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Originally Posted by Rose76
Has anyone heard of cannabis being ordered to help manage depression, anxiety or insomnia? Or has anyone just gone ahead on their own and used cannabis to improve how they feel?
The other night I saw a show on CNN (I think) that spotlighted a medical facility in Israel, where patients with serious medical issues were being treated with medical cannabis. Supposedly, it was doing great things for them mentally and physically. I wonder if cannabis can be helpful for psych problems? I wonder if there is a risk that cannabis can compound a psych problem, making things worse?
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Rose76, coming back to the first post on your thread, I have an acquaintance who swears by it. He says that he has bipolar. I have known him for 10 years, see him probably once a year. He is a credentialed teacher, semi-retired, currently subbing in kindergarten and special ed classes. He is probably in his late 70s or maybe even early 80s. He wears a hearing aid and is still hard on hearing (I am not exactly sure how he is able to manage a classroom with this disability, but at the same time he has the warmest personality, so I see how the kids would adore him). Other than being hard on hearing, he is quite well and sturdy. He is a supplement junkie who only buys groceries from Whole Foods... that type. But whatever works for him and if that allows him to command a classroom of kindergarteners at 80, more power to him. He also is a vocal advocate for social issues and a frequent contributor of letters to the editor at local publications. He has a very active social life. But I am digressing.
He has been using cannabis to treat bipolar. He is somebody who believes that cannabis can cure stage IV cancer. So yes, his beliefs are crazy overall, but in terms of finding treatment for himself, he seems to be pretty effective.
Now, I have never seen his medical records and that "he has bipolar" is based on his own words. I do not know whether that is his valid diagnosis.
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I have another friend with Bipolar II whose diagnosis is most certainly valid, who is on a cocktail of physician-prescribed medications but who also, on his own but with the physician's endorsement, vapes marijuana, primarily on weekends. I find that he lacks a social life, rarely goes out to events and gatherings, does not do any physical workouts etc., and from what I can see, escapes reality into cannabis-induced pleasant states. But again, whatever works for him. He has been doing it for decades and there has not been any worsening in his bipolar but in fact there have been improvements, most likely due to medication combinations finessed via trial and error.
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That is all I know from second hand knowledge of people IRL who have been on cannabis with a bipolar diagnosis, except in the first case I do not know if the diagnosis has been properly verified.