Celebrate Cancer Season like a Proper Stone(d) Crab

Navigate this new season like a pro, with the help of nature's best medicine

What is Cancer Season?

The days between June 21 and July 23 mark the celebration of Cancer season. Cancer brings us the beginnings of summer; a new cycle, something fresh and unexplored. Just as Cancer represents birth and motherhood, think of your life as a newborn baby: a blank canvas that’s yours to paint, but that requires conscientiousness and love to get right.

We are now controlled by the whims of this cardinal water sign, and to be honest, most of us are in for an emotionally turbulent 30 days. Luckily, nature has the best medicine to offer us. What better way to celebrate a season of healing than with a cannabis strain that allows you to float safely above a deep sea of unpredictable waves?

The Trademarks of a Cancer Sun

Our fellow Cancer Cannivores are ruled by the moon, notoriously the most emotional of the planets. They relate intrinsically to their homes, their families, and their inner selves with an innate care-giving quality that can sometimes reach the intensity of a rogue tidal wave. Just like the crab that represents the Cancer sign, they prefer the safety of their rigid outer shell, reserving their deeply loving energies for their closest relationships.

Sensitivity, compassion, and self-protection: these are the themes of the season, which we’ll keep in mind as we determine the greatest ways to medicate with cannabis until Leo steps onto the scene next month.

Cannabis Strains for Cancer Season

While Cancer loves to sink into the depths of their emotional fluidity, indica strains can be risky for this season. Already more in tune with (and perhaps already exhausted from) your thoughts and feelings, this is a good time to balance the world’s state with something slightly uplifting and physically calming. We introduce to you, the Hybrid. No, we don’t want to numb or erase the emotional depths of Cancer season, we’re just careful not to exacerbate them. The right hybrid strain can offer a mix of body calm (goodbye anxiety!) and mental lift. Hybrids are like rose-colored glasses this Cancer season; your feelings are at the surface, but you’re navigating them with an open mind and, hopefully, a healthy dose of joyous gratitude.

Cancer takes rulership over the stomach and digestive systems, so this is a good time to honor your core with terpenes and cannabis strains that give it support. Caryophyllene, Sabinene, and Limonene are just a few common terpenes known to aid in digestion, reflux, IBS, and other stomach-related issues. If you’re a cannabis patient, you’ve likely seen Caryophyllene and Limonene posted on your fair share of product labels. These are two of the most common terpenes in all of cannabis, and thank goddess for that… This season, we just can’t handle the disappointment of not finding the right medicine. Dosido, Wedding Cake, and Space Runtz are just a few of the popular strains you might reach for, especially if you can find a batch with a comforting amount of CBD as well.

Rituals for a Cancer Season

Medicating isn’t solely reliant on what you’re smoking; what you’re doing is equally important to healing, and each season brings unique challenges to work through. Inside that thick crab shell, we’re finding comfort in ourselves and our loved ones: bio-family, chosen family, or otherwise. Don’t shy away from this reclusiveness, but rather, use it to invest in your future self and relationships. The next season will demand more resilience and endurance, so use this time to build a strong foundation and prepare for what’s ahead.

Here are some ideas for maintaining a successful Cancer season:

• Host a small, nighttime smoke sesh in your backyard with your best friends

• Hydrate! It's not just summer, it’s Cancer season. Honor your water sign by feeding it

• Try a CBD joint: high CBD has the effect of making one “feel like a jellyfish,” or so a friend once told me. Take that floating feeling, and dive deep

• Bathe in the moonlight

• Cook a meal for your friends or family

More than anything, the best thing to do this Cancer season is relate. Check in with your friends, be a shoulder to lean on for those who need it most, and don’t fear the emotional tides as they move in and out with the moon. Most of all, if you’re having a hard time carrying the weight of your own existence, make some serious “me time” for a good smoke and a gentle high.

Take care, cosmonauts; I’ll see you for Leo season.