In 2010, I became a cannabis patient. I have RA and it's helped immensely. Cannabis has basically saved my life. Although I still use Humira and one other drug, I don't take narcotics, anti-inflammatories or blood pressure pills anymore. My eleven year nightmare seems to be reduced to some lesser symptoms which is a blessing. I had a nine month flare that year that was horrible. It was worse than the other ten years put together. I had to do something. So, after talking to my family, I went to the THC Foundation and got my card.
Now, just so you know, it's not easy to get a card in Oregon. You actually have to qualify. I know, many people think this is just a way to get pot legally. Trust me, it's not. It's actually work if you do your own growing. Then there's the "making of the meds". Tincture, capsules, salve, oil...it all takes time and unfortunately money. As does the growing. All in all, it's been interesting, expensive, educational, frustrating, and I'd make the same decision again in a heartbeat.
I believe that cannabis regulates our immune system. We have cannabinoid receptors throughout our bodies that interact with the cannabinoids in cannabis to promote healing. I believe that my immune system is more normal now, resulting in less pain, stiffness, and fatigue. I now experience an overall feeling of energy and vitality that I lost for all that time. I take the stairs now in lieu of the elevator. I don't fear going to the grocery store anymore. I can do big box stores with ease.
And the best part...sometimes I have a difficult time remembering what it was like to feel so awful. Cannabis is a plant. It's NOT a drug. We've been lied to by our government for so long about this plant that people fear the very thing that can help them. And then the impossible happened...Washington and Colorado legalized. Oregon didn't make it, but we will. And, as Andrew Sullivan always says: Know Hope!
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