When interviewing Willie Nelson, I pressed him on his ingesting of the plant, to which he replied, “Darlin’ I had a bad trip with a weed brownie in 1974, and I’ll never do that again!”

Thankfully, his wife Annie began making micro-dosed edibles at home and he’s since learned to enjoy a more therapeutic dose

Many have horror stories of ingesting too much of a good thing. Many more have partaken of a homemade brownie, as Willie did, at a party while already drinking alcohol, with an unfavorable outcome.

It won’t be the cannabis, per se, that adds to the bad trip,  but the cannabis enhancing the alcohol, leading to what’s called phazing, or passing out. Some even claim they’ve had out-of-body experiences, similar to an acid trip. This, not before the body attempts to reject the compound by throwing up. Good times.

Binding Resins to Butter Fat

Infusing cannabis in butter is one of the more common infusions most patients and partakers can easily do at home using a crock pot or a machine specifically made for infusing. This writer has used a Magical Butter Machine for more than six years now, with excellent results.

Butter fat acts as an excellent carrier of the resins found in the plant. These resins include the terpenes and cannabinoids, which hold the beneficial properties of the plant, but they also bind and activate the THC when heated.

The plant itself doesn’t have psychoactive THC. The compound is called THCa, and is only activated when heated. Some swear by decarboxylation, the pre-activating of the THC by warming it ahead of time. My focus has not been on a high recreational dose, but a therapeutic one, so I don’t decarb, relying on the cooking of the infusion to activate the THC.I also microdose when making medibles or edibles.

Meaning, I use less infused butter than the recipe calls for, then add plain non-infused butter to the mix. This means I can enjoy a few pieces of a treat, instead of minimal dosing for effect. It also means I can find my therapeutic dose more easily by practicing the mantra, start low, go slow in a more effective manner. If the treat is micro-dosed that’s easier to accomplish than eating one little piece of a high percentage of THC right out the gate.

Microdosing for Therapeutic Effects

Ingesting a microdosed treat is also economical, as you can save money in buying flower or concentrates to smoke. Five to 10 milligrams of a THC activated ingestible, be it tincture, capsules or a medible, can give a general overall feeling of well-being, or euphoria, for a longer amount of time than with smoking.

Ingesting also diminishes the amount of alcohol consumed, as cannabis raises the efficacy of whatever else you are doing, causing partaking drinkers to slow down. CEO of lifestyle brand, Jane West Inc. and Co-founder of Women Grow, Jane West tried her first edible with a group of friends where she lives in Denver, Colorado.

They ingested a Firebar by Bhang chocolates, with everyone taking a 10 milligram dose, or one square of chocolate. This was the first time West had seen a packaged, legal edible. The friends then walked to a nearby restaraunt for a night out.

Typically, they would consume several bottles of wine during dinner, but on this night only one bottle was bought, with laughter ensuing and little thought (or need) for a second or third bottle of wine.

Using cannabis to transition off more negative substances isn’t new. Microdosing to ensure a therapeutic dose and no bad times is key.Following is my recipe for cereal crispy treats, with half the infused butter used than called for in the recipe. This also gives a better flavor, if you are like me and are not crazy about the taste of the plant.