Today is Thursday but this blog will be published the following Tuesday. I don’t usually wait this long to begin writing, but this week’s topic is worthy of extra consideration. I weighed the pros and cons, went back and forth, and now finally I’ve decided to move forward. Mainly because my life is an open book where no topic is off the table. I want my blog to reflect that too.
I want people to know how I cope with my disease. I’ve talked about changing my diet, medications, hospital visits, and trips to warm climates like the Dead Sea in Israel. But what you don’t know is how I deal with the constant itching and pain that can often be overwhelming.
I have only stood on my ‘Psoapbox’ once in recent memory, but I don’t preach my beliefs. I do share my experiences to educate, help, and inform but I always encourage people to do what works for them. This applies to creating delicious, healthy meals for you and yours in addition to the treatment of your Psoriasis or auto-immune disorder. My methods work for me and my family, and your methods should work for you and yours.
So, here I am again sharing myself and my life. I may as well stay consistent, right? And if this helps just one person or gives you pause for thought, then I’ve accomplished my goal.
So here goes – I use marijuana to cope with my disease.
the cat is out
It’s true. I use marijuana to help deal with the chronic itching, and from time to time, the pain associated with my Psoriasis.
Sure, the sunshine has always helped to heal my skin which is why I go for UV light treatment. However, while the light treatment itself doesn’t hurt, it does leave a ‘sun’ burn that lasts about 12 hours. This can definitely hurt and is extremely uncomfortable. After treatment, I will often wake up during the night with my skin on fire. Picture your worst sunburn all over your body. When the pain is at its’ worst, I have three choices; bring out my computer and work, take a sleeping pill or take a THC pill. I take the THC.
Compared to other medications, THC has really worked for me.
When I was in high school my dermatologist prescribed the medication “methotrexate” for my Psoriasis. This meant liver biopsies every few months to ensure the medication wasn’t negatively affecting my liver. Not fun.Then there was “cyclosporine”, another awful oral medication. Then in high school, probably like most of us, I broke out in acne. My doctors thought I was suffering enough with my Psoriasis and didn’t want me to suffer through a bad case of acne too. So I was immediately prescribed “Accutane”. But that still meant additional side effects.
If we went to the same high school you may remember that I wore huge glasses for about a year. They were not reading glasses. Those glasses protected my eyes from the sun while on PUVA treatment or “Photochemotherapy”. Each day I would take huge horse-sized pills that made me very sensitive to sunlight, and in particular, my eyes. Then, there was “Atarax”. This medication I was prescribed as a child to help deal with the constant itching. They were small brightly colored pills resembling tic-tacs.
Here’s my point, when I was younger I took a lot of prescribed medications, oral and topical. I can’t speak for all of them but I know some of them negatively affected my insides, or as my mom would say, “my kishkas”.
So long ago I decided that I would no longer take conventional, oral, meds for my skin. My Psoriasis is the ‘devil’ I know, and is the lesser of the two evils when considering some of the side effects associated with some of the medications for the treatment of ‘P’.
Still, sometimes I really need help coping, and today, with my clean(er) approach to life, I also need healthier solutions.
i treat my skin
Marijuana doesn’t get me ‘high’. It treats my skin. I use CBD oil both topically in balms and orally in capsules, and it has helped immensely with the inflammation of my skin. I see and feel a huge difference. Especially this summer with so little sunshine, I still saw an improvement with the thickness of my patches and the overall health of my skin.
A few months ago I wrote about my cooking oil revelation; that canola oil is an inflammatory for Psoriasis. I had no idea, but thanks to friends who reached out, I was able to learn and help my skin with this new found knowledge.
I’ve also learned that people don’t only use marijuana to get ‘high’. There are amazing health benefits too. My friend Marnie is a doctor and suggested I look into this route for my skin, and I’m so glad she did. It’s been a game changer.
What I have found on this relatively new journey is that much of the prescribed dosages are trial and error. It took me months to figure out how many THC pills to take when I would wake up in the middle of the night or even how to properly use my vaporizer. But these days, after treatment I’m able to fall right back to sleep and awake fully refreshed. I’ve also learned that the topical CBD mixture is more affective when applied immediately following a shower. It quickly absorbs into my skin and I feel great all day long. My clothing might not love the oil, but my skin sure does. I’ve been taking CBD oil orally every day for the last six months and in combination with the topical treatment, my skin is definitely better off for it.
Taking THC pills to deal with the side affects of my disease and continuing to take CBD oils both orally and topically for my skin, is consistent with the clean life I am trying to lead. I’m thankful to my friends Alison and Rob whom I’ve used as a sounding board, as I try to navigate this medical marijuana landscape.
So there you have it. I use marijuana to help treat my Psoriasis.
Wow, that felt good!
In good health,
– Chef jw.
