Cannabis has long carried the reputation of a balm for modern anxiety, yet a study from Oregon State University quietly challenges that assumption. Researchers tracking cortisol levels in regular users found that those who reach for cannabis most often wake each morning with their stress systems already running higher than those who abstain — a finding that asks us to reconsider what relief and dependency truly look like in the body. The science remains incomplete, but the question it raises is ancient: do we sometimes seek comfort in the very thing that quietly sustains our discomfort?