Because It’s 4:20 Somewhere

After all of the side effects with the Prednisone, etc, I was understandably desperate for some respite. It seems that Prednisone is a necessary evil, and while I will hopefully taper off of it eventually, I am looking at months (at a minimum) of this garbage in the meantime. I scoured the Internet, asked around in those Ulcerative Colitis FB support groups, and read as many scientific journal articles I could get my hands on. While most everything is super individual-specific with this disease, one common remedy continued to come up: Cannabis.

A lot of people take it for inflammation. Many take it for pain. Several swear that it reduces gut upset altogether. Some even have stopped taking pharmaceutical drugs at all and rely purely on Cannabis to control their symptoms. I was intrigued. So I researched further.

After a good deal of study and pondering, I decided to pursue it. First, I spoke to my bishop. As a member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints, I am asked to follow the Word of Wisdom, which basically asks us to abstain from any drugs or alcohol or even coffee in order to honor our bodies and avoid addictions that might risk taking away any part of our agency. As you can imagine, weed is typically on that naughty list.

However, using marijuana/cannabis/pot/whatev for medical reasons is absolutely okay with the church and recognized as a beneficial treatment for many maladies, and my bishop reassured me of such. He told me not to worry about the moral implications; I was fine there - just figure out how to get on top of this medical issue and get better. So - I went to a doctor in Safford, and I got my medical marijuana card. 

I definitely don’t want to dirty up my lungs in the process, so I’m not going to smoke it at all. But I got some gummies that contain THC and ought to do the trick. My hope was three-fold: 1) Cannabis has been shown to reduce inflammation and pain and help with healing ulcers etc. Basically it’s perfect for UC. I had to try it. 2) I’m evidently never allowed to take NSAIDs again, and Tylenol barely takes the edge off when I’m hurting. Could this be an alternative to that, another tool in my toolbox? Gimme all the choices. And 3) I was especially hoping that the Cannabis would contradict the Prednisone in terms of calming down the anxiety and panic and earthquake-like body tremors. I just wanted to function!

And, guys, it worked!! I take what they call a “micro dose.” The smallest gummy they make (or at least that I’ve seen) contains 10mg of THC. I took half (5mg), and I think that is my perfect dose. It doesn’t make me feel sedated or loopy or anything. It is like if my normal is a five, the Prednisone puts me up at 11, and the Cannabis pulls me down to more like a seven. Instead of full body convulsions, I just feel a flutter in my chest. I still am revved up from the steroid, but not to the extent that I cannot function. I take half a gummy at naptime, sleep if I can, and then I’m able to live my freaking life afterward! I feel like a new woman. Seriously. I feel like I’m back!!

Seeing the kids’ reactions to finding me in the kitchen and doing things was seriously so sad but so sweet. They would look at my strangely like I didn’t belong (I’ve been in bed a lot) and then just smile so big. Momma’s back. !!

I’ve gotten so many things done in the last week or so that I have been taking this. I have been able to even make dinner a couple of times - which hasn’t happened in months! I still have to take it easier than I would like. I still am healing. I still have a disease to control. But I am not trapped inside my own body anymore. I can see clearer and function better and actually get up and do things. It’s fabulous. And I am beyond proud of myself for “following my gut” and giving it a go.

So yeah. Weed. Pot. Mary Jane. Not just for stoners. Who knew? 

I am genuinely so grateful to God for making a plant that can fix all this for me. Nature is amazing and has so much potential to heal us and keep us well. I want to try other non-pharmaceutical approaches to all this but also love and appreciate science and modern medicine (and don’t want to piss off my GI doc, ha). Hopefully we can find a good balance. For now, at least, I feel that I have.

Relief. Gratitude. Peace, love, and burning bras. Groovy, dude. ;) And hallelujah.

Comments

  1. juli109September 25, 2021 at 11:56 PM

    So glad you've found a piece of this puzzle for you. It must feel so good to be doing things like before. I'm super happy for you and hope you see further improvement.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. BecSeptember 28, 2021 at 10:57 PM

      Thanks, Julianne. It’s soooo much better. It’s nice to be “back,” at least somewhat.

      Delete

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