How do non-psychoactive cannabis compounds relieve pain?

Cannabis has some helpers that can make pain feel softer and easier to manage.

Imagine you're playing on a swing set, and your knee starts to hurt from jumping too high. You might sit down for a while so it feels better. That’s what non-psychoactive cannabis compounds do, they help calm the body's signals that tell us we’re in pain.

Think of your body sending messages like little cars on a highway. When you get hurt, those cars zoom really fast and make a lot of noise, that’s what you feel as pain. Non-psychoactive cannabis compounds act like bumpers between the cars. They slow them down and make the ride quieter, so the pain doesn’t feel as strong.

Some parts of cannabis make you laugh or feel floaty, but these helpers are different. They don’t make you feel funny; they just help your body relax and not react so strongly to pain. It’s like having a friend who sits with you when you’re feeling sad, they don’t make the sadness go away, but they help it feel less intense.