Start low, go slow
If one phrase separates cannabis patients who have good experiences from those who have bad ones, it is start low, go slow. That is not a cliche. It is the clinical protocol.
The reason is simple: THC's dose-response curve is not linear. Doubling the dose does not double the effect. It can multiply it by four, or it can flip the sign and turn a calm, pain-relieving experience into an anxious, nauseating one. The only way to find your dose is to begin below where you think you need to be and move up in small steps.
Onset and duration by route
Inhalation (flower or vape): onset in 1 to 10 minutes, lasting 1 to 3 hours. The easiest route to titrate, because effects arrive quickly and level off in an obvious way. The worst route for lung health.
Edibles: onset in 30 to 120 minutes, lasting 4 to 8 hours. The hardest route to titrate, because the gap between nothing yet and too much is long enough to mistime a second dose. Most bad experiences begin here.
Tinctures under the tongue: onset in 15 to 45 minutes when held under the tongue, or 60 to 90 minutes if swallowed, lasting 3 to 5 hours. Tiffany's usual pick for a first-time patient: fast enough to titrate, long enough to be useful, and precise to dose with a dropper.
Topicals: onset in 15 to 60 minutes at the spot they are applied. Usually not systemic, so a topical cream will not make you feel high. Good for localized pain and joint inflammation.
Starting doses by condition
These are starting points, not prescriptions. The actual dose will depend on weight, metabolism, tolerance, other medications, and the specific product.
Sleep: 5 mg THC as an edible or tincture, 60 to 90 minutes before bed, paired with 10 to 20 mg CBD. Adjust upward in 2.5 mg steps.
Chronic pain: 2.5 mg THC three times a day, paired with equal or greater CBD. The aim is steady relief rather than a peak effect.
Anxiety: 5 to 10 mg CBD with under 2.5 mg THC. More THC is often counterproductive here.
Nausea: 2.5 mg THC inhaled or under the tongue, as needed. Fast routes matter because you want the compound to stay down.
Redosing, where the mistakes happen
The single most common mistake with edibles is taking a second dose at the 45 minute mark because it does not seem to be working. It is working; you just have not felt it yet. When the first dose finally arrives, the second is right behind it.
The rule: wait two full hours before a second edible dose, 30 minutes before a second tincture dose, and 15 minutes before a second inhaled dose. Write down the time of the first dose and the earliest time a second would be allowed. That one-line note prevents more bad nights than any other tool in this curriculum.
Microdosing, what it is and what it is not
Microdosing means using doses of cannabis that are barely perceptible or not perceptible at all, typically under 2.5 mg THC, to shift mood, sleep, or pain without noticeable intoxication. For some patients it works remarkably well. For others it produces no measurable benefit.
It is not a weaker version of the recreational experience. It is a different clinical approach that happens to use the same plant. If you cannot feel a 2.5 mg dose at all, you may be a candidate. If every product near you starts at 5 mg, look for tinctures, which are easier to dose below 2.5 mg.