Should MM Be Your First Treatment?

[dontmesswithmrwest]

I've recently been diagnosed and put on Pred. I got off it when it made me suicidal and have started taking kratom in the short-term to allow myself to "function" (stand up for more than 10 seconds without falling over).

The first treatment option wasn't exactly pleasant (as many of you know all too well) so unsurpisingly I've read a ton on using MM as treatment.

I haven't talked to my GI yet about treatment and I'm assuming she has no knowledge of MM anyways (non MM state).

My question is, can I use MM as my first treatment and see how I respond from there or do you recommend taking other drugs first?

Also, is it common to solely use MM or do most people have to combine it with other drugs?

Thanks guys and gals!:ybiggrin:

 

[Nym]

Hi, this a copy/paste of mine from another thread:

My ex grew some (2003) in the backyard, hung it upside down in the shed to dry. He used all the stalks, leaf to make cannabutter. This was my first time ever experiencing edible cannabis ( had smoke it here and there previous). With the butter I made biscuits. I had been in hospital with a flare up and was on high doses of prednisone and Imuran at the time.

Each night I had a biscuit and fell asleep. Within a week I was walking the dog and felt great but put it down to the prednisone. And because I was so overwrought about being tagged a 'stoner' I gave up my nightly biscuit, bagging them and tossing them in the crisper of my fridge. By 2007 I'd had 2 abscess / fistula surgeries. Then I read an article in the SFGate about Crohn's patients being treated with 1 joint per day.

Well, those biscuits came out of the cripser that night! They smelled absolutely awful but I dunked one in tea, forced myself to swallow it and fell asleep pretty soon thereafter. The following night I had 1/2 a biscuit, then a 1/4 the following night - this was the perfect dose. When the biscuits ran out I sourced homegrown male plants from a local and now vape once each evening. Still going good so far. I would never vape or consume indoor grown plants of any description.

Full discussion: http://www.crohnsforum.com/showthread.php?t=18359&page=37

 

[FrancisK7]

Cannabinoid therapy is a lifelong treatment, much like 5-ASA, immunomodulators or biologics are. You can certainly adopt it as a first line of treatment (in my experience it is far more effective than 5-ASA which is what we were given at first here).

However there are a few things you must consider.

1- You must ensure you have access to a steady supply of medicine without taking out a second mortgage to afford that supply. I can legally grow my supply in Canada. Passed the initial capital investment for the equipment, it costs me around $40/month to grow my medicine, and I can grow special strains that are more adapted to my needs (such as a higher CBD content, or a ratio of CBD:THC that may help reduce or eliminate the high completely). If growing in your state or area is not legal, it's possible to grow stealthily in a space as small as 2x2, without any emanating odor or light.

2-THC and CBD are effective at treating inflammation, that's why they work so well, but they make you high, which becomes an undesirable side effect for people like you and me. As you surmised this means a couple of adjustments will be necessary in your schedule. When you're in remission, a single intake before bed will suffice to maintain that remission, so you could sleep through the high and have your daily schedule completely unaffected. If you are flaring and are using MMJ for palliative purposes as well (such as treating the acute pain on-demand with a vaporizer or a tincture you ingest sublingually) then you may need to space out your cannabinoid intake to every 4h (or even less if you are bleeding a lot) which means you would have to face the high. The good news is that over time you will form a resistance to the high to the point where if your daily intake of cannabinoids remains the same (say 100mg of THC and 25mg of CBD every day) you may not feel ANY high at all after some months, but the anti-inflammation benefits will continue to work unhindered.

At the very least you could use MMJ on the short term to get you back on your feet (replacing the pred essentially, since it's only given for acute flairs nowadays) while your GI and you figure out a long-term treatment approach.

Surely you were given something other than pred to take alongside it?

 

[dontmesswithmrwest]

Cannabinoid therapy is a lifelong treatment, much like 5-ASA, immunomodulators or biologics are. You can certainly adopt it as a first line of treatment (in my experience it is far more effective than 5-ASA which is what we were given at first here).

However there are a few things you must consider.

1- You must ensure you have access to a steady supply of medicine without taking out a second mortgage to afford that supply. I can legally grow my supply in Canada. Passed the initial capital investment for the equipment, it costs me around $40/month to grow my medicine, and I can grow special strains that are more adapted to my needs (such as a higher CBD content, or a ratio of CBD:THC that may help reduce or eliminate the high completely). If growing in your state or area is not legal, it's possible to grow stealthily in a space as small as 2x2, without any emanating odor or light.

2-THC and CBD are effective at treating inflammation, that's why they work so well, but they make you high, which becomes an undesirable side effect for people like you and me. As you surmised this means a couple of adjustments will be necessary in your schedule. When you're in remission, a single intake before bed will suffice to maintain that remission, so you could sleep through the high and have your daily schedule completely unaffected. If you are flaring and are using MMJ for palliative purposes as well (such as treating the acute pain on-demand with a vaporizer or a tincture you ingest sublingually) then you may need to space out your cannabinoid intake to every 4h (or even less if you are bleeding a lot) which means you would have to face the high. The good news is that over time you will form a resistance to the high to the point where if your daily intake of cannabinoids remains the same (say 100mg of THC and 25mg of CBD every day) you may not feel ANY high at all after some months, but the anti-inflammation benefits will continue to work unhindered.

At the very least you could use MMJ on the short term to get you back on your feet (replacing the pred essentially, since it's only given for acute flairs nowadays) while your GI and you figure out a long-term treatment approach.

Surely you were given something other than pred to take alongside it?

I just now remembered to check this thread. This is a great answer so I don't think it's bad to bump it.

I had to take pred again when I ended in the hospital and luckily it seemed to affect me differently. No suicidal thoughts. Granted, I only slept for 14 hours in a period of 11 days at points, but I could still stay on it .

I'm coming off the stuff + already started on Remicade. My stuffed monkey, George, has recently started smoking marijuana before bed on a daily basis. Do Growing is too risky right now, but he has a good source.

Don't think I'm in remission, but so far so good. I haven't felt this good in a half a year.

Probably going to move to Denver when my lease is up. No real ties here now that I've quite partying for the most part (moving away from it even before crohns).

Unfourtunately no, my GI didn't give me anything else besides pred. She was terrible and I switched.

Edit: Also, if anyone's interested, I haven't burned kratom in a month or so. As I suspected, while it's great for symptoms, it doesn't seem to treat the disease itself (or only has a slight beneficial effect).

I'll probably start burning it again once I'm off pred - for energy if nothing else - maybe not daily anymore though.