Today, were starting to learn thats not true.
An Important Medical Disclaimer
I am not a doctor and am not providing medical advicebecause I cant!
yo keep that in mind when reading.
Marijuana is a powerful but safe drug.
Statistically,it has a low incidence of causing any serious harm to anyonewhen compared with other drugs.
That said, its still a drug and bad things can happen if you dont know what youre doing.
Marijuana affects everyone a little differently.
Different strains have different effects.
You may take medicine that interacts with marijuana in some way.
Why I Tried Medical Marijuana
I went through most of my life with an anti-drug attitude.
Ive never smoked, I still drink very rarely, and I didnt try marijuana until my thirties.
Even then, I got a prescription for medical marijuana because I thought it might help manage my pain.
The first time I tried marijuana I had far too much.
I took half of what the woman at the dispensary suggested for someone with no tolerance whatsoever.
I was high for about 16 hours and hated it.
Eventually I went under and it felt like a comfortable version of drowning.
I woke up the next morning with a headache and decided marijuana was a bad idea.
Pain changed my mind yet again.
If youre in pain every day, you want to take pills every day.
Thats the horrible thing about opioids: they decrease your pain tolerance if you use them too regularly.
My research continued into other alternatives and I always came back to marijuana.
I tried another strain, still took too much, and hated it only a little less.
But just as it happens in the movies, the third time was the charm.
Is Medical Marijuana Right for You?
Thats a tough question to answer.
you’ve got the option to get a prescription for medical marijuanafor all sorts of conditions.
Medical marijuana can treat issues that cause pain.
Cannabis indica, more specifically, can help you sleep.
But youll also find conditions marijuana treats, like obesity, that dont make a lot of sense.
If marijuana tends to make youwantto eat, how will it help you lose weight?
I dont know the answer to that question, but Im highly skeptical of the claim.
Youll find other interesting conditions on the symptom list, such as anxiety, which marijuanacanalleviate and exacerbate.
Youve probably heard about the paranoia as a side effect.
Certain strains cause it in most people and others dont have quite that effect.
Most strains will help you relax, but some can make you paranoid.
Everyone reacts somewhat differently, too.
I get hungry but I dont get paranoid or silly.
A friend of mine doesnt get hungry or paranoid butdoesget very silly and cant stop laughing.
So can marijuana help with anxiety?
It can in some people, sure, but it could make the problem worse for others.
I can tell you that marijuana generally helps relieve stress and pain.
It can also help you sleep.
If you have a condition with those symptoms you might find some relief with medical marijuana.
Otherwise, you may have better luck with something else.
If you want to give medical marijuana a try, talk to your doctor first.
But theres still more to learn here!
Well tackle a lot of those concerns in other posts, so stay tuned!
High Sky(Shutterstock),Jan Faukner(Shutterstock), andAtomazul(Shutterstock).
Adam Dachisis a Los Angeles-based writer and consultant.
Youll find him writing and making stuff over atAwkward Human, including his podcast theAwkward Human Survival Guide.
