Cannabis > Scripts
Cannabis is a controversial plant today, but it was considered a medicinal herb for thousands of years prior to its prohibition. You lucky readers living in states where medical and recreational cannabis is legal have access to specialized cannabis products most of us cannot purchase. Those who don’t have cannabis dispensaries will have to wing it until the rest of the nation gets with it.
Winging it is exactly what I have done when dealing with my painful problem. I have spinal stenosis causing neural pain due to bone spurs and debris pressing on my spinal cord. The pain, and sometimes numbness, is in my back, hips, calves, ankles, and feet. I quit using prescription medications because of their immediate side effects; I have responsibilities and can’t live in a stupor or sleep all day. I have tried conventional medicine plenty of times over the years but the medications prescribed by doctors — pain medications, anti-inflammatories, and muscle relaxers — are almost as debilitating as the condition itself. They don’t improve my quality of life at all, making me grumpy, sleepy, stupid, non-communicative, and hyper. Having stomach cramps from anti-inflammatories is no fun either. Some of these medications’ long-term side effects are gastrointestinal damage, kidney damage, and liver failure — no thanks!
My doctor offers physical therapy and pain management. I’m in physical therapy but I won’t do pain management. Why?
No pain management doctor in my state will prescribe the best medicine for me: cannabis.
For this reason, I am my own doctor when it comes to my medications. Turning to books and web resources about herbs and natural healing, I’ve found a combination that works fairly well for me. Turmeric capsules and a daily dose of tart cherry juice helps with inflammation, valerian tea helps me sleep and helps with spasms, and cannabis relieves muscle spasms, neural inflammation, and pain relief. Before big pharma, cannabis was widely used by medical practitioners and known for its medicinal qualities — sedative, analgesic, and antispasmodic.
Scientific evidence supports that which I’ve already experienced: Cannabis effectively treats chronic neuropathic pain. Recent studies on using cannabinoids for treatment of chronic pain show cannabis users experiencing relief from neuropathic pain and muscle spasms. In fact, the US government, through the Department of Health and Human Services, holds a patent on cannabidiol (CBD) as a neuroprotectant and antioxidant. So why is our government holding out on us? My guess: Big Pharma must be blowing Uncle Sam. The fact is the whole plant is good for treating inflammation and muscle spasms because both CBD (cannabidiol) and THC (tetrahydrocannabinol) serve as neuroprotective antioxidants reducing inflammation throughout the body. Inhaled cannabis can reduce pain associated with nerve damage, according to clinical studies by Dr. Donald Abrams, chief of hematology-oncology at San Francisco General Hospital.
Both CBD and THC have medicinal properties, but THC is often frowned upon because it is the psychoactive part that makes a person feel “high.” According to Dr. Margaret Gedde, a medical cannabis specialist, THC is not always a bad thing — some patients receive medical benefits from its psychoactive properties, which allow a shift in patients’ perceptions of chronic pain. That describes my experience: The pain never goes away, but with cannabis, it’s tolerable and I am productive rather than defeated by the pain.
Cannabis is not physically addictive, while many prescription drugs are. People die from complications due to prescription drugs every day. In fact, states allowing medical cannabis are experiencing a decrease in deaths from prescription pain-killer use. Nobody has ever died from a cannabis overdose.
Consider using cannabis instead of pharmaceuticals. It’s only natural.
