I want to write an article later about secondary effects Gastroparesis has on your body, like the fact it is deteriorating my spine from repetitive bending to vomit, but today, I want to talk about the health benefits of medical marijuana.
I have had this pain for a while in my spine. The doctor gave me medication, of course, but the one thing that helps me with the pain, the nausea, and the vomiting from my Gastroparesis is cannabis. It is NOT legal in Georgia yet, though Atlanta has decriminalized it. Here are the states cannabis is legal in:
According to MARIJUANA DOCTORS,
"Medical Marijuana For Gastroparesis
Updated on January 25, 2019. Medical content reviewed by Dr. Richard Koffler, MD, Board Certified Physiatrist
Image Source: In Article
Image Source: On Images
Dr. Thomas Strouse, talks about the benefits of cannabis and chronic pain:
Marijuana for Gastroparesis
Everyone has had an upset tummy before. However, some people experience severe and chronic nausea and vomiting due to certain conditions such as gastroparesis, and this gets in the way of living a quality life. Thankfully, medical marijuana and gastroparesis treatment is available and could be a good option for you to help ease your nausea, vomiting and other gastroparesis-related symptoms.
What Is Gastroparesis?
Gastroparesis is a disorder affecting your stomach’s motility, or spontaneous muscle movement. You usually have strong muscle contractions capable of pushing your food through your body’s digestive tract. When you’re suffering from gastroparesis, this motility slows down or might not even work altogether, which keeps your body from being able to empty your stomach properly.
Antidepressants, opioids and other specific medications can cause slow gastric emptying and induce similar symptoms. Allergy medications and high blood pressure can, as well. These medicines can worsen the condition for those with gastroparesis.
Gastroparesis can lead to symptoms such as:
Nausea and vomiting
Interference with normal digestion
Problems with nutrition
Problems with blood sugar levels
The cause of gastroparesis isn’t clear. In some cases, it’s a diabetes complication, while some individuals develop it following surgery. While there isn’t a cure for the disorder, you can find some relief with medication and dietary changes.
Potential causes of gastroparesis include:
Multiple sclerosis
Uncontrolled diabetes
Medications like some antidepressants and narcotics
Gastric surgery with vagus nerve injury
Parkinson’s disease
Rare disorders like scleroderma — a connective tissue condition that affects your skeletal muscles, skin, internal organs and blood vessels — may also cause gastroparesis.
Types of Gastroparesis
There are several ways to categorize gastroparesis.
Diabetic gastroparesis: Around 20 to 50 percent of lifelong diabetic patients experience gastroparesis — usually linked with other diabetes complications. In fact, diabetes mellitus is probably the most common condition leading to gastroparesis.
Post-surgical gastroparesis: Some patients experience symptoms after upper gastrointestinal tract surgery.
Idiopathic gastroparesis: There isn’t any noticeable abnormality causing the symptoms patients experience, although, in some situations, the symptoms started after an infectious event such as diarrhea, nausea and vomiting.
History of Gastroparesis
The incidence of gastroparesis-related hospitalizations in the U.S. significantly increased between 1995 and 2004 — especially after 2000.
Symptoms of Gastroparesis
With gastroparesis, you may experience:
Nausea
Vomiting
Feeling full for quite some time following a meal
Feeling full shortly after beginning a meal
Excessive belching or bloating
Poor appetite
Upper abdomen pain
Heartburn
The symptoms you experience can be severe or mild. Each person’s experience is different.
Effects of Gastroparesis
Several complications can arise from gastroparesis, including the following.
Malnutrition: Vomiting may hinder your body’s ability to absorb enough nutrients, since it prevents you from taking in adequate calories.
Severe dehydration: Dehydration results from ongoing vomiting.
Unpredictable changes in blood sugar: While gastroparesis doesn’t lead to diabetes, frequent alterations in the amount and rate of food passing into your small bowel can lead to unusual blood sugar level changes. These blood sugar level changes worsen diabetes, exacerbating the gastroparesis.
Undigested, hardened food stays in your stomach: When undigested food remains in your stomach, it can harden into a solid mass called a BEZOAR. These often cause nausea and vomiting and could threaten your life if they’re keeping food from reaching your small intestine.
Poor quality of life: Acute flare-ups of symptoms can keep you from working properly and being able to handle all your responsibilities.
Mental Effects
There’s a connection between gastroparesis, poor quality of life and significant psychological distress. Furthermore, symptoms of the condition adversely link with heightened depression and anxiety, as well as impaired quality of life. One study showed the rates of psychopathology in groups of individuals with gastroparesis ranged between 21.8 and 50 percent.
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Gastroparesis Statistics
Statistics about gastroparesis, according to the Digestive Diseases Center, include:
Around 5 million people in the U.S. have gastroparesis.
Around 100,000 of them suffer from a more serious form of the condition.
Around 30,000 individuals don’t respond to treatment.
Twenty percent of Type 1 diabetes patients develop gastroparesis.
Current Treatments Available for Gastroparesis and Their Side Effects
To treat gastroparesis, the doctor first needs to identify and treat the underlying condition. For instance, if you have diabetes and it’s causing your gastroparesis, the doctor will give you treatment to help you control diabetes.
Changes to Your Diet
Proper nutrition plays a huge role in treating gastroparesis. Many individuals can keep their gastroparesis symptoms under control with simple changes to their diet. Your doctor may give you a referral to a dietitian who works closely with you in finding foods you can digest more easily, so you’re getting enough nutrients and calories from the food.
The dietitian may recommend you:
Chew your food thoroughly.
Eat smaller meals more often.
Try pureed foods and soups if it’s easier to swallow liquids.
Avoid well-cooked vegetables and fruits like broccoli and oranges, since they could cause bezoars.
Eat a mostly low-fat diet, adding small servings of fatty foods if you can tolerate them.
Avoid alcohol, carbonated drinks and smoking.
Go for walks or exercise gently after eating.
Don’t lie down for a couple of hours after each meal.
Take a multivitamin every day.
Drink lots of water every day.
Medications
Your doctor may prescribe you medications to treat the disorder, such as stomach muscle-stimulating medications like erythromycin and metoclopramide.
Side effects of erythromycin may include:
Slurred speech
Blurred vision
Unusual tiredness
Muscle weakness
Hearing loss
Signs of liver disease like yellowing skin or eyes, nausea or vomiting, abdominal pain or dark urine
Drooping eyelids
Erythromycin can become less effective over time. (NOTE: This medication is also an antibiotic with the side effect of motility. I just wanted to interject in this article so that you would be aware that not only does it become less effective over time, but it is also an antibiotic, broad spectrum, that you may not want to build up an immunity to)
Side effects of metoclopramide may include:
Fatigue
Insomnia
Restlessness
Confusion
A headache
Drowsiness
Dizziness
Mental depression with thoughts of SUICIDE (NOTE: This medication, I wanted to interject again, can cause irreversible, neurological side effects. If you notice your hands shaking or anything like that, call your doctor immediately)
DOMPERIDONE, a newer medicine, is also available, but it comes with restricted access. It does have fewer side effects, though, which may include:
Abdominal cramps
Dry mouth
Rash
Hives
Itching
Nausea
Diarrhea
Your doctor may prescribe you medicine to keep your nausea and vomiting under control, such as diphenhydramine and prochlorperazine.
Side effects of prochlorperazine may include constipation, dizziness, anxiety, drowsiness, weight gain and more. Diphenhydramine (brand name Benadryl) may have side effects as well, such as drowsiness, dizziness, loss of coordination, dry eyes, upset stomach, blurred vision and more.
Finally, there’s another class of medications to help with nausea and vomiting. One example is ondansetron (brand name Zofran). Side effects may include:
Fever
A headache
Diarrhea
Weakness
Dizziness
Drowsiness
Lightheadedness
Surgical Treatment
Some gastroparesis patients cannot tolerate any liquids or food. In these circumstances, the doctor will likely suggest inserting a FEEDING TUBE into your small intestine. They may also suggest a gastric venting tube that works by relieving gastric pressure.
The doctor can insert the feeding tube through your skin directly into your small intestine, or pass it through your mouth or nose. It’s typically temporary and only necessary if you can’t control your blood sugar levels with another method or if your gastroparesis is severe. Some individuals have to have the feeding tube through an IV going directly into their abdominal area and into a vein.
Alternative Treatments
Some people benefit from alternative treatments, but there aren’t a lot of studies on these. A few alternative treatments include the following.
STW 5 (Iberogast): A German herbal formula containing nine various herbal extracts. It eases digestive symptoms slightly better than a placebo.
Electroacupuncture and acupuncture: The specialist inserts very thin needles at strategic points of your body through your skin with acupuncture. With electroacupuncture, the specialist uses a small electrical current that passes through the needles.
Rikkunshito: A Japanese herbal remedy also containing nine herbs. It’s supposed to help decrease the feeling of being full after a meal and reduce abdominal pain.
How and Why Marijuana Can Be an Effective Treatment for Gastroparesis
Published clinical trials don’t yet exist for marijuana and gastroparesis. However, medical weed successfully alleviates digestive complaints like nausea. People have used cannabis derivatives to treat cancer.
Since people historically have smoked marijuana as their ingestion method, some worry about its potential for addiction and harm, like with tobacco smoke. However, one particular patient claimed he made the switch to cannabis and used a vaporizer to smoke it. He claimed the herb helped him keep his food down and he gained back the weight he lost when he was on the medication Marinol.
In February 2015, Current Gastroenterology Reports published a review examining cannabinoids and their place in treating gastrointestinal symptoms such as visceral pain, nausea and vomiting. Researchers in the review found targeted cannabinoid therapy could aid in GI disorder/disease management.
Image Source: On the Image.
The researchers noted endocannabinoid system (ECS) modulation, particularly the cannabinoid CB1 receptors located in the gastrointestinal system, could regulate:
Nausea and vomiting
Food intake
Stomach protection
Stomach secretion
The GI disorder-causing inflammation process
Ion transport: secretion and absorption such as maintaining adequate electrolyte/fluid balance
GI movement/motility: constipation with too little movement, or diarrhea with too much movement
The number of GI tract cells: Too many cells could be an indication of cancer or some disease process, while tissue injury can result from too few.
Internal organ sensation
This is a documentary about Medical Cannabis and Its Impact on Human Health:
The researchers also noted CB2 receptor modulation typically found in immune system cells, which prevent or help your body recover from injury or sickness, can help:
Reduce internal sensation and pain
Control certain GI illness-related inflammation
Regulate movement/motility
What Side Effects and Symptoms of Gastroparesis Can Medical Marijuana Treat?
As noted in the above-published review, cannabis and gastroparesis treatment can help with symptoms such as:
Nausea and vomiting
Poor appetite
Insomnia or other sleeping problems
Inflammation
Constipation
Diarrhea
Internal pain
Immune system modulation
Image Source: On the Image
It also helps with anxiety and depression, thereby improving quality of life.
The THC and CBD cannabinoids directly interact with your body’s ECS receptors to affect things such as your appetite, mood, tolerance to pain and more. A little alteration in the amount of CBD and THC in your cannabis allows you to customize your medical marijuana and gastroparesis treatment to effectively help treat your symptoms.
Image Source: On Image
Here are some videos explaining CBD oil and the benefits and side effects in regards to using it:
Several states have approved severe nausea as a qualifying condition for the use of medical marijuana.
Best Strains of Marijuana to Use for Gastroparesis Symptoms and Their Side Effects
Certain weed strains to treat nausea effectively. These include:
Blueberry Diesel (Indica-dominant hybrid)
Lavender (Indica-dominant hybrid)
Blue Dream (Sativa-dominant hybrid)
Super Lemon Haze (Sativa-dominant hybrid)
Other potentially helpful marijuana and gastroparesis strains include:
Crystal Coma (Sativa): Good for pain, depression and inflammation
Black Mamba (Indica): Good for anxiety, depression, pain, insomnia and inflammation
Goo (Indica): Good for pain, nausea, insomnia, stress, lack of appetite and gastrointestinal disorder
Blueberry Nuken (Indica): Good for a gastrointestinal disorder, nausea, lack of appetite, insomnia, stress and pain
Image Sources: On the Images
Best Methods of Marijuana Treatment for the Side Effects and Symptoms of Gastroparesis
Along with choosing your cannabis and gastroparesis strain, you also need to decide on the best delivery method. Each delivery method provides its effects. Through trial and error, you’ll be able to find the most suitable method to get the most out of your treatment.
Smoking or vaping: Inhaling cannabis gives you the fastest effect, and when you’re feeling nausea, you want instant relief. Keep in mind, both smoking and vaping release harmful toxins, but vaping doesn’t produce as much as smoking. If you can wait a little bit for the effects of your treatment to kick in, you might want to try a different method, such as the following.
Patches: Patches release medication directly into your bloodstream. You’ll need to wait for the buildup of the effect, but this buildup makes them an excellent extended-release treatment.
Tinctures: Try using a cannabis tincture in a tiny proportion, like two milliliters. Before and after each meal, take a teaspoon of the cannabis tincture to help decrease indigestion and aid in a healthy tummy.
Edibles: Edibles can take more than an hour for you to feel their effects. However, if your stomach is causing your nausea, consuming edibles will go straight to the source.
Start the Medical Marijuana and Gastroparesis Relief Process
Becoming educated is a great way to begin your marijuana and gastroparesis treatment experience. After you’ve learned all the essentials, you can increase your knowledge about medical cannabis, either through doing further research or by contacting a marijuana specialist.
Once you’re ready, look up your state’s laws on medical weed. Then, it’s time to select a cannabis doctor who works closely with you to find the perfect medical cannabis treatment and continue an ongoing relationship with you. Then choose your dispensary you wish to get your marijuana products from — try out our huge database.
If you’re interested in getting more information on how to use medical weed to treat your gastroparesis or other stomach problems, book your appointment today with one of our recommended cannabis doctors in your area.
Resources:
http://www.gastroparesisclinic.org/index.php?pageId=1149&moduleId=195
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5323455/
https://digestive.templehealth.org/content/Gastroparesis.htm
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/25715910"
Mayo Clinic Radio did a show about medical marijuana,
According to P1707 - Cannabinoids Lead to Significant Improvement in Gastroparesis-Related Abdominal Pain,
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According to HERBAN PLANET,
"How can Marijuana Help with Gastroparesis?
Gastroparesis is a condition where the spontaneous movement of the muscles in the stomach does not function properly. It is also known as delayed gastric emptying. Gastroparesis is actually a disorder which stops or slows down the movement of food from the stomach to the small intestine. The SYMPTOMS OF GASTROPARESIS include a feeling of fullness after eating a meal in a very small amount, vomiting, nausea, pain in stomach, acid reflux, and abdominal bloating.
There are different treatment methods being used to cure gastroparesis including the dose of antibiotics. However, the use of antibiotics can cause more health problems than it treats. Antibiotics wipe out even the good bacteria needed to digest and absorb the food.
Causes of Gastroparesis
There are DIFFERENT CAUSES OF GASTROPARESIS. Some of them are:
DIABETES – Diabetes is the most common medical condition related to the development of gastroparesis. Gastroparesis can be a side effect of diabetes.
Damage to VAGUS NERVE – A damage caused to a nerve (vagus nerve) that controls stomach muscles, may lead to gastroparesis.
Undigested Food – Undigested food left in the stomach may cause gastroparesis.
Among the different treatment methods applied and used to cure gastroparesis, the best cure lies with the use of marijuana. Some people and health experts emphasize on the natural ways of curing gastroparesis. The natural ways to cure gastroparesis include the use of Aloe Vera, probiotic foods, apple cider vinegar, vitamin D and some others.
Marijuana may be known as a narcotic but it is actually more powerful than it seems. For people suffering from gastroparesis, marijuana can be very helpful if consumed in a balanced proportion. Marijuana promotes the digestion of food and helps repair the vagus nerve. Not only does marijuana promote the digestion of food, it also helps removing the signs of gastroparesis including nausea, pain in stomach, abdominal swelling etc. Marijuana promotes hibernation and relaxes the stomach and its muscles. As a result of which gastroparesis is eased in a very small period of time as compared to other ways of treatment.
Appropriate Dose of Marijuana
The dosage of cannabis or marijuana depends on different factors like gender, age, health, and physique. It is advisable to visit a doctor if marijuana is legalized in your state and you are a license holder of marijuana. The doctor will advise you the right amount of marijuana that will help you in your fight with gastroparesis.
You can also use cannabis tincture in a very small proportion i.e. 2ml. A teaspoon of marijuana tincture right before or after a meal will help to reduce indigestion and promote a healthier stomach. However, it is advisable to maintain a healthier diet that is not very hard or heavier for the stomach.
Excess of everything is bad. Marijuana has immense benefits for human health but all the benefits are dependent on the fact that marijuana is consumed in a balanced proportion."
This is a 2017, BBC Documentary on Cannabis and its medical uses:
According to Practical Gastroenterology,
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There was a Michigan Q&A (question and answer session) about medical marijuana and the effects it could have on certain conditions. There are medical experts who take part in this panel to discuss frequent questions people may ask about medical marijuana and the benefits it can have on certain chronic illnesses and different conditions. The video is below.
Doctors talk about medical cannabis use for IBD patients, chronic pain (the doctors noticed that people using medical marijuana used less opioids than other chronic pain patients), and talk about a lot of interesting information:
I have received some personal stories from people regarding medical marijuana and their chronic illness. I just want to say thank you for the emails and the people who have responded to my posts about this on my page, on Facebook, EmilysStomach.
Jay gave me permission to share his story, so I posted it below.
Jay writes,
"Medical marijuana has helped me tremendously!
I was diagnosed with gastroparesis about 5 years (typical gp story of weight loss, and a miserable existence), lupus (I stayed in bed almost 2 years) and hoshimotos [sic] (the fatigue was absolutely debilitating) and I've been on a host of all the typical medications for them all even have a gastric pacemaker.
My daughter started working at a dispensary here in Florida, she so adamantly begged me to just try it and I said NO. I had only 'smoked pot' in high school, and was not interested. Well my dr had put me on the fentanyl pain patch and it seemed to help for a little while until the paranoia and depression started, I tried to stop it...I couldn't and my dr suggested that I see about getting my medical card. I did.
The result was amazing, I can eat pretty much what I want and my mentality has improved as I feel like a completely different person now, doing things that I never thought I would be able to do. I am almost off of the patch now, another 2 weeks and I should be completely off of the fentanyl! Can I get a hallelujah! This has been the darkest time in my entire life and now I see light at the end of the tunnel!
Thank you so much for the support on Facebook! Please feel free to share or use for your purpose of educating people!"
There is a condition that cannabinoids can cause, called CANNABINOID HYPEREMESIS SYNDROME. The link is attached if you would like to read more about it. I wanted to bring this up because I do want to point out the positives and negatives to medical marijuana use, so that you can make a fully informed decision about it as a treatment option. I would encourage you to do your own research as well, and I know everyone is different, everyone's illness is different, so what works for others may not work for you. I just want you to have as much information about medical marijuana as you can get, because it is still against federal law, though it has been legalized in many states now. When it comes to your health, and treatments for yourself, you cannot be too careful and I believe you should research any viable treatment option and make an informed, educated decision for yourself. There is so much information out there about medical marijuana, and this article only covers a small portion of the information out there. I have always been an advocate of medical marijuana, even though it is not legal in Georgia yet, the government has decriminalized it in Atlanta. I do hope that it will become legal in all states, because I do personally believe (and this is my opinion) that the benefits outweigh the risks to me. But, I do want to talk about the risks with marijuana as well, so you will know what issues it can cause.
Leafly has an article that states,
"How Cannabis Helps ‘Spoonies’ Soothe the Symptoms of Chronic Illness
Meg Hartley
May 17, 2019
Medical cannabis is known for its ability to quell seizures, dull pain, and squash anxiety. It can also aid people with less well-known—but not uncommon—conditions, ones that often come with a life-long sentence. We call ourselves 'spoonies.' In my case, fibromyalgia was the main force behind my conversion, but sadly there are a lot of ways to join the ranks.
The term was coined at a diner, when a lupus fighter named Christine Miserandino who tried to explain the challenges of living life with the disease to a friend. Her friend knew the facts, but wanted to know what it felt like as an ongoing experience—as a lifestyle. Christine was a bit stunned: trying to sum up the limitations that affect every single aspect of your life is an overwhelming task.
Cannabis is a very common medical aid and ally to spoonies, offering soothing powers to all kinds of symptoms through the power of the body-wide endocannabinoid system.
She then grabbed a bunch of spoons from surrounding tables. She handed her friend the utensil bouquet, telling her that life with chronic illness is like only having so many spoons to get through the day—far fewer than the average person. If she borrows from tomorrow, she might be able to swing what she needs to get done today; but tomorrow has just as few spoons, so she’ll run a high risk of running out. And running out of spoons/overdoing it means big-time symptom flares and even less spoons. Maybe for weeks.
Christine asked her friend to go through her day, removing spoons appropriately as each activity demanded: getting up, showering, getting dressed, eating, etc. Half of her friend’s spoons were gone before she even left the house. Christine told her she had to decide what to miss out on in order to conserve spoons—run errands or make dinner? Wash the dishes or your hair? See a friend or catch up on work?
Her friend became sullen and asked how she possibly dealt with those limitations every day, forever.
A Best Friend to So Many Kinds of Spoonies
Christine answered her friend’s serious question with a serious answer, and told her that spending her precious spoons chilling together was always a wise expenditure. Personally, I would have added: 'And there’s no effing way I could do it without cannabis.' Though it can’t give me desperately needed spoons, cannabis makes getting through a regular spoon-starved day a whole lot more palatable—and a full-blown flare less horrific.
Cannabis is a very common medical aid and ally to spoonies, offering soothing powers to all kinds of symptoms through the power of the body-wide endocannabinoid system. We’ll touch on five conditions that can turn someone into a spoonie, as well as how cannabis is said to help treat symptoms.
Lupus
In the disease fought by Christine, the body’s immune system becomes hyperactive and attacks normal, healthy tissues, and organs. It affects many different systems, resulting in many different symptoms. These may include extreme fatigue, headaches, painful and swollen joints, fever, anemia, confusion and memory loss, swelling, pain in the chest with deep breathing, hair loss, light sensitivity, abnormal blood clotting, ulcers, and more—including very serious issues like organ failure.
Science is extremely behind the ball when it comes to studying how cannabis can assist chronic illnesses, and the lupus community has not been served in this effort. However, there has been promising resultsin regards to cannabis aiding other diseases that affect the immune system and inflammatory response. Lupus is nicknamed 'The Great Imitator' due to sharing symptoms with other diseases, and science has proven that cannabis aids in many of these shared symptoms. The next disease is one such example.
Fibromyalgia
This is the bugger getting me down. Many kinds of physical pain are involved with this disease, whose cause is unknown. I could write a whole essay on the different kinds of pain, but instead I’ll share that when I broke (nay, shattered/comminuted fracture) my foot a while back I walked on it for ten days because it hurt less than the rest of my body, so I figured it was fine. Oops. And then there’s the mental confusion of 'fibro fog,' fatigue, insomnia, and other fun stuff like depression and IBS symptoms.
My dear friend cannabis helps ease the pain, turning cutting shards of glass in my body into warm melty goo. It aids in lifting my spirit, which helps me push through the exhaustion, then gets me to eat through nausea. When I can do no more—when I become spoon-less—cannabis helps me emotionally handle the extreme amount of rest dictated by this advanced stage of the disease. And science backs me up here, with one fibromyalgia study showing so much improvement using cannabis that half of the participants quit their other medications completely.
Myalgic Encephalomyelitis (ME)
Referred to by some as chronic fatigue syndrome, ME causes severe exhaustion, a debilitating symptom that’s often minimized by culture and, deplorably, even by the medical community. The cause is unknown. Rest and sleep don’t improve overwhelming ME fatigue, and it worsens with physical and mental activity. Sufferers also battle headaches, poor memory, difficulty concentrating, dizziness, nausea, palpitations, insomnia, and sore throat or glands.
Unfortunately, science has not studied ME much in general, and not at all in relation to cannabis, but it has been recorded
as anecdotally helpful by scientists. Another fibromyalgia study also showed improvement in many overlapping symptoms. Because of the sedative effects of certain cannabis strains, it’s said that using an energizing strain during the day can be crucial factor in improving symptoms of ME. Modest dosing can also prevent feelings of sluggishness.
Crohn’s Disease and Colitis
Ulcerative colitis and Crohn’s disease are the two primary forms of inflammatory bowel disease (IBD). They are both characterized by chronic inflammation of the digestive tract, though colitis is limited to the colon and Crohn’s can occur throughout the digestive system. Both diseases can result in abdominal pain, severe diarrhea, rectal bleeding, fever, fatigue, nausea and vomiting, weight loss, anorexia, and malnutrition.
Cannabis can lend a hand in living life with colitis or Crohn’s. It’s often a qualifier
in medical cannabis states, with patients using it to fight the full range of symptoms. Cannabis is an effective IBD aid largely because of its ability to reduce inflammation. A small-but-promising study on Crohn’s disease found that participants needed less surgery and reduced bowel movements while using cannabis, as well as drastically reduced need for other medicines.
Endometriosis
A woman’s uterus has endometrial tissue that builds up throughout her hormone cycle, then breaks down and sheds—a never-particularly-fun process called menstruation. In endometriosis, this tissue grows outside of the womb, spreading itself on the fallopian tubes, ovaries, and other organs. When it’s time for the shedding of blood and other cells, they become painfully trapped in the body.
This problem can result in severe menstrual cramps, chronic lower-back, abdominal, and pelvic pain, painful intercourse, painful urination or bowel movements, IBS symptoms, and infertility. Traditional treatments (including risky surgeries) only try to keep the endometriosis from advancing, but cannabis has actually been shown to stop cell growth
in mice as well as helping symptoms, especially pain.
We’re More Common Than Culture Regards
There’s many more ways to become a spoonie: Lyme disease, multiple sclerosis, Ehlers Danlos syndrome, or Hashimoto’s—all four (and potentially many more) may be aided by cannabis via the body’s widespread endocannabinoid system. It’s frustrating that science doesn’t understand these illnesses quite yet, regardless of the stunning amount of promise it shows in improving the lives of spoonies.
When you total the numbers of Americans estimated to be suffering from the eight diseases mentioned in this article, and there’s many more, you get 91.5 million—that’s about 27% of Americans. Though there is comorbidity to be factored in (people who have more than one of these diseases), there’s also millions still searching for a diagnosis, as well as many conditions that weren’t mentioned.
We’re talking about a lot of people suffering from conditions that are barely regarded by society here. A whole lot. And they are generally invisible illnesses, which adds another dimension to feeling ignored. It’s like we’re drowning a world of problems that only we can see. Hug your spoonies (and maybe smoke ‘em out), because you probably know at least a couple—whether you’re aware of it or not."
There are more resources here:
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3576702/
https://www.cedars-sinai.org/health-library/diseases-and-conditions/c/cannabinoid-hyperemesis-syndrome.html
https://www.mdedge.com/psychiatry/article/77691/addiction-medicine/cannabinoid-hyperemesis-syndrome-result-chronic-heavy
https://www.the-hospitalist.org/hospitalist/article/175988/gastroenterology/treating-cannabinoid-hyperemesis-syndrome
https://jaoa.org/article.aspx?articleid=2094175
For more information about The Spoon Theory, please visit: https://butyoudontlooksick.com/
For more information about Fibromyagia, please visit: https://www.mayoclinic.org/diseases-conditions/fibromyalgia/symptoms-causes/syc-20354780
For more information on Lupus, please visit: https://www.mayoclinic.org/diseases-conditions/lupus/symptoms-causes/syc-20365789
For more information on Myalgic Encephalomyelitis (ME), please visit: https://www.cdc.gov/me-cfs/symptoms-diagnosis/index.html
For more information on Crohn's Disease, please visit: https://www.mayoclinic.org/diseases-conditions/crohns-disease/symptoms-causes/syc-20353304
For more information on Colitis, please visit: https://www.mayoclinic.org/diseases-conditions/ulcerative-colitis/symptoms-causes/syc-20353326
For more information on Endometrosis, please visit: https://www.mayoclinic.org/diseases-conditions/endometriosis/symptoms-causes/syc-20354656
if you would like to email me about this topic, share your personal experiences, or any other questions you may have that you would like me to research or look up, please email me at: emilysstomach@gmail.com. I am happy to help, and will do my best to help!
We also have support groups you can join to talk about this and other topics. You can find them below:
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