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Is getting medical marijuana really as easy as a quick video chat with symptoms of frequent heartburn? Prohibiting it seems especially ridiculous if that is th

by xirdstl 11y ago

Is getting medical marijuana really as easy as a quick video chat with symptoms of frequent heartburn? Prohibiting it seems especially ridiculous if that is the case.

rm_-rf_slash 11y ago
Dude, not even. When I worked in the Valley I went to the THC doctor's office with a whole backstory about how I work for a big tech company and I drank to handle the stress etc. When I got there I was given a medical form to fill out. The third page actually asked why I wanted medical marijuana. I simply wrote "anxiety" and figured I'd explain it later. Then I got the call that the doctor was ready to see me. I gave him the form, he flipped straight to the third page, then said: "Hmm...anxiety...when you go to the dispensary, you're going to want to ask for Indica."
- Zelphyr 11y ago
  Well? Did it help? :)
  - rm_-rf_slash 11y ago
    Marijuana is an interesting drug. On one hand, it is like a stress reset button (along with a good night's sleep), but on the other, it's impossible to OD or feel sick on it, so, unlike alcohol, you can binge or have it all the time and feel few adverse side effects. Thing is, studies have shown that too much use can dampen the brain's ability to absorb (not produce!) dopamine, making everyday successes feel less significant. So yes, it did help, but it comes with caveats. Just because you can blaze all day erryday doesn't mean you should.
    - corin_ 11y ago
      > it's impossible to (..) feel sick on it https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Whitey_%28drugs%29 https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Whitey_%28drugs%29 How much it too much would depend on your body and tolerance, but I've seen plenty of people feel sick from smoking too much.
      - rm_-rf_slash 11y ago
        Can't say I've ever felt sick from smoking too much, except for a time when the munchies took over and I ended up ordering delivery from two restaurants in one night.
        corin_ 11y ago
        Could be that you've never smoked enough to get there, could be you're just lucky. Certainly it's a lot harder to feel shit after smoking than drinking.
        rm_-rf_slash 11y ago
        >Could be that you've never smoked enough to get there Believe me, I've tried.
        coldpie 11y ago
        I've never smoked enough to get there, though I know people who have, but I have eaten enough to get there. Edibles are easy to mis-judge, especially because they take a while to kick in.
        askafriend 11y ago
        You do get dehydrated though, and as a result feel sick.
        beachstartup 11y ago
        in my younger days i used to see people get so stoned they threw up. it's definitely possible, but you're not going to get to that level smoking the odd bowl or two, or joint. this is almost exclusively caused by overcommitting to bonghits above your paygrade.
      - thoughtpalette 11y ago
        I've definitely been sick from smoking too much, but it's always been a mix with alcohol included.
    - beachstartup 11y ago
      > Thing is, studies have shown that too much use can dampen the brain's ability to absorb (not produce!) dopamine, making everyday successes feel less significant. isn't that basically what "anti-depressants" do?
      - kmicklas 11y ago
        No, most antidepressants prevent the reuptake of serotonin (thereby increasing the degree of serotonin signalling).
    - PhasmaFelis 11y ago
      A good friend of mine in Seattle had a night of very nasty dissociative hallucinations after eating what was labeled as a normal dose of a professionally-manufactured edible. Weed is mostly safe most of the time, but you need to be careful with edibles, especially when you're first getting started and don't know where your tolerance is.
  - yodsanklai 11y ago
    For me, it doesn't. Or more precisely, it helps with anxiety, but at the same time I'm not able to do anything productive, so it's not a therapeutic option. On the other hand, benzodiazepines (such as Xanax) have helped me a lot occasionally. For instance, I couldn't work properly a few days before a stressful event because I was too anxious (typically, before giving a talk). I'm convinced that therapeutic cannabis is for the most part an excuse for legalization and there are better alternatives drugs with less side effects for most of the conditions it is advertised for.
    - Zelphyr 11y ago
      I recommend looking into a licensed therapist whose practice is evidence based. I found one who uses Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT) and it has honestly changed my life.
      - yodsanklai 11y ago
        Thanks for the recommandation. But it's not really a problem anymore.
91bananas 11y ago
This is roughly accurate with the few people I know that have gotten cards. But theirs were in person rather than video chat, but may as well have been.
imgabe 11y ago
Getting a medical card for me involved meeting with an LPN for about 10 minutes. She took my blood pressure, asked what I wanted it for (I said "anxiety") and said ok. A couple weeks later the card came in the mail.
gohrt 11y ago
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CRm1yqSmsGY https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CRm1yqSmsGY Weed Card by Garfunkel and Oates (Official Video) Riki "Garfunkel" Lindhome and Kate "Oates" Micucci sing about the perils of obtaining medical marijuana in California.
erbo 11y ago
Apparently, the biggest holdup in Colorado is the backlog required to get the state to issue the actual card. But, since recreational use has also been legalized, you can still get cannabis, you're just paying higher taxes on it without the MMJ card.
rybosome 11y ago
Prior to recreational legalization in Washington, it was extremely easy to get it medically; there were a plethora of doctors that specialized in offering prescriptions with the barest pretense of actual need. After the law passed allowing it to be grown, sold and used recreationally then it actually became more difficult to acquire a prescription for it, requiring proof of one of a set of conditions from a "real" physician.

by xirdstl 11y ago

Is getting medical marijuana really as easy as a quick video chat with symptoms of frequent heartburn? Prohibiting it seems especially ridiculous if that is the case.

rm_-rf_slash 11y ago

Dude, not even. When I worked in the Valley I went to the THC doctor's office with a whole backstory about how I work for a big tech company and I drank to handle the stress etc. When I got there I was given a medical form to fill out. The third page actually asked why I wanted medical marijuana. I simply wrote "anxiety" and figured I'd explain it later. Then I got the call that the doctor was ready to see me. I gave him the form, he flipped straight to the third page, then said: "Hmm...anxiety...when you go to the dispensary, you're going to want to ask for Indica."

Zelphyr 11y ago
Well? Did it help? :)
- rm_-rf_slash 11y ago
  Marijuana is an interesting drug. On one hand, it is like a stress reset button (along with a good night's sleep), but on the other, it's impossible to OD or feel sick on it, so, unlike alcohol, you can binge or have it all the time and feel few adverse side effects. Thing is, studies have shown that too much use can dampen the brain's ability to absorb (not produce!) dopamine, making everyday successes feel less significant. So yes, it did help, but it comes with caveats. Just because you can blaze all day erryday doesn't mean you should.
  - corin_ 11y ago
    > it's impossible to (..) feel sick on it https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Whitey_%28drugs%29 https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Whitey_%28drugs%29 How much it too much would depend on your body and tolerance, but I've seen plenty of people feel sick from smoking too much.
    - rm_-rf_slash 11y ago
      Can't say I've ever felt sick from smoking too much, except for a time when the munchies took over and I ended up ordering delivery from two restaurants in one night.
      - corin_ 11y ago
        Could be that you've never smoked enough to get there, could be you're just lucky. Certainly it's a lot harder to feel shit after smoking than drinking.
        rm_-rf_slash 11y ago
        >Could be that you've never smoked enough to get there Believe me, I've tried.
      - coldpie 11y ago
        I've never smoked enough to get there, though I know people who have, but I have eaten enough to get there. Edibles are easy to mis-judge, especially because they take a while to kick in.
      - askafriend 11y ago
        You do get dehydrated though, and as a result feel sick.
      - beachstartup 11y ago
        in my younger days i used to see people get so stoned they threw up. it's definitely possible, but you're not going to get to that level smoking the odd bowl or two, or joint. this is almost exclusively caused by overcommitting to bonghits above your paygrade.
    - thoughtpalette 11y ago
      I've definitely been sick from smoking too much, but it's always been a mix with alcohol included.
  - beachstartup 11y ago
    > Thing is, studies have shown that too much use can dampen the brain's ability to absorb (not produce!) dopamine, making everyday successes feel less significant. isn't that basically what "anti-depressants" do?
    - kmicklas 11y ago
      No, most antidepressants prevent the reuptake of serotonin (thereby increasing the degree of serotonin signalling).
  - PhasmaFelis 11y ago
    A good friend of mine in Seattle had a night of very nasty dissociative hallucinations after eating what was labeled as a normal dose of a professionally-manufactured edible. Weed is mostly safe most of the time, but you need to be careful with edibles, especially when you're first getting started and don't know where your tolerance is.
- yodsanklai 11y ago
  For me, it doesn't. Or more precisely, it helps with anxiety, but at the same time I'm not able to do anything productive, so it's not a therapeutic option. On the other hand, benzodiazepines (such as Xanax) have helped me a lot occasionally. For instance, I couldn't work properly a few days before a stressful event because I was too anxious (typically, before giving a talk). I'm convinced that therapeutic cannabis is for the most part an excuse for legalization and there are better alternatives drugs with less side effects for most of the conditions it is advertised for.
  - Zelphyr 11y ago
    I recommend looking into a licensed therapist whose practice is evidence based. I found one who uses Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT) and it has honestly changed my life.
    - yodsanklai 11y ago
      Thanks for the recommandation. But it's not really a problem anymore.

91bananas 11y ago

This is roughly accurate with the few people I know that have gotten cards. But theirs were in person rather than video chat, but may as well have been.

imgabe 11y ago

Getting a medical card for me involved meeting with an LPN for about 10 minutes. She took my blood pressure, asked what I wanted it for (I said "anxiety") and said ok. A couple weeks later the card came in the mail.

gohrt 11y ago

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CRm1yqSmsGY https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CRm1yqSmsGY Weed Card by Garfunkel and Oates (Official Video) Riki "Garfunkel" Lindhome and Kate "Oates" Micucci sing about the perils of obtaining medical marijuana in California.

erbo 11y ago

Apparently, the biggest holdup in Colorado is the backlog required to get the state to issue the actual card. But, since recreational use has also been legalized, you can still get cannabis, you're just paying higher taxes on it without the MMJ card.

rybosome 11y ago

Prior to recreational legalization in Washington, it was extremely easy to get it medically; there were a plethora of doctors that specialized in offering prescriptions with the barest pretense of actual need. After the law passed allowing it to be grown, sold and used recreationally then it actually became more difficult to acquire a prescription for it, requiring proof of one of a set of conditions from a "real" physician.