Medical marijuana
#304075 - 04/05/07 09:26 AM
|
|
|
|
|
misspayj
Reged: 04/05/07
Posts: 12
Loc: Denver, CO
|
|
|
I think this is a great topic to discuss. I have not seen a post about this yet. I was wondering if anyone has experienced that when they use marijuana that they can eat some of the foods that they normally could not. I was also wondering if it is possible to get medical marijuana for IBS. I know there is stigma around this topic because in most places it is illegal but if it works and is technically safe, does anyone else feel that serious IBS sufferers could benefit from the medical use of marijuana? I feel that it is a positive herb and the option should be discussed and if I can not discuss it here, then where? I need help with this topic and I do not personally know any other IBS sufferers that would like to discuss topics as these with me. Please respond. Thanks, this is my first post by the way and I need support.
Print
Remind Me
Notify Moderator
|
|
|
This is my first post as well, I just joined; I truly hope I don't offend anyone either. This is a subject i have experiences with, so I thought it would be a good place to jump in. In some states medical marijuana is legal. If you are lucky enough to live in a state that allows medical marijuana, a physician can help you out. I would talk to a Dr before doing anything anyway, just to be on the safe side. I'm certainly not a Dr and can only speak from my own experience and research.
I personally have found it to be extremely helpful in managing my IBS, on several levels. It helps with the nausea. It helps with the cramps and pain. It helps with diarrhea. It helps with improving appetite. It of course helps to elevate mood, for those of us who suffer from depression. It reduces acid in the stomach.
I'm not currently seeing a gastroenterologist, but when I was, he was well aware that I was using marijuana to help with the symptoms, and said it could only help.
There are also negatives, of course. You risk getting in trouble with the law (if it isn't legal where you live, as it's not here). You risk failing drug tests for employement, and you will test positive if you go to the hospital. As you've said, the stigma is great. While I agree with you that it's a positive herb, it is still a drug, and while not actually addictive, it's very easy to get reliant on it. It can also increase anxiety in some people. Any smoking is an irritant to your stomach, and even though you feel relief from the symptoms, you risk irritating your stomach with the smoke itself. If you live where it's legal, you can avoid this by eating it instead.
I also have found that while it's very helpful with my IBS-D, when I have primarily IBS-C symptoms, I have to be careful because I have found it can be constipating if I'm already in that situation. Of course, if it's illegal, it's not regulated, so you would want to insure you get it somewhere you trust, or you could cause yourself more problems.
Overall, I personally belive the positives far outweigh the negatives, but it's definitely a personal decision that you should really think about.
I do want to point out that marijuana primarily relieves symptoms, where diet can actually PREVENT them. I've only just discovered this site and way of eating, and I've been amazed at how much it's helped so far. WHile I think MM is very helpful, I'd rather prevent the symptoms altogether when I can by controlling my diet. I had never realized that was an option before!
Print
Remind Me
Notify Moderator
|
|
|
Besides being illegal, and not wanting to spend time dealing with the legal system ... that's all I would need is to get high .. get the munchies ... pig out, and live in the bathroom for 24 hours.
--------------------
 Courage doesn’t always roar. Sometimes courage is the quiet voice at the end of the day saying, “I will try again tomorrow”. Mary Anne Radmacher
Print
Remind Me
Notify Moderator
|
|
|
Thank you for all your advice. I am well aware of the benefits of this site as I have been using it for about 2 years and have seen great results. In this post I am not asking about the negatives of medical marijuana but the positive as that is what I am benefiting from. I appreciated your imput very much.
Print
Remind Me
Notify Moderator
|
|
|
The point of this topic was "medical" marijuana, which would make it not illegal. Plus, the fact is that it obviously effects everyone differently. I benefit from it so please do not doubt that it is a great choice for all the great reasons it does provide.
Print
Remind Me
Notify Moderator
|
|
|
You have touched a subject that is close to my heart … and I am sorry if I sound harsh. I am not trying to attack you or anything like that. I think that over the years I have really turned into a nice person. At least I try and hope…
This is a good site to discuss many things, but if you wish to smoke marijuana it is not for your health … it's for pleasure.
Let me introduce myself …
Hi … I'm DoubleJ … I'm a recovering addict. That sound familiar to some folks???
I spend hours a week with an NA group trying to stay off of and get all ages of people off of drugs. I have been drug free since 24 May, 1979, and hiding in Wyoming. I was one of the lucky ones. I survived my dope days without destroying too many brain cells. My teeth ache and my body hurts. My knowledge of marijuana and other drugs is first hand. I used to smoke grass to take the edge of the speed which was so easy to obtain in SE Asia. I always thought that we stayed alive because we never slept. And it is just not worth the cost.
I have never heard of marijuana being legal for IBS so how can it be medicinal? Let me tell you what I do know. Although marijuana itself is not addictive (which is still debatable) it still gets you nearer to an environment where there are other drugs that are. And eventually most people will try something else.
There are better ways to control your ibs symptoms then lighting up a joint, or firing up your bong, or baking brownies.
Do you know what people will do for drugs? Young men become brutal … young women will do anything …
So … you certainly can have your own opinion and ideas … me too. Drugs kill. Worse they degrade everyone they touch.
I'm sorry. Marijuana is not the answer for IBS.
--------------------
Courage doesn’t always roar. Sometimes courage is the quiet voice at the end of the day saying, “I will try again tomorrow”. Mary Anne Radmacher
Print
Remind Me
Notify Moderator
|
|
|
I have been using marijuana for recreation for about 35 years and have had IBS-D for about 5 years. I find that it relieves my painful colon quite well. However, the munchies cause me to eat much of the forbidden foods
Print
Remind Me
Notify Moderator
|
|
|
There is loads and loads of information out there on the positive benefits of marijuana. It IS legal for medicinal use in several states. I hardly think using a medicinal herb that grows in the ground is anything compared to speed.
You don't question other herbs taken for IBS, this one is somehow different because the government hasn't found a way to tax it? I definitely sympathesize that you got addicted to speed, but it certainly isn't the same in my opinion. If you were posting that you used marijuana to help your IBS and you instead got sick or addicted, I would understand. I've of course never heard of that happening. Ever. I just can't see how you can compare the two. Have you looked at the side effects to the medicines available today? The drugs pulled off the market after people use them for years? The people hooked on PRESCRIBED pain pills? I just can't see how it compares at all. Am I allowed to post website links here? I'd be happly to put up links that has FACTUAL medical marijuana information..
Print
Remind Me
Notify Moderator
|
|
|
Thank you for the educated support. I agree 100% with what you are saying and it is good to know that someone else sees my point of view. I am on this site for support, not to be attacked or informed by someone who doesn't have much evidence to support there claim. Thank you.
Print
Remind Me
Notify Moderator
|
|
|
First of all, yes you have come across very harsh. Second, the use of MEDICAL marijuana is not just for plesure, otherwise there would be not reason that the government would allow it to be legal for patients who are suffering from a chronic disease or condition. I do not like to be told opinons that are interpreted as facts. Like I said before, your experience is obviously different than a vast majority of sufferers and that does not discredit neither you or I. I feel that you can not relate marijuana to speed when one is an upper and the other relaxes you. The point of my blog was not about how marijuana could possibly be a gateway drug because that is a decision that you would make and not the actual drug itself. Please realize that if something has helped many people and it is not as harmful as lets say alcohol than do not put it down. I could smoke everyday for years and be a productive member of society and then if I truly had to I could quit but why would I if I don't experience any bad side effects? I don't even have to smoke it, I can ingest it or vaporize it. I have control over my IBS symptoms with all the methods I could but I am not perfect and there is no way my symptoms can be 100% gone for my whole life considering there are stressors that I can not control or things that you do not experiece because I am a woman and no matter what I do I will be in pain from my periods. I do not want to be taking precriptions for my pain considering the side effects are way worse than those of marijuana. People like you are keeping marijuana illegal in this country when things like guns and alcohol are legal which makes no sense at all. All I want is to be pain free in the times when all my other resources do not help and to be peaceful, when have you heard of an instance when weed made a hippy kill someone? Never. Remember weed doesn't cause anyone do to anything that they wouldn't do if they really didn't want to and if you feel the side effects are bad than obviously you do not have enough pain that gets relieved from THC that would make those side effects worth it. We are all going to die one day, I won't to live a better life and die from something that I felt that was worth fighting for.
Print
Remind Me
Notify Moderator
|
|
|
Hey guys - this topic is starting to get heated and I'd just like to remind people that this is a board for support, and to keep everyone's feelings in mind. Some people may have different ideas than other people.
That being said, I have a marijuana prescription for my IBS since it is legal in California (but not the U.S., crazy laws) but am also doing my college senior final term paper on the effects of marijuana, so I see both sides. What works for some people doesn't work for others, and it's nice to get perspectives about both sides of the issues without any feelings getting hurt.
--------------------
- Jennifer
Print
Remind Me
Notify Moderator
|
|
|
ok first off i would like to say i know first hand the benefits i honestly cant eat anything unless i use some first it helps a ton with my gerd as well there has been 0 deaths due to marijuana overdose recorded in the us witch compared to prescription pills is amazing its probably the best thing i have ever used for it you can get the legal alterantive it helps alot as well and is %100 legal in all states if i dont use it before i eat i get severe cramps the next day if i eat at night if not then it happens within hours without the marijuana i have to take 2 or 3 painkillers to eat witch the dr gave me along with some dicyolmicine/anti spasm witch dosent really do enough this is an artical i found on from a good site
"Studies indicate that cannabinoids in marijuana bind with cannabinoid receptors in the digestive tract, especially the small and large intestine, causing muscle relaxation, reduction of inflammation, analgesia, increased nerve-muscle coordination, anti-emesis, and relief of spasms such as those that cause nausea.
Cannabis is also an adaptogenic immune system modulator that can increase or decrease immune systems function in ways that almost always contribute to healthier outcomes.
Cannabis is unique among medicines because it has a comprehensive range of actions that can alleviate several symptoms by altering how the body and brain communicate, and how the self perceives its internal organs and systems"
i have been researching alot on this subject as well i know its very controversial but it works and i think if your in a state thats legal then you should talk to your doctor about it because honestly its the best way iv found so far.
P.s if your concerned about it "lowering your iq" dont sweat it it dosent in any way lol just a random fact sorry 
Print
Remind Me
Notify Moderator
|
|
|
You should go to the Living Room board. There is a gal there who knows quite a bit about this. I can't remember her screen name, but just do a search on medical marijuana.
Print
Remind Me
Notify Moderator
|
|
|
My applause to you!
I've never done drugs and I'm not going to start now. IBS CAN be managed with diet and menu planning.
Why in the world would anyone want to smoke dope???  I would imagine it costs more than tummy fiber, peppermint capsules, and teas that work, along with simple dietary changes.
Just because something grows in the ground doesn't make it healthy. Would anyone eat wild mushrooms that that may taste good, but in reality are toxic poison and can cause sudden death? Would they consider eating wild onions that grow in the ground (nature's digitalis) and suffer a heart attack as a result? I THINK NOT!!! Just because something grows in the ground and is not cooked in a drug lab, doesn't mean it won't cause a person serious problems... if not immediate, then probably long term overall.
Kadoos to you for standing up to the truth of it all!
--------------------
Senior female, IBS-D, presently stable thanks to Heather & Staff
Print
Remind Me
Notify Moderator
|
|
|
I am sorry, but unless you are walking in someone else's shoes, then it is hard to comment on their pain.
Would you deny this drug to people who are going through chemo, and it is the only thing that helps their overwhelming pain and nausea?
This isn't about sitting in a corner and getting high on dope, just for the fun of it. This is used as a medication, not a recreational drug. And I have to say, it may be much safer than the dangerous pharmaceuticals that Big Pharma poisons us with, every day of our lives.
I am not informed enough to comment more on this, but I would not pass judgement on someone who wants to ease their pain with an approved substance.
I am not a drug user, never have been, but I can not stand in judgement of someone else who would choose this route.
There is a poster on the Living Room board (again, I cannot remember her name), who uses this. She has a horrid disease, along with IBS, and medical marijuana is the only thing that relieves her pain and helps her cope. I would not even think about pointing a finger at her, when this drug helps her live a somewhat semi-normal life with her family.
Print
Remind Me
Notify Moderator
|
|
|
and I'm not going to interfere or close it. Medical marijuana is a reality (in my state, Washington, a legal one approved by voters statewide).
It's a drug like any other, with benefits and risks, and it's not up to anyone to determine the appropriateness of its use except the patient and their doctor.
I'd like to ask that people who have a blanket disapproval of medical marijuana simply refrain from participating in this thread.
Thank you,
Heather
--------------------
Heather is the Administrator of the IBS Message Boards. She is the author of Eating for IBS and The First Year: IBS, and the CEO of Heather's Tummy Care. Join her IBS Newsletter. Meet Heather on Facebook!
Print
Remind Me
Notify Moderator
|
Heather
#352004 - 11/11/09 12:25 PM
|
|
|
|
|
Gerikat
Reged: 06/21/09
Posts: 1285
|
|
|
Thanks so much for stepping in. I was bothered by Windchimes's comments. Since it is legal in some states, it is up to the individual and not for us to pass judgement.
Print
Remind Me
Notify Moderator
|
|
|
Its legal in my state as well for medicinal purposes and you can get it for IBS.
I helps my severe pain from IBS.
You cannot get physically addicted to it either, that is a myth.
There are Cannabinoid receptors in the brain and in the gut.
It has been used very successfully for nausea as well as pain and for some anxiety.
There is an online research study for ibs right now about it.
--------------------
My website on IBS is www.ibshealth.com
Print
Remind Me
Notify Moderator
|
Posts
