Tolerance Break: Benefits, Tips, & Low-THC Products
Need a tolerance break from cannabis? Check out Mood's guide to learn benefits, tips, and low-THC products to make your T-break easier.
Cannabis gets you high by interacting with your body’s endocannabinoid system in unique ways.
That high is an incredible experience, but the powerful effects of cannabis use can sometimes diminish as your body builds up a tolerance for the psychoactive cannabinoids in the plant.
The best way to get back to the honeymoon phase with weed is to take a cannabis tolerance break — sometimes called a “T-break.”
This just means temporarily abstaining from cannabis products and giving your body and brain a chance to readjust. Luckily, this process doesn’t take long at all.
Here’s everything you need to know about taking your first tolerance break, including practical tips to deal with any cannabis withdrawals that you might encounter.
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How You Build Up a Tolerance for Weed
Enjoying regular cannabis consumption can have benefits like helping you relax, boosting your mood, and even inspiring creativity.
Over time, though, you might feel subtle changes in your body and mind’s response to your favorite cannabis products.
This tolerance for cannabis develops after psychoactive cannabinoids like THC repeatedly bind to the CB1 receptors in your brain over an extended period of time.
Cannabis users can get desensitized to the effects of THC as the cannabinoid receptors in the brain weaken their response to the chemical effects of cannabis.
Learn more about cannabinoids from the Mood Blog.
How Long Does It Take To Build Up a High Tolerance for Weed?
If you use cannabis regularly, your tolerance timeline will depend on how often you consume hemp products and the amount of THC you take in with each use. Genetic factors can play a role, too, and so can your weight.
In general, you can expect to see your tolerance increase after any period of prolonged use of cannabis. At this point, a weed tolerance break will serve you well and recalibrate the CB1 receptors in your endocannabinoid system.
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How To Take a Tolerance Break
If you want to keep getting the desired effects from cannabis use without needing higher amounts of psychoactive compounds like THC, a T-break is exactly what you need.
Here’s a quick T-break guide to help you get started with the process:
Choosing the Right Time Frame
In general, a longer break — 21 days or more — may have the biggest benefits. This is because it can take at least three weeks for THC to completely leave your system, effectively resetting your tolerance level.
When you pick a timeframe for your tolerance break, you may want to let a family member or friend know. They can hold you accountable to stick with your chosen timeline so that you can enjoy cannabis again.
Note: Tom Fontana, the Alcohol, Cannabis, and Other Drugs Initiatives Manager at the University of Vermont, created a detailed and well-rounded guide to taking a tolerance break.
We highly recommend checking out his 21-day plan and considering using it as a template for your T-break.
Should You Break Cold Turkey?
While you can reset your tolerance with a cold turkey cannabis fast, it’s not your only option. You can also try any of these alternative plans:
Try
taking a break from cannabis during the day
and enjoy some flower or an edible at night. This type of break is essentially the equivalent of intermittent fasting for cannabis use. However, you may need a longer period of daytime fasting to recalibrate your tolerance.
Lower your overall intake significantly
without quitting altogether. For example, if you tend to use high-potency cannabis products twice a day, you could switch to one micro-dose gummy per day for several weeks.
Skip the THC
, but continue enjoying products that contain cannabidiol (CBD). This non-psychoactive cannabinoid can give you some of the soothing and relaxing effects of cannabis without the high.
No matter your choice, you’ll still most likely experience some withdrawals. That’s part of the process — but you can get through it!
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Get Ready for Mild Withdrawal Symptoms
Taking a break from cannabis often means that you’ll experience some cravings.
In the early stages of your tolerance break, you might also experience some side effects like moodiness, lower appetite, or difficulty sleeping, especially if you’re a longtime user taking your first break ever.
Go Slow When You Start Using Cannabis Again
Once your tolerance break is over, keep your overall intake low for a while for the best experience.
You might find that your body and mind respond differently to your favorite forms of cannabis; keep track of how you feel and increase in small increments.
Learn more about getting (re)started with cannabis from the Mood Blog.
FAQs About T-Breaks
Q: Do I need to take a tolerance break?
A: It might be time for a T-break if your favorite cannabis products aren’t making you feel the way they used to. Diminished effects from hemp can be a sign that your CB1 receptors need time to recalibrate so that you can enjoy weed fully again.
Q: How bad are weed withdrawals?
A: The negative side effects of taking a break from weed can vary from person to person. However, you won’t be putting yourself in harm’s way by taking a T-break; the experience is manageable, safe, and uncomfortable at worst.
Q: What if I use cannabis on my T-break?
A: It’s not a big deal if you end up smoking some weed or enjoying an edible on a T-break — nobody’s perfect. However, you’ll want to start your break over to give your body and brain a chance to fully reset.
Low-THC Products From the Mood Shop
If you’re taking a partial break from cannabis, we’re here to help you ride it out with premium low-THC products.
Here are some of our top recommendations for your next tolerance break:
Morning Delta-9 THC Gummies
These delicious gummies are mild in potency but full of flavor.
With a balanced combination of THC, THCv, and vitamin B12, they can help you get a little boost while you lower your overall cannabis intake during a T-break.
Expect to feel the effects of these gummies in less than 15 minutes.
Grab a 10-count of Morning Delta-9 THC Gummies for just $29. Subscribe to save 15%.
Micro-Dose Delta-9 THC Gummies
If you’re looking for a mild, mellow high and minimal THC content, these gummies are perfect for you. With a 45-120 minute onset and low-key effects, our Micro-Dose Delta-9 THC Gummies can take the edge off of your tolerance break without derailing your goals.
Save $20 or more when you pick up a 30-count of Micro-Dose Delta-9 THC Gummies for just $65. Subscribe and save 15%.
Pure Relief CBD Gummies
Made without any THC or other psychoactive cannabinoids, our soothing Pure Relief CBD Gummies will soak you in a powerful wave of relaxation — no high required.
With long-lasting effects that you’ll feel within two hours, these gummies are available with either 500mg or 1000mg of CBD.
Get a 10-count of Pure Relief 500mg CBD Gummies for just $39. Subscribe and save 15%.
Visit the Mood Shop to find even more high-quality cannabis products.
Prices subject to change.