Dont Know Where To Start?

[AtWitsEnd]

I cant live like this anymore & am ready to try ANYTHING for some relief.  I have been disabled dued to anxiety, panic disorder, agoraphobia & depression for 13yrs, but thats not even the main problem. The last 2yrs have been pure hell. I have Irritable bowel syndrome, migraines, reflux, osteoarthritis, fibromyalgia, nerve damage, chronic back pain, sleep issues, plus like 14 other diagnosises.  I have 3 main problems, the sleep issues- i never get REM sleep which makes me wake every 20 minutes or so, and causes exhaustion, and then about every 5 days I crash and sleep for 12-36hrs.  Stomach issues- pain, nausea, cant eat.  Pain, Pain, Pain. On several narcotic pain meds & muscle relaxers and they arent even putting a dent in it (and I am terrified of accidently overdoseing on them or mixing them wrong). I just want to lay in a ball and cry and scream most every day.I am a wife and mother and I am failing at life because I am sick and in pain constantly. I am no longer able to function. I see doctors all the time, specialist galore. Im not getting answers or relief.  Lately ive seen several programs on CNN and NatGeo about people with my issues (thou not with all my issues together) and they are getting relief by using medical marijuana.  Ive never used it. I had a high school boyfriend that was an alcoholic and addict so I never touched anything and it put a bad taste in my mouth for any of it, but i AM DESPERATE.  Could someone confirm that it would help me, especially for the pain?  I dont even know how to begin about getting a card? Would my primary care doctor give me one? Or do only certain doctors do them? Is it a doctors personal choice wether to do them or not? Then what?  Can someone tell me what to do please? BEGGING FOR HELP???  Please & Thank you!!!

[t-pain]

hello!

 

yes, many people on this forum have some of your issues and conditions, and they use medical marijuana for IBS, nausea and pain!

 

pain and nausea are both qualifying conditions.

 

only an md or a d.o. can recommend marijuana here in michigan.

 

your primary doctor is best to try to get a rec from, but sometimes there can be unintended side effects.

some doctors are against mmj, some are banned by their insurance or bosses from doing recommendations.

 

some doctors will drop patients if they find out about medical marijuana use. so its best to float the idea by your doctor before asking for a certification from him/her. ask him about your "sister" who has pain from a car accident and got her mmj card. ask the doctor if that medical marijuana stuff really works or if he thinks mmj is a good idea.

 

his answer will tell you if you should ask him or not.

 

if you dont want to mess with your current doctor relationships, there are plenty of certification doctors who will certify you.

just get a copy of your medical records and take them to a certification doctor. if you tell us what county you are in , we can try to give recommendations for good docs. otherwise you can look at weedmaps.com for a list of doctors.

 

the prescriptions can turn you into a zombie.

if mmj helps you and helps you get off some of those narcotics, its good, right?

 

its natural to be nervous, anxious and stressed out when first dealing with medical marijuana.

its a huge leap, especially after years of anti-drug reefer madness brainwashing.

 

just remember, no one has ever died from using marijuana. its one of the safest substances known to man.

37,485 people died in 2009 from prescription drugs. still zero deaths from marijuana.

marijuana is less addictive than coffee. so dont panic!

 

and hey! if you dont like marijuana or it doesnt work for you, you can go back to what you have now.

it wont hurt to try it! just remember to go easy. you might not feel it at first. try a little bit, then try it again in an hour. keep doing this dosing 1 hour at a time until you feel it. dont eat the whole cookie all at once or you might feel too intoxicated/woozy.

 

please feel free to ask a bunch of questions!!!

 

heres the steps:

get a copy of medical records, see a doctor, get a recommendation.

fill out a form from http://www.michigan.gov/mmp

send in your forms, copy of your drivers license, a $100 check or money order to the state of michigan.

wait 30 days for your card.

get card in mail, now you're good to go and find a caregiver or grow your own plants.

 

there are also some compassion clubs, just meetings to meet and greet with other patients and caregivers.

very helpful for new patients to feel not so alone.

Edited November 25, 2013 by t-pain

[GregS]

Cannabis for medical treatment is quite good, but not a panacea. The conditions you describe, in my experience, respond for the most part favorably. It does not always relieve the conditions and symptoms fully, and many times offers only partial relief. The same can be said for front line medical treatment. That said, with care and a little experimentation, you are likely to receive some benefit. Even if the stuff does not always and everywhere eliminate physical symptoms, it can offer psychic relief, helping to remain more calm and relaxed, which can be a huge benefit in itself. People around me notice a marked difference in my attitudes, and it is for the better.

 

I recommend it highly:)

Edited November 28, 2013 by GregS

[t-pain]

pain was making me into a mean person.

while i still live with the pain, i dont live with the mean person anymore.

[GregS]

pain was making me into a mean person.

while i still live with the pain, i dont live with the mean person anymore.

I call it the azzhole, but the point is taken.

[trichcycler]

I hope medical marijuana offers you relief for your symptoms, and a chance to evaluate your life from a better perspective. You may find that you've actually just been cannabinoid deficient all these years.  

 

best wishes

[mibrains]

welcome to the site

 

i hope you find the relief you are seeking.

 

your symptoms sound strikingly similar to mine.

 

are you a Gulf War Vet also by any chance?

 

cannabis can and does help with the nausea.

 

many people find relief from pain and symptoms associated with pain (such as the irritable mouth syndrome mentioned above )

 

it is a long journey but remember healing begins with one step....

 

take time ask plenty of questions and be sure to understand yourself and your needs...

 

one of my patients last year had not used cannabis since high school and now after 30 years tried it again... he found relief for sure but had some interesting times adjusting doses and strains...

 

be sure to ask questions... find a compassion club in your area or a mentor and learn all you can..

 

good luck and welcome to MMMA.

[AtWitsEnd]

Thanks to those of you who took the time to post a response. No I am not a VET, i am a stay at home mom.  I live in eastern Monroe County and would like to stay with my current doctor. Due to my anxiety its difficult for me to go to new doctors, since anything medical is a trigger for me.  Ive had some really bad luck with doctors. and for some of my issues have come to the point with doctors where they have said there is nothing else we can do. Its so extremely frustrating. I am missing out on life because I am too sick or in too much pain to do anything.  Its worth a shot to give MMJ a try. It CANT hurt or make things worse than they are now.  I just want to make sure I do everything correctly and legally. I have no experiience with it at all. I am a smoker, so I would probably prefer to smoke it, but I dont know. I would hope someone would teach me how to use it.

Welcome any and all advice.

Thanks!

[AmishRnot4ganja]

My wife has many of the same problems that you have. She has used cannabis for the past 10 years to control her symptoms

It works well for her. If you have never used cannabis before, it might be advisable to arrange to be with someone who has experience in the use of marijuana. They will hopefully be able to explain what you will be experiencing and calm any fears you may have. One thing is certain, it can't hurt to try.

[GregS]

Put on a pot of coffee. It is probably best to start reading here:

 

http://www.michigan.gov/lara/0,4601,7-154-35299_63294_63303_51869_52138---,00.html

 

Other information about the program can be found by clicking "Medical Marijuana Program."

[mrd]

I feel that amongst other strains it might be very useful for you to try a super high CBD strain such as the Cannotonic four and other strains. I have a patient who along with severe epilepsy has related issues with anxiety. As an example she has a bad reaction to riding in a car on the highway. But if she takes a couple of puffs of the cannatonic 4 14-16% cbd she says it calms him right down. She also is experiencing less seizures.This kind of mmj does not get you high. 

 

Best of luck. 

[jointedone]

Go to the Crohns and Colitis National website to try and get some help from other pts posting there,and real medical advice. You will find links there for IBD and IBS patients. Not here. These people are not Drs. Get on the internet and start getting correct info. I AM a patient and have a total colectomy with an ileostomy. Before that,I had a botched colostomy and a parastomal hernia. Ulcerative Colitis and Diverticular Disease.So I do know more than the average person with heartburn. And PLEASE do NOT drink coffee. It will just tear up your guts even more until you throw up blood and die. If your nausea and vomiting is not under control tell your gastro Dr to give you Zofram. Opiates MAKE you puke.I am NOT a know it all. But I know what I have been thru and the best thing I ever did was to reach out to other IBD patients and find out that I wasn't alone.

[phaquetoo]

Dont say anything about it to your primary care dr. we can find you a dr. here, you may still need your pain meds for a while, till you can get the right strain of mm, seriously I lost my dr. after 12yrs becuase I asked about an mm card, and ive been looking for good dr's ever since, I always get my mm rec or renewal from 1 dr, and I see my primary care for every thing else, including rx's.  personal message me if you would like, I can most likely stear you in the right direction, and dont ever get rx's from more than one dr.

 

Peace

[GregS]

FWIW, and in response to your insomnia, I have recently taken to using melatonin to help me sleep. It does not seem to help me get to sleep as much as it does help me sleep more soundly and restfully.

Edited November 26, 2013 by GregS

[imiubu]

Welcome to the 3MA!

Thank you for sharing your very personal struggles.

It cannot be an easy thing to share with virtual strangers

and I commend you on doing so in your search for answers to

medical marijuana use.

 

We are not doctors here, patients and caregivers for the most part.

Therefore we can only share with you our personal experiences

and our own journeys with this miraculous plant.

 

I feel that it is sound advise to not ask your primary care physician for

a recommendation due to the overwhelming amount of members sharing

their less than favorable experiences in doing so with their Dr. 

We have numerous accounts on this site of primary physicians

dropping patients once Drs. discover that patient uses mmj.

I understand that you have issues with doctors so, this is merely

my personal suggestion.  If you are comfortable enough with your

pcp to at least ask their opinion, you may just start there?

 

I personally would (and did) find a good Dr. other than your pcp to write

your recommendation for mmj. 

 

thejointedone made a wonderful suggestion to find support among

others with your same issues.  I don't suggest to leave this site!

Only that it may help you to talk with others suffering as you do.

Community support is an awesome feeling

 

I believe you will be amazed at how efficient medical marijuana is.

 

I wish you all the best in your endeavor to find the relief you seek.

 

 

edited spelling darn it!

Edited November 26, 2013 by imiubu

[trichcycler]

I think  forum sections titled with each of the qualifying conditions is in order. We could all categorize and comment appropriately for anyone interested. the google stats would fly off the charts with a section titled Crohns relief using Medical Marijuana, and so on, attracting readers with their own stories of relief  to share in a like minded area.

 

whaddya think mods?

[imiubu]

This might be a very good idea grassmatch.  There has to be

a plethora of people looking for just such information.

 

If the subject titles are worded properly, we can and will

bring many in from google or other search engines.

 

Personally speaking, I rarely share my medical conditions with others,

esp. on an open forum.  That is my prerogative, others may feel differently.

[t-pain]

lets take our subforum suggestions to this thread

http://michiganmedicalmarijuana.org/topic/45035-subforum-suggestions/

 

and stay out of patient issues.

[trichcycler]

thank you t-pain

lets take our subforum suggestions to this thread

http://michiganmedicalmarijuana.org/topic/45035-subforum-suggestions/

 

and stay out of patient issues.

[thanks2]

In addition to medical marijuana,  you may want to try a different diet.  All the symptoms you listed can be caused by gluten intolerance.  Look into the Eat-to-live diet by doctor Fuhrman .  Read the book, if your a reader.  The diet will help your body fix almost anything.   It takes about 6 weeks and it is not easy since most people are addicted to grain and refined sugar.  But it is worth it!!!  It will change your life.  6 weeks sound like a long time, but it is so worth feeling better.  Paleo and raw foods diet are also healing, but paleo takes longer to work.  

 

There is no accurate test for gluten intolerance.

[trichcycler]

Thank you zapa, for the consideration. I'll do what I can to populate the areas I am familiar with. I believe this will be a popular area of discussion.

I can do this very easily, can somebody take a look at the forum index and give me some ideas for creating new forums, and for deleting old or less-used forums? Also, helping by reporting posts that should be moved after the new forums are created.

[GregS]

I can do this very easily, can somebody take a look at the forum index and give me some ideas for creating new forums, and for deleting old or less-used forums? Also, helping by reporting posts that should be moved after the new forums are created.

How about dumbasstards I have known? We already have Schuette, Jones, and O'Connell and the rest of the Court of Appeals. I'm pretty sure we don't have to look far for others.

 

Happy Thanksgiving boyzngrrlz.

Edited November 28, 2013 by GregS