What each product is — and how to use it

New to cannabis? How each type works

No experience needed. Open a type to see what it is, how people take it, and what to expect — including the one rule beginners should never skip: start low, go slow.

• Oils & capsules Measured cannabis oil — as drops under the tongue (tinctures) or swallowed (capsules and softgels). How to use+

  How you take it

  Tinctures: squeeze the dropper under your tongue and hold about 60 seconds before swallowing. Capsules: swallow like any pill.

  What to expect

  Under the tongue: about 15–45 minutes. Swallowed: 30–90 minutes, and longer-lasting.

  Good to know

  Precise, smoke-free dosing — the backbone of Georgia’s medical program. Begin with the lowest marked dose.

• Vapes Cannabis oil in a cartridge or disposable pen, gently heated into vapor. How to use+

  How you take it

  Inhale a small puff. A screw-on cartridge (a “cart”) attaches to a rechargeable battery; disposables come ready to use.

  What to expect

  Fast — felt within minutes, like flower — so it’s easy to take a little and wait.

  Good to know

  Discreet and low-odor. Start with one short puff and give it 10–15 minutes before another.

• Edibles & drinks Gummies and chews you eat, or THC beverages (seltzers, sodas) you sip. How to use+

  How you take it

  Take one serving and check the milligrams (mg) of THC per piece or per can.

  What to expect

  They’re not the same speed. Gummies are slow — about 30 minutes to 2 hours — and long-lasting (often 6+ hours). Many THC drinks, especially “nano” (water-soluble) ones, kick in faster — frequently 15–30 minutes — but fade sooner.

  Good to know

  Why the difference? A drink absorbs quickly, while a gummy must digest and pass through the liver first — which also makes its high stronger and longer. Both are easy to overdo because the effect is delayed, so take one low dose and wait before more. (Georgia caps hemp gummies and drinks at 10 mg, 21+.)

• Topicals Creams, balms, and lotions you rub onto the skin. How to use+

  How you take it

  Massage onto the sore spot — a joint, a muscle, or a patch of skin.

  What to expect

  Localized relief, usually without any head high.

  Good to know

  The most beginner-friendly format: no high, nothing to inhale, and hard to overdo. Good for targeted aches.

• Flower The dried bud of the cannabis plant. How to use+

  How you take it

  In Georgia, the legal way to use flower is a dry-herb vaporizer — a device that gently heats the ground bud so it releases vapor without burning (the state program allows vaporizing, not smoking). In states with broader laws, flower is also smoked: rolled into a joint or pre-roll, packed into a pipe or water pipe (bong), or wrapped as a blunt.

  What to expect

  Fast — felt within minutes whether vaporized or smoked, then tapering over 1–3 hours, so it’s easy to feel your dose as you go.

  Good to know

  Georgia’s 2026 expansion (SB 220) lets patients 21+ vaporize — but not smoke — and smokable flower is still limited on shelves. New to it? One small inhale is plenty to start.

  Tools you might see

  • Grinder
  • Rolling papers
  • Pipe / water pipe
• Concentrates Potent cannabis extracts — the plant’s resin concentrated to 60–90%+ THC — in textures like shatter, wax, budder, “sauce,” and crystalline “diamonds.” How to use+

  How you take it

  A tiny, rice-grain “dab” is vaporized and inhaled. The traditional way uses a glass rig and a torch — but it’s far easier and safer with an electronic dab device like the Puffco Peak (countertop) or Puffco Proxy (portable): set a temperature, press a button, no open flame.

  What to expect

  Fast and strong — felt within minutes, like flower, but much more potent per dab.

  Good to know

  Rosin vs. resin vs. distillate: rosin is pressed from flower or hash with only heat and pressure (solventless, prized for purity); live resin is solvent-extracted from fresh-frozen plants for intense flavor and terpenes; distillate is refined down to nearly pure THC (very potent but flavorless — it’s the oil in most vape carts). Georgia’s expanded program is bringing more of these to shelves. This is the most advanced format — start with the smallest possible dab.