Being in the medical cannabis industry for 13 years, I have witnessed and experienced many beautiful blessings from this wondrous plant. I have seen people get relief from ailments and conditions that their doctors had given up hope on. We’ve had quite a few people come to our doors and see results instantaneously, along with others around the nation and the world benefiting from cannabis with similar experiences.
From seizures, certain cancers, chronic pain, skin conditions, and other ailments that medical treatment left people hopeless and without relief, cannabis has been able to fill that void. People have come into our office after being given weeks or even days to live. Their doctors sent them to get their medical marijuana card in hopes of finding some last-minute comfort, and they were able to live longer than expected, with relief. Numerous patients, who were given less than two weeks to live, have used cannabis aggressively with Rick Simpson Oil (RSO), a high-dose approach that can take a toll on the body due to its highly sedating effects. This is when I learned about THC-a and cannabis suppositories, both of which are non-psychoactive and allow for more intake than Δ9-THC (Tetrahydrocannabinol).
These patients were able to take in hundreds of milligrams of Δ9-THC daily through suppositories without impairment. If you tried to ingest 500mg of Δ9-THC through edibles, you would be very impaired unless you had a very high tolerance. These patients came in after being beat up by chemo, radiation, and other therapies that left them with few cells and nutrients to fight. Anyone who has over-consumed just 20mg of Δ9-THC can vouch for how overwhelming that can be. So, eating that amount of Δ9-THC was not an option for these patients.
At the time, nobody was selling or making suppositories anywhere. Patients would get a couple of grams of RSO from the dispensary, or we would find a reputable caregiver making RSO that they could obtain it from, and they would bring it to me. From 2010-2013, you couldn’t find RSO anywhere, so I would show people how to make it at home from their own cannabis. They would bring me plastic syringes full of RSO to make into capsules and suppositories for their loved ones or for themselves. I would go home and make suppositories from molds I ordered online and pour capsules for hours from a small handheld capsule pouring device that made 20 capsules at a time. I did extensive research to find the best mixtures to keep the form of the suppository but allow them to melt in a timely manner.
I used only natural ingredients like organic cocoa butter, organic coconut oil, organic DMSO, and a few other ingredients. The same would go for the capsules, I would only use organic cellulose capsules that I would find at the natural food stores.
The patients would start using the products the next day and report back in 3-5 days. I would see these patients come in the following week with color back in their skin, pep in their mood, and a smile on their face. It filled me with joy. It was truly incredible to witness so many people finding relief with cannabis before research and science caught up with anecdotal evidence. I’ve shared tears with countless patients and family members who have come through our doors at Natural Healing Care Center. I’ve had the opportunity to say goodbye-for-now to some, and some unexpectedly part with a family member or friend calling to notify me while we share a moment of grief and appreciation for the brave person who did everything they could to fight. Too many times, I’ve found myself in my office wiping away tears so I could go help someone else obtain their medical marijuana card and take their first step toward natural relief.
When Natural Healing Care Center first opened in 2012 until 2019, I offered a free-complimentary consultation for anyone wanting to learn more about cannabis, how to use it, how much to take, where to get it, and so on. That is how I was introduced to so many people looking for relief with cannabis. Thousands of people have sat in front of me over the years, sharing their experiences with cannabis or their concerns, and we have been able to find them the right approach.
Working the front desk from time to time over the last 12 years at Natural Healing has allowed me to follow up with people and see what works and what doesn’t over the years when it comes to using cannabis. Everyone is different and will react differently with different methods of consumption. Each person requires a specific approach to their needs.
Another condition that amazes me when it comes to instant relief and long-lasting results is seizures. We’ve seen people benefit from cannabis for seizures for which they were given extreme medications, which caused debilitating issues on their own, and they were able to get relief from their seizures with cannabis and not have to take all those other medications. There are countless videos online of people pulling out of their seizures instantly with cannabis or CBD and not feeling as exhausted afterward because the body didn’t have to go through the full effects of the seizure. The patients we work with even start to notice triggers before a seizure starts after using cannabis for relief, so they can time it appropriately to avoid a seizure. Or they can take the cannabis regularly for preventative measures.
The most amazing thing about cannabis and seizures is that everyone has different needs, just like I mentioned before. Some patients actually respond better to CBD over Δ9-THC, or THC-a over CBD and Δ9-THC, or they require a mixture of both. There are different types of epilepsy and seizure-inducing conditions.
Over the years, the majority of patients we see come in for chronic pain. That is my qualifying condition as well. I initially received my card for chronic migraines, which I was diagnosed with as a teenager through an MRI. I suffered numerous concussions from contact sports through high school and even afterward. Every job I had approved my FMLA (federal leave of absence) because of my diagnosis. I also had some broken bones and other injuries from sports. Cannabis is the only medicine that has brought me consistent relief over the years. Most of our chronic pain patients are just looking to take the edge off and feel some level of comfort, while others have been able to depend on cannabis for full relief from their pain.
Again, everyone has different reasons and causes for their chronic pain. It may not be a cure-all, but it definitely helps and eases the tension that comes with living in chronic pain.
There have been people who come in after being on opioids and other prescription pain medications for years, looking to get off the narcotics and get natural relief with cannabis, and they are able to achieve that goal. We must do prescription monitoring every time someone gets their medical marijuana card, and you can see the list of medications decrease over the years with our renewal patients. That’s a similar ongoing story around the nation with cannabis use in states that have legal access to cannabis. People take less pain medication when using cannabis as an alternative; that’s a fact.
It is great to see cannabis being utilized as a medicine and not just as a recreational drug, as it was portrayed for many years. Now we’re able to see the actual medicinal benefits of cannabis. I’ve recently been telling people about a research study I saw some years ago in another part of the world where they were injecting mice with cancerous cells and tumors with actual Δ9-THC directly into the cancer cells and tumors.
This was causing apoptosis, which is cellular destruction, like cell suicide for bad cells. I know that once we get to those levels of cannabis use, we will see even more healing being done with this magical plant.
We already know the 15 qualifying conditions that cannabis helps with in Arizona. That is because the state of Arizona had to have research done prior to accepting the qualifying condition list to show that cannabis benefits those conditions. That was the State of Arizona admitting that cannabis had medicinal value. Other states have even stricter guidelines for their qualifying conditions, and they have had to have research done to show that it actually benefits people more than other medications available in that state (Utah had some of the most ridiculous requirements to access medical cannabis). It is great to see cannabis getting that recognition.
Hopefully, cannabis does not go to Schedule III and can just be decriminalized or de-scheduled so we can have access to it in abundance for everyone who needs it, without having to go through any more guidelines, hoops, or regulations.
I’m so glad to see that you came into our office, hopefully benefited from cannabis or natural alternatives, and were able to see that nature does provide us with some relief instead of having to be dependent on pharmaceutical medications or invasive procedures that doctors want to do. I love you and blessings!
Thank you,
David Yrigoyen
Cannabis Consultant
Learn how to make your own butters and oils at home:
Infusing with Cannabis for Natural Pain Relief
by: David Yrigoyen MMJ_David
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