cannabinoids, flavonoids and terpenes, many of which have biological effects. 

Other cannabinoids, such as CBN, also interact with the endocannabinoid system and can produce a range of effects, although they are less well-studied than THC and CBD. Additionally, the presence of terpenes, which are aromatic compounds found in many plants, can also contribute to the effects of cannabis. Different strains and products will contain different ratios of these compounds, which can result in varying effects.

For example, terpenes can affect neurotransmitter levels. Different product types (concentrates versus edibles versus flower) will contain different levels of these compounds and produce a range of effects. You can filter products in Jointly's cannabis and CBD catalog by product type, cannabinoid, flavor and more. 

Jointly allows you to filter products by 15 different cannabinoids, so be sure to check out Jointly Matches and Cannabinoids if you want to learn more.

Why does cannabis affect me differently from day to day?

We have established that cannabis can produce a wide range of effects due to the complex role that the ECS plays in the human body. We have also explored why different cannabis products, product types and strains can produce different effects. However, your body is also in flux, and the effects of cannabis may differ based on your biology from moment to moment. 

Some of these fluctuations are regular like your circadian rhythm, which is “an ongoing neurochemical ebb and flow from morning to night.” For example, cortisol (stress hormone) is elevated in the morning to wake you up, but at night cortisol levels fall and levels of melatonin (sleep hormone) rise. This cycle allows you to fall asleep and wake up. If you consume the same cannabis product in the morning versus at night, your neurochemical and hormonal state is different, and cannabis or CBD might produce different effects or side effects. If you figure out how the time of day affects your cannabis experience, you can use this data to adjust how you consume cannabis and improve your results. 

Other biological fluctuations can be caused by our immediate environment. For example, if you are in a stressful social situation, your cortisol levels may rise. If you consume cannabis in that stressful situation, you might experience negative side effects like paranoia. Or you may find the opposite: that, for you, consuming cannabis in a stressful social situation makes you feel more relaxed and social. 

Diet, exercise, companion foods, how hydrated you are—all these factors alter your biological state and could potentially change the way cannabis affects you. If you dial in these factors, you can harness the power of cannabis to improve your well-being and achieve your wellness goals.

How to unlock your perfect cannabis experience with Jointly

Are you using cannabis to achieve a specific goal, like relaxation or improved sleep? If so, it's important to track how well it's working for you. Jointly is a tool that helps you do just that by allowing you to reflect on your cannabis consumption, track the factors that can impact your experience, and report on the effects and side effects in real time. This way, you can make adjustments to your cannabis use and make sure you're getting the desired experience every time. Plus, everyone is different, so tracking your cannabis use can help you understand what works best for you personally.

Purposeful cannabis consumption starts with the question: why do you use cannabis? The next question is: are you achieving that goal? As the saying goes: if you can’t measure it, you can’t improve it. With Jointly, you get to measure how each cannabis product affects you and how well it helps you achieve your wellness goals. So why wait? Start optimizing your cannabis consumption today with Jointly!

Find top-rated products for your goals 

Jointly is the cannabis discovery app that makes it easy to find and shop the best cannabis and CBD products for your goals. Your matches are calculated from the real product ratings and experiences from hundreds of thousands of people using the Jointly app.

If you're ready to discover new products and reach your goals, download the Jointly app today on the App Store or Google Play, or shop your matches on the Jointly website.   

Are you curious about Jointly?

Whether you want to improve sleep, relieve daily stress, or just relax and refresh, Jointly can help you reach your goals with cannabis.  

With Jointly, you can shop your top-rated products, and save lists of your favorites to share and bring to your local dispensary to help guide your shopping experience.  

The Jointly app also helps you improve your cannabis experiences by uncovering what’s working and what’s not with reflections and personalized insights. In fact, the quality of your diet, how much you slept, who you’re with, and the time of day are just some of the factors that can impact your cannabis experience.  

So if you're ready to find your best products and enjoy your perfect cannabis experience, download the Jointly app today on the App Store or Google Play, or shop your matches on the Jointly website. Discovery awaits.