Marijuana and PTSD: Give the Joy of Life a Chance

By John Grant

With great lawyers you have

Discussed lepers and crooks.

You've been through all of

F. Scott Fitzgerald's books.

You're very well read

It's well known.

But something is happening here

And you don't know what it is

Do you, Mister Jones?

- Bob Dylan, Ballad of a Thin Man

Every once in a while a news story pops up that makes you laugh because it opens up a window on an absurdity of modern life. In this case, the absurdity involves two major national issues: Helping war-stressed combat veterans cope with life back home and the 40-year-old War On Drugs.

The New York Times reported recently that a group of researchers want to launch a study on the benefits of marijuana for Iraq and Afghanistan combat veterans who suffer Post Traumatic Stress Disorder. The question looming over the study is will its designers be able to get over the hurdles presented by a stubborn federal government mired in the Drug War.

The Times reported on an Iraq veteran in Texas suffering from a leg wound and several head injuries who told them “marijuana helped quiet his physical and psychological pain, while not causing weight loss and sleep deprivation brought on by his prescription medications” It seems the "munchies" can be beneficial to someone facing loss of appetite and emaciation.

“ ‘I have seen it with my own eyes,’ he said. ‘It works for a lot of the guys coming home.’ ”

I know a number of Vietnam and Iraq veterans who use marijuana. From this very unscientific survey it seems quite plausible that marijuana could be scientifically shown to bring a sense of calmness and pleasantness into a life burdened with harsh combat memories. One vet who uses it fairly frequently says it helps him concentrate on creative matters. He’s not sure how much it helps his PTSD, which, he feels, is a matter of effectively addressing the issues causing the PTSD. But in his case, marijuana is a responsible positive in his life.

Another veteran who has used marijuana off and on for decades sees its usage as positive for balancing out life’s frustrations and difficulties. But it can be abused. “Too much of the stuff and it will make you stupid,” he said. “What’s important is to 'understand thyself,' then come to an understanding what effects, good and bad, marijuana has for you.”

All it takes is listening to the incredible litany of horrific warnings about the side effects of legal pharmaceuticals in current TV advertisements to understand what he means. Everything can be abused and different people react to different things in different ways. The difference between legal drugs and illegal drugs is simple: One is legal and designed by corporations to make money, while the other has been deemed illegal and, thus, is distributed by a criminalized class that makes the profits...

For the rest of this article by JOHN GRANT in ThisCantBeHappening!, the new independent alternative online newspaper, please go to: www.thiscantbehappening.net/node/709