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Weed

How Long Until I Pass a Drug Test?

By Last updated on August 18, 2022Last updated on August 18, 2022No Comments

Whether you are taking an edible, vaping or smoking an old-fashioned joint, chilling out and relaxing with your favorite strain after a long day can sound like paradise. It is arguably one of the most cathartic experiences for any cannabis user, seasoned or still new to the game.

But say you are in this situation: You are doing exactly that and then you get a call for a new job that wants you to do the onboarding process. It sounds exciting until you remember that you are higher than a falsetto as you hear the message. Maybe an exaggeration, but the point is: You need to know how long the weed will last in your urine. At the same time, you might get extremely lucky and get called for a job that does not test.

Luckily for you, it not only lasts pretty briefly for casual users, typically a few days, but even frequent use does mean the end of the world, depending on how it was consumed. Weed, specifically THC, can easily pass with safe detox methods along with strains that do not even show up in a drug test at all.

CBD vs. THC in your system

When we say ‘specifically THC’, it is because other cannabis compounds like CBD are either undetectable or straight up untested in drug screenings. Because THC is a psychoactive compound, and a potent one at that, it is the key factor for employers to detect cannabis use.

CBD however, is not psychoactive and therefore will not show up in a standard urine test and will not be checked: For either a job or a sports team.

But keep in mind: Some of these strains do contain small amounts of THC but federal law prohibits more than 0.3% THC in CBD products. This small trace of THC would also be undetected in these tests, but the only way to truly guarantee you will pass if you do not take any of these products up to 5 days before your screening as some rare tests might check for it.

How long does weed last in urine?

How long does weed last in urine

Quite a few varying factors will give you a different answer from person to person but expect the average to be somewhere around one week (5-7 days). If you are smoking or taking edibles for the first ever, or the first time in a while, 2-3 days will basically have it out of your system with plenty of water and nutrients to flush it out.

But again, this is mainly for infrequent users. If you use your cannabis products once a day or more and you have a test coming up very soon, this might be a problem.

Users in this category typically have positive drug tests for up to 30 days after their last hit. Apart from strains and THC content, the frequency will also determine how long it stays in your urine, but how do different methods of smoking affect this, if at all?

By Smoking Flower

Since the majority of cannabis consumption involves some method of smoking, there is no better place to start. THC starts metabolizing in your body about half an hour after you start consuming, no matter how much you have smoked before, but the full process can take 2-4 hours to be detectable for several days, if not weeks.

30 days would be in the danger zone if you are a frequent smoker going in for a drug test, but there is not much to worry about if you have not been consuming lots of THC. For casual users, it is possible to smoke one week before your test if you otherwise get plenty of water and physical activity (which does help but even athletes can be suspended if enough THC was detected within a short time frame).

By Edibles

What is interesting about edibles is that you get this ‘delayed’ response to getting your high as it can take as long as 2 hours after you eat them to start to feel the effects: The same actually goes for the THC as this is not detectable until the edible is fully digested (again, about 2 hours).

Not that edibles will get you less high than smoking a joint, it just takes them a little longer to ‘kick in’ and become traceable in your urine or bloodstream. But just like smoking, edible THC is detectable in saliva samples within a few minutes, so maybe this is not the best choice for a pre-onboarding snack.

By Hash Oil

Even if you have never smoked a day in your life, vaping hash or THC oil is where the real problems start, in terms of how long the traces stay in your urine. Just a couple of hits off of your vape pen with this kind of high-concentrate will be detectable for the next month (30 days).

Your own frequency of vaping will ultimately determine if you pass an upcoming test. For example, if you used to smoke frequently (maybe a year ago) but have since stopped and are down to a couple hits a week, you should be able to pass if you stopped and tested in 7 days.

How Does It Affect me?

The effects of THC are well-documented, but the actuality of it staying in your urine can affect your day to day life in several ways. Weed or THC is metabolized and enters your bloodstream, affecting your blood work if you plan to get that done, and being able to pass a drug test, while a fairly easy process, will affect the future opportunities you are given.

Do you have to quit smoking weed forever to pass a drug test? No. Absolutely not. You do, however, need to gauge how often you usually smoke and use that to determine when you should put it down and for how long. Then once you pass, there is no better way to celebrate.

How Do I Get it Out?

As mentioned, THC is metabolized into a form that your body can process (since it cannot be converted to energy) and basically expelled in the bathroom, a.k.a urine. Pretty much every bit of moisture comes out this way or through sweat and blood, but nobody is asking you to bleed for your weed.

Your detox kits can come in pills, drinks, fiber or a combination of the three. All of these options work well without any undesired chemicals and can begin as soon as you take your last hit.

Should I let it out Naturally?

The basic physics never lie: If you drink water, you pee; and if you work out, you sweat. This is the easiest and safest way to work the THC out of your urine sample while keeping yourself healthy at the same time. Now who said you could not multitask?

This is not to discourage you from detox kits if that is your only option in a time crunch, but if you consume something naturally, getting it out the same way is always the best option. Either way, never try to rush anything: Over-exercising, drinking too much water or too many pills will do irreparable damage to just pass a drug test, so always move weed out of your urine naturally.

The Sanctuary Editorial Team

Our writers use a combination of research and personal experiences to eloquently tackle these topics. The research process utilizes multiple levels of information. We reference informal channels for details relating to casual topics such as describing slang or how to create a bong out of fruit. We also examine scientific publishings for up-to-date research. The accuracy of our articles is crucially important to us and they are written with the idea of inclusiveness for readers of all walks of life.