CBD LoveThe independent Australian guideSearch

CBD for PTSD

There is not enough evidence that CBD helps PTSD. One small single-dose trial found no difference in anxiety, and pooled cannabinoid trials show no effect.

Facts checked 13 November 20264 min readHow we research
Not enough evidence

One small exploratory trial of a single 300 mg dose found no difference from placebo in anxiety; there is no trial of ongoing CBD treatment for PTSD.

How we grade evidence

There is not enough evidence to say CBD does anything for post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD). Only one small placebo-controlled trial has tested CBD alone in people with PTSD. It used a single dose and found no difference in anxiety. No trial has tested CBD as an ongoing treatment.

What the research shows

The one trial of CBD alone

Researchers in Brazil ran a double-blind trial in 33 adults with PTSD. Seventeen took a single 300 mg dose of CBD and 16 took a placebo. They were then asked to recall their traumatic event.1

  • Anxiety: no significant difference between CBD and placebo, either during the recall or over the following week. The same was true for alertness and discomfort.1
  • Body measures: no differences in blood pressure, heart rate or the stress hormone cortisol.1
  • One positive finding: people given CBD had a smaller rise on the “cognitive impairment” part of a mood rating scale during recall.1

A separate paper from the same research group split the participants by type of trauma and reported differences in one subgroup.2 Subgroup results from a trial this small are exploratory. They are a prompt for more research, not a finding to rely on.

This trial tested one dose on one day. It does not tell us whether taking CBD regularly changes PTSD symptoms.

Trials of cannabis that include THC

One trial tested smoked cannabis in 80 people with PTSD. It compared several types, including a high-CBD type, with placebo cannabis. No type clearly did better than placebo.3

The pooled evidence

A 2026 review in The Lancet Psychiatry pooled 54 trials and 2,477 participants across all cannabinoids, including products with THC. It found no significant effect on PTSD outcomes. The authors concluded that routine use of cannabinoids for mental disorders “is currently rarely justified”.4

Many people with PTSD ask about CBD for anxiety or sleep. For anxiety, pooled placebo-controlled trials have not shown a significant effect.5 For insomnia, an Australian trial found 150 mg a night was similar to placebo on most sleep measures.6 See CBD for anxiety and CBD for sleep and insomnia.

What doses were tested

The only dose of CBD alone tested in people with PTSD is a single 300 mg dose.1 No trial has tested a daily dose over time, so there is no evidence-based dose for PTSD at all.

For comparison, 300 mg is twice the 150 mg a day limit for pharmacist-only (Schedule 3) CBD in Australia.7

What Australian medical bodies say

  • RANZCP. The Royal Australian and New Zealand College of Psychiatrists updated its clinical memorandum in March 2024. It says there is insufficient evidence to support medicinal cannabis as a treatment for anxiety and other mental disorders, and raises concern about overprescribing. It also flags the risk of psychosis with high-potency THC products.8
  • RACGP. The Royal Australian College of General Practitioners does not recommend or encourage the use of medicinal cannabis, and says it should only be considered after first-line, evidence-based treatments have been exhausted.9

See what Australian medical bodies say about CBD. Funding for veterans is a separate matter, covered on CBD and DVA.

Risks to know about

  • Products containing THC. Some prescribed cannabis products contain THC, which is a different medicine from CBD. Australian psychiatrists flag psychosis risk with high-potency THC products.8 See CBD vs THC.
  • Other medicines. CBD blocks liver enzymes that break down many medicines, and it adds to the drowsiness caused by benzodiazepines, other sedatives and alcohol.10 See CBD drug interactions and CBD and alcohol.
  • Side effects. Across trials, diarrhoea and sleepiness are the effects most often linked to CBD.11 See CBD side effects.
  • Driving. The TGA’s guidance says patients should be advised they are not able to drive while being treated with medicinal cannabis, which matters most for products containing THC.12 See CBD and driving.

If you are considering it

  • Talk to your GP, psychiatrist or psychologist about PTSD treatments that have been properly tested, and whether you have had access to them.
  • If a cannabis product is suggested, ask whether it contains THC and what trial evidence supports it for PTSD.
  • Questions worth asking: How will it interact with my current medicines? How will we judge whether it is working, and when would we stop?

If you are in distress now, call Lifeline on 13 11 14 (24 hours a day) or contact your GP. If your life is in danger, call 000.

Footnotes

  1. Bolsoni LM, et al. Effects of cannabidiol on symptoms induced by the recall of traumatic events in patients with posttraumatic stress disorder. Psychopharmacology, 2022. https://doi.org/10.1007/s00213-021-06043-y ↩ ↩2 ↩3 ↩4 ↩5

  2. Bolsoni LM, et al. Exploratory analysis by trauma type of cannabidiol during trauma recall in PTSD. Brazilian Journal of Psychiatry, 2022. https://doi.org/10.1590/1516-4446-2021-2317 ↩

  3. Utah Department of Health and Human Services. Evidence-based guidelines: PTSD (summary of Bonn-Miller et al., 2021). https://medicalcannabis.utah.gov/evidence-based-guidelines/ptsd/ ↩

  4. Wilson J, et al. Cannabinoids for mental disorders: systematic review and meta-analysis. The Lancet Psychiatry, 2026. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/41856154/ ↩

  5. Meta-analysis of placebo-controlled trials of cannabidiol for anxiety. Cannabis and Cannabinoid Research, 2025. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/40956670/ ↩

  6. Narayan AJ, et al. Cannabidiol for moderate-severe insomnia: a randomized controlled pilot trial of 150 mg of nightly dosing. Journal of Clinical Sleep Medicine, 2024. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/38174873/ ↩

  7. Therapeutic Goods Administration. Final decision on down-scheduling of low-dose cannabidiol, 2020. https://tga.gov.au/node/284859 ↩

  8. Royal Australian and New Zealand College of Psychiatrists. Updated clinical memorandum: therapeutic use of medicinal cannabis, March 2024. https://ranzcp.org/news-analysis/updated-clinical-memorandum-therapeutic-use-of-medicinal-cannabis ↩ ↩2

  9. Royal Australian College of General Practitioners. Position statement: use of medicinal cannabis products in Australia (2019 update). https://www.racgp.org.au/advocacy/position-statements/view-all-position-statements/clinical-and-practice-management/medical-cannabis ↩

  10. US National Library of Medicine, DailyMed. Epidiolex (cannabidiol) oral solution prescribing information, revised 2026. https://dailymed.nlm.nih.gov/dailymed/drugInfo.cfm?setid=8bf27097-4870-43fb-94f0-f3d0871d1eec ↩

  11. Chesney E, et al. Adverse effects of cannabidiol: a systematic review and meta-analysis of randomised clinical trials, 2020. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/32268347/ ↩

  12. Therapeutic Goods Administration. Guidance for the use of medicinal cannabis in Australia: overview. https://www.tga.gov.au/resources/resource/guidance/guidance-use-medicinal-cannabis-australia-overview ↩

Common questions

Does CBD help PTSD?

There is not enough evidence to say it does. The one placebo-controlled trial of CBD alone gave a single 300 mg dose to people with PTSD and found no difference from placebo in anxiety. No trial has tested daily CBD treatment for PTSD over weeks or months.

Does CBD help with PTSD nightmares or sleep?

We found no placebo-controlled trial of CBD alone for PTSD nightmares. For insomnia in general, an Australian trial of 150 mg of CBD a night found it similar to placebo on most sleep measures.

Will DVA pay for CBD for a veteran with PTSD?

Funding rules for veterans are separate from the question of evidence, and they are covered on our page about CBD and DVA. Funding for a product does not mean that trials have shown it works for PTSD.

Is cannabis with THC better for PTSD than CBD?

Trials have not shown that. In a trial of smoked cannabis in 80 people with PTSD, no type of cannabis clearly did better than placebo. A 2026 analysis in The Lancet Psychiatry found no significant effect of cannabinoids on PTSD outcomes.

This page is general information, not medical or legal advice. Laws and evidence change; we show the date we last checked the facts at the top of every page. Talk to your doctor or pharmacist before starting, stopping or changing any medicine.

Didn't find what you needed? Ask us a question.

Keep reading