How does marijuana treat pain

Lucy Brown, a 38-year-old breast cancer patient from New York, is finally sent back home after her second surgery. Now, she has to fight with pain that makes her feel like a living-dead. Nausea, headaches, dizziness, hallucinations, depression and insomnia are only some of the side-effects caused by heavy medication.

‘I was like a ghost. There were times I could not even recognize my own children. We were not a family anymore. This thing was tearing us apart. I had to find some peace. I needed to sleep.’

After having tried almost every single painkiller in the market, Lucy’s husband suggested that she should try something groundbreaking. So, he gave her a joint of marijuana.

‘It was unbelievable. I felt my whole body numb. Finally, there was no pain. Finally, I managed to sleep for 8 hours in a row.’

This is only one of the many recorded testimonies from patients suffering from chronic pain diseases. After years of research, medical marijuana has proven to be the only effective way to reduce or even eliminate the severe and chronic pain caused by health conditions such as cancer, leukemia, Alzheimer’s disease, glaucoma, diabetes, muscle spasticity and arteriosclerosis.

Historically, marijuana and its derivatives are used as analgesics since 1800. Cancer, HIV and glaucoma patients are probably their greatest supporters. Marijuana represses nausea and vomiting resulting from chemotherapy, increases appetite, reduces considerably pain and eases anxiety and stress by soothing various debilitating symptoms. Although there is effective treatment for all these symptoms on a one-to-one basis, no medication can treat them all simultaneously like marijuana does.

More than 2.5 million people globally suffer from muscle spasticity. Traditional medication can ease the painful and uncontrollable muscle spasms but rarely offers total relief while causing extreme symptoms of lethargy, weakness and diplopia. In a 1982 study, 21 of 43 respondents stated that marijuana has effectively reduced muscle spasticity. Likewise, in a 1997 survey, almost all 112 participants found both pain and spasticity relief.

Neurological disorders, such as epilepsy, Alzheimer’s disease, Huntington's disease, Parkinson's disease and Tourette's syndrome, all respond positively to marijuana. Clinical trials have proven that patients found overall relief to their symptoms mainly because marijuana suppresses anxiety and stress attacks that enhance the problem. Nevertheless, these results are not considered conclusive mostly because the percentage of participants is too small.

Every analgesic drug targets a certain type of pain. Aspirin, for example, is mostly appropriate for mild inflammatory pain while opioids are targeting severe pain and respiratory depression. On the other hand, marijuana is effective in anticipating all types of pain, and particularly, neuropathic pain. On September 6, 2001, the Executive Director of the National Organization for the Reform of Marijuana Laws (NORML) and the NORML Foundation, Allen St. Pierre, claimed that marijuana is an appropriate treatment especially for patients who do not respond effectively to common pain relievers.

On the other hand, although medical marijuana has been used for several years, in 1937, the federal government outlawed its sale due to significant side-effects that tag along. Specifically:

Marijuana lowers blood pressure and causes psychological symptoms that many patients cannot handle. Many of them reported intense and fast heartbeat that was extremely uncomfortable especially to the elderly. Patients with severe cardiovascular and stroke problems cannot intake marijuana in any form. Besides, when it comes to glaucoma patients, low blood pressure can decrease blood flow to the optic nerve, thus risking possible complications.

In addition, marijuana, when smoked, can cause respiratory problems, lung cancer, chronic bronchitis, emphysema, heart disease and all the probable harmful side-effects of common tobacco smoking. Moreover, it has been associated with increased mortality in male infected with HIV as it harms a great percentage of immune cells found in the lugs. Hence, pharmaceutical companies have tried to incorporate marijuana extracts in a pill. Nevertheless, marijuana in a pill form is not that effective as marijuana smoke.

Conclusively, only thirteen states have passed laws that legalized medical marijuana, namely, Alaska, California, Colorado, Hawaii, Maine, Michigan, Montana, Nevada, New Mexico, Oregon, Rhode Island, Vermont and Washington. Medical cannabis and its derivatives remain a controversial issue worldwide. Many more clinical tests have to be run in order to justify the use of marijuana and cannabinoids for their medical benefits.

References:

http://www.mpp.org/states/new-york/patients/

http://www.nap.edu/openbook.php?record_id=9586&page=13

http://medicalmarijuana.procon.org/viewanswers.asp?questionID=000216