Cannabis can be healing 🌱🙏🏻

After my freshman year of college, I vowed I would never smoke pot again after a really bad trip. Fast forward 4 years later, I would never expect to have a  conversation with a relative about whether marijuana could help my pain. This family member had always viewed holistic approaches as beneficial to the whole self, and I have to admit that this person was right. 

In 2015, I got my medical marijuana card, as it's been legal in Massachusetts since 2012. I was really interested learning as much as I could about cannabis. I wanted to understand the laws and regulations, especially as it is still illegal on the federal level. I started reading books and watching documentaries, all discussing how marijuana can help numerous health issues both physically and mentally. The more that I learned, the better I could understand what strands of cannabis may be more beneficial for my symptoms. Its all about trial and error to figure out what is the best fit.

Cannabis has not only been beneficial for my physical health, but it has also been really helpful for my mental health. I have found it has helped with my anxiety, depression, and ADHD. When I use it, my mood is elivated, which has enhanced my creativity. Art has always been a big part of my life, and for a long time I stopped doing it all together due to depression. Since I started taking cannabis, I have been able to go back to doing what I loved; expressing myself. I finally got back into painting, and explored other forms of art, including writing. 

If it wasn't for this relative, I wouldn't have thought 

 marijuana could be used as a form of medication. In the last 2 years of having the medical marijuana card, I have learned so much on how holistic treatments in conjunction to western medicine can really help ones quality of life. Cannabis is a hot topic, and medical researchers are trying to learn as much as they can. The National Institute of Health awarded a federal grant for $3.8 million dollars over the next five years, to study chronic pain patients using opiods vs cannabis as pain management. Currently there are 29 states that have legalized medical marijuana, and there is hope that this number will increase within the next few years.