"Smoking pot won't make you crazy, but trying to find the truth behind the recent rash of headlines regarding a supposed link between cannabis and mental illness might."

-- Paul Armentano of NORML and Mitch Earleywine, marijuana researcher, in The Huffington Post. They responded to recent headlines suggesting that a new study shows that smoking marijuana can increase a person's risk of psychosis.

FACT: The "new study," published in the Lancet, was actually a meta-analysis of seven past studies, some of which were many years old. In addition, the investigators concluded that the small connection between marijuana and psychosis did not reflect a causal relationship.  

Here's Nurse Brenda's take on this linking of cannabis use with psychosis.......

The study itself should hold no credibility. I wouldn't have been able to use this article for anything in nursing school.

The following is information that I have gathered myself, with no official research having  been done to support my hypothesis. In other words, this is just my opinion, folks. 

Cannabis use CAN cause mental difficulties, just not the type of difficulties you are thinking of.

Think of the number of people who have found out for themselves that cannabis is spiritually or physically beneficial to them, but they haven't learned the truth the way that we know it. Maybe they are afraid, as I once was, to visit the websites that have the truthful information, for fear of alerting some kind of governmental watchdog group, thus inviting a visit to their home by the cops.

I was in nursing school, with access to the medical library and all the published journal articles were available to me. However, I was afraid to research them for the same fear I mentioned above. The visit to our home in September 2006 by the local police was actually a blessing. The fear of being caught was taken away, so I allowed myself to learn the "whole" truth.

But I digress.....back to the mental difficulties.

You've seen or heard those job ads that say "this is a drug-free workplace." Most companies, due to insurance requirements, have this policy in place. So if you are planning to get a job with a company that has insurance, you must submit to and pass a drug screening.

What kinds of jobs are left for those who won't pass these tests? You know the answer to this one, don't you? Gardeners, construction workers, maids, waiters, waitresses, etc, etc. You know, the lowest paid jobs.

So, here's what life is like.....There are many possible scenerios, but I'll focus on the two extremes.

1. You have the spiritual and medical properties of the safest substance known to man, but you have to hide it. You can probably cheat a drug test to get a "real job", but you still feel like you are forced to be deceitful all in the name of money. You have the nice car, the nice house, and the kids aren't really doing without anything. You light up with select friends just to know that you aren't the only one in your social class doing it. But the whole while, you still believe you are doing something fundamentally wrong. And this bleeds over into the other areas of your life too. If you are walking around feeling like you are doing something wrong, will you not feel as thought the bad things that happen to you are your "punishment"? Are you really enjoying your life, or are you a slave to your fear?

2. You also have the spiritual and medical properties of the safest substance known to man, but you don't hide it as much. Most of your friends light up, so there's no fear of social backlash. You don't even try to cheat a drug test. You readily accept that your place in the world involves making a living performing physical labor. You don't know many people who went to college. You wouldn't even concieve of the idea that cops, lawyers, judges, doctors, nurses, and other people with "higher education" even think about using cannabis. You feel as though your children really are doing without, due to financial issues. All the while, mass media is telling you that you are doing this to yourself by using cannabis. You walk around feeling as though you are doing something wrong. Are you really enjoying your life, or are you a slave to your finances?

Why does group number 2 not know about group number 1? Because group number 1's typically hire a lawyer and take a plea bargain when they are caught. Group number 1's are so fearful of a fall from grace that they are sacrificing those in group number 2. How is that? Group number 2's don't have the financial resources to hire good lawyers to stand up for their rights. Group number 1 has the resources, but they are too afraid to use them.

What am I trying to ultimately get at here?

Okay, here goes.....

The people who use cannabis without knowing the truth are slaves to their fears.

So, yes I believe that using cannabis without knowing the absolute truth about it does cause mental difficulties. But they're fear-induced, not cannabis-induced.

And the only thing "wrong" with cannabis is that it is illegal. That's all.

Later,
Brenda