One of my oldest and closest friends is a decade younger than me. She got in a motorcycle accident in her late 20’s. We talk online late at night often, and I know she has troubles with the pain meds she has to take to relax and sleep late at night. It works half the time, but the other half, she is seeing doctors about liver function and trying to find a way to relax.

After a long while, I mentioned medical marijuana to her. She lives in Ohio, and it isn’t legal there. Like most people who have used cannabis, our experience is in the college years, and we know there is a huge difference between pot and incredibly strong pain meds. Oxy and Vicadin are very powerful. She expressed the belief that marijuana would be better for her, but is a manager for a large company.

She makes a great living, and could lose her job with regular drug testing. She can take opiates, but not pot to manage her pain. So we are literally giving opiates to responsible people. It is the most addictive drug known to humans, because our government refuses to allow a plant. There are almost limitless strains of marijuana. Some focus on pain, others on neural pathways. The two things that virtually everyone agree on is that medical marijuana helps with chronic pain and a good night’s sleep.