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WORDS FACES The patients of cannabis
About
m e d i c a l m a r i j u a n a i n i t i at i v e
MMI stands for the Medical Marijuana Initiative. Our mission is to simply provide insight about medical marijuana that patients and caregivers can use to make informed healthcare choices. We strive to provide facts, information, and testimonials that will put to rest the negative perception that marijuana is nothing more than a dangerous substance with no medical use. It’s time to rethink medical marijuana.
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For 3,000 years marijuana was a legitimate medication. -dr.
sanjay gupta
neurosurgeon
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medical marijuana Marijuana has been many things in it’s over 3,000 year history. Medicine, raw industrial material, recreational drug, schedule 1 controlled substance, and the subject of heated political debates in the United States. There are those who can benefit directly and indirectly from various forms of medicinal marijuana. See their faces, read their words.
Rethink medical marijuana.
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Jane
Amelia
Beverly
Daniel
Todd 5
Jane
My mother, Jane Schmidt, was diagnosed with Stage 4 colon cancer in November 2003 and was given about a year to live. Mom went through many surgeries and many hospitals. She caught MERSA, a flesh-eating virus, while in the hospital, so recovering from each surgery became much more complicated. Mom tolerated the first full series of chemo quite well. However, the pills she was prescribed for the vomiting cost $100 each, were only about 75% effective, took 30 minutes to start working, and were not covered by insurance. The medication did nothing at all for her dwindling appetite. Another surgery and a second series of chemo took its toll. Mom was withering away to nothing with no appetite. She suffered serious stomach sickness and found it extremely hard to stay in a positive frame of mind. That’s when a friend of my Dad’s suggested marijuana. My family will tell you that the only miracle drug for cancer is marijuana. Two puffs, two minutes, and the violent sickness was totally gone. An hour later, Mom was able to have a good meal. The stomach problems from the chemo were totally gone. It also helped her regain a quality of life that allowed her to continue to fight.
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: mncares.org
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Mom ended up living for four and a half more years. She would never have survived the second year without medical marijuana. With it, she was able to keep fighting and was even able to travel overseas before the end. In the 12 months before she died, she visited Israel, Jordan, Egypt, Mexico, Cuba, and Greece. These were all lifelong dreams that she was able to fulfill only because of medical marijuana.
When a loved one is suffering, you do whatever you can to ease her pain. There’s simply no reason that this safe, effective medicine should not be available to those who need it.
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Until our state legalizes its use, we can’t get Amelia access to the medication that could improve her quality of life.
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Amelia
Amelia was born a healthy baby, but around 18 months old she had her first seizure. Amelia did not have another seizure for almost a full year. By then she was 2 years old; walking, talking in sentences, singing her alphabet, and counting to 20. One morning my husband went to check on Amelia and found her having a seizure in her crib. By the time we got to the hospital, her seizure had stopped. It was followed a few minutes later by another seizure, and then four more. The next four months were spent in and out of three different hospitals searching for relief that we couldn’t find. We could not find anything to help control the seizures and Amelia lost the ability to talk, walk, and feed herself. With a combination of diet and two anti-epileptic medications, she was able to have a short period of being seizure free. She gained the ability to walk and talk again. I fully believed we had more control over the situation. She would be able to talk and have a full life. I felt as if my family could handle this. Unfortunately, this period of seizure control did not last. Currently, she is has 20-30 seizures a daily and lost her ability to communicate and move. Finally Amelia was diagnosed with Dravet Syndrome, a rare form of epilepsy.
source
: mncares.org
My husband and I read about parents experiencing success with CBD oil. Children who have tried this form of medical cannabis have been able to reduce their seizures giving them a chance to regain their basic motor and communication skills. Until our state legalizes its use, we can’t get Amelia access to the medication that could improve her quality of life. 9
She took two puffs, looked at me, and said, “The nausea’s gone!”
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Beverly
It was January 2007 when we found out that Beverly, my wife of 51 years, had advanced ovarian carcinoma. The prognosis was grim, but not impossible. Cancer treatment is an emotional roller coaster, but we had hope right up until the last day. After Beverly’s diagnosis, I knew plenty of uncertainty lay ahead. Beverly underwent surgery and several courses of grueling chemotherapy. She lost so much weight, literally wasting away before my eyes.
Our physician prescribed Zofran, an anti-nausea drug. But Zofran has drawbacks: it takes a while to work and must be taken every three to four hours. At $46 a pill, the bill can add up quickly and did not eliminate the nausea. Over the years I had heard that marijuana was the most helpful treatment for the nausea that accompanies chemotherapy. I put the word out in my community that we were willing to try marijuana if we could find some. A few days later, a friend left a baggie of marijuana for Beverly. I didn’t know who had left it, and I didn’t care. I wanted to do whatever I could to help my wife. I fashioned a crude pipe by drilling out a two-inch ball in my workshop and inserted a plastic straw. I put a little marijuana in it, lit it, and gave it to Beverly. She took two puffs, looked at me, and said, “The nausea’s gone!” It was miraculous. Within seconds, the nausea just disappeared. It was as prompt and as dramatic of a response to medication as I have ever seen in 30 years of practicing medicine.
source
: mncares.org 11
Daniel
On October 5, 2004, at the age of 28, our son, Daniel Milton Peterson, was diagnosed with inoperable terminal cancer, known as cholangiocarcinoma. Danny was given a death sentence of three to six months to live in October 2004. Danny was given numerous rounds of radiation and chemotherapy, which caused him to lose 60 pounds due to extreme nausea and total loss of appetite. Dan was hospitalized 15 times, for a total of 57 days, and underwent 14 surgeries. The list of pharmaceuticals he was given was lengthy, to say the least. They included Coumadin, Lovenox, Ambien, Lasix, along with a Fentanyl patch, oxycodone, and morphine for pain; for depression and anxiety, lorazepam, trazodone, and Celexa. Some of these medications caused Danny to hallucinate and behave erratically. The anti-nausea medications in particular didn’t work, leading him to the point of trying medical marijuana. It led to an immediate change in the quality of life he had left. It reduced his pain and took away his nausea and loss of appetite, which enabled him to live far beyond all projections. We were told by the oncologist that this was beyond anything he’d ever seen. During his two-year battle with cancer, Danny insisted on maintaining his landscaping business, and upholding his duties as a husband and father of four. He couldn’t have done these things without the use of medical marijuana. In summary, the use of medical marijuana by our son allowed him a much greater quality of life, with reduced pain and suffering.
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: mncares.org
After witnessing the benefits it provided to our son, my wife and I agreed that we would go to prison, if need be, to support him in the use of what is presently an illegal drug.
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To anyone with a similar injury I would say use what works.
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Todd
My name is Todd and I have a spinal cord injury at T3, that’s complete paralysis from about the mid-chest down. As a result I suffer from neurological pain. The pain is strangest type of pain you can describe. It’s like being burned or stabbed, twenty-four hours a day. It’s worse at night and not as bad during the day as long as I take my pharmaceutical medication. Nothing really seems to help. I am prescribed a number of anti-seizure medications. Some, I take for the baseline pain, but they don’t help with the flare-ups. Opiates are reserved for the flare-ups, but they don’t do much either. I currently taking Gabapentin and Neuronton, both anti-epileptic, anticonvulsants. Both very serious drugs with very serious side effects. He is currently taking their maximum dose. It’s not like you broke a bone or you cut your arm. The pain is completely different. They (pharmaceuticals) don’t seem to work with that kind of pain. Rarely, if ever, and they make you feel like you don’t want to do anything. I’ve been using cannabis medicinally for about a year. It doesn’t take the pain away completely, but much more so than any medication I have been prescribed. I function very well too. I’m lucky in that most of my flare-ups happen at night. It’s much easier to relax at night (with cannabis) than with Oxycontin or Vicodin or morphine or anything like that. It’s the best kind of medication for my type of pain that I could recommend to anybody. To anyone with a similar injury I would say use what works.
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: mncares.org 15
Jane Amelia Beverly Daniel Todd and so many more...
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It is time for a medical marijuana revolution. -dr.
sanjay gupta
neurosurgeon
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LEARN MORE Reading the stories of patients who have benefitted from marijuana is just the start. Understanding how marijuana can help you or a loved one is the next step. To learn more visit the MMI website at www.mmi.com.
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RESOURCE INDEX cover front / back •
http://www.giveforward.com/blog/wp-content/uploads/2012/12/Cancer-Patient.jpg
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http://cdn.images.express.co.uk/img/dynamic/11/590x/secondary/Cancer-patient-andnurse-524383.jpg
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http://www.cureyourowncancer.org/uploads/1/1/6/9/11695594/6281272.jpg?276
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http://www.colorlines.com/sites/default/files/styles/article_lead_normal/public/ images/articles/2011/02/quelinoojedajimenez021411.jpg?itok=2ctRnyNM
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Top image: http://www.offthegridnews.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/03/child-hospital-bed-imgkidDOTcom.jpg
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Top image: http://www.colorlines.com/sites/default/files/styles/article_lead_normal/ public/images/articles/2011/02/quelinoojedajimenez021411.jpg?itok=2ctRnyNM
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Bottom image: https://www.scripps.org/sparkle-assets/images/hi_res_spine-and-backinjury-treatment-1300x800.jpg
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http://wallarthd.com/imagepics/free-leaf-macro-wallpaper-background-9817.html
content for all testimonials and quotes were sourced from the following resources: •
Testimonials: mncares.org
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Dr. Gupta quotes Page 3 + 17: Altered State Exhibit, Oakland Museum of California
RETHINK
MEDICAL MARIJUANA
m e d i c a l m a r i j u a n a i n i t i at i v e to learn more visit www.mmi.com
designed by monica arellano