Medicinal Marijuana and PTSD. (approx. 3 min. read)
/When I was first diagnosed with PTSD I took my therapist’s advice and started taking anti-depressants, anti-anxiety meds and sleeping pills. I don’t like to take meds of any kind because I’m quite sensitive and seem to get a lot of side effects, but I needed them. I was suicidal, not getting much sleep and I couldn’t leave the house, let alone open the curtains because I was so afraid of the outside world.
I wanted the meds to work so badly because I didn’t like the person I was becoming, but they didn’t. The anti-depressants made me cough all the time, as well as sweat uncontrollably and the sleeping pills were great at helping me sleep, but did nothing for me when I was trying to wake out of a night terror.
So, I did what I do best and I started doing research on what the military were doing for PTSD and was completely surprised by what I found. The first article I read discussed studies that were being done in Afghanistan using medicinal marijuana on our servicemen, and how it was helping with night terrors and anxiety. I went on to read article after article explaining how it worked and then decided to try it.
I found a recipe called “Dropdead Cookies” in “HighTimes,” and baked my first batch. The first night I ate half a cookie which contained about ½ of a gram (it was disgusting!!), but I slept five hours without so much as a whimper!! I hadn’t slept more than 30-45 minutes without a night terror in 30+ years! I was over the moon, but was it a fluke?
I’m always waiting for the ball to drop if you know what I mean: and I was afraid this was too good to be true. So, I tried it again and I have to say, I’ve never looked back. The only time I’ve had a night terror since I started taking marijuana, is when I went on holiday and couldn’t find any to eat before I went to sleep.
Now don’t go getting all high and mighty on me because I’m not a “pothead,” I’m extremely health conscious. The only pills I “pop” are Vitamins and Pro-Biotics, and I mean that ...I don’t even take Advil/Tylenol for a headache because I’ve found something that works so much better ...and other than medicinal marijuana doing what it’s supposed to do, there are no side effects. So I don’t have to take meds for heartburn, high blood pressure, bloating or constipation.
I eat 95% non-GMO (Genetically Modified/Engineered Organisms) and for those of you that don’t know what that is; Google it because it’ll probably solve a lot of mysterious health issues you may have. My husband hasn’t had a migraine, or cluster headache since we changed to non-GMO and he suffered from them for over a decade. Plus, I work out 5-6 times a week doing HIIT (High-intensity Interval Training), Zumba, cycling, and weight training. I’ve never been in such good shape but I digress...
Marijuana has given me my life back. I’m not symptom free, but I have something to take when PTSD is rearing its ugly head and I’m unable to leave the house. It helps to control my anxiety, daytime flashbacks, night; as well as, daytime sweats. Plus I’m able to function better and finally live, because I’m getting at least five hours of sleep a night.
This is my experience and it’s a relief to have something that finally helps, because the lack of sleep; amongst other things, were really testing my sanity. I hope you can find something that helps you. Oh, and don't forget to check out the links below to read about the scientific reasons why medicinal marijuana works so well on the traumatized brain.
Thanks for following. Stay safe and stay strong.
References:
http://www.newsweek.com/pot-and-ptsd-358139
http://medicalmarijuana.ca/news/0/237
http://veteransformedicalmarijuana.org/content/general-use-cannabis-ptsd-symptoms
