Does medical marijuana work for chronic pain?

Posted by mmoss @mmoss, Mar 27, 2021

Does Medical marijuana work for chronic pain. Looking for alternatives to Vicodin.

Interested in more discussions like this? Go to the Chronic Pain Support Group.

@jenatsky

@artscaping is aware I’ve had very good success using THC/CBD in tincture and vape form to cease my need for oxycodone/Tylenol 5/325. I was taking 6 daily for breakthrough pain from my main control from buprenorphine patch. I’m now using maybe one a month and still have my October prescription 1/2 full. But it took me a year of experimentation to get to where I am. What works for one does not always fit another. I use combos of 2:1, 1:2, 4:1 for vapes, a 10:1 CBD:THC tincture 1mi in AM and 1/2ml at 12:30 and 17:30, a full strength THC 1cc bedtime plus a 5:1 CBD:THC tincture and I use an RSO (Rick Simpson Oil) 4:1 CBD:THC 3x day. I no longer get a buzz from cannabis but being relatively pain free for the first time since 1988 is worth it. BTW the person who stated that specific types and strengths were limited in Pa is wrong as I live in Montgomery County and have a tremendous selection of same products week after week.

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Thanks- I have been experimenting for years and can’t find the right combo but I must get off these opioids this spring. I have chronic pain and am 6 weeks out from TKR -which is painful.I appreciate the specificity it’s hard to just try Radom amounts!

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@jenatsky

@artscaping is aware I’ve had very good success using THC/CBD in tincture and vape form to cease my need for oxycodone/Tylenol 5/325. I was taking 6 daily for breakthrough pain from my main control from buprenorphine patch. I’m now using maybe one a month and still have my October prescription 1/2 full. But it took me a year of experimentation to get to where I am. What works for one does not always fit another. I use combos of 2:1, 1:2, 4:1 for vapes, a 10:1 CBD:THC tincture 1mi in AM and 1/2ml at 12:30 and 17:30, a full strength THC 1cc bedtime plus a 5:1 CBD:THC tincture and I use an RSO (Rick Simpson Oil) 4:1 CBD:THC 3x day. I no longer get a buzz from cannabis but being relatively pain free for the first time since 1988 is worth it. BTW the person who stated that specific types and strengths were limited in Pa is wrong as I live in Montgomery County and have a tremendous selection of same products week after week.

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I was so hopeful Medical Cannabis would give me some pain relief but turned out THC aggravated my Fibro and neck nerve damage pain. Has anyone else experienced this?
And CBD makes me sleepy so I take it at bedtime.

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@irr4et

I was so hopeful Medical Cannabis would give me some pain relief but turned out THC aggravated my Fibro and neck nerve damage pain. Has anyone else experienced this?
And CBD makes me sleepy so I take it at bedtime.

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Good morning @irr4et, OOPS......it looks like you may have gone overboard on the THC. Do you remember when folks used THC before they went to a concert or an art show because it enhanced the experience? That is what THC is supposed to do. When you want CBD to be more effective you combine it with THC to get what is called the entourage effect. They work together well when you use medical cannabis quality. @jenatsky has become a good prescriber. You can do that also. It does take some time to evaluate the effectiveness of a combined tincture or topical.

If you use the Search bar at the top of this page, look for my previous posts about medical cannabis. You will be able to review the journey I have been on for about five years now. I use no other pain medications to control my small fiber neuropathy. My choice of dosages and product developers has been pretty thorough and you are also able to develop a similar protocol.

I have found that the Leafy website has accurate and thorough information to get you started. All CBD products are not the same. Tinctures and topicals are the best types of distribution elements. Although vaping is the quickest way to get things going.....it is not great for your lungs. The fastest way to get relief is to place the tincture dosage under your tongue and let it be absorbed through the membrane directly into your brain. By skipping the digestive system, you will have a better and quicker response.

As you gather information from my posts and those of other members......you will begin to see a road to pain relief. I don't know where you live and how medical cannabis is distributed in your state. If you would like me to help you with these issues, I am happy to do that. Our mission here on Connect is to improve the quality of life for every member. You are at the top of my list today.

May you be free of suffering and the causes of suffering.
Chris

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@saylor479

Is this the same at the Mayo in Arizona?

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Good afternoon @saylor478. The answer is basically yes. Here is a link to the Leafly site. http://www.leafly.com/learn/legalization/arizona. Let me know if you have additional questions. I am happy to help you find relief.

Chris

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@artscaping

Good morning @irr4et, OOPS......it looks like you may have gone overboard on the THC. Do you remember when folks used THC before they went to a concert or an art show because it enhanced the experience? That is what THC is supposed to do. When you want CBD to be more effective you combine it with THC to get what is called the entourage effect. They work together well when you use medical cannabis quality. @jenatsky has become a good prescriber. You can do that also. It does take some time to evaluate the effectiveness of a combined tincture or topical.

If you use the Search bar at the top of this page, look for my previous posts about medical cannabis. You will be able to review the journey I have been on for about five years now. I use no other pain medications to control my small fiber neuropathy. My choice of dosages and product developers has been pretty thorough and you are also able to develop a similar protocol.

I have found that the Leafy website has accurate and thorough information to get you started. All CBD products are not the same. Tinctures and topicals are the best types of distribution elements. Although vaping is the quickest way to get things going.....it is not great for your lungs. The fastest way to get relief is to place the tincture dosage under your tongue and let it be absorbed through the membrane directly into your brain. By skipping the digestive system, you will have a better and quicker response.

As you gather information from my posts and those of other members......you will begin to see a road to pain relief. I don't know where you live and how medical cannabis is distributed in your state. If you would like me to help you with these issues, I am happy to do that. Our mission here on Connect is to improve the quality of life for every member. You are at the top of my list today.

May you be free of suffering and the causes of suffering.
Chris

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Chris I would give anything if the Entourage Effect worked for me. My Cannabis Dr in Fl has guided me in all the possible delivery ways. I have tried the blend in adjusted ratios that minimized the THC and increased the CBD some, under my tongue over and over and it makes me hurt more every time. I will go to Leafly again and read. I unsubscribed a yr ago when nothing I tried helped. I am feeling some hope however that you are offering to help me. I do not want to do two weeks of IV Ketamine.

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@artscaping

Welcome @bonnieh, you are not jumping in you are just joining us as we explore medical cannabis options and opportunities, Do you still see your Mayo doctor? Do you live in a marijuana legal state? In some states like Minnesota you must have a specific diagnosis and chronic pain is one. In other states you can just register with a dispensary. They often have pharmacists who specialize in helping you get started and monitor your experience,

In other states you are your own prescriber and must monitor your own experiences, Choosing medical cannabis doesn’t mean you are replacing prescribed medications,, You only need two products, topicals and tinctures, And you need to memorize this phrase....you can always have more, you cannot have less. Take it easy. Here is a good site to start,

If you would like to get started please let me know where you live and what you are now using for pain.

May you be free of suffering and the causes of suffering,
Chris

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Living in pain is the worst. For everyone who does have to live with this burden. Yea for you. Please do not think you understand. You don't, you can't no matter how smart you are. I hope you never have too either. Its hell on earth. The pain can change you, and not always for the better. If you had any idea how bad it is. You would understand why we the tortured are willing to do almost anything to have some quality of life. Just consider how many comit suicide to escape the pain. Right, it's that bad and tragic. You cannot tell me how tragic it is that some people have overdosed on opiates and that it is why it is right the rest of us endlessly suffer until we are dead.

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@betterway

Living in pain is the worst. For everyone who does have to live with this burden. Yea for you. Please do not think you understand. You don't, you can't no matter how smart you are. I hope you never have too either. Its hell on earth. The pain can change you, and not always for the better. If you had any idea how bad it is. You would understand why we the tortured are willing to do almost anything to have some quality of life. Just consider how many comit suicide to escape the pain. Right, it's that bad and tragic. You cannot tell me how tragic it is that some people have overdosed on opiates and that it is why it is right the rest of us endlessly suffer until we are dead.

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@betterway, it sounds like you've run into someone or a statement that really made you angry and not feeling understood. What's up? I'm listening. Can you tell me more?

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I tried marijuana. I would have to say, some of the daily misery of being in chronic pain is relieved along with some of the pain. My pain doctor did not like that I tried some pot. He told me he would not continue to treat me if I did it again. As with many in chronic pain. I think, I can say the most important thing in making us and our life in general not so bad is the most important thing regardless of what any non-pain persons may understand. We will try and try again and again and that's why my pain Dr. has a job.
It really wasn't for me though the overall effect and effectiveness that is. Not that I would not ever do it again mind you. I think I'll stick with the Tequila. Just kidding, or am I. lol.
I also tried the CBD this and the CBD that including the CBD gummies with THC . The doctor took a urine sample and thought I was smoking the marijuana. After looking at the fact that I had been treated by him for some time and that 8 out of 10 urine samples were not with THC. He seemed to be Ok.
The CBD did help with my tension and anxiety and in that roundabout way of being calmer it did reduce my overall pain. It did not however take it away. Sigh. The oral CBD tasted really bad really bad. I am going to continue with the non-THC CBD gummies and hope as always for some relief. I mean they can't be any worse than all the prescribed medications that also offer only some relief.

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@colleenyoung

@betterway, it sounds like you've run into someone or a statement that really made you angry and not feeling understood. What's up? I'm listening. Can you tell me more?

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No, it's just a fact. The horribleness of chronic pain the loss of life quality the inability to participate, the burden on others is just a few of the things unless experienced. Personally, one cannot feel how bad it really is. Please do not think I am unappreciative of the help I humbly receive. We all need help sometimes and then some of us suffer more all the time. When we are seen and when we are alone. It would be nice to be able to enjoy being more a part of life rather than just painfully trying to make it through each day. I'm pretty sure you too would want a better way to live .

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Going through a major life change is emotionally fraught. Some of those who we loved and thought love us we lose. We lose are health, maybe our job, our income, our loves and way of life, even our home. What we have left is the pain.

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