As a ton of you probably are aware from following me on social media within the last few months, at the end of November I started incorporating full spectrum hemp oil into my routine from the wellness brand, Ned. I first heard about Ned when I was visiting my friend Christina in San Diego, who had the two co-founders of Ned (Adriaan and Ret) on her podcast, Wellness Realness earlier that month. The company is based out of Boulder, Colorado and by learning so much about them – I’m truly inspired. You can listen to the podcast here because I did on my way home and boy, did I learn a lot. I mostly always direct people to that podcast when I’m talking about Ned but I wanted to share my own personal experience with it, the brand as whole and how I’m super passionate about this product.

While I do make a portion of money from promoting Ned, I truly would not support a brand (especially CBD-focused) that I did not believe in. Truly.

For a bit of background on my journey with anxiety and cbd… I had wanted to take cbd (short for cannabidiol) since about September 2017. Losing my mom in January 2017 and my aunt in April 2017 truly rocked my world upside down, as one could imagine. I felt anxious at points in life prior to those passings but it wasn’t until the following summer and fall (July-September 2017) I felt anxiety trigger every fiber of my being and truly worry me.

I haven’t spoken about it much but there was a period of time after dating a few guys over the summer and struggling with what I wanted to do in my career, where I felt extremely alone. I was talking to my brother constantly and I could tell he was experiencing depression and/or anxiety as well. At times I’d tell my then-roommate it felt as if I was being a therapist for someone else while also trying to deal with my own struggles. Most days my head felt like the feeling you get when you’re in wheel pose in yoga or doing a headstand and the blood rushes to your head. And that was what I felt like sitting up straight… every day. I’d get light headed at work and I was drinking more than enough liquid, stopped drinking as much coffee and was eating every few hours. Still felt it all over.

When I went to sleep, I’d consistently wake up in the middle of the night feeling like I couldn’t breathe, like I was gasping for air or drowning. In the day, I’d go to my usual 6am soulcycle classes and half way through feel a surge of panic like I was going to fall off the bike, have an anxiety attack or pass out. That was when I knew if I’m feeling unsafe in my favorite place doing my favorite activity – anxiety is getting the best of me.

I ended up seeing a functional medicine doctor that September and because I didn’t have insurance at the time, I didn’t do any tests just the usual had my blood pressure taken to see if that could have been the issue. Turned out it was extremely low and at that point, I didn’t know what to do.

With time, this period passed after talking to a therapist in the following months, taking time off from workout classes and incorporating more yoga/light walks into my daily routine. But this entire period of time sparked my interest in seeing how CBD/hemp oil would work. Could it work? Could it help?

As a disclaimer, before I go into talking about my experience with Ned. This cannot cure any disease or illness. I have just personally seen benefits from adding it into my routine.

During the end of 2017/beginning of 2018 I tried one CBD brand and to be quite honest with you, I didn’t like it at all. It had additives in it to begin with and I truly wasn’t passionate about consistently taking it because it didn’t taste all that great. That’s what I’ve personally found with CBD is that it needs to be from a credible source, with no sugars or additives and a high enough dosage to where you can feel the benefits. Also, I’ve found it best to work when taken regularly. That means 2x a day, in my personal experience.

I stopped taking CBD the majority of 2018 just because I couldn’t find a particular CBD that I enjoyed – until Thanksgiving when I was introduced to Ned… which p.s. is called “full spectrum hemp oil” and not cbd. I ordered it Black Friday weekend and I’ve been hooked ever since.

With so many hemp/cbd oils on the market it’s truly hard to decide which one to pick. With Ned, I kind of trusted by instinct after hearing the owners describe the brand and by doing my own research. That’s what I’ll say when purchasing any hemp oil – do. your. research. I mean truly, do your research with anything you ingest whether it’s food or supplements such as cannabidol. With Ned, I did my research and I’m happy with the results it’s given me.

For starters, Ned comes in 3 different dosage amounts: 300mg, 750mg, and 1500mg. As described on their very own website, they say if you’re addressing specific needs to go with 750mg or 1500mg but if you’re just trying to incorporate hemp oil into your daily routine – begin with 300mg. I started off with 750mg and I felt like it was perfect.

The thing about hemp oil that so so many people get confused about is that IT DOES NOT GET YOU HIGH.

Trust me, it may leave you feeling relaxed, at ease and less stressed but it definitely won’t get you high as it has the smallest percentage of THC (it isn’t even listed on the bottle) to the point you could drink an entire bottle and yup… you still won’t feel “high”. THC is what gets you high and the only ingredients found in Ned are full spectrum hemp oil and non-GMO mct (coconut) oil. Nothing else! Because CBD/hemp oil stimulates the endocannabinoid system, it helps to promote homeostasis in the body, reducing the sensation of pain, stress and anxiety — aka reasons why all of us WANT to take CBD (as we all know it by) or HEMP OIL (as Ned calls their product) in the first place.

For those who are wondering “okay but what is hemp oil?” It’s an extract of hemp plants that consists of cannabidiol and it’s accompanying phytocannabinoids. In Ned’s case, the hemp oil is extract directly from the hemp flowers.

Going off of Ned’s FAQ page – their hemp oil is better because they extract it from non-GMO plants (they’re always sharing how the extraction process works on their social page/website), the extract it from hemp flowers (not seeds!) and it has NO isolates or synthetic ingredients. It’s also lab tested to make sure each batch doesn’t contain heavy metals, toxins or mold.

I think I may be a weird in saying this, but I truly enjoy the taste of Ned’s full spectrum hemp oil. In the morning I take half a dropper full in my matcha or coffee and no, it does not make me sleepy and truthfully I can’t taste it at all when it’s added to my beverages! I personally think that a lot goes into how CBD/hemp oil affects you. If I take mine in the morning, I’m calm and less anxious about the work ahead of me. If I take it at night right before I go to bed and I turn my phone off, it helps calm me down and I sleep through the night.

Coming from someone who used to wake up in the middle of the night for months, I sleep right through the night and even right when I started taking it I was actually sleeping through a few alarms… no joke!

To finish up, I’m here to answer a few of the questions you guys were looking for an answer to.

1.What mg do you take per day? Not sure I want to spring for the 750mg yet.

I personally take the 750mg and want to take the 1500mg once my current bottle is up. The reasoning behind this is I feel as though I take a whole dropper now and could take 2/5 of the dropper and still feel the same effects but be cost-effective if I had a higher dosage. Once again, it doesn’t get you high so “taking a higher dosage” won’t get you high. Promise!!!

2. I have it and it doesn’t do anything. 

Not many people have said this to me but I would always recommend going higher in dosage and making sure you are taking it 2x a day rather than whenever you feel like it. You can take it straight and it travels so really you have no excuse not to take it morning/night 🙂 The owners have noted that it can sometimes take a month for you to start feeling the benefits but keep at it – there’s no harm to taking it. I also do know that every body is different. I know some people who take other CBD oils that have a small, small percentage of THC in them because that’s what their body needs (especially if you may have a disability or illness).

3. Would you recommend Ned for anxious flyers?

Absolutely! I love taking it anytime before I’m anxious or need a breath to calm down. The recommend way to take Ned (via their site) is to drop 15-20 drops under your tongue, take a few deep breaths and swallow. I instantly feel a sense of ease.

4. Why is it sometimes called CBD vs. hemp vs. hemp seed oil? 

Full spectrum hemp oil comes directly from the hemp flowers, where as hemp seed oil would be coming from the hemp seeds. I occasionally call Ned “CBD oil” because it’s easier for someone who isn’t familiar with hemp/cbd products to understand, truthfully, but many “cbd oil” brands have added ingredients whereas Ned’s full spectrum hemp oil includes “cbd” and “its accompanying phytocannabinoids”. While it does contain accompanying phytocannabinoids, it contains such small amounts of tetrahydrocannabinol aka THC (THC), the psychoactive cannabinoid, so it WILL NOT get you high 🙂 I’ve said it a bunch but people truly get so scared of taking hemp oil thinking it will get you high. It won’t.

5. How often do you take it? How did you find the best dosage? 

I take it 2x a day just because I don’t want to use the whole bottle in the span of a week lol… truly I could see it happening. A bottle is supposed to last 30-40 days if you take about 1-2 drops a day. I found the best dosage by kind of just winging it by picking the one in the middle and so far I love it. As mentioned previously, my next bottle I would definitely go up to the 1500mg just because I take it so regularly but it all depends on your circumstances/what you think you need/your stress levels/etc. If you’re scared it “won’t work”, definitely go for 750mg to begin.

6. Does your CBD help you with focusing/getting in the zone at work? 

Yes and no. I mean I could take CBD/hemp oil and still be not “in the zone” due to a million other factors like my surroundings, the people near me, if someone is on the phone with me, what music I’m playing, etc. I’d say it helps take stress away from your work!

7. Does it make you feel jittery / do you have any side effects? 

I have no experience ANY side effects at all. If anything this product can help you, not hurt you in any way. Of course some (and it’s rare) people are allergic so if you take it for the first time and you feel any itchiness in your throat, definitely stop taking it but from all of the people I’ve spoken with who have tried it have loved it and have had no side effects. Me included.

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I really hope this post helped explain so many questions a ton of you guys had, why I take Ned and how it’s affected me personally and how I hope it can affect you positively. I really care about the products I promote and share with you. After all, that’s why I started my blog.

After doing such research on this brand and company, it’s really motivated me to look deeper into what hemp oil/cbd brands are doing out in this space. I think the hemp plant is so powerful in it’s healing properties and what it’s been able to do for people, especially those who have serious illnesses. As someone who lost someone to cancer, I believe food, wellness and health brands such as Ned truly have such an incredible power to help people’s health. Even if just a little and we have to start anywhere, it’s with products like this that are paving the way to make an impact.

If you guys have yet to try Ned and you’re curious, don’t forget you can use my code “CHICKPEA” on 1 single bottle of Ned for 15% off. It truly makes a difference – especially if you go for the 750mg bottle. Ps their lip balm is actually incredible and I 10/10 recommend that as well.

Please let me know your thoughts and shoot me a DM if you’ve tried Ned/if you just bought some/anything and everything. I want to hear from you!

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xx

Addie