What’s better vaping or CBD oil during pregnancy to relieve stress?

[Anonny22]

Hi you may recognise me from my previous post. I’m sorry I haven’t got round to replying to that yet but will. Thanks for all the help. I’m 9 1/2 weeks pregnant. I tend to overthink and get easily stressed especially over what happened to me two years ago. I’ve read somewhere that you can’t use CBD oil during pregnancy as there’s no evidence of its safety. Vaping has mixed findings and views. Midwives prefer that to smoking. The thing is before pregnancy I used both to calm me down when I was stressed or anxious and they really did work. CBD oil and sleepy tea at night on nights when I was so anxious and found it harder to sleep. I haven’t touch either of them since finding out I’m pregnant. My issue is that it’s getting to a point when I will have to start up one or both of them because my worrying along with brain fog and fatigue is forcing me to go on them again. This week with brain fog hasn’t been that bad but last week I was really bad constantly making mistakes and forgetting things etc then getting so so annoyed and stressed at myself. I have an under active thyroid that’s medicated but I need a higher dose. They lowered my dose the month I got pregnant which was fine when I wasn’t pregnant but now I am my body is struggling again. When I order my meds again I will ask them for the dose I was on before because I coped better on them. I feel stupid because especially at work I feel I just look stupid and not with it. I have to drink a coffee every day to boost myself but because of the caffeine limit I can’t have a lot which is annoying as I really need a good boost most days. The worrying about telling family and in laws I’m pregnant and the thought of more agro and little to no support is sending me to dread. Also the thought of having a really needy high needs baby as the result of stress is making me feel stressed and blame myself that I’ll not be good enough. My capacity to mental deal with a baby would be fine with a bit of support but with no support and a high needs baby I don’t know how I’ll handle that. I just want to be a good mum and give my child a good life but I feel with the situation that my child will end up with additional needs and I may even end up having that child taken into care if my mental health spirals. I know I sound ridiculous.

vaping really helped me calm down and I used it as a tool throughout the last year. Because those disposable vapes have nicotine and if I have a bit in the mornings it may help wake me up whilst calming me. CBD oil just calms me right down and now that I technically can’t use them I’m struggling and I dread any agro with families happening but it’s becoming less and less of a choice not to use them. I feel like I need to use one or both to cope. Will this really affect my baby because I feel the untreated constant stress would be way more damaging. In a perfect world I wouldn’t. Am I being unreasonable? Have any of you used any of these and your baby turned out ok? Thanks

You can buy it from Holland and Barrett.

No it’s not weed :)
CBD oil (such as sold in Holland and Barrett on the high street) contains some cannabinoids but no THC (the bit that makes people ‘high’/ increases risk of psychosis).

CBD oil has found to be clinically helpful for individuals with chronic pain, anxiety etc.

im not saying that you should use it in pregnancy but it’s perfectly legal to use and not a ‘drug’. Hope that helps :)

You sound really immature. If you're this incapable of putting your baby first I think you should seriously consider whether becoming a mother is really for you. And get help for your addictions. Your midwife can signpost you towards help for addiction during pregnancy.

Don't try to convince yourself you need these things because you are anxious !! You don't and you shouldn't self medicate. Go to the GP and use techniques that aren't harmful such as cbt or dbt or mindfulness.

Talk to your midwife and/or gp. I'm not sure how old you are but are you really ready to be a parent to be blunt? I'm hoping that in real life you have support

Fair enough. Probably wouldn't risk it if it were me.

You need an emergency appointment to review your thyroxine dose because you are pregnant. Then you can talk about your stress levels whilst you're there.

Me neither to be honest!

This is harsh, but you really dont sound ready for a baby at all.

Neither are good for you or the baby.

You need therapy for stress and anxiety (CBT eg).

Speak to your GP urgently.

If you're stressed like this now and wanting to vape etc to cope, I am worried how you will cope to manage the stress a child brings. You are looking for a plaster. A recipe for disaster.

Get therapy. You may well be prioritised for therapy in your area as you are pregnant.

Don't ignore this advice. I'm a therapist.

I will mirror everybody else. As a lone parent to a child with additional needs (not through exposure to CBD oil or vaping, just FYI), if you cannot get through a pregnancy without resorting to either of the above, I would hate to think how you'd cope IF your child did have additional needs. My life is full of nothing but stress and anxiety and I've yet to feel the need to resort to either, nor would I want to as the carer of a child with additional needs.

Although there is barely any THC in CBD (less than 0.2% in the UK), there is still a small amount for the people saying ‘it’s just cbd’. I have no problem with CBD and I’m pro legalisation however it would concern me exposing a developing foetus to it.

hon, please get a referral for extra support asap ....you do know that brain fog and anxiety are both symptoms of an under-treated thyroid? you are never going to get positive feedback on using cbd oil or vaping during pregnancy as neither can be considered "safe" but equally there is difference between things that are definitely going to cause problems versus those that potentially might. you do really need specialist advice from someone who knows your mental health history and current guidelines in supporting pregnant women...most midwives would prefer someone vaped then smoked because of the huge amount of evidence that smoking harms your baby but that doesn't mean to say vaping is not going to cause problems. You really do have to think long-term as dealing with a young baby is an inherently stressful experience and making changes now will help you in the future.

Sorry - I didn’t mean for my message to be flippant. It was just the thought of a drug and alcohol nurse for CBD oil.

for the record you shouldn’t be using CBD oil in pregnancy OP please get a referral for some mental health support.

take care x

Literally no-one has suggested exposing a foetus to it is a good idea though?

OPAnnony22 ...your GP should have increased your levo dose immediately you knew you were pregnant (usually by 25-50mcg daily) , it doesnt sound as if this has happened so PLEASE book in asap

Talk to your midwife asap. They will refer you for mental health support. Midwife's do give women who smoked previously vapes to use during pregnancy as for some it is better than going cold turkey, though it isn't perfect for baby the levels of nicotine in them are better than the toxins you inhale when smoking - the burning process of a cigarette means you and baby are inhaling high levels of CO2 if you smoke whilst pregnant as well as thousands of other harmful chemicals.

The perinatal mental health team in your area should be able to support you with your anxiety and give you safer ways of managing it I.e. antidepressants that are safe to take in pregnancy. Please see your midwife/ GP about this asap as you need support.

Hypnotherapy
CBT
Massage
Meditation
Yoga
Walking

I would site banned if I responded sincerely.

There are hundreds, literally hundreds, of better choices. Speak to your midwife.

It isn’t weed! It’s made from the same family of plants but so are loads of things including loads of skincare products and hand creams and stuff. You can buy it in Holland & Barrett, ffs, it’s just a supplement. It’s no different to taking Evening Primrose Oil or St John’s Wort or something like that. It doesn’t have any of the psychoactive elements of weed.

There’s actually zero evidence that it actually makes you feel calmer and more relaxed; it’s basically a placebo.

That doesn’t mean it’s advisable in pregnancy, but neither are lots of other things that are also not drugs.

It's not about the substance, it's about the dependency on using a substance to cope. Drug and alcohol midwife is the best professional in this scenario to support with that. Legal or not, it's not healthy for a pregnant woman to be relying upon untested means to deal with anxiety and stress. She needs support and I can't see you offering any alternative advice other than to claim "you've heard it all now". I can guarantee you've not heard it all at all, I assure you.

@Neverhadapaddle I have never heard of a woman being referred to the substance misuse specialist midwife for anything other than alcohol or illicit substances

Or an addiction the prescribed meds

Are you limiting caffeine because of being pregnant? I mean a couple of cups of coffee is going to be better for you than the cannabis oil or vaping.
Also get those thyroid levels checked because if your thyroid is out it wouldn't help the brain fog. Talk to your midwife or gp about anxiety, I know it's a bastard but vaping and or cannabis oil won't help, you need to look at longer term management.

If you're interested in herbal medicine, including cbd oil or herbal teas then you could seek guidance from a medical herbalist who could offer you safe evidence based advice.

You could also raise the issue with your midwife so she can also offer you safe evidence based advice as well as signposting/referring you to the relevant teams such as the perinatal mental health team (if required) or homestart who may be able to offer you some support.