There’s a very specific moment during a sesh when “wow, I’m high” becomes “oh no, I am too high.” Maybe the edible finally showed up an hour after you forgot about it. Maybe that dab was larger than your lungs and ego were prepared for. Or you took one more hit because you thought you were fine, and then suddenly your own heartbeat has become the loudest thing in the room.

Getting uncomfortably high happens. THC can cause anxiety, paranoia, panic, a racing heart, dizziness, nausea, and confusion when you take more than your body is happy with. Those effects can feel dramatic even when what you mostly need is time and a calmer environment. But there also isn’t a magic trick that makes THC disappear from your body on the spot.

So if you searched “how to come down from being too high” while holding your phone six inches from your face, here’s what actually helps.

Stop Consuming More Weed

This should be obvious, but once you realize you’re too high, stop adding more weed to your system. Put down the joint, stop hitting the vape, and definitely don’t take another edible. Just stop and put that shit away.

It can be tempting to start tinkering with the high… one more hit of something different, maybe a light alcoholic drink, whatever you think might balance things out. But now is not the time to experiment. Give your body a chance to deal with what you already took.

If you’ve been drinking too, don’t try to drink more alcohol to somehow level yourself out. I like getting cross-faded sometimes, but mixing weed and alcohol can make you even more fucked up, which is pretty much the opposite of what we’re trying to accomplish here.

And avoid driving or doing anything else that could get sketchy when you’re this high until you’re feeling normal again.

Below are some options of how to easily set aside your mid-sesh goods.

Get Somewhere Calm & Comfy

Once you’ve stopped adding more weed to the situation, get yourself somewhere you actually feel comfortable. If you’re at a loud party, bar, concert, or anywhere else with a lot going on, try to find somewhere quieter and less stimulating.

If you’re home and steady on your feet, you could also take a cool shower if that helps you chill out, literally.

Then sit down, get in bed if there’s one, dim the lights, put on something you’ve seen before. A comfort show, calming music you already know you like, whatever is going to make the high feel less overwhelming. Personally, this is not when I’m putting on some weird mind-bending movie I’ve never seen before. I want something familiar and easy while I wait for my brain to chill the fuck out. I also like to turn on my salt lamp for the vibes.

Wait It Out

This is the annoying answer, but time is really the only thing that’s guaranteed to bring you down.

If you smoked, vaped, or dabbed, the high usually comes on pretty quickly and starts fading sooner. Inhalation is always a quicker onset and shorter duration.

Edibles can be a whole different situation. They take longer to kick in, can keep getting stronger for a while, and tend to last much longer. Ingestible products are typically slower onset and longer duration. And if they’re “fast-acting,” it’s safe to assume edibles and beverages are unpredictable.

So if you ate an edible and you’re already feeling way too high, there is a chance you haven’t even peaked yet. That sucks, but there’s no way to fast-forward through it. Don’t take anything else, keep yourself comfortable, and remember that the high will eventually wear off.

Drink Some Water

Being thirsty and cotton-mouthed while you’re already too high is just one more annoying thing to deal with. But it’s also the one issue you can easily and quickly resolve. Just sip on something. Water, juice, an electrolyte drink… whatever sounds good. I typically drink something like Liquid I.V. for a hydration boost, specifically the Lemon Lime flavor since lemons could help a bit (more on that soon). And if you’re already feeling anxious or your heart is racing, I’d probably leave the caffeinated tea, coffee, or energy drink for another day.

Don’t expect water to sober you up, though. You’re not flushing the THC out by pounding three bottles back-to-back.

Eat Something

I don’t know about you, but if I’m way too high, I usually feel a little better once I get some food in me. That’s not because eating automatically cancels out THC… it doesn’t. But being hungry, shaky, or nauseous on top of being uncomfortably high definitely isn’t helping.

Don’t overthink it and no need to force it. Eat whatever sounds tolerable and easy. Toast, cereal, fruit, crackers, leftover pizza.

If your stomach is the main problem, something with ginger might be worth trying. Otherwise, just tame the munchies and move on.

Try Some CBD

CBD is probably the most common thing people recommend when you’ve gotten too high, and I think it’s worth having around for exactly this reason. Just don’t think of it as an off switch for THC. The research on whether CBD actually counteracts a high is pretty mixed. Some studies suggest it can tone down certain effects of THC, while others haven’t found much of a difference.

That said, if you already use CBD and know that it helps you relax, this is a pretty reasonable time to try it. I usually prefer something simple and easy to dose, like a CBD-only tincture or THC-free mints.

One thing to check before you start grabbing CBD products: make sure you’re not accidentally taking more THC. A lot of full-spectrum CBD products contain at least some THC, which obviously isn’t ideal when the entire problem is that you’re already too fucking high. Stick with broad-spectrum, or ideally isolated CBD products like the ones below.

Black Pepper & Lemons Could Help

This is one of those weed tips that gets passed around constantly: you’re too high, so go smell some black pepper or eat a lemon. It’s not totally random. Black pepper has caryophyllene, a compound that acts on the CB2 cannabinoid receptor, and lemons have limonene, which are terpenes that also naturally occur in cannabis. A 2024 human study found that vaporized limonene reduced some of the anxiety caused by THC when the two were administered together. But that still doesn’t mean either one is going to pull you out of a bad high.

I’ve never treated either as some sort of quick fix. If there’s a lemon around, squeeze it in your water and bite the rind. If you’re eating something, sprinkle some black pepper to get some aroma going. Maybe it helps you feel a little more grounded, maybe it doesn’t. Either way, just don’t sniff a pepper grinder and expect to feel normal again.

Call Someone

If you’re alone and starting to freak yourself out, call somebody. Your partner, your best friend, your sibling, whoever isn’t going to judge you and keep you from crashing out.

I’ve definitely had moments where I just needed someone else to tell me, “You’re fine. You’re just really high.” Sometimes that’s enough.

They don’t even need to do much. Talk to you, sit with you, put something dumb on TV, whatever. And if you actually start getting sick or acting really out of it, at least there’s another person there who can help.

Sleep It Off

If I’m too high and I can fall asleep, that’s usually the move. Get in bed, cover yourself in your favorite blanket, and call it a night. You might wake up still feeling a little weird or groggy, especially if an edible was involved. But at least you skipped a few hours of sitting there thinking about how high you are.

Obviously, there’s a difference between being sleepy because you’re stoned and being so out of it that you’re in dormant mode and can’t be woken up. That’s a different situation entirely.

When Being Too High Is More Than Just Being Too High

Most of the time, getting too high is an uncomfortable waiting game. You feel awful, you wait it out, and eventually you’re fine. But if someone passes out and won’t wake up, has a seizure, or is having trouble breathing, sleeping it off is not the solution here. Call 911.

And if you’re not sure whether what you’re feeling is normal or if you just took way more than you meant to, Poison Control is also there for exactly that kind of thing: 1-800-222-1222.

If something feels genuinely wrong, don’t brush it off just because weed is involved.

How to Avoid Getting This High Again

Once you’re finally back to normal, think about what got you there in the first place. Maybe you hit the pen five times because nothing was happening yet. Maybe you underestimated an edible. Maybe you took your usual dose and, for whatever reason, it hit completely differently this time.

The obvious lesson is to give yourself more time before taking more. This matters especially with edibles, because they’re notorious for making people think nothing is happening right before everything starts happening.

And don’t get too cocky about your tolerance. I’ve been smoking weed for years and can still occasionally get absolutely humbled by it. Different products hit differently, and so can the exact same amount depending on the day.

Basically, remember what happened and adjust accordingly. Getting too high once is an accident. Getting too high the exact same way every weekend is starting to become a toxic hobby.