Cannabis Education: 101

[Lynn1962]

Very Informative Thread

Fed Up,

I just spent a few hours reading this thread from start to finish and took a lot of notes.

I live in Maryland and although it is legal and approved here now for mmj, it won't get going until summer 2016.

I am getting ready!!!

I like your brewed coffee idea and was wondering how things are going now with Uncle Tom's tincture? You said you were giving it another try and would post results?

I have very stiff (heavy feeling) legs and walking a lot is more difficult now. It takes me a good hour after waking up from a nights sleep to get my legs going "normally". I also have balance problems and probably look like a walking drunk.

What is your daily regimen with mmj these days and how is it helping you best?

Thank you SOOO much for sharing your knowledge and experience with mmj.

Lynn

[Fed Up]

Sort of got busy with life and helping a friend. Due to the nature of what I needed to do, i refrained from using more than the coffee in the morning.

Sort of in a flare now and I'll be making cannabutter for making medibles for longer lasting medications. And as soon as I am able, making my Rick Simpson Oil..the cannabis oil and going to go on a dose of that.

Sorry, nothing new to report. fed

[Lynn1962]

Vaporizing cannabis question

I was wondering if anyone vaporizes medical marijuana and if so, what temperature to use in either Celcius or Farenheit?

Also, how many "inhalations" from the vaporizer do you take?

Thank you to anyone who helps.

FedUp, I hope you feel better soon.

Lynn

[johnnycee65]

marijuana and cbd

First of all, how do I do my own new post? Not seeing it. Anyway, relapsing remitting with bad foot cramps during sleep, foot numbness and insomnia. It sounds like the cbd's in cannabis or hemp oil could be helpful. Lots of misinformation and confusing claims. I live in Florida, where mm is not legal (missed by 3 points). What might be available in this state? Cannabis oil, hemp oil? Help. Thanks

[Fed Up]

Thanks Lynn
Johnnycee: Hemp oil has cbd's in it and I am slowly becoming aware that the Hemp plant is also full of CBD's and extremely low thc, if any. I did read of one guy that used Hemp oil for prostate cancer and won. Hemp is an industrial plant for making ropes, clothing and many other use's. If its' best use is curing or taking care of medical symptoms or disease, I need to try it.

Hemp is different from Cannabis oil. Hemp from hemp plant and cannabis oil from medical marijuana.

Sorry, just leaving more to google but, I say cover all your bases. The patient I mentioned lived near a hemp field grow and after they harvested the hemp there was plenty left for his cure. fed

[JerryD]

Hey Fed
You really have 'hit a nerve' with this cannabis thread! It really has 'legs'. Thanks for the information and bringing the topic to the fore, as I am sure there are many that would 'bury their heads in the sand'. (I know I used all kinds of cliche's, in this response )! I really admire your continued presence to provide this info to the readers. Although I don't partake, I recognize your assistance. Nice job. Good luck

[AnnieMoore]

Weed3

Hi Fed and all-

So glad got this earlier today. Because I happened onto Weed3 by Sanjay Gupta on CNN tonight. Just channel surfing.

So--since MMP is such a success (I shouldn't be writing this late at night because I am cranky as heck), the research dollars are being highly courted. Why does that make me mad, you ask? Because. . .it means big money is right around the corner, and the cost to medical marijuana card holders will sky rocket just to make money for those holding stock and selling.

Took me a long time to get to the place where I am today: take a tincture each night. Because it goes through my stomach I can get 6-10 hours of sleep, which I do, depending what else went on that day.

I've worked through all the stop signs in the process. What an education, which this thread helped me with so much!! Thank you Fed, again.

Had this a very long time: 56 years. Dementia now.

But, I do highly recommend Gupta's series. I will watch the Weed3 on demand.

Night to you all.

Pat

[Fed Up]

Lynn 1962: I thought I answered the vaping temperature question? I know I tried to figure out how to post the charts of temperatures of vaporizing for specific cannabinoids. Most charts are on sites we aren't allowed to post here.

Google vaporizing temperatures for Cannabis/Marijuana...lots of charts out there and discussions. Sure hope you found what works for you. Ultimately, it comes down to the temperature that helps you the most.

The best source of which CBD's do what is listed on the FEDERAL GOVERNMENT OF U.S.A'S PATENT ON CANNABIS. I believe someone referred to that patent in an earlier post! IMHO..Fed

[Fed Up]

Kimba; I thought it would be nice to link this information to this thread, if you don't mind?

http://www.msworld.org/forum/showthr...7464-marijuana

Thank You for that information and everyone else contributing with even more. Always learning.
fed

[Fed Up]

CURRENTLY: Sept 2015...4 States in the U.S. have LEGALIZATION; over 24 with medically legal cannabis: I can hardly wait until it is no longer TRIAL AND ERROR and we get the medications we need and they take the stupid "high" out of medicating. If my symptoms are absent, that is the best possible high!!!

I don't like smoking it and the concentrates are too dangerous for someone with hand-eye coordination to make your own. the only way to ensure you are getting a "Safe Organic" product is to grow and process your own! That is not going to happen for me! Being active in the activism for minimally legalization of it for medication with proper quality controls..so, we KNOW we are taking safe medications and exactly how to dose and which strains, etc. IS where my hope lies for M.S.!

Please know, some veges have cannabinoids in them: Broccoli and Flax Seeds have CBD's and even plan hemp (used for textiles) have CBD's. My persuasion is that we need a tiny amount of THC for the body to synthesize the CBD's appropriately! I'll just love the day the U.S. Gov't release's all its studies and data on the patents it holds to this promising medication for all of us!

Beginner’s Guide To The Endocannabinoid System — The Reason Our Bodies So Easily Process Cannabis

Discussion in 'Medicinal Cannabis and Health' started by emilya, Sunday at 10:30 AM.
Watch Thread

The following first appeared in Cannabis Now:

In the future, perhaps 20 years from now, cannabis-based medicines will have a prominent place in the worldwide pharmacopeia again. Indeed, we might have even gotten there much faster if it hadn’t been for the draconian interference of the U.S. government. To this day, they are still blocking researchers from accessing cannabis to study. Countless thousands have died suffering and millions more continue to be denied access to plant-based medications that could not only mitigate their misery, but also possibly even cure them.

Cannabis medications work so efficiently because of the endocannabinoid (EC) system, present in all humans and many animals as well. This system consists of a series of receptors that are configured only to accept cannabinoids, especially tetrahydrocannabinol (THC) and cannabidiol (CBD). Not enough research has been done on the other ones, cannabinol (CBN) and cannabigerol (CBG) plus others, to know much about their mechanisms of effect.

This system, an integral part of our physiologies, was discovered in the mid-1990s by Israeli researcher Dr. Ralph Mechoulam who also identified THC as the main active ingredient in cannabis in the early 1960s. Israel has been one of the most progressive nations for cannabis research and currently has one of the most advanced medical marijuana programs in the world. They are international leaders in advanced greenhouse technology, routinely producing flowers with 20 percent or greater THC.

Dr. Mechoulam’s world-changing research discovered two main receptors, cannabinoid 1 (CB1) and cannabinoid 2 (CB2), that are keyed to both the endocannabinoids that our body naturally produces and phytocannabinoids (plant-based) like THC and CBD. Our bodies actually produce the ECs similar to how our body produces narcotic-like endorphins. Synthetic cannabinoids, like the ones found in Marinol, also fit the receptor sites but don’t work as efficiently as the natural ones.

This research barely created a stir when first published as the whole world was still wrapped up in drug war madness. A prominent scientist discovers that our bodies not only have receptor sites cued just for cannabinoids but that our bodies actually produce them internally. The next step was to figure out how this affects our body’s functioning.

CB1 receptors are primarily found in the brain, although they are also both present in the male and female reproductive organs. Current research shows that THC is specifically keyed to the CB1 site. Therefore it is responsible for the feeling of intoxication that is the most familiar aspect of cannabis. From a therapeutic standpoint, it’s most important effect is to modulate and moderate the perception of pain. For example, touching a finger to a hot stove sends an electrical impulse that goes from the finger to the brain. The brain replies, “ouch, hot” and the finger is pulled away.

THC moderates pain; this doesn’t mean we leave our finger on the stove, but that the intensity of the painful feeling is reduced when THC is present in the CB1 site. This mechanism of action is why THC-rich medicines are so prized by people with intense pain issues. Cannabis and narcotics are also co-agonists, which means that each of them magnifies the effect of the other. This allows people to take lower doses and still have it be effective. Additionally, CB1 receptors are not present in the part of the brain that regulates heart rate and respiration, so unlike narcotics, there is no lethal dosage threshold for THC, allowing someone to consume as much is needed for its palliative effects.

CB2 receptors are primarily found in the immune system with the highest concentration located in the spleen. There is some evidence that the receptors might also be in the micro parts of the brain’s basal ganglia, or nerve bundles. Again, a lack of comprehensive research has left many without the knowledge that should be widely available.

The CB2 receptors are keyed to CBD and works as an anti-inflammatory agent. The immune-boosting functions of CB2 are far less understood as research into CBD is just really beginning. It’s only been about five years since CBD re-emerged in the medical cannabis scene and was identified through Steephill Labs. The benefits of CBD-rich medicine, with its anti-spasmodic qualities, is one the most exciting and promising areas of cannabis medical research currently happening. One of the other effects of CBD is that it moderates the effects of THC. It actually knocks THC off the CB1 receptor, so if someone is experiencing THC intoxication, a strong dose of CBD can counteract those effects. The future of CBD-rich medicines is almost limitless. Indeed, we have just barely scratched the surface of planet cannabis.

THC and CBD are the two main cannabinoids that are focused on, however there are dozens and possibly hundreds more. Some of the ones that have been identified and studied include CBG, which binds to both CB1 as well as CB2 and is an antagonist to CB1, meaning that it moderates the effects of THC. Cannabichromene (CBC) is non-psychoactive and has both anti-inflammatory and analgesic properties. CBN occurs when THC degrades. For this reason, it is rarely seen in fresh cannabis and is only mildly psychoactive, having a mostly sleepy effect. Tetrahydrocannabivarin (THCV) is another cannabinoid usually found in central Asian and southern African strains that also acts as a THC antagonist. There are more cannabinoids than can be listed here and they all have the potential to be as life changing as CBD is turning out to be.

The fact that there is a system in our body that produces cannabinoids, and is specifically designed to accept just them, should be overwhelming proof of cannabis’ efficacy as a medicine. From the pain-killing effects of THC to the anti-spasmodic and anti-inflammatory properties of CBD, we have just scratched the surface of a world of possibilities. People are waking up to the benefits of these medicines as more researchers are exploring the infinite possibilities inherent in this seemingly simple plant. Future generations will look back and wonder why it took so long to figure this out.

[J-Bo]

Thanks for all of the great info, Fed Up! I recently gave it a try, but it wasn't very helpful for my neuropathic pain. In fact, it was pretty miserable, and I couldn't wait for the effects to wear off. I remember it being so much fun in my misspent youth, but now I could do without the THC effects. Maybe as research goes forward, they will develop some formulations that contain the components that work for more of us individually.

[Fed Up]

Cannabis Oil (known as Rick Simpson Oi)

Thanks for all of the great info, Fed Up! I recently gave it a try, but it wasn't very helpful for my neuropathic pain. In fact, it was pretty miserable, and I couldn't wait for the effects to wear off. I remember it being so much fun in my misspent youth, but now I could do without the THC effects. Maybe as research goes forward, they will develop some formulations that contain the components that work for more of us individually.

Did you smoke it? If there is too much Sativa in the product you smoked, it is MOST LIKELY you are as sensitive as I am, to the medication smoked. Many sativas give me worse pain, as you state. Glad you brought that to light. THANK YOU!

Here is a start in searching the U.S. Gov't patent on it AND the neuroprotectant is what has me 'hooked' on trying it with a curative dose of the Cannabis OIL (made from the plant). This is part of what our U.S. Gov't has the patents on.

google.com/patents/US6630507

Spaced for those of use that have difficulty reading run-on posts.

Cannabinoids as antioxidants and neuroprotectants
US 6630507 B1
Abstract
Cannabinoids have been found to have antioxidant properties, unrelated to NMDA receptor antagonism. This new found property makes cannabinoids useful in the treatment and prophylaxis of wide variety of oxidation associated diseases, such as ischemic, age-related, inflammatory and autoimmune diseases.

The cannabinoids are found to have particular application as neuroprotectants, for example in limiting neurological damage following ischemic insults, such as stroke and trauma, or in the treatment of neurodegenerative diseases, such as Alzheimer's disease, Parkinson's disease and HIV dementia.

Nonpsychoactive cannabinoids, such as cannabidoil, are particularly advantageous to use because they avoid toxicity that is encountered with psychoactive cannabinoids at high doses useful in the method of the present invention.

A particular disclosed class of cannabinoids useful as neuroprotective antioxidants is formula (I) wherein the R group is independently selected from the group consisting of H, CH3, and COCH3.

The neuroprotection is what I am "in for" since that is my biggest concern.

Even when I tried the oil, the nerve pain just slowly disappeared over time, I didn't realize the pain was gone until my doc said, "Where does it hurt?" It has took almost a year off the oil before the pain returned.

That's just my experience. Which has sent me to rick simpson oil and the site associated with Rick Simpson.

My concern is: Quality of oil and all organic materials, to make the oil. Which has taken me to learn how to distill the grain alcohol I need, not trusting any synthetic~altered material in making it.

I have made some and took some "testing" doses of the oil. As before, I noted no difference but, it didn't make me hurt or harm me.

What I discovered recently is: If the oil is ingested sublinqually (under tongue or on gums) it is rather uncomfortable in the recommended dose, makes me high and all kinds of things I dislike of the medication.

Which is why our Gov't either needs to dispense it OR, make it legal for medication and have it made and supplied by the Gov't: That is the big obstacle of it becoming the right class of drug for medical use, in the least.

Must admit, I wasn't a fan of it either because, it caused me more pain! IDK if I ever mentioned that before?

I experimented with different strains, out of mere desperation of relief. Once I googled it, I read in MMJ forums and when I read of how people were using it to get off 24/7 opiates. So, I went to a MMJ doc and attended meetings regularly--when I was able. It intrigued me and I read plenty about it and still do.

By going to the meetings and sharing a little beforehand, I learned that not all strains cause that horrible discomfort. Plus, in the dry plant material, I've learned it can be more effective if aged about 3 months or until dry, before smoking.

Oil: There are rumblings in the medical cannabis community that the oil needs to be left out until completely dry before use. I met a professional grower that made a comment to me, "My patients like it better when I leave it out to dry."

Then from another caretaker that reports results on the internet: reported her patients liked it "aged" or dried after making the oil. Since, I haven't tried that oil but, I did the other caretakers and it was the FIRST MEDICATION that actually staved off my balance issues.

I think I mentioned, that is why I stopped. I had taken a much larger dose almost 3 times the dose recommended and I felt better than I had in ages! That is when I COMMITTED to getting organic products and making my own oil. I don't grow and can't, so it was difficult to find organic products at prices I could afford.

Recently, I did an experimental test of some oil--freshly made. I put it in gelatin capsules and dropped it in the back of my mouth and swallowed with water. IT DID NOT GIVE ME ANY EFFECT Immediately or OF BEING HIGH OR HIGHER.

First, I need to admit--my head has felt high-without cannabis for a very long time and nothing made me any higher...so I am not a good source of that category. I am now at a stage of disease that if something doesn't improve, I will have little hope, left.

Prior to my diagnosis I read of a young woman in the South that read about it, grew the plant and made the oil for her Aunt that has MS. Her Aunt was unable to speak or see. She made an oil and then made some cookies with it.

After one cookie her aunt with MS starting speaking for the first time in several years! That is all the encouragement I needed. Most MS patients aren't able to go on line and report these things, her aunt never has. But, to this date remains symptom free from that. I email and ask. One can never get enough information on something like this.

IT IS A MATTER OF TRIAL AND ERROR; Our Gov't needs to do that and our insurance should cover it.

The experimental testing of oil did not affect me very much, except--it tinkered a tiny bit with my balance issues, which resolved from dosing with RSO (rich simpson oil) after my diagnosis, 3 years ago. I was fairly new at all this marijuana stuff and reluctantly desperate to feel better. I just keep reading and when possible Private Message to others that use it and caretakers that provide it.

Must admit, if I felt better--I wouldn't bother taking it. What I've experienced though, it took quite awhile taking the oil (3 years ago) before I had management of pain. And it was a year before the pain started coming back.

Hope this clear up any mis-information I may have posted?
Hope your holidays are filled with love, joy and laughter. fed

[vender]

fed up strain recommendation?

Hello Fedup, I currently use my own strain (85% indica). Sativas kill me. I read you like girl scout cookies which I have started and have had great results with. I then read you found Pot O Gold and have read about Harlequin. As I live and am legal what would you recommend? I am really happy with what I am currently using but if another strain is better I will try it. A lot of talk about Harlequin but I would have to go to Colorado to get a clone and somehow fly it back to Michigan. Pot o gold sounds interesting. Can you explain the difference between POG and GSC?

My insurance company keeps denying my medications so I have to self medicate at the moment.

Thanks for your help!

[sw8689]

Three Years Later..

Well everyone, it has been three years this November that I took the leap and tried Cannabis for the first time. With the help of Fedup, and all of the others on this thread, the research I did and the support of my wonderful husband, I have reduced my night meds incredibly! Topmax and baclofen by fifty percent! Zoplicone to 0!. My day meds are the same, but I don't use MJ during the day, and I'm comfortable with my day meds as they are all for energy and work well for me.

I also have no tremors now. And yes I did go off Cannabis for a few weeks to test to see if it was the cannabis treating the tremors and low and behold they came back after about two or three days? Likely because the Cannabis reduces my spasticity and that treats my type of tremor.

i have become a strong proponent for medical Cannabis here in Canada, and have been able to guide others and even a few doctors with a small paper I wrote to explain the science and direct them to the studies which are easy to find in pubmed and other journal sites.

im so grateful we were allowed to keep this thread and I encourage anyone thinking of trying Cannabis to do so. I have not felt better or looked better since I was diagnosed, and I get this comment all the time."you look so good! What are you doing differently!". And then my spiel starts on the wonders of Cannabis..

all ll the best everyone!

[jamilea]

Thank you thank you for this thread! I've only just begun to briefly skim through it and it is giving me so much hope.

If there are any new updates, please post