Marijuana cannabis: any beneficial results?

[Mikek]

I'm a bit too 'straight laced' to try any non prescribed drug my self, back in the seventies I had an awful time getting off tobacco smoking. One of our four kids, now 44, has a long history of drug abuse with several suicide attempts and spells in mental hospitals and yes, all through marijuana and grog. It's cost him two relationships and several employments so Alysia's remarks ring true to me. I'm just searching for any possible way to help Jen.

[Mikek]

Sorry you are depressed, but I think it is OK to consider trying weed some time. You could find that it made your depression worse, in which case you would stop using it. It would be better to try it sometime when you are not depressed, until you get a feel for it. It is not for everyone. I'm not sure it was for me, as it made me more self conscious and withdrawn in a group of people. On the other hand, with people I know and love, it can get some laughter and fun going. It is just not that big of a deal. I knew people who smoked too much and it was boring being around them, and I'm glad I'm not anymore, just like I don't want to be around someone who drinks beer all day. If I had some weed now, I'd probably smoke a very small amount while watching TV before bed. If I decided I don't like the feeling anymore, I just wouldn't do it again. No big deal! If you try it and you don't like it, it will pass! By the way, the late American singer Janis Joplin said she didn't like weed because it made her "think too much". Alcohol was her drug of choice and heroin was what did her in.

seems to me like a well balanced point of view.

[annekat]

I'm a bit too 'straight laced' to try any non prescribed drug my self, back in the seventies I had an awful time getting off tobacco smoking. One of our four kids, now 44, has a long history of drug abuse with several suicide attempts and spells in mental hospitals and yes, all through marijuana and grog. It's cost him two relationships and several employments so Alysia's remarks ring true to me. I'm just searching for any possible way to help Jen.

The link that Kirk (me2) shared above to the video called Leaf was interesting. It discussed using cannabis in ways that would AVOID the psychoactive effects and could help many medical conditions including autoimmune ones. I think the woman in the film had RA among other things. I found it a little long but saved it and will watch it again. Even if you and Jen tried it and got some psychoactivity, you don't strike me as the types that would get hooked, abuse it, or go over the top with it in any way. Jen might not like it and might not want to keep using it. I think it is pretty rare, if indeed possible, though, for MJ use to "cause" mental problems in a person who starts out healthy and well-adjusted. I AM sorry about your son and can see why that would influence you. I hope he is doing better these days.

[Alysia]

. I am just depressed today. .

Hi Phil, Im sending you my love and big hug

[Alysia]

O.K. intersting debate.
1. pred and our others meds are life saving for us. we dont have a choice. cannabis is not life saving. we have a choice.
2. even if we asuume that we are mentally well (which is not correct because being a weggie means anxiety and depression) there are other dangers in using cannabis.
3. medical cannabis is used in Israel by docs permision in cases of: cancer, MS, terminally illness, and pain that cannot be released otherwise.
4. you can google and find more info about cannabis dangerous effects.
just to mention more dangers: cannabis increases heart rate, affect blood pressure, cause danmage to motivation, to memory, to concentration, to sperm count. worse, read this:
The most potent argument against the use of marijuana to treat medical disorders is that marijuana may cause the acceleration or aggravation of the very disorders it is being used to treat.
Smoking marijuana regularly (a joint a day) can damage the cells in the bronchial passages which protect the body against inhaled microorganisms and decrease the ability of the immune cells in the lungs to fight off fungi, bacteria, and tumor cells. For patients with already weakened immune systems, this means an increase in the possibility of dangerous pulmonary infections, including pneumonia, which often proves fatal in AIDS patients.
I copy this from that link:THE MEDICAL DANGERS OF MARIJUANA USE
even if you dont smoke it, it is risky to the immune system.
we have enough. there is no need to take more risks.

[mishb]

I have read of a few people, via various forums, that have used, or are using MJ to help with pain.
Pain caused by RA, MS, Lupus and even WG. Each one of these people swears by the effects of medicinal MJ.

Each one have also said that it needs to be baked not smoked. I think smoking it, if you have sinus and throat or lung problems would be a bad idea.

If I find one of the posts about it I will let you know further.

It's not something for me and I wouldn't recommend it to anyone, but I have read that it helps........for how long, who knows

[annekat]

It appears that convincing articles can be written both for and against the use of marijuana for medicinal purposes. Marijuana is a PLANT, or an herb, we might say, and is not, as far as I know, classified as a toxic or poisonous one. One who wants to make it sound toxic and dangerous can do so convincingly by spinning and exaggerating the facts. There are dangers to the over-use of anything. One joint a day may not sound like a lot to a recreational user, but it is a huge amount to me. The amount I would smoke, if I smoked it, would be tiny. There are other ways to get it than to smoke it. I'd like to know more about the juicing idea and the benefits of that without the psychoactive effects. But people have been using pot for years without the kind of ill effects we get from CTX and pred, for example, and I'd consider walking down the street and breathing the exhaust from cars more potentially dangerous than a little MJ a day. I personally don't remember it working as a pain killer, but I never tried to use it as such, and if it helps people with their pain, I don't see a problem with it.... they could instead be overusing Advil or Tylenol or using Vicodin, Oxycodone, or any number of other more dangerous and addictive drugs. There are always going to be people who abuse and misuse any substance you can name. Aside from it being illegal in many places, each of us gets to decide for ourselves whether MJ works for us, and that is OK with me. An article against it is not going to stop someone who feels they are benefitting from it.

[Mikek]

The link that Kirk (me2) shared above to the video called Leaf was interesting. It discussed using cannabis in ways that would AVOID the psychoactive effects and could help many medical conditions including autoimmune ones. I think the woman in the film had RA among other things. I found it a little long but saved it and will watch it again. Even if you and Jen tried it and got some psychoactivity, you don't strike me as the types that would get hooked, abuse it, or go over the top with it in any way. Jen might not like it and might not want to keep using it. I think it is pretty rare, if indeed possible, though, for MJ use to "cause" mental problems in a person who starts out healthy and well-adjusted. I AM sorry about your son and can see why that would influence you. I hope he is doing better these days.

i just watched "Leaf" right through twice! Very interesting. I'm definitely going to get a few seeds in the spring.

[me2]

Well, it looks like I still fall more into the pro camp than against. A friend of mine sent me the leaf video over a year ago. I poo pooed it until I actually watched it. This began a course of investigation of the idea for me. I think a fairly objective one. I wasn't using the possible medical benefits as an excuse for getting the psychoactive high. I tried the high many years ago when I was young. I enjoyed it for a few months and then decided that the side effects of memory loss and cognitive impairment while high were not worth it to me. They still aren't. I would not have pursued a study of the possible medical benefits without knowing there was a non-psychoactive form- the juice.

My first concern was safety. I wanted to know about the possible side effects and drug interactions. I started my research at the University of Washington Medical School in Seattle. There I had full access to medical journals- not just the abstracts.
They let me copy everything I wanted onto a flash drive where I could read it carefully at home. There have been some hard scientific studies done on cannabis but mostly on the psychoactive form- which is dried , smoked or vaporized. Even looking over these studies I was actually surprised to find out that cannabis is amazingly safe. As Anne says, there are dangers of the over use of anything.

I have personally observed a friend that was able to get off of a bunch of medications for Fibromyalgia by using the smoked version of cannabis. She has lost 90 lbs and is more mentally alert and clear eyed than I have ever known her to be. You will not convince her that cannabis is more dangerous than the meds her doctors had her on. Watch the leaf video and look at the pictures of Kristen on prednisone and look at her now and then tell me that prednisone was better for her.
I know her story alone is not enough to abandon conventional medicine- that would be foolish. It is enough to make one think and investigate further. This is what I am doing.

Here in Washington state where I live , we are seeing a great experiment on the grass roots scale of the possible medical benefits of cannabis. Currently the medical and the recreational aspects are blurred together and this leads to confusion by outside observers who see only the most visible part, the recreational. I would guess that perhaps over half of the use is mostly recreational but I would not throw the baby under the bus just because of that. I know people working with this plant who are sincere in seeking out the possible medical benefits. I had been in communication with our dear Al on this subject before he passed away. He was interested in this too.

Since that time over a year ago I have seen a tremendous growth in what I would call the purely medical side of cannabis. There are even products that are not juice that are not psychoactive. They are expensive and untested as to whether they provide a treatment dose of cannabinoids for life threatening disorders like Wegeners. Dr Courtney, in the leaf video, works with the juice I know in part because of the fact that it allows you to take very large doses of the plant with no psychoactive effects. He is treating very serious illnesses like Lupus with it.

Cannabis has had some of the component substances patented. I believe it is probably the whole plant that is the most beneficial. For that reason do not rely on the corporate process to find out if this plant can help us. The only drugs that make it through the expensive process of investigation, patent, and FDA approval are the ones that can be owned. Without being able to own the plant no company will investigate the usefulness of it. It will have to be done by individuals. If the plant is as effective as preliminary reports suggest drug companies stand to loose billions when people are able to grow their own medicine. This is the weak side of our very amazing medical system.

[Mikek]

Thank thank you so much for this comprehensive information. We are going to be hearing much on this subject.