How Long Does a Weed High Last? It Depends on These 7 Things

A weed high from smoking or vaping usually peaks within about 10 minutes and lasts 1 to 3 hours, with lingering aftereffects for several more. Edibles take 30 to 60 minutes or longer to kick in and can keep you high for 6 hours or more. How long the effects of marijuana last in your body comes down to THC potency, how much you use, how you take it, your tolerance and your own biology.

Whether you use cannabis for medical or recreational reasons, here are the main factors that decide how long the high sticks around.

What affects how long a weed high lasts?

It varies a lot. Sometimes a joint gives you an instant rush that hits your whole body and then fades. Other times, a bong rip can leave you with a high that lingers for hours.

Either way, it comes down to the following:

a) THC percentage

This number tells you how strong your weed is. An average strain has a THC content of around 15 to 20%. These days, though, you'll find all kinds of genetics that easily hit 25 to 30% THC.

The more concentrated the THC you smoke or eat, the stronger the high and, likely, the longer it lasts.

b) How much weed you use

How high you get depends on how much you consume, and that also affects how long it lasts. In a lot of ways, quantity beats the potency of any single bud.

A bong hit of strong 25% THC flower will keep you nicely baked for a while. But chain-smoking blunts of moderately potent weed will get you higher and keep you there longer.

Every time you take a hit, THC enters your bloodstream through the tiny air sacs in your lungs (the alveoli). Soon after, it crosses the blood-brain barrier and starts binding to CB1 receptors in your brain.

So the more THC you inhale, the more receptors you activate. In sessions that run for hours, you keep those CB1 receptors switched on and stretch out the high.

c) How you consume it

There are three main ways to get THC into your system. Each reaches the body a little differently, so each one differs in how fast the high kicks in and how long it lasts.

Smoking/vaping:

Smoking joints and blunts or using a vaporizer delivers a quick dose of THC straight into your blood. With this method, the high peaks at around 10 minutes and lasts 1 to 3 hours, depending on other factors.

Even after the peak wears off, the afterglow can hang around for up to 6 to 8 hours after your last hit.

Edibles:

Edibles take a very different route through the body, because the THC has to pass through your digestive system and liver before it reaches your brain and activates CB1 receptors. It usually takes 30 to 60 minutes before you feel anything, and sometimes longer.

Once they kick in, buckle up for a strong, almost psychedelic high for a couple of hours. After that, expect at least another four hours of coming down.

Sublingual:

Sublingual dosing means putting a cannabinoid-infused oil under your tongue and holding it there. The THC gets absorbed through the capillaries under your tongue, so it reaches your bloodstream quickly.

Concentrates:

Concentrates like hash and dabs are inhaled through dab rigs, vaporizers or bongs and usually produce a longer-lasting high than regular flower. The effect typically peaks at around 10 minutes, and you'll stay high for the next 2 to 3 hours or more.

d) Tolerance

When it comes to the long-term effects of weed, your body adapts to how much you use over time. Put a rookie and a veteran smoker on the same bong, and they'll have very different experiences.

The rookie will get way higher, and stay high longer, than the veteran.

That's mainly because the veteran, with more cannabis experience, has built up a tolerance to THC.

Basically, after long-term exposure to THC, the brain cuts back on its number of CB1 receptors. Since THC works by binding to those receptors, the fewer there are available, the more THC it takes to get the same effect.

e) Metabolism

“Metabolism” describes the chemical processes your body uses to burn energy and calories, and everyone's is a little different.

People often wonder how to come down from a high fast, and part of the answer is metabolism. Someone with a fast metabolism can clear THC from their system a lot faster than someone with a slower one.

f) Age

If you smoke often, your tolerance can climb as you get older. That said, there's very little evidence that age itself affects how long a high lasts.

g) Height and weight (body mass)

Neither has much effect on the psychoactive high. That said, someone with a higher body weight, possibly because of a slower metabolism, might feel longer-lasting effects from edibles.

The first few times you use weed, whatever your biology or body type, it's normal to get pretty high. A lot of people don't know how long a bad high can last, which is exactly why you should start with small doses.

Changing the way you consume cannabis can also change how long the high lasts. And of course, keep other variables in mind too, like your personal tolerance and metabolism.

Enjoy the high for as long as it feels good. If you're new to this, it's best to be around close friends who can make you feel comfortable and look out for you your first time. One last tip: try as many strains, potencies and consumption methods as you like until you find your sweet spot.

What are the effects of marijuana?

The effects of marijuana come mainly from THC, the most abundant cannabinoid in most weed. Others, like CBD, CBG and CBN, have little or no psychoactive effect. The main effects of cannabis on the body usually include a lower threshold for sensory input, such as touch, taste and sound. Getting really into food or music is super common when you're high. Users also tend to agree that your imagination runs wild with a free flow of ideas.

Other effects include restlessness or impatience, the giggles and talkativeness. There's also drowsiness and a tendency to feel like time is passing more slowly than it is, plus impaired comprehension and coordination, and even slurred speech. All of these hit beginners harder than regular users, because of each person's tolerance level.

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