I`ve lived with migraine headaches most of my life and have found that pot relieves the pain. At 52 years of age, I survived a stroke that left me unable to read or tie my shoes and I spent the next year recovering. Before the stroke, I skied and played tennis, and dabbled with guitar. With my depression increasing everyday, I found that a single "hit" of pot got me off the couch and "rewired" my brain to help me regain a connection to my partially paralyzed and inactive body. Given my medical history, I figured that I was the perfect person to receive a Marijuana Registry identification card, so I set out to learn how it all works.
I hit the security button outside a dispensary and was "buzzed" in, given a clipboard with six forms to read and sign, and waited to see the doctor on duty. My name was called, and the owner led me through a locked door, past the dispensary counter, and into the back room with a chair facing the doctor behind the desk. I casually fingered the medical records sitting on my lap. "Why are you here today?" the Doc asked. I briefly explained my history of migraines, knowing that "pain management" was the major reason for pot prescriptions (or "recommendations," as they call them). I slid my records across the desk, which he reviewed as we spoke. Ten minutes later I had a signed recommendation and a license to buy medical marijuana. This allows me to visit a dispensary once a day and to buy up to two ounces at a time -- which is certainly more than I have ever bought and more than I`d ever need. Moments after that I stood in front of the display case with my nose deep inside jars of sticky pungent-smelling pot. The "budtender," as they are called, looked like a probable pot smoker and was excited to educate me in Pot 101. He patiently explained the difference between the smokeables and edibles and how each can be used to treat a malady, be it pain, lack of hunger, sleeping disorders, glaucoma, and a host of other conditions. I tried not to laugh as he earnestly explained, but it was so surreal. I bought a few grams and handed over my credit card.
Professional curiosity
Curiosity got the best of me and I spent time over the next few weeks visiting dispensaries from Boulder to Aspen, studying and engaging owners, employees, and customers in conversations about health, smoking habits, and the medical marijuana phenomenon. While it would be easy for budtenders to make light of being a "legal" pot dealer, I`ve come to believe that many budtenders are in fact very committed to providing pain relief and associated health services: Mst are earnest about dispensing advice.
Care and Pain Relief
One man in Aspen -- who suffered a debilitating back injury from a ski accident -- said that his pain management went from Percoset to pot when it became legal and available, sharing these words; "Vicodin and Percoset can kill your liver and kidneys and put you in a constant state of hangover. Pot gives the same relief without the side effects."
Another man could only get down a cup of soup a day during his chemotherapy and was wasting away, mentally and physically, until he began ingesting a strain of edible pot that encourages the "munchies," thus decreasing nausea and increasing his hunger. He was eventually able to eat half a sandwich each day. And the list goes on. I also learned that "edibles" and tinctures have a deep effect and should only be tested in the safety of your home.
Dispensaries and Budtenders
Dispensaries vary, from shabby and unprofessional to clean and organized, but don`t be fooled; the value is in the budtender and the product. Some shops claim to sell organically grown pot and some do not say. Some shops allow only one buyer at a time into the dispensary part of the shop and some have a communal policy where you share the experience with other cardholders. Some budtenders handled the pot with their bare hands, and others used tweezers or tongs; one even mentioning that it`s not sanitary to touch the actual product. As for budtenders, it`s a bizarre twist of circumstances when pot smokers, who have often been considered spacey, undependable and even low-lifes, are now considered experts in their field.
In the end
I truly hope that the industry survives the explosion and remains available for the good of those who honestly need the care and pain relief. People who suffer from a multitude of threatening illnesses and diseases deserve legal access to pot as an alternative to pharmaceuticals and the cost that these drugs have on organs, addiction, and quality of life.
News Hawk- Weedpipe 420 MAGAZINE ® - Medical Marijuana Publication & Social Networking
Source: Boulder Daily Camera
Author: Steve Boorstein
Contact: Boulder Daily Camera
Copyright: 2009 Media News group
Website:Guest opinion: From Percocet to pot
I hit the security button outside a dispensary and was "buzzed" in, given a clipboard with six forms to read and sign, and waited to see the doctor on duty. My name was called, and the owner led me through a locked door, past the dispensary counter, and into the back room with a chair facing the doctor behind the desk. I casually fingered the medical records sitting on my lap. "Why are you here today?" the Doc asked. I briefly explained my history of migraines, knowing that "pain management" was the major reason for pot prescriptions (or "recommendations," as they call them). I slid my records across the desk, which he reviewed as we spoke. Ten minutes later I had a signed recommendation and a license to buy medical marijuana. This allows me to visit a dispensary once a day and to buy up to two ounces at a time -- which is certainly more than I have ever bought and more than I`d ever need. Moments after that I stood in front of the display case with my nose deep inside jars of sticky pungent-smelling pot. The "budtender," as they are called, looked like a probable pot smoker and was excited to educate me in Pot 101. He patiently explained the difference between the smokeables and edibles and how each can be used to treat a malady, be it pain, lack of hunger, sleeping disorders, glaucoma, and a host of other conditions. I tried not to laugh as he earnestly explained, but it was so surreal. I bought a few grams and handed over my credit card.
Professional curiosity
Curiosity got the best of me and I spent time over the next few weeks visiting dispensaries from Boulder to Aspen, studying and engaging owners, employees, and customers in conversations about health, smoking habits, and the medical marijuana phenomenon. While it would be easy for budtenders to make light of being a "legal" pot dealer, I`ve come to believe that many budtenders are in fact very committed to providing pain relief and associated health services: Mst are earnest about dispensing advice.
Care and Pain Relief
One man in Aspen -- who suffered a debilitating back injury from a ski accident -- said that his pain management went from Percoset to pot when it became legal and available, sharing these words; "Vicodin and Percoset can kill your liver and kidneys and put you in a constant state of hangover. Pot gives the same relief without the side effects."
Another man could only get down a cup of soup a day during his chemotherapy and was wasting away, mentally and physically, until he began ingesting a strain of edible pot that encourages the "munchies," thus decreasing nausea and increasing his hunger. He was eventually able to eat half a sandwich each day. And the list goes on. I also learned that "edibles" and tinctures have a deep effect and should only be tested in the safety of your home.
Dispensaries and Budtenders
Dispensaries vary, from shabby and unprofessional to clean and organized, but don`t be fooled; the value is in the budtender and the product. Some shops claim to sell organically grown pot and some do not say. Some shops allow only one buyer at a time into the dispensary part of the shop and some have a communal policy where you share the experience with other cardholders. Some budtenders handled the pot with their bare hands, and others used tweezers or tongs; one even mentioning that it`s not sanitary to touch the actual product. As for budtenders, it`s a bizarre twist of circumstances when pot smokers, who have often been considered spacey, undependable and even low-lifes, are now considered experts in their field.
In the end
I truly hope that the industry survives the explosion and remains available for the good of those who honestly need the care and pain relief. People who suffer from a multitude of threatening illnesses and diseases deserve legal access to pot as an alternative to pharmaceuticals and the cost that these drugs have on organs, addiction, and quality of life.
News Hawk- Weedpipe 420 MAGAZINE ® - Medical Marijuana Publication & Social Networking
Source: Boulder Daily Camera
Author: Steve Boorstein
Contact: Boulder Daily Camera
Copyright: 2009 Media News group
Website:Guest opinion: From Percocet to pot
