In an interesting twist, Watson claims to be using cannabis to treat pancreatitis. He said that he did not smoke any marijuana the day of his arrest. Watson also said he kept marijuana on hand for medical use.
Watson, a Republican, has held his seat since 1993. He was the House Minority Leader at the time of his arrest but was quickly removed from that role by his legislative peers. Still, Watson has retained his seat and has not announced any plans to resign.
Watson did vote “Yes” in 2009 for the medical marijuana law now in place. Yet when Rhode Island considered a bill to decriminalize marijuana possession for adults this year Watson fought hard against it.
In a Feb. 2011 speech to the Greater Providence Chamber of Commerce Rep. Watson put his opposition to a variety of bills into a now-infamous statement: “I suppose if you’re a gay man from Guatemala who gambles and smokes pot, you probably think that we’re onto some good ideas here.”
Rep. Watson is essentially the only openly-green medical cannabis patient in the Rhode Island General Assembly. It is not known if he is officially a participant in the state’s program. RI allows access though caregivers and home cultivation. Governor Lincoln Chafee has kept the three state-approved RI dispensaries from opening.
Because Watson failed to reach a plea deal in Connecticut last week the case against him will continue.
Chris Goldstein is a respected marijuana reform advocate. As a writer and radio broadcaster he has been covering cannabis news for over a decade. Questions? [email protected]
Given the lack of FDA approved medications for the treatment of drug use, exercise may represent a form of behavioral modification suitable to treat different forms of drug dependence. Building up a “Runner’s High” from intense exercise may overwrite pathways in the brain by reinforcing the body’s natural reward system.
A group of subjects who smoked an average of 5.9 joints a day, reduced their daily intake of Cannabis to an average of 2.8 joints a day during the exercise portion of the experiment.
This data agrees with existing scientific evidence which demonstrates the positive effects of exercise on reducing drug craving. Given the low cost of exercise it could represent a treatment accessible to people who do not have access to health insurance or have failed to receive HMO approval for drug abuse medications. More studies are needed to confirm the benefits of exercise on drug dependence but, in theory, this could be applied to other drug issues. For regular consumers and underground medical users in states that do not have a consistent supply, exercise may also help in times without access.
Aerobic exercise training reduces cannabis craving and use in non-treatment seeking cannabis-dependent adults
Buchowski MS, Meade NN, Charboneau E, Park S, Dietrich MS, Cowan RL, Martin PR.
Source
Energy Balance Laboratory, Division of Gastroenterology, Hepatology and Nutrition, Department of Medicine, Vanderbilt University, Nashville, Tennessee, United States of America. [email protected]
Abstract
BACKGROUND:
Cannabis dependence is a significant public health problem. Because there are no approved medications for this condition, treatment must rely on behavioral approaches empirically complemented by such lifestyle change as exercise.
AIMS:
To examine the effects of moderate aerobic exercise on cannabis craving and use in cannabis dependent adults under normal living conditions.
DESIGN:
Participants attended 10 supervised 30-min treadmill exercise sessions standardized using heart rate (HR) monitoring (60-70% HR reserve) over 2 weeks. Exercise sessions were conducted by exercise physiologists under medical oversight.
PARTICIPANTS:
Sedentary or minimally active non-treatment seeking cannabis-dependent adults (n?=?12, age 25±3 years, 8 females) met criteria for primary cannabis dependence using the Substance Abuse module of the Structured Clinical Interview for DSM-IV (SCID).
MEASUREMENTS:
Self-reported drug use was assessed for 1-week before, during, and 2-weeks after the study. Participants viewed visual cannabis cues before and after exercise in conjunction with assessment of subjective cannabis craving using the Marijuana Craving Questionnaire (MCQ-SF).
FINDINGS:
Daily cannabis use within the run-in period was 5.9 joints per day (SD?=?3.1, range 1.8-10.9). Average cannabis use levels within the exercise (2.8 joints, SD?=?1.6, range 0.9-5.4) and follow-up (4.1 joints, SD?=?2.5, range 1.1-9.5) periods were lower than during the run-in period (both P<.005). Average MCQ factor scores for the pre- and post-exercise craving assessments were reduced for compulsivity (P ?=?.006), emotionality (P ?=?.002), expectancy (P ?=?.002), and purposefulness (P ?=?.002).
CONCLUSIONS:
The findings of this pilot study warrant larger, adequately powered controlled trials to test the efficacy of prescribed moderate aerobic exercise as a component of cannabis dependence treatment. The neurobiological mechanisms that account for these beneficial effects on cannabis use may lead to understanding of the physical and emotional underpinnings of cannabis dependence and recovery from this disorder.
Jahan Marcu is currently investigating the pharmacology of cannabinoid receptors. He was working at the California Pacific Medical Center Research Institute when exciting discoveries were made showing enhanced anti-cancer effects with THC and CBD from the Cannabis plant. The findings were published in the Journal of Molecular Cancer Therapeutics. In 2009 he received the Billy Martin Award from the International Cannabinoid Research Society (ICRS). Jahan is currently the vice-chair the Medical and Scientific Advisory Board at Americans for Safe Access (ASA). He enjoys nuclear magnetic resonance and The Original Ghostbusters.
The first shot has been fired in Providence for the modern medical marijuana battle in the East. US Attorney Peter F. Neronha sent a harsh notice to Rhode Island on April 29th. The letter was addressed to the governor and state officials but in a new tactic, it was also sent to the handful of licensed medical cannabis dispensaries.
Accordingly while the Department of Justice does not focus its limited resources on seriously ill individuals who use marijuana as part of a medically recommended treatment regimen in compliance with state law as stated in the October 2009 Memorandum of Deputy Attorney General David Ogden, the Department of Justice maintains the authority to enforce the CSA vigorously against individuals and organizations that participate in unlawful manufacturing and distributing activity involving marijuana, even if such activities are permitted under state law.
We all know that state medical cannabis laws are in conflict with the federal Controlled Substances Act. But the last part seems to be the driving force behind a recent storm of Drug Enforcement Administration raids, “…even if such activities are permitted under state law.”
Clearly the federal government does not care if doctors recommend marijuana or if patients possess a small amount of cannabis. The forbidden sins are growing and selling. Again not new news, but the real kicker is the target.
Rhode Island recently licensed three dispensaries: The Thomas C. Slater Compassion Center, Greenleaf Compassionate Care Center and Summit Medical Compassion Center. All three were copied on the letter. Governor Lincoln Chaffee’s copy was delivered by hand.
The DEA conducted four raids in Washington on April 28th. A similar afternoon in Rhode Island would shut down all of the state’s carefully selected medical cannabis operators. The full letter is a clear and open threat to bring federal agents with automatic weapons to clear out regulated marijuana, cash registers, bank accounts and assets.
What has yet to be seen is the response from the fiercely independent state to the federal government’s prodding. There may be a taller political wall in Rhode Island for the DEA to hurdle.
Chris Goldstein is a respected marijuana reform advocate. As a writer and radio broadcaster he has been covering cannabis news for over a decade. He volunteers with local groups to change prohibition laws including PhillyNORML and The Coalition for Medical Marijuana New Jersey.
Medical marijuana sign by activist Jim Miller on the steps of the NJ State House- *photo by Diane Fornbacher
COMMENTARY from Chris Goldstein 1/15/2012 – It has been two years since the compassionate use law passed in New Jersey. There was some hope in Trenton that day. But now there have only been delays, basement hearings and promises broken. Not a single sprout of legal marijuana yet.
Terminal patients we work with die off while chronic patients constantly scour the underground market for medical-quality cannabis. Sadly, these patients who risk arrest every day can only expect to have better choices on the streets even if the state-authorized Alternative Treatment Centers (ATCs) eventually open their doors.
Governor Chris Christie and his administration have attempted to experiment with every aspect of the medical marijuana program. Politicians, bureaucrats and businesspeople (in typical Jersey style) have over-indulged the Executive Branch. A pot monopoly for Rutgers; calling in the Feds; the granite wall of regulatory authority – We’ve seen it all. The end result is a failure to fully implement the law.
Among advocates there is talk of some options to truly jump-start the program for patients. In a more perfect Garden State here’s how the Governor, the Legislature and the respective state agencies could work towards a law that seriously ill residents still desperately need.
Stop the doctor registry and start the Patient Registry
Part of the regulations issued by the NJ Department of Health and Senior Services (DHSS) require the nation’s first registry for physicians. Only these listed docs are allowed by the state to recommend medical marijuana. Doctors, nurses, medical professionals and patients testified many times in Trenton last year as to the problems with this structure. No similar requirement is mandated for drugs like morphine. Opened in October 2010 just 109 doctors have signed up out of almost 30,000 that practice in New Jersey.
But the patient registry was never opened. This means that seriously ill individuals have no legal protections related to marijuana. Unfortunately residents with qualifying medical conditions are still part of the more than 26,000 marijuana arrests in NJ each year.
The regulations currently require that patients have a registered physician and choose one of the six ATCs to even apply for the patient registry card. But the doctor registry list is not being made public by DHSS and none of the ATCs have opened. This leaves patients with no options. The unique and problematic physician registry could be discontinued or suspended in favor of a streamlined process for DHSS to begin issuing the patient registry cards. Patients could then be offered the legal protections that the state has long promised. The changes required are procedural language changes within the regulations. The logistics of actually issuing the cards to patients is relatively easy.
In other words: Can we stop treating medical pot as if it were highly addictive, radioactive machine gun bullets?
Grant Patients Immunity
If they could have the registry cards then patients could be offered immediate immunity from arrest and prosecution for possessing up to two ounces of marijuana. (Two ounces is the monthly supply allowed under the law – the lowest in the nation.) The current regulations only protect a registered NJ patient if their marijuana product was purchased at an authorized ATC. But the Compassionate Use Medical Marijuana Act already includes guidelines for appropriate possession and use. This could be generally applied to any marijuana, especially during this extended time that the ATCs have not been able to open. Such immunity would free the police, courts, doctors, patients and their families from having to continue dealing with an expensive and senseless criminality. Again this would only take a few changes to the regulations. This legal protection for seriously ill residents was the core intent of the compassionate use law.
In other words: Can we please finally just follow one simple rule – stop putting handcuffs on sick and dying people for having a few joints?
Allow home cultivation
New Jersey passed the first compassionate use law in the country that did not include provisions for patients or their caregivers to grow cannabis. Language to allow micro-plots of up to 6 plants was stripped away from the legislation at the last minute by the Assembly Health Committee. The vision for the program was that seriously ill residents would rely on the regional Alternative Treatment Centers for all of their marijuana. But NJDHSS and the six hand-picked ATC operators have struggled to open leaving NJ patients with no marijuana at all. The regulations from the Christie Administration further restricted the choices patients would have in their therapy. The far-reaching rules limit THC to just 10%, exclude edible preparations other than lozenges and limit each ATC to growing just three strains of cannabis.
Americans enjoy an array of consumer choices in their medical care, from their professionals to their products. But qualifying NJ residents do not currently have any cannabis, let alone a variety. Patients should have access to the strengths, strains and delivery methods that provide the best relief. Amending the NJ compassionate use law to include the original language allowing patients and caregivers to cultivate small plots of cannabis would lift the immediate barrier on patient access. It would also give patients and doctors greater security in knowing that cannabis therapy will be tailored for specific patient needs.
In other words: The freaking US Department of Justice –THE Feds – even have a more lenient policy on individual patients growing their own compared to NJ…wtf??
Educate doctors, patients and medical professionals
New drugs and medical therapies are often marketed by for-profit companies. There are TV ads, billboards and suit-clad representatives visiting doctors’ offices with free pens and notepads. Think about the approach taken for profit-pills like Viagra. But medical marijuana in New Jersey (as it is in many states) is a not-for-profit enterprise and does not have a slick general marketing campaign. Although the six NJ Alternative Treatment Centers have tens-of-millions of dollars in start-up capital they have not planned to use any of it on public or professional awareness at this time.
The NJDHSS, Board of Medical Examiners, NJ Medical Society, State Nurses Association and other groups could fill in this information vacuum. These groups could hold seminars, compile relevant cannabis information into a statewide public journal and publish education materials. This would help residents, towns and medical professionals benefit from the medical cannabis program.
In other words: How hard would it be to go out there and talk about all of the amazing clinical research on cannabis and cannabinoids? Speaking from some experience, it might even be a little fun…
Advocate to local townships and municipalities
Politicians and state agencies could easily educate townships as to the benefits and details of the Medicinal Marijuana Program. Presentations or panels could be run during events like the League of Municipalities conference. Awareness events like Town Hall Meetings on the topic could be run by the Governor, DHSS or supporting elected officials. They could invite some of the dozens of qualifying residents, hospice nurses, doctors or other advocates who testified with solid information on the topic to speak with them or address questions.
Eighty-six percent of NJ residents support the medical marijuana law – this is the greatest level of support for any legislation in NJ. But there is a lack of information about the nuts-and-bolts of how the law is supposed to work or who it serves. Just like any other new program, the medical marijuana issue deserves the full effort of the state. Towns and municipalities deserve the tools to make effective decisions about the ATCs and their local patient population. Local governments have a special responsibility for this program, as these ATCs must serve an entire region of patients from their local base of operations.
In other words: At our Coalition for Medical Marijuana New Jersey information booth at the NJ League of Municipalities Conference the most common question we get about medical marijuana (we clock hundreds of these per day; no kidding) “Do you have any free samples?”
Final Note
There really is only one way forward for New Jersey’s program: Governor Christie and the new state MMP director John O’Brien need to meet with qualifying medical marijuana patients. Listening to them, face to face, about what they need for the law to work is the best path to success.
Chris Goldstein is on the Board of Directors at The Coalition for Medical Marijuana New Jersey and NORML- NJ. As a writer and radio broadcaster he has been covering cannabis news for over a decade. Questions? [email protected]
4/29/2011 – Even in states without a specific law seriously ill residents are fighting for the right to access cannabis. Today a court in Florida dismissed charges against a disabled man because he was using marijuana for medical purposes.
BOYNTON BEACH, Fla. – 53-year-old Jeff Kennedy was prepared to spend five years in prison for growing medical marijuana for medical reasons. But on Friday, Kennedy showed up in court wearing a t-shirt stating, ‘I am a patient not a criminal,’ and it turns out the state agrees. The state dropped the charges at the last minute.
“I’m just going to go forward and advocate for medical cannabis,” said Kennedy.
Kennedy suffers from chronic pain caused by a botched back surgery. His legs burn and twitch constantly. Doctors have prescribed him a cocktail of highly addictive and dangerous pain killers.
Last month FL Rep. Jeff Clemens introduced a resolution that would create a state regulated medical cannabis system. If there are more advocates like Mr. Kennedy it may not take long to pass.
On the night of July 9th Eric Perez as just another young resident in Florida with a small amount of marijuana. He turned 18 just a few weeks earlier. But the next morning Perez was dead. What happened in the time between is the subject of an intense and ongoing investigation. Some disturbing details have already emerged.
For the seven hours that Perez was in custody he was having severe headaches and was continuously vomiting. He pleaded for help. Guards have come forward to say they were directed by supervisors not to call 911 that night. (Those guards were then fired for following those orders.) Towards the end, Perez was moved to a bare “medical” cell and left without anyone to monitor him inside. At some point the guard assigned outside the door apparently went absent.
The tragic conclusion is all too clear: Eric Perez died completely alone and in great pain on the floor of that Juvenile Detention Center cell. His mother will receive the video of her son’s last moments.
This horrific case showcases that the poor management of local jails quickly becomes inhuman treatment of those incarcerated. Men of color between 18 and 35 bear the brunt of marijuana prohibition laws. Because this is the most-arrested group of Americans means they also have the greatest probability of encountering the worst in jail environments.
Fourteen US states have decriminalized the possession of a small amount of marijuana by adults. Even more states have the option of issuing a court summons at the time of a police encounter in lieu of a custodial arrest.
The death of a young person in a Florida correctional institution was common enough that the Department of Juvenile Justice already has a policy in place to pay for the burial expenses.
The agency has issued the payments twice before, according to DJJ spokesman C.J. Drake.
Drake would not comment on the finger-pointing but said “we’re pleased that this matter is finally being resolved in favor of the young man’s family.”
The check was overnighted Monday to Richard Schuler, an attorney representing Perez’ mother Martiza Perez, Atwater spokeswoman Alexis Lambert said.
“They have done an about-face on the issuance of the check for funeral expenses. I think it’s the right thing to do under the circumstances,” Schuler said. read full at West Palm Beach Post
Chris Goldstein is a respected marijuana reform advocate. As a writer and radio broadcaster he has been covering cannabis news for over a decade. Questions? [email protected]
Bobby Tuna used to move tons of marijuana by sea and air. Activism is what moves voters and legislators; and it comes in all forms. For medical cannabis just providing basic education can have a profound impact. Especially when the right person delivers the message.
It was January when Platshorn spoke in front of the Palm Beach County delegation. State Representative Jeff Clemens requested more information after the meeting and then quickly introduced a resolution to legalize medical marijuana.
This story touches many important points of how activism really works and highlights the new frontier for marijuana politics: Americans over the age of 65
Bobby Tuna took time to speak with freedomisgreen.com from Florida today for the first-hand account.
Freedom –Tell us a little bit about how this medical marijuana bill got started
It’s a good example of how just a couple of people can really make a difference.
Several months ago at our chapter meeting of NORML of South Florida one of our chapter members suggested that we go to local meetings where legislators come to their district and hear what the people have to say. The first meeting was in the City of South Miami.
A couple of our members went and they immediately agreed to pass a resolution asking the legislature to pass a medical marijuana bill. And they further resolved that they would ask other city councils to do the same thing.
Then one of the members asked me to go to the Palm Beach County meeting of the state legislators. They put me on the agenda for a 3-minute speech.
When I got there I found out that the legislators had no idea who I was or what I was going to talk about!
But I got up and within the 3-minutes did a good enough selling job to know that the Representative, Mr. Clemens, a new Democrat from West Palm Beach, had decided that he wanted to put in a bill.
His aide got in touch with me… I gave her as much material as I could find. And a week ago he announced that he was going to put in a medical marijuana bill.
This is a big deal in a state like Florida, which is very conservative especially around the Capitol. We didn’t have great hopes of getting a bill in this year unless we could get 700, 000 signatures on a petition.
Platshorn is involved with the local NORML Chapters and a grassroots group called PUFM. They were preparing to go out and get those hundreds of thousands of signatures.
When this bill actually goes to the floor it’s very likely to be that hey will put it up for a vote…because the state polls in support of medical marijuana. Now, this is a medical marijuana bill but Representative Clemens has said he also supports decriminalization.
Rep. Clemens made it clear what had motivated the bill.
When his aide contacted me she said that he had been considering a medical marijuana bill but that my speech helped him take it to the next step. So it doesn’t take a lot of people if you pursue every avenue. And I can’t take credit for this – it was a volunteer at my local NORML chapter who came up with the idea and put me on the agenda.
Freedom- Tell us about the goal for the new Silver Tour?
Seniors in this state, especially in my county, are over 70% in favor. It’s very well received. Seniors are not against medical marijuana but they have very little knowledge. They don’t know what a great preventative medicine it is and all of things that it being used for today very safely and effectively.
I think making sure that seniors are educated will really make a difference here in Florida for a possible vote count on medical marijuana. I want the Silver Tour to start more medical marijuana activism among seniors, one of the most important voting groups. I want them top pick up the phone and call their Congressman or Senator.
It’s gonna be that last pebble on the scale to get this done on the national level.
Freedom- What do you think the chances are for the bill?
I’m optimistic because there was a poll commissioned just a week ago and Republicans did it. That poll showed real support, but it also showed that political groups are looking to raise money and ways to save money. I’ve had a few calls where people tell me that our new Governor would be interested in closing prisons. Now marijuana offenders make up a good portion of the overall prisoners here in Florida
So yes; I’m optimistic. Rep. Clemens is cautiously pessimistic – I think he doesn’t want people to get their hopes up but I think he underestimates how much support there will be for the bill.
But I’ve been an optimist my whole life…it was optimism that kept me alive in prison for 30 years.
When Platshorn speaks, you can hear every day he spent in federal prison as one very strong emotion underneath his words.
That is what likely moved Rep. Jeff Clemens and what brought an active medical marijuana bill to Florida this week.
Bobby’s story is being told in the new documentary from Raconteur Films called Square Grouper. Screenings are coming to festivals up and own the East Coast.
Robert Platshorn (Bobby Tuna) and NM Gov. Gary Johnson at NORMLCON 2010 – NORML photo by David Sygall
Posted at 3/9/2011 – 7:15PM Update 3/10/11 – 12:12PM
Chris Goldstein is a respected marijuana reform advocate. As a writer and radio broadcaster he has been covering cannabis news for over a decade. He volunteers with local groups to change prohibition laws including PhillyNORML and The Coalition for Medical Marijuana New Jersey. He enjoys old-school hip-hop, vintage airplanes and changing the world. Contact chris { at } freedomisgreen.com
Headline writers in news media just can’t resist snarky headlines with new cannabis legislation.
Here at freedomisgreen.com we were part of the breaking coverage, bringing our readers the story of how local Florida NORML Chapters and senior activist Robert Platshorn helped get the resolution introduced.
Jack Cole of LEAP speaks at the Boston Freedom Rally 2010
5/10/2011 – Jack Cole used to go deep undercover to bust marijuana dealers in New York and New Jersey. But since his retirement he founded Law Enforcement Against Prohibition (LEAP), a group that now boasts thousands of retired and current members of law enforcement who want to stop the war on drugs. Marijuana consumes most of the resources in this senseless conflict. Nobody knows that better than Cole, that’s why he has traveled to Augusta, Maine to speak before the first committee hearing for cannabis legalization later today.
“Since 1970, we’ve spent more than a trillion dollars on this war and all we have to show for it each year is we arrest another 1.6 million people in this country for nonviolent drug offenses. Fully half are marijuana arrests,” said Cole.
LEAP speakers testify in favor of marijuana reform all around the country. The impact of LEAP’s presence on legislators and the public is profound; the stories from the front-lines are moving and LEAP’s perspective is undeniable.
Maine Rep. Diane Russell, the sponsor of LD 1453, and Jack Cole of LEAP will participate in a press conference at 12 noon today followed by hearings before the Criminal Justice Committee starting at 1PM. LISTEN LIVE HERE
Last year Cole was in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania to support HB 1393, a bill to legalize medical marijuana. Video of that powerful testimony is below.
I was ten years old and living at the Jersey shore when I heard the song “Someone Saved my Life Tonight” by Elton John. I curled up on my bedroom floor and cried my eyes out. For a long, long time. Too long for a little girl who didn’t even understand the gravity of the lyrics. I knew, even then, something was wrong.
Due to the passing of my father several years before, I also became obsessed with death and the supernatural, thinking ghosts were constantly around me. Darkness was terrifying, so I slept with the lights on until I was a teen. I was perpetually afraid of being left, in any manner. Bleak thoughts seemed to chase after me like hungry dogs.
It was the beginnings of depression.
You almost had your hooks in me, didn’t you dear?
You nearly had me roped and tied
As a young adult, I tried several anti-depressants. I desperately wanted to live a normal life and thought that was the path. I experimented with four different kinds in total, each with their own specific insidious side effects (including one that caused my face to twitch when I discontinued it. Fun stuff.)
Sure, on some levels, I felt better on them – but I didn’t feel like me. Instead, I felt like a cartoon version of myself, existing about a foot above the earth. When I found out that my happy pills could affect my sex drive, I parted ways with them. My sex drive defines who I am. I refused to live life without it..or have it altered in any way.
So instead, in my twenties, I self-medicated and disassociated with the best of them, via hard drugs and alcohol. I was surviving, not thriving. Marijuana had been in my life since my early teens so I can’t say I used it effectively to treat depression. It simply helped in the numbing out process.
Sitting like a princess perched in her electric chair
And it’s one more beer and I don’t hear you anymore
It took some time (and therapy) until I figured out ways in which marijuana could help my depression. (I stress “my” for a reason: I don’t think it’s a solution for everyone.) I suffer from anxiety-based depression, where I can get stuck in “thought loops” as I call them. These loops can leave me standing in the middle of a room, unable to take a single step forward for fear that I’m going to do the wrong thing. (Crippling indecision is a nasty and often under-discussed aspect of depression.)
After a particularly bad break-up about 10 years ago, the thought loops were growing worse. Just as some people envision a warm beach to relax, I pictured a shiny gun in my mouth. Seriously. That’s what I did to relax. Something had to change.
I never realized the passing hours of evening showers
A slip noose hanging in my darkest dreams
I still remember the afternoon I used marijuana – not to escape, not to “party” – but to help me.
I lived in San Francisco at the time, a beautiful city. I smoked some pot and forced myself outdoors. The sun was crystalline bright, the breeze so light. Everyone was bustling about Castro Street. I couldn’t help but smile, something I hadn’t done in months.
Then I hit the yard sales. (I love yard sales – a therapy in and of itself. Another blog entry.) Soon, I found myself chatting it up with my neighbors, laughing, telling jokes. When I came back home, loaded with bags of who-knows-what, I let out a deep and profound sigh of relief. The spell had been broken. The loops had stopped. I actually enjoyed my afternoon!
I’m sleeping with myself tonight Saved in time, thank God my music is still alive.
I don’t advocate weed for everyone’s depression. As a matter of fact, I think there is a tendency to use it too much as a form of escape from pain or an inability to sit with one’s “ugly” emotions. I’ve worked hard, via traditional routes, to move past depression: therapy, creative expression, meditation, exercise, nutrition, etc. They all work. (As an aside, I’m constantly shocked by people’s resistance to therapy in this day and age. It’s just weird that there is still such a stigma attached to it.)
And I don’t smoke weed every day. It’s very important for me to spend time just “as is,” with the loops, the sadness, the dark and heavy thoughts. On those days, I cry as I did when I was a little girl, hearing that song. My life has not been easy and it deserves its due. It deserves tears and grief occasionally. It deserves some sobriety.
So save your strength and run the fields you play alone.
But I won’t suffer needlessly either. If I find myself spiraling, I will smoke pot to stop the cycle. Suddenly, instead of worrying, aching, dreading, I simply notice the clouds. Or that cheerful, focused way a dog walks. Or the rustling of leaves on a gray day. I can live in the moment and feel relieved of depression. My mind and body are given a break. And when I do feel depressed, I have a little more perspective, because I remember what its like not to feel that way. But that’s just my story.
You’re a butterfly
And butterflies are free to fly
Fly away, high away, bye bye
Someone Saved my Life Tonight – Elton John
Read more in the Maryjane Category at Freedomisgreen.com
Beth Mann is a popular blogger and writer for Open Salon and Salon. She is also an accomplished actor and director with over 15 years of experience, as well as the president of Hot Buttered Media. She currently resides at the Jersey shore where she can often be seen surfing or singing karaoke at the local dive bar. Contact: maryjane {at } freedomisgreen.com
8/29/2011 – Last week was a busy one for elected officials caught with pot in Connecticut. A former alderman from Ansonia, CT was sentenced in a federal court to 3 years in prison for his role in growing more than 1400 cannabis plants. Joseph Cassetti, 61, owned many of the properties where the plants were seized in 2008. Two other men in their twenties were convicted of selling and distributing the cannabis.
