An Open Letter to Congress,
Since before Nixon’s declaration of the war on drugs, our nation’s policy makers have stigmatized the use of marijuana of any form. Since then research has found many novel uses for marijuana medically. With the enactment of Proposition 215 in 1996, the stigmatization of marijuana began the slow start of dismantling. Proposition 215 allowed those with the agreement of their primary care giver the ability to possess or grow marijuana for medical purposes—without the fear of legal recourse on the state level. Subsequently, with the enactment of Proposition 215 in California other states have followed suit. Our nation is recognizing the medical uses of marijuana and is beginning to have an open mind. It is time for …show more content…
In the Δ9-Tetrahydrocannabinol (THC) pilot study for chronic PTSD, Roitmen, Mechoulam, Cooper-Kazaz, and Shalev (2014) listed side effects such as dry mouth, headache, and dizziness; Even though patients experienced the mild side effects from the THC according to Roitman et al. (2014) “there were no treatment discontinuations during the trial” (p. 589). According to Roitman et al. (2014) they observed a significant decrease in hyper-arousal symptoms associated with PTSD as well as a decrease in nightmares and increase in overall sleep quality. For 20% of the participants after week three nightmares associated with their PTSD ceased completely (p. 589). When comparing the treatment choices of current drug treatment options and that of cannabis, cannabis is a much safer alternative to treating PTSD.
Unfortunately, for our veterans, unless legislation allowing medical cannabis is passed they may not see the benefits of this treatment option for a long time. If Congress passes legislation that allows our veterans to take part in medical marijuana treatment studies, research and valuable knowledge in the area of PTSD and novel treatments will continue. Our veterans have suffered long enough with the psychological damage that war poses on a person; they deserve any and all options made available to …show more content…
If it isn’t a death sentence, they risk hair loss, unwanted side effects (such as nausea and vomiting, skin and mouth sores, as well as memory and emotional changes), possible death of their immune system and bleeding risks (due to bone marrow changes causing white blood cells and platelets to decrease), and finally the possibility of fertility problems. Consider a woman with breast cancer (this type of cancer is sensitive to cannabinoids (Guzman, 2003, p. 749)), she not only has to undergo treatment that will make her lose her hair and put her at risk for life threatening infections (due to the fact she now has basically no immune system). Moreover, she must also fight with the fact that she may never ever be able to have children because of the damage the treatment may have caused to her reproductive system. She is not only presented with a possible death sentence but a possible death sentence to any hope she had of motherhood. Cannabinoid research has the possibility of changing the lives of those given the diagnosis of cancer. It is our duty to pass laws that do not inhibit medical research and for many,
Since before Nixon’s declaration of the war on drugs, our nation’s policy makers have stigmatized the use of marijuana of any form. Since then research has found many novel uses for marijuana medically. With the enactment of Proposition 215 in 1996, the stigmatization of marijuana began the slow start of dismantling. Proposition 215 allowed those with the agreement of their primary care giver the ability to possess or grow marijuana for medical purposes—without the fear of legal recourse on the state level. Subsequently, with the enactment of Proposition 215 in California other states have followed suit. Our nation is recognizing the medical uses of marijuana and is beginning to have an open mind. It is time for …show more content…
In the Δ9-Tetrahydrocannabinol (THC) pilot study for chronic PTSD, Roitmen, Mechoulam, Cooper-Kazaz, and Shalev (2014) listed side effects such as dry mouth, headache, and dizziness; Even though patients experienced the mild side effects from the THC according to Roitman et al. (2014) “there were no treatment discontinuations during the trial” (p. 589). According to Roitman et al. (2014) they observed a significant decrease in hyper-arousal symptoms associated with PTSD as well as a decrease in nightmares and increase in overall sleep quality. For 20% of the participants after week three nightmares associated with their PTSD ceased completely (p. 589). When comparing the treatment choices of current drug treatment options and that of cannabis, cannabis is a much safer alternative to treating PTSD.
Unfortunately, for our veterans, unless legislation allowing medical cannabis is passed they may not see the benefits of this treatment option for a long time. If Congress passes legislation that allows our veterans to take part in medical marijuana treatment studies, research and valuable knowledge in the area of PTSD and novel treatments will continue. Our veterans have suffered long enough with the psychological damage that war poses on a person; they deserve any and all options made available to …show more content…
If it isn’t a death sentence, they risk hair loss, unwanted side effects (such as nausea and vomiting, skin and mouth sores, as well as memory and emotional changes), possible death of their immune system and bleeding risks (due to bone marrow changes causing white blood cells and platelets to decrease), and finally the possibility of fertility problems. Consider a woman with breast cancer (this type of cancer is sensitive to cannabinoids (Guzman, 2003, p. 749)), she not only has to undergo treatment that will make her lose her hair and put her at risk for life threatening infections (due to the fact she now has basically no immune system). Moreover, she must also fight with the fact that she may never ever be able to have children because of the damage the treatment may have caused to her reproductive system. She is not only presented with a possible death sentence but a possible death sentence to any hope she had of motherhood. Cannabinoid research has the possibility of changing the lives of those given the diagnosis of cancer. It is our duty to pass laws that do not inhibit medical research and for many,